Mission: Air Recon

((From Netopia))

With Machman's passage into HadesNet airspace, visibility became very poor. In some places, near the more active volcanoes, he found himself flying by instruments only, with nothing but the nameless sensor pod's word they were still on the target's trail. All the while the target continued to to decelerate and lose altitude, and the VeyRall followed.

Eventually, they collectively dropped beneath the ashen cloud cover into relatively clear air. It was blacker than night here, with the lava flows and calderas of countless volcanoes below providing the only only light source. They were traveling at sub-sonic speeds at this point, with Cirrus still obediently doing her best to match velocity with the target.

Ahead, the red and silver craft rolled ponderously to the left. It then rolled back to the right and began to circle a particularly tall volcano as if on approach pattern. It circled only once, dumping velocity madly as it did so. Its hull reconfigured slightly, several sections of hull canting downwards at an angle... Then brilliant blue streams of fire shot diagonally from the bottom of the craft, and it began to slowly hover its way over the the mouth of this volcano. Once it was suspended in the air above the caldera, it slowly began to descend into the vertical shaft of the cone itself, and disappeared from view.

Target lost. Data collection percentage is insufficient.

Sorry Machman. Cirrus apologized I can't take us in after it, and you can't hover with me he--.

The early warning system began to buzz. The VeyRall squadron had suddenly gotten bolder, and were sweeping into the area aggressively. A pair of VeyRall had broken from the group and were diving in on Machman. At least one of them was painting him for a missile lock...

-----------
Summary
-----------

((Battle 1: Begin!!))

---Allies---
MachMan.EXE: 100 HP
Aera.SP: 50 HP
Cirrus.SP: 200 HP [Power: 1/6]
Sensor(?).SP: 200HP [Data: 65%]

---Target--- [In the Volcano]
Large Red-and-Silver Craft(?): 1100 HP [????] (????) {????}
-- External Booster Assembly(?): 140 HP
-- External Booster Assembly(?): 140 HP
-- Dorsal Weapons Array(?): 200 HP
-- Ventral Weapons Array(?): 200 HP
-- Starboard Weapons Array(?): 200 HP
-- Port Weapons Array(?): 200 HP

---Net Mafia Squadron--- [Broken into wing pairs.]
VeyRall A: 240 HP
VeyRall B: 240 HP
VeyRall C: 240 HP
VeyRall D: 240 HP
VeyRall E: 240 HP
VeyRall F: 240 HP
VeyRall G: 240 HP
VeyRall H: 240 HP
VeyRall I: 240 HP
VeyRall J: 240 HP
-- VeyRall K: 240 HP [Behind and above] (Lead: Acquiring Lock)
-- VeyRall L: 240 HP [Behind and above] (Wing: Standby)
Machman struggles to keep the craft in sight as he passes through the clouds of ash and dust. Luckily his engine intakes were able to filter out the debris and not cause the engines to fail. As the got into some clearer air, Machman was forced to turn on his taxi lights at the front of his fuselage. Using only his radar and the single light, he sees the craft maneuver it's way down into the volcano. The sensor loses its scanning lock and Cirrus tells him he cannot follow the craft.
Mach! We have a large group of VeyRalls approaching at 6 o'clock high! A pair of them have broken off and are heading for us!
[[i]Confirmed![/i]]
Machman opens a channel to command. He keeps his cool as he accelerates and makes a wide turn towards the incoming VeyRalls. Several metal slivers pop off his fuselage, and zip off in different directions, surrounding Mach with sensors.
[[i]Command, this is Leading Edge. I have come in contact with the target. I am around 3 clicks past the HadesNet boarder. The target has gone into a large volcano. I have 12 VeyRalls sweeping the area and 2 are engaging. Requesting immediate support.[/i]]

((Combat Routines Set! Engaging Enemy!))

[Mach, uploading battlechips now!]
A pair of missiles materialize under Mach's wings as he tracks the incoming opponents. He turns and flies away from the enemy, trying to draw them in and out of sight of the rest of the large squadron behind them. After a few seconds, he angles all of his thrust up, flipping the entire airframe backwards towards the enemy. He rolls to right himself as he locks his cross-hairs on his targets. The boosters on the missiles ignite as the hard points release their hold. The missiles drop a foot or two before they streak towards their targets.

A pair of the sensor bits freeze in the air, following Aera's eye movements as she focuses on the trailing VeyRall unit. Her stored electrical charge seeps through her body into the aircraft itself, and is then transferred to the sensors. They both fire an electrical pulse towards the VeyRall as Mach rolls to the left to get in a better firing position. Mach's right weapon blister opens as he angles his nose towards the leading VeyRall, and a rocket is quickly loaded into the launch tube. Machman locks on to his target and fires, the rocket blasting off with a coarse hissing sound and makes a beeline to its target.

As he gets closer to the other VeyRall unit, his left weapon blister opens up as well, both of them bearing his 30mm vulcan chain guns. He aims dead center on the enemy's fuselage and attacks, the vulcans spinning up and unleashing their fury with a rumbling *brooooon!* Two lines of glowing metal hurtle towards the VeyRall, each armor-piercing round ready to fill the enemy with holes. The guns' roar dies down and the weapon blister doors close as Machman makes a very sharp rising right turn towards the dark clouds created by the volcano.

[[i]Time to find some cover![/i]]
Machman dives into the could and slows as much as he can without falling out of the sky. Aera watches the radar screen nervously, the sensor bits increasing the signal, but the ash filled clouds do a great job of messing with radar signals. Aera begins to charge up another shot as they wait for backup to arrive.


ACTIONS:
Machman
Gust: Move further away from squadron
Charge Magnum
Magnum1: VeyRallK,L (120dmg Fire + Breaking + Panel Break)
CannonBall: VeyRallK (150dmg + Break) [+ Passive Take Aim]
Rising Barrage: VeyRallL (100dmg + Break + Strategic Movement [Move into ash clouds] + 4TCD)

Aera
Charge Attack: VeyRallL (70dmg Elec)
Charge

Cirrus
Power: 1/6

Sensor Pod
Idle

Sigs
Thrust Laser: Ready
Rising Barrage: 4 TCD
SCRAM Boost: Ready
Sensor Pods: Active
"Command copies. All available AirWing units have been ordered to sortie. AirWing leaders will provide ETA. Scramble order has been issued to Tornado flight. Tornado flight ETA: 300 seconds."

Machman's plan to draw the two fighters after him succeeds. However, his lack of evasive action allows the lead VeyRall to finish acquiring missile lock. The pair of missiles separated from the lead fighter and darted quickly across the space separating it from Machman. Both missiles, coming in from behind and above relative to Machman's vector, struck Cirrus and exploded, heavily damaging the SP.

I'm hit! I'm hit!

Machman flipped end-over end, and rolled upright. This allowed him to get a good look at his adversaries.... They were simple looking craft, consisting of a short central fuselage with a pair of engines mounted to either side of it. Their wings were broad, and curved forward with a pair of 20mm gun pods mounted one to each wing-tip. These bat-like fighters had little else to them; lacking a tail, canards, or even any sort of vertical control surfaces. They were mostly flying wings.

Machman fired the Magnum missiles at the fighters, and managed to tag both of them as they closed. As the sensor bits flew out towards the pair, they retaliated with a barrage of vulcan fire that showered Machman and Cirrus with 20mm buster rounds.

The pair of VeyRall then performed a break, the lead rolling and pulling up and away to the right, and the wingman rolling and diving to the left. As Machman rolled and turned to follow the leader, Aera fired at the wingman, but her leading shot went wide as the target flipped over and dropped out of line. Machman's attack was similarly evaded when his target flip-rolled upside down and slipped sideways to fly over Machman, leaving the rocket to sail off into the distance through empty space.

Machman continues his spiral loop, and rolls out above and behind the wingman. He then hoses down the VeyRall with a double spray of lead that blows out one of the engines on the enemy craft. Machman then pulls up and rockets up into the ashen clouds as the leader appears on his six burns after him.

"Leading Edge, this is AirSpin Leader. AirSpin squadron is west of your location. Approximate ETA: 930 seconds."

-----------
Summary
-----------

---Allies---
MachMan.EXE: 60 HP
Aera.SP: 50 HP
Cirrus.SP: 100 HP [Power: 1/6]
Sensor(?).SP: 200HP [Data: 65%]

---Target--- [In the Volcano]
Large Red-and-Silver Craft(?): 1100 HP [????] (????) {????}
-- External Booster Assembly(?): 140 HP
-- External Booster Assembly(?): 140 HP
-- Dorsal Weapons Array(?): 200 HP
-- Ventral Weapons Array(?): 200 HP
-- Starboard Weapons Array(?): 200 HP
-- Port Weapons Array(?): 200 HP

---Net Mafia Squadron--- [Broken into wing pairs.]
VeyRall A: 240 HP
VeyRall B: 240 HP
VeyRall C: 240 HP
VeyRall D: 240 HP
VeyRall E: 240 HP
VeyRall F: 240 HP
VeyRall G: 240 HP
VeyRall H: 240 HP
VeyRall I: 240 HP
VeyRall J: 240 HP
-- VeyRall K: 120 HP [On your tail!] (Lead: Attacking)
-- VeyRall L: 20 HP [Somewhere below] (Wing: Evasive)

((Bumps: 2))
Machman darts into the clouds, surprised by his adversaries' skill.
[[i]We have 5 minutes to keep these guys off our tail! Aera, work on damage control while I try to take care of these two.[/i]]

Okay!
Aera's hands start to glow, transferring power into two pads on the sides of the cockpit. The recovery data surges through the aircraft, some of it repairing some of the 20mm shell impacts and the the rest going to the attached boosters.

Using a combination of his radar and visual cues, he gets a good look at the pursuing Veyrall. With a mechanical clunk, a set of rockets are loaded into the right weapon blister.
[[i]Initiating jump in 3, 2, 1, Now.[/i]]
In a split second, Machman blurs out of sight and seemingly materializes behind the enemy VeyRall. Though he appeared to teleport, he actually flipped several of his thrust vents down and forward, causing him to quickly rise and slide behind the enemy. The rapid loss of airspeed causes him to drop in altitude just a tad, putting him back at the same altitude nearly 50 feet behind his original position in less than a second. If it weren't for the well fit and sturdy restraints, Aera would be hugging the front of the cockpit.

Machman quickly acquires a lock and fires a volley of rockets directly towards the enemy. Machman rolls away, and brought up several video feeds from the sensor pods around him. He uses the sensors and his radar to locate the nearly crippled aircraft below him. Another projectile materializes under his wing, but the stabilization wings are more pronounced and there is no thrust engine in the back. Machman aims several dozen feet ahead of the VeyRall's path, knowing the projectile will slow in the air and would undershoot if he aimed directly at the aircraft. The bomb is released and gently falls away, remaining perfectly straight and level. The bomb's warhead should do the job of removing the VeyRall from the battle.

Machman adjusts his flight path and tries to go deeper into the ash clouds and out of sight of the large squadron in the area.


ACTIONS:
Machman
Scram Boost: Teleport Behind VeyRallK
Cannonball: VeyRallK (150dmg + Break)
Cannon: VeyRallL (40dmg) [+Take Aim]
Stay out of sight in ash clouds

Aera
Heal: Machman.EXE (Recover 18HP)
Heal: Cirrus.SP (Recover 18HP)

Cirrus
Power 1/6

Sensor Pod
Stand By

Sigs:
Thrust Laser: Ready
Rising Barrage: 3 TCD
SCRAM Boost: 2 TCD
Sensor Pods: Active
The VeyRall chasing Machman opened fire, filling the ashen sky ahead of it with numerous 20mm rounds. None of them found a mark, as Machman teleported out of the line of fire and appeared behind the VeyRall. His rocket attack, unlike the VeyRall's vulcans, found its mark. The VeyRall's right-side engine exploded, and the craft, now broken at the right wing, fell out of the sky. The central fuselage glowed for a moment, then vanished as the Navi jacked out. The engines and wings continued to fall to the earth.

Machman then lines up on the wingman, and drops a laser guided bomb. Under most circumstances, such a tactic wouldn't have a prayer of hitting the target, but... The bomb fell suddenly out of the ash clouds above and ahead of the damaged VeyRall. The target tried to vector away, but the damaged craft wasn't cooperating with only one engine to do it with. The bomb struck the VeyRall's left wing, and blew it clean off. The craft slid to the left, began to spin, and started losing altitude. Like the previous doomed craft, the Navi performed an emergency jackout, causing the central fuselage to vanish. The engines and wings continued to fall to the earth, and eventually slammed into the side of a volcano.

That apparently got someone's attention, as the remainder of the flight Machman had just shot down turned his way and began closing in....

-----------
Summary
-----------

---Allies---
MachMan.EXE: 78 HP
Aera.SP: 50 HP
Cirrus.SP: 118 HP [Power: 1/6]
Sensor(?).SP: 200HP [Data: 65%]

---Target--- [In the Volcano]
Large Red-and-Silver Craft(?): 1100 HP [????] (????) {????}
-- External Booster Assembly(?): 140 HP
-- External Booster Assembly(?): 140 HP
-- Dorsal Weapons Array(?): 200 HP
-- Ventral Weapons Array(?): 200 HP
-- Starboard Weapons Array(?): 200 HP
-- Port Weapons Array(?): 200 HP

---Net Mafia Squadron--- [Broken into wing pairs.]
VeyRall A: 240 HP
VeyRall B: 240 HP
VeyRall C: 240 HP
VeyRall D: 240 HP
VeyRall E: 240 HP
VeyRall F: 240 HP
VeyRall G: 240 HP
VeyRall H: 240 HP
-- VeyRall I: 240 HP [Out of range, but closing quickly.]
-- VeyRall J: 240 HP [Out of range, but closing quickly.]
-- VeyRall K: Splashed
-- VeyRall L: Splashed
Machman rolls in celebration of successfully downing the pair of pursuers.
[[i]Splash two! Repeat, minus two bandits![/i]]
Machman's celebration is cut short as both he and Aera notice two blips of the squadron breaking off and closing on their position.

Two more of them are coming in fast!
[[i]I see them! I'm going to try to get the jump on them. Cirrus, minimal thrust![/i]]

Machman maneuvers deeper into the ash clouds, and slows as much as he can without dropping out of the sky. He could normally hover, but the bulk and added weight of the boosters and sensor pod prevents him from doing so. He allows the VeyRalls to follow him into the cloud, and Mach waits for them, using a combination of his radar, visual equipment, and the net of sensors surrounding his frame. He idles silently for the perfect moment as a missile loads under his wing. Its gray metal slats contain a powerful warhead filled with a fluid capable of encasing objects in nearly solid "bubbles." As soon as the pair of VeyRalls get in the proper position, Machman fires. The missiles spews cyan flames from its end as it drops from his wing and rockets towards its targets. The missile explodes and covers the immediate area in the binding fluid.

[[i]Time to bring the pain.[/i]]
Machman throttles up and passes the VeyRalls as Aera starts to charge electrical power. Mach executes a very sharp S-turn maneuver to go nose to nose with the fighters. Aera quickly reaches 100% energy capacity and transfers it into the sensor bits floating around them. The voltage gathers into one bit and fires a large orange bolt of electricity at the second VeyRall, hopefully the fluid conducting the electricity and causing even more damage. In the meantime, the two weapon blisters open and a pair of rocket launchers slide into position. One set of rockets are loaded into the right launch tubes, each of them containing fragile super capacitors filled with electricity. The others loaded into the left launcher are more like rocket-powered railroad spikes, completely devoid of any warheads and designed for pure punching power.

Machman aims at the lead VeyRall and fires a volley of electrically charged rockets directly towards it in a set of dull wooshing noises, hopefully stunning and/or disabling its engines. He then shifts his aim to the center of the VeyRalls' formation and widens the spread of rockets. He fires a volley of rockets, creating multiple white streams of smoke. The wide spread of armor-piercing rockets should make short work of their seemingly light armor plating. He quickly banks right and makes a wide sliding turn around the incoming VeyRalls. A new set of rockets, loaded with incendiary warheads, slide from the belt feeds into the right launch tubes. Machman's turn puts him at the VeyRall's 5 o-clock and he points his nose a few degrees in front of the lead VeyRall's nose. He opens fire, launching a set of 3 rockets in less than a second that zoom in a straight path towards the enemy.


ACTIONS:
Machman
Gust: "Hide" in ash cloud
BubbleStar1: VeyRallI, J (20dmg Aqua + Bubble Trap x3) [+ Take Aim]
ZapRing1: VeyRallI (80dmg Elec + Stun)
Boomerang1: VeyRallI, J (60dmg Wood)
FireHit1: VeyRallI (60dmg Fire) [Ranged]

Aera
Charge
Charge Attack: VeyRallJ (70dmg Elec x2? {BubbleTrap})

Cirrus
Power 1/6

Sensor Pod
Stand By

Sigs:
Thrust Laser: Ready
Rising Barrage: 2 TCD
SCRAM Boost: 1 TCD
Sensor Pods: Active
((um... bump?))
((Bump))
Just as the wing pair of VeyRall entered Machman's attack range, the two broke formation. The lead VeyRall went high, and the wingman dove for the deck. This produced unexpected results, for both sides... Machman got a solid lock on the lead, and proceeded to blow the fighter out of the sky with a barrage of omni-elemental ordinance. However, the other fighter, the wingman, dropped low and out of attack range while Machman was forced to aim high to nail the lead. When the flight leader suddenly exploded, the wingman decided he wanted none of that and continued to drop altitude as he turned away to flee.

Target reacquired. Recommencing scan. This quiet announcement came a moment before the red and silver craft rose slowly into view.

As the red and silver craft rose into view, the scattered VeyRall all angled in towards it. The NetMafia fighters loosened their wing pair formations, and settled in for converging attack runs on the target Machman had been sent to observe.

-----------
Summary
-----------

---Allies---
MachMan.EXE: 78 HP
Aera.SP: 50 HP
Cirrus.SP: 118 HP [Power: 1/6]
Sensor(?).SP: 200HP [Data: 70%]

---Target--- [Rising from the Volcano]
Large Red-and-Silver Craft(?): 1100 HP [????] (????) {????}
-- External Booster Assembly(?): 140 HP
-- External Booster Assembly(?): 140 HP
-- Dorsal Weapons Array(?): 200 HP
-- Ventral Weapons Array(?): 200 HP
-- Starboard Weapons Array(?): 200 HP
-- Port Weapons Array(?): 200 HP

---Net Mafia Squadron--- [Broken into wing pairs.]
VeyRall A: 240 HP [Moving in to attack the Target]
VeyRall B: 240 HP [Moving in to attack the Target]
VeyRall C: 240 HP [Moving in to attack the Target]
VeyRall D: 240 HP [Moving in to attack the Target]
VeyRall E: 240 HP [Moving in to attack the Target]
VeyRall F: 240 HP [Moving in to attack the Target]
VeyRall G: 240 HP [Moving in to attack the Target]
VeyRall H: 240 HP [Moving in to attack the Target]
-- VeyRall I: Splashed
-- VeyRall J: 240 HP [Breaking off.]
-- VeyRall K: Splashed
-- VeyRall L: Splashed
Machman rolls right away from the exploding Veyrall.
[[i]Splash three! Nine bandits remaining.[/i]]
Machman hears the sensor pod's alert and confirms using his radar and visuals. The craft was now in scan range, and that may be the last chance to make a successful scan. Aera combs over the radar, and alerts Mach to a new development.
Mach! The rest of the enemy squadron is coming straight towards us!
[[i]Command, this is Leading Edge. The unknown craft has emerged from the volcano and we are resuming scans. We have 8 enemy VeyRalls converging on the target. I need to break off, or I probably won't get this pod back in one piece.[/i]]

Machman looks over his radar, attempting to find a pocket of where he can get out of the increasingly dense amount of enemy forces. He picks out his path, and accelerates rapidly.
[[i]Cirrus, give me 70% thrust. We gotta break out of this formation.[/i]]
What are you trying to do?
[[i]This thing is essentially a flying battleship. I know I won't be able to take down 9 VeyRalls simultaneously, and since that thing can probably hold its own, I'll move to a better position on the battlefield. In the meantime, switch to damage control while we kill time till reinforcements arrive.][/i]
[Alright, sending in the recovery chips now.]

Aera nods in agreement and activates a recovery program, replenishing some of Machman's energy. Mazer slots in two Recov10 chips, the program's energy channeling into Cirrus. Machman moves higher up, likely out of sensor range, but hopefully out of danger. He prepares to throw up a protective barrier if he is attacked.

ACTIONS:
Machman
Gust: Move away from squadron
Recover10: Cirrus.SP (Heal 10HP)
Recover10: Cirrus.SP (Heal 10HP)
Prepare FireHit1
Guard1: Machman.EXE, Aera.SP, Cirrus.SP, Sensor Pod.SP (Reflect attack back up to 60dmg)

Aera
Heal: Machman.EXE (Recover 18HP)
none

Cirrus
Power 4/6

Sensor Pod
Resume Scan

Sigs:
Thrust Laser: Ready
Rising Barrage: 1TCD
SCRAM Boost: Ready
Sensor Pods: Active
((Bump))
((=Something has happened, so I'm forced to abort this mission.))

"Leading Edge, this is Tornado One. Abort mission and return to base. Cirrus, get them out of there."

Hang on! Cirrus said a moment before she kicked the vectored thrust jets near the front, angling Machman to the sky, then went to full throttle. Behind them, the fighters of Tornado Flight entered the area, broke formation, and engaged in combat with the red and silver craft they'd been tasked with observing. The skies lit up with tracer rounds, missile traces, beams, and myriad explosions. All quickly fading behind.

Machman found himself back within the clear skies of Netopia's network after less than a minute of absolutely crushing acceleration, as if someone had strapped him to a pair of shuttle rocket boosters and lit them up for jollies. Now safely back in friendly airspace, Cirrus cut the power of her engines down to something Machman could deal with once again.

Sorry about that.

-----------
Summary
-----------

Mission End.

---Allies---
MachMan.EXE & Aera.SP
GET: 800z, AirShoes NCP

((Just land, and you're done.))
((Good luck with everything, Pally.))

Machman hears the order, and complies without hesitation.
[[i]Leading Edge copies! Returning to b- [/i]]

Cirrus kicks into full throttle, surprising Mach and Aera with the sudden burst of speed. Machman streaks across the sky, shattering the sound barrier within about a second of starting the burn.

[[i]base... Over and out.[/i]]
Cirrus finally lays off the thrusters and allows Aera to actually be able to speak.
I hope the rest of them get out alright. That battle looked fierce.
[[i]I just hope we have enough data on the craft if it.[/i]]

Machman gains permission to land from the tower and eases down to the tarmac. He lowers his gear and they screech as they hit the ground below. Machman angles his control surfaces to act as airbreaks and bleed off his speed. He taxis back to the hangar, but is directed to a lot to the right. Machman powers down his engine and is towed back into the hangar. It is then Cirrus and the Sensor Pod are carefully lifted off his frame.

[Alright Mach, you can return to your normal form.]
[[i]Understood.[/i]]

Machman's frame starts to glow, his aircraft form shrinking down to his normal size. The glow fades, revealing Machman floating several feet above the ground, Aera held in his arms. He gently floats to the ground, his feet contacting the hard hangar floor with two dull clinks. He eases Aera to the ground, and they both report to the equipment Navi on duty. They are then told they could leave immediately, since the rest of the staff was occupied with the skirmish over in HadesNet. Aera and Mach comply and head to the closes warp point, beaming out of the area and back into Mazer's PET.

((Logged Out))