Blue Milk Run

[Toland Vult]

theme dice thread​

Toland stared out the viewport of his starfighter at the distant stars as the blinked in the inky black sky. While many of the Imperial soldiers he had previously worked with found space incredibly daunting and scary, Toland found it rather calming. No matter where you were in the Galaxy, one could always glimpse at the depths of space and find tranquility.

However, there was little time for stargazing today. A dreadful warlord named Xorvo controlled the Sullust sector with an iron fist for eight years, and now the oppressed people were fighting back. Vult, with Devrim as his wingman, were tasked with escorting a convoy of freighters bearing food and medical supplies to support them. There was no way that the Nagi warlord would ever let such an insurgents undermine his absolute authority, and would show no mercy in wiping out all signs of opposition. It was likely the rebels would run into a patrol squadron, but they were prepared to fight back.

As Toland casually alternated between scanning his viewport and checking his onboard omni-directional scanner, his brow furrowed slightly as a unique thought occurred to him. "Hey Devrim," he relayed, "do you think we can use the Force in space?" It was a bizarre idea, but now Toland was eager to test his theory.

@Vosrik​

 

[Devrim Wolfe]

For their mission today, Devrim was aboard his brand new Ophanium-class Starship, which he named the Enceladus. His efforts in aiding the Galactic Alliance also hadn't gone unnoticed — he'd been rewarded with a Borstal Defense Heavy Cannon for his starship. Of course, Devrim was seriously lacking in the skills required to install it himself, despite being quite the jack-of-all-trades. Thankfully, knowing people came in handy for that sort of situation, as another rebel specialized in engineering and mechanical work. Eisa Swan had proved herself to be immensely skilled despite her young age, as with the help of her little droid she had perfectly installed the heavy cannon in a fixed position right near the cockpit of the Enceladus. This was the first time Devrim would be able to test it out — at least, if they ran into any difficulties along the way.

However, the sidecar light cannon was currently unmanned for the escort. Toland was in his own starfighter for the assignment, which would be much more useful for a dogfight should one break out. For now though, Devrim was relaxing with music playing in the background as he lounged in the pilot's seat. Toland's voice crackled through the comms, and he asked a rather unique question that clearly showed he had been daydreaming a little. The former extremist didn't judge, things were rather boring at the moment. "In space?" he replied, thinking for a moment as he analyzed the question. "I don't see why not." Devrim scowled a bit as he wondered what that would look like. One could cause some serious damage like that — even unhooking a few pipes or hoses from outside a ship could cause catastrophic damage. "I wouldn't trust myself to be able to pilot and attempt it," he commented further.

While Devrim would have continued pondering the subject, proximity alerts flashed on his ship's navicomputer. Swiveling his chair around, the screen displayed that there were incoming fighters. "I'm picking up oncoming ships. Could be hostile," Devrim relayed to Toland, switching from casual into a tactical mindset. He always knew dogfights had a whole other level of danger than on foot. Sure enough, two starfighters were approaching quickly from Sullust's orbit. ♦ Opening up a channel to hail the ships, Devrim spoke into the comms. "Come in, inbound fighters. Please state your business or change your course." Peering out of his viewport, the rebel watched to see if they would break off or maintain their rate of approach. So far, they weren't slowing down.

@Shalken​

 

[Toland Vult]

combat theme​

Toland shrugged at Devrim's response — a rather useless gesture in retrospect, as his companion was unable to see it. "Perhaps. I wouldn't use it during evasive maneuvers, but if the opportunity presented itself I think it would be worth a shot." In the end, the only way he'd be able to find out was if he tried.

BWEEP-BWEEP
BWEEP-BWEEP

Maybe I'll get a chance to do so quite soon, Toland mused as the Linecutter-class fighter's sensors flashed to alert its pilot of the two approaching unidentified craft. Eying them suspiciously, Toland kept a steady hand on his controls as Devrim hailed the two incoming RX-3 fighters. Since the two Rebels were the only escort assigned for this mission, it was highly unlikely the newcomers were here to provide reinforcements. "Escort to convoy, we've got two bogeys incoming. Raise defenses and prepare for attack," Vult relayed to the freighter. It was unlikely they would be targeted first, but it certainly didn't hurt to be prepared nonetheless. "Roger that, diverting auxiliary power to deflector shields." Toland broke away from the convoy's formation, aligning his ship to face the two incoming interceptors.

Ignoring Devrim's hail, the two opposing fighters immediately opened fire on the rebels, attempting an Interceptor's Slash. Prepared for and expecting such a simple maneuver, Toland instantly reacted, barrel rolling to his right out of harm's way of the heavy laser bolts. Not having reached his maximum acceleration, he was now in an excellent position to initiate a perfect Crosscurrent.♦ Engaging thrusters, Toland opened fire on the closest fighter as it flew by. Lacking proper defenses against direct attack, the interceptor's engine and fuel stores ignited rapidly, ripping the small craft to shreds; however, the force from the resulting explosion knocked Toland's Linecutter off course, forcing him to focus on regaining control.♦ Though he had taken no damage, he was now wide open for a counterattack from the second fighter if it went unscathed and managed to loop around for a second Slash.

@Vosrik​

 

[Devrim Wolfe]

Having the safety of the freighter in mind, Devrim heard his wingman relaying a warning to the freighter carrying valuable supplies for the people of Sullust. Hearing the acknowledgement from the freighter's pilot allowed the rebel to breathe easy, knowing that it would force the oncoming pilots to have to focus on Devrim and Toland instead. Their duty was to get the food and medical supplies to Sullust, even if that meant that they should die for the cause. Putting that thought behind him, however, the rebel pilot whirled into action as the RX-3 fighters completely ignored his hail, although not surprisingly so. The dogfight started off magnificently with Toland already blasting one of the oncoming starfighters into oblivion. "I've got him," Devrim stated in reference to the second RX-3 that flew past his wingman's Linecutter. Pressing down on the newly installed triggers, the pilot of the Enceladus opened fire with the Borstal Defense Heavy Cannon.

Devrim simply couldn't help the shiver that went up and down his spine and caused goosebumps to appear as he literally felt the power behind the laser cannon. However, he was unused to the fire rate of the weapon and completely missed the enemy pilot during his first Slash maneuver, roaring past the freighter and rebel escorts. ♦ Devrim's Enceladus was slower than the rest of the fighters present and possessed only average maneuverability, but he had time to wheel it around to face the oncoming RX-3 once again. Now with the opportunity to properly lock onto his target, Devrim unleashed the unbridled firepower again which tore through the opposing ship. ♦ The rewarding light show from the explosion passed over the cockpit's viewports of the rebel's personal ship, scrambling his sensors.

"I doubt those were the last of them — Toland, my scanners are down for a moment. Do we have more coming?" he asked of his wingman. Hopefully Toland would be able to find any others in the vicinity and inform Devrim before he was caught defenseless to their attack.

@Shalken​

 

[Toland Vult]

Although Toland's Linecutter had been knocked aside, he was able to regain control just in time to see the second RX-3 sweep around and get blasted into oblivion by Devrim's brand-new heavy laser cannon. "Good shot!" he called out in awe. The gun's raw power was a formidable sight to behold, and Vult was beginning to consider acquiring a ship of his own just to be able to mount a similar weapon. However, Devrim did not emerge from his skirmish unscathed either, as the resulting explosion caused the Enceladus' sensors to go haywire momentarily.

Hearing his friend's plight, Toland realigned himself with the nearby planet and punched his ship's directional scanner. Sure enough, three more enemy fighters showed up on his sensors. "Heads up, we have three more incoming. They're a few klicks off, but approaching fast," he relayed to the rest of the convoy. As to why the two groups had spaced themselves out, Toland was initially unsure of; however, as the three new ships drew near enough to be identified, Toland understood why. The vanguard were flying interceptors and had sped far ahead of the other three, composed of two RX-4s and led by a dangerous-looking XS-109. All three were equipped with shielding, meaning they could take a fair bit of damage before going down. "I've got a lock on them. Missile out," Toland relayed as he punched the control to release a concussion rocket at the gunship, hoping that all three would be caught in the blast. Unfortunately his initial aim was off, causing the missile to zoom past harmlessly. Though the rocket would continue to track them, it would take some time for it to loop around and continue its pursuit.♦

Unperturbed by this setback, Toland began evasive action in order to avoid taking damage as they entered another attack run. Realizing he had little room to escape fire entirely, the rebel soldier engaged in a Gadder's spin, calming his nerves and allowing the Force to guide him. Focusing on one of the RX-4s, Vult's counterattack proved extremely successful, cutting through both the enemy fighter's shields and the cockpit, destroying it.♦ However, by flying so close to his target again, Toland was knocked off course like before, forcing him to spin as he tried to regain control before their opponents could counterattack.♦ I need to stop doing that, Toland admonished himself internally as he cranked hard on the throttle.

@Vosrik​

 

[Devrim Wolfe]

”Thanks,” Devrim replied to his fellow rebel wingman’s compliment. He hoped that it had been the last of the fighters that had come to destroy the freighter and rebel escort, but Toland’s warning told him otherwise. Wheeling the Enceladus around to face the new trio of threats, Devrim pushed his thrusters forward to attack velocity to meet the oncoming fighters. With how quickly the two rebels managed to destroy the vanguard of RX-3s, it was likely that these opponents would be far more cautious in their attack strategy. But this time, Devrim and Toland decided to strike first. As the former Imperial’s starfighter was much faster than the dark-haired rebel’s ship, he engaged first by launching a missile and utilizing a Gadder’s Spin to evade enemy shots and counterattack. Devrim watched, impressed, as the maneuver worked and one of the RX-4s exploded in a burst of red and yellow.

Returning his gaze to his own targeting screens, the former rebel extremist decided to utilize his gun’s firepower where it was needed most — on the ominous-looking XS-109. The gunship bristled with heavy guns of its own, and would need to be stopped before it came anywhere close to the freighter carrying the vital supplies for Sullust. As he primed his weapon, Devrim paused for a moment to consider how vile it was for the warlord to send ships and resources to outright destroy ships carrying aid for his own people. This thought further steeled the rebel’s resolve, and he firmly pressed the controls to fire his Borstal Cannon. Something short-circuited in the system — perhaps a problem in the power supply or something to do with the debris he flew through, but the heavy cannon locked up and refused to fire. ♦ ”Blast it, c’mon!” Devrim growled, realizing he was completely in the line of fire from the gunship. Weaving his Enceladus, he was unable to completely miss the oncoming firepower, which overpowered his deflector screen and blasted into his ship. ♦ Warning lights flared up all over his cockpit, and Devrim had to force himself to stay calm. ”Toland, I need you to cover me, I’ve been hit bad,”

Running diagnostics, the rebel’s controls revealed that his engines had been damaged, slowing his ship down. Activating his autopilot controls, he set his ship’s course to orbit the supply freighter. Feeling the Enceladus move without aid, Devrim extracted himself from the pilot’s chair and sprinted out of the cockpit toward the sidecar. Arriving not long afterward, he jumped into the seat and activated the dual light cannons. While the rebel had minimal control over his ship from here, the threat of the final RX-4 and XS-109 needed to be eliminated as soon as possible.

@Shalken​

 

[Toland Vult]

Though Toland's attack was off to a fairly good start, Devrim had fared much poorer, with his primary gun failing and his shields going down and taking damage to the Enceladus' engine. Despite his harrowing situation, Wolfe made the best of it, setting his ship to orbit the freighter and getting into his turret sidecar. "I'll do my best, just focus fire on that gunboat!" he shouted over the comms as he cranked hard on his ship to bring it back under control. However, the missile he had fired earlier had just looped around. It seemed both rebels' luck had run out, as the rocket shot past the gunboat and detonated, missing its target entirely. Though Toland finally got a handle on his ship, a wave of concussive energy washed over his ship, knocking out his sensors.♦

Gritting his teeth, Toland urged his ship into motion once again, aiming for the back of the gunboat. Opening fire on the menacing ship, Toland managed to take out its shields, leaving it defenseless against further attacks.♦ However, the other RX-4 rushed in to assist the XS-109, launching a barrage against Toland. Despite his sensors being scrambled, he was able to spot the enemy fighter's vector of attack, and barrel rolled completely out of the line of fire, avoiding damage entirely.♦ "That was close," Toland breathed in momentary relief. "The XS is wide open, Devrim! Hit it with everything you've got!" Things looked grim, but if they could hold out for just a bit longer while pressing the attack, they could gain the upper hand.

@Vosrik​

 

[Devrim Wolfe]

Toland's voice coming through the comms was a reassurance to Devrim — they were still in this together, despite the harrowing situation they were faced against. The rebel had a huge field of vision from inside the sidecar made of mostly transparisteel, and he winced as he saw his wing man get caught by the edge of the blast of his missile. However, Toland carried on nonetheless and landed several hits on the XS-109's shields, disabling them completely. Hearing the confirmation from the rebel who'd just managed to barrel roll away from the RX-4's line of fire, Devrim targeted the gunboat and opened fire with his dual cannons. He swore loudly as one of the side panels of the sidecar burst into flames, sparking incessantly and preventing him from shooting at the XS-109. ♦

"It seems the Force isn't with me today," he muttered, swiveling in his chair to fix the panel. As soon as he opened up the panel, Devrim was immediately able to see the problem and reconnected the loose wires. ♦ "I'll need to speak with whoever looked over my ship, they're leaving me dead in the water here!" Returning his attention to the controls, he fired the laser cannons once again. Finally, the shots blasted toward the gunship and Devrim's aim was true — they impacted the cockpit and blasted a hole into the ship. ♦ Whoever was occupying the XS-109 clearly wasn't dressed for the vacuum of space as the gunship slowed to a halt and simply drifted away.

"I got it!" Devrim confirmed over the comms to his fellow rebel. "Let's take out that last fighter and get out of here. I need to fix this thing up." Wheeling the sidecar in the direction of the RX-4, the dark-haired rebel began targeting it and prepared to shoot another volley at the opposing starship. If all went well, the warlord would not have his victory today.

@Shalken​

 

[Toland Vult]

Steering clear of the fight, Toland looped his ship around to avoid his earlier mistake of getting caught in a blast radius yet again. Looking back, he waited eagerly as Devrim was lined up with the perfect shot to take out the gunship as it reeled from taking damage. However, the guns on the Enceladus remained silent for far longer than they should have. "Don't tell me those guns are down too!" Toland cried out in exasperation. "Isn't that ship brand new?" Luckily, Devrim's many years of surviving the deadly jungles of Dxun gave him the quick thinking and skills necessary to repair the blown circuits, fixing the gun and destroying the XS-109's cockpit, instantly killing the pilot. Two down, one to go.

Seeing the Enceladus redirect its now-functioning guns, the RX-4 scrambled to evade away, but was unable to avoid the attention of both Rebel fighters. Locking on to his new target, Toland unleashed a final volley of bolts, peppering its underside and detonating its fuel cells.♦ Letting out a cry of exultation, Toland quickly aligned his ship to the planet once more, glad to see his sensors back online. Punching the directional scanner, he was pleased to find that there were no more enemy starships approaching the convoy. They had fought hard against the Warlord's forces, and emerged victorious. Breathing a sigh of relief, Toland broadcasted to the freighter, "That was the last of them — we're good to go." Despite Xorvo's best efforts, his dreadful grip on the system would be torn away from him by the Galactic Alliance. "Hey Devrim, maybe you should consider finding a copilot," Toland joked over the comms. "Then you'd be able to fix your guns and fly at the same time."

Fin​