Captain's Log: Day two of the war
10 Oct 2021Pon Pon
Well, we're on the back foot now.Yesterday, CMDR IkerzTheMage and I were out in LTT 4447, blasting away at the FedRecCo ships in CZs. I was in my Chieftan, and they, their Vulture. Apparently, though, it wasn't enough. Let's go into a summary of how things went.
CMDR Ikerz and I met up in the combat zone above planet 2, right near where the SWS//Lockheart is orbiting. Things weren't too hot there, so we were able to push back wave over wave of FedRecCo reinforcements. My shields dropped more times than I cared to count, but through some tactical maneuvering, I could get my shields back up. Usually, just by taking a beat somewhere with less laser fire, though there were a few times I managed to stay in the fight long enough for my shields to recharge.
CMDR Ikerz, on the other hand, did have a close run-in with death in the middle of the battle. We were engaged with, I think, a Federal Assault Ship, when Ikerz's shields popped. A short time later, their canopy went as well. "I'll stay in the fight," came over the comms, so I focused my multicannons onto the guy we were fighting. After finishing him off, Ikerz and I low-waked out of there, bound for repairs and ammo from the SWS//Lockheart. We dropped in around 8km out, and I saw Ikerz boost into range to make a docking request.
"C'mon, cmon... I've got 30 seconds of life support left."
"Oh crap, is your canopy blown?"
"Yeah. I hope I make it... 15 seconds left."
We counted down together in unison.
"Fourteen. Thirteen. Twelve. Eleven. Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six."
"Five. Four. Three. Two. One."
"Zero."
I didn't hear a sound from CMDR Ikerz at that point. Whether that was because there wasn't air in their helmet for sound waves to travel in, or if they had passed out, I didn't know. Until...
"Haaaaah! I made it!"
Deep breaths came over the comms, as the emergency repair crew descended on the front of Ikerz's Vulture and oxygen was restored.
"Cutting it a little fine, eh?" I couldn't help but comment. Not that CMDR Ikerz was in any state to respond, I could hear their relieved blubbering over comms as the medics tried to calm them down.
On the topic of canopy blowouts, I also had my first one in that CZ yesterday. Ikerz was deemed fit to continue fighting, so after we resupplied from the carrier it was back to battle for the both of us. Towards the end of our stint, again in combat with a chunky-looking Federal Navy ship, it was my turn to watch the viewscreen crack, then pop from the internal pressure. I kept blasting, now in an eerie silence despite expecting to hear the thundering of multicannons and the whine of lasers. Targeting was left to the computer, as without a canopy there was next to no surface for the HUD to project onto, but when I saw gouts of flame erupt from my target I knew it was safe for me to pull out. The Chieftans, and others in Lakon's Alliance line, are notorious for their canopy blowouts, so I wasn't to surprised when it happened. Let's just say that yesterday, I was glad to have not skimped on emergency life support.
Overall, though, despite our valiant effort, the Sidewinder Syndicate is on the back foot in LTT 4447. We're still mobilizing though, and today I helped take control of a base in a surface conflict. From what I can tell, the war on the ground is going well, so with a few more pilots in the sky, we'll have the upper hand. As for the other conflicts, the polls from Cocorix are looking good despite the worrying shortness of time since the last election, and we've gotten orders to ignore the wars in Naitis and 53 Virginis. I do wonder why we're ignoring those two, but I suppose antagonizing a third faction isn't in our best interests right now.
Anyways, everything is on pause right now. The Scouting Initiative called a halt on activities in favour of supporting the elections in Cocorix, and the other internal team I'm a part of deals with stuff like the conflicts in Cocorix and LTT 4447 all the time so the war is our primary goal from that angle. Overall, we've pulled through in the past, and so long as I fly the Sidewinder Syndicate colours, I won't let us lose this war without a fight.