Me and Brownie were hanging out by our Phantom stretching our legs after our most recent sortie, us Count and Tabloid had been escorting C-130s to and from the mainland and had been going non stop all day other than refueling. We had just escorted two more 130s and a C-17 here and were told to just wait by our fighters, that was almost an hour ago and Count was getting bored and starting to throw pebbles at Tabloid who was trying to nap using his landing gear as a backrest.
"Count, be careful you miss Tabloid and hit his plane; it's likely to fall apart." Brownie said, throwing her own pebble at Count.
"Ah the Scrap Queen doesn't have any other work she could fix it no problem."
"Afraid not Count as of now what armaments and equipment that's on your birds is all we've got left on this island." Came the familiar voice of The Scrap Queen as she walked towards us from her hanger. "Other than the fuel tanks the armory is cleared out."
"Wait is that what's up with all the cargo planes?" I asked, I knew they were picking something up. I just never was on the ground long enough to see what they had been loading.
"Yup there packing up the base but that's not why I'm here, McDick wants you lot in the briefing room."
"Fuck." Brownie said and made to wake up Tabloid."
"Fucks right I figured we would get a little more rest but I guess there's no rest for the wicked right Trigger?"
"Seems like it Count." I said turning for the Briefing room.
Several hours later over Erusean airspace
"You know it's weird only having two birds in the sky." I mused out loud.
"Weirder than actually being recognized as military again?" Count asked as he stayed off my wing as we escorted the C-17 that was carrying Mckinsey and a few of the other higher ups from Zapland.
"Ok maybe not that weird but still it's kinda lonely."
"Oh you're one to talk, you got Brownie to chat with."
"Trust me that's not the greatest thing all the time, sometimes she's real- Oh what the hell." Brownie cut me off smacking the shit out of the back of my helmet.
"Never mind, I think I'll stay in my bird alone."
Alright you three we just passed the last checkpoint, this is the final stretch and then we'll be in allied airspace." Bandog chimed in.
"Copy that Bandog got any hits on hostile craft at all." Brownie asked, probably doing her own look at the radar.
"Negative on any contacts at the time but if you switch to the alt channel you can hear Mckinsey's rant."
"Yeah fuck that." Count stated plainly
We continued on for a few more miles with the skys still clear and the occasional rant from Mckinsey, when all of a sudden my HUD started flashing alerts and I heard Brownie cursing from the back. "All shit Bandog I'm getting lit up like a Christmas tree over hear and I cant tell what it is, this Gründer bullshit is fucking lagging out." I called out as our own info system was shiting it self.
"One sec Spare 15…. Holy shit I'm picking up fifteen SAM sites and there's more popping up as they come online."
"Count im breaking off and engaging these sites stay with Roper 1 just in case this is a trap."
"Fuck I got you Trigger ill keep McDick alive good luck." Count replied moving to a more defensive formation with the transport.
"Brownie single out the AA guns and Radar systems." I said as I watched the data start to come in from Bandog and all the red dots start popping up on radar."
"I got ya we'll blind the SAMs and hit the guns, The first radar is to our one o' - shit smoke in the air."
"Goddamn it going defensive pop flares." I called out pulling us into downward curve and letting Brownie handle the flares as I made sure we didn't hit the ground. Getting the first volley of missiles to miss I lined up on the first radar I let loose with a missile and destroyed it. "Alright that's one where's the next."
"To our four."
"Got it, how you doing Count any missiles headed your way?" I asked dodging fire from an AA gun and returning my own fire from the gun sending it up in flames.
"Negative but I think I see something on radar."
"Affirmative I'm picking up two Gripens moving in from barring 281." Bandog clarified.
"Roger that Spare 2 in engaging the bandits." Count called breaking off from Roper 1 and setting to intercept.
"Alright, that's another radar, how many are there?"
"Uh I'm seeing seven more and several AA guns, but on the bright side it looks like there SAMs where reliant on those radars a chunk of them have stopped firing." Brownie said, trying to add some good news.
As Count took out the first set of hostile craft and made to intercept another flight I had managed to take out all but two radars and a decent chunk of AA guns when Bandog called out a new group of hostiles. " You've got three MiG-31s coming in from barring 110."
"Fuck Trigger im busy with these guys." Count said as he tangled with the two MIR-2000s
"Shit got it, Brownie get the Phoenix up and ready." I said making to gain altitude and setting an intercept course.
"You sure we only have two and then it's four Aim-9s and our guns."
"Yeah lets hit the lead MiG and the Trailing one then let's hope the one in the middle panics." I said, lining us up to the front of the incoming interceptors.
"Copy we've got good tone and missiles away."
"Damn your working fast." I said as Brownie launched both Phoenixs within seconds of each other, and just like we hoped the second his buddies got hit not expecting a head on attack the last 31 panicked and went to maneuver letting us catch up and take him out with two sidewinders. "This Spare 15 MiGs are down how you holding up Count?"
"I'm doing good, my targets are down and I even got that last radar site for you."
"Well what do you know Count has a heart." Brownie said as we scanned for any other active targets.
"Good job Spare squadron we just crossed the border ... .wait the hell?"
"What's going on Bandog?" I asked, looking around for a target.
"Unknown contact coming from bearing 332, it's coming in fast." as Bandog called it out a small, just bigger than a UAV craft came buzzing by almost hitting the transport."
"Fuck Trigger you engage, Count no mater what stay with the transport."
"Spare 15 copies moving to engage."
"Trigger knock that thing out of the sky." Count said, taking my spot in front of the transport as I rolled away and made for the Unknown.
"Careful Trigger that things definitely more agile than us." Brownie warned as we approached.
"Yeah alright here goes nothing." as it went for a straight line dive I followed and stayed with it barely as it pulled up sharply and leveled out. Once it leveled out I launched off my last two sidewinders once I had a good tone. "Alright fox 2 fox2… what the fuck." I called out as it pivoted like a ballerina and was facing our direction and avoided the missiles. Barely reacting in time I put our F-4 in a snap roll to the right as the Unknown fired at us.
"Ah shit we got hit Trigger, what the hell was that?"
"The fuck if I know it looks like it just grazed our left wing, wait…. I see a few holes but i've still got full range of control."
"Shit, well it looks like our electronics are all green but the radars acting a little fuzzy."
"Keep an eye on it but for now it's time for round two." I said banking into another dive hoping the Unknown would do its same trick now that we were ready for it. It took a few minutes of dodging gun fire but finally the hostile went into a sharp dive and suddenly leveled out. Anticipating it the second it went to flip around at us i let loose with everything we had left in the gun shredding it before it could complete its maneuver. "Spare 15 targets down and I'm Winchester on ammo."
"Good job Spare 15 the sky looks clear and ... .sonuva bitch allied aircraft entering the area at barring 332 identify yourselves."
For a hot moment I froze up and I'm sure Count and Brownie did too, flashing back to the last time allied fighters showed up at the end of an operation. Thankfully though after a moment a familiar voice came over the radio. "Is that a guard dog barking I hear?"
"Oh thank god, it's good to hear your voice Wiseman." I replied.
"You as well and I guess you're the one that took out the target we were chasing."
"If you mean a weird as fuck drone then yeah." Count replied strangely, happy to brag on my behalf.
"Well then let us escort you lot to New Arrows Airbase and we can do a full debriefing there."
"Affirmative Cyclops 1, Spare squadron follow Cyclops squadron mission complete."
