Anime Discussion Thread - Page 2229

#3 Generation Change
March 14, 2001. United States of America. Virginia, Hampton Langley AFB/Fort Eustis

As the Giant Hangar doors slowly parted ways, "they" stepped out gracefully in unison with unnatural silence and uniformality. Basking in the sunlight, the entire taxi runway was filled with celebratory cheering, whistling, and thunderous applause.

There were the necessary ground crew, off duty air traffic controllers, pilots, mechanics, officers and NCO, both junior and senior. Even shop clerks at the base PX and other hired civilian worker have come to witness this historical moment. It seemed that almost everyone on this base have come to the unveiling ceremony.

On the tarmac stood 4 brand new F-22A Raptors. The latest 3rd Generation TSF build by the Lockweed Martin Manufacturing company, and the winner of the Advanced Tactical Surface Fighter Competition. It is hoped that in the short future these Machines would completely replace the Venerable F-15E Strike Eagle as the backbone of both the USAF and US Army.

"Man they look so cool....... I don't think I've ever seen anything quite like these TSFs before."
"Yeah, I heard in the test trials these babies had a 100 win streak against the F-15E, most pilots never even knew where they were hit from before they bought the farm in the trials. This thing truly lives up to its role as a 'Tactical Superiority Fighter'."
".... So, whatever happened to its competitor, the YF-23?"
"Hmm.. If I heard correctly, both prototype are stored somewhere in Dryden, at Edwards Air Base. They pretty much are the world's most expensive junk metal right now."

Excitement and anticipation of these machines have gotten the whole base riled up. Everyone had seen the footage, and were briefed on these machine before hand, but to see the pinnacle of modern TSF engineering in person, and to be part of the first base in America to be outfitted and tasked with real combat deployment of the F-22A is something no one can stay calm about.




#5 Burning Sand Grave
June 15, 1989. Suez Canal Egypt.

The sudden and unexpected arrival of a BETA horde erupting without warning from a sand dune have effectively split the Suez canal defense line. Within the Deserts of Egypt, humanity have finally learned that the current generation ground vibration sensors are useless in the desert for detecting underground BETA movement.

"CODE 991!! Requesting immediate artillery fire support!!"
"Request Denied! There would be too much friendly fire casualties."

In their attempt to defend against a predicted push by the BETA from Hive 09, the human defenders are well dug in, but the sudden surprise arrival of the BETA in the middle of the Human defenders has thrown the entire line into a chaotic state of frenzied panic. Without the support of the Artillery, and the entire Communication net is filled with screams of the dying, and the urgent voices of various commanders requesting aid, confirmation and orders. The additional arrival of several dozen Fort class disgorging their monstrous payload of Grapplers, Tanks and Laser classes, despair and terror spread like fire among the Human defender. In all sense of the word, the first Suez Canal defense line have collapsed on itself.

To the people of the Middle East, who have already lost their Homeland during the early days of the BETA invasion, the defense of the Suez Canal is of absolute importance, and failure here of any kind cannot be allowed. The sanctuary offered by the land of Africa to the refugees of those who lost their land, and the resource supplied to sustain the rest of the free world cannot be lost to the BETA. However even now, when command have finally ordered the artillery to fire, the arrival of laser classes have rendered those efforts ineffective at the most.

Now on this death and despair filled battlefield, coming far from the rear, reinforcement and relief forces have arrived. Several Battalions of TSFs from various nations have arrived via NOE flight. And for a little while a breath of relief can be taken by the besieged survivors.

"Horus 1 to all friendly forces in the area, fall back and rally at the final defense line. My battalion alone will stay as the rear guard."
"Horus 1 to all Horus battalion sub-units, split into Element pair movement, prioritize laser class for destruction, conserve ammo, switch to knives we will save our guns for the laser and Fort class."
"Roger!!"

The 331st "Horus" TSF battalion of the 3rd Egyptian Army Corp, using their F-4E configured for desert warfare, charged into the fray, where the BETA seemed to number more than the very heated sand they stood upon. Using well rehearsed tactics and drills, the TSFs began their relentless and implacable advance to close in on the Laser and fort class. Even during the chaotic nature of this battle, the 331st still maintained their unit cohesion with inhuman discipline and displayed examples of gallantry and bravery that would later become legend among the defenders of the Suez Canal.

"Command Post, this Horus 1! Laser classes suppressed in my area, bring in the rain of cleansing fire, danger close!"

Even though the defenders suffered a 20% casualty rate during the retreat, thanks to the noble sacrifice of the entire 331st battalion, the Line was held.
Thus ended Day 1 of the first defense of Suez Canal. The battle would continue to rage for 4 more month. Even then, it is only the first of many battles to be fought against the BETA at the Suez Canal. To this day the line is still held, and no BETA have set foot in Africa.




#6 Sortie at daybreak
August 14, 1998. During first light of the morning.

Aboard the carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, the sound of roaring engines broke the silence and calm on the surface of the Lake Biwa Canal. The pride of the US Navy aviators, the Tactical Surface Fighter Strike Squadron 103 "Jolly Rogers" are preparing to launch to aid the besieged Imperial capital of Kyoto.

The unavoidable day has come. 8 years after the fall of Korea, the BETA advance has finally broken past the Korean Peninsula and continued on with their relentless path of destruction. As of now the BETA have broken through Northern Kyushu, and within a month, there were over 36 million confirmed dead within the Japanese mainland. 30% of Japan's total population is now lost.

From a strategic view, it will only be a matter of time before Kyoto is lost. Still, Japan refuses to simply abandon their capital, and under the treaty signed at the joint US-Japan Security Agreement, the US government has dispatched the 7th Fleet to Lake Biwa canal to render assistance to the Capital's defense. Interestingly enough, Lake Biwa was originally set up to provide a staging point for the Japanese defenders against the BETA should they land at Kyushu, but the BETA has struck now well before any of the proposed defense could be set. Furthermore, the irony is not lost that at one point in history Lake Biwa was also to be a staging point against a possible landing at Kyushu by the Allies during WW2.

Onboard the carrier deck, under the skilled and careful guidance of the carrier aircraft director, 6 hulking forms of F-14Ds are lined up and ready to connect with the catapult.

"Jolly Roger 1 to all Jolly call signs, situation update from higher. The Imperial Royal Guards have confirmed the Shogun's evacuation. Their F-4J units are holding the front, we are tasked with hitting the BETA's flank, and buying time for the Japanese to fall back and evacuate the civilians."
"Jolly Roger 1, you have permission to board the catapult," came the voice of the ever so stern carrier air boss.
"Roger, proceeding to catapult."
"Conduct your engine and control surface checks now." said the voice of the catapult officer .
"Roger, full military thrust achieved....... catapult connected........ all control surface checked, system all Green. Jolly Roger 1, a-okay!"
".....I Confirm all green Jolly Roger 1. Everything looks good outside, wind speed and direction nominal, catapult setting adjusted. Countdown to launch, 10 seconds."
"3.2.1. Rock 'n roll."

With the iconic launch gesture and stance carried out by the catapult officer, the F-14D roared and took to the sky aided by the speed boost from the catapult. Racing toward the Mainland, its graceful contrails left behind in the air resembles it namesake of the lithe form of a Tomcat.




#8 Question of Honor
The desert-- Only the strong can survive in such harsh lands, and this is applies to both man and machine.
September 16, 1989.

Above the vast emptiness of the Mojave Desert, 2 graceful metal giants began their dance in the sky. As part of making the demonstration video and military documentation for the ATSF competition. The YF-22 and YF-23 obeyed the directions given by their Ground Controllers while an F-15 followed and filmed every movement of the 2 machines. The 2 machins performed flawlessly in their demonstration of their unrivaled aerial performance. Their synchronized flight maneuvers belied their pilots' skill and caused one to almost forget that these 2 machines are locked in an struggle for their literal continued existence on a daily basis.

The ATSF----Advanced Tactical Surface Fighter program, was initially proposed in 1983 by the US military as a means to select the next generation TSF that will be used to replace the F-15 series.
As the first official TSF to be deployed in 1974 , the F-4 Phantom was commonly regarded as a "critically flawed" weapon system. However, such public opinion are only to be expected for an brand new weapon platform operated by inexperienced pilots, with no real tried and true doctrine to teach them with in the most unfavorable of combat environments.

Still the undeniable truth is that with the deployments of TSF to the frontlines, the once collapsing human lines have been saved, or at least reduced, the massive losses that was once common. And as a result the TSF's image and position as the "Shield" of Humanity is solidified to even this day.
Still, from the pilots on the frontline, to the military leaders worldwide, and especially the civilian weapon firms and developers, almost none of them truly believe in their heart that a TSF should remain a "Shield", and that ultimately they intend for the TSF to become a "Sword" in the War on the BETA.

Among the US government, such ideals are believed to be paramount. Keeping the BETA off North American territory is the highest priority of the US military and as a result, massive funding have been poured into the research and development of weapons. Studying data gathered from frontlines worldwide, American have continued their pioneering of TSF technology. Within 10 years of the F-4's deployment, the US have introduced what would be later termed as the first of the 2nd generation TSFs. Notable examples including the F-14 Tomcats, F-15 Eagle, and F-16 Fighting Falcons.

Then in the year of 1982, having witnessed the world wide success of 2nd generation TSF, the "Father of the TSF", US Army Major General Ben Brugg, proposed the following: "Due to the deployment of 2nd generation TSFs, the estimated date of BETA eradication can be numbered in years as of now. With their defeat, the priority would shift to securing the rare element deposit within each Hive. No doubt a new arms race over the rare elements will occur, and the worldly nations would once again assert dominance over their lost territory. I propose that future weapon development program should consider both improved Anti-BETA, and superior Anti-Human capabilities". While this proposal supported the then still-secret HI-MAERF project, the underlying issue and whether this new proposal would shift future US combat doctrine became a heated debate among US Senate and Congress. Eventually, the proposal was accepted and the debate now shifted to the development of an "adaptable multi-mission platform to continue the tried and true TSF combat philosophy" as supported by the USAF, or the concept of "Tactical Battlefield Superiority capable of dominating the battlefront of Humans and BETA" put forward by the US Army. After many more month of debates within the US Military, the US army proposal won under the reasons of a Foreseeable BETA defeat, the effective elimination of Laser threat, and an predicted increase in global arm race and space race. The requirement of a new TSF suited for the new battlefront is deemed necessary, with a possible future requirement and expansion for operations in Space and Other Planetary bodies, with the added consideration as a possible working platform to mount and field working conventional energy based weaponry due to foreseeable future breakthroughs through the use of the G-element. And thus the ATSF project was born.

March 6, 1990.
In the testing grounds of the Edwards Air Force Base in California, the ATSF project began its JIVES anti-Beta Simulations using Element pairs of the competing TSFs.
This phase of the 4 year long evaluation of the trials are the last which will determine the winner of the ATSF competition. The winner, once decided, will become the next generation TSF for the US military. The future fate of many project personnel, and entire companies literally hangs on the results of these trials.

Among the ATSF requirements, in addition to surpassing all aspects of the average 2nd generation TSFs, the new TSF must also possess these following qualities:
1. Including anti-TSF capabilities, it must be able to dominate all aspects of an opposing human force.
2. A superior sensor package guaranteeing a successful "First Strike" advantage and unmatched "Search and Destroy" capabilities.
3. Achieving radar/electronic stealth.
4. Long-range, high-speed economy cruising, and increased operational combat up-time.

Having set forth the requirements to seven different aerial manufacturing companies, and after reviewing their proposed designs, the ATSF board selected the 2 designs put forward by Lockweed and Northrock–Mcdaell Doglam. The 2 designs were given the official designation of YF-22 and YF-23. Thus began the ATSF trials.

However, with the creation of the G-bomb, US strategy and doctrine was once again affected as the new contingency plan for anti-BETA warfare took into account the use of G-bombs. The immediate result being the cancellation and shut down of the Hi-MAERF project which Lockweed and McDaell Doglam were both involved. Even though the changes did not directly affect the ATSF trials in any way, indirectly both companies are now desperate to secure a ludicrous future development contract with the US, due to the losses of funding coming from the HI-MAERF project.



From the design concept point of view, the YF-23 had the lead, but however the YF-22 made up for its deficiencies with its simpler and more practical designs. As a result, the YF-22 had more airtime while the YF-23 spend more time on the ground being worked on.

During the Versus trials however, the YF-23 clearly had the lead. Among to 40 times when 2 YF-22s were pitted against 2 YF-23s, the YF-23 had the result of 18 wins, 14 losses, 5 ties, and 3 nulls due to unforeseen variables possibly affecting the validity of the results, and stricken from the record as a result. In its conclusion, the test board stated that the 2 machines possessed similar levels of Stealth and target finding capability. As a result, most of the battles between the YF-22 and YF-23 became a close quarter dogfight, where the superior maneuverability and advanced melee CQC of the YF-23 had the advantage. The only notable advantage of the YF-22 was its prolonged combat operating time, and its fuel economy. Furthermore the YF-23 proved superior in all its Anti-BETA simulation, including a higher kill count and deeper penetration during a standard Hive infiltration JIVES simulation when compared with the YF-22.

After all phases of trial, even the project personnel of Lockweed believed that the winner was the YF-23. It was then a shock when the ATSF board announced that the YF-22 was chosen as the winner, primary reasons being it had a cheaper manufacturing cost, longer up-time, and better ease of maintenance. And of course, the most important reason being that the YF-22 is already well suited to be incorporated into the current US combat doctrine of ranged warfare and training plans.

The surprise announcement no doubt saved Lockweed from its financial problems, but a budget cut to the YF-22 production program due to the success of a G-bomb deployment on Hive 22 have forced Lockweed to merge with Martin, to become Lockweed Martin, in order to keep up with production demand. In the end, it was not until after nearly 10 years of further trials and test flights following end of the original ATSF trials that the F-22A Raptor was officially deployed within the US military in March of 2001.

At the time of deployment the F-22A is considered technologically superior compared to the rest of the 3rd generation TSF used by other nations, despite being on paper a far older design. It is a testament to the ATSF project that the designs pioneered decades ago are well ahead of their time. Performance wise it is considered unmatched and would remain so for the foreseeable future.

May 11, 1992.

A man stood outside one of the storage hangars at Dryden Flight research center in Edwards Air Base. Inside the hangar, resting on its support frame, lies the composite metal form of a giant. Years of neglect from the harsh desert has left the YF-23 with none of its former splendor. Stripped of all electronic components, the YF-23 resembled nothing short of the decaying skeletal remains of some mythological giant.

The man who was once the project head designer of the YF-23, silently and solemnly watched as the setting sun cast its last light on the once proud forms the 2 YF-23s.






#12 The tyrant’s accession to the throne
September 17, 1998. United State of America, Nevada, Nellis Air Force Base training grounds.

The US Army 65th Tactical Surface Fighter Instructional Squadron is thought by many to be the premier OpFor Aggressor unit within the United States. Equipped with the F-15E Strike Eagle, the squadron is often referred to as the "Flankers", due to the squadron painting their TSFs with the same colors of their Soviet adversaries. And for years they are feared as the "Strongest enemy" for any squadron who are training against them.

Today it seems though a new challenger has come to claim the throne from the undefeated Eagles.

"Flanker 1 to all units, do not stop moving, we don't want to be sniped yet."

In this case of Anti-human simulations, the Flight leader of The Flankers is Capt. Gregory and he is annoyed. The battle started 10 minutes ago, and yet he still has yet to catch any sign of the enemy. Having issued his subordinates their search patterns and interlocking arc of observation, the Captain have decided to utilize the shared data link of his flight to track empty pings and holes in their radar net to find these "Stealth" TSFs. Still, after years of playing the role of the "Hunter" the experienced Captain can't help but feel a little agitated and pissed, not to mention his gut is telling him that something really bad is about to happen.

Even if these things are hidden from radar, they can't hide the ground vibration when they move, and when they fire on me, I'll know where they are. I have the advantage in numbers, so even if they sprung an ambush, I can afford to lose a couple units. They can't hope to beat us all when we know where they are.

Taking a deep breath Capt. Gregory calmed himself. To him and his Flankers, this is a battle they do not wish to lose. When it was revealed to the public that the range combat oriented YF-22 had won the ATSF, a large number of US pilots who abhorred melee combat were jubilant at the announcement. Though to a few select group of US pilots, like the members of the Flankers, this was not welcome news. They believed that ultimately melee is unavoidable with an skilled opponent, and especially the against endless hordes of BETA. So to forget the importance of Hand to Hand CQC is something a pilot should be ashamed of. Thus the goal of the 65th is to drill the importance of close range fighting into all pilots who comes through these grounds. And now with the introduction of the F-22, it is clear that even the higher ups clearly believes that CQC is unnecessary, and this implication is something that Capt. Gregory and the rest of the 65th cannot stand. To make matters even more humiliating, command have ordered him to conduct combat trials against the new F-22 prototype, and that he will participate in an 8 vs 2 in urban close quarter terrain against the F-22 challengers. Normally the aggressors flight operate under the numerical disadvantage against the challengers, but command have ordered otherwise for today's exercise. The insinuation that he and his veteran squadron would need this handicap to win against 2 untested prototypes designed for ranged warfare in a close quarter environment is a stain upon the squadron's reputation and honor.

For the whole day before the exercise, the pilots of the 65th laughed and ridiculed the F-22 pilots to no end, saying that if they really wanted to not lose in urban they should have challenged an M1 Abram tank squadron instead. In the face of such insults, the F-22 pilots chose to remain indifferent and silent.

The fucking chickens shits don't even have the balls to defend themselves against insults. I can't fucking stand them or their machine, they are fucking dead when I find them.

Suddenly the radio came to life with the excited voice of Flanker 3.
"Bingo! Boss I found them, your 10'o clock , about 7500m behind a building. They are in the open on the streets!"
Suddenly all the tension and worry left his body. His mind was clear, he knows what to do.
"Good work, Flanker 3, don't engage them yet, approach using cover. We are going to surround them first."
"All Flankers, suppressive fire once we surround them!"
"Roger!"
As all flankers moved in to position, 8 120mm Launcher belched out fire the keep the F22's pinned.
"Sir! I lost them in the buildings, no positive fix on their positions."
"Those quarters are too tight for guns, so they want to challenge us to a Dogfight? Hmmph, we will shown them who are the CQC masters here."
"Even if they are stealth, it won't matter if we know they are in this area."

The Flankers split in to their 2 respective flights. Stacked up into a CQC formation the 8 F-15Es closed in for the kill.
Roughly 360 seconds later:
"Command Post to all units, simulation end. All units return to your respective starting points. I say again All units return......"
"I.....I...I don't fucking believe this..impossible.....What the fuck just happened?!"
Capt. Gregory stared dumbfounded and confused that the shadowed form towering above him and his fallen F-15E. The F-22 have both its CIWS-2 combat knife in each hand, and symbol for
'Infinite possibilities' shone and glistered brightly under the Sun.
"Do you see now? The F-22's CQC capabilities should not be underestimated."
"......Is that...why you two never fire back during the fight? To prove a point?"
"Haha..... looks like we will be working together for awhile, Captain. I hope we will both enjoy our time and experiences here."
"Fuck you, you little shit! Don't think you can beat me so easily next time!"
"Well, that's why we are here, until next time Captain."

Thus began the official combat trial of the F-22 EMD phase 2 by the "Infinities". In accordance with the development plan set forth by the US military, the F-22 will be modified for further efficiency in Anti-Human warfare. Compared to the YF-22, the EMD phase 2 version features even lower fuel consumption and improved thrust power, with a built in walking stealth mode designed to reduce vibration and noise during ground movement. A cobalt blue colored radio wave-absorbing paint is also applied to further radar stealth.

During its time of trials at Nellis, the Infinites would achieve the legendary record of 100 versus trials wins against F-15 Eagles with zero losses, 199 trials wins against F-18 Hornets with one loss, and obtaining 144 wins to one tie against the F-16 Fighting Falcon.




#17 Colors of Duty

August 14, 1998. Kyoto, Japan. In the vicinity of the Yasaka shrine.

The imperial capital is burning.

Every corner of the sky felt heavy with burden, every corner of the earth burned of a deep crimson red. In the dark of night, the skies are filled with anti-laser metal clouds that reflected the light of the dying city, causing the illusion that the very heavens are burning, as if the end time have finally arrived. More and more buildings erupted into flames, making the blood drenched, red Type-82 Zuikaku even more of a sight to behold, with the burning city and crimson heaven as its back drop.

"Suppressive fire, we will not allow them to pass beyond this point!"

While barking orders at her subordinates, she simultaneously aimed and fired her own 36mm assault cannon, further depleting what little remained of her ammunition reserves.

Looking at what is left of Kyoto, she is well aware that most of the destruction to the city are done by human hands. The orders were clear, Kyoto will be turned to ash along with the Alien invaders.

Forgive me Kyoto,--- even as such, we must protect the people.

During mid July, when the BETA broke through Kyushu, it only took less than a month before the unstoppable horde arrived at the doorsteps of Kyoto. As of last night the defenses at Port Maizuru have fallen, and with it the BETA have found a breach in the city defenses. They came like a flood, it was then only a matter of time before the BETA broke through and crushed Kyoto's defense lines at the eastern mountains, and the artillery units at the west have also been silenced since then.

As this point, the central Government had no choice but to declare Kyoto lost, and the city districts to be leveled with naval bombardment at the same pace as the BETA advance. Over 100 thousand tons of ammunition left behind in the city armories were rigged to blow when the BETA arrive.

No matter what happens now, Kyoto will never be the same. The BETA will not leave it standing and the Japanese government will not see it fall intact to the BETA.

Faced with such harsh truth, she can only but smile sadly.

Truly, I wish for this day to be over but our work is not done. We must salvage victory even in defeat.

Ejecting her spend 120mm mag, She, 1st Lt Maya Tsukuyomi, prepared herself for what is to come.

"Reloading, Cover!"
"Covering!"

Ammo is running scarce, there will be no more resupplies coming. All supply depots and drop points are now compromised. Nowhere is safe in Kyoto. Even now she could make out using the sights on her TSF the burning outlines of the Shogun's own, once proud castle. Even if they can retake Kyoto one day, only a barren wasteland would await them .

She was shaken out of her thoughts when a new presences registered on her radar. A streak of fire cut across the night sky followed by thunderous noises left behind in its supersonic wake. Shortly after, pockets of the advancing BETA wave erupted in an explosive waves of man-made destruction.

"AIM-54 Phoenix missiles?....The Americans have done well."

A flight of 6 F-14D Tomcats launched the missiles. To increase accuracy and be able to target the most dense pockets of the BETA advance to slow them down, the American pilots are pushing the limits of their laser safety altitude to get their missile off, before descending down and carrying out their strafing gun runs on the now disarrayed BETA lines. Finally the flight of F-14Ds accelerated to maximum NOE speed on full afterburner, and plotted a course back to their carriers. Quick and clean, the Americans have performed the "Mobile ranged warfare" aspect of their combat doctrines flawlessly.

"This is Tactical Strike Squadron 103, flight leader Jolly Roger 1, to the Imperial Royal Guards, this is our last gift to you, it's all we have left. Good luck!"

Hearing the open channel message, Tsukuyomi's commanding officer turned the head of his Zuikaku, painted in the color of noble blue, towards the F-14Ds off in the distance, and a crisp salute was given.

"This is the 16th Imperial Royal Guard Battalion Leader to the Jolly Rogers, I sincerely offer my thanks for all that you and your brethrens have done for my country today."

Ever since WW2, it's true that the Japanese dislike the Americans on cultural level, and America has more than once belittled or humiliated Japan through political pressure. But nevertheless, from experience, the American pilots who would fight alongside the Japanese on the frontlines like today are people who deserve her respect.

The Americans have shown us their skill, it is time to repays them with a demonstration of our 'specialty'.

Once again, Lt Tsukuyomi felt the weight and power carried on her "back" in the form of the Type-74 close combat sword. Taking a quick look at her sensors to reconfirm the battle-space situation:
"My lord, the 96th artillery battalion has evacuated. .....It is time, Give the order my lord."

She gazed towards the Blue Zuikaku, now standing beside her. As one of the 5 ruling regents, the head of the Ikagura clan is someone who is well aware of the responsibility fate has thrust upon him.

".....Tsukiyomi, have you reached a conclusion?"
"Yes, my lord. For the people of this country, we of the Imperial Royal Guard are the shield, and the Zuikaku, the sword. Even if the people we are sworn to protect would spit at our names for what we did and are about to do today. We must fulfill our duty to the empire, to accept the consequences and carry on."

The response was spoken out loud on open channel for all surviving members of the 16th to hear. She knew that many of the Royal Guard here fought today with the intentions of death before dishonor. It would not help the unit cohesion if people thought she does not agree with what their leader is about to say. The last thing they need right now is dissension among the ranks.

"Indeed... We of the ruling Regents are partially responsible for the predicament we find ourselves in today... Sooner or later, we all must pay for our sins. Tsukuyomi, order the battalion, Formation Scale Strike 3. We will clear the laser class in around Kamikyo, then we shall egress towards Yamashina, and from there we will fall back towards Ōtsu."
"Yes sir!"

Maya allow herself a creeping smile as she turned to issue orders to the battalion.

What was once a full sized TSF battalion, there now stood only 14 ready to carry out her orders. What remained of their ammo are consolidated and divided apart but it would not last long. She already knows what Ikagura would order next.

Her body shook with anticipation, and her blood boiled with excitement. Indeed, her very soul yearned for this very moment.

"....16th Imperial Royal Guard battalion..... Draw your blades!!"

The order was obeyed with the near simultaneous deployment of 15 Type-74 swords.

Drawing his own blade , Lord Ikagura continued:
"My brethren, our orders from above is to retreat and abandon our capital to its destruction, by our very own hands. I know that our very blood and soul are disgusted by the mere concept of such a dishonorable course of action. However, we have sworn our lives to serve Japan, its people, the Emperor, and the Shogun. Thus we will obey, but we will not scurry off quietly into the night. The Lasers-class in Kamikyo will prove a nuisance for our artillery once this area is targeted for bombardment. We shall rectify this problem before we retreat. Tonight, we shall carve the names and image of the Imperial Royal Guards into the very soul of this thousand year old capital. It is time... All units... CHARGE!!!!!!"

The 16th Guard battalion lost 6 more TSFs before accomplishing their goal and finally arriving at the rally point at the Lake Biwa canal. That night, the evacuation of Kyoto was completed and the 1,200 year old capital was no more. The BETA would continue to decimate western Japan for one more year before being completely driven off following the Hive 22 Assault.

#2 Dissimilar Air Combat Training

"It looks like a chicken with that thing on its head... Japan's own conversion F-4 Phantom... It really looks like a fat chicken. Guess I will be hunting the two of you today."
"Heh, please go easy on us, you guys are using top of the line next generation machines. No need to go all overkill on our antiques here, right?"

After bantering around, the pilots from America and Japan shook hands as they readied for the upcoming simulation battle.

August 18, 1986.
A joint Japan-US military exercise was being conducted in northern Hokkaido using both JIVEs and DACT simulations. To the general public, it was just another training exercise, but in truth this was to be the first of many test trials and selections to determine the next gen replacement for the aging venerable F-4J Type-77 Gekishin. For years the Japanese have been split upon the choice of whether it should continue to purchase foreign TSFs, or to invest in a new domestic model after the moderate success of the Type-82 Zuikaku. Therefore, today a element pair of F-15C Eagles are pitted in urban combat against a pair of Imperial Royal Guard F-4J Type-82 Zuikaku. The war between McDaell Doglam and the various Japanese manufacturing companies who would rather continue pioneering the Japanese TSF industry have began.

Minutes after the combat test began, the sky------Which have a predicted 0% Chance of BETA interference--- Have now been completely dominated by the 2 white F-15C Eagles. Their hip mounted jump units, twin Pratt & WhitneyF100-PW-100 Afterburning Turbofan Engines, provided more than enough thrust to outclass the Type-82 Zuikaku in speed and all areas of 3 dimensional mobility. Having been completely suppressed, the 2 black Zuikakus could only rapidly shift from cover to cover to avoid giving the Eagles a clear shot. Having lost air superiority, there were now virtually no chance for the Zuikakus to seize victory. Needless to say, the general mood among all the Japanese observers of this one sided battle was one of grim disappointment.

"They are pretty nimble for something that looks like an obese chicken."
"All right, come on, I think we played with them long enough, time to end this."
"Wait, 1st Lt., allow me to finish both of them off, I alone should be more than enough."
"...Okay, Don't fuck this up though, and make it look good, it's what the big guy in suits up stairs want us to do."
"Streak 2 roger!"

Streak 1, 1st Lt. Burrowes, calmly marked Zuikaku 1 as the priority target on his HUD, and watched his wing man accelerating towards the target. Meanwhile, Zuikaku 1 is hugging the ground while in continuous boost mode seemingly moving in a random evasive pattern, zig-zaging between building to building. But between the Eagle's speed and advanced radar tracking capabilities, there was no escape for the Zuikaku.

Considering the technical differences between the 2 machines, the Imperial Guard pilots have done surprisingly well. It was a surprise to the many American observers who mostly all predicted that the Japanese pilots could not hope to last longer than 5 minutes . The fact that even after 10 minutes of combat neither of the Zuikakus have received any notables damage, irked the Americans observers greatly. The Imperial observers however, are becoming more lively at this point, praying that this battle would go on even longer, for every second longer they survived now is another bit of face and pride saved for the Japanese. Still, the truth remained that the Zuikakus are losing this battle. On the main monitor, it clearly showed that the Zuikaku flight leader was being herded and driven towards the open area in the outskirts of the city. Once he runs out of cover there, it is over.

Quite pleased with how things are proceeding, Lt. Burrowes took a detailed look at the map of the battle space and immediately notice something odd.

"Where is the other one?"
"Fuck, I guess we lost him. I haven't seen the second one in while either."

With years of experience in various simulated TSF vs TSF scenarios, Lt. Burrowes had a good idea of what his enemy is trying to accomplish here.

"He probably shut off his main engine and is shielding himself with one of these buildings. Watch for ambushes, Zuikaku 1 here is playing the bait."
"Understood, I'll keep my eyes peeled."

Remembering back to when he met the pilot of Zukiaku 1 right before the battle today. The man did not strike to Lt. Burrowes as the type to want someone to go easy on him or as the type to go down without a fight, no doubt he got something big planned for today.

This guy is in a inferior machine, has been in a suppressed position for more than 10 minutes now, and he is still performing flawless evasive maneuvers with no wasted movements, not to mention he is probably leading me to an ambush right now. Whoever this guy is, he is one cool headed motherfucker.

As a pilot, Lt. Burrowes had absolute confidence in his own skills and experience, combined with the fact that he is flying the world's strongest TSF, the F-15C Eagle, he believes without a doubt that he can prevail from anything the Japs have planned for him. No matter how skilled they are, the difference in machine is simply too much to overcome. Even if the Zuikakus somehow achieves a first Lock On the Eagles, there is still a good chance the Eagles can evade and still win the fight.

To further ensure his victory, Lt Burrowes is going to change his plan a bit.

" All right, new plan. You are going to pin him down before he gets in the open, and I m going to get up close and finish him."
"I see, so you want to force the ambusher to reveal himself early to save his wing man."
"Exactly, they won't expect this because they think we Americans avoid close quarter combat at all cost. Let's show them how wrong they are."

Covering each others movements, the 2 Eagles accelerated to catch the fleeing Zuikaku in a pincer. Streak 2 increased his rate of fire and the Zuikaku dashed behind a building for cover.
Reducing his altitude to street level, Streak 1 added his own fire onto the building while closing the distance.

Less than a dozen city blocks now... Come on, show yourself, your wing man is about to die if you don't save him.

Using the DACT simulation system, a computer is keeping track of the simulated structural integrity of each and every building in the training area. Thus, when a pilot using training paint round is hitting a building, the computer calculates how much damage the building have suffered as if live rounds are being used. The resulting data is shown on every pilot's HUD as an holographic render of the building ----in this case falling apart quickly under the combined 36mm /120mm fire of 2 F-15Cs.

Taking a quick glance at his diminishing ammo count, Lt. Burrowes decided to forgo the flashy option and opted to end the fight quickly. Calling up his FCS menu, he readjusted his targeting system to aim at the waist of a Locked On TSF. Against 1st gen TSF which favored heavy amour rather than mobility, targeting the center mass will not achieve a quick or sure kill. Rather the lightly armored waist section, which contain all the wires and cable that connects the engine and power plant would make an optimum aiming point to guarantee a outright kill or a mobility kill.

"Streak 2, change of plans. We are not going to wait for the ambusher to show. I m finishing this guy off right now. Cover me!"
"Roger!"

Come on, you are running out of cover. don't you samurais love your swords, I'm right here. Come at me already!

Boosting forward at maximum thrust, the F-15C closed in on the Zuikaku still hiding in its soon to be nonfunctional cover.

TARGET LOCKED.

Just as the cross-hair began to align its self with its target, the black Zuikaku boosted out of the now useless cover with sword in hand and charged towards the oncoming F-15.

"You got balls Samurai! But..."

The cross-hair blinked red indicating it has acquired its aim.

"...You're too late. Your wing man should have saved you."

Squeezing his trigger, the assault cannon roared in full automatic fire.

Multiple "hits" registered on the F-15C's HUD, but...

"...What the!!!!?"

The sound of a heavy metallic impact echoed and vibrated through the F-15 cockpit. And the HUD blinked red with critical system damage errors, soon followed with a status of KIA.
Turning his TSF's head he sees the black Zuikaku standing beside him with a combat knife in one hand.

<Streak 1, torso and waist area critical damage. Cannot continue combat.>

"Im....possible...."

Another surprise soon followed, as the status indicator of Streak 2 on his HUD also blinked red, indicating a KIA.

".......What .....just happened?"

Inside the cockpit of the Zuikaku--Call sign Vanquish 1, the Imperial Royal Guard test pilot breathed a sigh of relief.

"We did it sir! I can't believe it, but it worked! Your plan worked, Captain! They were F-15s, but we still won!"

The expression of Vanquish 2's pilot on the communication window was one of absolute joy and excitement.

"Hmph.... it was all thanks to the F-15's superb accuracy."

On Vanquish 1's HUD, the status indicator flashed red on the left shoulder and the right leg. 100m behind him lay his sword, now covered in paint.

The F-15C's fire struck the Zuikaku in the same pattern of a well performed kesa-giri (Kendo term=Diagonal cut), but the rounds that would have struck the vulnerable waist line of the Zuikaku was blocked by holding the sword flat while charging forward.

In battle between TSFs, it's not uncommon to target known weak points on an enemy TSF. Vanquish 1 gambled on the fact that the Americans pilot would shift his aim in close quarters and planned for such. Considering the massive technological advantage of the Americans in this case, there wasn't much else he could have done but to gamble on a slim chance of victory and take it.

"You had me worried Captain. I was worried you weren't going to make it to the ambush site."

In hind sight, Lt. Burrowes was right to assume that Vanquish 2 had hidden itself by powering down and that Vanquish 1 was leading them into an ambush. However, Lt. Burrowes believed that the 'bait' was to bring them to a kill zone, where the ambusher can snipe at its targets, when in reality the 'bait' lead the Eagles into the immediate vicinity of where Vanquish 2 was hiding. When the 2nd F-15 was focused on providing cover fire and became momentarily stunned by what happened to Streak 1, Vanquish 2 revealed himself and finished off the distracted F-15.

It's a little underhanded since we knew the terrain better. But still, all this amounts to almost nothing when fighting the BETA.

"HQ to all Units. Simulation over. Return to the start point and begin resupply. The next scenario is in 80 minutes."
"Vanquish 1, acknowledged."

There was a hint of warmth in the normally indifferent tone of the mission control operator. The pilot smiled and answered the base commander's call on a private channel to receive his words of congratulations, and also to receive the order to keep up the victories. After a quick salute the channel was cut.

Well that's going to be hard, the Americans aren't going to fall for that trick anymore. Still, no matter what, even though this is only a heavily modified domestic conversion of a foreign model, the fact remains now that it has achieved victory ,even if it's only once against the far more advanced F-15. The domestic developers are going to push even harder now to secure a contract for an new 100% domestic TSF.

"It's... Going to be a long day... Thank you, my old friend"

Imperial Royal Guard Captain Iwaya Eiji, the main test pilot in selecting the next Japanese mainstream TSF, sincerely thanked the machine he once helped to develop all those years ago.

#11 Crimson Jungle
March 19, 1995. Yunnan Province, China. Mekong River Valley.

Beneath the crimson sky of the setting sun, the thick tropical jungle has already descended into darkness under its canopy. The lake formed from the Mekong River passing through this valley eerily reflected the golden light of the setting sun. Captain Li of United Front of China's armed forces watched this tranquil moment on his HUD. Images of a white swan and a beautiful necklace flashed in his mind for a fleeting moment. Why? he wondered... Ah, yes he remembers now; that day, years ago, when he was in Taiwan on a military exchange tour... There was that lake, and then there was that store...

"Flying Tiger 6 to Flying Tiger 1. The combat engineers are finished here, they are preparing to move to the next area."
"...Flying Tiger 1, copy that, continue to monitor your sectors."

Pushing the memories of a happier time into the back of his head, Capt. Li focused once again on to the present.

The Flying Tiger Tactical Armored Fighter squadron is currently tasked with protecting an combat engineer company while they set up a series of BETA early warning sensors to improve the entire early warning net of this whole region.

"Still, Captain, does it even make any sense to put the sensors into the water, and bury it like that?"

The brand new rookie of the squadron, Flying Tiger 14, asked on the squad net.

"Who knows? But I'm pretty sure sound and vibration travel better under water. "
"Hey sir, that's why you are the boss here and I'm just a dumb new grunt trying to figure out my way around in this big scary world."

The squadron net was filled with a couple quick chuckles among those who were paying attention.

"Still, the water level in this region has been declining sharply for a while now..."
"Can't be helped, I guess, upstream belongs to the BETA after all."

22 years ago, with the landing of the Kashagar Hive, the alien invaders have rendered the entire region into a lifeless barren wasteland. The damage they caused to the land has had catastrophic environmental side effects that would spread far outside their sphere of influence. And in recent years, those side effects have even reached the jungles of the Yunnan province.

"Judging by what Europe and most of Russia looks like now, it's only going to get worse ....."

Humanity was beening suppressed. Eurasia and Europe have pretty much fallen now, and as of last year, all of India had been declared Lost. Humanity had been pushed back on all most all fronts. Having lost 2/3rds of their territory already within the last 22 years, the UFC could no longer allow the BETA to advance any further. Thus, further strengthening and expanding the Defense Line has been a top priority.

It won't be like before anymore... Now that the J-10 is here.

The J-10 advanced TSF combat platform was based on the US made General Dynomics F-16 Fighting Falcon, designed jointly with the assistance from Israeli engineers associated with Israel's own US-financed Lavi Surface Fighter program. Among the various F-16 offshoot models in existence around the world, the J-10 is the most melee and CQC focused variant in existence. Designed from years of combat data gathered from China and the Middle East, the J-10 can accommodate for virtually all know scenarios when fighting the BETA in close quarters. Compared to its peers, the J-10 features a series of extensive back-ups build in to most of its major components, and an innovative "reactive self defense system", all of which are proving pivotal in improving combat survival time and efficiency of the pilots on the frontlines.

Remembering the history class lessons regarding China's failures during the early days in the war against the BETA, and his own hellish experiences on the battlefield, Capt. Li grinded his teeth in anger.

What the...!??

Off in the distance, using the J-10's night optics, Capt. Li can see hundreds, if not thousands, of birds have suddenly took flight into the air.

"Ca....Captain! Look! The river... The river is...!"
"What?"

Having never seen anything quite like this before, Captain Li stared shockingly at his HUD. As if going fast forward in time, the river and lake is disappearing at an alarming rate, the riverbed itself can be seen at this time.

"How is this possible?!! This...."

Immediately the sound of Code 991 blared in his ears, and his HUD flashed the same warning, confirming his worst fears.

"This is Flying Tiger 5! The BETA...! They are coming from the river!"

Looking at his map, Captain Li spots Flight 2's position. Flight 2, which is commanded by Flying Tiger 5, is currently situated 16 miles due northwest. The blue unit designators identifying Flight 2 and the friendly combat engineers in the area is quickly being surrounded by an tidal wave of red dots.

"All combat engineer assets fall back immediately. The rest of you, form up on me. We are going to help Flight 2!"

As the rest of squadron answered with an simultaneous acknowledgment, all remaining Flying Tiger Flights soared into the air. The J-10's graceful form danced through the night sky.

"!!!!"

Suddenly one Flying Tiger callsign designator went offline. The inexperienced Tiger 14 had flown mere meters too high, and was struck down by a searing light that lit up the night sky.

"...Damnit!!!!"

The surviving Flights of the Flying Tigers descended, guns blazing with their Type-82 Assault Cannons to aided their besieged brethren. As they closed the distance, all units switched over to the preferred CIWS weapon of the UFC, the Type-77 Close Range Battle Blade. With one quick boost, Flying Tiger 1 leaped into the charging BETA lines.

"DIEEE!!!"

Using the thrust assist from his jump unit, Captain Li effortlessly gutted 3 Grappler-class and 'disarmed' one more, with only one smooth stroke of his blade. The falling alien monstrosities sent up a spray of blood and mud that splashed onto the J-10's armor.

"All Flying Tiger units, Formation Circle One! We must buy time for the engineers to retreat! None Shall Pass!!!!"

Readying his blade, Captain Li prepared his soul.
And thus began the last battle of the Flying Tigers Squadron.