FR-11987 was closing in, having just relayed the final warning from the station without a response from the Milano left him with no other option but to start firing.
‘Omega leader. Open fire.’
FR-11987 didn’t even register the “Copy that Zeta Leader” as he was already passing the Enforcer to open fire at the Milano’s engines. Green mingled with the red light of his cockpit as he fired a good stream of bolts before breaking off starboard to pass the slower ship. A move immediately followed by ion cannon fire that caught one of his wingmen off guard. Screaming, reports and general yelling filled the comms. The sounds off battle, all accompanied by the roar of Ls-1 Laser cannons and the satisfying sound of a TIE’s twin ion engines screaming round the hard turn to make a second pass at the rear of the Milano. The shots impacted the shields and rocked the thing up, but nothing penetrated so far.
“Omega Squadron, focus on their rear.”
FR-11987 called as he knew they needed more sustained firepower to breach the deflector shield. 2 TIE’s had were drifting helplessly in space now, one of them desperately screaming something about an asteroid coming up. The other 2 fighters joined ranks with FR-11987 and his wingman to start pounding the shields for a run when a strange glittering coming from multiple places at the back of the ship. Something was reflecting the light of their laser fire and it was expanding rapidly in a screen behind the Milano. FR-11987 was still in awe when he heard a hailstorm of impacts on his solar panels and cockpit. His ship veered due to one of his wingman exploding and sending FR-11987’s solar panels collide with another TIE. Only when a large, hard-frozen brown lump broke through his cockpit did it begin to dawn what was happening. Profanities came to mind as his cockpit fogged up and cold gripped his guts, but only one was uttered:
“Shit..”
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In the Milano’s wake a single TIE was still flying, taking cover behind the now shit-hailed Enforcer that was in pursuit of the same target it seemed. Piloting it was another number/letter combination that preferred to go by the name of Otto for the 0’s and 2’s in said combination. He was shouting what had happened over the static of the Asteroid field and was reassured by the message that the VT-49’s were standing by outside the field to intercept. Otto chose to ignore the part about continuing pursuit.
Before the Milano the asteroids started to get farther in between and hyperspace co-ordinates would be able to start calculating non-lethal routes through hyperspace.
---
Inside the Milano Zel and Orpel stepped out of the hatch anxiously only to find themselves in a small enclosed room with doors on both sides (point 4 on the ship layout) Orpel gestured to Zel to move towards the rear while he pressed a thumb against his own chest and pointed towards the cockpit. Zel gave a worried nod, mustering the courage to go separate ways here. Orpel didn’t give him the time as he had already pressed the door controls and stepped into the small sleeping quarters just behind the cockpit and moved towards the second door with a zealous determination. Zel shuffled into the long corridor, systematically checking the rooms (in one of which Krus is hiding).