EDIT: 1 March 2004, updated
Chapter 5 - The Novice
"Was the beatings,
made me wise,
I'm not about to give thanks,
or apologize". Pearl Jam.
Piotr stood in the docking bay grinning like an idiot. The Xenon M lay before him, he couldn't wait to get in and start flying.
"Well lad, I said if you got a grade C licence I'd let you come out with me in it", Nivick smiled fondly, "well done!". He slapped the young man on the back.
"Thanks Nivick, this is so great! The instructor said that I might have done better but that since ramming enemy ships was not a recommended manouver it probably held my scores back". Piotr still couldn't believe how well he'd done, even if the heavy fighter Orinoco had not had it's usual 10 Megawatts of shielding.
"We'll have a celebratory drink in that bar you introduced me to when I first arrived, but now is time for your treat...no time to waste!" Nivick said this with a predatory smile that Piotr missed.
----------
When he entered the Xenon M ship Piotr was a bit disappointed to see that the small cabin looked so ordinary. Nivick saw his look.
"Yes, when I captured the ship the Navy let me have the hull and engines but they stripped out all the interior electronics for the spooks to inspect. But don't worry...it's a good little ship and I think you'll enjoy the experience!"
With those words Piotr lost no time and hurriedly strapped himself into the Pilot's chair whilst Nivick sat in a seat situated slightly further back that had some electronics consoles in front of it.
"Right lad, you take her out in your own time and I'll keep a lookout for anything interesting"
He wasn't sure exactly what the old pilot meant by that but Piotr wasn't going to let this experience go to waste. He quickly familiarised himiself with the controls and HUD. The cockpit was very similar to the Buster in layout, the main difference being a slightly narrower field of view and the HUD was positioned higher than he was used to. After some safety checks that Nivick's training had drilled into him he requested clearance to depart.
"Argon Pilot of the Xenon Ship", the docking controller clearly wasn't used to hailing such an strange ship,"you have clearance to depart"
Once he was clear of the station Piotr restrained the urge to throw the ship through its paces, remembering the telling off he'd had last time doing just that with his Lifter.
Nivick directed him to head for the north west corner of the sector and then to do some manouvers when they were well away from any traffic. On the way he checked through the ships inventory and was impressed to see that not only was everything fully upgraded but the ship also had 30 assorted missiles, including 8 silkworms, a docking computer, a transporter and a spare 5 megawatt shield. The last item on the list blew his mind, and explained the 50 energy cells the medium fighter carried.
"Wow! Nivick, you have a jump drive! And this ship is rigged out for war! How come?"
The veteran looked vaguely uncomfortable for a moment but then the familiar grin returned.
"Well lad, I retired from the navy right enough but I still go out now and then to pad out my pension. I have an open agreement with the Boron to supplement their defense forces when they need help. The jump drive came from a split mamba that was part of a small raiding party sent out ot test the defences of Atreus clouds." Nivick paused, remembering the fierce fighting, and his face grew grim. "The Boron lost some brave pilots that day, but we paid the Split back in spades".
Piotr was impressed by the old man's story, not least because he realised that some of the stories he'd heard about 'the hero of Split Fire', a brief skirmish with the split years ago, must all be true.
To win against a Mamba Heavy fighter with this ship was truly impressive.
His silence at the tale he'd just heard soon gave way to quiet his murmurs of appreciation at the Xenon M's superior steering ability compared to that of the Buster he'd flown in the simulations.
------
An hour later Piotr was really getting into the swing of things and was shooting back and forth between some empty cargo canisters Nivick had dropped. The ship would reach one, decelerate and turn on a pin at low velocity around the container and repeat the manouver at the other, alternating the left and right turning manouvers with 180 degree rolls and dives.
"Okay lad! We are in business" Nivick flipped a switch.
"Jump device charging at 10%...20%.." the ship computer intoned.
"Nivick where are we going?", Piotr's voice betrayed his excitement at using a jump drive for the first time in his life.
"Company Pride...I've seen some tasty pickings on the nav sat system that an old friend allows me access to" Nivick laughed at Piotr's surprise, "You don't think I'm going to leave you with no decent ship do you!"
Piotr sat numb, staring at Nivick, as the computer finished its countdown. The drive activated and he watched as the worm hole energies reflected over the grinning face of the old pilot.
----
"Woah, hold on Nivick, I'm not a fighter pilot! No way am I going to attack some defenceless ship!"
Nivick grinned.
"No need to worry about defenceless lad, I'm off to the head", the old veteran got up and began to unzip his flight suit on the way to the rudimentary toilet at the rear of the cabin.
"What?!" Piotr shouted.
As the ship he was in began to buckle about, buffeted by enemy fire, he relaised that the mad old dog had landed him right in the crap.
"Warning, shields at 40% and falling"
Piotr quickly jumped into the pilots chair and pushed the throttle full forward, at the same time pressing the boost drive to get the hell out of whatever trouble he was in.
Piotr looked at the HUD, the view he saw was vaguely familair. Two Mandalay and a Bayamon were attacking a solitary freighter as it desperately trried to approach the gate Nivick had launched out of, before being blown up. A second Bayamon had come to attack the Xenon ship Piotr was flying, but had hung back, clearly unsure what to make of the alien vessel flying under recognizable IFF codes.
Piotr checked the freighter codes again, he froze for a split second, the codes revealed the ship to be that of the father of his friend Fredic. What the hell was he doing here at the edge of Teladi spoace?
No time.
Piotr slipped back into the role Nivick had drilled into him at the simulation. Identify your enemy, then kill them...if you can. He selected Dragonfly missiles and directed the HUD targeter to pinpoint the Bayamon firing at him.
-----
After executing a roll and then a full reverse curve the Bayamon appeared in his sights. The enemy pilot, still cautious of the Xenon ship began to turn away.
"Try and smack my bitch up and you will get smacked...bitch!", Piotr yelled as he stabbed the missile release button. Two Dragonfly missiles launched at the retreating fighter, only 300 metres away.
-------
Piotr watched the two missile exhausts speed towards the pirate ship.
He flew through the resulting vapour cloud, yelling wildly, and focussed on the three fighters remaining that were attacking his mate's father.
"Ahh! I see you have got the hang of things!", Nivick had returned.
"Yes", he broke off to launch another pair of dragonflys at the unsuspecting Bayamon, "what the hell is going on?".
Not only was Piotr unprepared for this life and death fight, he was unprepared for the whole incredible situation. Something smelt bad, and it wasn't the ozone off the ships computer.
"Well, lad. I thought you'd ask the question sooner or later. I'm just surprised you hadn't asked sooner."
The Bayamon was continuing its atatcks on the lifter when the missiles impacted. Shields almost collapsed it broke and turned to face the Xenon ship.
Nivick continued to talk, unconcerned whilst Piotr wrestled with the controls.
"You never really asked why I suddenly turned up". The young pilot's hackles rose. Nivick half laughed, it was tinged with disgust...at what Piotr did not know. "Your uncle, he worked with me, with us".
"Us?" Piotr replied, trying to focus on the Bayamon that was getting away.
"Focus on the Mandalay fighters, you can kill 'em quick and then turn on the bigger prey!" Nivick snapped.
Piotr responded to the command authority in the old veterans voice and quickly wheeled around to blast at the two Mandalays on his six. He launched two wasps at each as soon as they were in a firing arc, expense be damned - the missiles were not his. As he desperately manouvered his ship Piotr shouted back at the old man behind him.
"Look Nivick! What the hell is going on here, I am in the middle of a battle trying to protect my friend's father. A week ago I was only a trader!". One Mandalay exploded as the missiles hit. The other broke and ran, but it was only 400 metres away. Piotr twisted the controls to follow.
"This is not a battle boy! This is just a warm-up. If you want to survive outside of Argon Prime, you're going to have to learn to fight off Sillamb's fighter's. Look just get on with the fighting, try not to kill the last Bayamon, keep him for me..."
Piotr ignored the Bayamon who was firing at him after aborting an attack on the freighter and stabbed the fire button...the Mandalay,crippled by one missile already, exploded into plasma gas.
"Shields at 30%" the computer warned. Nivick sat down at the co-pilots chair and got busy at the console. He began to read off the enemy pilot's positions and suggest flight patterns.
In spite of how pissed off he was about the old man playing him, Piotr quickly learned to carry on piloting the ship and listen to the ship vectors being read out to him. The Xenon M's shields gradually began to recharge whilst Piotr repeatedly knocked down the shields of the Bayamon. He then noticed that the left weapon seemed to be offline.
"Don't worry lad, we're not gonna kill him, just keep his shields low!" Nivick called out from behind him.
Piotr did not have a clue what was going on, but played along. he prayed the mad old ****** knew what he was doing.
The HUD display changed from red to blue and Piotr instinctively pulled up hard. He saw something ejct from the Bayamon...a pilot?
"Well done my boy! We are on the way now".
