Cloudfall Air Base
Yakutia, Federation Mainland
June 25th, 437 AC
6:30 AM Local Time
"C'mooon. You can't be serious, Nat" Wires groaned as he retreated further into his sheets.
Natalie rolled her eyes before shoving him again- more forcefully this time. "If I wasn't, I would still be asleep. Now come on."
Wires poked his head up and glanced out the window. "The sun's not even out yet. Can't we just push the mission back another hour?"
Natalie put a hand to her hip, looking down at him and doing her best not to crack a smirk. "You wanna be the one to ask Myers?"
Wires grumbled before emerging from his bed. "Fair enough. Let's go," he finally conceded, with an exasperated tone.
Natalie stepped outside, giving him a moment to get dressed. It was eerily quiet around the base, she noted- letting her eyes wander whilst she waited. Most of the squadrons stationed at Cloudfall had been relocated to be closer to the frontlines, but Violet Squadron- and one or two others- remained. With any luck, Natalie hoped that they would be reassigned somewhere else soon, ideally down south to help finally bring an end to the Concordat. It was nice being so close to home, but lately their sorties had gotten less and less frequent, and she hated that.
Finally, Wires emerged from his room- dressed in his flight suit- and the two made their way to the briefing room together. Hammer, Doc, and Myers were already there, and the other two pilots quickly took their seats so the General could get started. Natalie could see in his eyes that he was no more eager to be up this early than they were.
"Over the last month, we've made significant progress since Audessum," he began as the briefing software powered up behind him. "The European Coalition has been routed time and again by the Hydra cruisers, and ever since the jamming facility went up at Tinibu last week, the West African Concordat has been cut off and on the run." A smirk spread across his face. "If we keep up the pressure, this war could very well be over within the month."
"Meaning we're on cleanup duty?" Natalie guessed. "Tying up loose ends and all that?"
Myers shook his head before moving over to the laptop controlling the briefing software. "Not quite..." He paused for a moment, letting his voice trail off before he continued. "As I'm sure you all realize, there is still one hurdle we must cross before we can finish off the Coalition for good."
"The Samurai," Hammer said.
"Exactly," Myers replied with a nod. "Whoever he is, he's proven to be quite the thorn in our side. What we need is a surefire way to even the playing field between us and him, and fortunately for us, he may have just given us what we were looking for on a silver platter." A few keystrokes later, the screen zoomed in on the Mediterranenan Sea. "Last night, Icarus Armories reported that their secret facility, Plant Gamma, was attacked by the Samurai. In an attempt to defend the facility, one of their test pilots scrambled in an experimental fighter. He, of course, didn't survive, but your objective did."
"What, the plane? This that Project Somethin'-rather they were talking about when they brought the Hydra a few months back?" Natalie asked, tilted her head to one side as she studied the map.
"No, this was a different model, a prototype that never made it to mass production. The plane itself is irrelevant- nothing more than a pile of scrap metal at the bottom of the sea. No, what we're after is the datapod it carried," Myers explained. "All of Icarus's experimental planes carry a datapod used to collect extensive data from a wide range of areas. This pod was safely ejected from the plane before it crashed, and its now sitting on the sea floor, filled to the brim with flight and combat data on the Samurai and his fighting style. If we can retrieve it, that data will give us the advantage in the future."
"So how are we supposed to get it?" Wires asked. "Last I checked, our planes weren't exactly built for underwater voyages."
"A SpecOps squad is already on their way in a small submersible, but a Coalition fleet has moved into the area. We need you to sortie immediately, and cover the recovery crew while they pick up the data."
Natalie continued looking up at the screen with an understanding nod. "A nice and easy smash and grab," she decided before looking over to Myers. "Are we expecting any air resistance?"
"Just carrier-borne fighters from the fleet. Aside from that, we have no indication that anyone else is close enough to respond."
"I can work with that," Natalie decided with a shrug as she stood up. "C'mon, boys. Let's get this done."
The other three stood up and followed her out of the briefing room as they all gave Myers a salute on their way out. As they made their way to the hangar, Natalie felt her heart start racing as the realization that they were getting close to the end. Once the Samurai was dead, nothing would stop them from ending the Coalition once and for all. After that… she didn't know. She'd spent so long in this endless battle against the Coalition and the Concordat that she didn't have the slightest idea what she was going to do once it was over. She shook her head, pushing the thought to the back of her mind. It was still too early to be thinking about all that. After all, she still had a Samurai to slay.
Plant Gamma
Mediterranean Ocean
June 25th, 437 AC
7:05 AM Local Time
"Getting contacts up ahead, looks like the fleet Myers mentioned," Natalie announced, switching on her master arm. "Violet Squadron, get set to engage."
"This is Swordfish to Violet 1- honored to be working with you Peacekeepers on an op like this," the leader of the retrieval team spoke up. "Been a few days since we've seen any real action, so I hope you guys make it worth the wait.
Natalie smirked. "Don't you worry, Swordfish. We'll give you a proper fireworks show- just hope you can see it that far down underwater."
Skyline cut in with a tired sigh. "All elements, cut the chatter and focus on the mission," she grumbled.
"Sheesh, what's your problem, Skyline- wake up on the wrong side of the bed or what?" Hammer asked with a teasing edge to his voice.
"They dragged me out of bed for this too, y'know," the AWACS replied bitterly. "And if you must know, I was having a nice dream where I got to meet Allen Dale that was rather rudely interrupted. So yes, I suppose you could say I woke up on the wrong side of the bed."
"Who the hell is Allen Dale?" Wires chimed in.
"The actor you dunce! Do none of you watch theater?"
"No, because unlike you, none of us are theater kids, Skyline," Natalie teased.
Skyline grumbled something under her breath before snapping, "Just hurry up and focus on the mission before I switch off your IFFs."
Natalie chuckled before fastening her oxygen mask over her mouth and glancing down at her radar. Fighters had already launched from the fleet's carrier- a squadron of F/D-14s- and more were already on their way up. The numbers definitely weren't on their side, but they'd dealt with worse. They just needed air superiority and then they could deal with the fleet.
"Wires, Doc, push past the fighters and start hitting those ships, try to strip 'em of their defenses. Hammer and I will cover you," she ordered, already lighting her burners to close the distance between herself and the rapidly approaching Coalition fighters. "Swordfish, how close are you to the objective?"
"Well, at the moment, we're kind of in a holding pattern," Swordfish replied. "This fleet is directly in our path to the datapod, and going around them would take way too long. We're gonna have to wait for you to take 'em out before we can move ahead."
"Do you think they know what we're up to?" Doc asked as he and Wires broke off to hit the fleet. "Seems awfully convenient that they happen to be blocking our path."
"Unlikely- they probably just think we're here for the facility," Skyline replied. "Still, it's better to not take chances. We'd need to neutralize them anyway- can't let any witnesses start piecing it together."
Natalie shrugged. "You're the boss, Skyline. Engaging," she reported as she rolled onto her side, turning hard left into the merge with one of the bandits.
The flight of F/D-14s all lit their burners and turned evasive. Hammer dove right, opposite of Natalie to help split them up and letting Wires and Doc slip past. Natalie cut back on the throttle as she situated herself behind four of the seven bandits. MLAAs flew off her pylons the moment she had a lock, and the Coalition fighters dropped chaff in response. Two of them made a sharp turn to notch while one evaded through seemingly pure luck, and the last was just a second too slow. Her thumb reached for the weapon selection switch, readying her STDMs and waiting for a solid tone on the lone F/D-14. Their airbrake deployed and they pitched up, hoping to bleed off enough speed to force the Peacekeeper into an overshoot, but her Sk.37 was maneuverable enough to fly circles around them. She dropped the throttle all the way back, and as soon as she had tone, she fired. Instantly, her hand reached for the AOA limiter and she yanked back on the stick as hard as she could, looping around and just narrowly avoiding a mid-air collision with the wreckage of the fighter.
As if to answer her question to herself about their whereabouts, the remaining two Tomcats came at Natalie at full speed. Both of them already had her locked, firing HISMs the moment they were in range and forcing the Peacekeeper on the defensive. She turned to meet the missiles head-on, listening to the beeping in her cockpit get faster and faster, and when the time was right, she inverted and pulled down, waiting for a moment before curling back around and then upward again in a sort of S-motion that the missiles couldn't follow before losing their track. With her tail clear, she pulled up hard, curling up until she found herself behind the two bandits. The first was close enough to splash with guns, while the second tried to evade but was ultimately too slow to get away from Natalie's STDMs. Immediately, she looked for Hammer on the radar and started toward him. One F/D-14 was all that remained of the fighters he went after, but at the moment, they were the one on his tail. She quickly readied an MLAA and fired it. The Coalition fighter dumped chaff, hoping that would be enough to deter the missile while they chased their prey, but it went right past the countermeasures and made a direct hit.
"All bandits splashed," Natalie reported turning toward the fleet. "Time to finish this."
"Not so fast, Violet 1," Skyline warned. "We've got more bandits getting ready to take off from the carrier."
Natalie rolled her eyes. "Fine, I'll take deal with them," she replied begrudgingly, already changing course to hit the carrier head-on. "Hammer, help Wires and Doc with the fleet. I'll take care of the carrier."
Two F/F-18s were on the flight deck, getting into position on the catapults as the Peacekeeper approached rapidly. By the time they were airborne, it was already too late, and a pair of MLAAs smashed right into both of them before they could get higher into the air. The carrier's defenses spurred to life, firing a barrage of tracers toward the Sk.37 as it pulled up higher and evaded with ease. Natalie made a wide loop around, putting some distance between them as she prepared for another pass. Two STDMs flew off her pylons the moment she was in range, and a hail of gunfire followed them in, taking out four of the six AA guns in a single pass. Another pair of Super Hornets readied themselves on the catapults, but Natalie's focus remained on the defense systems. She turned around for another pass, this time perpendicular to the flight deck and lit her burners as she got down low to the water. The AA guns tried their best to hit her, but no shot came close enough to do any damage, allowing her to let out another burst from her cannon, shredding the last two defenses as the F/F-18s took off. She turned quickly follow after them, firing STDMs at one and chasing after the other with guns. The Super Hornet jinked one way and then another, narrowly avoiding the bullets sent their way. Hoping to conserve ammo on her gun, Natalie instead opted to fire an MLAA, and thanks to how close she was, the Coalition pilot was left with no time to evade. Free of any more distractions, she turned back around toward the defenseless carrier. Thanks to the damage it sustained in her attacks on its defenses, a pair of STDMs was all it took to send it sinking to the bottom of the sea. Pulling back up, she prepared herself to help the others finish off the rest of the fleet, only to find that the three of them had just finished sinking the last cruiser, leaving the area clear of hostiles.
"Violet 1 to Swordfish, the fleet is neutralized. You're clear to advance," Natalie reported as she and the others remained in a holding pattern over the wreckage of the fleet.
"Copy, the sonar's going crazy with all the noise you made. We're inbound, just gotta make sure that we don't get hit by any debris," Swordfish replied.
"Y'know… I think that it's high time that we take one of those big R&R trips we used to do with Cap now that this war is winding down," Wires decided.
"R&R trips?" Doc echoed. "I don't remember Cap ever doing those."
"He didn't do one for years- didn't think it was right to when the war was going on," Hammer explained. "Matter of fact, I think the last one we went on was when, uh… he was still in the squadron."
"He who? Cap?"
Natalie let out a heavy sigh. "Your predecessor- the one who's spot you filled when you joined Violet Squadron," she explained. "I don't like talking about him. We were… close."
"I don't think I've ever heard anything about him. Who was he?" Doc asked.
"His TAC Name was Thunder," Wires replied. "Can't remember what his actual name was."
"Jay," Natalie said instantly. "Jay Cross." She wanted so desperately to forget him, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't help but keep a part of him in her heart.
"Yeah. To be honest, the guy was a damn good pilot. With the way he flew, you'd think he was out to yank the role of Violet 1 right out from under Cap," Hammer chimed in.
"What…" Doc paused, his voice trailing off as he hesitated to ask his question. "What happened to him?"
"He was a god damn weasel is what happened," Wires spat with contempt. "Said what happened in Cascadia was a line the Federation shouldn't've crossed. Not long after, he deserted- never seen or heard from him since."
"And the bastard'll keep it that way if he knows what's good for him," Hammer agreed.
Natalie stayed silent. She had nothing to say about Jay that she hadn't already said- or so she told herself, at any rate. Whenever he came up in conversation, she always told herself that she never wanted to see him again, but as time went on, she couldn't help but feel that she was lying to herself, at least partially. Somewhere deep down in her mind, she did want to see him again, but whether it was to try and fix things between them or make him pay for what he did, she couldn't tell. To be honest, she wasn't really sure that she wanted to know the answer to that question.
"Alright, we're nearing the beacon- releasing the hatch locks. We'll have the datapod in just a minute," Swordfish reported.
"Copy that, Swordfish," Skyline replied. "Let me know when you've got it and we can exfil toward- wait a minute… shit, we've got contacts."
"Where at?" Natalie asked.
"Bearing 330. Angels 25 cold- 15 klicks out," the AWACS reported.
"If they don't see us, shouldn't we not risk poking the bear?" Doc asked. "There's no telling if there's more in the area."
"No witnesses, remember?" Natalie reminded him, already turning toward the indicated bearing. "Can't run the risk. Not when there's so much at stake."
Doc mumbled something under his breath that she couldn't quite make out, but otherwise offered no protest. It was a silent flight toward the bandits. There was nothing to be heard but the muffled roar of their engines. The contacts Skyline mentioned eventually appeared on her radar, but they still had quite a bit of time before they were in range. The targets weren't moving very fast, leaving Natalie to believe that they either hadn't spotted them yet or they couldn't move all that fast to begin with. When they finally appeared on her HUD, to be a combination of both. The bandits in question were nothing more than C/T-17s.
"Just some transports- easy pickings," Wires said as he followed his leader in.
"Just get in close and gun 'em down. They're hardly worth the missiles," Natalie replied, readying her cannon to finish off the last of its ammo.
It wasn't until the Peacekeepers were within visual range that the transports offered any sort of reaction. They quickly broke formation and started taking evasive maneuvers, but by then it was too little too late. One by one, the C/T-17s were gunned out of the sky, falling down to the sea below in a ball of fire- helpless to do anything as the Federation's best had free reign over the skies.
Natalie exhaled sharply as her canon clicked, signaling that it was empty as the last transport exploded. "All transports splashed- skies are clear," she reported.
"Confirmed. Good work Violet Squadron," Skyline reported. "Swordfish, what's your status?"
"This is Swordfish, we've got the datapod, and it looks to be in perfect condition," Swordfish reported. "
"Roger that, all elements in the AO, push toward heading 040 for exfil."
Swordfish chuckled. "You don't gotta tell us twice, Skyline. We're on the way. Violet Squadron, that was some spot-on support up there. I guess it really was worth the wait- hope we get to work again someday."
"Likewise, Swordfish. Take care of yourselves," Natalie replied. "Violet Squadron, let's go home."
