RP: 21st Fighter Sq [Mission 2.0] Rescue with a side order of Calamari

Nobutora's missile salvo scored a hit on the unknowns engines. The energy emissions from the drives zeroed. The fighter even without them operational, continued along on inertia. It spun about on its axis and continued to fire at the SAoY fighters.

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Solitaire using the firing solution provide by Lynn, opened fire with two of her Aether cannons. The destructive forces of them tore into the enemy fighters engines. Which flared and went dark.

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Saber's volley struck the unknown fighter, and caused it to go into a spin. The pilot of it struggled to bring it out of its spin using its maneuvering thrusters.

After Yaeko sped passed the unknowns she did a quick U-turn, followed by several missiles, all aimed at two or three different targets. She then sent a volley of laser fire at one of the fighters as she accelerated towards it. "You doing alright back there?"

“Mmhmm!” replied Silic, keeping his mouth firmly closed. Probably looking a little green.

The enemy fighters that were still under power continued to pursue the 21st fighters. The ones whose drives were damaged, attempted to bring their guns to bear, hindered as they were by only having maneuvering thrusters.

"Diamonds tighten formation, and let's finish this now, once we disable the last of the fighters we proceed to the planet. Kail-Juni, you lead the shuttle down. Munkata provide escort, and secure the ground area, during evacuation." Numa sent to the team.

Targeting the thrusters, the fighter pilot lit the other up with her secondary cannons, giving him just enough time to stop any motion before doing so, before pulling around to avoid anything catching on her rear. "Come on, stop flying already." she muttered to herself. "Aye aye." she replied over the radio, trying her best to get onto another fighter and disable it's drive in the same way.

Yaeko responded with a quick, "Aye!" Before u-turning for a final sweep at the enemies and tightening her formation with the squadron. Once she sent a few missiles and a volley of laser fire at the last of the pods, she doubled back towards the shuttle to help escort. Once there she quick radioed in. "Juni, standing by at the shuttle, ready whenever you are."

Behind her, Yaeko would hear a small sound of reching and a slight hicblug from Silic, followed by a tiny splattering noise.

Ira closed in on Nobutora's fighter. "Tightening up, Solitaire."

With the squadron in a tighter group, Numa took them through another pass at the hostile fighters. "Okay Diamonds, let's finish taking the fight out of them. Once we do, we'll take a position to defend the recovery team. Recovery team get your butts moving down to the surface. Consider it a hostile LZ and take appropriate precautions. We'll provide over-watch from up here."

Numa then started targeting the closest hostile, trying to target the weapon systems of the fighter.

As the squadron made their pass at the enemy fighters, the EWO's subspace sensors started pinging responding to FTL traffic approaching from 20 LY and closing.

Yaeko sniffed a couple of times before turning around. "Did you do what I....OH MY GOD, you puked in my fighter!? UGH!!" She flipped her head forward as she heard a pinging noise. "Ow, pulled muscle," she yelped as she stretched her neck out. She flipped up the display for the sensors before cursing and yelling. "Damn! Incoming at 20LY and closing, ready the weapons, full power, prepare for some combat." She checked the direction of the incoming shuttle before shifting to put herself between their transport and the UFO.

“It's worse than you know...” replied Silic, sounding awfully calm for his situation as he eyed the little globules that had formed against the transparent face plate of his helmet apprehensively. Perhaps he meant the mess floating with him in his now claustrophobic helmet, or the view from his sensors. In either case he gulped loudly, returning to his job trying to find out as much as possible about this new contact, his right hand unconsciously brushing the outer surface of his face plate fruitlessly as he did so.

"Anyone got a scan on those contacts?" asked Silic over the radio to the other EWO's in the squadron.

Kail and the shuttle streaked into the atmosphere following the beacon to the crashed ship.

Atsui then called out, "Munkata, Kobayashi, stay on the Rescue's Six. Anything harasses the Rescue group, you are cleared to remove them from the sky. Got it. Now move."

She looked at the sensors, "All other Diamonds, prepare to engage inbounds. From their trajectory they are coming from NMX controlled space so I doubt they are going to be friendlies."

She then sent a flash message to the carrier.

When it rains, Saori groused to herself, as she quickly checked her remaining ammo and other expendable stores before the NMX showed up.

"Hai!" Yaeko called into her comm. She did a quick banked turn and accelerated towards the shuttle. Once she was in a decent position she slowed her fighter to match the shuttle's speed and began scanning the surrounding area. "Munkata-Vas, in position at rescue's six. Scanning for hostile, engagement orders acknowledge."

Silic had to close his eyes during Yaeko's manoeuvre as the droplets still floating inside his face mask splashed around, and not just against the helmet. Shaking his head quickly as a precaution to clear any fluid over his eyes, he opened his eyes, silver pupils scanning his screens. “Doing a quick check up on combat systems.” he reported, now that they were out of the fight he could begin checking to see if they had any minor damage.

Fortunately multiple green bars began filling on one of his screens, he looked out the side of the cockpit for a second. The view must have displeased him, he breathed in sharply and his gaze snapped but to his console.

As Tarrim entered the lower atmosphere, her fighter's threatcon started pinging. Her fighter and the shuttle were being targeted by a number of fast moving small objects. Too small to be a fighter, some sort of drone. she executed an evasive maneuver and got an visual on one of them.

"Munkata-Hei, Sabre we just flew into some sort of shit storm. Multiple attack drones, probably belong to our unfriendlies above. I could use a hand here." She yelled as she threw her fighter into a roll and opened up on one of the drones. It exploded in a satisfying fireball. One down, only another twenty to go. she thought.

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Meanwhile in space above the planet, Atsui received a secured communications.

To: Solitaire
From: Heitan Actual
Carrier group has detected the same inbounds. Hiromi-MEGAMI predicts hostiles will arrive your location in five minutes. We are inbound, but will not arrive until after the hostiles. Estimate nine minutes to your location. Over.

Click to expand...

Unci, four minutes of fighters against warships. Atsui swore to herself, then opened the squadron channel.

"Heads up Diamonds, trajectory of the suspected hostiles has them emerging near this planet. Our carrier and its escorts will not arrive for four minutes. So we have to stay alive for that long, and take out whatever we can until help arrives. Nobutora-Heisho, configure your EW gear for NMX tech and prepare to do what you can to help keep us alive. Create ghost images, jam them I do not care, but we need to hold out for those four minutes, plus time to get on after the shuttle."

"Hai!" Yaeko called out. She did a quick reconfigure of her targeting computer to target the drones. Once the computer started targeting she locked onto to three different drones, firing a torpedo at each. After setting her weapons to a less-precise spray she spun the fighter around to face a pair of drones and unloaded a spray at both of them.

Lynn flew into action. She fired countermeasures, she increased engine output and even slightly increased the sensitivity of Atsui's controls.

She also ran a new diagnostic and increased the detail of the sensors to try and pick up any markings, weapons, or signatures they had initially missed. "Solitaire, I've increased the engine output. You can probably run circles around the Unknowns. I'm trying to get more details on the new group that just arrived. as well."

Silic let the computer take control of the counter measures, dispersing them only at need, it looked like they were probably going to have to fight their way back too. He began watching the enemy movement on his sensors, trying to determine their capability against their own fighters, always play your strengths.

If enemy strength was multiplying in the area, they needed to be in and out quickly before they were crushed between the hammer and the anvil. “Remember to protect the shuttle, and don't get too caught up in the fight, with out that crate there's no point to this mission.” he cautioned Yaeko.

The drones were swarming around the Kawarime fighters, as fast Kail, Yaeko and Tai would destroy several more would join. The one strange fact was that none of the drones seemed the slightest bit interested in the shuttle. The shuttle unmolested by the drones, continued its quick descent to land near the crashed ship.

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Lynn's sensor scan of the drones harassing the fighters below showed them to be atmospheric craft only.

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Meanwhile the craft in orbit saw multiple points of blue light forming, a moment later eight NMX warships emerged from FTL. The lead ones releasing swarms of drones.