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Post by Lieutenant Victor Eisenfaust on Nov 6, 2004 3:28:10 GMT -5
Castle Lance, This is Rogue-1 I'm en route. Hold on, ETA is 8 minutes depending on terrain. Lets see if I can't level the playing feild a bit. Do you Copy Castle-4?
Victor's mind was full of profanity in German, Swedish, and English at the time he got Rogue-1 message. He toggled the comm as fire rained down around both Castle-3 and him.
"Roger Rogue-1, I copy your message. These bastards hit us almost a minute after we formed up after landing. They are not the opponents we were briefed on...all Clantech, some sort of high level jamming gear....."
The sound of gunfire and cursing in German could be heard over the radio. The shots sounded periously close for comfort.
"...Rogue-1, keep your eyes open as you approach...don't worry...Castle lance will hold...we will try to save some for you...Castle-4, out."
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Post by Star Captain Killian Bekker on Nov 6, 2004 5:47:02 GMT -5
As the inital chaos of the opening salvos faded into the normalcy of close quarters combat. Despite the fact that 1 mech was demolished and another nearly put out of the fight, the unit held cohesion that would frighten all but the most hardened of mechwarriors.
This is Ghost-2, I'm taking some heavy...(klaxxons blaring and then static)
Damnit. I wasn't planning for any fatalities on this Op save for a few. Not this soon. It wasn't time.
Many seconds passed and the carnage continued. The Thor's reactor breach instantly killed the pilot, not even allowing the mechwarrior to give his body the order for an ejection. About the same time I realized this, the second Thor began getting "focus fire".
Ghost-1, this is Ghost-3. (Alarms sounding) I'm done...She won't take much more...Your orders?
Ghost-3 Hold your position! Wraith-2 and 3 move to screen for Ghost-3.
The Marauder IIc began to loose control and toppled from the loss of 10 tons from a gun mount that no longer existed, but managed to quickly recover and fall into the screen manuever. The Hunchback IIc moving to screen moved in an awkward fashion to try and keep the damaged rear armor's exposure to a minimum.
Ghost-1, this is Vampire Lance. Looks like you could a little help. If they are in multiple groups, they are sure to be on their way.
Yes sir, Ghost-2 is down, Ghost-3 wounded and Wraith-1 lost his gun mount.
Vampire Lance crashed into an already hectic battle. Towering above the field was now Vampire-1's Atlas, Flanked by a Bushwacker and yet another Thor. At this point the Raven tried to run off, while the startled merc unit began forming a defensive perimeter around the downed Assault mech.
All units, this is Ghost-1. That Raven is getting away. Leave it, we know they must have split up. They must want us to follow them. Let's mop up here.
Good call Ghost-1, I think this mission is about over. All units, leave nothing alive. Nothing.
Murphy! Murphy!
As soon as the codeword went out, Ghost-3 hit the IFF transfer acknowledge and suddenly all but the new mechs showed up as friendly to the mercs.
Ghost-1 to all units, engage Vampire Lance. Shoot to kill. The mercs are NOT the target anymore.
Ghost-1 we copy. Merc unit, do NOT engage us. I repeat WE are NOT your enemy, that new lance IS!
Now, you're gonna die you stravag!
Ghost-1 What the hell? I order you to stand...
Damnit, get that bastard off our channel.
Oh. We can hear him Ghost-1. He can't hear us heh heh heh. I figured you'd like hearing him scream like a lil pansy when you show him who's a better pilot.
Nice Wraith-3 heh. Thanks for the thought...Capt. Maxwell, you ok? You're safe now...well you will be once Vampire lance nites the big one. I'll explain later. By the way, sorry about the mech. We had to look like we were serious. Else this fool would know what was goin' on.
Unknown unit Commander, I'm ok. Thanks for asking. Yeah, you'd better have a damn good explaination.
Good to hear. Yeah, more than you know.
Catching Vampire Lance off guard, My Loki Alpha Striked the Bushwacker before he really knew what happened. The entire focus was into the cockpit which was now a smoldering hulk as the hapless mech fell to the ground. The Hunchback IIc and Marauder IIc fired into the Thor, blowing off huge chunks of armor. The Atlas turned first towards the crippled Thor and tore it's left arm off with a quick gauss shot.
Damn, his Atlas is going to cause some problems.
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Post by Lieutenant Victor Eisenfaust on Nov 6, 2004 6:18:20 GMT -5
Ghost-1 we copy. Merc unit, do NOT engage us. I repeat WE are NOT your enemy, that new lance IS!
Victor surveyed the rapidly changing scene and tried to take it in as best he could...obviously, there was something bigger afoot here, and where Victor and his fellow Legionnaires stood was rather unclear. Radio chatter broke Victors mental focus, bringing him back to the battle at hand.
"Castle-4, this is Castle-3...what do we do now? The IFF is showing our original opponents as friendlies...
"Castle-3, this is Castle-4. Until the situation becomes more clear, we will maintain our defensive line here, and guard Castle-1. Anyone fires at him, or at us, and you have permission to open fire on that target specifically. We have to keep Castle-1 safe until Spectre and Rogue lances arrive, over."
"Castle-4, this is Castle-3...Understood!
Victor moved his mech to directly protect the Captain's downed Stalker...even slight stray fire could be lethal for the Captain, so Victor knew it was his duty to take the hit if need be. Allowing his eyes to leave the battlefield for a moment, he could see that Net's Raven was hauling ass toward Spectre lance. Nodding in approval, he flipped on the comm channel again.
"Thorin-Command, this is Castle-4. Hold on close air support request. Repeat, hold on close air support request. Situation is completely FUBAR at the moment. I will relay specific targeting data via TAG if close air support is required, over."
Not waiting on Thorin's response, Victor quickly changed comm channels...Victor knew he was overstepping his authority repeatedly and often in this mission, but survival for his lancemates came first. They could court-martial him AFTER everyone was safe.
"Spectre-lance, Castle-2 is moving to join up with you. Castle-2 can bring you to the firezone...approach with caution...the situation has changed...we are maintaining defensive perimeter around Castle-1, over.
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Post by Holms Net on Nov 6, 2004 8:50:41 GMT -5
I started to push my Raven as fast as it could go. But, since there were so many trees, I couldn't maenuver fast enough to get to top speed. And it didn't help I couldn't see if I was being followed. I decided to ask.
Castle-2 to Castle-4, am I being followed. And what's going on there. My scanners are picking up that a whole bunch of friendlies just appeared. And what's up with Captain Maxwell. Is he alright. Are his comms still up? Never mind, I'll patch into him.
Captain Maxwell, are you alright. If your mech is still online, I suggest you get out of there and move to that Cougar. I don't know why so many friendlies just appeared, but it seems to be to our advantage that they came when they did. Castle-2, out.
I could only hope the Captain was alright. And I wasn't horribly fond of following Seargant Eisanfaust' orders, but he had actually suggested what I was going to ask, so I didn't care. I just hoped he wouldn't to anything he would regret. Like calling in Thorin for air support.
But he'll never do that. He knows that could risk the lives of the pilots, not to mention it would give us away, since I think our primary mission is still to not be found out. But I'm not so sure we still have that opton anymore.
I kept moving my Raven towards Spectre lance. They were still not on my sensors, but I could probably catch them once I get a little farther into the forest. But the wierd thing was, I STILL couldn't hear any animals. I must have found the way they came from.
Hmmm, but the fact is, how did they KNOW we were going to be here.
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Post by MechWarrior Jak S Wildmen on Nov 6, 2004 10:35:18 GMT -5
Hardkick tounchdown half a minute after Murphy's Bushwhacker began forming on Captain Gunman's Mad Cat (if you still call it that). Pushing the trottle to the max, Hardkick lurched forward as it struggled to keep its balance on the soft muddy ground. Luckily for me the techs did a great job with the gryo systems, allowing Hardkick to catch up with the rest of spectre lance effortlessly. The 350XL powerplant was one of those great things about this mech.
"Mayday! Maday! All Legionnaire units! Castle-1 is under attack! Repeat - Castle 1 is under attack by unknown hostiles! All units, move to intercept!"
" I couldnt even enjoy the scenery" I pipped across the comm. "Spectre-1, this is Spectre-4. Lets pick up the pace, seems like our lance would be there the quickest given our mechs."
Curses littered the comm signal as weapon blasts and explosions rang through constantly. Damnit, they need help. Even with two assault mechs they could be out numbered.
Roger that Castle-1! We're on our way! Kick it into high gear guys!
Roger that Spectre-1!
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Post by MechWarrior Jak S Wildmen on Nov 6, 2004 10:37:18 GMT -5
sorry guys for this little sidetrack, feel free to delete it later. wow a day later and this many post popup! haha its pretty exciting eh. i guess agent letherneck is playing the baddies huh?
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Desparado
Recruit
MIA
In the land of the blind, the one eyed man is king...
Posts: 51
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Post by Desparado on Nov 6, 2004 11:45:46 GMT -5
What was going on? I slammed my fist into my control panel in a primative effort to get my radar straightened out. The units that had just been attacking Castle Lance had just turned to green and several blips had disappeared. It made no sense but I decided to continue on anyways and I targetd waht was still red. Another Atlas. As I marched over the top of the last hill obstructing my veiw I got my first glimpse of the scene. This would be interesting...
Castle 4 had done his best to form a peremeter around Castle 1's Stalker. I never thought I'd se that thing go down. A few charred mechs lay all around on the ground and the baddies were firing volleys at eachother. I grinned and squoze the trigger that unleased a hellishly strong alpha strike and it strock the Altas directly on its left torso. The power of the blast cleaved straight through that torso and damaged the surrounding appendages heavily. The Altas turned and faced mine, I now had his attention.
We began circling each other and I began to calculate how I could get out of this with minimal armor loss. An epiphany struck me at about the same time My massive ferrous-alloy steel fist collided with the gunrack of my opponet. It was now jammed, he'd be in for a nasty suprise if he tryed to use what ever it held. My Autocannons sprayed him down, I was trying to exploit the exposed internal structure. If I did enough damage, I wouldn't have to hit anything vital or prolong the fight. He responded with lasers, poorly scattered, nothing focused at all and did unregisterable damage to me. A volley of SRMs also lashed out at me. it looked like 6s. The first salvo missed me in the circling and the next one contacted my left torso.
My LRMs cycled, as did my Large Lasers and, I let them do their worst on the exposed mech's skeleton. Auto cannons continued to maul at the insides of his mech an it collapsed, its integrety had been compromised and could no longer distribute the weight. I threw my victorious Atlas into reverse and finished him off with my Medium Lasers through that smoking opening. Once I was sure of a core breach, I turned to face anyone not knowing what to expect. I backed to the Downed Stalker and swept from side to side, eyeing all units suspisciously.
Castle 4, what do you make of this?I don't know what to think. I'm just waiting for get shot to decide who to put down next.
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Post by Captain Gunman [In Absentia] on Nov 6, 2004 12:36:17 GMT -5
The battlefield was in utter chaos as my overtaxed Mad Cat and the elements of Spectre lance arrived on the scene. Friendlies fired at friendlies, enemy signatures came and went, and in the midst of it all, the remnants of Castle lance had formed a defensive perimeter around a fallen Stalker.
The Stalker!
Fury!!
Captain Maxwell!!!
The Stalker lay sprawled on the ground, its legs stretched out behind it and a great deal of earth plowed up in front of it. The damage to the BattleMech was obvious. An ugly, gaping wound had been torn in the side of the 'Mech, its missile rack and arm assembly completely gone, leaving reactor shielding and internals exposed. The ferro-glass of his cockpit's canopy had been completely shattered, and one leg looked horribly mutilated. It was obvious that his 'Mech had taken the brunt of the attack, and by the look of things, it hasn't had much time to move before it went down. I couldn't see Captain Maxwell anywhere - in the wreckage, or nearby - but I hoped he had survived, and was just unable to communicate with us.
Suddenly, a Gauss round glanced across my cockpit, and I whipped my torso sideways to see an Atlas crashing to the ground. Levelling my sights on its cockpit to ensure it didin't get back up, I threw the channel open to Spectre lance.
"Spectre lance...engage anything not registering as friendly. Leave no hostiles standing."
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Post by Star Captain Killian Bekker on Nov 6, 2004 13:24:46 GMT -5
Well this is an slightly unexpected surprise.
I mulled over in my head the fact that the merc unit DID have and Atlas and it managed to show up at a good time. Had it been earlier, this might not have worked. The new Atlas that had appeared immediately grabbed Vampire-1's attention and took it down rather fast. I knew Commander Faelan was a lesser pilot than I was, but the sheer brevity of the engagement did more than dishonor a man that I though couldn't possibly become any more dihonorable than he already was.
Huh? An Atlas, eh? This outta be easy. No merc pilot could ever best me. What! How the...(radio static)
Ghost-1, Vampire-1 is down. I repeat Vampire-1 is down. No sign of life or ejection. Vampire-2 is the only standing hostile. Over.
This is Ghost-1, I copy that. Wraith Lance, Move to assist in a defensive perimeter around that fallen mech'. Don't step on them though, and don't do anything perceived as hostile.
Wraith-1, I copy. Wraith-2, I copy. Wraith-3, mantaining ECM coverage.
The Marauder IIc and Hunchback IIc literally turned their back to the merc unit and backed into a screen between the fallen Stalker and the last mech from the "enemy" lance. The Thor began to to back off, but as it did so my Loki fired a final Alpha Strike into an already damaged torso. This caused a massive breach and the subsequent explosion rocked me hard. Fortunately, the Thor was far enough away that the explosion couldn't have fazed the downed mech.
Vampire Lance is KO, Ghost-1. Your orders?
This is Ghost-1 calling all "Ghosts". Prepare for site cleanup, we need to be fast on this one. Ghost Lance assist in the perimeter. Wraith Lance continue your screen. Wraith-3 let me know when cleanup is in range and make sure that they appear non-hostile.
Ghost-3 copies. Wraith-1 acknowledged. Wraith-2 I copy that. Wraith-3 roger that, and they are in range now sir. Marked with the correct IFF signal. Ghost-1, this is cleanup we are enroute with a short ETA, do you require any medvacs?
That's affirmative cleanup. We have one downed, maybe more. Nothing overly serious, but do hurry. Area is clear of hostiles and we have the perimeter.
I copy Ghost-1, cleanup out.
A few short tense moments later a large convoy of troops, technicians and salvage/repair vehicles poured into what was a frenzied battleground only moments ago. Oddly, the dead "Ghost" unit mechs were being altered to look like the destroyed merc unit's mechs.
Ghost-1, coded transmission just received. They want to know the status. Over.
Patch them in.
Status.
Was a short engagement. We hit them so hard that they don't know what hit them. They were split into 2 elements. The second element hit Vampire Lance fast and wiped them out. I lost 1 out of my Lance and another wounded. Carrying out statndard cleanup protocols.
Very well, I will relay that Isis won't have to worry about that Merc Unit.
What's the timetable on his movements and plan of action?
He hasn't said yet. I'll get back to you. Out.
Ghost-1, I have the projected area you requested. It should be uploaded into your personal datapad.
I copy. I see it now. Good work. All units stay sharp. Just because we are here doesn't mean that we are alone. After all, is we can "Ghost" so can someone else.
Merc unit, I have just about everything you need to get moving again here. We need to move fast though. There's a "base" that doesn't really exist that you can get more from there. It'll be a brief stop there as well. I know your target is Isis and his timetable isn't very long. But enough for my techs to get us into back into a decent combat effectiveness well inside the timeframe.
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Post by Holms Net on Nov 6, 2004 14:02:13 GMT -5
I could still not find Spectre Lance. I was starting ot get worried that they were attacked. I was well out of reach of any comms. At least, of my little Raven. It made me kind of nervous, being out here alone. Not to mention, the fact that Isis was out there with more than enough firepower to bring me down ten times over. I kept on going. I had no radar contact on anything. My sesnors didn't even pick up any life.
After awhile of navigating through the forest, I came to a small patch of open land. It looked as though there were some trees here at one time. Alot of trunks were around. I didn't want to risk being seen in the open, so I went around here, even though I did keep my eye on it. As I kept going even farther, I started to think that I had probably missed Spectre Lance. For some reason, I decided to keep going.
No matter where I looked, there was still no sign of life. I was decided it would be a good idea to check up on my systems. Everything seemed to be OK. I was getting tired of looking for something that I couldn't find.
I now knew that I had to of missed them. As I started to turn around, I saw a slight glint of something. Some kind of light. I wanted to go check it out. It was still pretty early, so I could have just been seeing things. Nothing appeared on my sensors, so I thought it would be safe.
It wouldn't take me long to get to where I saw the light. However, for fear of it being something my Raven couldn't handle, I turned on the ECM and IFF Jammer, which, while i was looking for Spectre Lance, had not been using. As I slowly approached the spot, I was gripping my controls tighter. Even though I could escape faster than most mechs could catch, I wasn't sure what I was up against. Or even if it was a mech.
I had finally reached the spot. It was some kind of small rock hill.
Phew, it must have just been a reflection of the sun's light off these rocks. Wait.... these rocks are facing me, and I'm facing the sun. That means they couldn't reflect off of the low, early sun. There had to of been another light source.
Fortunatly, this time, I didn't want to risk an encounter with ANYTHING that could produce enough light to reflect off the sun. I quickly turned around and ran back.
I stopped for a second and was scared all the sudden becasue I had just remembered something I was taught. Not to run in a forest when you're trying to be stealthy. But then I remembered the second part of that, the part about that it would disturb wildlife and make noise. I let out a sigh of relief and started running again. Then, I thought about that teaching again. I tried to peak my cockpit as far up as possible. I saw some birds flying off in the distance. It looked like I had found something, which I was betting was a good thing.
I jolted off into the forest, and found the open patch of forest. But then I had a problem. I didn't know where I had come from.
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Desparado
Recruit
MIA
In the land of the blind, the one eyed man is king...
Posts: 51
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Post by Desparado on Nov 6, 2004 14:15:50 GMT -5
Two of the Ghost units that had turned blue on my radar approached us and I crouched after acheiving a lock on the Maurader IIC. They came close enough to where I wanted to erase the fact that it had ever existed with the squeeze of a trigger and then it did something unexpected. It turned its back to me! Another member of this mysteriously trecherous lance fired upon the last hostile signature on my radar, a Thor. It went down pitifully fast, it must have been damaged prior to that blow.
That was the end, I had had it. I was stressed out, confused and full of anxiety inside of the universe's largest tank. Nerves were fraying. WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE? As a salvage team came over the hill it dawned on me, this was no longer just a little skirmish against an anarchistic renagade Mercenary.
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Post by Captain Benjamin Maxwell on Nov 6, 2004 14:30:18 GMT -5
Every bone in my body ached as I fought against the Stalker's frozen restraints, and I tore myself free from the coolant vest as I clambered over shattered instruments and useless controls. The ferro-glass canopy of my Stalker's nose had been completely blown away, and I was able to crawl from the wreckage as the last thunderous gauss round sounded the end of one of the strangest battles I had ever partaken in. I pulled my plasma pistol from its holster as I clambered from the wreckage of my fallen BattleMech, and found myself surrounded by a forest of ferro-steel giants. The elements of Castle and Spectre lance had evidently formed a defensive perimeter around my fallen BattleMech, and their towering war machines now stood clustered together, their weapons still smoking from the engagement.
Strangely, the Hunchback IIC and the Marauder IIC, both still bearing the scars of my Stalker's final moments, had also taken up perimeter with the Legionnaire elements. A lone Loki, quite obviously their commander, now stood before the perimeter, its weapons disengaged. My comm units had been shattered when my Stalker fell, and as such, I had no way of establishing direct radio communication with any of the BattleMechs. But that wasn't a terribly difficult obstacle to overcome.
I would simply speak to the Loki directly.
Taking my plasma pistol off "safe," and chuckling at the thought of how laughably ineffective it would be against a leviathan BattleMech, I strode out into the middle of the formation, and looked up at the towering Loki. I wasn't certain that I had been seen by its pilot, but I knew that the elements of Castle and Spectre lance were now well aware of my presence on the battlefield. I only hoped one of them would relay the message.
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Post by Star Captain Killian Bekker on Nov 6, 2004 14:44:11 GMT -5
Hmm?
Mech units, be advised. There are infantry on the ground. Watch your step.
Acknowledged. Ghost-1. They seem to have came from the downed mech. Their leader perhaps?
Most likely. Medical, come to my Loki.
Roger that, Ghost-1. Medical will be there ASAP.
The lone pilot approached with a drawn weapon. It was comical to see such a sight, but obviously the shattered mech no longer had any sort of comms and this was the only way to hail me. I popped the hatch and climbed down to meet him.
Ghost-1, I'm going to talk to the pilot. Keep an eye out.
Copy that Ghost-1, you're in the dirt.
The "Ghost" Raven moved closer to the meeting point, clearly to ensure the safety of his commander. As I approached I began introducing myself, hopefully so that he'd not shoot first like we just did.
Greetings Capt. Maxwell. I'm Joseph Dillenger. Sorry about that scuffle, I had to make it look legit to draw in that other Lance. Didn't mean to do this much damage.
Leaving my sidearm holstered, I hoped that offering the use of my intel and our hidden base for a quick refit would be more than enough as a peace offering.
At least we didn't kill any of the Mercs.
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Post by Captain Benjamin Maxwell on Nov 6, 2004 15:23:18 GMT -5
"Greetings Capt. Maxwell. I'm Joseph Dillenger. Sorry about that scuffle, I had to make it look legit to draw in that other Lance. Didn't mean to do this much damage."
The pilot walked toward me, conversing in a casual tone usually reserved for two friends catching up over drinks. He knew my name, which was more than I could attest to. I kept my weapon drawn, thrust out commando-style before me, as he continued to approach.
"Take it easy. I don't intend any harm."
Seeing that the pilot was making an obvious effort to show that his weapon remained holstered, I lowered my plasma pistol, but kept it in my hand, pointed at the ground, safety off. He stopped a mere four feet from my position, and I heard the rev of an actuator behind me as a Legionnaire pilot shifted nervously.
"Who are you? And why the hell did you attack my lances?"
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Post by Captain Gunman [In Absentia] on Nov 6, 2004 15:30:19 GMT -5
I watched through my zoom window as Captain Maxwell, battered and bloody, conversed with the rogue unit's commander. I was confused as hell, but the lock that my machine gun array had on the enemy commander's head reassured me that any further harm he might try to inflict on the Captain would be short-lived.
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