Ace Combat: Broken Line (IC/Open)

by **Rupudska** » Sat Feb 20, 2016 3:43 pm

Five Frogfoots left, one Sidewinder left. Even if she were careful, air-to-ground pilots weren't stupid, and even if they were their planes were too nimble to try to take two out with one missile. The Flankers were also a threat, at least to the allied squadrons in the air, but they would likely back off if the planes they were escorting were taken out.

One Sidewinder left. Four Frogfoots left, with Shark blasting one out of the sky with a Sidewinder of his own. An SAM gained interest in Hound as she searched the sky for an open and easy target.

One Sidewinder left. Two Frogfoots left, off of her nose, with Arrow having taken out two in a short amount of time.

<<Nice kills, Arrow. I'll take out the remaining tw- one, the remaining one Frogfoot.>> Even as she prepared to lock onto it, Wulf took out one of the two remaining attack aircraft. The other, clearly spooked, turned hard and seemed intent on leaving the battlefield.

But it had done its damage, and Hound wasn't going to let it.

Locking on was easy enough. It tried to maneuver to escape, but even a nugget knew that an Su-25 stood no chance in a dogfight against a Falcon.

<<Hound, Fox Two.>>

The missile dropped from her wingtip. Just before it impacted the tail, the pilot ejected, his chute drifting in the air as he dropped towards an empty field.

<<This is Hound, I am Winchester. I will make a short attack run, then RTB.>>

She turned north, then rolled inverted and half-looped down to almost treetop level. Ahead were a few trucks and cargo vehicles. She opened fire with her guns, getting a good second/second and a half or so of bullets out before pulling up and away out of the CZ. Judging by the sound of explosions behind her, she may have even hit a few of them.

1x Su-25
3x G-Vehicle
1x G-Cargo

by **Kassaran** » Sat Feb 20, 2016 8:08 pm

Lieutenant Markus 'Pops' Pearsohn
Callsign Praeses, Morena 2-3
The Battle of Chuzhou, 100 km South of Chuzhou, Seian

It had taken him less than two minutes to begin his landing approach for the relief airfield, but the descent perhaps was even more harrowing than the approach. He'd been communicating almost non-stop with Ground-Control for the last two minutes, pushing for the last little bits of space he could afford as he pushed the envelope, struggling to make it back in time. Gloved hands tensed on the fly-by-wire stick, restraining himself from any movements that would send the craft into an unstable landing trajectory. This would have to be micro-managed to the last moment and to the last possible inch. He couldn't afford a screw-up here, not with the stakes at play.

Wheels slammed into the tarmac as he came to his landing roll, the large craft almost stalling as it had touched down on stilt-like wheels, rolling fast for the edge of the makeshift runway that the highway was, tense and praying it would hold out for a little longer as his craft's mammoth weight pressed down on it without mercy. Brakes could be heard to be applied generously as the craft came to a stop just thirty meters past the initial stop-point. Ground control was reading slow-movers inbound alongside the other interceptor pilot pushing for the landing zone, but they'd arrive just after his reloading process. Quickly thumbing out the munitions racks for the current munitions he had, he began to communicate with the ground crew as to the craft and whether it was reading the new munitions as they were being loaded.

The Arrow had been a supersonic interceptor when it had been initially designed and yet the price one paid for such high-technology was a degree of complexity regardless of age beyond. Praeses was an old bird and she'd served her rider well for the ten or so years he'd been flying her. Now though, he needed her to be at the top of her game and listening as the ground crew went over the basic armament procedures for each missile, he slammed his gloved hand yet once more into the dash before him. Time, it was burning up as he just sat here and waited, but engines at idle and no fuel to be given left him at easily cutting down the time for rearmament.

Then it came, the world seemed to shake and shudder as a new report came in and Praeses pushed the throttle open, missiles secured and loaded. He was back in business and just in the nick of time too as he heard In his absence, another of the new pilots he'd been flying alongside had been killed. Shot down, no parachute. Cursing the bastards from Beiarusia, he felt the weight of the craft accelerate as it responded to his input, less than twenty seconds later he was in the air and beginning his turn back in towards the combat zone. Ground forces were retreating, but the Frogfoots were wrecking havoc on what little allied armor remained and with almost all air-support used up, it was of little consequence to the retreating Beiarusians to inflict a last word. From the sounds of things though, a flight of reinforcements was inbound fast, and things were shifting in the favor of the mercenaries from Morena and the allied fighters they'd served alongside.

Empire of Donner land wrote:2nd Lieutenant Amabel Allard
"Knot"
<< la nécessité! I've got a Fargo on my six, get him off! >>

<< About fucking time you all showed up! >>

Knot, the new ace was in dire straits with a Mig locked onto her tail. Not a single person in a position to help her as Praeses noted the wounded and retreating Voodoo making a run for safety. There was something of a problem to be had in being an Arrow pilot though as Praeses couldn't help but notice the issue arising quickly. They were both maneuvering hard, lost in the merge and regardless of what he could do from distance, it wouldn't be enough to ensure he didn't suddenly friendly-fire on Knot. To that extent, he was left with only one option and it was the option that had almost gotten him killed not a week earlier. He had to go into the scrum. Hands on the throttle as he pushed past Mach 2, he felt the craft shuddering at the weight of the world now bearing down on it. This was personal.

<<Knot, Break Left! Hard!>>

There wasn't any time to think as he came flying out of what might as well been outerspace, tearing a hole in the air behind him as he pushed the envelope of the Arrow and entered the upper limits of the furball now erupting just over the battlefield. Smoke and dust intermingled with the night-time air as he watched the emblems before him suddenly become clearer on his radar. There. Two heat signals also now appearing, he was tracking hard, and the IFF of Amabel's craft suddenly winked into existence as he began to ask if she had heard him. It didn't matter, he had his target and it was just behind her.

<<Praeses, Fox Two!>>

The Falcon leapt off of the rail within his internal bay, but immediately went stupid as he watched the white arc of smoke suddenly drop off below his nose and into the battlefield somewhere below. Down there was a desert critter having one hell of a bad day, but it didn't matter as Praeses armed the second AIM-4.

<<Praeses, first Fox went stupid, firing again! Fox Two!>>

This one had been placed properly and immediately began tracking, the heat-seeking head quickly finding its quarry and maneuvering to reach it as the Fargo on Knot's tail drove for the ground. The craft was small and agile and nimble, and yet the Falcon managed to track the missile through the dive as it quickly closed the distance. Fire streaking through the night sky, he was closing quick and the three mile distance from which he'd fired before had now shrunk to less than five hundred meters as he entered within his final striking distance. The Fargo was suddenly at his nose and thirty-millimeter rounds flew up and over his canopy as it attempted a hot-pass on him off of the Arrow's nose at the four-hundred meter mark.

Slamming the stick down, Praeses immediately regretted it as he felt his head suddenly get fuzzy and his eyes filled with red color as every ounce of blood in his toes emptied themselves up into his legs and likewise into his chest and finally his brain. He'd flown upsides down before, but nothing like the negative g's he was feeling now as the nose buried itself into the night and sped for the ground. Slamming the stick back, darkness replaced the red ten times faster as his skin and head lit aflame, or at least felt it. Blood draining from the skin of his face, he could feel himself losing feeling in his feet and his fingertips as the g-quit attempted to compensate for the violent maneuvering. Nothing could have made Praeses happier now than to be in some whorehouse in Seian he thought ruefully... instead he was out here battling a bunch of assholes in the night.

His distracted thinking almost took his mind off of what was happening as he heard the Arrow once again light up something in front of him. He paused in his seat as the growling tone of the radar tracking something off of his nose and without thinking, he pressed the fire button again as something bolted past him in the night. His stomach churning as he continued to pull back, he felt his blood yet again shift as a terrible groaning sound filled the craft and looking up into the stars he thought he could see, for a brief moment he saw a face. She was still beautiful, he thought as he blacked out.

Outside the Arrow, a tremendous explosion sounded as the Fargo somehow ended up overshooting the Arrow. In his panic, Praeses had nose the craft over and the negative g's had killed his energy faster than anyone could have guessed, but even more important came the next part as he'd pulled up. Looping up high and over on what he'd figured to be a retreating Arrow, burning for the distance, the Ace pilot had instead come to see something that was rare and perhaps to a level impossible as the nearly thirty-year-old airframe suddenly tilted upwards, the speed lost in the sudden negative-g maneuver had allowed for gain in the form of a major maneuverability boost as the massive wing-frame bore the brunt of the sudden pitching maneuver. The pilot within the Arrow had by this time lost all sensation of the world outside his own mind and yet somehow against all odds managed to arm a third and final missile as he'd tried to push out of the engagement.

Now, jousting in the vertical as the Fargo bore down in the upright position and the Arrow in upwards and inverted, the two ancients of the cold war between Yuktobania and Eastern neighbors faced off in an engagement they'd never been meant for. The modernized Fargo had every advantage save for one in the sudden duel as yet again the Arrow found itself in the disadvantage with but one tool to its own benefit. A flashing of light, the sudden streak of a missile across the darkness as the Arrow pilot in his last waking moments fired out of spite for the Fargo pilot, and in similar spite so too did the Mig fire. But in a battle against time, only one round was fired between the two craft before they shot past one another and bright flashings of light could be seen from several miles away across the young night sky.

The third and final missile fired yet again in the battle had been what had remained on the rails from before. Designed for battle against bombers in the head-on, the AIM-26B flew indeed straight and true at the craft facing it head on. The pilot of the Mig-9 had but a single thought as flame engulfed his canopy and spewed hot crimson blazes across his Fargo's wings. Both pilots and planes suddenly came to the startling realization not a second later that indeed they were both alive, the massive fireball in the sky having been indeed created by the missile's detonation, but not as it had impacted with the plane, but rather the thirty-millimeter cannon round fired.

It didn't matter though as the Mig-9 pilot's engine flamed out alongside the Arrow's as the heated gases from the explosion lead to the inevitable starving of oxygen from the engines as both craft had pushed through the flaming mess left by the high-explosives loaded in the AIM-26. Drifting in their own respective directions as the Arrow righted itself, the two pilots decided they'd had enough of one another and broke off to save their losses. Within a minute, the Fargo, still drifting on it's original speed gained in the dive managed to restart its engine over its own lines and made for the safety of the cover of it's own SAMs where it could make its escape. The Arrow however remained silent as it drifted on, engines failing to reignite as the craft dropped lower and lower to the steppe floor.

by **Mikoyansk** » Sat Feb 20, 2016 10:37 pm

Lt Vasili "Arrow" Vostrokov and 2Lt Yuri "Flash" Voskovich

<<"Hound, Arrow, good kill. The chickenshit punched out before your missile even hit.">>

Arrow glanced over at Hound's aircraft, she seemed to be out of external ordnance. It wasn't really surprising considering she's been blowing things up left and right all day but it was a surprise that she stayed in the airspace.

<<This is Hound, I am Winchester. I will make a short attack run, then RTB.>>

Huh...that's why. Arrow observed the attack run and it's rather spectacular results.

<<"Arrow for Hound, confirming three dead vehicles and a cargo truck. That truck must have had munitions on it or something, thing went up like a Christmas tree.">>

Arrow then pulled his aircraft up and power climbed to 30,000 feet and started looking for his next target.

<<Flash, turn on the search set, find me a target for the lonely Sparrows.>>

The AN/APQ-120 radar in the nose of the Phantom switched on and almost immediately there was an aircraft in front of his own and IFF interrogation quickly told him that it was a hostile one.

<<Hey boss, it's a Flanker!>>

Flash had spoken up from the back seat, confirming what Arrow had believed. Nothing else would be this high up...but was he alone?

<<Flash, take a look around us, you see anything else? I can't believe one of these guys would be sitting here alone.>>

<<Nope, he's alone. Looks like he's going away from us too.>>

<<Well ok then, lock him up.>>

The Flanker almost instantly turned on his burners and started to turn into Arrow, actually broadening his own silhouette on the radar.

<<Arrow, Fox One!>>

The AIM-7 Sparrow dropped out of its recess below the belly of the Phantom and streaked off into the night towards the now head-on Flanker. The pilot was popping chaff as he charged towards Arrow, either blissfully unaware of the missile now streaking towards his aircraft or ignoring it for some reason. Nevertheless, the chaff worked and the missile passed underneath the Flanker. Arrow wasn't having any of it though.

<<Arrow, first Fox trashed, Fox One again!>>

Another Sparrow dropped from its recess and raced off for the Flanker. This time, the Flanker driver pitched his aircraft up and into full afterburn, into a Pugachev's Cobra and dodging the missile...Arrow couldn't help but wonder what this squadron's obsession was with that maneuver. Regardless, the Cobra gave him the time he needed to do a little damage to the aircraft. He took aim at the exposed belly of the Flanker.

<<Arrow, guns, guns, guns!

The half second burst burned a little more than half of the remaining ammunition Arrow had in his Vulcan, but the burst accomplished exactly what he wanted. In that burst, the Flanker had its tail torn to ribbons and its right engine didn't take too kindly to the intrusion of several dozen 20mm rounds into its workings, showing its disapproval in a poof of unburned jet fuel that was ignited by the left engine.

Arrow bolted under the Flanker and pulled into a loop. As expected, the Flanker pilot dropped his nose in a vain attempt to gain speed and use his remaining engine to bug out. The Phantom completed its loop and rolled on to the Flanker's tail.

<<Arrow, Fox Two!>>

The Sidewinder shot off the rail on the port side of the aircraft and headed for the Flanker. The pilot popped flares, but it seemed he didn't have as many left as he'd thought. The Sidewinder sailed up the remaining tailpipe of the Flanker and shredded what was left of the aircraft. As Arrow pulled out and high, he saw the pilot pop the canopy and eject.

<<Arrow, splash one Flanker!>>

He took a look around his aircraft, seeing if the Flanker had a wingman out there somewhere. It was unusual that a plane like that was on his own over a combat zone. Oh well, guess he was a rookie pilot or not rather smart.

<<Arrow for Hound, I'll cover your RTB. Splashed a Flanker and I've got two pairs left on my plane.>>

Total Mission Kills:
4x Tanks
2x Su-25 Frogfoot
1x Su-27 Flanker

Remaining Ordnance:
2x AIM-9M
2x AIM-7
200x 20mm rounds

by **Beiarusia** » Sun Feb 21, 2016 12:04 am

Capt. Aleksei Tallow “Null”
Highway 3, 50km south of Chuzhou, Seian

“What… what just happened?”

Angel’s question hung in the air, Null being unable to give her an answer. It was hard to tell in the growing darkness but Praeses had engaged the enemy Fargo, pushing his aircraft beyond what it should have been capable of and, somehow, forcing the enemy Ace into a draw. The same Ace that had taken on both Angel and Knot without much difficulty. The CF-105, by all accounts, should have been shot down, and yet, through either skill or luck or some combination thereof, Praeses had bested the enemy pilot in a way that was unlikely to be repeated.

Baron-2: << We’re done here. All aircraft, return to base. >>

Enemy-A: << But… >>

Baron-2: << I said we’re done. >>

The Flankers didn’t argue and were soon disengaging, pushing north and back towards Chuzhou, the glow of their afterburners fading into the night sky as they left the AO.

Despite the odds the battle had been won. The allied battalion had suffered extensive damage, to the point of being combat ineffective, but the line had been held and the enemy advance broken. Ansan was safe.

Kokkuri: << Enemy is retreating! We did it! >>

Tokugawa: << That’s right. Run! Aha! >>

The radio erupted into thunderous cheering as the allies celebrated their victory. It was a long and hard battle, but in the end a superior force had been defeated, a clear sign that the allies would not submit without a fight. A declaration that this war was far from over. The enemy would not soon forget this humiliation.

Angel: << Natsuko… >>

Angel’s voice was nearly lost to the sounds of celebration.

Tokugawa: << Is that…? >>

The Voodoo was coming back around after a lazy arc across the southern sector. It was too dark now for visual but the F-15’s of Mononoke were now being highlighted on the HUD, the powerful aircraft having joined Jiangshi as the allied fighters prepared to RTB. Angel was about to respond when Null interrupted.

“Praeses hasn’t said anything.”

Angel glanced over her shoulder as best she could. “That’s not like him. He should’ve been the first one to yell out, or at the very least the loudest.”

Null agreed.

Null: << Morena One-one to Praeses. Come in. Over. >>

Several seconds passed before Null repeated the hail. He identified the CF-105 on radar, tracking the interceptor as it continued to lose altitude in a slow arc without so much as attempting to adjust course, a heading that hadn’t been touched since the engagement with the enemy Fargo. The Arrow had pulled off some insane maneuvering and Null could only suspect the worse. He motioned for Angel to bring them closer while he radioed to all friendly aircraft.

Null: << Praeses is unresponsive. Moving to confirm. >>

The Voodoo quickly closed the distance and was soon pulling up alongside the Arrow. It was difficult to tell in the darkness but the pilot, Praeses, did not appear to be moving, likely having blacked out due to the extreme G-forces pulled during his stunt. Worse, the twin engines were offline and the aircraft was quickly dropping altitude, its glide only capable of keeping it aloft for so long before it would falter completely. At that point there would be little chance of a recovery. Morena had already lost two aircraft and was soon to lose a third.

Angel: << Praeses! Wake up! >>

No response.

“What do we do?” Angel asked, panic in her voice.

Tokugawa: << What is it? Mitsuko! >>

An F-15 soon joined the two aircraft, flying opposite the Voodoo and on the far side of Praeses. Not that there was much either could do. They could continue to hail Pearsohn over the radio, but the Arrow pilot may well have been alone. The best that anyone could hope for was that he would come to.

“We need to wake him up,” Null said rather grimly, keeping a close eye on the altimeter.

Angel shook her head. “Yeah, but how?”

Null thought for a moment. Calling out on the radio wasn’t doing much if anything. Maybe, just maybe, something else would work. “Pull behind him.”

Angel didn’t question it and soon slowed the Voodoo so that it could slip in place behind the CF-105. Null quickly adjusted the aircraft’s IFF settings, disengaging friendly tags so that he could paint the aircraft ahead of them with the F-101’s radar. Rather quickly they achieved missile lock-on. Warning alarms would no doubt be sounding within the Arrow’s cockpit. Pearsohn was a pilot, so maybe this would get his attention.

Null could only hope as the ground continued to draw closer.

by **Kassaran** » Sun Feb 21, 2016 2:51 am

Missile lock-on tones blared through Praeses' helmet as the craft began to report it's malfunction, thumbing open the chaff, he jammed the stick right, but no avail as the craft refused to respond, airflow now having dropped to well within the stall limit of the still somehow airborne craft. It took him an additional second to realize why he was at that point, the engines both reading at zero RPM's as the craft was on final glide trajectory for a very rough landing in the open wilderness of Seian. At least, it should have been as a gloved hand smashed into the instrument panel and began flipping switches and pressing buttons as fast as they could come to mind.

"C'mon, c'mon old girl. Not now, not now! We got some asshole on our tail and no way to escape, c'mon!" A sudden kick as the engines gained what little power they needed to start spinning again and within seconds Praeses could feel the seat warming up underneath him as it pressed into his lower back and pushed him forward with his Arrow. A strange creaking and groaning sound now seemed to echo through the craft as something apparently had been wrenched from its correct position into a less than desirable orientation. It didn't matter, all that mattered now was the pilot sitting scared stiff in his seat and feeling the worst possible headache he'd ever had the displeasure of having.

<<Praeses requesting help! I got some bastard on my tail! I'm unable to maneuver, I repeat, I'm unable to maneuver!>>

The panic in his voice was more than audible as he came back to his senses to realize what was happening around him. The fifth or sixth largest air battle he'd ever been in, he'd just been facing off a Fargo when he'd mis-maneuvered and blacked out, but how did the engines go out? What had happened to him? What had happened to anyone? How long had he been gliding, how long had he been out? Was the battle won or lost?

by **Relikai** » Sun Feb 21, 2016 4:12 am

Second Lieutenants Shimazaki Haruna 'Shinden, Kanzaki Yuria 'Reppu'.
Seian

"We're RTB." Reppu called as the Bronco saw the group of allied planes coming towards them.

"No point being a bomb hazard." Shinden said, arming and toggling all five bombs away from the attacker. "Confirmed explosions, five. What a waste huh."

"A waste is, but only if we go back and one of these explode under our carriage. It's like one of those planes during my time as a pilot... Wanted to quicken his turnabout, so he and the ground crew ignored their safety procedures. In the end, the missile's motor circuits malfunctioned, the AIM-9 never left it's rail, and exploded, tearing both wing and pilot before Control could come up with the next course of action. One F-16A lost, but what's worst was a promising pilot, someone's child, a son of Seian." Reppu said as she remembered a nugget in a trainee squadron. Even if it was a new technical fault, it still cost the life of a human, a price irreversible, compensation unattainable by monetary means.

"Hey, isn't that Praeses?" Shinden spoke into the comms as she tracked a large interceptor... gliding... No plane of that size should be moving at such a speed, or losing altitude in that manner. Only the build of the plane, with its large bulky wings, prevented it from going into a direct spin down to Strangereal. Hearing all that chatter, Shinden was reminded of her first combat sortie, when she lost her own electronics due to a missile. Could it be...

"Reppu, bring the Bronco ahead of the 105. Full speed, keep her slightly lower..."

Disengaging her seatbelt, Shinden turned back to face the cockpit of the large interceptor. Against the evening dusk, when darkness soon threatened to envelop the squadron, Shinden took out her powerful SAR flashlight, and began to flash out a light signal to the pilot. To Shinden, Praeses was the first pilot other than those in her Flight to approach her, the one who was there when she was brought out of her Thunderstreak, when she was wounded on her first sortie.

[[ THE BATTLE IS OVER. YOU ARE IN THE CLEAR. ]] Shinden flashed repeatedly, hoping that the Arrow has a flashlight in it's compartment, which every pilot should have for use in their survival kit. Shinden has opted for SAR, thus her Bronco, a plane capable of such operations, has a larger version onboard.

[[ RESPOND IF YOU SEE THIS. THE BATTLE IS OVER. CAN YOU SEE THIS. YOU ARE IN THE CLEAR. RESPOND IF YOU SEE THIS... ]]

"Come on..." Shinden whispered, with Reppu maintaining their altitude and speed with a hand on the joystick, ready to break immediately if there was a change in the interceptor's speed.

by **Tayner** » Sun Feb 21, 2016 9:01 am

Second Lieutenant Dan
Gunny

Gunny returned to the battle space, only to discover that the battle was over, with the enemy running with their tail between their legs. Although he missed out on the last part of the battle, he showed up just in time for the celebration. The remaining allied ground forces were cheering because they narrowly beat the enemy forces. Although they were mainly combat ineffective, they would live to fight another day. "Well joker, battle's won and the day is done, shall we head home?" Dan asked.

"Don't see why not. Most of Morena is done here, wait..." Joker said as he listened into the radio chatter.

Null: << Morena One-one to Praeses. Come in. Over. >>

The first hail went unanswered, unnerving Joker and Gunny. Yet another Morena pilot would fall victim to this battle.

Null: << Praeses is unresponsive. Moving to confirm. >>

Angel: << Praeses! Wake up! >>

<< Praeses requesting help! I got some bastard on my tail! I'm unable to maneuver, I repeat, I'm unable to maneuver. >>

"Oh thank god, he's alright." Joker said. "But why is he freaking out?"

"Null must've locked him to set off the alarms in his cockpit. Kind of smart, but a shitty wake up call." Gunny replied.

Gunny: << Praeses, calm down, it's just Null trying to wake you up. You're good, and the battle is over. You okay? >>

by **SaintB** » Sun Feb 21, 2016 9:34 am

Time didn't seem to have any meaning as Shark and the Flanker dueled in the skies over the battlefield. The battle was all but over but the two pilots continued to engage each other knowing that to disengage would possibly mean the death of them. The Flanker was supermaneuverable, capable of quick moves that left Garret's head feel like it was spinning but it wasn't designed for a turn and burn fight that Garret kept trying to force the Flanker into and so far neither of the two had gained enough of an upper hand to get a shot on the other. The fighting was taking place at only a few hundred meters, which let Garret see that this Flanker's pilot had something to prove up here in the skies; emblazoned in yellow were four kill markers on the side of the aircraft's intake and he knew that this guy was trying for his fifth kill, and his ribbon. The Tigershark's 16 markers didn't seem to perturb the pilot of the Su-27 who would have to have seen them by this point and so they continued to twirl and whirl through the sky like two Olympian grapplers trying to push the other into a pin or submission.

The radio and the battle were all but forgotten as he vied for position. The better pilot versus the better aircraft dueling to the death in sky with the only sound he could hear being the blood pumping in his ears and the occasional beep from his avionics as he very nearly got another firing solution yet again, or the enemy very nearly got one on him. This back and forth battle seemed to have lasted hours but he knew it couldn't have been more than minutes. So involved in the idea of kill or be killed the two aircraft had drifted out of the AO, somewhere to the west of where the battle was taking place. From the occasional glimpse in his canopy he saw the lights of what might have been a town beneath them as they struggled. He was starting to get fatigued and frustrated... 7 years ago he single handedly took on and shot down an aircraft twice as capable as the Flanker he fought now, an advanced fighter that was so far ahead of the curve it qualified as its own superweapon - the J-15 Wild Crane, in an aircraft that moved like a boat compared to this agile light fighter he occupied now.

He may have been a great pilot with a capable aircraft but Garret was also getting older now, at 37 years old he didn't necessarily have the same endurance as he would need for this kind of prolonged dog fighting and he was starting to feel the fatigue. His actions and reactions became just a little slower, breathing became just a little bit harder, his palms were sweaty and his grip was sliding every time he pulled too hard on the controls. He knew that the kid in the Su-27 was starting to feel the wear and tear of this intense maneuvering too but not nearly as bad as Garret had to be. Maybe he should just eject and let the younger pilot claim his superiority?

Then, suddenly, vertigo.

The world spun as a wave of dizziness and nausea washed over him, he nearly wretched into his breather as he fought down the sickness that was rising up in his stomach, he released the controls and in response the autopilot immediately leveled out the fighter and took a straight course; a mistake that was deadlier than even if he would have held on to the stick while he choked. he was barely recovered from nearly vomiting and the world still spun, everything was still distorted and funny when the sound of the RADAR lock played in his ears. It was only out of instinct that Garret was able to pull the aircraft up and fire his flares to trash the missile shot that was coming. The Vympel R-60 sort range missile that was destined to kill his Tigershark couldn't determine whether the flares or the heat from his engines was it's target and thus detonated to take out whichever it could; the explosion was compared to most AA missiles quite small and he managed to clear out of the fragmentation radius with no noticeable damage to his aircraft or himself.

He shook his head while still gaining altitude to clear his mind and looked up into his canopy in time to see his adversary in the midst of a J-Turn, heading back toward the northeast, toward for him friendly airspace, and away from the F-20 he had tried so hard, and failed, to kill. Garret had expected them to close in with cannons and try to finish the job but now the Flanker was retreating from combat. That made Garret angry. The young shit had decided he wasn't worth the effort anymore and he would show him what kind of mistake it was not to kill him while he was weak and an 'easy' target. "I've got you now."

Garret terminated his climb and turned it into loop which he terminated with a roll into a more or less level flight parallel with but above his target and then executed an attack run of his own, pointing down toward his target at about 15 degrees, a perfect angle of attack for a sidewinder missile. The growl of the weapon on his left wing filled his ears almost immediately, it hungered for the kill and Shark was going to give it to them. There was no need for brevity codes so far from the main AO and so he just depressed the launch button without fanfare and let it fire. A more perfect shot couldn't be asked for, the missile rushed off of his wingtip and gained instantaneous speed as it hungrily lunged for the Flanker it seemed like an easy finish to a hard battle but the Beiarusian pilot had some fight left in them after all. Almost exactly before the missile could strike the Flanker pitched up into an 80 degree climb and the sidewinder rushed passed, barely outside of detonation range but it didn't lose tracking, it turned to meet them, 180 degrees of maneuver in about 3 seconds as it tried once again to hit the target but the Flanker's pilot deployed his flares and confused the IR seeking warhead off course to trash the shot for real.

"Damnit!"

Garret switched to his cannons and prepared for one more final strike against his foe who had leveled out more or less evenly with Garret's Tigershark and tried to close the gap. The Su-25 had a top speed faster by hundreds of kilometers than Garret's single engine Tigershark, in just a guns battle he could outrun Garret and escape home free but now it seemed as personal for them as it was for him and the Flanker started to perform an inverted Split-S to get up and above the Tigershark; that was a rookie move however and he easily countered it to fire a couple of shots that passed wide and above his target who could see the tracers from his cockpit. He rocked back and forth a couple of times and then leveled out in flight which telegraphed his next move for the more experienced pilot to see coming from a mile away. When he pulled up his nose to pull a cobra maneuver Garret was ready with a counter move of his own however. He pulled up his own nose and fired the afterburners, pushing his aircraft into a 90 degree climb - a tailslide as its known as is not quite as fancy as a cobra maneuver but it almost accomplished the same result of pushing a fighter from high speed to almost no speed at all and it didn't require thrust vectoring or any of the other supermaneuvering capabilities of the cobra, simply thrust to weight ratio of greater than 1, easily accomplished by the light fighter he piloted.

Breathing as he was trained and practiced to do he felt his fighter start to drop engines first toward the ground and knew that his aerobatic display was over and pitched forward hoping that he didn't flameout now that the move was complete. He nearly backed out, then reded out as the nose pitched forward and the forces of thrust and gravity began to work on his aircraft until he was accelerating at twice the normal speed of a fall. He gently pulled it up and used the gained momentum to slingshot himself toward the now doomed Su-27 that was now just recovering from the cobra and starting to move forward on its own power, right into the gunsights of Garret Jones who didn't hesitate to hold down the button until his cannons jammed from being overworked. The fight was over, the Su-27's carcass rained down from the sky in sixteen dozen pieces as the explosive and incendiary rounds tore it up like a multi-million dollar jigsaw puzzle.

Finally able to look around he realized he didn't recognize the area at all, they must have drifted several miles from the AO while they struggled to attack one another. <<Morena 2-1 here. Morena 2-1 for AWACS or ATC. I was pursued by an enemy Flanker outside of the AO, and uh, I'm not sure where I am. It looks like there is a small town nearby; I shot down the Su-27 and can confirm that I see a parachute. Send a recovery team to where I'm located and please tell me how to get back home...>>

Kill:
Su-27, Cannons

by **Relikai** » Sun Feb 21, 2016 6:49 pm

Second Lieutenants Shimazaki Haruna 'Shinden, Kanzaki Yuria 'Reppu'.
Seian

"He's awake, break, break!" Shinden yelled as she slid back down into her seat, barely before the Bronco banked hard to the right, losing altitude as it steered clear of the interceptor. Exhaling, Shinden received Shark's transmission, but chose not to volunteer. They had done enough. It's time to return to Ansan.

"Ne, Reppu." Shinden asked. "Do you think it's time for a drink when we get back? We just won a big battle after all."

Clicking her tongue, Reppu would have shot Shinden a look of disdain if she could.

"Drink? I'll need you clear headed... Just now was... too close..." Reppu replied in a whisper. The flight back continued in silence, as allied planes soon overtook the Bronco, the propeller driven plane incapable of keeping up with them in cruising speed.

"But... you should check out on Knot." Reppu said.

"Yeah." Was the reply. "I do know what to do."

by **Anowa** » Sun Feb 21, 2016 7:30 pm

Lieutenant Jason "Tombstone" Cain (Morena 4-2)
Jason let out a long sigh, one of the largest battles he'd ever partaken in was all but over. But two pilots within his combat element were most likely dead, and roughly half of the friendly ground forces were resting in their own metal tombs. Jason knew the chances of a flawless victory during this engagement were non-existent to begin with, yet a part of him felt morose at the loss of life here. Could he have done anything better? What could he have changed during this operation that could've led to a better outcome? Was there anything to change? Jason shook his head, his personal evaluation could wait until he got back to the hangar, for now he had to remain alert, since technically the AO was still a combat zone.

Regardless of his own self motivation to not let his mind wander, he thought about one of today's highlights: Knot's attempted suicide charge. It wasn't uncommon for people to panic in situations that are... fucky. But they usually bailed out either literally or metaphorically, instead Knot went in for a suicide charge. That wasn't a normal reaction, at least from what Jason had seen. Then again he hadn't spent much time with any of his squadron beyond a morning greeting or some help with some small task. So for all he knew that was normal for Knot. But regardless of whether it was normal or not, it wasn't healthy for anyone involved.

Jason made a mental note to engage with his team members more. Gauge their personalities so he'd be able to get a basic understanding on how they'd react in combat, and vice versa for him. He wasn't planning on making friends with any of them, he'd felt what friendship had to offer, and the sting of betrayal far outweighed the happiness of time spent with one's fellows.

Shaking his head again, Tombstone focused intently on flying, in an attempt to take his mind off things, he periodically gazed down at the passing earth below. Yet no matter how he tried to distract himself, he felt a bit lost at the deaths of the two Morena pilot's.

by **Empire of Donner land** » Sun Feb 21, 2016 9:17 pm

2nd Lieutenant Amabel Allard
"Knot"

Looking above it seemed her call for help was heard by Praeses. At his command she banked left, tracers following her as she pulled hard on the stick nicking the fuselage of just passing cleanly through. It all stopped and she looked on as the dogfight between the two went up high above the clouds. They escaped from her sight as she climbed higher trying to possibly assist. Though in an instant she had heard of the enemy retreat and the enemy Ace had dissapeared leaving Praeses slowly drifting to the ground a soon Null had one around behind him locking on to wake him up. A smart idea, but a rude awakening as she heard the yelling of the veteran Pilot. Knot wouldn't be exactly happy seeing her and her Aircraft slowly sailing into the ground too much either.

Praeses: <<Praeses requesting help! I got some bastard on my tail! I'm unable to maneuver, I repeat, I'm unable to maneuver!>>

Soon a number of other Pilots had told him that it was over. Much to her and most likely his relief that no one including them was in danger. However there still remained the problem that no one was talking about, the fact that Praeses' engines were not producing the glow they were producing before during battle concerned her, and the way the Arrow was falling to the ground didn't look normal either.

Knot: << Knot to Praeses, get your engines online now, you're about to become a fucking crater. >>

Knot was confident that Praeses would get it under controll. He survived this long as a Combat Pilot for a reason. But she kept a watchful and at sometimes worried eye on the descending Arrow.

Now was the Elephant in the room. The stunt she was about to pull when the enemy reinforcements had arrived. Knot kept that in the back of her mind and did not feel like talking though she knew full well she was going to receive flak about it back at base, she prepared herself for it and got herself straight about what happened and what made her think it was such a brilliant idea. Her squadron mates probably thought she had gone insane, she felt the same about her own actions. The heat of the moment, combined with the reality of death and the stress had made her unstable at the time. She felt better, but she knew what she did and was angry at herself.

The Pilot had pulled the heavily injured Aircraft into a stable climb and positioned herself behind her flights lead finding him in the darkness that was the night of Seian, preparing to return to base. Her Aircraft would last very much longer, and the from what others could observe, there were holes as big as their heads in some parts of the Fuselage If they saw past the dark smoke created by the Engines. The Farmer had seen better days, this was certainly one of the worst.

by **Beiarusia** » Mon Feb 22, 2016 12:10 am

Capt. Aleksei Tallow “Null”
Highway 3, 50km south of Chuzhou, Seian

The ploy worked. Praeses awoke with a start and was soon attempting to launch the CF-105 into an evasive maneuver, several voices calling out over the radio to alleviate the pilot of any undue worry. Not that he was clear of danger just yet. The Arrow’s twin engines had flamed out, leaving the plane at the mercy of gravity as it continued to lose altitude. Praeses no doubt knew this but Knot was helpful enough to call it in.

Knot: << Knot to Praeses, get your engines online now, you're about to become a fucking crater. >>

After a tense moment the two engines came online and the Arrow was again flying under its own power.

Null fell back into the co-pilot’s seat. He was exhausted, the battle near Chuzhou, while a victory, having been far more demanding than anticipated. It was almost as if he was back over Sotoa. Being stuck as co-pilot had only made the anxiety worse, Null having to place his trust and his life in the hands of his wingman, and while Angel had done well, as expected, she no doubt was just as stressed as he was flying for two. And then there was Knot. Her earlier bravado against the Flankers could have easily broken the squadron. Angel had been ready and willing to dive in after her, and surely others would have as well. An already bad situation would have been exponentially worse. Null would have to talk to her once they had landed. Two members of the squadron had already been killed, he wasn’t about to let more die because of some foolish decision.

“We made it,” Angel said, interrupting Null’s train of thought.

“Yeah.”

A few seconds passed between them. “I think you owe me a drink.”

20:14 September 24, 1992 // Ansan International Airport, Ansan, Seian

The pilots had returned as heroes. Cheers could be heard through the ATC radio, the military personnel near ecstatic as the planes touched down one by one. Likely if the people of Ansan knew what had just transpired they would have crowded the airport in celebration. It was good fortune then that news of the battle had yet to reach the civilian airwaves. Morena deserved a good night’s rest… or another night of drinking if Angel had her way.

The Voodoo had been the last to land. Zeeger had been their to greet the two, adding his own hurrah alongside the other crew chiefs. Soon after handing over the F-101 to the mechanics the three – Angel, Null, and Zeeger – made way to the terminal.

“It was a real clusterfuck out there from what I heard,” Zeeger said as they crossed the tarmac.

Null didn’t have much to say on the matter. Ansan had been spared an enemy assault and the pilots deserved some recognition, but two members hadn’t come back, and a third from Tenko was MIA. Casualties were a fact of war, and yet each loss felt personal for Null. He was their squadron leader. Their lives were in his hands. He may not have known them well personally, nor were they fellow countrymen like Sewek and Zelenko, but they were brothers in a cause even if their reasonings for being here differed, and Null had let them down.

Angel must have sensed his gloom because she soon wrapped an arm around Null’s shoulder, nearly tripping the taller man as she tried to bring cheer to his dour nature. “What you need is a stiff drink.”

“I don’t drink,” Null replied rather dully, prying himself free. “And you should cut back.”

Angel pretended not to hear him.

Personnel were rushing about the airport, attending to the spent planes among their other duties, but all stopped to congratulate the pilots or to thank them. Some even clapped and cheered like fans supporting their favorite sports team. It was an odd sensation. Back home there was rarely any such celebration for a mission gone well. It was simply a job, one that didn’t necessarily need thanks, but these people, on the verge of losing a war, were jubilant with the foreign pilots and their willingness to sacrifice for Seian. Null didn’t know how to act and simply nodded to those he passed. Angel was more relaxed and even cheered along several times.

Most of the pilots had gathered on the first floor of the terminal. Jiangshi and Tenko and a few others that Null didn’t recognize. Morena was there as well. Now was as good a time as any other to find Knot, and Null was about to do just that when one final group entered.

Mononoke. The F-15 pilots.

Their leader was an imposing man possessing a fierce gaze, bald and with a mustache wrapping down on either side of his mouth. A younger pilot trailed after followed by a lanky man that was likely older than he appeared. The fourth and final member of the squadron was a woman and Null almost had to do a double take upon seeing her.

It was Angel.

Angel, the real Angel, saw the newly arrived pilots and quickly rushed over, her doppelganger catching sight of her too late to avoid the sudden embrace that nearly threw the both of them to the floor. Zeeger could only offer a shrug before continuing onward, leaving Null to traverse over to the two identical women alone, by which point they had already righted themselves. Angel made the introductions. “Null, this is my sister, Natsuko.”

Natsuko gave a small, halfhearted wave. “Sup.”

Null had heard mention of Angel’s sister but had yet to meet her until now. Mitsuko and Natsuko were identical twins, the only observable difference being Natusko’s slightly shorter hair and beige flightsuit. Other than that there was now telling the two apart.

“I’ve heard a lot about you,” Natsuko said with a sly grin. “Miki here won’t shut up about her flight lead. Hope you’re taking care of my baby sister.”

Angel pouted, the nickname seeming to rub her the wrong way.

It was then that the leader of Mononoke intervened. “Kimura…” Both women turned to look at the man in an odd display that didn’t seem to phase him one bit. “Please don’t bother our guests with your antics.” To Null, “I’m Captain Inuoe. I wish to thank you for your service to my country. We owe you much.”

Null was slow to respond. “I’m just doing my job.”

Inuoe looked as if he was about to say more but another fervor of celebration soon drowned out his intentions. General Cheon and his cabinet had arrived as had the Major – not that he was one to celebrate.

Word was soon passed around for the pilots of Morena to head upstairs for a briefing. Null, as squadron leader, was needed elsewhere and bit Inuoe goodbye. Angel followed after, her sister opting to tag along for the time being. A final cheer from those present sounded throughout the terminal as the mercenary squadron took its leave.

by **Empire of Donner land** » Mon Feb 22, 2016 1:39 am

2nd Lieutenant Amabel Allard
"Knot", Seian, Highway 3, 50km south of Chuzhou.

High in the sky, a somber silence flooded the Radio channel of Morena. Or rather, Knot just tried to imagined there was not wanting to hear anything about the battle. It was a win and that's all she wanted to care about at the time, not her foolish mistake of charging headfirst into enemy reinforcements, not the injuries of the Aircraft which will anger the mechanics. She focused on piloting her Aircraft trimming it out to counteract the damage of the Aircraft and it's control surfaces.

The night had firmly taken place, and the moon became the only light source as the flew. Thankfully due to their flight controlls, computer systems and GPS they could safely navigate through the night. Somberly the squadron flew through the night knowing full well of the losses they had taken. Two pilots of Morena, the two first casualties. Knot had felt guilty for their deaths, believing she could've stopped it even though she in anyway couldn't. The stunt could have costed more lives, including hers and was glad she was ordered out before she became another casualty. Realizing this she felt even more guilty. She decided in the end to just sit back and listen to the small, faint sound of the engines as they head back to Ansan where a multitude of problems awaited her.

20:14 September 24, 1992 // Ansan International Airport, Ansan, Seian

The Farmer slowly descended, it's engine had cut out after running out fuel from the large leak she had suffered in combat. Gliding in the rubber tires squealed and a small puff of white smoke upon hitting the Tarmac of the runway. The Mig-19 drifted forward turning to get to the hangar after the successful landing. Already she could feel the intense stare of the Military mechanics as they observed the Swiss cheese of a Aircraft moving infront of them. How such a Aircraft could survive theses injuries, let alone the pilot, may have stumped them as the brown haired Woman opened up the Cockpit and stood on the wing uninjured, avoiding the foot sized holes as Knot climbed down.

She took out her black marker, put the Helmet on what was left of the wing, and began to draw three more marks on her helmet next to the previous other Marks she had drawn on which had dried since then. The tally marks had numbered eight in number. Knot wasn't one for traditions as she had stated before, but this was one thing she stuck to doing. It wasnt bragging as much as it was keeping inventory.

Eventually as she rested in the hanger looking at the new marks on her helmet, she heard news of the Briefing and sighed knowing Null would pull her aside and talk about the events that transpired during the battle. It was unavoidable, and Knot could not run away from this. It angered her, feeling like she was being backed into a corner. Her anger only reared it's ugly head as she stood up and threw the white flight helmet at the wall, the sound of metal being hit echoing through the room. "Fuck!" She yelled frustrated at the situation.

She sat in a metal folding chair, observing the damage of her Aircraft as the flight helmet at on the ground, paint scratched off the top from the impact against the wall. She slouched forward her eyes scanning front to back over and over at Farmer, every hole, scratch and dink in the metal airframe. Her Camouflage was spotted in grey as the paint was scratched off from richocheting rounds and shrapnel. One could only apreciated the beauty of it all from outside.

She stood up, walking to the entrance of the Hanger leaning against the frame running her face and observing the people cheering on Morena, some had walked past her Hangar giving an apreciative small and cheering. In truth, she felt like she hadn't won anything, two had died and it could have been three. She was beginning to think that an uneven number would have been for the best.

by **Relikai** » Mon Feb 22, 2016 1:55 am

Second Lieutenants Shimazaki Haruna 'Shinden, Kanzaki Yuria 'Reppu'.
Ansan International Airport, Ansan.

The Bronco touched down hard, as Yuria made a quick landing, clearing space for the more damaged planes as technicians came over to settle the two missiles on her wing rails. Shutting the plane down, the canopy popped as Haruna scanned the field, seeing the Farmer not too far away. Ignoring Yuria's call and the cheers of the mechanics, Haruna hopped down from the plane, a bad move as her numb legs collapsed under her as she landed on the tarmac, nearly falling on her face as she cried out in surprise.

"Haruna!" Yuria called again, climbing down the steps of the ladder as she got to her little co-pilot. Helping her up, Yuria was gently brushed away by Haruna as the latter rushed towards the brown haired girl leaning by the hangar. Her hands were stinging, and she had a little limp, but Haruna managed to get to Amabel as the Seianese grabbed her arms the through the flight suit. Shaking Amabel with all her strength before pushing her against the support of the hangar, Haruna raised a hand to slap Amabel, before she simply broke down into tears, sobbing against Amabel's chest.

"WHY! YOU!" Haruna cried. "I... was so worried! Amabel!" Wrapping her arms around Amabel, Haruna ignored whatever reaction she would get. So relieved was the little Seianese that her friend... her comrade survived.

Behind her, Yuria came over slowly, her face devoid of emotion as she sipped some juice in a bottle from a straw. At the same time, her other hand extended a second bottle with a straw cut into the cap towards Amabel.

by **Ubaria** » Mon Feb 22, 2016 3:33 pm

Captain Noel 'Aguila' Silva.

"Look at those cobardes run" Noel joined in with the simultaneous cheers that erupted over the Seianese battlenet, the attackers had turned and fled after their forces broke and their formations shattered under the ferocious might of the resistance. The people of Ansan could sleep tonight knowing that they were now indeed safe, it would take a while for the Beiarusians to mount any subsequent attack, fornow the defenders could lick their wounds, patch up their men and mourn for the dead, this wasn't the end after all. A long, perilous road lay ahead.

Ansan International Airport, Ansan.

Noel waited in his allotted space for landing and touched the Mirage down with no problems whatsoever, the old girl had some dents and scratches where some stray cannon rounds must have glanced off but no considerable battle damage had been inflicted. After landing, taxing and exiting the plane, Morena and the rest of the pilots made way for the main terminal building, though stopped along the way as the numerous ground crew each lent their thanks as the pilots passed, Noel himself shook the hands of at least a dozen people, perhaps more, it was a simple thank you but it struck as a much more moving gesture, of course these were the men and women who they were fighting for, people with families and children, their land besieged, and they saw the pilots both native and foreign as no less than heroes for protecting them and their country, it warmed his heart to see them so thankful. The victory didn't come without its sacrifices, two of Morena's own infact hadn't made it back, Polar Bear and Luna had gave their own lives fighting far away from home, hopefully for a cause they believed in, otherwise it would have been in vain.

by **Tayner** » Mon Feb 22, 2016 5:46 pm

Second Lieutenant Dan
Gunny

Gunny set don the Viking when his turn to land came, the aircraft moaning as the wheels hit the ground. Gunny radioed into ACT about his injury, and there was an ambulance waiting for him by the hangers. Gunny and Joker emerged from the cockpit of the S-3 Viking, and merely waved to the people cheering for them before Dan was loaded onto a stretcher and put into the ambulance to be taken to the hospital. One of the EMTs even commented on the pencil sized piece of shrapnel sticking out of his knee.

"Wow, that must hurt."

"It does." Gunny responded. he turned to Joker who stuck with him to make sure the EMTs didn't preform a lobotomy on him while taking him to the ambulance, and simply said "Take care of the Viking."

With that, they ambulanced Dan to the hospital and Joker found the crew chief, and after a sturdy hand shake, and a short conversation, Joker had told him that the Viking was shot to hell. They walked over to the shot up attack craft, and the crew chief just stared in awe. "How is that flying block of Swiss cheese still flight capable? I mean, something somewhere had to have been hit, I mean, how is there not black smoke puffing out of this thing?" The crew chief inquiried.

"Beats me, but patch her back up. I might need her in flying shape soon. Collect the insurance if you have too." Joker said.

"My pleasure sir." The Cheif replied as he went to do his job.

Joker returned to the hotel, and basically belly flopped onto his bed. After a few minutes of relaxing he got out of his jump suit and into some civilian clothes. He would visit Dan tomorrow, but for now he needed a drink. Dan would probably be hospitalized for the night and grounded for a few days, so Joker decided to just go to the bar. He got on the elevator and went to the bar, but some military personnel found him and told him about the breifing. Joker simply hit the ground floor button and thanked him. He made his way to the breifing area, and seeing a few fellow Morena faces he decided he was in the right area. He found somewhere to sit and stayed relatively quiet.

by **Anowa** » Mon Feb 22, 2016 6:57 pm

Lieutenent Jason "Tombstone" Cain (Morena 4-2)
Rubber squealed on the asphalt as Tombstone's F-20 made contact with the ground. The canopy above him had continued it's crinkly noises from earlier, and Tombstone was wondering whether or not it would break before he got his plane into the hangar. His bet with himself ended in the positive as the bullet resistant glass finally gave way when the canopy began raising.

After climbing from the vehicle and surveying his craft, the state could only be described as 'lucky' more than a few of the bullet holes were upon the underside of the nose. He wouldn't be walking if they went all the way through, which made the man a bit anxious. A part of him missed the quiet of Gracemeria AFB and the nearby cherry grove, that seemed more than a lifetime ago to the man. This quiet life he had was killed rather quickly by a stupid drunken mistake.

Regardless of his thoughts, Tombstone couldn't change the past. And instead turned towards the future, more specifically a conversation with a mechanic and learning an estimate of when the plane would be airworthy. However he was side tracked when he was informed of a debrief, it was a bit foolish of him to assume there wouldn't be one after today's events. So he concluded his business of coddling his craft was less important than any announcements made by the brass. Hopefully it wouldn't involve paying a life insurance fee.

The makeshift briefing room was filling quickly when Tombstone arrived, seeing as how he wasn't quite ready to mingle with his fellow pilots he found a solid wall at the back and leaned upon it.

by **Armellenia** » Mon Feb 22, 2016 9:03 pm

Lieutenant Wulf "Serpent" Hetzenauer
Flight Two, 13th Mercenary Air Squadron Morena
Above Highway 3, Seian

Wulf had, for the most part, done his share in the battle, and at the moment was left without purpose- he was over friendly lines, and Hound, or Shinobu as he knew the pilot, had destroyed the final Frogfoot pestering the friendly armor. On the other side of the battlefield, a member of his flight, Praeses, had been revived from his apparent unconsciousness after being knocked out during a dogfight. Also somewhere very different his flight lead, Shark, was lost. And yet another pilot in his flight, Dash, had a jet that was very, very shot up despite having garnered herself several aerial kills.

To Wulf, his non-critical damage and new found purposelessness felt tame compared to literally the rest of his flight's predicaments.

Baron-2: << We’re done here. All aircraft, return to base. >>

And like that, the enemy was retreating and the fighting had ceased. Wulf heard the cries of his friendly pilots and decided to join in.

<<Alright! It's about damn time, you cowardly pigs!>>

Turning his ship for home, he jubilantly anticipated getting a drink after the days' hard battle.

Ansan International Airport, Ansan, Seian

The lights of the city once again reminded Wulf what exactly he was fighting for, excluding his escape from Belka and the payment for mercenary work. Landing with an entirely empty load was a great feeling, and even better knowing that the weapons that had been expended garnished Wulf so much success in battle. Stepping out of his airplane, he surveyed his battle damage before turning to the approaching group of mechanics, who were there to apparently thank him and repair his plane at the same time.

Walking to the administration office, he stopped by quickly enough before the breifing to get them to wire $2,000,000 from his earnings to the Dorusian Air Force- his A-4 was payed off and he still had a crisp $330,000.

Arriving at the terminal, Wulf joined the crowd upstairs and prepared himself for the debriefing, and afterwards he planned to get a drink.

by **Empire of Donner land** » Mon Feb 22, 2016 10:08 pm

2nd Lieutenant Amabel Allard
"Knot"

A quick observation showed that Knots Aircraft wasn't the only one to receive damage, the S-3 Viking Gunny piloted had also looked like a certain food. It seemed that only a few aircraft were spared the damage and the Aircraft's Mechanics spared the headache that was everyone else's bullet riddled fuselages and wings. But then a familiar Aircraft had begun it's landing, the Bronco that was piloted by Yuria and Haruna. Knot sighed, and prepared herself to face the loud music that was an angry Saienese girl.

As soon as Amabel saw the Saienese pilot stumble out of the Bronco she knew what was coming. Tears, something Knot rarely shed but many people around her did, including the young Pilot, Haruna who was now running almost full sprint twoards her. She looked down and shook her head dissapointed at herself. She didn't even expect herself to make such an idiotic and emotion driven decision. Eventually she heard the rapid footsteps of Haruna until she was rapidly shook around and pushed against the Hangar frame. Haruna had raised a hand, which seemed to be meant to slap Amabel until she broke down, collapsing into her chest weeping. At this point she much prefered to be slapped rather than having a young Girl cry on her.

Amabel moved Haruna off her gently giving a pat on the shoulder now resting her hands on her arms. "Yeah, yeah, I'm alright." Amabel said reassuringly before taking her arms off her and turning to face Yuria who was presenting a drink. Knot graciously took the drink, cold to the touch, and took a small drink, a much needed sour taste now running over her taste buds after the intense fight. "Their giving a debrief, let's get going." She said quickly changeing the subject to the matter at hand. Knot wasn't in the mood to go off on someone she considered a friend about her actions. She hoped that Haruna or Yuria wouldn't bring it up on the way.

Knot began the longest walk she had ever taken to the Debriefing room, now thinking about her actions over the air near Highway 3, wondering what Null would do when he got ahold of the Pilot.

by **Relikai** » Mon Feb 22, 2016 10:46 pm

Second Lieutenants Shimazaki Haruna 'Shinden, Kanzaki Yuria 'Reppu'.
Ansan International Airport, Ansan.

Haruna and Yuria remained silent as they walked towards the hangars with Amabel, the little Saienese calming down and though shaken by the casualties of this battle, composed herself as they followed Amabel. Yuria would look at the Bronco later, for now she would ensure that Haruna doesn't go overboard with her antics. Even though she was a pilot, and has fought in a couple of battles, Haruna was still a girl, and a young one at that. Keeping their pace several steps behind Amabel, Yuria continued to sip onto the straw, allowing the sour drink to keep her moving, keep her thinking instead of falling into a blank state. Haruna did likewise, unconsciously grabbing Yuria's drink for a sip of her own, at which the older lady simply allowed her to.

"Shinden? Shinden!"

A familiar voice echoed in Haruna's ears as young pilot came running over. Stopping before the two, Sting caught his breath before he noticed Yuria giving him a bemused look. Thinking that he might have stumbled into something between the girls, Sting quickly stood straight before snapping a salute at Yuria, his apology coming out in a stammer. Laughing, Yuria just steered Haruna to face Sting, giving her a light pat on the butt as she continued towards the hanger. "Have a nice chat. Good to unwind once in a while." Yuria called, before rejoining Morena in the briefing room.

"Shinden." Sting said again, scratching the back of his head as he tried to shake off the embarrassment. The name HIRO MYEONG was emblazoned on the tag on his right chest, with the word SEIAN on the other. While Haruna looked at the uniform with a tinge of envy, the girl managed to shake off that childish emotion as she gave Sting a smile, nodding her head with a slight bow in a greeting. "Hai."

"Oh! Oh... Erm, I... I just wanna say... I'm glad you got out alright." Hiro said, unable to actually keep his eyes locked with Haruna's as he found himself tongue-tied at times. Haruna, feeling the awkwardness as several people began to look their way, simply gave Hiro a punch on the shoulder, although she barely managed to reach it from where she was standing. "Thanks to someone's charm!" She replied, taking the small object from her flight suit. "I got to thank you..." Haruna continued as she made to return the charm, when Hiro placed his hand on her's, balling Haruna's fingers to cover the charm.

"No, n-no, it's your's now. Don't worry, I can always get another." Hiro said, smiling as he saw Haruna laugh softly. Suddenly, the two realised that they were technically holding hands, with Hiro's hand cupping Haruna's in a gentle hold. Realising it at exactly the same time, both pilots leapt back with a yelp, although Haruna was the more embarrassed, trying to avoid the whistling of a passing jeep of mechanics.

"I.. I thank you, Hiro-Oppa!" Haruna exclaimed, going into a low bow before taking off for the briefing room. Again, Hiro scratched his head as he looked at his hand, the hand which held Haruna's. Laughing to himself, Hiro was slapped on the back of his head by his squadron mate, who simply pointed towards the briefing room.

by **Rupudska** » Tue Feb 23, 2016 10:21 am

Hound landed only a few planes before the Voodoo. Not because that was her designated landing position, but because she had missed the first landing attempt - she was never good at landing at night to begin with. She was also tired - she was never good at staying up late, either.

Her night was about to get worse, however.

As her Falcon rolled to a stop on the tarmac in front of its hangar, she expected to be relieved that she would be able to go to a quick debriefing, shower, and then crash into her bed, not to move until morning regulations be damned. But for some reason a chill went down her spine, as if something evil was in the area.

<<Tower to Hound. There's some people here to see you.>>

Odd, she thought. Even if it is technically an international airport currently hosting military squadrons, it's very unusual for people to request to see individual military pilots. Especially ones currently in a mercenary squadron... wait.

<<Hound, copy. Who are they?>>

<<Your... your parents, Hound.>>

"Oh for fucks SAKE!" Shinobu shouted, as she tore and practically threw her helmet off, taking care not to hit the screen in front of her.

Of all the times. Could they not have waited until at least morning?

by **Mikoyansk** » Tue Feb 23, 2016 6:38 pm

Well then...that had been an interesting day. His first combat mission with Morena had netted him a handy $1.7 million and led to the destruction of four tanks and three enemy aircraft, perhaps he would get used to mercenary service. But it was about to get even more interesting.

Tower:<<Tower to Hound. There's some people here to see you.>>

Hound: <<Hound, copy. Who are they?>>

Tower: <<Your... your parents, Hound.>>

Hound: <<Oh for fuc...

Arrow:<<Jeez, Hound, don't sound so thrilled about your parents being here. I'd be thrilled if mine showed up...though if they did my old man's security contingent could end this war singlehandedly.>>

The Phantom that Arrow was driving started to make its final approach to the airport. The wheels neatly touched the ground and began to roll towards the hangar, then something strange happened...the aircraft suddenly went silent.

<<Uhh, boss...I think we've got a problem. I think we're out of fuel.>>

<<Yeah...I...I think we did.>>

He popped the canopy and hailed a ground crew.

<<HEY! HEY! I need a tow! Preferably before someone else sees this shit!>>

by **Beiarusia** » Tue Feb 23, 2016 11:28 pm

Capt. Aleksei Tallow “Null”
Ansan International Airport, Ansan, Seian

Null stood in an all too familiar lounge as the pilots of Morena filed in. To his right were the sisters, Ange and Natsuko, the former sitting on a stool while the latter picked at her messy hair with little thought. To Null’s left was Colonel Kwan and other members of the General Cheon’s cabinet. The general himself stood front and center with his hands clasped behind his back. Zeeger was here as well, standing in the back, but missing from the scene in his entirety was the Major, though perhaps that was for the best.

The Seianese general began once all who would arrive had entered. “When I speak I speak for all the people of Ansan. Thank you for your service. Without you, I fear our stand at Chuzhou would have failed completely. We are in your debt in that regard.”

With little warning the general bowed his head, not deep as his back likely could not handle the undue stress of such an action, but the gesture read the same regardless. Kwan and the other members of the cabinet joined the general and for several long seconds they paid their respects to the foreign pilots that had fought and bled for a country that was not their own.

Cheon righted himself. “Sadly, this is not the end. We have stopped the enemy advance for now, but unless we act they will return stronger than they were. Again, I must ask of you to throw yourselves into danger so that Ansan can continued to stand free.” The general motioned to the map of the country hanging behind him. Chuzhou was marked now in red marker. “The squadron from Park has confirmed that the enemy is attempting to establish supply lines to the front. If we don’t stop them now we may never get our chance. And so we attack tomorrow when the sun rises, and I want you all to lead the battle as you have tonight.”

Colonel Kwan stepped forward with more details. “The eleventh squadron will be handling the attack on the convoys. All we ask is that you provide air support and neutralize any air defenses that may be present. We don’t think there will be much resistance, but if we don’t act now that is likely to change. Morena and Kasha will leave in the morning. Your flight path is not the most direct but it will avoid the frontlines.” Kwan used a metal pointer to trace a course west of Ansan and then north to Chuzhou in a wide circle. “You should arrive to the designated area just after sunrise. Your priority will be anything that threatens the attack planes, otherwise you are free to engage freely. One last thing, you will be in range of the Chuzhou airport, so please heed that should you not be quick that enemy fighters are likely to engage. Do try to be done and gone before the main force arrives.”

General Cheon had the closing words. “I am deeply sorry that we must rely on you once again, but I promise that once this is said and done that you be compensated for your efforts.”

A brief Q&A followed for the pilots, after which they were free to go. Null remained where he was, watching what remained of his squadron with a bitter look in his eyes, the deaths of Luna and Polar Bear still sore on his conscious. However, upon seeing Knot exit the room with Shinden in tow these thoughts were pushed aside. Null followed after the woman, needing to speak with her about her actions earlier tonight.

He caught sight of her as he stepped out from the room. “Allard.” His voice wasn’t a yell but it carried nonetheless.

The woman stopped in her tracks. Null approached her with a stern gaze that was soon replaced with surprise as a blur raced past him. With little warning Angel had rushed ahead, Knot turning too late to catch the woman before she grabbed onto her shoulders, shaking her rather violently in the process.

“What were you thinking out there!” Angel said in a tone that was louder than necessary. She raised a hand as if she meant to slap the poor woman but thought better of it, calming a bit before adding, “Don’t do that again.”

It was then that she slapped Knot. Not hard enough to leave a mark, or to sting for that matter, but enough to show just how upset she was about the entire ordeal.

“She’s really something ain’t she,” Natsuko commented from Null’s side, arms crossed.

Null shrugged before approaching and ripping Angel from Knot, handing his wingman off to her twin so that she could be someone else’s problem for the time being. “Haruna. You and your copilot should go with Angel. I need to speak with Knot for a moment.”

Soon it was just Null and Knot standing in their corner of the hallway.

“You know what you did out there was stupid,” Null began before sighing. “We’re soldiers. We fight for a cause or an ideal or for the sake of fighting, but on the battlefield whatever cause you believe in doesn’t matter. You’re fighting for those around you. Your brothers in arms. And they are fighting for you, even if that means diving into the fire to drag you out. You may have thought what you were doing was right at the time, but Angel and no doubt others were ready to go in after you, and if they had I would have to write more than two families about how their loved one died in the line of duty. So if you do something like that again, their deaths will be on your hands. You’d do well to remember that.”

by **Empire of Donner land** » Wed Feb 24, 2016 12:37 am

2nd Lieutenant Amabel Allard
"Knot", AIA, Ansan, Seian

The Briefing was uneventful so far, a good job was given and surprisingly they bowed for their actions over Highway 3. Again, Knot didn't feel like she had done anything worth while to have someone bow for them. She had merely done her job, although she did her job extremely poorly at one point putting herself and others into danger. Through out the briefing she had hung her head in shame embarrassment. However when it met her ears that they would once again be fighting for Seian in another large battle she went to attention listening to every detail. Morena again would be thrown into battle most likely facing overwhelming odds once again.

An uneventful briefing.

After the Q&A Knot made her way outside, hopefully heading back to the Hotel to get much needed rest and perhaps, a much needed drink that wasn't juice.

Beiarusia wrote:A brief Q&A followed for the pilots, after which they were free to go. Null remained where he was, watching what remained of his squadron with a bitter look in his eyes, the deaths of Luna and Polar Bear still sore on his conscious. However, upon seeing Knot exit the room with Shinden in tow these thoughts were pushed aside. Null followed after the woman, needing to speak with her about her actions earlier tonight.

He caught sight of her as he stepped out from the room. “Allard.” His voice wasn’t a yell but it carried nonetheless.

She had thought she got away from the Anti Air gun that was Nulls voice saying her last name, shooting down whatever hope she had that she wouldn't have to talk about it and she could just get rest. She turned around seeing Null along with Angel who was now comeing at her. 'Oh, not again.' she thought.

“What were you thinking out there!” Angel said in a tone that was louder than necessary. She raised a hand as if she meant to slap the poor woman but thought better of it, calming a bit before adding, “Don’t do that again.”

It was then that she slapped Knot. Not hard enough to leave a mark, or to sting for that matter, but enough to show just how upset she was about the entire ordeal.

The shaking and slap that actually connected with her face stayed there in her mind for a few seconds before fading away, putting in Amabels mind how much she had upset her Squadron mates. She looked into Angels eyes apologetically as she was pushed away by Null.

“Haruna. You and your copilot should go with Angel. I need to speak with Knot for a moment.”

And then it was just them, two Pilots standing in the hallway as the other Morena Pilots filed out. Soon it was just them and she breathed in as Null began to speak.

Null sighed “You know what you did out there was stupid,”

"Oui capitaine" Knot said plainly. She knew full well what she had done was verging, or even full insanity.

“We’re soldiers. We fight for a cause or an ideal or for the sake of fighting, but on the battlefield whatever cause you believe in doesn’t matter. You’re fighting for those around you. Your brothers in arms. And they are fighting for you, even if that means diving into the fire to drag you out. You may have thought what you were doing was right at the time, but Angel and no doubt others were ready to go in after you, and if they had I would have to write more than two families about how their loved one died in the line of duty. So if you do something like that again, their deaths will be on your hands. You’d do well to remember that.” Null spoke, the words reverberating in Knots mind, she had felt even guiltier than before.

Knot sighed "Oui capitaine." She said plainly again and saluted. Even if they were in a Merc outfit, the chain of command must be respected. It was something that was especially etched into her during basic training In Aurelia. However, not being a Hero was something that didn't get talked about very much, if at all during her time in the AAF. Maybe she hadn't listened that day, maybe she was somewhere else, whatever happened she placed the blame on herself.

She left the building and went back to the Hotel hoping to catch some much needed rest before having a drink. A few shots later and she sat on a couch in a lobby wallowing in self pity, thinking about the events of the battle, more specifically her stunt. Every time becoming more depressed when she replayed the events in her head.

by **Relikai** » Wed Feb 24, 2016 1:27 am

Second Lieutenant Kanzaki Yuria 'Reppu'.
Hangars, Ansan International Airport, Ansan

"It will fly, only that the airframe's slightly shaky." Yuria said as she finished welding a piece of metal onto the Bronco. A new plate replacing the old one which has three gaping holes in it, the Bronco was not as good as new, but it would be ready to fly. "According to the briefing, we'll be hitting light vehicles... supply trucks. Give me the same loadout as this mission's. I'll be resting in the crew office."

Moving back to the office, Yuria collapsed on a sofa as Socks mewed at her from the floor. Gently scooping up the kitten, Yuria allowed it to knead her as she lay horizontal, resting her head against the armrest of the sofa, using her finger to tickle the kitten's tummy.

"Gotta introduce you to Morena one day." Yuria joked as she yawned, as the kitten continued to rub it's head against her chest, demanding rubs and treats. "Mou..." Reaching for a pack of treats, Yuria inadvertently spilled some on the floor, causing Socks to leap down in joy at the surprise buffet. Yuria smiled as the kitten had it's way with the food, as she slowly drifted to sleep, the kitten itself joining her shortly after, experiencing a food coma of it's own as it drifted into a land of salmon bits.

Second Lieutenants Shimazaki Haruna 'Shinden.
Jjang Hotel, Ansan

Haruna was silent most of the time, simply following Amabel back to the Hotel. Ordering a bottle of light sake and a salmon roll herself, Haruna watched as Amabel took her shots, feeling helpless as she munched on her meal, but always ready to help Amabel if she needed assistance. That moment came not long after, when Amabel flopped onto a sofa by the lounge, obviously feeling the effects of the day's stress as well as the alcohol. Haruna slowly finished her drink, giving Amabel some time before moving out to join her. It was then that Haruna noticed two males eyeing the depressed pilot with lewd gestures, moving over and seemingly attempting to get her up when the little Saienese charged forward, standing between Amabel and the men.

"Hey!" Haruna snarled instinctively in Saienese, looking at the two men, who seemed to be Osean tourists. Sure enough, one of them spoke up in the accent of the country where she spent most of her teenage life in, challenging the little pilot standing between them and a fun time.

"What are you at? Move out of the way, this doesn't concern you." He said, before Haruna struck her hands out, pushing his chest with as much force as she could muster. "She's my friend. I'm gonna help her myself. Get out before I call security." Laughing at Haruna mockingly, the other guy came forward, looking at both Haruna and Amabel menacingly. "You got spunk! I won't mind having a local myself if you're more... developed, so move out of the way now before I change my mind on you, midget."

Even if Haruna wasn't the heaviest, or the best martial fighter around, her daily exercise and running has built up a fair bit of muscle in her legs, muscle which was put to good use when a kick, augmented by hardened leather, found it's mark in the tourist's crotch. A high-pitched yelp escaped his throat as his partner came forward, giving Haruna a slap before the pilot retaliated with the sake bottle in her hand, knocking it against the man's face. The bottle did not shatter, but it did it's work as the tourist grabbed his cheek, moments before a pair of security guards came running over.

"What's going on?"

"These two tried to attack me and my friend!" Haruna replied sharply in Seianese, in a manner which seemed to amplify her stature. "Please take care of them. I have to help my friend." Nodding, the two guards apologised to Haruna as they moved to bring the tourists away. Approaching Amabel, who was holding her head, Haruna could see tears flowing down the Aurelian's face.

Gently pulling Amabel up, Haruna realised that the pilot was... heavy. Being a near lightweight, Haruna had no choice but to practically carry Amabel as she slung an arm over her own shoulder, supporting Amabel into the elevator. Their rooms were not too far apart, and after apologising to the Aurelian, Haruna searched Amabel's flight suit for her hotel card, entering her room and gently laying Amabel onto her own bed. Panting, Haruna saw that Amabel's pretty knocked out.

"Hey, I'll be back. Will borrow your card for a little while. Don't wander around, alright?" Exhaling, Haruna stepped out of Amabel's room as she headed for her own, a hand instinctively moving to the red mark left by the earlier slap.

Doctor Yoshima

"Ah, Mister Samuel Daniel, is it?" The now-fully certified Doctor Yoshima came in as Gunny was wheeled out of the operating room. "No serious injuries, although you did have one wicked piece of shrapnel in the knee and some damaged cartilage. Good thing it's lodged between your kneecap and leg, otherwise you'll be out for longer. Better still, for we deduced that that piece of metal was heading for Little Daniel, if you catch my drift."

Adjusting the flow of IV and several medications, Yoshima ensured that Gunny was well prepped, with food and water within reach. "Nurse Mayu will take care of your needs." Yoshima said as a young Seianese came into view, holding a wet towel and a clipboard. Exchanging notes, Mayu went over to Gunny, whispering "Sumimasen" as she dabbed his face and wiped his limbs with the towel. Nodding his approval, Yoshima explained Gunny's injuries and his projected stay in the hospital.

"Three days at least. Keep the bandage dry, and the knee would be good as new. Nurse Takahashi Mayu would be in charge of your well being, call her anytime if you need help. Rest well Gunny, you and Morena did damn well out there."

Ace Combat: Broken Line (IC/Open)

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