[center][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jL6vphbc6IE&list=PLXSaJ1VYkIYuzScqXdQahXAmgI7ul7o33&index=9[/youtube][/center] As the 7th Squadron moved to engage the enemy, Sterling held back a moment to survey their current situation. The Coalition had deployed a total of 16 Ferir MAS's to engage the 7th Squadron. This number itself was fairly impressive as it stood- While in this situation the Coalition clearly outnumbered the UEE forces, typically the Coalition relied on a small number of effective MAS's to accomplish what several wings of UEE fighters could. Each Ferir, for as ungainly as it appeared, could outmaneuver and shoot down at several UEE Naginata fighters with ease. UEE fighters typically had to outnumber Ferir's by 3 to 5 in order to break through the hardened defenses of the Coalition armor suits- though a lucky missile hit could easily level the playing field. This combat effectiveness could be clearly observed, as a Ferir clipped one of the Lincoln's fighters, which was rescued by a combination Delacroix and Sokolov. Though for all of Delacroix's gallantry and chivalry, the Lincoln's Naginata fighters were still woefully outmatched. [hr] [color=lime]> Skull Squadron - Naginata 07 > Lt. Richard 'Calvin' Klein[/color] [i]"Carmine's been hit!"[/i] "Fucking Coalition bastards!" Klein cursed as his fighter banked left, G forces sending him into his seat as he pulled away. The nimble Naginata fighter silently screamed through space as its pilot and his wingmates moved to engage an oncoming Ferir. The Hl-10 Naginata Aerospace Fighter was arguably the UEE's most effective fighter design, a heavily armed and armored gunship capable of high speeds and equipped with a heavy payload, making it a highly capable multi-role fighter. Before the Coalition introduced the concept of Mobile Armor Suits into warfare, the Naginata Fighter had been the most widely produced and effective fighter design in the galaxy, cheap enough to be deployed in massive numbers, but effective enough to shoot down pirates, terrorists, rebels, and the like. However, now that the Ferir's were in play, the UEE Aerospace fighters found themselves woefully outmatched by these heavily armed and armored machines Klein and his two wingmates homed in on a single Ferir, their twin-chin mounted cannons painting lines of glowing lead in the blackness of space. Despite its heavy and ungainly appearance, the Ferir easily weaved in and out of the lines of cannon fire. Klein glared the MAS down through his cockpit, forcefully jamming down on a firing stud with his thumb, smiling with grim satisfaction as he watched the exhaust trail of a Claymore missile leave the wing of his fighter. The Ferir changed from charging to retreating, firing at the missile as three naginata fighter's chased after him. The missile exploded, resulting in an orange burst and a cloud of smoke as the Ferir disappeared. "Got one!" Klein cried triumphantly, the hollering and cheering of his wingmates in the background making his victory sweet. His victory was shortlived though, as a warning sign began painting the inside of his cockpit red. "Wha-?" Out of the smoke burst the coalition Ferir, its armor blackened from smoke, but otherwise undamaged. It rocketed towards the Naginata fighters, autocannon in one hand, combat knife in the other. The Naginata fighters opened up with their cannons again, which the Ferir deftly dodged as it landed a trio of autocannon rounds on Klein's left wingmate, the pilots pained cry screaming across comms before it cut off suddenly as its fighter exploded. Klein took a moment to watch his wingmate explode. Rapidly turning back to face the foe in front of him, the color drained from his face as he realized the Coalition MAS was already upon him, arm surging forward with combat knife in hand. Klein through his hands in front of him as if to protect himself from the massive blade. "Aaaauughh!" [hr] [color=lime]> 7th Squadron - Shrike Mk III > Lt. Sterling 'Gallant' McKnight[/color] [color=lightblue]"Lieutenant Hawkins! Pull back your fighter team, the 7th will handle it from here."[/color] Sterling barked over the comm. There was a pained silence, but eventually the comm flared to life. [color=firebrick]"... Roger that McKnight. Skull Squadron falling back."[/color] came the terse voice of the Fighter Wing commander. [color=firebrick]"Make sure you take them [i]all[/i] down."[/color] Hawkins added in a bitter voice as him and his 6 remaining fighters pulled away from the fight and fell back towards the Lincoln. Sterling and the rest of the 7th team surged forward to meet the oncoming Ferirs. Sterling silently counting in his head as kill confirmations streamed in from his wingmates. While 16 Coalition Ferir's would've been a death sentence for a squadron of UEE MAS regulars, the 101st was a completely different story. Sterling let out an almost automated 'roger' as their squadron leader took a small team to engage a group of Hardballers that had quietly deployed from the far Cruiser, no doubt with the intention to sink the Lincoln while its escorts were struggling to free themselves from the station. As Odin pulled off with Wizard, Rabbit, and Omega, he left the remaining 8 Ferirs and the protection of Brick and Guillotine up to Sterling, the newbie, Maki, Alice, and Yuu. [color=lightblue]"Team, break formation,"[/color] McKnight called over the comms, [color=Lightblue]"Brick, Guillotine, engage your respective targets, Sokolov, lead Guillotine in. Echo, do the same for Brick. Alice will spearhead the way for Guillotine's team. Me and the rookie will spearhead Brick's." "Hunter, those two Ferir's are chasing those fighters. Handle them."[/color] McKnight continued, [color=lightblue]"Good job with your first kill Rookie, but don't get cocky- and [i]don't[/i] take the captain seriously. Do [i]not[/i] go actively looking for kills." "That's how rookies die. You should know this, Captain."[/color] McKnight added in a tense tone, almost scoldingly. [color=Lightblue]"Alright 7th team, move!"[/color] Sterling jammed the throttle, and his MAS tore ahead of the group, trusting Ariana to be on his tail as they made their way towards the Cruiser. Four Ferir's broke off to engage Delacroix, Sokolov, and Alice, while the remaining three prepared to defend the cruiser. An alert popped on Sterling's screen, as a magnified image of the Cruiser's launch bay came into focus. The Cruiser must have been holding the commander's team in reserve, as out came a pair of Ferir Mk II's, led by a Ferir Mk III. Sterling's eyes widened, and he quickly barreled to the left, as a lance of plasma seared through the space he had just recently vacated. Sterling's grip tightened over his controls. Six Ferirs they could've handled, 4 to 6 was a decent ratio, but a Mk III threw a new wrench in the situation. Ferir Mk III's were bad news, and its primary weapon was capable of slagging anyone with less than a Class 3 shield generator. Sterling rushed past the two defending Ferir's, and moved to engage the new group that had just emerged, trusting Yuuyami and Shanks to be able to handle a pair of Ferir's. [color=lightblue]"Williams, we're hunting the big game now. Mind the commander's plasma cannon, and [i]do not[/i] get hit."[/color] The Shrike rushed forward, its alloy shield raised and covering the center of the MAS while his EKP autocannon took aim at the oncoming enemies. As firing solutions on the oncoming Ferir's appeared on his screen, Sterling's hand flexed around his controls. He pulled on the trigger and released a burst of EKP rounds, following it up with a pair of Broadsword missiles. The powerful Kinetic-Plasma rounds tore through the unshielded, Ferir MAS, sending it spinning as dozen rounds tore into its arm, leg and torso. The pilot somehow managed to correct himself, and turned around in time to take a Broadsword missile to the chest. [hr] [color=lime]> C-MAD - Tigeres Team - Ferir Mk II > Lt. Andrew 'Nessie' Loch[/color] "Oh shit, that UEE bastard almost-" Brent's voice cut off as a missile collided with his unit, exploding and turning his heavy Ferir into a spread of debris. "Damn you!" Loch roared at no one, as his machine rushed forward, a burst of heavy 35mm autocannon rounds intercepting and destroying the second missile. His Ferir lunged forward to meet the oncoming UEE MAS's. "Keep your head in the game, Loch." Came the voice of Commander Tigeres over the comm, as his Ferir Mk III strafed left, firing plasma bolts at the rear machine with the large boost-capacitors on its shoulders. "I'm going to kill this sumbitch!" Loch replied indignantly as he charged the white MAS with wings, its head oddly resembling some sort of techno knight. How the hell did the UEE machines get so advanced so fast? The Coalition were the creators and masters of the MAS, how could they be getting outdone by UEE engineers? Loch's Ferir charged, autocannon in one hand, combat knife in the other, a pair of hammer missiles launching from his shoulder launcher as autocannon rounds bounced off of the white machine's alloy shield. The white MAS deftly juked his heavy missiles, stowing its weapon behind its back as it drew a beam saber, sustained bursts from its chest mounted rotarty cannons shooting the oncoming missiles down. The white machine shot forward with surprising speed, forcing Loch to thrust backwards, his autocannon firing burst after burst at the target. The white machine either dodged or blocked the fire with its alloy shield, and continued to gain on Loch's slower Ferir. The enemy's beam saber arm reared back to prepare a strike, and Loch saw his opening, he rushed forward with his combat knife, intending to stab the white machine's now open right-chest. "Take this you UEE upstart!" Loch cried triumphantly, as the white machine juked to the left, its blade cutting low across his Ferir's torso. The blue white of a plasma saber filled his view screen and disappeared, returning moments later as the brilliant white-blue energy began tearing into his cockpit. His helmet visor rapidly polarized as it tried to protect its pilot from the intense heat and light, shattering moments later. Loch saw the bright blue-white light, and felt intense heat. Then he felt nothing. [hr] [color=lime]> 7th Squadron - Shrike Mk III > Lt. Sterling 'Gallant' McKnight[/color] [color=Lightblue]"Alright Williams, just the big one left."[/color] Sterling called out to Williams, flying away as the second Ferir exploded. He keyed the comm to continue when Trapp cut in. [color=Lightgreen]"Gallant what's your status?"[/color] [color=Lightblue]"Odin, stand by we're currently-"[/color] Sterling was cut off as a plasma bolt sailed into him and struck his unit in the back. Sterling reared forward, his harnesses keeping him in his seat as machine spun wildly. Red warning lights and alarms blared around him as his depleted shield system screamed at him and his right tesla drive coil read critical. The Shrike tumbled through space as Ferir Mk III leveled its plasma cannon at him, preparing for what was likely to be a killshot. [hr] [color=lime]> Onboard the Lincoln[/color] [color=lightgreen]"Captain![/color] one of the communications officers called out, [color=lightgreen]"Incoming priority transmission![/color] Called out a communications officer, as one of the four displays that flanked by Marquis' command chair came to life. The face on the holodeck was none other than the face of the vaguely serpentine seeming nephew of the Emperor, Admiral Ardin. [color=gold]"Captain Marquis,"[/color] Ardin said in a voice that was not so much commanding as it was expectant, [color=gold]"I am now giving your MAS squadron a priority command. You are to send your team to protect my shuttle, as it exits the Ulysses and escort it to your ship immediately."[/color] Coming up on another screen was an image of the Admiral's shuttle- very recognizable even in the void of space with its opulent gold trims and crests, as well as the sigil of the Imperial Dynasty on it. In a formation around it was a trio of Sentries, painted the jet black of the Imperial Service, as a fourth one stayed behind to draw fire from a oncoming trio of Ferirs. The lone Sentry was easily overwhelmed and exploded into a blast of fire as the shuttle and its remaining escorts continued fleeing towards the Lincoln.