Ace Combat: Broken Line (IC/Open)

[Relikai]

Haruna herself has not wasted time reaching for a bottle as well, although she only made her way towards the bag without any intention to harass Angel any further. She sure did enjoy the warmth of the hot springs, and the disappointed look on the mercenary wasn't lost at all as she waded over to Yuria for a moment, whispering something into the older pilot's ear. Yuria's eyes did widen a little, but her responding push towards Haruna as well as the look of incredulity on her face showed that she might have disregarded her words.

Haruna laughed as Yuria went off towards the bags instead of her, turning back to Angel as the one more familiar to her in relations. "New job's alright... plenty of patrols and some missions, just like being in Morena." She replied towards Angel. "We've flown a couple of missions together, although they never said much. The main difference's the food, and the company." She continued with a laugh, moving over to Yuria who was wading over with a couple of cans, her feet trying to keep onto the bottom of the pool as she began her short journey of bouncing towards her friend.

---

"Of course it isn't bad." Kenneth replied, tuning towards the slight Osean accent he picked up after years in that country. Moving towards the bag brought by Aguila, he paused for a moment before reaching out for his own case, a small bottle of chilled honey whiskey staring back at him with a light golden sheen reflected by the evening light. Another bottle of lighter substance, one which he picked up from a local convenience store near Koga, was tossed towards the moody Ivan Sidorov Vorkovich, which should he fail to catch, should float its way towards the Yuke.

"Cheers." He said, unscrewing the cap as a small shot glass he packed served as a vessel for the two. "You guys... been in this for far more than I did. It's bad for the mind to have everything bottled up you see? Screw being self-conscious for once if it helps you to get off the stress. See?" He said, pointing towards the submerged Angel. "She knows what its like, although that man who's always with her could be less of a thickhead and pick up the signals everyone could see."

He pointed the bottle towards the glass he passed to Amabel, a smile on his face. "So, cheers, to break the ice?"

There was a squeal nearby, and the Erusean's curiosity was rewarded by the bare back of a Seianese pilot, the shorter one looking at her with her mouth gaping, a can of beer in one hand, and a white bikini top in the other.

"Now they... they know how to lose their stress."

---

It was confusion, when Haruna slipped on a smooth slab of rock, her hands flailing and reaching out to grab something in an effort to stop herself from falling into the water. It was semi-successful, for at the last moment she caught a can of beer with a last gasp effort, but her other hand managed to grab and tug at what she hoped was Yuria's hand. Unfortunately, it was the piece of fabric covering Yuria's chest as the woman let out a gasp, immediately submerging herself into the pool as the garment came off after the application of excessive force.

"Ah..." Haruna said, unable to react as she looked at the garment on her left hand. Both Seianese pilots were fully red, but while Haruna was giving her a stupid grin, Yuria could only shake her head as she joined Angel in keeping her body submerged.

"Well, that's why they'd always want you to partake in photoshoots for the Navy don't th-ouch!"

"Stupid idiot."

[Prosorusiya]

12/2/1992:

Nonna slowly brought her Trabant Kubelwagen to a halt behind the mess hall, it's aging breaks moaning in protest as she pumped them with her foot. It had been a long day, perhaps the longest of her life. She leaned back in her seat, the sift orange rays of the late day sun washing over her tear-stained cheeks.

She’d never forget what the orders she’d received had said:

“According to testimony from your Commanding Officer you are a “O-1 (a): Second Lieutenant, Fighter/Strike, Single & Multi-Engine”. Therefore, pursuant to Dorusian Air Dorce Regulation 214(d); you are henceforth restricted to “94(v): Light Duty; Not to Include Flight Operations”.

As a “98(mf): Foreign Mercenary; Female”, your case will be examined by a field disciplinary committee, to include your commanding officer, the ranking officer of the FOB to which you are assigned, and the ranking physician of the FOB to which you are assigned as per Regulation 951 (g). Understand that as a mercenary you will not be afforded legal council, nor the ability to appeal the decision of the committee.”


Null had told her she was lucky: as a mercenary she’d merely have her contract with the DoAF terminated, rather than being jailed for trying to dodge military service, the usual fate of women in her position. Perhaps he’d meant that to comfort her, but Nonna had fled his office before he could say anything more, grief clouding her mind like the tears in her eyes.
She was too tired to cry anymore. At least her with Jax that afternoon had restored some of the hope she'd lost in her talk with Null. Once she sold her car and fighter, she’d have money. And that was the first step on the journey to come.

She glanced down at her watch: it's hands read half-past four. She'd have another thirty minuets till dinner started. Nonna sighed, and crossed her arms. Just enough time for a quick nap. Her breathing slowed, her chest rising and falling in steady time, as sleep washed over her.

~~~

She was standing in a room, bustling with children. Around her, their parents army boots clattering on the beige linoleum floor. She crossed the rubber divider, being careful not to track debris onto the thin grey carpet, and scanned the scene for her daughter. She wasn't sitting at one of the round tables, like those whose parents had not yet come, nor was she mingling with the other children who scampered towards the exit with backpacks evidently loaded down for a forced march. Nonna had to whirl to avoid the little human SAMs as she made her way cross the room.

There. Her daughter stood at the window, absentmindedly stroking the fur of the scruffy old white cat, who deep in his slumber had long ceased to care about the waking world. The little girl's short black hair covered half her face, but the furrow of her brow and pensive pouting was not hidden from her mother. Nonna laid her hand on the child's back, caressing it gently. “Nadia? School's over, it's time to go home.”

Wordlessly, Nadia nodded her head. She looked forlornly at the cat, then scampered off to the coatroom to collect her things. Nonna sighed. It was like this everyday. How herself and Nick could produce such a shy little girl was beyond comprehension. It tore her up, but what could she do? She'd never been exactly popular in school, but even at Nadia's age she'd had at least one friend... and been able to speak more than a sentence at a time to her mother, for that matter. She ran her fingers through her matted hair. What was wrong with that child, anyhow?

Nadia reappeared, her red backpack bulging noticeably less than it had that morning when she had left. Nonna smiled. At least there wasn't anything wrong with her daughter's appetite, the lunch she had packed her was long gone. Nadia thrust her hand upwards, expectantly, and Nonna wrapped her own around it as they left the school, and slowly started their walk back to the family barracks.

The roar of jets broke the silence of the autumn day, and Nonna clasped her hands over her squirming daughter's ears to protect them from the sound. “Damn Blaginiks,” she muttered to no one in particular. It was days like this she wondered if her decision to stay in the service was the best for the family. She chased the thoughts from her head: without flying, she'd never have been able to afford having a family.

Nonna looked down at her daughter, and smiled as she wrestled her way out of her grasp. Prehaps the girl did have a bit of her mother's defiance in her after all. Nadia looked up at the vanishing jets, and then back at her mother. “MiGs?” she asked.

Nonna shook her head. “No dear, Sukohois. Like daddy used to fly.”

At this, Nadia's face fell, and she turned away. “Oh.”

A pang of guilt ran through Nonna. She stared straight ahead, not wanting to risk eye contact. “So how was your day at school?” Her daughter did not respond, only nodding her head in affirmation. Nonna sighed, and looked back down at her daughter. “What did you learn about today, kotik?”

“Colors. We made rainbows.” Nadia muttered.

“That sounds pretty. Did you have fun?” Only a murmur came as a reply. Nonna frowned. If this kept up, she'd have no choice but to take Nadia to a doctor. Something had to be wrong with her. Great. Like she needed more medical bills.

Her thoughts were only interrupted by the sudden appearance of the door to her quarters. It had only been a few minuets walk, but for some reason when she walked with her daughter it seemed to last for years. Clumsily, she retrieved her keys, and unlocked the door. It was old, it's wood swollen, and she had to lean on it hard to get it open. Finally, it swung open, and she and Nadia were finally home.

It was a modest apartment, with only a single bathroom, kitchenette, and just enough room left over for a bed, television set, and small writing desk. It was a tight squeeze for three people, but somehow they managed. For now. Someday, when she and Nick had saved up enough, Nonna thought wistfully, they'd buy a townhouse in the city and finally move off base. At the current rate, they'd only have to wait a few more years.

Nonna knelt in front of Nadia, brushing her daughter's jet black hair from her face. It was then she noticed the tears rolling down Nadia's cheeks. “What's wrong, child? Do you not feel well?”

Nadia shook her head, and mumbled an incoherent response. Nonna laid her hand on her daughter's face. The girl looked down at the dingy floor of the barracks, sniffling. Nonna leaned in, and kissed her on the forehead. No fever... now what? “What is it?”

Nadia shuddered as she inhaled, and finally spoke. “Mommy? Why do you and daddy love your jobs more than me? Daddy is always at work.... and you leave me at school and... and I'm so lonely!”

Nonna's eyes began to well, and she threw her arms around the little girl, and held her tightly. “Baby, it's true Mommy and Daddy love their work. But we love you more. That's why we work so much: so you can go to school and grow up to be a smart, happy big girl!”

Nadia wriggled to escape her mothers grasp. It wasn't enough, Nonna would have to say more. At first, she had no words. But after a minuet of silence, they began to flow. “When you were first in Mommy's tummy, she was sad, because her boss told her she couldn't fly. But then she realized that having you made her happier than she'd ever been before. Because no matter what happened, no matter how bad a day she had, or how lonely she was, she'd always have you and daddy. You two would always be there, no matter what. And you'd love your mommy, no matter what. You were my precious little gift, I loved you more than anything else in the world, and so I decided to name you after what you gave me: hope.”

Nadia, sobbing, melted into Nonna's arms. Carefully, she gathered the girl into her arms, and carried her to the bed. She set her daughter down, and sat beside her. Reaching over to the bedside table, she produced the remote to the tiny television which sat in the opposite corner. “Now, what cartoon do you want to watch today?”

Through her sobs, Nadia managed a timid reply. “My Little Pony?”

Nonna nodded, and with flick of her wrist brought the TV to life. She exhaled, and reclined across the bed. And as the theme of their favorite program filled the room, Nonna and her daughter sat side by side, smiling as they embraced one another.

“Matiya? Ya tebya lyub-lyu.”

“Nadia, mne ne zhlt bz tvayey lyubvl.”

~~~

She awoke to Nick, cradling her with his arms, as she listed out of her hot leather bucket seat. Tears flowed freely one more, but for the first time in a long while they were not from sadness.

“Where have you been lately, misha?” Nick smiled knowingly as he caressed her arm. “You didn't think I'd let a pretty bird like you just fly away, did you?”

“Oh, Nicky.” Nonna buried her face in his chest, weeping as he gently rubbed her back. She looked back up at his eyes, shimmering in the setting sun. The were warm, and kind. “I should have told you sooner. We're having a baby!”

[Tayner]

Second Lieutenant Alexander Tolshev
Koga AFB, Seian
December 5, 1992

The last bit of the sortie was uneventful for Hazard. Noel had gracefully saved his A-10 from becoming a coral reef, and walked him out of the engagement zone to safety. The A-10 managed to limp home to Koga AFB, and while Hazard secured a large payout, the repairs to the A-10 would cost him dearly, a grand total of 1.25 million would have to be forked over, and nearly as much paperwork as there was cash would need to be signed. Needless to say, the process would drag on for days.

It was no wonder that after the third day of paperwork and overseeing repairs that Alex would jump on the opportunity of relaxation at a local hot spring. The idea reminded him of home, how he would spend hours in hot springs not far from home to escape the troubles of life. It was lucky he had the same opportunity halfway across the world. So, he packed a few bottles of whiskey he had brought with him from the old country, a carton of cigarettes, and a towel. He would meet with the group and follow the leader to the hot springs, slipping and sliding his way around on the icy rocky patches that littered the path as Angel briefed them on the 'local customs' that weren't much different than his own.

Eventually the group would arrive, some of them choosing to retain their modesty, other not. Alex would avert his eyes out of respect for Angel when she followed local customs, and soon Hazard would join the group in the hot springs, and unlike others, he would adhere to the local customs, and modestly submerge himself. After watching some of the others for a minute, he would notice as another pilot would fall, and flail wildly to find someone or something to help her not succumb to the decent into the hot spring. Alex would advert his eyes for a second time once he realized that the pilot would take another pilot's swimsuit into the deep.

It wasn't long after that when alcohol was being passed around. Alex reached for his bag, which he set down near the edge of the spring, and grabbed a bottle of his own, a small brand whiskey he favored from Erusea. He noticed that Kennith had also brought a bottle of whiskey from the old country, a rival brand. Hazard would reserve to call him out for drinking such an inferior brand of whiskey for later, and instead turn to another friend, Warlock. The two had taken down an Su-27 together in planes that were clearly outmatched, and since then they'd become good friends.

And in a proper display of friendship, Alex would challenge him to a drinking contest. "Hey, Vasil, I bet I could drink you under the water! You're about as lightweight as they come!" He teasingly remarked. "Angel, Null, why don't you join! I bet Warlock can't drink half as many as the worse one of us." He said, continuing his insult of Warlock's lightweightedness. He opened the bottle of amber liquid, and used the cap as a shot glass, filling it up and holding it out. "Any volunteers to start off?" He asked.

[Empire of Donner land]

---

2nd Lieutenant Amabel "Knot" Allard|2/12/1992

---

Ibaraki Foothills, Koga, Seian

---

"Of course it isn't bad," Kenneth replied, and he was right. As she settled in it was actually pleasant. She leaned against the wall and simply waved her feet in the convecting water. Ice went to Aguila's bag, stopped, then, she guessed, went to his own bag. He grabbed out a small bottle of some sort of golden liquid she assumed was Liquor. Ah, it's never anything I like, she remarked in her head, but then she reminded herself if she wasn't so indecisive, she would have brought something of her own, shutting herself up. It won't be so bad, she reassured her self. Another bottle, she guessed Vodka, went to a Yuke pilot upstream.

"Cheers." he said, "You guys... been in this for far more than I did. It's bad for the mind to have everything bottled up you see? Screw being self-conscious for once if it helps you to get off the stress." And he was right, though the truth was bitter. She was an open book by habit, she'd usually tell people how she felt and her history. But despite that, there were things better left herself, better kept buried between the lines. Those sort of things she even kept from Angel or even Haruna, except Yuria whom she had told the most out of the three. Haruna though... she was the only one that knew exactly how she felt purely from experience with Amabel.

Kenneth spoke again "See?" pointing to Angel. She looked at them and smirked with a blush. Though she was in her birthday suit, she couldn't help but feel since everyone else was clothed that she was expecting something with a little more skin. The fact that she was keeping with it was admirable and raised a thought. "So, cheers, to break the ice?" he said, giving her a glass full of the liquid.

"Well, all this bottled up anxiety isn't going to get rid of itself. Cheers, mon ami." she said, then emptied the glass into her mouth, eyes wide open to the sky and swallowed. Then she doubled over coughing, wiping her mouth, it took a solid two seconds to get over it, she was getting better with Liquor though she still hated the taste. "Merde!" she exclaimed to herself, "every time I think It will taste better... but it is working, and it wasn't that bad that time," she reassured while recovering from the taste. Then there was a light commotion near them. Haruna had managed to unclothe Yuria accidentally.

"Now they... they know how to lose their stress." Ice noted.

"Yeah, not a bad idea actually," she said, what better way to feel liberated and anxiety free than to do as the Seianese do, though it may have been the Liquor. She slipped under the water and removed the rest of her articles, putting the swimwear behind her on the ground. "Alright, you take it next, I still have to get back to breathing after that last one," Amabel said, passing the glass back to Kenneth.

[Kyraina]

1st LT. Jax "Ranger" Bradford and 1st Lt Zach "Knight" Steele

For Jax and Zach it Felt good to be spending time with the Squadron again especially with Jax being grounded due to broken ribs and hair line fractures in his legs and arms suffered from his time as a POW starting to show up and the pain not to go away as swelling and bruising went down. It aggravated Jax in particular as they had not been able to partake in the past couple of Missions.

Jax and Zach had lagged behind the others on the Hike to the Hot Springs. In Fact Jax hadn't want to go till the Doc said it would be good for him, but the real final nail in the coffin on him going was the Fact that Maria was going. The Two had been spending alot of time together since the Coffee incident, and even stopped acting like they hated each other, taking some ammo from Noel and Zach for giving them a hard time.

Zach, carrying the backpack, and Jax arrived a few minutes after the last. Zach Wearing Cargo Shorts, and a white Tshirt and hiking boots. While Jax was wearing cargo pants, combat boots, a tshirt of one of the squadrons Jax had been part of back in Osea. Zach sat the bag down and took off his shirt and boots, and climbed in. Jax, feeling self-conscious for the first time in his life, sat down and was debating weather to climb in or not.

Zach mean while went over to Maria and nodded His head towards Jax. "Maria, can you go talk to Jax? He is being self-conscious. I think something is wrong with him."

[The Central Shadow Nation]

Lieutenant Vasil Cosmescu | Warlock
Lieutenant Karl Kuhn |Nemo

Vasil knew that there was something up between him and his flight leader. It pissed him off, as he thought that he had done nothing to aggravate his flight leader. His WSO and friend, John, had suggested that it was because of the bad luck that was happening to Snowcat since they had joined. Vasil unironically agreed- ever since he had joined Morena he had been dealing with more shit in a month than in the last 20 years of his life. The stress had gotten to him like it had gotten to everyone else he was flying with. He wished he could leave, however he owed money to his wingmen. Even if he managed to escape that problem he was still wanted in Estovakia for desertion. He couldn't see his family or his friends without punishment. Part of him wanted to end it all, to just give Vasil a conclusion in the form of ceasing to exist and ceasing to have to worry about what was next if he survived the war with Snowcat. He tried not to show it though, he tried to just be the 20 year old kid that he'd been. He wanted to convince himself that it could be worse. But in his mind, it could only get worse. The hot springs would be an escape for him.

The Stovie had hiked up with his WSO on the way up, away from the Snowcat 1, 2, and the new pilot. John didn't mind Frosty ignoring the two, as he understood that there was unseen difficulty behind his job as the Snowcat leader. He knew that Vasil took it personally however. Their talk on the way up the hillside had been limited to their day so far, with neither wanting to talk about the future or the past. It had seemed like yesterday for the both of them that the Tula's had been shot down. It wasn't just them. They knew that the war had been taking people just like the siblings on both sides. Every minute before they had engaged a target last mission the thought had passed their mind without a doubt: that could be me. But now, it was time to sit back and unwind.

Vasil had packed lightly. He had taken only a sleeping bag, a small pillow, and a can of vodka for the laughs. He had also brought a pack of cigarettes that he had purchased for tonight. He had been wanting a getaway like this for awhile, even when he was in the Estovakian Air Force. Once he had gotten up there, he decided to wait a little bit until he got into the hot springs. He talked with John for awhile, who eventually gave into the desire to hop into the springs and slid into the pools. Vasil set his backpack down, and as he was getting ready to get into the hot springs aswell, he was called out by his friend, Alexander Tolshev. "Hey, Vasil, I bet I could drink you under the water! You're about as lightweight as they come!"

Vasil smiled in response. "You are mistaken,"He challenged, taking a shot glass of the alcohol. As he waited for the other pilots to join in on the drinking contest, he responded once more to Alex,"I bet you can't even down a shot properly!"

[Ubaria]

Captain Noel 'Aguila' Silva & Maria 'Outlaw' Ferrerio
Ibaraki Foothills - Koga, Seian

"That's one" Noel pointed over to Angel who responded more than positively to the notion of alcohol before he even had time to finish making the offer. He then turned to his partner in crime, Maria, to whom he gave a mockingly stern glare before raising another finger. "That's two." At that point, Jax and Zach had made it up to the hotsprings, Noel passed them as he vacated the water to retrieve the bottle and accompanying glasses from his pack. "Three and four" He added with a grin as he passed the pair, taking a moment to kneel down and undo the straps holding the pack together, from the top he retrieved a rather ornate looking bottle of golden liquid, along with a separate handful of shot glasses that were wrapped up in a spare t-shirt. He then set the shot glasses down on a nearby flat rock and began pouring them one by one.

In the meanwhile, Jax and Zach had made it to the spring, or at least Zach had whilst the other had stopped short of getting in. Knight waded up alongside Maria.

"Maria, can you go talk to Jax? He is being self-conscious. I think something is wrong with him."

Maria glanced back over her shoulder.

"I guess." She murmured and slowly shuffled her way to the edge of the pool, hoisting herself out with both arms.

"Hey. You made it. Want to hop in the water? It's not actually that cold" Maria began, awkwardly attempting to break some ice between the two, it was obvious that Bradford wasn't acting his usual boisterous self.

It was then that Noel finished pouring, Maria was thrust a drink into her hands as was Jax.

"One for me, that's five and one for Tallow. That's six" He lent over the edge of the pool and held out the glass towards Null with a rather mischievous grin.

"I won't take no for an answer. Angel tell the man."

[Theodosiya]

Lt. Ivan Sidorov Vorkovich
"Raróg"
Ibaraki Foothills - Koga, Seian


He watched as events unfold around him. He tried, he did tried, but he finally admit he can't keep isolating himself. And so, he stand up and approached them, bringing with him few bottles of vodka he carried from the base. He slowly sat on the edge, loosening his underwear, before sliding into the hot spring and putting off his pants and underwear, placing it next to his bag, and enjoyed the warmth of the water, something he never enjoy in his life before. Best thing for years. How can I miss things like this? He thought while submerged up to his neck, before taking his half full bottle of vodka and another full one.

"I heard you guys are going to have a drinking contest. May I join up, kapitán? Been quite a long time after I had one" He spoke to Noel, lifting his bottles of vodka. "Oh, and I also brought some additional vodka. There's still two bottles left in my bag there. If someone wants to, I'll pick them up" he added. He tried to sound polite and calm, but he still feel guilty and stressed about his failure in the naval strike. He silently looks at the sky, before turning to Noel again "Uh, and I also wanted to apologize for the strike mission failure, kapitán. Should've won against Migs, but due to my incompetence, Plamya end up badly damaged and I had to pull out of engagement. And also for locking myself up and the nearly non stop training flights after Plamya got fixed" .

[Beiarusia]

Second Lieutenant Mitsuko Kimura "Angel"
December 5, 1992 // Ibaraki Foothills, Koga, Seian

"That's one," said Noel, pointing to Angel like a gameshow host before climbing out of the water to retrieve the alcohol.

Haruna was enjoying her new gig as a full-fledged military pilot. Things were slightly different to be sure, but not by much, and undoubtedly this promotion was a dream come true. The circumstances were troublesome, Morena and the war, the occupation, but the future was looking far brighter now every day.

Yuria had fetched a few cans of what Angel could only assume was beer or alcohol of some sort — or, more-than-likely, it was juice which wouldn't be all that surprising — but as Haruna waded over she lost her footing and fell, reaching out in a panic to grab whatever she could which, in this unfortunate case, was the white bikini top of her co-pilot. A glorious moment, Yuria exposed to the world. A split-second of uninterrupted, stunned embarrassment, followed by an awkwardly quick descent into the water to submerge her well-endowed nakedness, and although many were too preoccupied elsewhere to have noticed (not immediately) Angel had seen everything, and despite herself was staring more than intended. All three were red in the face.

The tension was broken by Alexander as he, too, had brought liquor. "Hey, Vasil, I bet I could drink you under the water!" he challenged. "Angel, Null, why don't you join! I bet Warlock can't drink half as many as the worse one of us. Any volunteers to start off?" He held out the first pour of the amber-coloured drink.

Seizing the opportunity, Angel crossed the hot spring to Alexander to take the offered liquor cap, careful to keep most of herself underwater, and without hesitation she downed the shot of whiskey. An instant later Noel was handing her a glass of tequila.

"Think I'll pass," said Null.

"I won't take no for an answer," Noel said, offering the man a drink. "Angel tell the man."

She sidled up alongside Null, glass half-empty, and with inhibitions blunted she elbowed the man playfully in his ribs. "Come on," she pestered with a skewed grin. "A few drinks won't kill you. Loosen up. Besides, whatever you don't drink I'll have to, so do it for my sake." Null had little choice but to give in. Angel then noticed Jax and Zach, the two having been slow to follow up the mountain path, and without thinking had her arm raised high overhead to wave at them like a schoolgirl waving at friends spied at a distance. Fortunately she remained mostly submerged. Without meaning to she interrupted their conversation with Maria: "Hurry on in! No fun sitting in the grass by yourself."

With a sudden realization, Angel slipped away to rejoin Haruna and Yuria, tequila held high enough to avoid an accidental watering-down. Like Haruna, her feet slipped on the rocks, but she remained upright and merely coasted into the pair.

"Drinking contest. Yes or yes?"

[Relikai]

Yuria was blushing as she noted the eyes which saw her in the buff. At least the place was dark enough that seeing through the water was a near impossibility, the natural moonlight and other illumination providing a serene sight. Most of the squadron had joined in at the moment, and she was content enough to find a corner near Angel, but more importantly near her shirt laying neatly folded by the side. It was not that she was ashamed or shy about her body, Yuria was considering a possible step into modeling in the future, but she wasn't exactly that confident of being seen by people she's knowing for the first time, despite having spent time with most of those around here.

Haruna was still her bright self, but instead of following up to harass her friend underwater, she nodded towards Angel as she came over with a shot of liquor in her hand, the call for a series of drinks obvious.

"I'm not exactly prepared for a lot of drinks." Haruna said with a small laugh, her face turning slightly red as she remembered the time she was drunk in Morena, and apparently causing a little bit of a ruckus. She wasn't prepared to lose herself once more in such drunken revelry, but Yuria might be able, and enthusiastic, as the older woman perked up at the call, a little too quickly to seem natural as Haruna was pulling her arm and gliding over to the center.

"I can't drink foreign stuff, you know that." Haruna said, mainly to Yuria but also shooting Angel a look. "But Yuria's been around. Don't worry, I'll cover your boobs if anything goes... wild." She ended, giving her friend a slight hug from behind, a shudder from Yuria perhaps telling those around her what was going on under the water for a brief moment of time.

"Urgh... alright, fine." Yuria replied, nodding towards Angel as she adjusted her ponytail so it was shifted to the front from the side, the wet hair instantly plastering itself on her slightly pale skin, the Seianese pilot nodding as she joined the group, her can floated to Haruna as she carefully kept herself in the water, only the shape of her smooth shoulders and collarbone visible towards the group.

"Alright, let's rock."

---

"Another?" Kenneth asked, placing the bottle behind them while sharing the glass he brought. "Trick is to take some slowly, and let it warm you up. You'll get used to the taste, as long as we don't have to fly in the morning." He chuckled, a hand moving underwater to pat Amabel's back, before moving to her shoulder to give it a rub to ease the flow of alcohol into her body. Too many times has he met colleagues, male and female, throwing up after a bad attempt at drinking, and ending up like a mess in the bar. The initiates into new companies are worse, graduates who thought themselves capable of handling grown-up drinks, and it has come to him multiple times to send a female colleague home safely after a night's out.

"Gaaah!" Kenneth exhaled, the alcohol also warming him up as his body got accustomed to the temperature of the spring. He was ultimately, a guy, as his eyes did eye beneath the surface of the water to catch a sight of what the unclothed beauties might pack. Not much luck on that, for it was the light and not the luck of the Moon which shone upon poor Ice this night.

"Doubt you'll wanna join em." He continued, nodding towards the group where they're preparing to start a drinking contest. "How's it like under the water? You got guts leaving those behind I'll give you that."

[Empire of Donner land]

---

2nd Lieutenant Amabel "Knot" Allard|2/12/1992

---

Ibaraki Foothills, Koga, Seian

---

"Another?" he asked, Amabel nodded, by now her throat was ready for another if a bit apprehensive. Something like having to take another drink of cough syrup despite its taste, one has to to feel better. "Trick is to take some slowly and let it warm you up. You'll get used to the taste, as long as we don't have to fly in the morning," Ice chuckled, his arm went underwater to her back and she felt his hand on her again. Normally, Amabel wouldn't be so acceptive of this from someone, especially while without clothing, but she just assumed he was assisting her with figuring out how to drink the stuff by being supportive. Kenneth took an audible drink and so Amabel took her turn.

With the cup in her hand and full again Kenneth spoke, "Doubt you'll wanna join 'em," he said gesturing towards those were setting up a drinking game, it seemed that Amabel and Kenneth had their section of the pool to themselves. This was how Amabel preferred things, her and a few other people, to themselves, talking. At least, on the ground. "How's it like under the water? You got guts leaving those behind I'll give you that," Kenneth asked. She swished the alcohol in its cup for a bit and looked up as he asked.

"Having guts is kind of a pre-, er, pre-reh-," she paused, cursing under her breath as she struggled to pronounce it and then said it slowly "Pre-requisite," her accent very clearly showing, "-to have guts if you're flying for Morena," she finished. "And when in Seian, right? Angel did it, might as well join my self. its got merit to it as well because it feels pretty damn good. If I'm going to try and relax, I might as well do it to the fullest extent possible," Amabel answered, then she looked at the cup and sighed. "Here goes nothing," she spoke to herself, and with the advice of Ice, took it slowly before taking it all in. To say it worked would be a giving it too much credit, but she wasn't choking or coughing, though it still didn't taste any better.

She blushed and got some hint that maybe Ice thought she was new to drinking entirely, "I swear Kenneth, I've drunk and got drunk before, but that was with Beer and Wine back in Aurelia," she said and started laughing as she felt the buzz. Things for her started feeling a whole hell of a lot better. She leaned on Kenneth just enjoying the water, shoulder to shoulder. "Never got to ask, probably because I never got the time, but how'd you get here, Morena and all?"

[Beiarusia]

Major Aleksei Tallow "Null"
December 5, 1992 // Ibaraki Foothills, Koga, Seian

Null was sitting a few meters from the edge of the hot spring, relaxing, tending to a small campfire, a bit tipsy but not quite as drunk as some of the others. The drinking had gotten a bit out-of-hand. Too much booze; too much bravado. They all had something to prove, or at least they believed themselves to have something to prove, a statement to make, or an ego to stroke, and so a long overdue night of relaxation had instead devolved into a contest of not being outdone, and in the end there were no winners. The casualties were high. Those who hadn't passed out couldn't well walk a straight line. Null was only as functional as he was due to his forfeiting early on. He'd agreed to partake in the merrymaking, and had done so dutifully, but he respected his liver far too much to indulge in a seemingly endless flow of liquor. A stick-in-the-mud, but would he have a hangover come morning?

He made a mental note to talk louder than normal. Maybe it would be a bright, sunny day as well as icing on the cake.

There was no going home tonight. An easy hike, sure, but it was already late in the evening, close to midnight, and very few were in any condition to survive the trek down the mountainside, much less the drive back to base on unfamiliar roads that were difficult to navigate during the day when dead sober.

The pilots were stuck there for the night.

A situation that was less terrible than it sounded.

The night was warm, the sky clear, and with a campfire to keep the insects away they could sleep comfortably more-or-less. Some were clearly thinking ahead by bringing along sleeping mats; others had resigned themselves to using their backpacks as pillows. Maybe there was foresight to bring a tent? Regardless, being military, it was hardly the worst thing in the world. Camping was basic training, and not always were they given the necessities for a good night's sleep in the countryside, woods, desert, or what have you.

The small campfire popped as the burning wood cracked apart in the heat. Null watched, staring deep into the flames, his mind a bit muddled from the alcohol, but aware to the degree needed to find reflection in the shifting glow of the embers. A primal instinct. Not so much thinking as merely existing with the crackling fire as a backdrop to something unexplainable. Staring into the fire simply felt right. Calming. Relaxing. A soothing end to a rambunctious night made all the more pleasant by the smattering of stars tinkling high above like some cosmic mosaic. The nearest major metropolitan area was Nonsan, leaving Koga free of the light pollution that would otherwise obscure the nighttime sky. A benefit to being stationed in the middle of nowhere.

Angel was nearby, asleep, splayed out atop a simple mat, thankfully dressed enough to be considered decent. She had lasted until the very end when the alcohol had finally run dry. Null had lost count on how many shots she'd taken, and he'd be right in assuming that she, too, had lost count after the seventh or eighth. She was smaller than most of the men but she could drink with the best of them. Probably wouldn't remember this night. It was a blur to Null and he'd had a fraction of what she'd had.

Null caught himself staring and returned his sleepy gaze to the fire. It would be awhile before he turned in for the night, but until then the campfire was open to anyone still up and moving should they be seeking the warmth or maybe even a moment of his time.

[Ubaria]

1st Lt Jax "Ranger" Bradford & 2nd Lt Maria "Outlaw" Ferreiro

Jax looked over to Maria who had dragged herself out of the water to greet him, with much less clothes on than what he was used to seeing her in. He smiled a sad smile.

"Yeah, i made it. Not much can stop this cowboy from a little walk in the woods" Joseph replied before huffing a resigned sigh, his eyes flicking down from the woman to the rocky ground.

"It's not the water. It's ... I don't know. I mean i know what it is. I don't want to take my shirt and pants off. I don't want to be ridiculed for the beating i took when i was in that POW camp. My body is littered with damn scars from it. The last time you saw them, i was so bruised and bandaged you couldn't see them." Jax explained. Maria looked rather solemnly, though she hadn't put Jax down for the self-conscious type, she could understand his point, after all, she had a scar of her own. Comparatively smaller and less prominent in any case, it was a small knife nick located at the small of her back, a reminder of an incident that had occurred during her time in the police force. The blemish however was hidden from view currently behind her black swimsuit, though she could still feel the contours of the scar as she subtly ran her finger along its seam.

"Care to help me get my shirt off?" Jax asked slyly, milking his pain to a degree to see if the woman would help.

Maria rolled her eyes and nodded. "Sure, arms up."

Maria gripped the bottom of the shirt and rolled it up and over Jax's head and was stunned at the extent of the scars once they were truly revealed. All black and blue, the skin was plastered with bruises and more brutal contusions, it was a wonder then how more serious damage hadn't been inflicted and that he was still in fighting shape. Maria had to restrain herself from getting tactile and proceeded to remove the rest of the shirt without causing too much undue pain and then, once done, she composed herself and cracked a narrow smile.

"You don't look that bat honestly." She jested in an attempt to lift Jax's spirits some.

Jax returned the gesture, though a thankful smile this time.

"Thanks. I'm not usually the self-conscious type, but what happened to me has temporarily changed that. I was an enlisted special operations commando before i was a commissioned pilot, i was what we Oseans call a Combat Controller. Guys like me, let's just say i was never expecting to be captured. Could be worse, at least i was able to escape and that i was only captive for a week or so. Jax explained as he continued to pull of his cargo pants and boots to reveal that he was infact, wearing swimming trunks.

"What was even more humbling was that a certain beautiful lady dumped her drink on my head."

Jax peeled off the bandages binding his ribs off with Maria's help, as well as the ones pressuring the stress fractures on his upper arms before wading into the spring to take a seat. Gritting his teeth to combat the pain, he lowered himself into the hot water, the combination of the water temperature as well as the movement and labored breathing hurt like hell.

"God this hurts." Jax hissed. "Hope this starts feeling better soon." He swished the water around infront of him.

"I've never been in a hot springs before. What about you." Jax asked Maria who re-entered the water beside him.

"No. Well not like this exactly." She replied, lowering into the water. "We had a hot tub growing up but it wasn't anything like this." Maria added, retrieving her shot of still untouched Tequila off the rocky outcropping. "It's still pretty amazing how something like this could form naturally." She continued, raising the shot glass toward Jax.

"What should we drink to then?"

Jax retrieved his shot too and paused in thought for a moment. "Here's to us. Who's like us? Damn few, and they are all dead!" Jax jovially chanted and raised his glass in salute before downing the shot, his face remained unflinching as he downed the Tequila.

"I wouldn't quite put it like that but ok. To ... the dead?" She responded before necking the drink in one go, admirable considering Maria hadn't really the temperament for strong liquor, though her face still contorted with brief anguish."

"Well that's something." She spluttered, still trying to clear her tingling throat from the acidic liquid fizzling away.

"That was good. Not as good as the Osean Bourbon i've bought. It's pretty damn good and i need to break out the cigars i bought when i flew down. We'll get through this Tequila first though." Jax moved in closer and gingerly placed his arm over Maria's shoulder. Not used to such close or intimate contact, the woman twitched in surprise before sliding down into the water some more, though after a few awkward silent moments, settled down.

""So what was you touching on your back before we got in the springs?" Jax asked inquisitively.

"Nothing. Angel's swimsuit is cutting into my back a bit. She let me borrow one of hers. Seem's like she doesn't need it anyway, or hers really." She replied, gesturing over the the woman near the center of the spring who was already succumbing to onset inebriation, she was drunkenly frolicking around in the water though thankfully was keeping her upper torso below the waterline, if not by a small margin. Noel was also nearby, sliding through the water like a duck on a pond when the announcement of a drinking contest went out, quickly proclaiming he would be victorious. Maria and Jax stayed at their own corner of the pool and watched.

---

Some time - and a few bottles - later

The nearby mountains had been echoing with the sound of revels and merriment for the last couple of hours. Plenty of drinks had been drunk, the game of alcoholic chicken had gone on for some time with several bottles now empty lying beside the waters edge. The drinking game had started off at a steady pace with everybody retaining some level of sobriety, though at around half a dozen shots in, things started going blurry. Null had tapped out rather early, Jax and Maria had stayed out of the major part of the game but had continued to drink their fair share by themselves. Noel would have lasted until the very end if it wasn't for him having to leave the springs to do nature's bidding and subsequently getting lost on his way back to the spring, only returning some minutes after the game had concluded, much to his dismay.

Now the night had wound down to a degree, some were still managing to pack drinks in and others were retreating from the water to take refuge in the warm glow of the campfire Null had constructed soon after vacating the water himself. Noel managed to groggily wander over to the beacon of dancing flames and perched himself on a nearby branch yet with the lack of balance, almost flipped backwards.

"Ughh." Noel began, leaning in closer to the flames to keep off the growing cold. He had managed to somehow retrieve his clothing but he himself was still a tad damp from the water and would need to dry off.

"I haven't been thiiiis drunk since ..... well ..... i can't remember." He groaned, his head lolling forward and body swaying like a tree in a heavy breeze. "It takes me back though. Grabbing a crate of cerveza from my parents hidden stash. Walking out to the edges of town and building a massive bonfire from old pallets and drinking the night away. Sneaking back in the dead of night and sleeping off the hangover in the morning." He grinned and giggled before looking over to a rather stoic Null. Silva cast his gaze back to the flames and outstretched both his palms towards it.

"My mother always used to say, if you stare long enough into a fire, you can see your future in the flames." He paused, eyes transfixed to the dancing orange tendrils, consciously trying to pick out shapes in the chaos of it all but could see nothing but but muddled blurs of orange and yellow against a dark backdrop.

"What do you see?"

[Relikai]

As the night dragged on, the duo eventually found themselves wanting to get some rest, the two snuggled near a corner, secure and fully clothed to ward off the cold night air. Perhaps knowing that they are safe, especially within the company of former squadron mates, the two slept soundly.

Ice on the other hand, moved with his companion to another corner, the two properly boozed up with alcohol, although both were still kind of sober. The heat, constant sweating, and shared liquor did well to slow the pace of their consumption, but it also made him feel active, slightly restless. He wasn't the type to fall asleep after shots, instead it helped to keep him up, although slightly high with his spirits promptly lifted with his inhibitions lowered.

"Morena huh." He replied. "I was a defence contractor back in Osea for a while, working on planes and designs, trying to submit proposals for upgrading current variants of jets. Some were looked at, some weren't, but as a... well, former pilot, I felt that working on the ground wasn't really that much of my calling. When the war kicked off here, I was trying to make my way south, be a foreign mercenary, volunteer... whatever. My paperwork had complications however, and I needed to clear through Osean customs before I could register myself at Dorusia, before I'm finally here."

Sighing, he took another swig of beer, this one slightly stronger than his own bottle. "I guess I came a little too late, but hey, better late than never huh. Get to know some people, do some dirty work for this country, and return with a good paycheck. Sounds like a plan. How about you, Amabel? What... prompted you to become a merc?"

[Empire of Donner land]

---

2nd Lieutenant Amabel "Knot" Allard|2/12/1992

---

Ibaraki Foothills, Koga, Seian

---

"... How about you, Amabel? What... prompted you to become a merc?" A loaded question.

"I started more than three years ago. Long story short... Our squadron was sent deep into the islands around the border, then came out a Cayenne squadron that crossed the border into Aurelian airspace... We.. we were slaughtered, we lost a flight and a half in maybe less than a minute or more in that furball. I still don't know what went wrong. Our squadron leader, despite the pleas including mine, ordered us to keep fighting, he was a... traditional man. I decided to get out of the fight myself and retreated, but my WSO... he caught a cannon round and shrapnel anyway, bled out, last I saw of him was under a tarp. I don't remember his last words or his face, I don't think I'll ever want to, just that tarp," a pained expression of remembering what happened scrawled on her face as she explained. She laid on the ground, putting her hands behind her head as a cushion.

"the AAF gave me a dishonorable discharge the day after. Cowardice. Went to North Point, then Levant, then here. I've been trying to run, but I guess I've only gotten closer since then, might as well just go home," she observed the sky above as she spoke, the stars faintly twinkled. "It's been four years since I just laid down and looked at the sky, Kenneth... Not thinking about the past." There was some silence between them, taking both the words and the sight in. Amabel took a deep drink.

She thought about what to say next and guessed the future seemed like the better topic, "How badly do you want to go home, Kenneth?" Amabel asked, "and what are you going to do with the money? Spend it all on some girl and marry her?" She joked.

[Relikai]

A hand rested on Amabel's shoulder, Kenneth giving it a squeeze like earlier, deciding not to pull her in closer to avoid giving her the physical presence of a male during a time of tender sharing. Looking at the woman lying on the ground before him, Kenneth nodded at her sharing, his smile visible from the light of the moon as he pondered about her question regarding the future.

Home. It was something he hasn't considered for a while. Ever since shit went down in Erusea, the death of his wife and his unborn son hit him the most, causing him to cut off all ties with Erusea and in an informal sense, 'defect' to Osea, vowing never to step foot onto Erusea ever. His service for the sake of his family, his sacrifice for a government and society which lacks the heart to even help his wife in need when she needed it most, it all seemed wasted after the collapse of his world, Kenneth arriving in Osea a broken figure, picking himself up only after a tremendous amount of effort in which locking himself up while working on aircraft designs helped to stabilize his thought process.

"There's no home to return to. Osea perhaps, but I... came from Erusea initially." Kenneth replied, giving a sigh as he joined her lying down, the two side by side. "I.. had a wife, but the country called, pulling me away from her for so long. She... became sick, and only when I agreed to take up a mission did they agree to bring her the needed treatment. However, I failed, and the illness was too strong for her while she carried my son."

There was a brief silence, before his voice could be heard once more. "I came here with some money, and now I've earned much more. When this is over, yeah. Why not? Find a girl, maybe a couple if I'm dumb enough, and find the right one to settle down with. Osea... is some freaking big place, and coming to an international squadron... I'd say that Aurelian ladies aren't too bad either." He laughed, joking or not perhaps up to Amabel to decide.

[Beiarusia]

Major Aleksei Tallow "Null"
December 5, 1992 // Ibaraki Foothills, Koga, Seian

Aleksei gave a small nod of acknowledgement as Noel joined him opposite the campfire, saying nothing so as to not interrupt the tipsy pilot as he rambled on about a now distance childhood memory. Then came a quiet moment. Silence and the crackling of the fire. The low chirps of insects in the surrounding wood. "My mother always used to say, if you stare into a fire, you can see your future in the flames," said Noel, a pregnant pause following his words before asking, "What do you see?"

The not-as-drunk pilot shrugged. "Fire," he answered. Aleksei frowned a bit, as if thinking on some difficult thought, or recalling a memory he'd rather have forgotten. A minute change in the usually stoic face of the squadron leader. "I never thought much about my future," he said, throwing kindling atop the flames to keep the fire burning. "Joining the military made sense after the war, and I was good enough at flying. Guess so long as I have orders I'll keep at it. Or maybe I do see my future, and it's nothing but an inferno. Either I burn up or everything else around me does." A small chuckle that is unbecoming of Aleksei. "Or maybe I'm being poetic. Too much alcohol. Ask Angel and she'd probably tell you something interesting. She's the optimistic one." And before Noel could ask he added, "I'm the realist.

"What do you see? We haven't talked much, but why risk everything to be a mercenary? Why not fly for Sapin?"

[Ubaria]

Captain Noel 'Aguila' Silva
Ibaraki Foothills - Koga, Seian

"What do you see? We haven't talked much, but why risk everything to be a mercenary? Why not fly for Sapin?"

Noel remained rather silent and continued staring contemplatively into the orange embers, as if almost blanking his compatriots question altogether, truth was, he wasn't even sure about the answer to that question himself. Mercenary work appealed to the more venturesome and audacious side of him, romanticized tales of brave soldiers of fortune seeking glory and wealth were commonplace in military circles and the thought of carving out his own future attracted him to the work. There was also a strange sense of duty and honor, appealing Noel's more responsible nature, as if he had a moral obligation to fight on behalf of those who couldn't, but at the same time, wasn't oblivious to the fact he was a weapon that could be used to oppress as easily as safeguard, mercenaries after all didn't have to worry about consequence.

"I guess ... i became a mercenary because there is always a fight that needs to be fought." He began, eyes flicking between the fire and the dark surrounding foliage. "I didn't know what i was getting into at the time but the money seemed great and i was doing something i was good at. Turns out that might be all that i'm good at." He paused and inhaled, as if reaching for words that were escaping him. "Sapin isn't the world and i want to see all of it before i die. The cockpit of a jet isn't the safest way to do that i know but if i can make a difference whilst doing it, then that's why i signed up." He plucked a nearby twig from the log he was using as a seat and began stoking the pulsating charcoal at the core of the fire.

"As for the flames well ... My mother always was a superstitious one." He chuckled. "Or i'm just not imaginative enough."

[Empire of Donner land]

---

2nd Lieutenant Amabel "Knot" Allard|2/12/1992

---

Ibaraki Foothills, Koga, Seian

---

Amabel could tell there was more to his story than simply failing a mission, though if she knew herself better than most people, it was that you shouldn't pry into people's histories unless you want to find or start something bad. Some memories were best left untouched gathering dust until later. She'd give Kenneth that time.

"I came here with some money, and now I've earned much more. When this is over, yeah. Why not? Find a girl, maybe a couple if I'm dumb enough, and find the right one to settle down with. Osea... is some freaking big place, and coming to an international squadron... I'd say that Aurelian ladies aren't too bad either." Kenneth said, then laughed. Amabel turned over to lay on her side, her head supported by her hand.

"Not too bad, huh? Well, what do you like about them?" she asked looking down on Kenneth, the flame flickering down below them, lighting their area up dimply, the shadows of others around the fire dancing around. "There's got to be something specific," she grinned slyly. Too drunk at the moment to think what he said through, impulsive.

[Beiarusia]

Major Aleksei Tallow "Null"
19:45 December 11, 1992 // Koga Airbase, Koga, Seian

A few days had passed since the excursion to the Ibaraki Foothills. The mercenary pilots had fallen back into regular routine, on standby as no mission had yet come up given the state of the months-long conflict. Despite having lost its final defensive strategy, Beiarusia was making no outward attempt to sue for peace, even as the Dorusian Army crossed north of the Tokage River to secure the border. A skirmish here-or-there but no major battles. None requiring the use of aircraft. Morena wasn't so much grounded as they were simply lacking in available tasks, and were relegated to Combat-Air-Patrols in the meantime.

Null had taken advantage of the downtime to prune away at his clerical duties; Angel had enjoyed the company of Haruna and Yuria (both of whom had returned to Murai Air Force Base) as well as spending time with Amabel. The others were free to do whatever.

The call to briefing had come suddenly. Morena had been summoned, as had Reaper and Warrior, and sitting now inside the little conference room, utilitarian in plainness, it was apparent that no SAF pilots were in attendance. Null hadn't been informed so remained with his squadron, choosing a seat near the front, Angel on his right, a bit worried considering the peculiarities of the situation. An unexpected call to arms. No alarm. Urgent, but not life-or-death. Not yet.

General Zhikov stood at the front with arms crossed behind his back. Accompanying him was the new Base Adjutant, their liaison, Major Vernadsky, who, unlike the late Major Cocoran, was more a trained doberman than a junkyard bulldog, lean and fierce. He took charge of the briefing with General Zhikov observing. "Today at thirteen-hundred-hours a reconnaissance flight surveyed the islands near the territorial waters of Adamas, specifically a military base identified as Akers Research Base." He spoke in a harsh, no-nonsense sort of tone with perfect articulation, pausing to activate a screen projector which showed an aerial photograph of a nondescript airbase. "We believe this to be a joint venture between Beiarusia and the South Belka Munitions Factory. More concerning, we have evidence of an unidentified aircraft." The image changed to a blurry image of an unknown aircraft with forward-swept wings. Inactive on the tarmac, flanked on either side by Flankers and another aircraft with forward-swept wings. A few more pictures before the reconnaissance aircraft was forced to retreat. "The enemy experimental weapons are likely to be a development intended to supplement this aircraft. As such, this aircraft is considered a high-priority-target.

"Your assignment will be to provide support to a Spec-Ops unit whose objective is to capture Akers. Establish air superiority and then provide close-air-support as needed. Morena and Reaper will take point. Warrior is to be on standby. Should the mission to capture the prototype fail you are to destroy the base." Captain Emile, squadron leader of Warrior, nodded with a verbal confirmation. Null and Major Graves did the same. General Zhikov seemed please with the briefing thus far. "Mission begins at zero-six-hundred-hours. An aerial tanker will accompany you to the AO. Any questions? If not then dismissed."

[Tayner]

Second Lieutenant Alexander Tolshev
Ibaraki Foothills, Koga, Seian
December 5th, 1992

The rest of the night went about as expected for Hazard, after pounding down a few more drinks in the contest, and probably loosing (not that he could remember anyways), he crawled out of the hit spring, dried off and got back into his clothes, and unceremoniously passed out face down on his backpack. Null had to practically kick the man in the side to wake him up the next morning, and the hike back to civilization was excruciating for Alex. Upon his return to Koga, he nearly drank a gallon of water and another gallon of coffee.

The next few days he would spend some time on Combat Air Patrols. Apart from dropping a JDAM on a hard target the Dorusian infantry were having trouble with, it was largely uneventful. Although he couldn't complain, he was getting paid. It was already dark out when Morena was assembled with some Dorusian Squadrons. The meeting started, something Alex wasn't expecting when the Seianese pilots had yet to arrive. He shrugged it off, they were probably on CAP or indisposed elsewhere.

"Mission begins at zero-six-hundred-hours. An aerial tanker will accompany you to the AO. Any questions? If not then dismissed."

"Sir," Hazard started, standing up from his chair in the back of the room. "Do we have any accurate information on the OpFor besides this mystery weapon and their Flanker escort? AA and SAM emplacements and such?" He asked before scratching at his scruffy stubble that had begun to set in after a few days of neglect.

[Relikai]

Second Lieutenant Kenneth Falkenrich 'Iceterine'

Back in Koga, he returned to the usual routine of his desk and drawings, Kenneth using the experience he gained within Morena and his past to draw up little technical refinements for the aircraft he worked on back in Osea. Being the pilot of a plane of Yuktobanian make which was born out of different schools of thought from Osean designs, his fingers worked on the pencil as he drew them on simple paper, taking care not to look like a spy but someone doodling and drawing plane shapes on an exercise book.

The next mission came days after, an he knew something big was up the moment he stepped into the briefing room. The nature of the mission came soon enough, as Kenneth listened, eyeing the briefing material as he took down notes, the layout of the airbase key as his eyes focused on the design of the peculiar new aircraft. An experimental platform? Interesting.

air to sppt grnd. aa, ground ordnance more aa... 2 grnd? fuel? 223 / 2223. He scribbled at the side, Kenneth thinking hard considering the intricacies of the mission. The need to destroy the base should the ground team fail, or the prototypes he assumed, as long as they stay on the ground it should not be too difficult a task.

[Ubaria]

Captain Noel 'Aguila' Silva & 2nd Lt Maria "Outlaw" Ferreiro
Koga AFB - Koga Province, Seian

Morale had been bolstered in thanks to the well needed and earned outing embarked on by most of Morena. A dunk in the hot springs and subsequent camp-out under the starlit skies, paired with numbing alcohols and innocuous debauchery, was all that was needed to shed the heavy emotional baggage that came with war, even it it were for just a day or two, it was enough to forget for a few sweet moments. Afterward, Morena had been granted a couple of days R&R whilst the war continued to simmer on a low heat, Dorusian ground forces aided with a northward thrust to recapture lost territory and even seize some Beiarusian turf in a move that was sure to prevent any significant counter-attack being mounted by the enemy.

Otherwise, not much else had happened in the interim of downtime. Both a drowsy Noel and Maria had miraculously managed to stumble down the mountain with a pulsating hangover after their drinking antics up at the hotsprings and had used their downtime to catch up on personal appointments such as some much needed personal grooming, talking to friends/relatives and reacquiring themselves with world events that had probably passed them by in the last few days.

The break room was filled yet again by the hissing of the coffee brewer, and the sound of pencil scraping to paper, inbetween vexed curses uttered in various languages as a certain pilot was trying to get to grips with a rather involved task. Noel was interrupted by the sound of the break room door rattling open, not that he bothered to take his attention from what he was doing.

"What are you reading?" Maria inquired, noticing her partner pilot hunched over several sheets of notes and a large paper, stopping only by the coffee brewer as it had finished brewing. Noel mumbled something incoherent, obviously too engrossed to notice somebody was addressing him.

"Oh. Just ... a newspaper" Noel replied bluntly, taking a moment to peel his eyes away from the Seianese newspaper he was desperately trying to decipher and over to Maria.

Maria raised a mockingly concerned brow and chuckled to herself, retrieving the ready made beverage from the counter, she made way over to a seat next to Noel and leaned over to see just what exactly. It seemed the newspaper was entirely in native Seianese, her confused smirk quickly turned into a mocking grin.

"It's all in Kanji, you can't even read Kanji?" Maria retorted in an accusatory manner, her eyes managed to pick out something Noel had not.

"No." Noel shook his head and adjusted the paper on the table, scratching the back of his head in confusion. "But i can learn right?"

"Well. Not like that you won't".

"What do you me - Hey i was reading that!"

Maria plucked the paper from her partner's hands and span it one-hundred and eighty degrees in the air before placing it back down again, sipping her coffee through a smug grin.

"You were reading it upside down."

An embarrassed silence ensued. "I knew that. I was just ... studying the symbols" Noel pouted like a child and swatted the paper away with a huff, right beside the 'Seianese for Beginners' book and a notepad with various incomprehensible scribbles on it.

"What have you been doing the last two days anyway?" Asked Noel, walking over to fix himself a coffee. Maria didn't respond and simply ran her fingers through her golden brown hair. "Aside from getting your hair colored." He added.

"Oh then well. Nothing. I visited the town and picked up some of that Seianese candy i like and some new clothes because i can't keep borrowing Angel's stuff all the time and other than that ... " She trailed off, trying to think of more things she had been doing, in truth, it wasn't much.

Noel nodded and returned to the seat he was previously sat in, cradling a cup of black coffee, the bitter drink was starting to grow on him just a little.

"Well lets see i've been uh ... talking to my mother. Pretty sure i fell asleep on the phone and um - oh yeh - i got them to fix that rattle in the cockpit, turns out it was a wire rubbing on the inside of one of the MFD's and i've been trying to learn Seianese ... you saw how that's going." He gestured to the book.

"What did you talk to your mother about?" Maria replied.

"Just the usual things like; Don't die, don't cripple yourself, what the hell are you doing. That kind of stuff." Noel sighed, staring down at his set of notes in Seianese, most of the symbols looked like they had been drawn by a six year old.

"Never was good at drawing."

The pair's conversation was interrupted by a summoning over the intercom. Morena had a mission.

Noel and Maria arrived at about the same time as everybody else, taking position at the back of the room against the far wall and waited until the briefing began. It seemed, from what the replacement for Major Cocoran had explained, Beiarusia was trialing some new experimental aircraft that were courtesy of South Belka Munitions Factory and they - being Morena - would escort and provide cover to capture Akers Air Base and capture or destroy the prototype aircraft stationed there. No light was shed on what the experimental craft were or what their capabilities could be, there was little concern in the Major's voice however. Once he had finished, the group was dismissed.

"You'd have thought the Beiarusians would have run out of tricks by now." Noel mused, turning to his squadmates. "Any idea what the hell this thing could be?"

[The United Remnants of America]

Captain Aiden "Frosty" Kelly

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Koga AFB, Koga, Seian

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12/11/1992 - 20:00

---

While Morena was being briefed by General Zhikov for some future mission or another, the half-dozen pilots of Snowcat were in a separate, smaller briefing room being given a completely different mission. While Morena and the Dorusian pilots had been running CAPs the last few days, Snowcat and the Seianese pilots had been allowed a brief respite.

But now, the scuttlebutt on base was that Zhikov was sending the Dorusians and the Morena mercs off on some missions. Details were secret squirrel. That meant it was the Seianese squadrons' turn to take up the local combat air patrols. All the Seianese and Seianese-contracted squadron leaders had drawn straws on who got first shift. Kelly drew the shortest straw, of course. So went his luck.

No senior base staff could even debrief them, which made sense. While CAPs needed briefings and post-mission debriefs, they were just simple patrols that didn't really require high-level personnel to be involved in. Instead, Captain Naoki Inuoe was standing at the front of the small briefing room with a projector view of the local area on the whiteboard, a red dash line outlining the general routes they'd have to take to get there.

Nobody was really paying attention, and Inuoe was being lazy with the briefing. It was obvious the CO of Mononoke Squadron felt little need in telling Snowcat what to do for such a simple mission, which was just was well. Snowcat had been designated the 405th Special Tactics Squadron by Seian, an obvious reference to Inuoe's own 404th Special Tactics Squadron. Kelly had grown to really respect Inuoe over their time working together on-base, and in Kelly's mind, he'd already begun working out how to start recruiting the Seianese pilot to private work after his stint with the Seianese Air Force was over.

"It's a simple patrol, guys," Inuoe closed his briefing, "You know the deal. Any questions, Aiden?"

Kelly smiled and leaned back, "Yeah, can you refer to me a little more formally, please?"

Inuoe snorted and rolled his eyes, "Any questions, Captain Kelly?"

Kelly chuckled and shook his head, "Nah, I think we got it. Thanks for doing Cheon's job for him, Naoki. He must be proud of you."

"Fuck you, Kelly."

The rank was new. Upon his return to the hot springs, a couple developments had happened. The first development had been Kelly's formal promotion to captain. While he'd been a captain before in South Sotoa, he'd been brought into Dorusian service as a 1st Lieutenant and had kept that rank even when he was transferred to a Seianese contract despite him doing a captain's work as a squadron leader. Kelly assumed it was a way to stifle his contract pay, but had zero evidence to support that assertion.

In addition to the rank, Snowcat had been expanded. When the Tula siblings had been killed, it left Snowcat a three-plane squadron, not even enough for a simple two-and-two element break, so he'd tasked the SAF to go offer contracts to some old friends he'd made. Ultimately, two answered back and they were here now.

Lieutenant Wulf Hetzenauer was a younger Belkan pilot whom Kelly had met in his time in South Sotoa. The guy was friendly and polite, and had a dream to move to Osea, but he had apparently run out of cash, and so took up an offer from Kelly to join Snowcat and fly his Super Skyhawk once again. Frosty liked Wulf, or "Serpent," as his callsign was. But now, on top of his callsign, he was the new Snowcat-3.

In addition to Serpent was another old war friend. Lieutenant Jyri Rasimus was a kid Erusean pilot that had earned his mettle in South Sotoa alongside Wulf and Aiden both. While the kid looked like some punk rock type, he was probably as gentle as a cool breeze once you got to know him. In the air, Rasimus went by "Glory," a call to his prestigious stock as some upper-class privileged rich kid, something you'd never be able to tell by how the kid looked and acted. Rasimus also flew a Skyhawk, and had taken up the in-squadron name Snowcat-4.

Liora was still with Kelly, and while she was now under-ranked by two other pilots, Liora had more than proven herself as his second-in-command. The tiny woman in the tiny fighter jet had been making short work of Beiarusian pilots. Cosmescu and Kuhn were also in the room, and being the relative newbies, Kelly had moved them down into the newly-created Snowcat-5 position. While they had arguably the best aircraft in the squadron, their relative lack of experience and lack of luck had made Kelly weary of the Estovakian and Ratian kids. There were now six Snowcat pilots, and Kelly was hoping there'd be few lineup changes before this war ended. Kelly couldn't take another loss.

Inuoe nodded as he left the briefing room, marking the event off a clipboard he carried off with him. Kelly stood and twisted his back, stretching, "Alright, kids. any personal questions, mates? Seems to be a pretty simple mission, eh?"

Wulf raised his hand, "Yeah. Why are they having an attack squadron do CAP?"

Kelly shrugged, "I dunno, Hetz, because they want to make us do something if they're paying us?"

Wulf nodded, "You invited me here to do patrols, hm? Well, I guess the pay's worth it..."

"Would you rather be getting shot at?"

Wulf chuckled, waving the comment away, "No, that's fine. I'll take safe patrols."

"That's what I thought," Kelly put his hands on his hips and looked at the others, "Anything else? If not, then for the good of the order, let's get on out of here and go earn that pay!"

[Beiarusia]

Major Aleksei Tallow "Null"
December 11, 1992 // Koga Airbase, Koga, Seian

Hazard was the first to ask a question. "Sir, do we have any accurate information on the OpFor besides this mystery weapon and their Flanker escort? Aye-Aye and SAM emplacements and such?"

Major Vernadsky gave a simple answer. "Intel is limited. We've confirmed static anti-air emplacements but expect mobile units to deploy once the operation is underway. No confirmation on the number of aircraft stationed on the island but we assume the standard mix of short-ranged interceptors, alongside the aforementioned Flankers. Nothing you can't handle. Your AWACS will identify targets as they appear." The man paused for a beat. "The prototype is unlikely to be active, but if we're wrong you are ordered to engage on sight."

"A prototype with unknown capabilities, and you want us to shoot it down?" Lieutenant Cory Seaver, callsign Pugio. A woman known for her sharp tongue and biting remarks. A personality that fit well for Warrior's second-in-command.

"Then hide behind the mercenaries." The Major's tone remained coolly impassive but his words were quite obviously meant to be taken as an insult. Sure enough, Lieutenant Seaver had no further comments and sat stewing in her usual bitterness. With no further questions the pilots were dismissed to prepare for the coming sortie.

---

06:00 December 12, 1992 // Akers Research Base, Beiarusia

The sky was painted a hazy blue-pink, brighter on the eastern horizon as the early morning neared its eventual sunrise. Few clouds to spoil the coming sunshine, wispy and ethereal; high above the remnants of the previous nighttime, faint pinpricks of starlight, fading fast underneath the weight of day. Down below the sea was calm. Idyllic if not for the silhouettes of armed military jets and the accompanying thrum of turbine engines. A distant roar, ravenous, and in stark contrast to the chirping calls of the many seabirds nesting on the nearby islands. Morena took point alongside Reaper with Warrior hanging back to provide support. The E-3 Sentry of Bannik trailed behind at high altitude.

They were nearing the area of operations.

Null ran through his usual last-minute checks and as expected everything was showing green. The F-15C was running at peak performance, carrying a mixed loadout of anti-air and anti-ground munitions. Angel was carrying a similar configuration. The risk/reward trade of missiles for unguided bombs would limit the aircraft's dogfighting capabilities a small bit, but given the intel (and lack thereof) it was best to be prepared for all potential scenarios.

Reaper was geared for anti-air interception; Warrior would be overseeing anti-ground operations. Morena would be a mix of both.

<< Bannik: Confirming multiple aircraft on intercept. Approach vector is one-nine-five. >>

<< Ally-Helicopter: This is Yaschar. En-route. ETA is ten minutes. >>

There was a pause as the spec-ops commander addressed some matter on his end.

<< Ally-Helicopter: Clear a path and we'll punch through. Same as last time. >>

Four SH-60 Seahawks were taking flight, clearing the decks of the two ships that had carried them close to the island, a task made possible by the destruction of the Beiarusian naval fleet and the sinking of the BRN Scarborough. The two ships would remain just beyond the AO as a means to avoid being targeted.

The helicopters fell into a line-formation with distance in-between to avoid presenting too easy an opportunity. They stayed low, approximately a hundred meters above sea-level. Enemy aircraft would have difficulty engaging but ground-based AA would prove troublesome. Morena would need to clear a path, prioritizing any static or mobile AA-position between them and the airbase. Multiple sites were already going active and SPAAG's were deploying. A single warship was mixed amongst the cargo vessels and it, too, would need to be eliminated.

<< Bannik: All aircraft, you are free to engage. >>

Mission Theme A: Easy Monkey