Post
by pixel » Wed, 12. Nov 03, 22:58
Chapter 4 - Training
"Knew I had to bite you baby when I first laid eyes on you,
That moment turned me on, I can't believe it's true". Motorhead.
The next morning Piotr groaned as he gradually woke up to a major hangover. Glancing at his watch he wondered why he'd woken up so early. He was answered by the banging at his door.
"Come on Piotr, we have work to do today. Breakfast in 10!", the voice of Nivick boomed throught the door.
'Why is he so cheerful?', Piotr asked himself, 'he must have the constitution of an ox after all the space fuel he drank'.
He gradually got himself together and managed to make it to the breakfast table after a quick shower. His aunt and Nivick were already eating.
"Come on lad, tuck in, the best thing for you in that state!" said the old pilot through a mouthful of omelette.
Aunt Petuniac smiled cheerfully as Piotr sat down.
"It is so nice to have you both here! Now Piotr, Nivick has told me about your plans for trading in other sectors. I don't like it, but he has convinced me that it would help you to do better in the business, and that he will make sure you can look after yourself when you're out there." Petuniac hesitated before going on, "When I met your uncle he too was a fighter pilot, and he came back to me safe. So you just make sure you do to, Okay?".
Piotr was surprised by his aunt's ready acceptance of what Nivick had said, hell, it had even been news to him, but he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth.
"Thanks auntie, don't worry...I'm going to be extra careful out there."
"Oh, that makes me happy to hear! Nivick said he would give you some training to help improve your flying, you must accept it, of course."
As he looked at his aunt blankly Piotr suddenly had a hazy recollection of talking about this with Nivick the night before. He nodded and, his aunt finally satisfied, began to eat.
--------
Four days later Piotr thought back to that brief breakfast conversation and smiled ruefully. He hadn't had the slightest idea at the time of what Nivick's help would entail.
Boot camp, that was the only way to describe it. Straight after they'd eaten Nivivk had taken him down to the simulation training area and had booked one of the traing rooms for three full days. Seeing this Piotr had protested that he hadn't time to waste on training, he had to get back to business.
"Nonsense lad! What you're going to learn might save your life some day...are you really telling me that three days isn't worth it? Are you looking forward to facing that Piranha pilot again, eh?"
Put like that Piotr was forced to agree that perhaps he could do with a bit of stick time in a safe environment. But he was further surprised when Nivivk set the training room to simulate a fully upgraded argon Buster.
"You let me worry about the training, you just do as you're told!" Nivick looked quite initmidating as he said this, the full weight of years of fighter squadron command lending authority to his voice.
So Piotr had gone through three days of traing in a simulated Buster. Things had started off well enough with preflight checks and a few simple manouvers to get used to the agile fighter, but then the combat simulations began. And Nivick kept him at it hard, Piotr was lucky to get a waking hour away from the simulation room.
After three days of being repeatedly blown up and given demoralising, if instructive, reviews of what he'd done wrong each time Piotr had finally found himself adapting to the fighter and learning some good tricks from the old pilot.
So today he was to retake his pilot's licence test. He remembered Nivick's words to him as he'd left that morning to go to the test.
"If you do as I said lad, you will walk away with a grade C licence," Nivick grinned, obviously feeling confidence that Piotr lacked, "and if you do that, you can come and drive my Xenon M this afternoon!"
As Piotr opened the door to the test room, he remebered Nivicks promise and was determined to succeed.
-----
"This is Argon Buster, requesting clearance for departure"
"Argon Buster, you are cleared to leave"
Piotr disengaged the docking clamps and began to leave the trading station that the simulation had started in.
The test instructor's voice came over the comm.
"Pilot, you are to dock at the solar power plant ahead, purchase 10 energy cells and then make for the gate highlighted on your HUD"
Piotr acknowledged the instructions and began a graceful trajectory to minimise the time to the power plant.
A few minutes later Piotr had left the plant and was heading to the gate at half speed. This was a piece of cake!
When he was 5 kilomtres away the gate activated.
"Pilot, destroy all incoming hostile ships", the calm voice of the instructor ordered.
The simulation was geared to the needs of the average Argon pilot and included a small amount of docking and trading. This Piotr had already done. But the major thrust of the simulation was in fighting off pirate ships. Increasing pirate activity over the years had forced the authorities to try and combat this, in part, through increasingly combat orientated pilot license tests.
Piotr quickly scanned the HUD and saw that 5 ships were coming straight for him...two light fighter Mandalays, two medium M4 Bayamons and a heavy fighter Orinoco.
The Mandalays were moving ahead of the larger ships in a classic pirate movement to cut off his retreat and harry him whilst the larger ships moved in for the kill.
He wasn't sure what to do but then the training Nivick had given him cut in. He remebered the gruff old pilot's voice.
"Before getting into a fight try and learn all you can about your enemy. The better you know their abilities, the better you can formulate your own plan of attack."
Piotr duly noted the velocity of the incoming Mandalays, 3 kilometres away and closing fast. He saw that the heavier fighters were moving far slower and on a hunch scanned them. As he'd hoped the Bayamons were only slightly speed upgraded, this meant he could easily outrun them and the even slower Orinoco. At least the test was giving him a chance.
He also knew that both the Bayamons and the Orinoco only had half of his own ship's shielding. Though if the Orinoco managed to hit him more than once or twice his ass would be fried.
Piotr lowered his speed to increase the time it took for the Mandalays to reach him and so increase the relative distance to the other fighters.
As they approached to within one kilometre he power boosted his speed towards them.
The Mandalays began firing at him immediately. Piotr ignored the slight buffeting of his ship, as Nivick had said these fighters were not much of a threat but he had to clear them up before he got caught like a sitting duck by the heavier weapons of the Bayamons and the Orinoco.
He chose the nearest Mandalay, only 500 metres away now and closing! Lining up his sights carefully he pulled the trigger. Hot twin blasts of energy streamed away from his ship's Gamma PACs to engulf the Manadalay.
The Mandalay exploded in a brief but spectacular fireball.
"Yes!"
Piotr jinked his ship to the right to centre on the other Mandalay that was now beginning to peel away and he loosed a salvo of two wasp missiles towards its underbelly.
One missile struck immediately as had been his intention, but the other missed and began to curve around to track the now evasive Mandalay. Piotr cursed and briefly lowered his speed to improve steering control and turned to follow.
'Never forget the bigger fish' piotr murmured to himself, a mantra that Nivick had drilled into him. Checking the HUD he was glad to have remembered. The two Bayamons were nearly in firing range and the Orinoco was also catching up as Piotr tried to get the very agile Mandalay in his sights.
"Missile self destructed" informed the ships computer. So that was both Wasp missiles used up, but he still had two dragonfly misiles left. He checked his shields, holding well at 95% and climbing.
Now that the wasp was no longer on its tail the Mandalay executed a quick roll and turned back towards Piotr's Buster.
"Come to daddy!" grinned Piotr wolfishly as he ignored the incoming fire and aimed straight for the little fighter. He managed to get one shot off before he deliberately rammed into the enemy. It exploded and Piotr pressed the booster to speed through the debris and escape the Bayamon who had just passed in range.
"Shields at 30%" warned the ships computer, in its usual sexy female voice.
"No problem baby!", said Piotr exultantly, "let's play a little hit and run!". Nivivks advice, from years of being an elite dogfighter, was now giving Piotr an edge, and he knew it.
As he moved away from the bayamon he re-checked the HUD to regain tactical awareness of the situation.
The Bayamons were still chasing him, but were falling behind, whilst the lumbering Orinoco was over two klicks away.
Piotr slowed to half speed, executed a 180 degree turn and then acclerated back to full speed, aimed for the Bayamon furthest from the Orinoco.
"Warning! Missile detected!"
Piotr swore briefly, and quickly dived down, half rolled, and curved away. It was a dragonfly missile, not enough to kill him but it could wipe out half his shields.
Fortunately the speed of the missile was just below that of the Buster Piotr was flying and so he was able to stay away from it, and the apporaching Bayamons, until it ran out of fuel and auto-destructed as his Wasp had.
Again he curved back towards the two Bayamon. As soon as he entered range he began shooting at the ship he'd selected before. As he shot he continued to jink up and down and to the sides, and rolling his ship, so that the hostiles had a hard time of locking on to him. Unofrtunately the Bayamon was also a difficult target to hit, thanks to its elegant X-shaped design.
The close quarters dogfight had only lasted a few seconds but Piotr saw that the Orinoco was now only just outside of the kill zone.
He selected his remaining Dragonfly missiles and targeted the heavy fighter with the HUD, but still shot at the Bayamon with his cannon. The Buster, after hitting the Bayamon again and getting it shields down to 10% suddenly turned away in a surprise move and headed straight for the heavier Orinoco.
Piotr's shields were down to 40% but he knew he was doing well against the heavy odds.
As the Orinoco began firing he launched the first missile at it. The hostile pilot immediately broke off and tried to evade the dragonfly, but the lightly shielded Orinoco was too slow and soon exploded in a cloud of vapour.
"Yes!" yelled Piotr exultantly. Once again he was speeding away from the two slower bayamons having killed off a third pirate ship. He slowed down to allow the Bayamons to keep up, just out of range, whilst he let his shields recharge.
"I find your lack of belief in the Three Dimensionality disturbing." Mercenary
"So getting this chick back is more than just getting a chick back. It's the concrete manifestation of an abstract policy goal. And we like concrete - right, Vic?"
Red wine...the only way to frag
thanks for the feedback)
