Hit & Run

[Jorhan Caelli Merced]

The Bi-Vane Starfighter Jorhan had picked up for this job, exited hyperspace a few clicks out from the refuelling station controlled by the so-called 'Old Empire'. Hanging in the dead of with little more than a skeleton of starfighters to protect it, the station was ripe pickings for the duo - the second of their number, some Jedi that had brought Jorhan along for the ride.

"The moneys good," he shrugged inside his cockpit as he performed a few checks "..so what ain't to like?" Jorhan asked nobody in particular. Bringing up his hyperspace screen, he began the calculations for the exit jump - always good to have a backup in case the attack went south to fast - a quick jump to the next system, and then slipping away into one of the many shipping lanes there - would be ideal.

"Ready when you are. I say we go in from the east," he used the standard galactic directional compass they both would have set their comms to "...I torp tank one, you take tank four, and we let the chain reaction do the rest." he began to position his fighter for the attac run "...see if we can get out of here before they call for backup, or scramble fighters?" he asked his compatriot, pulling down his pilots visor, and taking a few deep breaths.

@andrewska

 

[Jake2]

Jake's Star Dancer exited hyper space in the out skirt of old empire space. A brief look at the sensors showed they where in the clear. Enough traffic came in and out of the system that few fighters would not raise any alarms. But just in case Jake begain to spool his hyper space up for a short jump. It was all ready planed that after the attack they would jump to different spots to confuse the OE even more. Even so Jake spied a asteroid field not to far away and the shipping lane it self was all o fully. maeing if cover was needed Jake could get in close to some. But Jake hoped a fast slash in and out would be all that was needed.



"sounds good. lets make this attack fast and hard" pushing his throttle to the max Jake moved forward "Roger i got tank four, hopefully we will be out of here before they even know stuff is blowing up." Jake brought the tank up on to his targeting computer and focused on to the main pipes going it to the tank. It was the weakest point and a missile straight onto the pipe would cause a pretty big blast but just be safe Jake was ready to fire all three of his missiles in to it. "I am at attack speed and will start my run in 10 seconds. you all good there still?"

 

[Irma Kinton]

Irma Kinton popped the vertebrae in her neck as her personal TS-1 Sunbolt starfighter dropped out of hyperspace. The Tintinna's hands trembled on the controls as she piloted the sleek, delta-winged craft; this was going to be a new experience for the newly minted pilot, to put it mildly.

"I just want it on record that I don't understand your decision to put the pilot with the least combat experience on top cover." Irma said into the comm, reaching out to flick a few switches and adjust a knob on her targeting computer. The amber-colored readout buzzed and emitted a few warbling electronic sounds, but the scope eventually cleared, showing a basic ranging image and an IFF indicator. So far, everything read friendly, except for the phosphorous blob that represented the Imperial refueling station. "Anyway, you guys make your runs and I'll try and keep anyone else off you. Such as they are."

The Tintinna craned her neck to look around the back of her pilot seat into the recesses of her fighter's cockpit. Behind her, the cranial turret of a small droid rotated its photoreceptor toward her, warbling a greeting. Irma grinned nervously.

"Eider, start calculations for the return jump. I want us out of here the second our mission is complete, got that?"

ID-3R02, better known as "Eider," chirped a reply to his mistress, the navicomputer located between the pilot and droid socket humming to life. As it did, Irma double-checked that her laser cannons and concussions missiles were all armed and ready. The Tintinna hoped not to use them, but it seemed the young pilot got her way only seldom, lately.

Just focus on the money, Irma, you need the money.

She took in a deep breath, let it out, and her hands steadied on the controls. Flying as a mercenary against one of the Galaxy's great powers was not exactly the sort of thing she had envisioned doing on her quest to find the truth about her mysterious distant ancestor, but one could never foresee everything...

@Nor'baal @Andrewza

 

[Jorhan Caelli Merced]

A small sigh of relief escaped Jorhans mouth as the last member of their party formed up with the group. Irma, whilst small, was certainly the most capable pilot he had flown with in recent years, and they where fortunate indeed to have the diminutive devil along with them. "Good to see you Irma," he clicked in over the team comms, as he slowly increased his ships speed "...commencing attack run now. Keep any bogies off us." Jorhan re-iterated the plan once more, as his Bi-Vane accelerated to attack speed.

He was moving fast now, approaching the max speed the ship was capable of. Dropping it to 5 MGLT below the max, in case a boost was needed later, Jorhan confirmed the status of the hyperspace calculations with a quick glance to the relevant screen, and then brought his ship in a wide and low arc down to the easternmost point of the re-fuelling station. "Targetting now." he checkeed in over the comms, hoping his wingmate was also in position. Ideally, they would fire at the same time, and one topedo each to the bottom-most pipes of the fuel tanks, the weakest point.

If this worked, the chain reaction would do the rest for them.

 

[Jake2]

Jake gave a slight chuckle when Irma claimed she has the least combat experience. Jake was the only one of the three that was shot down and Jake was all so the youngest of the three "Don't put your self down, you more than good enough to fly in any roll. Any case you just got to ensure no one sneaks up on us"


A the two fighters taking part in the attack kept in a loose formation as they raced forward. Still nothing to say danger. As Jake pulle in to his attack run a warning light flashed on. "The station picked me up on it sensors and is tracking me, still all good though." It was all ready to late for the Old Empire defenders Jake was now in the final approach. The Star Dancer targeting screen starts to focus and flash but Jake though would wait until the final moment till he fires his missiles to confirm that they would hit.

 

[Irma Kinton]

Irma, far from being reassured by the others' praise, chuckled nervously. The Tintinna still didn't really consider herself a professional starpilot; despite her increasing familiarity with the controls - and weapons - of her sleek craft, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was playing at being a snubfighter jockey, a strange tangent from her real mission in life. She was just a librarian!

So why, then, did flying feel so natural at the same time?

"Does that thing have any surface defenses, d'you think?" She remarked nervously after Jake informed her and Jorhan that he had been painted by sensors. "I mean, I feel like it would be a bad idea to put guns on a bunch of giant fuel tanks, but..."

At that moment, Irma heard a warning tone in her earphones and cursed. The station had a sensor lock on her now, too; what that meant was hard to say, but she was certain it couldn't be anything good.

"They've got tone on me!" Irma informed the other two. "I don't see any interceptors yet, but keep your heads on a swivel. I'll cover your attack run and then we should all try and get the kriff out of here."

@Nor'baal @Andrewza

 

[Jorhan Caelli Merced]

"Probably," Jorhan replied to Irmo as he brought the ship out of its approach and commenced the atatck "...most fighter...hang on." he looked down at the station as he completed his approach to the target, spotting what could only be described as flashing lights and banks of troopers and more importantly, pilots, in lines in the main square. "You have got to be kidding me!"

Jorhan laughed, double checking that his hyperspace calculation was still clocking over, and, satisfied with the result, spoke down the comms again "They seem to be holding a frakking fire drill! I reckon that has bought us valuable time." he laughed down the comms, hardly able to believe their luck.

"Torp One away, let's give them something to practice that drill on." he fired torpedo one at the base of his target. It was a clean shot, a bucket of flame blossoming from the base of the fuel tank, spreading rapidly and erupting through his target, sending a mushroom shape of flame shooting into the heavens.

 

[Jake2]

Jake pulled his own ship in to attack but it seemed Irmo had jinxed it. The station was not heavily armed But Jakes run led straight in to the path of a twin auto blaster cannon. "Kriff" it was to late Jake had lined up his shot and fired a missile but was forced to pull out before the incoming fire shredded him.


The missile was not so lucky and the auto blaster shredded it. The resulting explosion only scotched the hull of the station. "Point defense got in the way, i am going to go for one more run then jump out hit or not." Checking his Nav computer Jake lined up for a approach that would let him fly in fire his missile and pull out in to a clear line for his jump out of here.

 

[Irma Kinton]

Irma cursed as, seemingly out of nowhere, an autoblaster turret the Tintinna hadn't been able to spot swung up and started firing at Jake's Star Dancer. The young pilot angled her fighter toward the burning station, zeroing the turret - which was still tracking the other machine - in her targeting scope. Jerking down on the firing stud, she sent a stream of laser bolts at the point-defense weapon, and whooped when they hit, blasting the turret into scorched junk.

"Scratch one turret! Look sharp, though, there may be more!"

Almost as she said the words, Irma heard an insistent warning tone from her targeting computer. The Tintinna looked at her scope, eyes widening, and turned to get visual confirmation as two sleek Imperial Vex Fighters rocketed out of the small refueling station's hangar bay. Initially, Irma feared that more would swarm out behind them, but no more came.

Two was bad enough.

"Heads up! We've got bogies! Two Vex Fighters, they just launched!"

With Eider wailing in terror behind her, Irma banked her dart-like craft toward the newcomers. The Vexatious-class starfighters were faster and more heavily armed than her Starbolt, but she could still jump them if she flew well enough. More, it wouldn't be much longer before her ship's navicomputer calculated a new jump vector; the Vex could do many things, but it couldn't follow her through hyperspace.

"I'm engaging them now!"

@Nor'baal @Andrewza

 

[Jorhan Caelli Merced]

With his target taken out, Jorhan reckoned they had a few moments* before the fighters Irma warned them off got to close. They needed to think fast. "Jake, make another run - Irma," he banked his fighter around to close in on Irmas port wing "You take the lead, I'll cover your wing." he clipped off his commlink, aware fully that of all three pilots here, it was Irma who was more experienced in starfighter combat.

Had they been doing a Smuggling run, it may have been a different story, but - this was very much different. High speed, high G's and more importantly, high risk due to no escape pods. Jorhan, and Jake no doubt, would feel far more at ease with Irma giving the orders whilst the team worked to take out those fighters.

OOC - *one more round until we roll for those fighters combat stuff as per Nefs ruling.

 

[Jake2]

Jake brought his fight back on track for a attack. Thankfully Irma had taken care of the point defense gun before it could reacquire a lock on him. "Got it, doing my run now" looking at the targeting computer Jake got a lock and fired. The missile blasted out the tube but then nothing. The rocket motor it seemed had not ignited. Jake swore to him self as he pulled his fighter up before he flew in to his now drifting rocket "Kriffing piece of junk" Pulling back in a wide arc to bring it back on target.


"Had a failed rocket, i got one shot left folks but i will try one more time, you two just hold of the fighters." Checking the Navigation computer and the Hyper drive Jake could see he could at least now jump to safety after his final attack "Dont know about you guys but i am ready to finally jump to hyper space after my attack run."

 

[Irma Kinton]

Irma gritted her teeth, reaching out to twist a knob on her targeting computer's control board as she dove the Khurel toward the pair of Sith interceptors. The bat-like Vex Fighters rode tails of blazing exhaust, but - fresh out of the hangar - they were only just now beginning to turn to engage their opponents.

In spite of lower speed and inferior armament, Irma had the advantage in position.

"Not on my watch, buckethead!"

Zeroing one of the interceptors in her scope, the young Tintinna pilot felt adrenaline buzzing in her veins as she pressed the firing stud for her ship's twin laser cannons. Irma was coming at the enemy craft from almost directly above, and the laser bolts hit the interceptor almost directly amidships, swiftly turning the unshielded Vex Fighter into an expanding fireball. The other interceptor, seeing its wing-mate destroyed, swerved to the side, beginning to turn and try to engage Irma's machine.

Irma, meanwhile, let out a whoop of triumph at her direct hit. At the same time, the navicomputer behind her beeped, signalling that its calculations were complete.

"Splash one!" The Tintinna called. "Alright, Jake, try your run one more time! Let's blow this thing and go home!"

@Andrewza @Nor'baal

 

[Jorhan Caelli Merced]

"Good shot Irma," Jorhan checked in over the comms, whilst lining up a shot of his own on the second incoming interceptor. "Jake, it's now or never." he added, opening fire at the incoming fighter with shocking accuracy. The blast went directly into the cockpit of the incoming ship, much to Jorhans shock, blasting it to pieces as it did so. "Well, what can I say, I am a born nat,"

Jorhan was cut off as a fussilade of turrets about the station, some four in total, started to point skyward, another wave of three fighters rising from the hanger bay. "Jake! Make you're run, we need to get out of here buddy!" he instructed, not wanting to stick around for the real fireworks that could be on their way.

 

[Jake2]

Jake swore loudly as nothing happed. Pulling the trigger again followed by nothing. 2 faulty missiles and another shot down. Could Jakes day get any worse. The fact more fighters seemed to be launching was a big yes. "Guys i have a miss fire, irma take the shot, i will do top cover."


Jake pulled up an lined up on a nearby sith fighter and fired. The light gun on the star dancer erupted as laser hit the fighter before him causing it to smoke and spark as it pulled away. But before Jake could celebrate two bolts flew pasts Jakes cockpit. pulling in a twisting turn to the left Jake could see the enemy fighter that was now behind him. "Krief i got one behind me, i am still good though"

 

[Irma Kinton]

Irma winced as, for the third time, Jake failed to hit the target with his concussion missiles. Banking to avoid fire from the turrets on the station, the Tintinna blinked at the other pilot's instructions.

"M-Me?!"

Irma bit her lip. If the station wasn't completely destroyed, the Sith could repair it, possibly disrupting whatever plans her current employers may have had. It also probably meant she wouldn't get paid as much, though the Tintinna couldn't help but feel guilty about that thought. She still wasn't quite used to thinking like, well, a mercenary.

Taking in a deep breath and letting it out, she reached out and switched modes on her targeting computer, biting her lip.

"I-I'll give it a shot! I've never fired missiles from this thing before!"

Turning, Irma brought her small fighter onto Jake's previous attack vector. Thankfully, she had thought to load her ship's missile magazine for the mission, despite not being assigned the task of hitting the station. Maneuvering carefully, she lined up on her target, trusting Jorhan and Jake to keep the new enemy fighters off her.

The targeting computer gave a positive tone, and Irma jammed down on the missile button.

"It's away!"

Concussion missiles, at least the ones Irma used, were simple devices, not much more than a drive, a signal receiver and a warhead. They were designed to "ride the beam" from the starfighter's own sensors, homing in on the signal return bouncing off the target. Though they could be used against enemy starfighters, they were less reliable than guns, though more destructive. Against stationary or very large targets, they were a bit better.

The missile streaked into tank no.4, diving straight into the tangle of conduits and machinery on top. The tank blew magnificently, a greenish fireball erupting into space, while smaller explosions rippled along the pipes and lit up other tanks. Coupled with the damage from Jorhan's earlier strike, the refueling station rapidly began to come apart.

"Good hit! Good hit! It's going up!" The Tintinna called. "Now let's get out of here!"

@Nor'baal @Andrewza

 

[Jorhan Caelli Merced]

"Woo Hoo! Jorhan shouted, a little to loudly down the commlink, doing a thumbs up in the direction of Irmas ship. "Let's haul ass out of here guys." he added, turning his ship away from the base, and hammering down the thrusters, seeking to put as much distance between him and the exploding base as possible. It was a job well done, and now they could make a break for it, and cash in those sweet credits.

Pushing the hyperspace lever forwards, the charactaristic whirr of the hyperdrive kicking into action behind him. "Let's go!" his commlink shut off, the hyperspace engine roared, and he made the jump to safety.

/exitthread

 

[Jake2]

Jake watched the missile fly but before it even impacted Jake had started to turn away to vector in on his Hyper space jump. He knew this time it would hit. "Under stood see you all on the other side" With that and the Sith fighters swarming to wards them Jake pushed his hperdrive lever to max and stardancer left real space and entered hyperspace as it blast out. All in all it was a good attack on the old empire with no losses to the strike team and the base's fuel storage destroyed.




exit thread
____________

 

[Irma Kinton]

Irma angled her sleek fighter away from the erupting station, feeling a pang of guilt toward the two remaining Sith fighters her actions had just stranded in deep space; they were short-range craft, after all. With luck, though, the Sith would dispatch to recover them before their consumables dwindled.

At any rate, the destruction of their home base seemed to have distracted them from Irma's ship, and she took the opportunity to make good her escape.

"Eider! We're clear, punch it!"

There was an affirmative beep from behind Irma, and the indicators on her navicomputer glowed. Outside the cockpit canopy, the fixed points of light that were stars extended into long streaks, eventually giving way to the unsettling tunnel of hyperspace. As her ship made the jump to lightspeed, Irma let out a heavy sigh, collapsing back in her seat bonelessly as a wave of relief and post-combat exhaustion rolled over her. Reaching out, she tapped a button on a nearby control panel, and one of the "personal touches" she had installed while restoring the ship activated. A door opened to reveal a plastene caf mug, which was swiftly filled with steaming caf by a spigot and then extended toward the young pilot on a servo-arm. The Tintinna took it gratefully.

"Well, Eider, we're alive... and financially a bit better off I guess..."

The Tintinna sipped reverently from the caf mug, the strong beverage soothing her jittery nerves.

"Almost makes me wish I restored a freighter, y'know?"

She held the steaming mug and looked out at hyperspace, giving a small smile.

"Almost."

/exitthred
/thread

@Andrewza @Nor'baal