Pirates, a not-so-natural disaster
09 Feb 2023Bravo Orionis
Following the exhaustive efforts of the last system invasion, the most battle weary, as well as decorated Flights and Groups were able to rotate back to core systems for some R&R. Leaving the MCN The Spirit of Myakka in Tach Ts'ao on enforcement patrols, I was able to secure transport back to Matyar with the Grim Reapers, the saltiest FAS Attack Group in the MatCon Navy. Their aging older model Federal Assault Ships of the Navy were recently up gunned and up engineered and have been proving their worth in planetary assaults. If the Heavy Assault Marines would ever bother to look up during their base assaults, they would see the Grim Reapers are there, using their superior maneuverability and accurate firepower to shred any spaceborne threats to the ground assault teams.
Immediately upon coming out of hyperspace into local Matyar Home Space, the General Alert was sounded. Pirates from the nearby Cothara system had been raiding the shipping lanes when most of the enforcement assets available were pulled to support the Tach Ts'ao invasion. The security force absence emboldened the scurvy pirates, who began raiding the cargo vessels that were forced to fend for themselves.
The 'Reapers carried out interdiction patrols in the shipping lanes, destroying scores of pirate ships, repatriating stolen goods, while refitting and rearming at the local stations until the carriers arrived to support the ops.
I was invited to pilot one of the most advanced models of FAS the Group had so far received from Fleet HQ. My first flight was marred with technical failure. Power module priorities had been mismanaged by a tech at the last servicing, causing massive system failures immediately upon deploying weapons and data scanners. I was very lucky to have an experienced FAS pilot as a wingman, who guided me through the power module priorities list, correcting the errors and finally getting the system and the ship back online. As this was happening, the FAS was getting pummeled by pirate rails. The superior armor of the FAS won the day, as I was finally able to get the ship powered back up and with the shields up and the weapons systems functioning, I was able to make short work of the scurvy little Python pilot and his crew.
After nearly a week of non-stop interdiction patrols, and Close Surface Support missions, it seems that there has been little change in the system status. The pirates seem to have grip on this system like a jackalhound on a bone.
