School Idols of the Lighthouse War
Chapter 20.3
Battle of Farbanti - Confrontation
Previously...
Long Caster: New bogies... no, five Su-30s inbound.
Alexa: He's finally here!!
Wiseman: ...it's Mister X!
As on time, Mihaly and his Su-30SM appeared, flying very low, firing his 2 LASMs on the Osean cruiser, which he destroyed it.
And after some split seconds later, he dived and fired his remaining LASMs on a Osean destroyer, and demolished it.
And then, his escorts arrived. ready to take the enemy on.
Osean Soldier: Enemy reinforcements! Probably the main force!
Osean Sailor: What's going on here? I can't believe it!
OF 6: Captain! We've just lost Ship 3 and 4! We've taken heavy damage! It looks like this monster is toying us out there. We got to do something.
Alexa: Honoka, Eli, You, Lanzhu, Setsuna, and Shioriko, let's form up and do their formation. Strider Team, support me.
Honoka: Muse 1, copy that.
Alexa, Honoka, Shioriko, Lanzhu, Eli, You, and Setsuna form up and have launched a formation, parallel to the Sol Squadron, who are launching their Sol formation.
Transmission
Long Caster: LRSSG, we have an emergency order from mission command: Bring down Mister X. I know it's a tall order, but HQ wouldn't ask if they didn't have faith in you.
Alexa: Let's go! Engage the Sol Squadron!
All School Idols behind Alexa: Yokai!
Wit: There they are. It's the Snowbirds. And the School Idols. The two leaders are on a different level, so are the School Idols, their pilots are the best of the best, but don't underestimate the rest of them either.
Mihaly: This should prove to be fun.
Seymour: What do you mean?
Mihaly: It's just like you say, the enemy has experienced fighters in their midst.
Alexa: Open fire!
Alexa fired her first missiles, but Sol team evaded it.
Mihaly: Taking evasive action.
Seymour: This one got some skills.
The Sol Squadron and the School Idol Squadron are now tangled in a new dogfight.
Long Caster: Wow. You sure he's human?
Sol 5 hit Strider 3, but Jaeger still stands.
And then, Lanzhu shot Sol 5 down with her missiles.
Lanzhu: Dá zhòng lè! Enemy bandit down!
Hermann: Sol 5 is hit!
Roald: Sorry guys, I gotta bail out.
Roald managed to bail out and his comms went offline.
Mihaly: You did well.
Mihaly continues to hammer the Osean Fleet.
OF 9: One ship is sunk. Single fighter coming back around!
Long Caster: Don't let Mister X run wild. Friendlies are sufferin' heavy damage.
Eli managed to hit Sol 4 with guns and missiles.
Eli: Target is still active! Setsuna, assist me!
Setsuna: I'll get him!
Hermann: It looks like they're on our tail.
Setsuna fired a missile but missed the target.
Setsuna: Target missed! Reengaging!
Mihaly: Not bad. The School Idols and that Snowbird are working very cleverly with their style of aerial combat! They're as good as Wit says. They know what they're doing. But for the other Osean units, although their teamwork is somewhat lacking.
Setsuna finally shot down Hermann with her gun, missile, and laser fire.
Setsuna: Got him! Thanks, Eli-chan!
Eli: We took it down together!
Hermann: I'm hit! Bailing out!
Hermann bailed out and his comms went offline.
Wiseman: Stay focused. We've still got a monster to slay.
Wit: Take 'em out, one by one.
You: Got a lock! Firing!
You attacks Seymour with her guns.
Húxiān: Mister X is eating through the Osean forces!
Count: No, no, no, no! Who are these guys?!
Mihaly continues to rampage on the Osean Army.
You shot down Sol 3 with her guns.
You: I got him! Yousoro!
Wit: Seymour, your plane has had it! Eject!
Seymour: Forgive me. Good luck!
Seymour bailed out and his comms went offline.
Long Caster: Flanker splashed!
Wit: All of them are very capable pilots. Don't be distracted by focusing on their leader.
Skald: They got their flight envelopes nailed down.
Wiseman: Even the escorts are seasoned!
Alexa: No doubt. They are the elite unit! We are also a special elite unit, the School Idols and me!
Jaeger: What's this guy eating through and flying like that?
Shioriko took out Wit with her flight maneuvers and her gun and missile fire.
Shioriko: Shot down the target!
Long Caster: Scratch the last escort!
Wit: We need to be extra careful if we want to split up the two leaders!
Mihaly: Wit. Eject…while you can still talk.
Wit: Got it.
Wit bailed out and his comms went offline.
Shioriko: Alexa, Honoka, only one left!
Honoka: Let's go, Alexa. We got an ace to defeat!
Alexa: With pleasure!
OF 10: The ship was sunk soon after. That's the last we heard from them.
Wiseman: Not long before our forces are routed.
Alexa and Honoka are now chasing Mihaly and his Su-30SM.
Mihaly: Shaking bandits.
And then, Alexa hit Mihaly, but he's still flying.
Mihaly: Enemy has a lock on me.
Mihaly fired a missile, but Setsuna and You evaded it.
Mihaly: I only want to shoot only the Oseans. Not the Satsuman pilots. They are highly regarded. I even have my granddaughters at their age. I have promised that they won't be shot down.
Honoka and Alexa are still chasing Mihaly.
OGU 16: Call in our air support ASAP! Yes, I'm talking about "them"!
Transmission
Long Caster: Cyclops! Strider! School Idols! Stop Mister X!
Honoka: We're still on it!
Mihaly opens missile fire on both Cyclops and Strider, but evades both Honoka and Alexa.
Wiseman: Cyclops 3! Check your six!
Mihaly shot down Fencer.
Fencer: This is Cyclops 3. I've been hit! I've gotta eject!
Fencer bailed out and his comms are offline.
Wiseman: Lost one. Don't get sloppy. We are dealing with a real monster. Cyclops 3 bailout confirmed. He should at least still be breathing.
And then…
Wiseman: Listen, Trigger and you too, Honoka. Real talk. If we keep this up, someone's not going home.
Alexa: I understand! This is tough.
Wiseman: I'll act as a lure. Meanwhile, you two shoot down Mister X!
Honoka: Copy that!
Count: What?!
Mihaly is still evading all the attacks by using flares and some air maneuverability, but is still being chased by Alexa and Honoka and he finally gets a lock on Wiseman.
Wiseman: All right, he grabbed the bait! Time to take him for a ride!
As Mihaly chases Wiseman, he gets locked on by Alexa as she chases him.
Wiseman: Man, this is one stubborn bastard. He's on my tail, but he won't fire. Waiting for the perfect shot, eh? Sorry stranger, but my boys won't let you have it.
The chase continued in the submerged area.
Alexa: This is gonna be serious!
Count: Enough of your air show, Wiseman. You're pushing it.
Wiseman: Ergh! Aww, Count. That's sweet. I never knew you cared. Glad you see you're all grown up. I'll even let that snide remark slide.
Count: Hey, I'm being serious here! This isn't the time for jokes!
Mihaly: You're mine.
The chase on Mihaly is intensifying.
Alexa got a lock-on Mihaly.
Mihaly: I've been locked on.
Alexa fires a missile and it hits Mihaly's plane.
Long Caster: Target is hit!
Wiseman: Nice flying! Give him one more!
Alexa: No problem!
Several altitudes later…
Mihaly: You're quite the entertainer, but the show's over with this next shot.
He wasn't a bad pilot.
Mihaly fired 2 missiles, aimed at Wiseman.
Mihaly: Fox 2!
Count: Wiseman! Missile closing!
Húxiān: Cyclops 1! Missile!
Wiseman: I'll keep him on me! Just a bit longer…!
Wiseman's plane got hit and exploded. And Wiseman himself perished.
*comms offline*
Alexa and Honoka are shocked to see it, but they regain their composure quickly.
Alexa: Oh! You will pay for that! Honoka, it's now personal! Follow me! All Idols in the air, assist us!
Eli: Hang in there, Alexa! We're coming!
Long Caster: Damn it! Cyclops 1 is down!
Count: Wiseman! Eject already!
Jaeger: I'm sorry, Count. His plane exploded.
Count: Cyclops 1! Bail out, damn it!
Mihaly: Kill confirmed. Time to focus on the other.
Mihaly got the kill, but he's still chased by both Alexa's and Honoka's plane.
Jaeger: Cyclops 2, you've got the lead.
Count: I can't do this!
Jaeger: Negative, Cyclops 2. You're the lead.
Count: I can't do it! Trigger should take command!
Alexa: No can do! I'm still leading the Satsuman air units!
Jaeger: Trigger's right! She commands an foreign unit! The duty is yours!
Count: That's impossible!
Jaeger: Do it!
Count: Urgh! Damn it!
A second later…
Count: Cyclops 4, form an element! We're supporting Strider 1. We need our own top gun if we're going to take out that bastard.
Húxiān: Wilco, Count!
Shioriko: R3BIRTH 1 to Bibi 1, Azuna 2 and R3BIRTH 2. Let's form a formation! We have to help Muse 1! Honoka needs all the help she can get.
Eli: Yokai desu!
Setsuna: Yosh!
Lanzhu: Háo!
Alexa and Honoka continue to tail Mihaly.
Count: You are not getting away from us!
The chase on Mihaly escalated now back to the Submerged Area.
Long Caster: Good lord, all we can do is rely on our best pilots right now.
Count: This guy is too tough!
Húxiān: I don't think I can take him on.
Skald: Damn! I can't seem to find an opening!
Alexa and Honoka keep chasing Mihaly in the city limits.
Alexa: Are you hanging in there, Honoka-chan?
Honoka: We're good! He is more stubborn than I thought!
Alexa: We can still catch him, let's play his game!
Honoka: We have to wait for the perfect shot on him!
The two continued to hunt Mihaly with many aerial tricks.
Count: Forget about surrounding him and just bring the hurt already!
Alexa and Honoka are now locking on Mihaly.
Alexa: Steady…now!
Alexa and Honoka fired their missiles and hit Mihaly.
Long Caster: Missiles hit!
Skald: Good job!
Lanza: All right!
Setsuna: Great!
Shioriko: Beautiful!
Eli: Harasho!
Húxiān: Damn!
Long Caster: Now go finish the job!
Jaeger: Get Mister X, Trigger!
Eli: Hunt that fighter down, Honoka-san!
Count: Trigger, you can make it from there. Go and avenge Wiseman! You can do it! In fact, you're the only one who can!
Eli: Honoka-san! Hit that plane with everything you have! You can handle it! In other words, you are the only School Idol that can defeat him!
Alexa: We can do it!
Honoka: Time to end this! Fighto dayo!
The chase ultimately got interrupted by some haywired HUDs on the Osean aircrafts.
Alexa: Huh? Oh, my aircraft's HUD went a little haywire, but it's back to normal! Oh wait! I'm flying in a Satsuma-made aircraft! Honoka! What's going on with the others?
Honoka: All our aircrafts are fine, but the Oseans…
Jaeger: My radar suddenly turned off!
Skald: What is it? Respond!
Lanza: My data won't update.
Húxiān: My HUD is glitching out!
Count: Damn it! What was that?!
Osean Fighter 7: I've lost radar contact. What the…?
Mihaly used this confusion to flee. While the Oseans are confused from what has happened.
Húxiān: L-look at the sky! Towards the sun!
Everyone checks above the sky.
Jaeger: What is that?!
Húxiān: A star? No, maybe an explosion?
Shioriko: I think that both the Osean and Erusean satellites have been attacked and destroyed.
Jaeger: How did you know that, R3BIRTH 1?
Shioriko: Some of our countrymen got the intel processing for us and gave it to Karibuchi and called us.
Skald: That might be the point.
As Mihaly flees to the east…
Mihaly: This is Sol Squadron. Head home. It's not safe to stick around here if we lose our base.
Sol 1 escaped to the base, while the Oseans are watching their satellites go down.
Long Caster: Listen up. We've just lost our real-time connection with mission command. It's not just mission command. I'm not getting any response from outside our LOS.
Farbanti is now under Osean control. The operation was a success. We didn't get the orders that should've come after the operational success.
We'll guide you to the scheduled airport. All aircraft, leave this airspace immediately.
Alexa: Long Caster, bring the Strider pilots back to base, I'll be landing at the Sakamoto.
Long Caster: Okay, Strider 1. See you on the other side.
Count: Negative. They got a debt to pay.
Count is angered.
Long Caster: Count, we feel all the same way.
Húxiān: Kuso! Sorry, girls. I'm just learning your language.
Honoka: Not to worry.
A little silence later…
Count: So Wiseman died for nothing.
Alexa: Honoka, call all the other School Idols, let's return to the SN Sakamoto, for now.
Honoka: Hai!
All Osean and Satsuman aircraft have left the Farbanti airspace.
Debriefing
IUN Officer: This is a Peacekeeping Force forward base near Erusean territory.
Other allied aircraft have been probably been forced to make emergency landings at other airfields.
We don't know much. The mission to capture the capital is nearly complete, but unfortunately have no intel.
The enemy communication satellites are down, and we have confirmed the deaths of several Erusean leaders.
But our enemy was smart. They had a similar plan. Our own communication systems were destroyed at approximately at the same time.
We have no idea when or if they'll come back online.
Stand by for further details.
Debriefing School Idol Air Division
Alisa: School Idols, job well done.
With all the enemy forces wrecked under our aircraft, the Erusean forces on the capital of Farbant have surrendered to the Osean Army.
Alexa: You along with Honoka, Eli, Setsuna, Lanzhu, You-chan, and Shioriko have almost defeated the Sol Squadron, except Mister X.
He got away again after both the Osean and Erusean satellites are destroyed, causing an total blackout on the both military and civilian communication systems.
Nearly all of Osean and Erusean satellites are destroyed at the same time.
But only our satellites are safe from harm. Our communication satellites and systems are undamaged and our aircrafts are landed safely.
We have no idea yet if the Osean satellite system is online again.
For now, get some rest and wait for the next mission. That is all.
Debriefing ended.
Alexa's(Trigger)P.O.V.
After landing our aircraft and our debriefing, and after our late dinner, I went to my bunk, opened the study lamp and checked my laptop. And surprisingly, our internet and communication systems are still working.
I called Miyafuji on the webcam, and told everything from what happened.
Alexa: Yes, Wiseman is killed by Sol 1, trying to be the bait for me and Honoka to shoot him down.
Miyafuji(webcam): Yeah, so I heard. Anyway, did I told you about the takeover?
Alexa: Jaeger told me about it everything.
Miyafuji(webcam): I see. Well, now that the Usean Continent is in a total blackout and chaos have been spread all over the Erusean territory, things are looking very problematic.
And now that I took internim-command of the LRSSG, I doubt that they will listen, Jaeger and Húxiān are the ones we can trust, but the others, I don't know.
Alexa: Skald and Lanza know it, they will listen for what are you gonna do.
Miyafuji(webcam): I hope so. For now, we need to find out if the Radicals are resposible of this blackout. Get some rest for now, Alexa-san.
Alexa: Yeah, good night, Air Commander.
I've turned off the laptop and headed for bed with my thoughts are now mixing too much.
I just hope that this isn't gonna be much worse and worse.
A blackout is one thing, but chaos? This is far too worse to see it.
End of Chapter 20.3
With the chaos now going to be erupted on the Erusean territory, things are getting worse and worse for the Osean military and the Erusean military as well.
Can Trigger, Strider Squadron and all her Satsuman allies save the nation from the chaos that engulfs the country?
Find it out next time!