“Bandit’s on my six! I can’t shake him, somebody help me!”
“-fire in the hold! Seal the bulkhead and vent atmo to put it out!”
“He’s moving too fast, I can barely get a torpedo lock!”
“Stay calm and don’t lose your heads! Watch your wingmen!”
“Mayday, mayday, calling to any MSDF ships within the sector-”
The situation is grim. B-33 reports two intact freighters, and one that barely dodged an attack by the skin of its teeth. It’s still space-worthy, but bleeding fuel and jettisoning cargo all across the asteroid belt. Of the twelve fighters of Jolt-Squadron, only seven remain. Four confirmed kills, with only one pilot ejection.
But the asteroid hasn’t escaped unscathed. Scores of blaster fire have gouged holes and pockmarks in its hull, blasting clusters off its pale-slate hull. That meant either minimal or no shields – a small comfort given the ship’s unbelievable responsiveness and agility. Hopefully, it meant the latter.
“Three thousand kilometers and closing,” warns B-33. “T-minus ten seconds before we enter optimal firing range-”
Your fingers dance across the sensory suite as you crank the ECM up to maximum strength. “Divert all auxiliary power to engines and hold onto your butts!”
>>Elba makes a Gunnery (Ag) check, firing the medium lasercannon turret…>>2 Agility and 3 Ranks…>…a hit!>>Trykov makes a Gunnery (Ag) check, firing the medium lasercannon turret…>>3 Agility and 1 Rank…>…a miss!Too busy closing in on the wounded freighter, the asteroid only notices your arrival at the last second. The <span class="mu-i">Albatross’</span> dual-linked turrets unleash a barrage of crimson bolts. It’s an intimidation tactic meant to scare it off, but more than a few shots hit, blowing larger chunks off the hull than Jolt-Squadron’s cannons had.
But just as the ship finishes its strafing run, it acts. Suddenly, the asteroid fires one of plasma cannons, accelerating a steaming, streaming projectile into the void…but not towards any target. It uses the generated momentum to expose a less-injured hull to your attack. The remaining volley splashes against it, and as it spins, it brings to bear its ‘mouths’ against the <span class="mu-i">Albatross</span>.
An alarm goes off from B-33’s station. “Detecting thermal build-up-”
>>Suzel makes a Piloting [Space] (Ag) check…>>5 Agility…3 Piloting [Space]…>>...bonus from diverting power to Engines...>>…success!“Next upgrade better be forward-facing heavy ordinance!” screams the Nagai.
Just as you’re about to make a reply, he turns the ship into a sharp corkscrew, slamming your mouth shut with an audible CLICK of your teeth. There’s a moment where your stomach lurches up into your throat, and you fight off the urge to puke as Suzel overrides the inertial dampeners. RCS thrusters designed for course correction blast a stream of ionized gas, flipping the ship into a three-axes tumble as plasma comes hissing from the asteroid.
(cont.)
