Disclaimer-I own nothing
Last Time- Jeff 'Blaze' Loomis just graduated BCM and is being shipped to sand Island.
This Time- Command messes up, first aerial battle
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"Thank you, sir." Jeff said to the driver as he was getting off the bus in front of his new home. Sand Island Air Force Base was going to be his new home until he finished up ACM training. After Blaze unloaded all his stuff he saw the administration building. 'Well time to let them know I'm here' he thought. He opened the glass door and saw a man sitting at the desk.
"Excuse me Airman" noticing the rank on his shoulders only had two chevrons" I am lieutenant Jeff Loomis. I was wondering who I need to talk to go to in processing."
The airman looked at his paperwork and then started typing on his computer. "Sir you have already been processed through. You need to report to Captain Hamilton. His office is the third door on the left just pass the pictures."
Jeff thanked the airman and started walking toward the captain's office. He saw pictures of the Osean Chain of Command and saw a picture of Captain Hamilton and the base commander Colonel Orson Perrault. 'Perrault looks like he's going to be tons of fun' Jeff thought adding in the pun because the base commander was real heavy set. He finally got to the door labeled Hamilton and knocked.
"Enter." Came a voice through the door. Jeff opened the door and saw a blonde hair man sitting down behind a mahogany desk. There were pictures of different aircraft along with a few awards that he has received during his tenure of service. The man turned to Jeff and the thing that struck Jeff the most was Hamilton's blue eyes. They were cool and calm but they seemed to be able to consider your soul. A voice finally cracked the silence. "What can I help you with lieutenant?"
"2nd Lieutenant Jeffery Loomis reporting to duty Sir."
"Ah, Lt. Loomis. We have been expecting you. I am Captain Hamilton the adjutant base commander. I will show where you will be staying. You have been assigned to Captain Bartlett. He is your commanding officer so you will report to him. Here is your room key to your barracks room. Now let's go meet your new CO."
Hamilton started walking and Jeff followed. The walked out the building. It was nice and warm outside. The wind was blowing and you could smell the ocean air. Both officers were walking past some hangers and finally came to one with two middle aged men in it.
"Captain Bartlett. This is your new pilot, 2nd Lieutenant Jeff Loomis. He needs someone to show him around. Lt. welcome to Sand Island." Jeff gave a salute to the captain and Hamilton returned it. Jeff turned to face Captain Bartlett his new CO. Jeff heard stories of Bartlett from his uncle. He was an amazing fighter pilot. He was there trying to gain air superiority with the allied forces over Area B7R aka the Round table as it was called during the Belkan War. It was the perfect air space for both Belka and the Coalition forces since it was in the perfect strategic location to launch counter offensives and intercept missions.
"Pleased to meet you. I'm Captain Bartlett. Welcome to Sand Island. This man next to me is our mechanic. Goes by the name of Pops. You need something he will be able to help you. Any questions?"
"No Sir, just looking forward to going through your boot camp. Can't be the best unless I'm trained by the best." Jeff said
"I'm not the best. I give that title to The Demon Lord and Mobius 1 but I will train you to a fearsome pilot. Anyway, let's get you to your room and settled in. I wonder who is around. Ah there's someone."
Bartlett yelled" Chopper. I need you to show this new nugget around the base."
Chopper groaned "Ah man. I was about to go relax and listen to my rock and roll records. "Chopper sighed and said "come on let's go."
Jeff jogged over to his new squad mate. Jeff apologized for the inconvenience. Chopper said it was no big deal, he just had the knack of being at the right place at the wrong time. He told Jeff that this was his third tour today. Both pilots introduced themselves. Choppers real name turned out to be Alvin. Jeff chuckled a little bit and asked him if he ever been called chipmunk. Chopper rolled his eyes and told him all the time. They finally made it to his room. Chopper told him that his room was two doors down and if he needed anything let him know. Chopper gave Jeff directions to the dining facility in case he was hungry. Jeff thanked him and opened his room door. He saw his duffle bag along with his foot locker in his room. He sat down on his bed and took the lock off his locker. He started pulling out his clothes rolling them up and putting it in his drawers. he had a black case in his locker that he pulled out. He opened it and in it was a broken down M1 Carbine. A high-powered sniper rifle he used during the 2nd Continental War. 'I hope I never have to bail out behind enemy lines.' Blaze thought as he put the case in his flight bag. Blaze knew how to survive but doing it by yourself sucks. Jeff could remember how many times he had to get into position to provide over watch for his comrades. Being in a position by yourself and hoping nobody sneaks up behind you is nerve racking. After getting everything unpacked he decided he would head to the chow hall.
The chow hall was nice. Black and white tiled floor. Wooden chairs and tables and they even had booths. Jeff was in line and saw how good the food looked. Hamburgers looked like hamburgers. The meat looked fresh. Even the salads and desserts looked like they were all fresh. Jeff grabbed some chicken and some salad and sat in a corner. Jeff felt out of place in OADF. It wasn't because he couldn't engage people or have intelligent conversations. It boiled down to the fact some of the nuggets been in the OADF longer than he has and he went from sitting in the trenches to fighting in the air. It's also kind of hard when you already been to combat. He also didn't want people finding out that he knew Mobius 1, The Demon Lord and Solo Wing Pixy. It'll get better' he thought as he chopped up the chicken a dumped it in his salad. Out of nowhere a man approached him.
"With all the tasty food, here you are going to eat a salad? You on a diet?"
Jeff turned around and it was Chopper. Jeff laughed at him" I'm just trying to watch my girlish figure."
Chopper shook his head and sat down. They both started talking about training at Heirlark. Chopper told him he had Plasky as his IP. He said Plasky was like the evil teacher you tried to avoid in school. Plasky was strict stern and demanded damn near perfection from his cadets. Plasky of course understood that people are going to make mistakes but his way of teaching was to try and mitigate as many mistakes as possible and give his cadets a proper formant of what to do. Jeff said Smith was almost the same way with the exception that is you messed up, she made you survive out in the cold for a couple days and still make it to training on time. Both men got up dumped their trays in the garbage can and walked out the dining hall. The made it back to the barracks and Jeff told Chopper he was turning in for the night. As Jeff started to unwind he laid on his bed turned on a movie and went to sleep.
The next morning all the nuggets met in the crew room. Three people walked into the door one of them being Bartlett. All the pilots sat down.
"All right nuggets" Bartlett said "If your name is called go suit up and get in a plane. We are doing ACM today squad vs squad. All commands will be given by me or Captain Evan Waters call sign 'Baker' and Captain Amanda Samson Call sign 'Svenson'."
Bartlett started calling off names. Aero, Jive, Barney, Mustang, Cavalier, Edge. Jeff remembered one of the names being called. Kei Nagase call sign 'Edge'. He remembered her from Heirlark. She asked him to a party but he declined. As everyone starting filing out the room Jeff figured he would go to maintenance shop and check in with Pops. In addition to their normal duties all nuggets at Sand Island had to pick a secondary specialty. Jeff had picked mechanic.
"Afternoon Pops" Jeff said
"Hey, how you doing? You adjusting ok?" the balding middle aged man asked. He was working on one of the training planes. Jeff crawled underneath the engine and started helping Pops replace the parts. They were working on the Hawk for about an hour with Pops telling Jeff how each part fit and how it worked. Suddenly a call came down telling personnel to get Emergency Transports ready along with any medic that was available. Everybody was rushing to the tarmac. Out of the 9 planes that went up only three made it back. The number 7 was the first to land. It turned out to be Kei. The second plane that landed was Bartlett. The third and final plane was Baker. His engines were pillowing smoke and tail was severely damaged. As he was descending his engines lost power and his crashed and blew up into a raging fireball. Firetrucks and EMS crews went to put the fire out and check on the pilot. As Bartlett was walking to the hanger he turned around to Nagase
"You keep flying like that you're going to die real soon"
"I won't die sir" she responded in a soft solemn voice
"You sure about that? You look like you couldn't hurt a fly." Bartlett responded
All pilots were too told to go to the crew room. Bartlett went to go to Perrault's office to discuss what happened. Everyone was silent. No one not really saying much trying to comprehend what just happened. Nagase was sitting by herself. Jeff sat next to her "You ok?" Jeff asked. He knew it was a stupid question but it was a way to get someone who has been through a traumatic experience to open.
"I was so scared" she stated. "It was like a bad nightmare. I just remember dodging missiles and bullet fire just trying to stay alive." She going on about the experience to the point where Jeff thought she was going to cry.
"Calm down. Look its ok to be scared. My uncle has told me stories about his time in combat. He says it's natural to get scared. Just don't let it consume you and you'll be ok. Look if you need to talk I'll listen. Jeff said.
Nagase nodded. 'How is he so calm about all this. It's like he has already been through combat.' She thought. Bartlett walked in and sat down on a chair. He titled his head up to the ceiling. A couple minutes went by and sat up.
"All right nuggets listen up. Starting tomorrow you all are sitting alert. I know you don't like it but were short on pilots. Nagase"
"Sir" She responded softly
"Your flying number 2 on my wing. I need to keep my eye on you or who knows what you'll get yourself into" Bartlett said
"Chopper Blaze. You two are going up to. Figure out who is flying at the number and number 4 position. I don't care how you figure it out but let me know before 1900 hrs."
"Chopper can have the 3 spot. I'll take number 4." Jeff said giving Chopper a thumb up.
Bartlett nodded then told everyone to get some sleep. Jeff headed back to his room. He packed everything in his flight bag. He was feeling nervous. Of course, he's been to battle before. It's still scary knowing you got real ammunition and there is always that possibility you might not make it back. 'No use getting myself worked up. It's just like any other combat mission. Instead of a squad of soldiers I got a squad of airplanes.' Jeff thought to himself. It seemed like the minute he hit the pillow his alarm clack was going off so he could go to the briefing. He got into his flight suit and headed to the briefing room. Not too far behind was Nagase and Chopper. The Perrault Hamilton and an intelligence officer walked in.
Their mission was to intercept an SR-71 that was hit by a SAM from the defense network. Their mission was to intercept the plane and bring down to Sand Island so the security forces could secure and figure out what's going over in Yuktobania. After the briefing, all four pilots suited up and got ready to fly. Once all their preflight checks were done they taxied to the run way and took off. All four pilots where in the air and headed straight into the unknown.
As they were headed to intercept a voice came over the comms. Blaze listened with half a hear.
"Wardog Squadron this AWACS call sign Thunderhead. Unknown plane at your 12 o'clock. Altitude 5000 feet."
"Thunderhead Wardog 1 Rodger that. All right nuggets listen up. Stick with me and you will be just fine. Remember we are not supposed to fire on the aircraft is that understood?"
Jeff heard the order and flipped off the Master Arm switch. He could pull the trigger all day and nothing would happen
"Wardog 2 Rodger"
"Wardog 3 Rodger"
There was silence coming from Jeff. He was still day dreaming about the times he was training with Brian and Larry.
"Wardog 4 hello" Came a gruff voice "You awake back there? You better be marking our tail son."
Jeff shook himself out of his stupor clicked his mike "Yes sir. Still here and awake. Our six is clear."
"At least your confident" Bartlett responded
Jeff just shook his head. If they only knew who trained him. As Wardog got closer to the target Jeff had slipped over to Chopper's right side to make a fingertip formation. That way if something was to happen Jeff wouldn't accidently fire a missile into his IP. Knowing his IP Jeff wouldn't here the end of it. Chopper was giving a rather weak surrender request to lower his landing gear if the fleeing spy plane understood.
Jeff dropped his plane a little to see the planes underbelly. "Negative on the landing gear. I don't think they're going to surrender."
"Did you really expect them too" Bartlett asked
"No not really. I know I wouldn't" From all his time being a sniper he always made sure he had some sort of get away plane so he wouldn't get caught.
"Enemy aircraft bearing 280 altitude 6000. Hold fire till further orders." Thunderhead commanded
"Crossing the pond to fly cover for their spy plane. Now there's a pilot worth his wings." Bartlett said with a little admiration for the enemy.
Blaze's warning system started going off. Jeff and the rest of the Wardog flight got out of the way just in time as the sky was filled with sidewinders and tracer rounds.
"Hold your fire" Thunderhead commanded
Jeff was about to mouth off but Chopper beat him to it. "Oh, come on. Those aren't b blanks there shooting out there."
"I said weapons safe."
"Quit yacking and fire back" Bartlett yelled
"Rodger that Blaze engaging" Jeff had got one of the MiG-21's in view lined up the pipper and let out a volley of red death. He let out the call of 'Splash One 'to let the rest of the flight know that there were only three Migs left. Chopper was struggling trying to get the enemy fighter off his tail.
"Can someone get him off my tail?" Chopper screamed. Jeff rolled around and to help him out. The MiG was close to having a missile lock on his comrade.
'Shit. Hopefully you stay alive long enough for me to get to you.' Jeff thought. He was closing in on the MiG. Chopper panicking and scared of dying didn't realize Blaze was behind the enemy.
"Chopper Break!"
Chopper mad the break and Jeff got a missile lock. A loud thud gave from the ventral bay as the missile soared and nailed the target
"Blaze Scratch another one."
"Thanks man."
Blaze didn't respond. One of the enemy planes had flown up high when Jeff had to help Chopper. He lost sight of the plane and now he was being chased. The missile alarm was going off. Jeff rolled onto his back and let out countermeasures. Jeff then leveled out his plane and did a very poor loo. Now he was at his opponents 6 o'clock. He lined up the pipper and let the twin cannons come to life.
"That's three kills for Blaze" Edge said in amazement.
"I'm going to let you keep your nickname Kid "Bartlett said. Jeff just rolled his eyes at the remark. Edge broke in over the comms.
"Blaze got three kills" Edge exclaimed.
"And I only got one" the gruff flight lead said" If I'm not careful you'll end up making me look bad"
"That is highly unlikely. Your too stubborn to let me do it." Blaze chuckled. It wasn't completely out the realm of possibility considering who trained him.
"Well that's three on me and Edge. Thanks for saving my ass back there."
"Cut the chatter" forcefully interrupted "Return to base immediately and Captain Bartlett needs to report to the Colonel's office immediately."
A loud groan came over the mike from Bartlett. The banked right and started to head back to Sand Island.
Several Hours later Wardog that against orders fired upon the kills the Captain and Blaze got were wiped from record.
"Man, that's jacked up!" Chopper screamed in front of the empty hangers
"There is more to be a good pilot than getting kills. Besides, it's not the end of the world." Jeff stated calmly.
"You should be pissed man. Two kills man. Two kills from making ace." His loud mouth friend exclaimed.
"There hasn't been an ace since the war 15 years ago," The two men turned around and saw Edge coming behind them" Wouldn't it be nice to have that kind of recognition?"
"Not really" Jeff stated "I just want to fly and be really good at it."
"That makes sense. Anyway, I'm headed to get some food you guys want to join?" Nagase asked
"I'll go. What about you Jeff?"
"Nah. I think I'm good. I'm just chill out here enjoy some air then head to bed. I'll see you guys tomorrow."
The two left leaving Jeff alone with his thoughts. Looking out over the ocean. The setting sun had dyed the water blood orange. A gentle breeze was coming in cooling the warm air. He was thinking about his uncle, Brian and his friends in ISAF. He was wishing he was around people he didn't have to hide anything from like his military record.
"You'll go blind if you keep staring at the sun like that" Bartlett said with a small grin on his face
"How you doing this evening sir?" Jeff asked
"You know you are in big trouble?" Bartlett asked with a little bit of sarcasm
"what do you mean sir? As far as I know I haven't done anything." Jeff said with a puzzling look on his face. Aside from the skirmish earlier today what else could he have done.
"Your flying today." Bartlett elaborated, "You fought like a seasoned ace. I haven't seen skills like that except from the Demon Lord or Mobius 1."
"Really?" Jeff asked as the conversation was starting to get a little uncomfortable.
"You were amazing up there today," Bartlett nodding, "A nugget getting three kills in his first real engagement. You are going to go places. Just want to wish you luck when you leave here."
"Thank you, sir," Jeff replied snapping a salute. which Bartlett returned leaving Jeff to his thoughts and memories once more.