[b][i]Mission Two: Siege of Mischief Reef[/i][/b]

[b]Municipality of Lingayen - 10/11/2022, 6:00 UTC+8[/b]

Nemo had disappeared along with several other volunteers shortly after all rumors of Alan Turing not being dead and also being the First Arms Master had faded, leaving First Lieutenant Noel Alonso in a bad mood even as he called the remaining members of Task Force Obsidian (plus Lotus Squadron, plus Ayahime, their attached war correspondent) to the Auditorium's audience hall to relay the orders of the Government of National Salvation and its partners in the rest of ASEAN. Once they had all gathered, Noel signaled for the projector to be turned on, as he began to speak into the microphone to reveal their next mission.

"[i]People,[/i]" Noel said as the screen showed a [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mischief_Reef_(40836669690).jpg]large, circular island[/url], "Even with America still sleeping, our cause has received an unlooked-for reprieve." 

He then gestured to the screen and said, "[url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mischief_Reef]Mischief Reef[/url], also known as Panganiban Reef and Đá Vành Khăn, was the largest enemy military base in the South China/West Philippine Sea until a rogue group of... [i]Cosplayers[/i] known as the 'Qing Restoration Society', led by Jin Li of the Aisin Goro Clan, the Clan that [i]was[/i] the historical Qing Dynasty, took over the atoll in a surprise attack. They have since proposed an alliance with ASEAN in which in exchange for supplies, the QRS will provide a buffer and auxiliaries in our fight against the PRC invasion. One of which, the defector [i]Lei Qingshe[/i], has been 'sent early' to us - You yourselves saw how she has proven to be of immense help repulsing the Chinese from Lingayen last month."

After revealing the backgrund of Qingshe's defection, First Lieutenant Noel then warmed up to the topic, "The QRS have fulfilled their end of the bargain in more ways than one; Jin Li has a hydrokinetic Noble Arm that has devastated Chinese positions and flotillas in the South China Sea with localized tsunamis, while Ren Zhao, Ren Huo's brother who is jealous of the latter's position in the Zodiac, has a Noble Arm that causes all projectiles, including ballistic missiles, to veer away, slow down, or otherwise miss. Its weakness, however, is that it does not affect chemical or incendiary weapons or even just large quantities of water and sand being dropped on them, nor does it deter lasers or energy or mental-based attacks, and definitely not melee weapons. All obvious flaws that need [i]us[/i] to cover for them.

"Anyway, the Philippine Government of National Salvation and Indonesia are joining forces to relieve the blockade and siege of Mischief Reef," Noel said, "We will be committing a large portion of our navies, already weak against what the Chinese have, in this expedition, and Task Force Obsidian will all go inside the [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BRP_Jose_Rizal_(FF-150)]BRP Jose Rizal[/url], our flagship. They will be escorted by Lotus Squadron, which will be temporarily moved to [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonio_Bautista_Air_Base]Antonio Bautista Air Base[/url] in Palawan Island to the west of the Philippine Archipelago to clear the skies and herald our arrival."

He then faced them all, saying, "Task Force Obsidian is not normally equipped for naval combat, and we will be at a marked disadvantage in transit whether we fly by air or by land. Thankfully, we have Specialist Callie Lindmann and her Noble Arm, Charter, to give us an advantage - It can allow our more melee-minded folk to portal to and from enemy ships at will." Then he sighed and said, "You have twelve hours to prepare." 

Then he faced Kaitlyn and said, "You and Private Calvert - Hannie - are to stay onboard the ship once you embark in order to assist the medical teams. With Nemo gone, I'm not risking our youngest member's life and well-being." Then to everyone else, "As for the rest of you, ask your questions, get some answers, then you're dismissed."

[@SkyHresvelg][@Chiro][@Aisede][@Lewascan2][@Sniblet][@Conscripts][@Gerlando][@Creative Chaos][@Nimbus][@The Man Emperor][@KaiserElectric] [@Landaus Five-One][@QJT]