The Mouse & the Bolide

[Eice Frex]

In orbit above the planet Vrogas Vas, in the Outer Rim...

Eice Frex guided her little pinnace along the guide-beam sent out by the Vrogas Vas space station, her hands resting lightly on the controls, feeling the thrum of the ship's twin engines as it moved through space.
Eice had acquired the ship some time before, during an escape from captivity aboard a Blackrow Hyperlogistics facility orbiting the planet Ithor. Since then, the FR.1 utility pinnace had been repainted, its transponder codes changed, and was beginning to become a real home to the diminutive pilot, and to her lone shipmate.
There was a chatter over the intercom, and Eice smiled to herself.
"We're almost there, Jeeves, don't worry. We'll get the ship refueled, and I'll get you a nice mineral lubricant bath, that sound good?"
There was a pleased-sound chatter as JV3, Eice's droid copilot, replied.
Privately, Eice hoped that splurging for a full tank of fuel and an oil bath for Jeeves was within the budget. The Tintinna hoped that the two of them could find work at their destination, or else credits were going to start getting tight. Even so, if she didn't splurge on the necessities now, she would regret not doing so.
And surely a stopover in a place like this won't lead to anything to exciting, will it?

@Insalius

 

[Henric Antilles]

How curious that the answer to his identity problem would come in the form of a mask. Henric had purchased the simple, yet intricate, piece of durasteel and plasteel that covered the top part of his face with a small cover that stopped just over the tip of his nose. There were shaded lenses for his eyes, allowing him to view normally despite the scarlet tint, and a small section on the bottom half of the mask could be extended to swing around to form a cover for the mouth and rest of the nose, making a full face mask as needed. It was a work of art, yet he was going to use it to protect his identity as best as he could when in places that the Republic might recognize him. Despite the form that looked like him still in prison, he could still be found out and his freedom revoked. For now, until he was powerful enough to not care of such things, he would need a new identity. The name eluded him for the moment, though.

Wearing the mask, which was a perfect fit, Henric found himself waiting in one of the lower parts of the space station around Vrogas Vas as he contemplated his next moves. Nearby was the business office and private dock of a ship design company, Galaxy Dynamics. He could see their prototype that they were working on, two in fact, and had to admit he quite liked the design. If they were going to be doing some tests soon, he might just stay around and watch. He was a decent hand as a pilot, but he felt even he might be able to achieve true skill in such a craft. He wondered what it's name was, or if they had even given it one yet as it hadn't been completed for production yet. He'd wait a bit longer before going over to ask, maybe he could learn something that wasn't secret about it all.

@AutoFox

 

[Eice Frex]

@Insalius

Eice set down in a hangar in one of the station's ring sections, lowering the boarding ramp of her ship and disembarking. Behind her, Jeeves clattered down as well, cranial turret rotating as he took in their surroundings.
The place looked very much like any number of stations Eice had visited before. The hangar was busy with activity, and the little Tintinna looked around at the various ships and personnel going about their tasks. After a moment, she flagged down a maintenance droid, asking it to get someone to refuel her ship, and then asking directions to the droid paddocks, where she could get Jeeves his oil bath.

Eice had dropped off Jeeves at his spa day and was headed back toward the hangar to check on her ship, when she noticed something out of the corner of her eye.
The corridor she traveled ran past the station's banks of hangars, including several which had been leased out to private organizations. Broad transparisteel observation windows looked out on all of them, and Eice found herself drawn to one in particular, which overlooked the dock facilities of the Galaxy Dynamics corporation. She walked over to the window, standing a few pace from a taller being wearing some sort of mask, though she didn't notice him at first.
The pair of craft sitting in the hangar drew her attention completely.
The two ships were delicate, graceful, and yet menacing at the same time. The design consisted of what appeared to be two large cooling vanes, linked by struts to a spherical central cockpit section. The two craft were mostly finished in bare metal, but painted on the sides of the vanes were the designations XG01B and XG01C, respectively. They looked fast, nimble and dangerous, and had visible weapons.
"...what kind of a ship is that!" Eice exclaimed, mostly to herself.

 

[Henric Antilles]

"You two are doing an amazing job! Your efforts will be able to bring our glorious vision to life! Please, put your backs into it, the first flight of our precious baby birds is nigh! Nigh, I tell you!" Director Mygard's glasses flashed as he started to laugh, hands on his hips in an exaggerated manner. The two scientists that he was talking to groaned and rolled their eyes, having both been using the Force to carry some final bits of equipment needed to fine tune their designs. "This baby bird of yours isn't going to fly nearly as far once my boot meets your ASS, Jacob!" The middle-aged woman exclaimed with irritation on her face, shaking her fist at the bespectacled man after having set the part in place on the prototype ship. The bald man who had been assisting her shook his head, face stoic but with amusement dancing in his eyes. "You know, Gladys, it's usually us Exiles that are supposed to be the ones easy to jump to anger. You ever consider a change of doctrine, to finally leave the Jedi?" The woman spun on her companion, her ire having changed it's target. Mygard sighed in relief, always glad that Roland could reign in his friend's short fuse as well as he could.

His attention shifted as he noticed the two observers at the window to their hangar. He gave a vigorous wave before running over to them, glad to be out of the potential firing line of his subordinate. He poked his head out from the door leading to the hangar, conveniently right next to the two observers, his eyes hidden by the reflective material of his glasses. "Ah, visitors! And interested ones, it seems! Welcome to our little corner of the station!" He came over and shook both of their hands vigorously, obviously passionate yet still incredibly friendly. "My name is Jacobius Valerian Mygard, but you can just call me Jacob. Or Director Mygard, if that's how you do things. Anyway, I couldn't help but notice you looking at our two prototypes! We spent all our startup money on these designs, but the tests couldn't look any better for their success! I give you, The G-01 Bolide! The next generation of starfighter! Ah, but I forget myself! To whom do I have the honor of showing off the result of our blood, sweat, and tears?"

Henric couldn't help but admire the man's enthusiasm, able to tell that he was incredibly genuine with what he was feeling thanks to some gentle probing from the Force. He had noticed the young female Tintinna who had come over to look at the ships as well, though this Director had interrupted him before he could introduce himself. Well, now he could do so to both of these people in one fell swoop. He gave a small bow before shaking the man's hand, offering his own to the Tintinna before speaking. "That's quite the introduction. It's a pleasure to meet you both. You can call me...Casval." He couldn't use his real name, mainly due to the fact that technically he was still incarcerated on a different planet. He'd always like the ring of that name, though, so it would do for the time being. "That is quite the ship you have there. I've been piloting for a while, ever since my school days, but I can just imagine how a craft like that must handle. Have they already gone through actual piloting tests, or has it just been simulations so far?"

@AutoFox

 

[Eice Frex]

@Insalius

Eice blinked in surprise as one of the beings in the hangar ran up to the observation window, and couldn't help but smile as the man introduced himself. The truth was, she was something of an amateur spacecraft designer herself; she reached up to put a hand over the spot where she kept a datacard tucked in her flight suit, glancing over at the being beside her when he spoke, noticing him specifically for the first time.

"U-Um, n-nice to meet you! Ah, both of you." She said, turning back to the man who had run up to them. She adjusted her glasses shyly. "M-My name is Eice... I've... been a pilot for a little while, I guess! But I've never seen a ship arranged like that..."

Eice took an almost involuntary step into the hangar, her gaze fixed on the delicate-looking ship.

"That's a starfighter, right? Gods it's so light! What kind of material did you use? Are those cooling vanes for the engines? Gods, are those engines integrated into them?!"

Eice was starting to gush, eyes alight with curiosity. She turned back to the Director, face flushed with excitement.

"Y-You've gotta tell me all about it!!"

 

[Henric Antilles]

"Tell you!? Why would I merely tell an obvious fan of sublime design when I can...SHOW you!" The Director pulled out two convenient guest passes from his lab coat as he emphasized his speech, glasses shining as he handed them to both Henric and Eice. He then used his own keycard to open back up the door to the hangar, bowing slightly as he held it open for his guests to enter. He seemed unusually pleased by the sudden interest in his creation and the passion seemed incredibly genuine. As the three made their way over to the two prototypes the yelling from the female technician could be heard growing louder, though the source was unclear. It would turn out that the two were on carts underneath the first prototype, apparently arguing while also working on finishing up the construction. "Yoohoo! Venerable comrades! We have some interested parties in our fine work! Feel free to introduce your storied personages as you can, while I show off the delicious, succulent fruits of your labor!"

Gladys, the woman, poked her head out from under the prototype. She glared at all three of them, but most devastatingly at the Director. "What the HELL do you mean, 'interested parties'? Have you vetted them for security? I swear to the Force, Mygard, if our design gets stolen and leaked to a sub par group like Kuat or the Corellian Engineering Corps I'm going to show you just how a lightsaber works as I CARVE YOUR MISTAKES INTO YOUR OWN SKIN!" She then looked at the two newcomers, her expression turning a bit nicer. "On the chance that you AREN'T tech thieves, then I welcome you to Galaxy Dynamics. My name is Gladys Radovic, former Jedi technician and current scientist. It's an exciting time for us, with this piece in place our prototypes are done. We're ready for live tests now." She stood up from the cart once she was fully out from under the ship, dusting off her clothes from the detritus that had managed to cover it while working.

"You know, Gladys, one day you'll follow through on your threats. Not sure if I'll laugh my ass off or be dead along with the Director." The deep voice chuckled as the last technician pushed his way out from under the prototype. Finished with his work, he took a cigar from his pocket and lit it with a flame from his finger. "And yes, welcome. My name is Roland Luka, former Exile and also current scientist. Gladys and I are the field techs for our work here, making sure everything fits right and doesn't blow up. We'll probably be the test pilots, too. As long as it's not a design secret, ask away on these babies. They're our pride and joy, hopefully the next big thing to hit the galaxy." He smiled as he took a drag of his cigar, making sure to not blow the smoke at the assembled group. Despite his intimidating stature, he seemed like a calm and nice person.

Well, that answered Henric's question. "Does it use a custom interface for the cockpit, or is it standardized with other starfighters? And about how long do you think it would take someone to learn how to fly one of these well?" He looked with a discerning eye over the outside of the ship, taking in how sleek and refined the Bolide looked. He took special note of the weaponry, seeing the varied types of firepower. He also noted the lack of a hyperdrive on the ship. Was this meant to be carried in a capitol ship to it's destination? If these were as effective as he was thinking, that could make carriers a big asset for places filled with these ships. "What's the top speed? I see they don't have hyperdrive, so I assume they're designed to be easily carried in a larger ship?"

@AutoFox

 

[Eice Frex]

Eice raised her eyebrows as a guest pass was fairly shoved into her paws, and the Director opened the door for her. As she was ushered inside and introduced to the other individuals who appeared to make up the Galaxy Dynamics design team, she smiled and greeted them nervously, recoiling shyly at the former Jedi's accusatory tirade.

"I-It's a pleasure to meet all of you!" She replied, looking around in wonder at the two ships. "These things are really something special, I-I gotta say... they look fast just standing still!!"

The Tintinna looked over at the male who had come in with her, who was asking some questions. She smiled widely, her enthusiasm getting the better of her as she answered a few of the questions herself.

"No ship that small has a hyperdrive!" She exclaimed, grinning. "A-And obviously! Look how light and compact they are... I bet they're also pretty easy to build and maintain, they're so modular!!"

Realizing what she was doing, Eice blushed fiercely, looking down at her feet in embarrassment and adjusting her glasses shyly.

"I-I'm sorry... I'm... kind of big on this kind of thing... I-I don't want to speak for the actual designers~"

@Insalius

 

[Henric Antilles]

"Don't you worry your head over that, young lady. It's always refreshing to see tech fans out there. And as for your question about the interface, it's both, in a sense. The configuration matches most current starfighter control panels, that way a pilot fresh from the academy doesn't have to worry about relearning a new setup. We took some inspiration from some Ossein visitors, though, in that the seat and consoles can be adjusted to the size of the pilot. I daresay it should even be able to fit you, young lady." Roland didn't mean to be rude by referring to how short Eice was, though he did bow his head in apology in case she did take offense. Henric could see through the front viewport at the cockpit and it did seem pretty standard. Hell, he could probably jump in right now and take off with little trouble, if he wanted. He didn't know if the thing was ready to fly yet, though, although the technicians DID say they were finally ready for field tests.

"We were going to be having the test flight in just a bit, if you want to stick around you can watch the sh-" The Director's words were cut off as an alarm klaxon suddenly went off through the station. Outside in the general concourse civilians began to run for the protected shelters on the station while outside the Ossein defense force scrambled and flew past. Jacob looked more annoyed than anything at having been interrupted, though Gladys had already grabbed a nearby datapad to see what was going on. "Pirates? AGAIN!? Looks like a corvette and a couple squadrons of whatever ships they could scrounge up. Must be Mattox's men again. I see the fool didn't learn from the last time he tried for Vrogas. Unless he has a trick up his sleeve he's just going to-"

The sound of shouting and blaster fire could be heard coming from outside the hangar. The security forces were fighting with what looked like regular civilians, though closer inspection showed them to be more rugged in feature than the usual passerby. Roland took a drag of his cigar again before putting it out, saving the rest for later in his coat. "Looks like he's trying a two-pronged attack. He doesn't have to beat the Ossein if he can take their base. Slippery little shit. And it looks like they're heading our way." Some of the pirates were trying to break in to their hangar, eyeing the new ships through the window hungrily. Roland cracked his neck and knuckles, as if getting ready for a fight. Only Mygard seemed put out by the situation. "But this is the PERFECT opportunity to test the Bolide! Combat maneuvers, weapons firing tests, the whole works! We can't do that if you two are here protecting the company...Unless..."

Gladys caught his gaze and followed it to where it had landed, on their two visitors. "NO. No, Mygard, that's a bad idea on SO many levels-" She was cut off as the pirates used a breaching charge to blow down the door, rushing in with their blasters. She sighed and grabbed her lightsaber from her toolbelt, the dual azure blades springing to life. "If they fly off with our ships or crash them, I'm carving each credit of loss out of your hide!" With that, both of the technicians leapt into the fray, holding off the pirates with surprising skill. Mygard turned to his two guests, a smile on his face as he gestured towards the prototypes.

"Well, what do you say? Do you dare to leap into the forefront of the starship design field? Does your very blood run hotter than the flames of Mustafar at the prospect of trying out the best ships in the galaxy!? I don't think you'd ever get another chance like this. I won't even need you to sign a waiver to do so. Yet, anyway. We don't have one drawn up. I'll need to put that on the to do list...Anyway, what say you, intrepid ones?" Henric had reservations about just jumping in to a ship he wasn't used to, especially a prototype that might not even work, but he looked at the fighting going on both out in space and right in front of him. It wasn't just to leave the defense of the station to it's inhabitants, not when he could help out in some way. "I'll do it, if to protect the people here above all else. Do you want to join in? I can tell you love ships, I wouldn't be surprised if you were a hot hand in the cockpit as well."

@AutoFox

 

[Eice Frex]

Eice visibly flinched as the klaxons started to go off, eyes widening as a flight of Ossein Bi-Vanes flew past the outside entrance to the hangar.

"W-What the kriff?!"

Eice seemed to ignore the approaching pirates boarding party entirely, sprinting across the hangar and stopping just short of the energy barrier which held in heat and atmosphere. She stopped short of pressing her hands to it as an excited child might a pane of transparisteel, but found herself watching the unfolding space battle intently, tensing up as the Jazaq squadron rose to meet what appeared to be a far larger force of pirate craft. Even from where she was, Eice could tell they were outnumbered; she'd heard a little about the squadron which had been contracted to defend the station, they were good, but even the most skilled pilots had their limits.

It was then that she registered what one of the engineers was saying to her, and turned to stare.

"Y-You want me to fly one of these??"

The Tintinna bit her lip, turning back to the battle outside.

Eice was still building up her confidence as a snubfighter pilot; the young rodentoid had been told by multiple people that she had potential, but wasn't quick to believe them. True, she had done what some might consider impressive flying in her brief career thus far, but combat was another matter entirely.

As she agonized over the decision, there was a flare of light from outside. A fighter had just detonated; it was impossible to tell whether it was a Jazaq or a pirate, but Eice felt a pang all the same. She turned back to the engineers.

"O-Okay, okay, I'll do it!" She called, jogging toward one of the machines. "Anything special I should know about these things?!"

 

[Henric Antilles]

Director Mygard was already tapping away at a datapad, fingers moving so furiously that it was surprising he wasn't burning a hole in the thing. "If you're used to regular starfighters, they might have quite a kick when you first take off. There's a combination of lasers and concussion missiles as the weapons loadout, as we had been planning to do weapons testing anyway. I've got the system programming down here and I'll be your flight controller. I've just uploaded the IFF programming, so our friendly Ossein shouldn't try to shoot you down." He smiled, not looking up from his datapad as he worked. Behind him came the sounds of lightsaber slicing through flesh and fists meeting faces. It seemed the two technicians weren't unused to combat, either.

Henric climbed up the mobile staircase leading to the cockpit hatch of the Bolide, easing himself down into the seat and seeing firsthand what kind of controls there were. It truly was customizable, a welcome change from most starfighters he had used before, and after just a moment he had a configuration that would work well for him set up. The displays and controls were very similar indeed to his previous training, all systems showing green as he went through his mental checklist of what needed to be activated. As the comms system came to life, he heard the Director's voice again. "...Looks to be all set, for the both of you. You're free to launch when ready. These pirates will never be able to see what will hit them. Their ends are nigh! Nigh, I tell you!" Henric smirked at the man's words, his own blood starting to get a bit heated at what was happening. It was almost like a dream come true. "Well then...It's time to fly, Bolide. Casval, taking off!" The ship lurched forward with the force that the Director had mentioned, the thrust impressing the wayward Antilles. It was within his training to control, though, and soon he found himself out in space. He slowed a bit so that his companion could join him, then headed towards the battle. Sometimes all it took were a couple of forces to turn a battle from one side's favor to another.

@AutoFox

 

[Eice Frex]

Eice flashed the engineer a thumbs-up, clambering up the boarding latter into the cockpit of the little fighter. She dropped into the cockpit, which may have been considered claustrophobic by some races, but for Eice's Tintinna physiology it hardly bothered her.

"O-Okay! I'll try not to crash it or anything!!"

Eice quickly looked over the controls, and indeed, found much of it familiar. The little Tintinna also found that they were easy to configure for her own size and preferences, and did so as she went through a brief pre-flight checklist. Everything was well laid out and superbly engineered...

"O-Okay! Let's see if I can do this... Eice Frex, taking off!"

Eice keyed the repulsor controls, lifting the lightly built fighter off the deck, before pushing up the throttle, bringing the twin small engines to life. The Tintinna gave a squeak of alarm as she was pressed back in her seat, the inertial compensators not quite able to keep up as the ship rocketed out of the hangar and into space...

 

[Henric Antilles]

It was exhilarating to be flying again, even moreso against live targets. When in the academy the worst he had fought were mock battles with lasers only strong enough to paint a target, that way there weren't any mishaps. That was definitely not the case here, and Henric was beginning to think he might have missed his calling. These were thoughts he would have to focus on later, though, as considering one's life choices was not a good decision to do in a starfighter battle. It didn't take long to get used to the controls and the timing turned out to be fortuitous, as one of the Ossein defenders banked in front of him with two pirates on his tail. Thoughts of glory or just about anything else seeped out of his head, instead replaced with a simple desire to try to save the man's life. He didn't know them, would probably never actually meet them, but it was his desire nonetheless. He turned to trail the enemy ships, marveling at how maneuverable the Bolide was as he got into position.

The pirates must have been completely focused on trying to get their kill that they didn't even notice the new, strange ship behind them. His piloting skills coming back with each movement, he saw he had lined up a shot and took the chance to fire. The medium dual-barrel laser cannons shot true, tearing through the enemy craft like a hot knife through butter. There wasn't even much kick from the weapon either, the ship staying near perfectly level as it unloaded it's burning payload. That made it easy to take advantage of the sudden jerking movement of the second fighter to line up a second shot, turning the other craft into slag and freeing the Ossein from his deadly tails. Henric didn't stick around for praise, there was a battle to fight. He kept an eye on his sensors, noticing another group of Ossein that were needing some help. His focus would be on saving the lives of his allies, veering off to aid them. He wondered if Eice were doing the same, and how she was faring. He could tell she was talented, though, and had probably already gotten even more than he had by now.

@AutoFox

 

[Eice Frex]

Eice rocketed out of the hangar, quickly getting herself acquainted with the Bolide's controls and performance, putting the craft through a few light maneuvers once she reached open space. The craft was exceptionally maneuverable, she found; the wing-mounted engines allowed it to spin around its center of gravity, and Eice put the ship into a twirl, briefly forgetting the reason she was flying.

Suddenly, though, there was a tone from her targeting computer, and she came back to reality.

"Kriff... there's a lot of them! I think they came with the intention of taking the Jazaq head on!"

As Eice spoke, there was a crackle over the comm, and another voice made itself heard.

"This is Jazaq Risa of the Vrogas Vas Defense Force! Who is this?! What are you doing on the combat channel!!"

Eice gave an involuntary squeak, realizing that the Jazaq of the defense force could hear her; the techs must have put her and Casval's comm system on the same frequency as the defenders. That would make coordinating easier, but she wished someone had mentioned it!

"Ah! U-Um... uh...!"

Eice suddenly remembered something, and her eyes grew wide as she replied.

"Th-This is Jazaq Eice, launching from the... uh..."

Eice realized she had never gotten the name of the entity developing the Bolide. She hunted desperately for a manufacturer's mark, and found one stamped above the view-port.

"...uh, the Galaxy Dynamics hangar!"

There was a half-second pause, and the Jazaq pilot replied.

"Jazaq, eh? Well, heads up, pilot! Show us what you can do!"

Eice looked up on some preternatural instinct, and her eyes widening again as she saw a pirate starfighter - some ugly, hand-built thing likely out of an outlaw shipyard - angling in on her. She gritted her teeth, maneuvering her own ship in a snap motion, fingers jamming on the firing studs of her weapons and sending a fusillade of laser bolts into the other spacecraft. It blossomed immediately in a fireball.

Too flush with adrenaline to dwell on it at that moment, Eice pushed up the throttle and carried on toward the "fur-ball" that was forming between the Jazaq and the pirates. Only later would she realize that she had just made her first ship-to-ship kill in a starfighter.

It would not be her last.

 

[Henric Antilles]

Three, four, five ships down now, in this engagement. All in the defense of his fellow pilots, doing his best to make sure they all came home safe and sound. He didn't know why that was so important to him, but that was a thought line for later. He was really starting to get into the mindset of a combat pilot, the subtle movements, the hunt for the next target, the spatial awareness to know where the enemy was, all this and more was starting to ingrain itself into his mind. Already his actions had been starting to pay off as well, one of the Ossein he had helped out had taken out a pirate that had tried to slip onto his tail. A situation he hoped to never place himself in again, but he was grateful nonetheless. He could hear the comm chatter over their connection, having introduced himself when not in the process of blowing another enemy to bits, and now fell into formation with some of the others as they returned to the fight.

The Corvette, though, was a problem. It had hung back for the fight, as if the captain were cocky in the chances that his ships had against the defenders. Now the tide was turning, which meant he was bringing in his ship to make up for the lost forces. Henric recognized that type of ship, though, as one he had learned about in the academy. The power generator was close to the engine block, a flaw that those unused to such ships didn't know and even some owners weren't fully aware of. He hoped it would be the latter, in this case. "We need to take out that Corvette. I know that type, if we can damage the engines, we should be able to take out it's power source." He wasn't going to leave such a task to others, though, as that wasn't a just thing to do. He began to turn away from the dogfight to curve around the Corvette, aiming to get at it's engine himself. He hoped he would have backup, but even if not his missiles should have a good effect on what he wanted to do. Provided he could dodge the incoming fire first. He'd try his best to do that, as he wasn't planning on dying today.

@AutoFox

 

[Eice Frex]

Eice gritted her teeth, maneuvering deftly around the whizzing and swirling pirate starfighters as she entered the nekfight, engine exhaust flaring in a pair of long green tails behind her. One unlucky pirate strayed across her flight path, and a burst of laser fire turned his ship into a rolling fireball tumbling off into space.

"Splash two!"

Gone was the Tintinna's stuttering and lack of confidence. She felt as if she were part of her machine; there, at the edge of her awareness, she could almost feel the wires, servos, c-boards and metal that made up the ship, reacting to her every impulse on the controls. It was unlike anything she had felt before, a sense of power in her environment. Here, in this place, at this moment, it didn't matter that she was small, or that she was just getting her footing in the Galaxy...

Here, she was strong.

Eice fell in behind another fighter almost effortlessly, trying for a more precise shot this time. A pair of bolts lanced out from her cannons, converging on one of her quarry's outrigger engines, hollowing it out. With unequal thrust, the ship - some kind of home-built creation consisting of a scavenged freighter cockpit, a skeleton of welded durasteel tubes and a collection of components mounted inside - spun out of control, eventually colliding with yet another enemy vessel.

The young pilot felt a surge of triumph, grinning widely.

"Splash four! Old gods, this ship is amazing!!"

At that, Casval's message came over the comm, and Eice looked up, seeing the pirate corvette which had likely carried most of the fighters into battle. She reached over to adjust her targeting computer, nodding to herself.

"I'll follow you in, then circle around! We'll each do a pass from a different direction!"

 

[Henric Antilles]

"Copy that. I'm going in!" The adrenaline was coursing through his system as Henric turned to start making his approach to the corvette's engine. Turret fire and what remaining pirate ships were now coming at him, though his ability to dodge was limited as he worked to line up the shot he needed. He was almost taken out by some surprisingly skilled opponents, though before they could fire a few shots came from behind him to end their threat. The Antilles recognized his savior ships as the ones he had rescued just earlier in the fight. So this was how it felt to be a pilot, to be part of a team and to have someone looking after your back as you looked after theirs. This feeling was strange, yet also seemed to resonate with something deep inside him. It all became clearer, his mind sharper, and he used this sudden flash of ability to line up his targeting system for his missiles.

"Missiles, fire!" Henric said aloud as his targeting computer finished locking on, thumbing the fire button to unleash all of his projectiles at the sweet spot in the engines. He didn't stay around to see if they hit, as at this distance it was possible he could be caught in more turret fire or the blast of his own attack. He veered up slightly, flying over the corvette's superstructure to use his lasers to fire at the offending weapon that the ship kept targeting him with. At the very least his shots managed to damage it, meaning those following him should have an easier time with their own attack runs. Keeping an eye out for threats from behind, he flew off ahead to make ready to turn around. If needed, he'd make an attack run at the bridge as well.

@AutoFox

 

[Eice Frex]

Eice skimmed along the corvette's belly, taking the time to fire at a ventral turret that had the gall to turn and engage her. She swerved around the fireball, again impressed by her little fighter's extreme maneuverability.

"Stay loose, your ship can handle it! I'm on target!"

The Tintinna gritted her teeth, her senses again flaring to encompass the ship. She felt like she could sense every part, every energy variance, to a degree she had never even imagined. It wasn't the ship, she was dimly aware; there was something more going on here, something more going on with her.

She re-focused her attention as she came up on the engine cluster at the stern of the corvette.

"Firing missiles!"

Eice's rack-mount concussion missiles flashed from their mountings, arcing down into the durasteel of the engine casings. Orange, blue and green fireballs blossomed, and the entire corvette seemed to shudder. Eice, meanwhile, dodged away to avoid the conflagration, rolling her ship and giving a cheer even as she set up for another pass, just to be sure.

"Direct hits! They won't be going anywhere!"

 

[Henric Antilles]

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Henric's elation at taking down the corvette was shortlived as he spied three fighters take off from the corvette as it was rocked with missiles, the one in front quite a bit nicer than any of the others that had been on the pirate's side so far this fight. It wasn't a leap of logic to see this was their leader, their trajectory showing they were trying to escape. At first Henric was of the mind to just let them go, that there had been enough fighting. Then he remembered Gladys' words, that they had come back from a previous attempt. That meant he would just keep coming back stronger and stronger until he finally got what he wanted. How many people would be hurt? How many would die? There was no justice in letting them escape, he had to end this now. He didn't have much time, yet somehow he knew he could do it. His mind flashed again as he turned his ship to go after them, able to see in his mind's eye what was being displayed on his targeting computer. It was like he had become one with the machine he was flying in, accelerating to full speed in a streak of scarlet from his engines.

He caught up to the first two easily, his ship outclassing theirs greatly. A few shots brought them down, though this made the leader try to accelerate himself to safety. Henric only had seconds, yet in his head time seemed to slow down immensely. He flashed back to his academy days and his piloting instructor, Renaldo Amalfi. Ren had been broken by the conflict on Ilum, his innocent desire to fly through space as bright and fast as a comet unable to handle the death of his friends one by one. His dream was shattered, just like his mind, and Henric was one of the few that knew he had two personalities in his head now, an innocent one and a brutal one. Thinking about his situation, the Antilles realized he was realizing the man's dream for him. He had admired Renaldo, so even if he never met him again he was happy to be honoring him in this way. He was true to the name of his ship right now, a Scarlet Bolide, and this all culminated into a final series of shots just as the pirate leader started up his hyperdrive engines. Henric had been just the quicker on the draw, the shots hitting home before the jump could be made. He let out a breath he hadn't known he had been holding. Decelerating to not lose any more fuel, he turned around without a second thought to return to the main battle. There might be more targets that needed mopping up.

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[Eice Frex]

Eice cursed as she saw a trio of ships launch from the stricken corvette, but Casval seemed to be on it, burning after them with murderous intent. Eice felt a pang for the unfortunate pirates in spite of herself; the other pilot was good, very good, and the pirates were not likely to escape.

Meanwhile, Eice busied herself mopping up the few other enemy fighters which remained. She splashed two more, but as she was lining up on a third, she heard a voice over the comm, staticky and panicked.

"I give up, I give up! Kriff, don't shoot!"

Eice maintained target lock, but held her fire.

"Yeah? Why stop now!"

The pirate's voice came again. Eice noticed that the remaining fighters were milling around, trying to keep out of range of the Ossein but not looking for ways to engage them.

"Our corvette is dead in space, and our captain is dead. We can't win now, we surrender!!"

Eice, sagging in her pilot seat, breathed a sigh of relief.

"All of you, power down your weapons! The Ossein pilots will tell you where to go. No tricks!"

There was another voice from the comm; it was the Ossein squadron leader this time.

"Way to put this on us, Jazaq! Alright, you scum, fall in and make for docking bay 4 on the station! We'll escort you in, so don't try anything dumb!"

Eice didn't think there would be any more resistance, and indeed, the pirates complied. They fell into formation, making for the specified hangar. Eice, meanwhile, got on the comm to Casval. Her voice was joyful.

"They're giving up! Good work!!"

 

[Henric Antilles]

Henric smiled as the battle ended, the remaining pirates being escorted to the stated docking bay. He suddenly felt drained, perhaps an after effect of the adrenaline in his system, but he managed to not pass out. They had to return to their own docking bay, which was suddenly loaded into his navicomputer as if by magic. That was probably that strange Director who did that. It seemed like the man had a flair for the dramatic, but after having built such a ship as the Bolide, perhaps it was warranted. "Understood. Let's return to the docking bay, I'm sure our new friends would like to see their ships returned safe and sound." He still had a smile on his face as he spoke, guiding the ship back in just as gracefully as they had taken off. Once he was sure he had settled it down correctly, and that Eice's ship had also landed, He would pop the hatch to climb out.

The sight that greeted him was rather surprising. Scorch marks from blaster fire and lightsaber combat that were slowly being cleaned up by Roland. The large man had a standard mop bucket and was whistling a catchy tune as he cleaned up the...well, it had to be blood, with that hue of crimson. Gladys was nowhere to be found, while the Director was eagerly going through his data that had been compiled during the fight. He seemed completely gone from the world, lost in the datapad, so Roland was the one who decided to welcome them back. "Welcome back you two. You guys did damn fine out there. Ol' Mygard here is probably in paradise right now with that performance. Gladys went off to talk to the station admins and report things on our side, she should be back when done. Until then, feel free to take a load off. These thugs were a bit more prepared than I thought, but we still beat their asses good. So, how'd you like the Bolide?"

Henric still found he couldn't stop smiling, the light of the hangar glinting off the crimson lenses of the mask he wore. "While I may not be an expert on every type of starfighter out there, I haven't been in one that had the maneuverability or the raw acceleration that the Bolide has. It responds quickly to the commands of it's pilot and I feel like I've only scratched the surface of what it can do. In the hands of a truly ace pilot, I think a squad of these could turn the tide of any battle. I wish I could keep flying, though. I haven't felt that alive in years." Roland nodded, though he also rubbed his chin with one hand as if thinking. He looked over at Mygard silently for a few moments before looking at Eice, awaiting her responsed.

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