"Ribbon"

Chapter 3: Blitzkrieg

April 18, 1995
Vaud Air Force Base
0350 hours

The air raid sirens blared through the early morning's darkness. There was no time for a briefing; the wailing and constantly increasing and decreasing intensity of the warning siren was enough to get the base's personnel to prepare themselves. To add insult to injury, the air raid itself seemed to have caused a huge chaos among those who were present at the base. While the base itself currently held about forty fighter pilots, most of these were pilots who weren't even truly eligible to go off on sorties. I would've imagined that the alert sent down not only shivers, but fear itself down their spines.

Fortunately, I wasn't hung over from the party that was held not too long ago, and I managed to get in my extra flight suit that always hung behind the door of my living quarters. The hallways were packed, with barely any room for anyone to get through as quickly as possible, so that added more confusion to the chaos that was already present.

"Hey, make way for that pilot!" shouted someone, and everyone else gave me some room to finally hustle on over to the hangars. Even with this, I arrived to my destination half a minute late. In times like these, it's never a good thing when you come in late, as it would throw off the scheduling on which planes are to take off on the runway.

"There you are!" exclaimed 'Chief,' one of the base mechanics. "I was hoping this would wait until tomorrow, but your F-5E's currently inoperable due to engine failure!"

Dread came over me. "So how am I gonna get up there? And where's the Captain and Hound Two?"

"Hound One and Hound Two are on the runway right now, and they've already been informed of your situation," replied the mechanic. "As for getting up in the air…ah, there it is!"

Behind him, I watched as a fighter jet similar to my F-5E pulled up behind him. One of the other mechanics quickly got out of the cockpit.

"Your new F-20A awaits you, rookie!" said the mechanic, motioning me to get in.

"Hound Three, you gotta get in and takeoff as soon as possible," said the mechanic I was talking to. "Don't worry about the manual to this thing; it's just as easy to use as your old F-5."

"Alright," I simply said after the other mechanic handed me my helmet. "Thanks, you two!" I told them as I took off running towards the cockpit of the plane.

"Clear the way!" ordered Chief.

The heavy rain only made things worse on the base. Visibility was more than just 'poor,' it was just plain horrible. In the skies above, I could see numerous aerial engagements taking place. Missile contrails, machine gun tracer rounds, fighter jet lights, afterburner flames, and exploding aircraft lit up the night sky like fireworks on New Year's Day. I wondered if the other pilots could still even see the base itself. It was already a risky enough decision for Base Command to light up the runway and control tower. To me, it was as if they had made the base a glowing target for any possible incoming bomber craft. I guessed that taking any bombers out would be top priority for this scramble, and my prediction proved to be true through the frantic radio transmissions.

"Control Tower to all available units, our radar has picked up six Belkan B-52 bombers at vector 090. Engage these bombers; protecting the base is top priority!"

"Halo Ten to Control Tower, we are unable to comply! There's just too many enemy planes around-aaaaah!"

"No! Halo Ten, respond! Halo Ten!!"

"Damn it! Is there anyone else available? Somebody get those bombers!!"

"Gull Two, Fox Two! Son of a…! A miss?!"

"Fang Four shot one down!"

"I'm hit! Draco One, ejecting!"

"Kill confirmed for Hound Two!"

"This is Swan Leader. I've taken some machine gun fire, but I'm alright!"

"Raider Five to Control Tower, I'm requesting clearance to land! Winchester, Winchester!"

"That's a negative, Raider Five! Control Tower to all available units, Belkan bombers are currently ten miles away from the base and closing! Someone…anyone, please engage them!!"

The final pre-launch checks were completed on my end soon after. I gave a thumbs-up to Chief, who was in a yellow raincoat as he watched me prepare to takeoff from the runway.

"Hound Three, you are cleared for takeoff! Hurry!" radioed in Control Tower.

As soon as I was given clearance, I applied full thrust to the jet and accelerated forward. I felt the new sensation of a more powerful thrust coming from even just the fighter's single-engine configuration than that of my old F-5E.

You can do this, you can do this, I began to mutter to myself. In that moment, I let fear get the best of me, and I started to doubt whether I'd come back alive from this engagement, or sent home in a body bag. Not that I had a home to go back to anyways.

"Hey, is that who I think it is on the runway?" wondered Gull One.

"It is!" exclaimed Swan Two.

"Alright! It's the rookie!" said Fang Two.

"Fang Two, break right, break right!!" yelled Fang One.

"Whoa!" exclaimed Fang Two as he narrowly dodged the missile.

Meanwhile, I continued to accelerate down the runway. I watched closely as my speed increased...twenty-five...sixty-three...one-eleven...one-forty-five…then the gradual ascension of my craft…five-hundred feet…eight-hundred…one-thousand five-hundred! I retracted the landing gear and started to enjoy the feeling of flying this new jet.

"Hound Three, altitude restrictions canceled! Good luck, kid!" radioed in Chief.

My own channel began to emit static. "This is Base Command to Hound Three, listen up! We've got six Belkan B-52 bombers headed for our base from vector 090, approximately five miles away. We have been authorized to give up this base, as the bombers will be close enough to drop their payload before you can even reach them!"

"Hound Three to Base Command, I don't care, I'm going to intercept those bombers!" I replied instantly after immediately turning a sharp right as soon as my altimeter read well over 1,900 feet. I tried my best to hide and ignore the fact that my voice started to tremble.

"Hound Three, turn back!" advised Base Command.

"I can't let them destroy our home! We're the last line of defense for the capital city!" I yelled back. "If need be, begin the evacuation procedures and get everyone out of there! But no matter what, I'm still heading out to engage them!"

With a heavy sigh from Base Command, he replied, sounding quite defeated. "Alright, Hound Three, you are cleared to engage. But you will follow instructions when the order to retreat is given, is that understood?!"

"Yes, sir!" I replied proudly, now with a smile on my face.

"Godspeed, Hound Three," Base Command finally said before breaking off the transmission with me.

It felt as if everything was working against us. I didn't expect that Belka would retaliate this quickly, and with such a powerful force.

"Hound Three to Control Tower, I've spotted the bombers," I radioed in. "Hound Three, engaging!"

"Control Tower to Hound Three, estimated time until bomber attack on base is two minutes," radioed back Control Tower. "Hurry!"

"What?! He's engaging the bombers?!" asked Captain, obviously surprised. By the tone of his voice, I couldn't tell whether he was pleased or shocked to hear this.

My channel began to start up again. "This is Hound Two. I'm breaking off all engagements to provide support," he said.

"Roger that, Hound Two," I replied. "Current position is about two miles east from the base, on vector 090."

I armed my semi-active air-to-air missiles, and waited. The B-52 bombers started to appear within range, and my missiles locked on to the two nearest bombers. I immediately fired without hesitation.

"Hound Three, Fox One!"

Two missiles launched forward instantly after being deployed, seeking the indicated targets. From beyond, I could see two explosions, but the targeting system showed that the two bombers were still flying. I cursed under my breath and tried again. The missiles flew straight and true, and both bombers were finally downed.

"Nice kill!" congratulated Hound Two, who finally showed up on my radar, very close to my position.

"Control Tower to all units, we've got Hound Two and Hound Three engaging the bombers," announced Control Tower. "However, HQ has ordered us to give up Vaud Air Force Base."

"Hound Three," called out Hound Two through our channel, "it's very likely that we won't be able to down all of the bombers before they reach the base. Be prepared for anything, alright?"

A sudden mixture of anger and worry came over me. "What do you mean by that?!" I asked angrily. "Are we just going to give up that easily?"

"Listen to me," asserted Hound Two. "The way things are right now, we just don't have the numbers to be able to put up a fight against an air raid such as this. As much as I hate to admit it, we're fighting a losing battle right now."

"Damn it!" was all I could shout over the radio. At this point, I've finally come to realize that what Hound Two said was true. I still couldn't help but feel angry at myself for being so weak at a time like this. Even with a new fighter, it still wasn't enough.

"All units, head south and retreat," finally radioed in Control Tower, sounding defeated at first. "I repeat, all units, head south and retreat!! Break off all current engagements and head south!" he then yelled desperately.

"No, it can't be!" yelled the Captain. "We…lost?"

"Hound One, get a hold of yourself, sir!" said Gull Two. "We may have lost this battle, but we haven't lost this war yet! Gull Two to all units, follow orders, and don't get shot down on the way out!

Hound Two came on again.

"Damn it," he muttered. "We've got no choice, let's leave the rest up to them."

"Are…are they gonna make it out alive?" I asked. I hoped they would be able to, yet deep down, I knew there would be no time to escape; the bombers were only two miles away from the base. I couldn't bring myself to look as in a few minutes, I could hear the distinct sound of bombs being dropped, and what might have been the hangars exploding. I hoped Chief and the others made it out alright…

"I…I can't…" began Hound Two.

"I see," I simply said, with my voice filled with sorrow. "Let's go regroup with the others, Hound Two."

"Roger that, Hound Three," he simply replied. Even with the tone of his voice now completely devoid of any emotion, I could still feel the sorrow in his heart.

We managed to regroup with our fellow comrades as we all applied as much thrust as we could to our engines in an attempt to flee any remaining Belkan fighters. Still, they fought as if they had no intention of letting any one of us escape alive. Without warning, I barely managed to dodge a missile which headed straight for…no…no!

"Damn! My craft's trailing smoke!" said the Captain as the missile made a direct hit on the left wing. I could see that the engine of his F-5 started to die down as well.

"Captain, you've got to eject!" Hound Two suddenly radioed in upon hearing the Captain's status. It took several moments before he could respond.

"Heh…" wheezed the Captain. In the background, I could hear numerous alert tones mixing with each other, as if Death himself was calling out to him. "Looks like…this is it," he managed to say.

"Hound One, respond!" called out Fang One as the Captain's plane started to fly strangely, narrowly missing Fang One's jet.

"Captain, don't give up!" yelled Hound Two desperately. "Eject! Eject!!"

"You boys best take care of yourselves…understood?" he asked, groaning in pain.

"Captain!" was all I managed to yell.

More gunfire and missiles came towards our direction, and soon after, the Captain's plane exploded. The explosion sent a small shockwave that rocked my plane as well as Hound Two's. The radio erupted in a frenzy of shock, disbelief, and desperation. We were almost out of the enemy's sight, but more planes showed up on my radar. Six missiles suddenly came at our group from ahead of us, causing us all to react accordingly.

"Raider Five just went down!" reported Fang Three.

"More missiles incoming!" yelled Gull One. "Break!"

I quickly turned left to avoid the second wave of missiles as the enemy planes passed ours. Now, we were being hunted again.

"This is Hound Two to all planes! Evade enemy fire and continue south! Hound Three and I will cover your escape!"

"Hound Two, we can't afford to lose any more lives!" Swan Leader yelled at him. "Come with us!"

"I'm afraid I cannot comply with that order, Swan Leader," replied Hound Two. "Hound Two, engage!"

"Hound Three, engage!" I yelled, as our comrades flew past the two of us who engaged the enemy planes. There were two Flankers as well as two MiG-29s. We knew this would be a tough battle, but one that we couldn't afford to lose no matter what, for their sakes as well as ours.

"There's two of us and four of them," reported Hound Two. "The main objective here is to stall them, is that understood?"

"Are we cleared to down them?" I asked, feeling the heat of anger rising within me. I was ready to avenge the Captain.

"This is war," replied Hound Two. "It's kill or be killed. Let's go!"

"You Belkan bastards are going to pay! Die!!" I yelled, hoping they would hear me. Hound Two and I quickly managed to tail one of the MiGs. I immediately released a missile as soon as I locked-on to the target. Hound Two also fired one as well, and our missiles instantly blew up the enemy craft. Three more to go.

We were relentless during that engagement. It was as if both of us had come under the possession of blood-thirsty demons. We lit up the night sky with missile contrails and tracers, not letting the enemy planes fire another shot nor giving them the chance to tail one of us. I got into the position of attacking one of the Flankers head-on, and I practically emptied my machine gun rounds into that aircraft as well as the ejecting pilot. Two more to go.

I immediately performed a tight somersault maneuver to get into position of downing the second MiG-29. I yelled furiously as I unloaded two more missiles to down the bandit. I continued to circle around the downed fighter, and fired another missile to make sure the pilot's body would never be recovered. One more to go.

Images and memories of the Captain started to appear in my mind…even from the days where he was my flight instructor.

"Hey you, don't forget to check your six. If I wasn't your instructor, I wouldn't want to be the one saving your ass out there, because if you haven't realized it, I'm an old, fat, and slow pilot!"

"Hey, I know you! You've been assigned here, of all places…to MY squadron? Well never mind that, how the hell are ya?"

"Hound Three, ready for your first sortie? It could be any day, hell, even anytime now until you REALLY start flying!"

"I'm proud of ya, kid. You did a hell of a job today!"

The faint, long beep of the lock-on tone gradually increased in intensity, snapping me back into reality. I could feel the tears welling up, but I could do nothing else other than fire the last of my missiles at the target with my eyes shut. The bright flash and the all too familiar sound of an exploding plane was more than enough of a confirmation.

"All bandits…shot down," said Hound Two, quietly. "Are you alright, Hound Three?"

I didn't respond to this. My vision was blurry, and it wasn't because of the rain.

"Hound Three, are you okay?"

"No," I said firmly. "I'm not."

And soon enough, we evaded the pursuing Belkan fighters. Maybe they turned back and let us all escape as an act of mercy, but 'mercy' wouldn't be a fitting word for a lighting-quick assault such as what we all experienced today.

"Fang One to all units," my radio chattered, "patching transmission from HQ."

"This is HQ to all remaining units from the Vaud Air Force Base," began the transmission. "Osean escort fighters have successfully made contact with the evacuating personnel and are en route to Apito Air Base."

"Whew, that's a relief," breathed Gull One. "We owe you, sir."

"No need for thanks, Gull One; we're all just doing our jobs here," replied HQ, almost as if he didn't actually mean that.

"This means we head for Apito then, sir?" asked Swan Leader.

"That's correct," replied HQ. "You have until 0615 hours to begin landing procedures for all planes. Is that understood?"

"Yes sir," was all that our aching hearts managed to reply with.

I remember feeling a heavy weight crushing my heart when I looked back and saw the numerous explosions and the cloud of smoke rising from where the place we called our home was. I couldn't hear the air raid sirens anymore from where I currently at; I hoped everyone managed to escape alive.

Many people believe that every sunrise brings hope, as there's something about the sun itself that gives new light to a new day; a chance for people to start over. On that morning however, the image of the rising sun seemed to shine down upon the victory of the Belkan Air Force. A victory that cost me my home, as well as companions.

Dawn will forever be changed for me as something I would never look forward to seeing ever again.