Home of all pilots and air operations. Ready room, mess hall, training center all in one. Located in Hold 9.

<<<<<<  From Captain's  Quarters

    When they entered the  Flight Opps, Kray looked around,..Guess'll be  sayin' this alot  the next Month or so?..but i haven't been here  yet....

 He took his  hat off, Motioning   to the floor where the Hangers lay,..Spent alot of time in the Hanger section, after  i woke up, and  we stop the  ship from toastin' us...I....am a wee bit  embarrassed ta  say, I thought you might have been the pilot who took the bad  guys  outta here.... figured there couldn't been any one bloody good enough to fly them out.....

 he shrugged throwing both Hands out.....King-We and I buted heads a few times... managed ta get my  fighter up.... took up the  reserve  fighters....flew against a coupe surprise Drones....

 then he  grinned at the Russian as if he was hiding a secret, flew a  shuttle out fer the  engineer  Blokes ta fix the engines...so, I logged  what bloody hours i could get me Bleedin'  'ands on!

"Haha comrad! I am not bad guy. Not bad guy pilot either. We have 20 pilots here for the fighters, and some twenty more for dropships and shuttles. All are still here. Bad guy pilot was not one of us." Timochev shrugged as he looked around Opps. It wasn't nearly what he had expected. Instead of the spartan bunkhouses he was used to in Russia this place had everything. Luxery lounge sets, game tables, a big kitchen. Numerous simulators, beds for those on call, showers, lockers, anything for a group of pilots to camp out away from their appartments. He walked up to the coffee machine, selecting a strong espresso. "You want coffee?" He waited a second for Kray's reply, then sat down at the long table. "Kong-We excellent technician. Try not to trouble her. She will keep us up there where other techs fail. I do not think any of them is as good as her. That why she is quartermaster."

Timochev sat back, checking their new base of operations out.
"How you like this place lieutenant?"

  There is a bit of a Chuckle,Well, Comrade.. he said  as he pointed to  the  regular coffee, then started to hunt up what they had, the way of Milk and sugar.

   Your  warning  about  Kong-we is a little  late.. we butted heads a bit...but i think its all better now..least ways, she doesn't snap  at me..

   He sat  down by Timochev and looked around,..good place for us to   hang out and not be bothered. It might not be a bad idea to see how many of the shuttle pilots  have the skill to bump up to  fighters? And the other way around...never know when we might need back ups?

  Taking a sip of his  coffee then points at  Timochev with his  cup as he says...Hanshel is  damn good too... he helped get me out the first time?  I streched out me fighter's legs a bit..an' used the Gun Cams  ta take a look at the outside o the Marco?... That's when they  found the Broken Vane... and   me and Kong-We took some Techs out , who fixed it  right fast...

 ..got  my 19 runnin' like it  did in India, right before i got the deferr ta play Footie...

 There was a grin, though it looked a bit sad,..was doin' pretty good in the league...Then i got the call..... its  damn odd ta think on? Part of Me wishes I would have stayed..finished the season..but?..I'd be dead by now?....an' Out here.. I might be able ta do some good?  Can't   bloody well say how...'less we run into somethin' that don't like us...

    As he  drinks his   coffee,the  pilot  takes in the surroundings,... I don't know if they caught you up on everything....'bout the Bloody engine...bastards... they best hope   i don't  get ta pull the triger on them, not only fer the  thpousands of  folks  on the ship... but fer Patterson, that Guy, just like the rest of us....climb out of our  freezer and have ta save the bloody ship from torching itself?... The  Guy..did everythin'..and more... an' what's  'is  bleedin' reward? he gets bloody sick....

 ..then i take  me  Fighter out, and  they see the vanes on the engine are bent?..some  debris?.. but who knows... accident  or not..it  don't happen, 'less then send us off course....


 ..I also notcied on of the Hippo's were gone... Told the SEC 'bout it..but  don't think she'll listen ta me  much anymore..after  i wanted  ta see if you were..Um...you?

 ..now?  here's  me thoughts?... ya know the  Range of a Hippo?..so they hadda had a  place ta go to?... If  we'd find the  timestamp..or ..a good bloody guess, as ta when the Hippo took off? we draw a circle and find out where they went?

 he put his   coffee  down and threw up his hands, now?..if they had  another ship? then we ain't gonna find them..but if they had a planet to land on...or a planet to cruise  to?..then we can find the bastards..an' make them pay...


Picking up his coffee and taking another  drink,...that helps us  2 ways?.. 1... we  find  them and kill them....and learn why they done it..... and 2?... we  find a place ta live...But?  that stuff there?..is above me pay Grade....

    While they talk,  Kray begins to walk around the  area, checking out the beds and the lockers  and such.  He checks for an armory  that they can use to defend the place, or stor weapons  that they may take out on flights.

  ..This is well thought out..be a bit better  if  we knew how long  it would take to find a home....The way it looks,  the Colony might have to start on Board MArco..and..even if  we can't  find a Bloody place ta live, we're gonna havta find  moons, or astroids  or somthin' to get materials  we will need, to replace those  we use..

"She was set up to be a home while we build I believe, so yes, I think you are right."
Timochev follows Kray's lead, checking out their new quarters.
"You won't find weapons here Lieutenant. Boss-man wants those locked with the marines. We all have our sidearms though, so no worries. Do you know any of the other team members?"

      He nods  slowly  as the  investigate  the  room...well. side arms and  baldes are  what i do best...not good with the whole... rifle  thing? But  I'll do  a damn good  job shootin' things up  in a Hellcat....

 ..if ya mean Team, as in other  Pilots?  Naw. Yer the only one i had ver talked to? a couple names  ring bells from the flight rosters of the  wargames? But  never got to talk to them..

 ..If yoou mean team.. as  in  folks  in the hanger and Pilots?... I  Met Kong-We... and Hanschal..he's a damn good bloke.. a fw others are used to me nosin' around... tried ta help out by doing preflight on some, after  i checked me own machine.. Good folks...

"Too bad. But you will get to know the pilots soon enough. Especially your wingman."
He opens up some random cabinets.
"Score!"
Taking a bottle of vodka from the cabinet he just opened Timochev sits down at the table again, reading the label.
"Kiev. Hrm... At this age, its either water now, or pure poison. A nice gesture they put it in here though. Anyway... I want you as flight leader on three flight. You, and two others. One flight will be lead by me, Two flight by captain Rangarajan. I'll let you pick your own wingmen. We will work in three flight shifts once we settle down, mostly patrols. You never know what we encounter. Probably nothing. That would be just our luck, being alone in the expanse, da?"
The russian shrugs as he unscrews the bottlecap. With a grin he looks at the clock.
"Smells terrible. What you think lieutenant? Do we feel lucky enough to try this old potato-water?"

      There is a bit of a wrinkle in his nose,..never  drank much...like to keep the eyes  clear? But i have a wee drop, just so's ya don't have to poison yerself, alone?  eh?

 yeah... bein' our 'ere?  I don't care what folks say.. either the holy rollers, or  labcoats?... if folks think there is nothing out here..and  our little dinky planet  is the only bloody one ta have people?... naw...

 he sits  down  after  grabbing two glasses, a shot glass for himself and a tumbler for   Yuri.

 ..all ya have ta do is look at some of them weird   creatures at the bottom of the sea?.... almost flunked a  science  course at Sidney, 'cause i agrued the point... when right to the Bloody head master..and  he forced the Prof ta give me a bloody A...

 Still?  we're a Bloomin' toothpick  in the ocean out here..'less we find where that Hippo went ta..

Timochev pours the drinks, rolling his glass around in his hand.
"Let me tell you this Shadow. There are two options, and both are equally scary. Either we are alone, or we are not." He slams down his drink, instantly regretting it. With a violent hurl he spits the overaged vodka all over the table.
"Mother Russia, that was terrible! Do not drink that comrade, it is definately a Ukranian beverage."
Wiping his mouth with the sleeve of his jacket he stares at the glass a bit longer.
"Obviously this is not good any longer... A bit like our Earth I think. Personally though, I believe we are not alone. Not by a long shot."

   Kray watches  in a bit of shock, he doesn't even touch the shot glass,..maybe?  we should take that fer someone ta check? who knows...Maybe  Kong-we can use it to clean parts?

 He looks  about for a Mop   and  begins to   wipe up the floor , as he does, he asks,how many  planes, gonna be in the flights? We have 20 Pilots  assigned and 4 pool planes.... For  my wingman   Kelly Wallace?  American Bloke likes to mix it up...me second choice is  Steffan Piirinen , the Swede? saw some films on him....

 from that roster? we gotta lot of Captains there... don't know how they'd  feel about an LT leadin' them...and if they a  Book warriors , thay ain't gonna bloody  like me a bit!

"Wallace, da... Good pilot yes. But this Wallace I think will be a surprise for you though. Is not that bloke Kelly Wallace from 151st squadron you flew with in India red flag." He grins. "Same name though. And Piirinen, yes, good choice. He crazy like you."

"Captains, commanders... That will not be problem. Is just rank, da? We all in same, how you say, boat? We all in same boat here. Captain, commander, sergeant, I do not care how your country calls your rank, and neither should they. If they do, they answer to me, or Ascott. Out there..." he points at the one outside window the quarters has. Judging by the occasional rock drifting by the Polo was at full speed now. "Out there, we all the same, and we all equal."

"I will lie to you not. Some might not agree on my choices, but they are my choices, and I am the commander here. When I give order, I expect it followed. If not, I hand out ground duties easy. They know. You have not trained with us, but I know you are good pilot. I have seen first hand. I trust you can lead flight three.

He leans closer to Shadow, his voice softer now, as if discussing a conspiracy, or sharing a big secret. "I studied you Shadow. You really are good pilot, but hothead. Always trying to steal show. Yet I also see you fly when leading a wing. Thats when you show you are great pilot. Then you think. So i let you lead wing. You make smart choices when responsible for others."

"Anyways..." he stands up, tossing the bottle in a trash compactor. "This stuff not even good for giving to black bear. We should go, conference hall awaits. Everyone should be up by now. Lets go meet the team."

   Shadow smiles a bit at Yuri's take on him...ahh..well I'm  Bloody Glad ya feel like that... yeah..like to see the other Blokes..i dunno how many o' them know  me?... It might be  just as  good to have  the one who wish ta fly with me  step up?..That's half the bloody  battle there?...  The lads  and Lasses on the Adelaide liked ta fly with me.... Captain though?.. not right happy with the way did things sometimes....never knew if it was cause I did them? Or because they worked!

 As they were walking  out the  door he asked,.. damn. not the same Wallace?...  Ah well.. I'll go with the Swede then? am' we'll see what happens after that!

"Nope, certainly not the same Wallace. Unless she was a bloke once..."
Timochev laughed aloud as he entered the turbolift.
"If so, doctors did a damn good job. Come, comrad."


-->To conference room.

<< from Barracks.

  When they  enter,  He smiles a bit, It was gona be a bit of home now with other pilots  about.

 Cap'm  Yuri will tell ya more, But  we have this, an' our  private quarters as well... a fair right place  ta wait for  a patrol...

  He''' take a  seat by one of the tables  and  watch the others check out the digs.

  While the rest of the Pilots   look around, he gives them their  space as they begin to sort out what has happened.

  Taking His drink with him, Kray decides to check out the Video Game systems, and tried to find a pilot based game, or  a sports  based  game to  kill sometime with.

Kray notices Fifa 2034, Afterburner 12 and Wing Commander revised amongst the games present. There is also Madden NFL 2030, NHL 2K35 and World of Tekken. While by no means an extraordinary gamer, he has at least some experience in all of those, as they are rather common games, or at least were when the Polo left.
It seems Captain Wei-Fu Yun has already set a highscore in Afterburner.

   Looking over the titles, he thought  about the American football game, But settled in on the WingCommander Revised...

  He began to   make his character   as he listed  to the backround  noise of his Fellow Pilots.   always like to  get into the RP side of the GAmes., Though his decisions  were more  'his own', rather then what might be expected in the game.

While in the middle of creating his character for Wing Commander, Kray suddenly hears his name being called. Its the Frenchman, calling him from the simulators.
¨Ozzyman! Ozzymandias! Hey, come here.¨ The fake pirate has settled himself into one of twelve simulators, casually having swung his feet up on the virtual cockpit HUD.
¨Come, Ozzyman, do some dogfighting with me. Let me see with my own eyes what you are made of.¨

Several of the other pilots look up from what they are doing, curious to find out if the Australian pilot takes up the virtual glove glove tossed at him.

  He  frowns  at the screen behind him, but puts the game on Pause,..anyone  else  wanna  use this go  ahead, I can start  over   again later....

  walking over, Kray eyes the simulators , ..always  up fer a  dance   Mon Ami?..what era ? WW1...WWII... Cold  war.... or hellcats?

 ..one rule before we  start eh?.. no  cannonballs over 8 pounds....

¨Ah zut alors! No cannonballs? C´est terrible!¨ Quatorze grins. ¨Non, I was thinking Hellcats. Or rather, WE were thinking that,¨ he points at three more simulators where pilots were taking their seats. It seemed Kray was not taking on just the Frenchman. El-Fakiri, Medvedev and Hagen looked just as eager as he was.

¨Would you like some wingmen too, Ozzyman?¨

   He  smiles  his  halfsmile,..If any one wants ta  Jump in and avago? That's  right by me.... If They just wanna  watch, That's fine tooo.. wanna make  sure  folks have a chance at a barney if they wish..eh?

  Kray didn't want to ask, nor did he look around to see if any would join in, Until he was seated, to see if  any one stepped up.

By the time Kray has taken his seat both Piirinen and Wallace have already taken place in a simulator. The Swede shoots Kray a grin.
"Might as well start training our little wing immediately," he states as he straps in.
Just past them, Shadow notices another pilot is getting into a simulator, presumably to even the odds. Judging by the twinkle in his eyes Mpinkulu plans on enjoying himself.

  Kray's Grin widens, as he checks the   SIM helmet... didn't look much different from earthside  SIMs.

  Well.. I'm No FIGJAM... but i ain't bloody shy... He give  The Swede a smile and a Thumbs Up to Wallace, and One more  wave to the 4th Pilot.

  ..So... Mon Ami... the word sounded  a bit awkward  as his Aussie accent  slips  in more and More,..what are the Bleedin'  parameters?... space...  Atmo... Bloody Jungle bounce?

 Though he was talking his  fingers were going over the controls.. muscle memory telling him  that things were , where, they belonged...

"Space. Asteroid field. Guns only."
Timochev laughed as he sat down behind the control panel. Judging by the look on the Frenchman's face he didn't like that too much.
"Team that loses cleans opps this week..."

The others all gathered, ready for a spectacle as the simulator cockpits closed.
"HQ, you have Viper team. Shadow, Dragon team. 25K radius asteroid field, line formation starts. Both teams get five minutes to plan."

The cockpit displays and canopy suddenly switched to black, showing the great expanse of space. Sure enough, Dragon team was at the galactic south side of the field, their HUDs still empty. With a maximum radar range of 2 miles for just the guns, they would need to get up close and personal.

"Dragon Two ready," the Swede reported.

"Dragon Three ready," the soft voice of kelly Wallace added in.

"Dragon Four prepped, lets go hunt us some gazelles," the Zulu suggested.

   Kray looked at the Field,..Smart money say's  we break into pairs  and  sweep the outsides, force them inta the Middle?


 .. If  we  go through the Middle, we can turn as one.. 4 on two.. if they go by the regs.

 ..now? he   looked at the Map a for a second,....we go in as  a Diamond.. me in the elad... Piirivan on my Left... Wallace on my  Right  Mpinkulu behind me... we  see them, we break all 4 to the closest pair..., if they are together,  Piiriven and I  break to Port, Wallace leads Mpinkkulu to the starboard... Keep the Boxed in... force them into asteroids  By   hearding them with your weapons  fire... if you lose  sight,, link up  and  hunt....oh?.. and  ya know... don't go bouncin' off  them space rocks!


 He waits to hear  feed back as his  eyes shift to the countdown clock...

All three pilots check in, affirming their flight leader's orders. The zulu then switches to a secure line, talking to Kray only.
"Dragon One, this is Dragon Four. Permission to speak freely sir?"

  Aye Dragon 4?, if there is  anyone on this  boat you can do that with...its me...What's on your  mind?

 he  rechckes the   switches and Buttons  and his helmet once more..all muscle memory from his own ship.

"Lt, I know you haven't trained with us, so I don't expect you to know our flight styles. But if I may make a suggestion, we should split up. There is no room to manouvre in teams inside the field, and they will jump us from four sides. The Frenchy may look weird, but he's no idiot. He loves dogfighting in tight spaces, and his team over there have practiced the hell out of it." There is a moment of silence. "I bet he's counting on you not knowing that."

  Kray frowned... he had counted on ganging up  on a pair, or even Singles...but?  These  Guys worked together....

  He  Flicked   the COM open to so all 4  could talk...Alright....we are  on a running clock, but..Mpinkulu has pointed  something out to me....Now? If we  were tossed out ina   real battle, I would expect you  folks to ta  act through your training.. I am told That Quart likes to fight in tight places?... well..so do I..and? I have no Problem using objects to help me win a fight...

 There is a mumble as he adds,..ask MArco about a certain drone..

 ..so?  In light of this new information,  we   will split up  High, Low..port and starbaord...BUT....

 His  voice  gets  a bit more stern,..if you see a   wingmate in trouble... you try to help, while looking for the one that's gonna bloody jump you when you do.....most plans  do  survive the first few minutes of a battle  anyway.. so we  count on our skills..if  this  don't  work out?  then we all learn somethin'... Good Huntin' good shootin..

 ..I'll Take  High... Wallace Port... Mpinkulu starbaord.  and Piiriavan  low... you see one.. call the bugger out and  everyone look around.. use the  rocks.. use your  head....

Dragon flight confirms their new orders, and with one more minute on the clock Kray has enough time to focus on the simulator itself. With the canopy closed you really cannot tell the difference between the sim and the real thing. Its an exact copy, down to the bolts and nails that keep the real Hellcat's cockpit together. So far all the simulators he'd been in were pretty generic, but this was the real thing. If they could capture the actual feeling inside a Hellcat one could believe he was really out in the vast.
The clock ran down, and the voice of mission control, Timochev, came over the comms.
"Mission started, happy hunting all."

It was unreal. The moment the simulation kicked in, Shadow felt weightless. With zero gravity and only the engines giving you gravity, Kray had already experienced the slightly off feeling you felt out there. It was no hindrance, you quickly adjusted to it, but not a simulator in the world could capture that feeling. Or so he had thought.

Dragon flight broke up, each pilot hitting the asteroid field, stalking through the rocks. The pirate hunt began.

  ..Alright.... keep yer speed  down a wee bit..., not only fer more maneuver ,  but to  shot ahead  ta get out of them way.. or snatch yerself a target.....

    he watched  his screens, sure.. but he always trusted his eyes.... eyes  could pick up a glowing afterburner.....Now.... I'm the new bloke here.... so you'll fergive me if  i say things   you already know..... Turn yer  running lights off.. we wanna be a black as the rocks...  he  mused  out  loud,

 .. remember use the Bloody rocks  ta help you... , frags  from a blasted   roid will damage a ship as good  decent shot...

  He didn't know  how much cream  was in this crop...but he had to feel they were all damn good, so   he  glided.. turning his control light  down to dim...,,looking  for any sign... as they moved, he also thought of the chance  that his  people, could  Ambush...any ambushers.. if they saw them...he was sure none  flew like him....but there was always a chance they did?... but were just more excepted


 The grin grew,  acceptance  was either there or it wasn't. Blokes like himself who worked their way up were only accepted when they did good...those  with the right connections where accepted by the  size of their wallet...but things  were  a wee bit different ... so... lets  just see which blighters  would  go down, and  which  would be standin'...and? most of all...what would the act like after...

 his hand  were light on the stick.  he  opened the  thumb press on his  guns...They could not be  above him.... they couldn't  be below the bottom cover.. and their  wings , didn't  left much out side the area of engagement .. so he had a damn good  idea where they would be... it came down to who saw who first!

They were one with the black. Drifting, without lights, just coasting by with their engines turned off. He spotted them though, even while Wallace had overshot them. Two of them, no way to tell which pilots. They had used the dark side of an asteroid, powered down to not be seen. It had worked. Quatorze had indeed trained his wing well.
Not good enough though, because the moment they fired up Shadow noticed them.
The one going after Wallace was out of reach, but the other one shot outward, making way towards the Zulu. Had he seriously not seen Kray?

    Shadow Hit  his COMs  as soon as he saw, but lept the stream to the 4...Wallace!.. they see You!.. one coming in,..I can't  reach... Swede! see if you can help her...watch out for the other two..seems they paired up....

 Zulu!... the other one is  ehading your  way.. I', coming  down to jump him.... that means Quart and the other one should flush out after  me... Wallace..  You know how to Fight, Just break back in towards us the best you can..Swede should be able to ambush him

  Contour flying ion space... it was a cross between the space  of  The Black... but the dangers of  hitting the rocks...


 he  didn't use the targeting ,  as he  shot down on a vector ahead of the attacker... as soon as he was in range  he  fired ahead   of his target.. to both force the attacker to fly into his  fire..and, hopefully..have his fire   walk down  the craft from Bow to  rudder..



PD-TN15...MTN12

Shadow knew his mistake the moment he made it.

From his left he saw Zulu take evasive action, ducking inbetween two large asteroids to avoid fire from the Viper. He had nowhere to go but straight through, and the opponents had perfectly calculated that. When Mpinkele exited the asteroid alley on the other side, his blip immediately vanished. An ambush kill was tallied to viper four.

Viper Three, the one that had flushed him out, banked hard to avoid Kray's fire. Tracers flew past him, slowly creeping up on, and eventually into his wing. His blip vanished as the Hellcat slammed into the asteroid in a fiery explosion.

Then tracers crept past Kray's window. The simulator registered several superficial hits. Suddenly Viper one appeared on his radar display, right behind him.

To his right Wallace managed to round an asteroid, avoiding shots by Viper two. Piirinen stuck to the tail of the opponent like glue, firing several bursts that hit nothing but rock and void.

From Kray's left Viper four came in to join the hunt now that the Zulu was out of the equation. With the Frenchman on his tail, and one of the others flanking him, Shadow was in trouble. Both his remaining wingmen were hunting one Viper, and had no way of assisting him. He'd been played like a rookie. That pirate was better than his look suggested.

   He Curses  silently to Himself. He expected  something like this, but had to take the chance.. He  Veered as  close to     the  asteroid  as he   was able.. trying to get the attackers  to  shoot each other, or  get rubbed off on a rock...

  three on three was alright, but he didn't like the fact he lost  a Pilot, slowly, it was beginning to fade, that they were in a SIm, now the Blood lust and skills came into play...  As He rounded the Asteroid  he  dropped  his  portside wing  to    dive down and use his   spedd  to try and Come up and Under the  Frenhcy..



  using his  head,and still not using his locks,, he   fired  shorter  Bursts..until he hit Viper four, then a longer   burst...
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:41, Thu 15 June 2017.

Somehow using the asteroids worked. The tracers past his cockpit stopped, the Frenchman unable to follow Shadow so close into the field of swirling rock. He came out the other side, to the left of Viper four, trailing shots as he went. It's tail got shredded, then the fuselage as the ship exploded in a quickly dissapating fireball. With the pirate gone he could start to hunt again.

The blip that was Viper Two vanished from his screens too, Piirinen letting out a cry of victory as he gunned the bogey down, making sure Wallace was alright.
Three to one now in favor of the Dragons. Much better odds. Just the frenchman left to take down.

   Kray didn't smile, though he was feeling good for   his teammates,..right..right..bloody well right!

 ..Now,, watch.. keep your power down..... if you  feel better using your trackers, don't  power them up until you are ready to  fire .... Q is  dark...watch for  his power up..he can't  hide that.....  keep each other   in sight.. as you Hunt....and watch the rocks...

 staying Dark, he  tried to track his people , while looking for  Q


14:49, Today: Secret Roll: Kray Shadow rolled 12 using 1d20+7.  Mental TN 18

For several long, agonising minutes Dragon flight skulks the asteroid field, knowing they are hunted, hunting the hunter. They find nothing, but since they aren shot at, Quatorze most likely doesn find them either.

Suddenly Shadow sees a blue exhaust pipe, a jet firing up its engine. Immediately he hears Piirinen over his comm.
"Target spotted! 0700 low. He´s behind you lieutenant, but it doesn look like he spotted you yet."

Wallace reacts immediately.
"I see him, moving in for the kill!"

She moves swiftly, dropped from behind a larger asteroid at the last moment, guns blazing.
How he does it nobody knows, but Quatorze manages to avoid her shots, dropping away and into a tight turn at the last second.
Wallace drops her nose, coming in behind him.

For several seconds they dance their tango of death, with Kelly Wallace managing to stay at the tail of the French pirate. Tracer fire lights up his wings as they fly past, Quatorze jerking his Hellcat violently to avoid the simulated slugs.

Wallace moves in ever closer, cursing loudly over the comms with each miss. Then she hits, chewing a bit of the pirate´s left wing, causing him into a level spiral, twisting him one hundred and eighty degrees. Firing again, this time nothing happens. Just after Shadow hears her curse out load that her magazines are empty, the lucky Frenchman opens fire, shredding her cockpit at point blank range. The comm ends abruptly as the simulator shows a large fiery blast where Wallace´s ship had been.

Immediately, the Frenchman drops his jet behind another large rock.

  Kray   wacthed   the relative  direction   Q took...Kelly almost had him... he's hurting..... Stay  dark..stay smark.... almost any damage   should set him up for a finiosh, by one of us....

 ..don't  Flank the rock... I'll go Under this time.. let him see me.. You go High and be ready....



 he    moves, using eyes  more then instruments ..his  fire  poised to  attack.

The Frenchman was waiting, his ambush nearly perfect. Ready to strike, he had been hugging the rock, waiting for any fighters to follow him around the asteroid. And Shadow did just that, he came round the asteroid. Had the Viper been aligned correctly, Kray would have been dead meat.

Unfortunately for the Frenchman though, the Australian came from behind, having taken the long way round. He proved to have patience when needed. By the time the pirate noticed him, Kray had a point blank shot lined up.

 There was a  slight  smile, he knew that  Q could  get only one of them..it may have been  different  had they been one on one....

 he snapped out of his reverie  in time to fire off the  shots..  aiming at the  nose  and walking the shots  back...counting on even  misses, to send  debris   into the target ship.

  shaking his head at almost missing the shot, and   using  more ammo then he should have needed. Most times  he fired like he paid for the rounds himself.

¨Excellent work there Shadow,¨ Timochev´s voice came over the comm as slowly the expanse around him faded. ¨Dragon flight won. Kills will be tallied on the board.¨
He was back in flight operations, in a simulator, with most of the other pilots standing around monitors checking out the action.
To Krayś left the Frenchman climbed from his own simulator, a wide grin on his face. Immediatley he walked over to the whiteboard next to the roster. It was marked 'Sim kills´.
There, he jotted down all kills made by the pilots, with Shadow coming out on top.

¨Not bad Ozzymandias,¨ the pirate then states casually. The other pilots nod in agreement.
¨For a moment I expected you to come and chase me."

     With a Bit of a nod.  Shadow smiles a Bit,one nof the things    I was trained  for  was not  doign what  some blokes would thing i would do, I merely added it to me Flyin' as well....

 Then he    flourished a HAnd over to  his teammates,..an'...in the  end,  i 'ad  damn good wingmates....

 then he Turned to those wingmates and said,..looks like we can play a few more  Vid Games ..since we all don't have ta  be cleanin' fer a bit..eh?

"Alright listen up," Timochev intervenes. "Since most wings are pretty much decided for, we will be conducting practices like this on a daily basis, pitting wings against each other. Each morning at 11.00, and each afternoon at 15.00. it will keep us sharp. I also expect each and every one of you to keep his own bird in top condition, so work with the mechanics on what you can do. We might be in transit, but we sure won't be loitering!"

   Shadow Smiles,..I  was doin' some things  with the aircraft, before the  rest of you blokes got out of  frost freeze....Them Bloody Techs  know what they're about, so they might not like  us   all runnin' about.

  we can   help them out a bit, with our preflights, an' reportin' anythin' we  thing don't think Feels  right.... make a note...not every thin' will show up on the  bloody readouts...

"Not you Shadow. I want to speak to you in my office please," Timochev remarks as the squadron scatters. "And you HQ."

He leads both pilots to his small corner of Opps, where he has a desk, a couple of chairs and a console at his disposal. As he gestures for them to sit down his face turns stern.

"Gentlemen. Am I going to have a problem with you two?"

   Shadow's  smile only shortens a Bit,he doesn't look to HQ as he says,  For My Part, Captain...I don't see any problems. We're on the same  team an' all.  Fer The RAN..i had  some other jobs  ta do, but I don't know if that stuff  will be needed out here?

   Turning to  HQ He Grins,..An'..Everyone likes a  wee bit of Competion , eh? What Bloke  wouldn't?

"Trouble, mon commodore?" The Frenchman starts laughing aloud.
"Au contraire! I kind of like this Ozzymandias. He does not back away from a challenge, and he is good in a cockpit. Why would there be trouble?"

"Good, I just wanted to make sure there is no dirty air between any of my people." Timochev waves them towards the door. "We all know you can be a volatile person Henri. Remember Hagen? Keep that in check. Dismissed."
As the frenchman heads for the door he sends a half-ass salute in the direction of the Russian. They both grin.
"Lieutenant Shadow, stay for a bit please. Quatorze, go and get Lu for me."

When the pirate has left Yuri gestures for Kray to sit down again.
"Keep one eye open around him okay? He's good, probably the best the French had to offer, but he's a loose cannon. When we were first teamed up together, him and Lex Hagen got into a feud much like he's starting now with you. In the end we had to physically pull them off each other, and HQ wound up in the infirmary. He's a loudmouth, but he cant fight for shit, the German nearly bashed his skull in. He had it coming though, he kept pulling his chain untill Hagen snapped. I had to reprimande him too, as he started the fight." Timochev sighs. "It took me way too much energy to get them in line. I don't need that shit again. So do me a favor, don't let him provoke you."

   Shadow  Nodded  slowly,..there have been a few Blokes  like  that, as i went through the process....Shepard's get...that's what i was... we aint supposed to be better then the  Rich blokes. 

  ..no  me  an' my Blokes,  we sent alot of ratbags ta the   Hospital, when they  tried ta ....Persuade...us ta  ring out of the bloody program... all me mates?..they did..after a bit.  But the RAN.. they 'ad other plans  fer me...never  got to finish all the trainin' not by a long shot..but I know enough ta carry me through.

  ..now?.. so far, I don't see any of our  group, i don't like....yet?.. But,  they sent me here ta fly...

  ...as far as the frenchie? He'll get as  good as he gives....he want's ta be an Apha, that's up ta him, but  he'll have ta   watch how he bloody well does it....

"Da, I agree. We have a good team. I try to keep it that way."  He tapped a few commands into the console in his desk.
"Looks like we reached cruise speed. Funny how that works on big ship. You don't feel acceleration at all, yet we move near light speed now. I prefer jets, you feel the kick."

     Aye to that..... The Carrier  life was enough fer me. between the swells and the rockin'.... heck... that sorted out some of the new pilots  right  quick.

  His smile left a bit,...sorta sad... not gonna see...the sea?  Been around it alot....takin' the wool in.... goin' ta town... playin footy?..Then.. the Navy?.... we're  more like  bloody submariners  now!

"Not so negative Lieutenant. At least we are alive, and have wodka."
Timochev opens a desk drawer, revealing a bottle of clear liquid.
"Care for a glass? This company, at the time, advertised with their wodka never going bad. Hell would sooner freeze over. Nice commercail too, with a freezing devil sharing a drink with frosty snowman. Let us test if they were right?"

  He Looks at the  Bottle...and slowly nods,..maybe a wee  drink?... do not waste  a  good glassful on one such as me... I don't  mind a beer  now and again..maybe some red wine?.. the ahrd stuff... I sorta shyed  away from... keep me body from. eaten itself...but one now and then.. don't hurt too much..eh?

"In Russia wodka part of life. Comes with breakfast. It will not hurt anymore after a while. The throat get used to it." Yuri laughs. He opens the bottle, handing it to Kray first.
"You do the honor of first shot."

  There is a Bit of a chuckle  as he takes the Bottle  and  takes  a  sip..a bit more then he would, but a lot less then a chug..

  He  Gasps  and coughs  a bit as he hands the Bottle Back.....i think Russia's  World  war One flyers , used this for anti-freeze in thier  bi-planes!

 With a Look to the  door,  Kray asks,.. Do you want me here  when Lu  come in?

  before the Answer he  adds,...If its  Ok?.. I'd Like to Keep Swede and Wallace in my flight... I still need one  more. I know alot of our  job depends on following orders, Buit i rather not have someone , Bloody  Ordered ta fly with me.. we don'
t have  ta  be mates..ya know?.. Just  fly good together...

There is five left unassigned. I leave it to you who you add. Have a talk with the guys, get to know them. Then you decide."
Timochev stares at the projected window on his office wall. Outside stars slowly drift by.
"You think we might have a chance out there?"

 There is a bit of a sigh,...there was this Bushie?  He'd  come to the farm, he 'ad a dozen or so sheep... he'd trad us his wool for  some chickens and a few bills, so's he could but   stuff.... I was talkin to 'im once an' he said them Abros out there..could  talk with some blokes out in space...

 .. I used  ta laugh it off, Ya know...but in university..we hearin' how old the  universe is... and we see on  earth.. things  died out...things popped up... and new things pop up...so?  for me..i figure...there's  folks out here who have been dead, when  our planet first had things  crawl out of the water.... theres  folks out there right now..at thier peak... and there are place..where ..THEY..are just coming out of the water...don't matter  what the eat, what the  breath, what they look like.... they'er gonna be better then us....but?.. we should also find  folks who are just about like us....and who knows... we might land ona planet where things  think we are gods....and they'll write their own bloody bible  about us...

 ..so?.. we'll do Ok.... we just got to makle sure...those folks who don't like us.... get a punch in the bloody nose, so they don't want ta mess with us.

   He looked to the Door,..You need me to hang about  when Lu comes in... or ya  what be ta go?

   he  takes his glass over  to rinse out,..for folks  who   like this stuff?... it might be god... a wee bit too strong fer me though..

¨No, dismissed lieutenant. Go and mingle.¨ Timochev grabbed his dataslate and got back to work.

   There's a bit of his  smile,  see ya later  then...

   Leaving the Office, Shadow  takes a look  around  For Kelly and Seffan, he   waves them over of a  Moment....a'right MAtes, won't  take  too much of your   free time here?....but i wanna  get yer  feed back on who we should take  for the  4th pilot fer  our  Flight? Figure  you folks  would Know who ya like the fly with the most?

The big Swede shrugs as he looks at Wallace.
"I have no preference. You?"
She grins, her white teeth sparkling. She has a natural attraction about her, despite not being what would be considered a truely beautiful woman. An undeniable charm.
"Both Wild Bill and Jose are excellent pilots. Bill isn't much of a team player though. Jose is. So's Jacqui. Tracy and I went through flight school together. She's decent enough, maybe a bit too careful at times. In my opinion our safest bet would be Bill, in overal skills. If you get him to work in a team."

   He listened, keep track of the names, looking over the  room as  Kelly speaks. He  chuckles  softly,...well then... Let me 'aveago an' see if the  bloke  wants to fly with us.... If  no?... we'll go on to the others....

    ..be  right  back.... turning to  find  " Wild Bill'. If he's  alone, he'll begin to talk,  If he's   'busy' he'll ask  him for a word...

  ... G'day....Lt Col?......I'm lookin' to fill out  me  Flight  and i need one  more Bloke ta make the 4?...... now..before  ya say  yay or Nay? I gotta  say this, 'cause it wouldn't be fair not  to. If you want to fly with the Dragons, We'll need ya to Pop in line , when   it calls  fer it.... and?   Be yourself  when it  doesn't?  he grins slightly,

  ..Now?..Meself? I've had a bit o' paint blastin' leveled  my way.... But in the end... I try  ta be there fer me Mates?. So?.. if ya  want.. I'll let Yuri know yer  me 4th.... if not?... ain't  no bit of  bad feelings... I'll Just move on  Until i find  a 4th..or  one is assigned?.... so?  whatcha  say. Mate?

Wild Bill Taylor looks at Shadow quizzically. He is a broadshouldered man, with bright green eyes and a typical pointy moustache. His hairline is withdrawing, gray at the temples, and his entire aura exudes confidence.
"Why me Lieutenant? Everyone here knows I'm a loner, or at least thats what they all say I am. So yeah, why me?"

     Kray Pushed his   Aussie  flight cap up with one finger...Well?  First off.... where we are at  now?.. they  aren't no bloody loners anymore.. we  out  the Nation of  Macro 8....an'  we're most likely  to run into 2 types of bad guys out here.....the first  group of bleedin' Buggerlugs who tried ta kill us all off...The  second group, while, they'll be some  agro aliens who don't like  folks sniffin' around their paddock?

 ..now... If   ya know anyhting  about me.. there's    Blokes and Shielas  who think i'm a  right ratbag, they do....  he shrugs, and smiles,./.there's   others who think i'm True  Blue...... now?... I hadda be a loner a bit, 'cause i didn't have the Big Bickies?..and  I spent more time then most, making those who did, look real bad....   he shrugs again.

 ..Now? I'm here... all that  money...didn't mean a damn ta them....maybe a handful of them got aboard  other ships like MArco?...but there's no bloody way we'll know, if what happened ta us..happened ta them...and were there any Blokes there ta fix it?.... We got a Guy  in Med Lab..how paid  the full bloody price..

  he smiles  a thin lipped smile, his  right   hand  flips open,..so?  Ya  want a Fair Go.... I'm  offerin'.... if not?   I can understand.... but..i also understand, there aren't  many blokes on this ship that can fly Hellcats... an' every one we lose... we'll make the ship weaker? So?.....

"I get that lieutenant, but the question remains, why me? What makes you want me, and not one of the better teamplayers?" He slumps down on the comfortable sofa, swinging his feet up on the side table.

... because... I think  ya can be a Team Player, and  your  skills   would help  balence the rest.....  I looked over the rest.. got  3  of ya  i wanted ta ask..... Figured I got me chance to  be more then I was?... givin' ya, the same turn..'eh?

  ... will  you be expected  ta   follow  order... bloody  right.  Will you be expected   to be a good wingman.... more then  Bloody right..... but....  I'm a bright enough Bloke ta listen to me Mates.... ya think we  beat  the Frenchie casue of me?... Naw.... we worked  together... so? Its  Up  to ya ownself Mate....ya can be a  Dragon, or   you can be a pool pilot?

"Well, put like that, you have a point. I think you have yourself a wingman."
Taylor extends his hand to Shadow.

 Kray's  Grin  is real as he  takes the  fellow's  hand in a firm Grip,..Good  enough then!.... I'll Let  Yuri know, but  before i do?.. lets have a  drink..the  4 of us... start this out ?

  Walking over to  Kelly and Steffan,...Dragon  Flight  is  now bloody well, full up..make  take a bit to settle in..ya know?..but considerin' we're all bad assed Pilots..it shouldn't  take all that long...

 he set  out for  sodas ,...I know  you folks might be used to  stronger stuff... But  humor me ..'eh?  he holds up the Bottle,..here's to Dragon Flight...right  fair Bastards we are....

They all raise their soda.
"Dragon flight!"

As they toast, Shadow notices Kong-We entering, looking for Yuri.

  Watching  the Chief  enter Yuri's office. Shadow  shrugs,...can't be too much happening... i mean?  we're pretty far out here.  Unless once of the MAchines is  down...as far as  I know?  they all checked out.

   Kray  rose  as he took his  glass over to clean it.. but  remembered they won and put the Glass in the sink,..IU think  I'm going to take  a lap around the  Marco.... Anyone  interested in running with me.. meet me in 10 on Dec  8...one lap is  a bit of  4 Kilometers... Nice  stretch of the legs..eh?

 >>>>>>>>>  Shadow's Quarters  for  'dec 8' for now.

Arriving at Floight Opps the first thing Shadow notices is the deceleration of the Polo. They are coming to a rapid stop. The next thing out of the ordinary is both Timochev and his wingman Ramanov scrambling to get into their suits.
The look out the window into the hangar below shows the number one and two fighters being readied for take-off.

  Shadow Calls  Out on the  Ii ntercomsCAPTAIN!..what's Goin' the 9 'ells on!.... YOu want us ta Suit Up?

  He is already Pulling a flight suit out of the  Lcoker with his NAme on..as he asks...

Yuri gives Kray a quick thumbs up as he zips up his coverall.
"Bridge wants two of us out there. No idea what is going on, I just know we are slowing to a stop and scrambling. You and a wingman sit on the pad as back-up."
Timochev dons his utility vest, strapping it tight.
"Just be ready to launch when needed."

    Slipping into his Flight suits  He points at the first Dragon flight Memember he sees,..Kelly?  me and You  get out there and check our  birds.....


   ..Steffan, You and  Wild  Bill get ready as well....

  Turning to the Frenchman,.. Henri?... Guess you get  all the other Blokes ready, Just in case.... whatever  they need us scramblin' fer, they can't know how many birds  we can put in the air...so?  That should be  good.

   Grabbing his head hear, he  heads out the  door towards the  Hellcats.

"Bien Sur!" the Frenchman replies as he gathers the rest of the pilots. Dragon flight is already suiting up, Kelly being right behind Kray as they head out the door.

  As they run into the Hanger,  Shadow calls to Kong-we

 ..Yuri wants us  two in the birds  an' ready.. My other two Blokes  should  get ready  as well... Henri is getting  the rest of the Blokes  together..

"Listen up people," Quatorze bellowed at the gathered pilots. "We have no idea what is going on, so thats exactly what we trained for. get to your fighters, and get ready to scramble when needed. We will be updated once mounted up!"

Judging by his demeanor and the way he's barking orders she figured the man outranked her so she went to attention once she stood close enough.

"Sir, Commander Timochev ordered me to report to you. I'm Lt. Koizumi."

"At easy mademoiselle," Quatorze replied. Wearing an old pirate hat, an eyepatch and a worn leather jacket, he did indeed look more like a seventeenth century privateer than a fighter pilot. The fact he carried an old pirate flintlock on his hip strengthened that image.
"Lieutenant Koizumi you say. And since you are reporting here, I take it you are a fighter pilot, non? I am Henri Quatorze, Pilote. Welcome to our little corner of this vessel."

Mariko stood at ease and took in the rather...eccentric gentleman, lost for words for a very short moment before nodding.

"Thank you, sir. I am a fighter pilot. Rated on both the J-15 and the Hellcat, sir."

"J-15? What's that, a german invention?" The frenchman grinned. "We do have Hellcats though. And you are lucky, we have four more than we have pilots for, so I guess Hellcat MP-21 is yours."
He gestured for the lockers along the far side of the wall, past the simulators.
"Get yourself a locker, find a helmet that fits, and settle in. Most pilotes are in the Hangars at the moment, waiting to scramble if need be. Dragon Flight is out there now. Seems we found some driftwood. Ahrr... Might be fun."

"J-15's fine Japanese craftsmanship, sir." She says with a smile back. "I have a locker, flightsuit, and helmet waiting for me sir, set up before we went into cryo. Do you want me to stand by for flight ops here or prep for possible launch?"

"I want you to get your fine behind in that simulator over there," Quatorze laughed. A loud, bellowing laugh, betraying genuine amusement and a humerous outlook on the world.
"I want you to show me what you can do, and maybe, just maybe, you can then go to the flight deck and see if you can do anything usefull there."
He gestured for another pilot, a captain by his rank, with Japanese flags on his arms.
"This here is Captain Hiro Yamamoto. He will see how you do in the sim while I gear up. Give it your best shot Lieutenant Koizumi!"

"Yes, sir!" She snapped to attention as the loud Frenchman walked off and the other pilot walked over.

She bowed deeply. "Captain-sama. I'm Lt. Mariko Koizumi. With your permission I'll begin the sim."

"You have my permission Lieutenant. And its Hiro, not captain." Yamamoto laughed. He indicated sim 3 for Mariko, then took his place at the controls.
"We will begin with some basic stuff. Simple one on one dogfighting, some forced landings with broken parts, things like that. Get a feel for the fighter again after 115 years of sleep."

The sim comes to life around Mariko then, the canopy showing a full projection of her surroundings, a hangar deck like that of the Polo.
"Lets start with some basic manouvres to shake things loose first," Yamamoto adds. "See if you can beat some of the scores of the other pilots."

"Very good, sir." She says as she steps into the sim, seals it and it comes to life. "Ready when you are."

She may have been asleep for 115 years but this feels like yesterday. She can't wait to finish the sim and get behind the stick for real.

She focuses on the displays around her and takes the controls and tackles whatever the sim throws at her.

Mariko easily runs through the basic manouvres, scoring times that are usually in the top six. By the time Yamamoto throws the first opponent at her she feels like it was only yesterday she was in a simulator, her muscle instinct taking over allowing her mind freedom to assess the situations thrown at her.
In quick succession she runs through the tests.

Behind the stick, flying through space, and taking on opponents intent on killing her was when she felt most alive. She loved to fly. It was, in fact, what she lived for. She was paradoxically intent on what she was doing, focus narrowed to a tunnel but also aware of her surroundings. This dichotomy allowed her to pull off manoeuvres most pilots weren't capable of.

Crippled landings, hull breaches, nothing scared her into inactivity. She maintained that calm focus no matter what the sim threw at her.

When it was done and the lights came back on she climbed out and took a deep breath before turning and bowing to the Captain. "What's next, Captain?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:02, Fri 27 Oct 2017.

Hiro nodded at Mariko's scores in appreciation.
"Not bad Lieutenant. Third best so far."
He shut down the sims and walked over to the lockers. Opening his own he started to put on his flight suit.
"You can certainly give Timochev or Shadow a run for their money. Quatorze probably won't like being pushed down the scoring ladder either. But thats for later. Now we get to the hangar, sit on the deck waiting if we need to launch or not."

"Understood, sir." She replied, not letting her thoughts or feelings at her scores make it to her face or voice but she was a bit disappointed. Third best just meant second loser so she was going to need to train more and get in as much stick time as she could.

She walked over to her locker and started putting on her flight suit and checking her equipment.

A lot more time.

Once she's suited she heads over to the pad her Hellcat is on and starts doing a check of the exterior. No pilot worth the title would ever go out without checking her ship first.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:00, Sun 29 Oct 2017.

<<<<<<<  shadow, Dragon Flight from Hangers

  walking in, he sets  the COMs to hear what's going on outside. He ehads to the food and asks    people what they want, while he  grabs a Cola.


   Looking at the other Pilots, ..beofre ya ask?.. I'll  Tell you Blokes,We found the Da GAmma..and she looks like, what we would have, had we not stopped the reactor Blow....