Chp. 16: Frustrations
October 29, 2049
OFS Sarafield (SSN-585)
Commander Haddrick rested his forehead against the eyepiece of his periscope with a tense breath. He tracked a shape just shy of the horizon, trying to guess if it was changing up its course. The ship was the destroyer Kapija, and she was hunting for intruders just like the Osean sub. Since the war had kicked off, The Sarafield had been keeping her distance from the center of the Erusean fleet. Instead, she concentrated on shadowing the Kapija as it covered the rear sector of the fleet's perimeter. Haddrick watched the ship for a few minutes more as it started in their direction. He upped the magnification to its highest setting and dragged his haze over the ship. He lifted a thumb and pressed down an imaginary button, which in turn put an imaginary torpedo in the center of the destroyer's starboard side. He eased away from the eyepiece and folded up the handles before he rejoined Samuelson and Chaffe. This time, his Weapons Officer and XO had also huddled around the plotting table.
"Given what we've observed, Skipper, I think our current position relative to the Kapija and their observed patterns are the best shot we'll get." Lieutenant Commander Hugh Cline proposed., drawing an imaginary line from the sub's position to the general location of the destroyer.
"From a position about here, we could engage both the destroyer and that frigate to the north with our Glaives. Then move to evade before their subs can get a shot at us." The man proposed. Haddrick's number two, Lieutenant Commander Avenbaum, leaned closer to the proposed attack plot.
"I'm more concerned about those Erusean subs, Skipper. And that doesn't include the ones roaming about on their own." He admitted.
"The Ahti or the Jegulja will be after us as soon as we launch. I would recommend opening up on them first, but it would be better to lay an ambush. Given what Lieutenant Chaffe has told me." Cline replied.
"According to CINCSIAN, the bulk of their subs deployed here are screening the sea lanes from north Erusea to Sotoa. Inevitably, if we're detected or when we engage, they'll likely send some this way." The Lieutenant mused.
Haddrick zoomed out on the plot until he saw the last known positions of the Durant and the newly-arrived Fairweather (SSN-577). His superiors assured him that the Lenish had subs on the way, too. As he ran through their tentative plan, a light above him flashed with a soft buzz. Haddrick grabbed the handset and put it to his ear.
"This is the Conn." He said.
"Conn, Sonar shows contact Delta 1 making a significant deviation from previous pattern. Delta 1 is turning hard to starboard at this time." The department head reported.
"Understood, either of its helos nearby?"
"We've got a single dipping sonar at 003, moving southeast."
"Copy, keep tracking 'em on the passive."
Haddrick lifted his thumb from the device and looked towards the front of the compartment. After a few seconds, Haddrick looked forward.
"Bosun, hit the emergency dive light." He ordered.
The young man nodded and hit a large button at his station.
"Helmsman, take us to 400 and turn to Heading 310 immediately." He ordered.
"Depth 400, Heading 310 Aye."
Haddrick leaned back and grabbed a nearby railing while the ship began its emergency maneuvers. The invisible wall from the destroyer's sonar came up from behind about as fast as the sub was diving and turning. Haddrick worked his way towards his chair in the center of the compartment in case they had to shoot their way out. The incessant pinging felt like it was starting to bore into his skull. He looked to the depth and heading display above. They were almost there. He hopped into his chair and pulled down the handset he had there.
"Sonar, Conn, what's the status of Delta-1?" He asked.
"Currently at Heading 035 and continuing its turn. Speed is decreasing."
"And that helo?"
"Unknown at this time; it retracted its dipping sonar."
The height of tension almost immediately began to reverse as the sub slipped below the thermocline. Even as the destroyer's sonar continued to sweep towards its position, Haddrick was confident in his ability to slip away. He ordered the sub to slow to an eventual stop; the Helmsman eased back on the gas and let momentum carry the vessel. The pinging persisted, growing in intensity, before it began to fade.
"Conn, Sonar."
"Go for Conn."
"Delta 1 is making a very gradual left from Heading 120 at this time."
"Copy Sonar, keep me advised and tell me when you get a bead on that helo's sonar again."
"Aye sir."
Back to square one Haddrick thought, cursing his luck…
Annie watched the image on the screen intently as Becky stopped its rotation and used a laser pointer to highlight what she wanted to talk about.
"The Invictus is typical of Empire-class aircraft carriers. She is about 30 feet shorter than the Prometheus-class, but employs a combination of ski-jump and catapult systems to launch her aircraft. She's powered by an integrated electric propulsion system which allows her a top speed of over 27 knots. Current estimate is that she can run wartime cyclic ops for up to a week." She explained, reading from her laptop on the nearby podium.
"She carries fifty aircraft centered on three squadrons of F-03 Basilisks, with one squadron using two-seat variants for long-range strike. These are guided by one a squadron of six E-04 Fafnirs. A squadron with both ASW helios and rescue helos rounds out the air component. As highlighted here, here, here and here the ship itself carries a defensive armament of short-range missiles and rapid-fire chemical lasers backed by a sophisticated suite of countermeasures. With these, it can engage targets out to ten miles and confuse enemy missiles even further out."
The demonstrations of its defenses left little room for questions. According to what Becky's department had, the carrier could attack targets from all directions almost simultaneously, and its electronic countermeasures could change the width of their beams to cover larger or smaller areas. The trick was, as time had proved, saturation. Saturation and disruption; the defensive suite could be spoofed and exploited by weapons with a lock-on-jam capability. She began drawing up a way to kill the thing on a spare page of her notepad.
"Erusean naval doctrine, taking a cue from the Osean approach, relies heavily on a carrier's aircraft and its escorts to stop threats."
The head of that defense took over the screen, along with immediate mention of her arsenal of over 100 anti-aircraft missiles. Annie could feel the gears in her head really turning as she went over what she had in mind. Especially as Becky explained the best way to defeat the SAMs. She also figured out a few things that would be worth knowing in regards to breaking the fleet's air cover. She wanted to talk to the other Basilisk killers and compile things, or maybe just bug intel for some of the after-action reports. No, no, it would give her a chance to talk to Jed. And in a way that gave her a pretense; something to let them have some privacy.
"...The TS-9 often works in conjunction with the E-04 to widen its engagement envelope and allow it to engage even more targets using the E-04's ability to give missiles mid-course guidance."
Loaded with info and with ideas brewing in her head, Annie left that meeting feeling like she had the layout for a very solid attack plan against the Erusean fleet. The only issue she had was that VF-34 didn't do anti-ship, but she knew who could. In her haste, Annie jumped to her feet and ended up crashing right into Jed.
"Oh crap, sorry there Tsun-Tsun." Jed apologized, wide-eyed as usual.
"No no, don't worry about it. That was my fault, Bronco." She replied quickly.
There was an awkward pause before he started out of the row of seats. Annie followed him out of the room and cleared her throat as they split off from the others filing out. Jed slowly turned around and gave a very fake smile. It was enough to make her want to give him a hug, but she kept it short.
"We can talk later…I have some ideas I'd like to slip to the Lightning squadrons. Tomorrow, please? This can't go on." She said, He nodded and turned to leave, but she grabbed his hand. He stopped and drew in a breath.
"Jed, please." She said in a soft, pleading tone.
He looked back at her and gently squeezed her hand.
"Okay...okay tomorrow." He agreed. She smiled and nodded before excusing herself.
Jed watched her go and felt some urge to chase after her
Their ability to salvage some synergy while in combat made Jed's return to sulking feel all the more painful. As soon as she was out of his sight, he was off to find sanctuary. Brick and Glue joined him to cool off and hang out. A couple cans of ice-cold soda from Brick's stash certainly helped. He swapped his yellow turtleneck for a black t-shirt with Superboy's coat of arms on it and tied the top of his flight suit around his waist.
"Alright, alright boyos, choose the matter in which you two wanna be whooped." Brick asked as he set down a case full of cartridges.
"Well I know my vote ain't gonna be for Rage of the Machines Requiem." Glue muttered.
"Ah cast my vote for Gunwing or Fighting Gauken. At least once Ah go a few rounds with my buddy Deck in Macross Wings." Jed added.
"Avenge me if he does beat me, Bronco?" Glue asked.
"When I beat you."
"Yeah yeah whatever."
"Ah gotcha, Glue."
The two exchanged fist bumps before Jed grabbed the controller for his computer. He leaned back in his chair, still trying to get his heart to return to a normal rhythm. He could still feel the rush kicking in every now and again. Just a little, just enough to get his attention. The last hop hadn't netted him anymore kills, but it'd been a real heartstopper. He closed his eyes and drew in a long breath before he turned on his computer. He needed distraction to let his blood flow get back to normal. As things booted up and got running, he immediately got a notification on his messenger.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): Jed, I heard the Icarus is involved in the war with Erusea and Sotoa.
Jed didn't say anything; he hadn't talked to Naomi Hathaway in a good while. His fellow flyer had probably been prowling the Jane's website again, or something like that. He certainly wasn't in the mood to talk, either way.
"Don't worry about me, Fireball." He muttered.
"Say something, Bronco?" Brick asked.
"Just thinking aloud. Nothing important."
The response from Naomi was another message.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): Jed, I know you're there you dummy. Don't ignore your fellow pilot and unofficial cousin. =3=
Jed did just that until he got another notification.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): If you keep trying to be a broody mcbuttface I'm gonna spam you with annoying gifs til you say something. :T
Jed kept waiting until he had to know something.
Jed (Warpup24): The hell defines a gif as "annoying", Naomi?
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): I'll find a way to make it annoying. Are you aboard Icarus?
Jed (Warpup24): Yeah.
Jed (Warpup24): I'm knee-deep in it.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): The squadron's being tapped to join an Air Expeditionary Wing. An island called Kharmata.
Jed (Warpup24): Well, good luck.
There was a pause that Jed hoped meant the conversation was over. He quietly braced himself when he saw she was typing again.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): That's it?
Jed (Warpup24): It's my first war, too. I've got a lot on my plate.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): :T
Jed (Warpup24): What do you want from me, Naomi? For fuck's sake, stop pressing me like this. Or do, since you and everyone else back in Smithfield get mad when I don't act like a good dog.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): You're FAMILY, Jed.
Jed (Warpup24): Family doesn't try and railroad you into what it wants while pretending it's just trying to protect you. I'm glad I left Smithfield behind; I can finally live my life without you or Kayla scaring off every girl I show interest in or without being frowned on for feeling sad because I apparently have it so great. Especially from a family of mercs who think actual military service is beneath them. Or a family who shouts down and belittles everyone around them over the smallest slight!
Jed stopped when he realized he was typing a bit too intensely. He closed the messenger and turned off notifications. He casually glanced back at his fellow Daredevils to make sure he hadn't drawn too much attention and logged into Macross Wings like he'd originally intended. Deck was there in a heartbeat, and Jed was pleasantly surprised to see the man's girlfriend was also there.
Grace (CapcomAngel291): Hiya Jeddo! ( ^_^ )Y
Hideki (HadoukenStyle): Woo, party's here!
Jed (Warpup24): Heya guys! Sorry I'm late.
Hideki (HadoukenStyle): Your punishment is you have to babysit Capcom on her first PvP match.
Grace (CapcomAngel291): Hey!
Hideki (HadoukenStyle): 3
His mood rebounded quickly after that. He knew he'd have to look at whatever messages Naomi sent him after he'd left her hanging, but it felt cathartic to just let off a burst like that. It felt even better to fight alongside his best friend and his girlfriend for a few rounds. Being welcomed with open arms and no feelings of judgement. At first he considered telling Hideki what'd happened, but by the time they were done it wasn't bothering him anymore. He glanced back towards Brick and Glue, who were deep in a tourney-length series of Fighting Gauken matches. He saw that during his time playing with Hideki and Grace, Naomi had sent a number of messages. Jed frowned and decided maybe it was high time he blocked her. Remove the ability for them to fight. Despite the number the program claimed, there were only two messages. Jed's gaze inevitably glossed over them, but he stopped when he saw the words "I'm sorry" several times. He took his hand on his mouse and decided to read her response in full.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): I'm sorry, Jed. I shouldn't have gone about that how I did.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): You're right, you're in a situation that's overwhelming and foreign. You feel alienated from the rest of us back home and having me come in with an attitude is not the way to talk to someone I care about. I can't speak for everyone, but I'm sorry. Will you please talk to me? Pilot to pilot? I miss talking to you, and I promise I won't pressure you over anything. Get back to me when you can, please.
Suddenly he felt less satisfied by the whole thing. She'd acknowledged his grievances when he'd been ready to put up with and counter a long rant about how he was the bad guy. This is what he'd wanted though, right? To have his anger acknowledged. He didn't know what to do for a solid minute. In fact he didn't know what to do. It soon occurred to him that this might be a good time to bring up something he hadn't been able to tell anyone.
Jed (Warpup24): Thank you, Naomi. I wish I had something useful to say but the truth is that I don't have anything of use to say. Too much to sift through and compartmentalize. It doesn't help that I got yanked from liberty just after getting my heart stomped on. This time I genuinely thought I had something.
Naomi responded almost instantaneously.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): Who is she?
Jed (Warpup24): Someone I know from Oured Bay. She's afraid we went too fast or that she revealed too much to me but...I felt something I haven't felt since I met Ivy. She's...fuck she's so beautiful and smart and I should still be furious with her but I can't stay mad enough to give up.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): Is there a chance to save it?
Jed (Warpup24): I...I hope.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): Then go for it! Get your soulmate!
Jed (Warpup24): Thanks, Naomi.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): Trust your feelings on this one. If she makes you feel how Ivy did, then she's gotta be someone worth wooing!
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): What's her name?
Jed (Warpup24): Annie.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): Pic?
Jed (Warpup24): Sorry, don't have one. But she's pretty. Long, raven hair, dark skin, takes no shit but does no harm.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): So the girl of your dreams? :3c
Jed (Warpup24): Maybe...I just know that I can't let it end like this. Don't go sounding the trumpets until I can get it sorted out, promise?
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): o7
Jed (Warpup24): Also Fireball
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): Yes?
Jed (Warpup24): Seriously, good luck. Give 'em hell and we can drink up some sweet Erusean tears back at the O'Club.
Naomi (Flying_Wolfgirl): You too, Jed. Good luck with Annie, and let me meet her if things work out!
Jed smiled a little and thanked her once more, then decided to tell Hideki after all. Well, the parts about Annie anyways…
Rosenthal's killer fish were in their element as they moved low and fast over northern Chakari. Gaines and Lorenz's F-72 flashed by off to the right as it emerged from a valley. Sharky tensed his body and banked to the right; Gaines slowed and fell in behind his flight lead as they started navigating the southern Kuppuris. The RWR's tone rose and fell as SAM radars peeking deep into the country were unable to pin them down. From behind, Shamu helped fine-tune the fighter's path as the terrain grew more and more favorable. They dove into a long, winding valley with sides more like a canyon. Despite the shrink amount of wiggle room, Sharky kept up his speed as he went between two mountains.
"RWR is picking up airborne contacts to the northeast. Looks to be about twenty aircraft heading south." Shamu noted as they screamed over a sudden drop in the terrain.
"They have any idea we're here?' Sharky asked without shifting his gaze.
"Negative...contacts at the front are in search mode. Picking up some jamming, too."
"Noted...Wolf 4-1 be advised that we've got bandits heading south towards our path. Gonna see if we can sneak around em."
"Copy Wolf 3-1. We'll slow down our approach to buy you some time." Squadron Leader Nitish Kunwar replied.
"Negative Wolf 4-1, proceed as planned."
"Copy. Good luck, 3-1."
Sharky passed along the formation to their AWACS with some hope they might be able to distract the bandits. Shamu's eyes raced over every inch of the GPS's display. He glanced at the TFR (Terrain Following Radar) displayed on another one of his screens every few seconds in the hopes of finding something that wasn't on his map. He saw the radar picture begin to change, then looked forward and rose in his seat so he could see past his friend. One of the mountains some miles ahead. The slope facing them was gentle and the area seemed open.
"Sharky, up ahead at our eleven, turn just before that mountain. The one with the smooth-looking slope." He spoke up.
"Smooth-looking slope?"
"Eleven, our eleven."
"Eleven, alright I see it. You sure the side we can't see is good to go?"
"Stay as close as you can to the far side and we won't have to worry about that."
Sharky tightened his grip on the controls and slowed the F-72 until its wings swung outwards. Once he'd ditched his external tanks, he hailed his number two and carefully tilted his plane to the left. The plane's "Bitchin Betty" system started warning the two pilots about their altitude and position, then their speed. Sharky ignored the voice solely because he needed to concentrate on not planting his jet into the side of a mountain. Shamu took over tracking the incoming raid as it began to split up. The RWR told him that a pair of NASAMS sites deeper in Chakari had ambushed them. Interceptors were still inbound, though. He looked up as they went into the turn and saw tiny dots crossing above. He grabbed the handle over his center console and craned his neck as much as he could under the Gs to keep them in his sight.
"VID, bandits at our three high. I don't think they see us." He managed.
"Noted." Sharky replied quickly.
The slower speed let Shary take in all the details of the wilderness around him. It was a breathtaking panorama of trees, rock and snow. All of that beauty was overshadowed by his situation. The F-72's engines whined in protest as they stayed just above 150 Feet. Bitchin Betty was really losing it now as it seemed like the pilot was going to scrape the slope with his belly. His senses were nearly overloaded and the edges of his vision had started to grow unfocused when the risky maneuver was suddenly at its end. The pilot took the first gulp of air in what'd felt like hours.
Sharky carefully reversed the Sabertooth's turn and suddenly found himself in a large, low valley. He checked the GPS with his WSO, made sure Wolf 3-2 was still with him, and started plotting a new course. He looked towards the peaks to the left and considered making a run for it. He took another left with that goal in mind, hoping to slip out of the mountains and put some distance between him and the enemy aircraft. Shamu's head was back down, trying to find anything he could use to help his pilot get them out of there. The detour had cost them some fuel, he noted with a frown.
"Wolf 3-1, Wolf 4 is at IP and beginning attack. What's your situation?" Kunwar radioed.
"Wolf 2-1, we're still moving along alternate route and trying to exit the mountains. Proceed with attack and we'll catch up." Sharky replied.
"Copy, be advised those GPS jammers are still active. Wolf 2 is switching these to primary targets."
"Roger."
Sharky decided it was time to leave their masking behind and play catchup. He growled in frustration and keyed his mike.
"Shamu, get the JDAMs ready to drop. Tell me if there's a way out of this place without going above the mountains."
"Nothing on the TFR." Shamu shrugged as his hands started moving about his station.
"Gotcha...D-Gainz we're getting outta these mountains. Go loose deuce on me once we're on open ground. Two-kilo spread, got it?"
"Will do, Sharkman." Wolf 3-2's pilot assured.
Sharky rested a finger near the weapons select switch and picked out the lowest point in the mountains he could find. He followed the slope up, ignoring the alarms and system warnings, and ducked down the opposite slope. His heart paused a second while he waited for the RWR's tone to change. When it did nothing and they were in the hills of Sotoa, he focused his attention on their target once more. Their navigation was uninhibited by the jammers now, and the only thing left protecting the supply depot was local AA. Nearby radars seemed to be for a QRSAM Mk.2 (Quick Reaction Surface-to-Air Missile) battery. Sharky followed a twisting line of hills to a position that would let him more easily defend when they spotted him.
"JDAMs are ready to go, Sharky." Shamu spoke up.
"Gotcha Shamu. Wolf 3-2, you good to go?" Sharky replied.
"Copy, all good." Gaines assured. The two jets made a wide right, then hooked sharply to the left before Sharky keyed the radio again.
"Wolf 3 is at IP and moving into the attack."
Sharky hit the gas and turned on his countermeasures. Gaines and Lorenz switched from their left to the right. The RWR alerted them that the QRASMs' radar knew they were out there, but not exactly where. Sharky kept up his unpredictable approach and inched the throttles up a little more. The hills gave way to a massive savannah with smoke already rising in the distance. On the far side was a cluster of buildings. Shamu mentally counted down their distance to release as the SAMs nearby finally caught a full view of the fighter. Sharky ascended sharply and rolled back into an upright position.
"Coordinates are solid! Your pickle is hot!" Shamu called.
"Wolf 3-1, bombs away." Sharky replied.
The central bay opened and out came four GBU-32s. Sharky broke to the left and dove back down towards the ground, going into full afterburner. The Sotoan SAMs launched a salvo at him, and he countered by going to chaff only. Shamu turned around and called out the missiles as they sprinted away from south of the supply depot. Sharky made an abrupt turn to the left, then reversed almost before he was done with the move.
"Wolf 3-2, bombs away!" Gaines declared.
Shamu saw the other F-72 pull off and get low. It disappeared from his sight as Sharky kept working on losing the missiles. He whipped the jet from side to side one more time and pulled a tall barrel roll before the weapons were finally off of his tail. As the RWR started chirping again, Sharky looked back to see what might have them targeted now. He turned his head just in time to see his wingman's plane take a missile in the right side. The Sabertooth came out of it badly damaged but still airborne, if only barely.
"Wolf 3-2, can you hear me?" Sharky asked.
"Barely, 3-1!" Gaines managed.
"Alright, at least get across the border. Can you hear me, D-Gainz? Get into Chakari."
The F-72 went a short ways further before it began to nose down at an increasing angle. Sharky saw the canopy fly off, followed by one of the ejection seats. Sharky was forced to keep heading south as the SAM battery tried once more to shoot him and Shamu down. He dove for the ground, apologizing to Gaines and Lorenz the entire time under his breath. The enemy radar was losing its bead on him when Shamu had some bad news.
"Bandits, our four! Currently 185 Kilos at an altitude of 7100."
Dammit.