FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

David waited at the hanger in his uniform, the dark gray uniform with the signature of his rank on his chest. He had managed to freshen up before his team was assembled. As soon as the clock changed to six o'clock did his team run into the hangar in an orderly fashion, all of them prepped for the mission. Every single one of them in their pilot uniforms, their new fighters and bombers standing behind David. He waited for them all to stand in a row and salute him. He eyed every one of them, first his fighter pilots, Manka the bunny, Sally the Kudu, Betty the beaver, Sam the mountain goat, Sato, Tori, Anne, Farin, Myra, and Cadence.

He then counted the heads of the bombers, Daly the deer, Martha the Squirrel, Ida the Mouse, Larissa the Opossum, Bruna, Maria, Sarra, Nahia, June, and Lisa. Even Carth, their bovine technical officer was here to make a final check of all the planes to clear them before they would lift off. Even though Carth had done so multiple times yesterday already. He smiled and nodded at them, a sense of pride welling in him as he got ready to address his crew of all species.

"Ladies, at ease." Like a machine, they all stood at ease. "I hope you all had a good breakfast, be sure to keep it all in when you fire your new gear up." They all smirked, Manka even more so as he was going to be her co-pilot. "Today, we can deliver a major blow to the Reptors. They aren't expecting us, they aren't expecting our gear. We are going to hit them so hard that they'll be on the defensive for years. I know you can do this, you've trained for this. I will share the plan with you once we're in the sky. I ask of all of you, to put your trust in me as I do with you. I told you all, I have 584 reasons to see this mission to a successful end. And I will do my best to bring you all home. Especially you Manka."

They cracked a smile, David was pleased that he managed to lighten the mood a little. He knew they were nervous, he would be too if he had to fly in on a last second debriefing with new aircraft. "Now let's go ladies, we're lifting off in thirty minutes. I want you all ready to take off by then so let's move it!"

They dispersed and ran to their planes, Carth going to each of them one by one to do a quick mechanical check. The pilots doing their checks and going through their checklists to get ready to take off. He took a deep breath himself as his Squadron was preparing for taking off. He was probably the most nervous of them all, he was going to lead another group of people into a battle and their survival would depend partially on him. And he was not wanting a repetition of his last battle.

He arrived at Manka's plane, a V2 fighter that was faster, agiler and even a little sturdier then what she was used to. But they spend plenty of time training to get used to this. He climbed on the wing and looked her running through her checklists. "How's it looking Manka?" Without looking up from her HUD, she answered him. "Everything's in the green so far. Looks like I'm good to go as soon as you're seated." She shot him a glance, still not liking the fact she had to fly with her Squadron Commander looking over her shoulder. "Good, the sooner we're up in the air the better. I hate keeping you all in the dark about the mission. The sooner I can fill everybody in the better."

David got suited up himself, taking the seat behind Manka who was ready to take off. The cockpit closed once he was seated and strapped in, hooking himself up to the comms system. The hangar doors opened as the engines began to roar one by one. Everybody checked in on the comms channel so the entire squadron was on the correct channel.

The planes rode to the airstrip, one by one. Waiting in line as the tower cleared them one by one for taking off. First were the fighters, then the bombers. Speeding towards the outer atmosphere of the planet. Holding their position as they waited for everybody to be in position.

David's voice broke the silence as finally Larissa was the last to join them. Ten bombers and an escort fighter for each of them. Normally they would have had five bombers but the new models allowed them to cut in half the amount of people needed to operate the bombers.

"Alright everybody, hold your position, we're picking up something for along the way." Not too long after he said this, did a larger ship move towards them. A few bombers, seeming to be in tow of twenty previous gen bombers. Now made obsolete. They moved behind them, the pilots hooking the older planes up and then exiting to be picked up by the new bombers and then left them with the older planes still hooked to them.

"Uh, Commander, what's the deal with these ships?" One of the fighters asked once they were all hooked up.

"They are a crucial part of our plan. Now everybody, please fly in formation at light speed. In the following half hour, I will debrief you all."

The engines roared again as they all sped up to as close as to lightspeed as they could. Careful with their new cargo they were hauling behind each ship.

"Now then, here's the plan everybody." Their HUD's would show an overlay of the battlefield and the home planet of the Reports. "We all know how the Reptors attack, disable the bombers first and then clean up the fighters." The HUD's showed a simple reconstruction of this tactic. "So, we're bringing these along for a distraction. Once we approach the planet we detach the planes and let inertia fly them right into the Reptor fighters. We loaded them with explosives so the second they engage, it will take out a few of them. While we deal with the remainders and any other fighters heading our way. In the confusion, the bombers will head to our main targets, these military facilities."

The HUD highlighted their targets on the surface for all to see.

"We got intel that the Reptors are preparing to launch a massive invasion. Bigger than the one in the capital. Their troops and ships are located here and here, our goal is to decimate their fleet and troop count so that there will be no invasion force left to launch. Or at the least cripple them."

"But if this is true, then why not send our entire fleet to knock em down! Why just one Squadron?!"

He thought it was Ida that asked this, "Because we do not have that many new generation planes available yet and if we arrive with a large force ourselves, they'll just pull back their planes and invasion troops. Right now they think they're safe in their hangars and barracks, they won't expect one squadron being able to pack a big punch. They'll underestimate us and won't realize their mistake until it's too late. And while they lick their wounds, we'll have time to build more ships and return in greater force."

"And what if they decide to send THEIR fleet to knock us down?"

David weighed his options, there was the chance that would happen but with just one squadron he was hoping to get in and out before they would assemble their forces. "Then we hit them and get out before they can get their planes in the air."

The HUD then showed the Tower, the General mentioned in their meeting. "This is our secondary objective, hit this structure but only if you have bombs left and are confident enough in your handling of the bombers. This facility is very heavily defended with AA guns. Even with our new ships it won't be easy. We do not know it's purpose but given how heavily protected it is, it won't hurt to try and see if we can dent it. But only go after it when I say so. Once all our primary targets are down can we see if that window is still open."

The remainder of the flight, David did his best to convey the plan and answer any questions his squadron had. But eventually they entered Reptor space, and the time for debriefing was over. David made a quick scan of their environment, it seemed that there wasn't a welcoming party. A good sign.

"Alright, this it. Follow the plan, detach on my signal. Now!"

With a unified hiss, the booby-trapped bombers detached from their escorts. They had begun to slow down gradually and allowed the bombers to slow down using the little bit of fuel in them to slow them down automatically.

But now that they were detached, they kept going forward thanks to the lack of friction. They let the bombers float past them, heading straight for the home planet of the Reptors. As expected, they were engaged by Reptor interception forces long before they were near the atmosphere. Manka's scanners picked up fighters scrambling to intercept the bombers, exactly as David had planned.

"Three Squadrons of fighters up ahead and closing in, they're heading for the bait."

"Form up! Close ranks, let them engage the bombers. When they get in range of us, stick with the plan."

David watched as the Reptors stuck with their usual strategy, beelining the bombers. Their cockiness hindering their ability to question the fact their enemy would send in a wave of lone bombers. They engaged the bombers, when they blew up the first bomber it triggered a chain reaction. All of the rigged bombs exploded in a silent boom. The explosions themselves knocking out a good amount of the squadrons, the debris disabling a few more. The plan had worked perfectly, of the sixty-odd fighters only a handful were still operational. But before they could form up again, David and his Squadron engaged them. Easily picking them off until none were left. Earning cheers all around.

"Good job everybody, but we're not out of the woods yet." Their HUD's would light up as other squadrons were closing in on from the sides, reinforcements. "Well ladies, let's show these scalies what these ships can do!" Manka sped up towards the first wave of attackers. The fighters breaking off from the bombers as they continued to their targets. Only Tori, the Tapir of the group escorting them to pick off AA defenses and other fighters that would try to intercept them.

Meanwhile, David got a front row seat of how outclassed the Reptors were. They were used to the slower, less agile fighters. Not these new ones that were almost literally flying circles around them. The confusion and chaos this caused amongst them were making this a very one-sided battle. The Reptors struggling to find an answer to this new style of fighting and failing to come up with a tactic of their own.

Manka alone was really proving herself as the ace pilot of the group, outmaneuvering the enemy like they were rookies. If they tried to get behind her she would just turn sharper than they could and get behind them and finish them off. Their speed made it hard for the Reptors to aim and get their weapons aligned.

David saw one of the hostile fighters head straight towards them, Manka did an aileron roll to avoid and return fire. The hostile fighter's fuel tank was hit and exploded in a silent ball of fire. David's heart raced, for a second he was back in the Juniper as it exploded upon entry in the atmosphere. He felt the heat around him again, panic surging through him. He covered his eyes and left out a soft scream, startling Manka for a moment. "What is it? Did we get hit?" She asked looking around her, thinking David had seen something she missed. David panted softly, blinking his eyes rapidly now the flashback was over. Refocusing on what was happening now. "Um, I'm sorry. I thought I saw a... Reptor behind us but I was mistaken." Manka raised an eyebrow but didn't have the luxury to not focus on the fight going on around her. Dropping the issue and going back to shredding Reptors.

Sally's HUD alerted her to the fact three fighters were on her tail, using evasive maneuvers to avoid taking even a single blast. "Let's see how you scales handle this!" She reversed her engine's thrust immediately, the engines roaring in protest but complying with the order given. The three fighters were caught by surprise and zipped past her, allowing Sally a clean shot at all three of them in front of her before they managed to turn around. All three of them exploding with a confident smirk from Sally, her fighter taking off again to go after her next prey.

If David could listen in on the Reptors' communication channels, he'd hear how the Reptors were taking this assault more serious by the minute. More and more fighters were being scrambled and send their direction as the commanding officers on the ground began to see their situation was direr than they first imagined. Then the reports from the ground began pouring in and their faces turned a little more pale.

The bombers had entered the atmosphere and were heading to their targets. Daly had the hangar in sight, remembering her training and positioning her bomber into a steep dive. Lining up the target with the guidance system and dropping her payload before pulling sharply on the steering gear. Pulling up as the bombs whistled towards the ground. She looked behind her and couldn't help but let out a celebratory 'Yes!' The bombs she dropped managed to pierce the outer structure of the hangar, exactly as David had hoped. Seeing the entire structure blow up from the inside. Detonating inside the hangar where the ships were stationed, causing a massive explosion that leveled the entire hangar with a large, mushroom explosion.

"This is Daly, target is destroyed. How's it going up there cap?"

David had to suppress a smile, "Better than expected, they've got no idea what is hitting them. But don't let up, it'll only take them so long to scramble every fighter they got and organize a counter attack. We now know the bombers can hit them, so light 'em up Ladies!"

On the ground, the Reptors were heavily debating, the room filled with high ranking officers that were discussing the royal screw up. Each having their idea of what to do as the reports kept coming in of entire squadrons being decimated and key structured being leveled one by one. They were all caught off guard and it was showing as the Reptor forces still didn't have an answer to this raid. Eventually, a larger reptile entered the room and all officers got quiet. His larger mass, imposing and radiating authority. He joined the war table and assessed the situation calmly, giving orders and setting up a strategy to turn this fight around. He was cursing under his breath, even if they managed to kill all the attackers, the damage was already done.

Up in the sky and space, morale was at at all-time high. But then David saw his HUD and his blood ran cold. "We got incoming, several groups are taking off from the surface. we're running out of time everybody, what's the status on the hangars?"

Martha's voice was the first to respond, "All hangars are destroyed, just one barracks is left standing. Bruna and Maria are trying to bomb the Tower but they're being intercepted by fighters and heavy AA fire."

David's gears were turning, weighing his options and the risks of possible outcomes. The enemy was getting organized, the attack waves more structured and planned. Their enemy had recovered from the initial surprise and now numbers threatened to overwhelm them. "Manka and Cadence, get down to the planet and provide cover for the bombers. Help them get out of there in one piece. Everybody else, keep the fighters at bay here. Be ready to get out of here and accelerate to lightspeed immediately.

The mood got more serious, everybody had noticed the Reptors were getting organized and they were having to put up more of a fight. The Reptors teaming up on the fighters instead of going after them one by one. Bombers having to fight off fighters and making their job to bomb near impossible. The steep approach was ideal to breach the defenses of the structures but when under fire they simply couldn't climb and line up again. Luckily, the new bombers were able to fend off a fighter but just barely. And the ones left alone managed to drop their payloads on the final target. Though while the last barracks was mostly evacuated, the previous locations were less fortunate. It would be impossible to say how many casualties they made but from the devastation around them. It was safe to say that they would be licking their wounds for some time. With Manka, David and Cadence to back up the bombers, there were few fighters that managed to get airborne before the hangars were destroyed. "Great work everybody, now let's get out of here before the fleet gets here." The one half of the group aimed upwards and took off. Leaving the atmosphere and the chaos below and joined up with the rest of the group. "Time to go!" It was hard for David to hide his worry, given his HUD was lighting with hundreds of fighters that launched from other hangars spread around the planet. Even with their technological advantage, he didn't want to fight these numbers with just one squadron.

"Cap! My sublights took a hit in the fight, I can't fire them up!" David looked at Farin's ship, he could see the engines took a direct hit. There was no way she would be able to outrun the Reptors without sublight. David looked around, no way in hell was he going to leave even one of his behind. He looked up ahead and spotted one cable tie drifting through space. A plan formed.

"Everybody, keep them off us for a minute. Farin, stay where you are. Manka, fly up to the cable tie."

"Say no more."

She figured out his plan, flying up to the cable tie and positioning herself so the one end connected with her ship's rear. Then flying back to Farin's ship and trying to align herself. "Blast! I can't get it in the right position to hook her up." Around them was still a fight going on. One that was turning against their favor. David couldn't help but see the hundreds of fighters closing in on them. They would soon be within firing range of the approaching mass of fighters. "Damn it all, close your helmet Manka!" David did the same, opening the cockpit from the inside despite protest from his squadron. Energy rounds flew past him as he pushed himself off the fighter and flew through space. Grabbing the cable tie on the way to Farin's ship and maneuvering himself so he could attach it to her ship. His boots landing onto the disabled fighter with a shock. "There, now everybody, get those engines fired up. We're leaving, NOW!" David pushed himself off again and floated black to Manka's fighter. The second he closed the cockpit again did she turn towards their home planet and disengaged the fight. The other fighters and bombers behind them to cover for Farin as the cable tie pulled her along with them as they sped up. The fighters they were engaged with began to pursue them, reinforcements arriving just when they gave chase. Myra looked behind her and saw how a wall of fighters were heading straight for them. "By the spirits! They're getting closer!"

"Keep going! We're nearly there!" Meanwhile, dozens of fighters fired at them, a few fighters taking hits but nothing severe, the armor taking the blows with ease for now. The engines beginning to build up energy and prepare for the acceleration to maximum speed. Every second felt like minutes, as Reptor crafts were getting closer and engaging them. Every fighter and bomber was taking fire now as they all waited. Waited for the engines to be ready to blast them out of there. Any second one round could penetrate the armor and disable another ship or worse. But luckily, that never happened. Not a second too soon did David's squadron accelerate to light speed. The ships leaving their enemy behind, not bothering to give chase as their engines weren't built for light speed. The Reptors began to return to their hangars, beneath them were pillars of smoke rising from the surface where once stood their fortified military bases. Their heavy fortifications having also made them easy to distinguish as targets for bombers. Their decision to fortify them and not hide, having cost them today. Their second invasion, would not be happening anytime soon. In the Reptor war room, the mood was chilly. The enemy had not only executed a successful raid on key facilities, they did so without any losses. All the officers looked nervously at the general, who was looking at the 3D map of the battlefield silently. His clawed fingertips digging into the metallic table with a gentle creak. They knew someone had to take the fall for this, the question was who? The large, armor-clad Reptor straightened himself and asked a single, rumbling question. "Who was in command of our air defencesss?" All the other officers turned their heads to the lizard at the responsible for intercepting incoming spacecraft and such. But before he could speak a single word in his defense, the general tore a metal plate from the table with a loud grunt and flung it so hard at the poor Reptor, his head was almost cut in half vertically as the metal slab lodged itself in his head. The force of the impact sending him to the ground where his corpse was staining the floor. The large Reptor turned and left the room, a pin could be heard in the room as he did. Enraged over this humiliation, and knowing he would have to be the one to report this to their leader. And he wasn't as forgiving as the general.

[A few hours later]

Spirits were high on the way back to the base, the squadron had completed their mission with near perfect numbers. Aside from one damaged fighter and the fact they couldn't drop a single payload onto the Tower. Still not knowing what exactly the structure was meant for and why it was so heavily defended. And now, thanks to their raid, it would only be better guarded next time. But those were worries for another day, today was a victory. They didn't know the exact damage they did, but they managed to destroy all primary objectives so David was already planning for a little celebration back at base.

Manka looked over her shoulder at David and smiled. "That was a good plan cap. With the whole bait and stuff. You did well."

"Thanks, Manka, you did some good flying too. You're a real ace pilot."

"I knew that already, but thanks. I'm sure Farin will want to thank you as well once we're on the ground. Even if it was stupidly dangerous."

"Aw, did I worry you Manka?"

"Ha, yeah, that I would have to clean your blood stains off my hull."

Manka's gut told her there was something she was missing

The landing went smooth, Farin's sublight engines were damaged by they weren't used to land so she had no trouble landing either.

David was expecting a few things to happen when he landed with Manka, he wasn't prepared for a blur of fur to tackle him to the ground, it went so fast he didn't have time to react.

"DAVID!"

Tellar was licking David's face, clearly happy he had returned unscathed from the fight. And without a single loss at that too! "I'm happy you're back! I was worried! So happy."

"I can see Tellar. I do."

The squadron observing the scene chuckling at the sight of their captain buried under that happy pile of fur. A short cough making everyone stop what they were doing and turn their heads, spotting General Harna walking into the hangar with a pair of leopard guards by his side. "Might I borrow the Captain briefly?"

Tellar got off David, who got to his feet and straightened his uniform and hair. A little slobber still stuck to his face before he wiped it off with his sleeve. "Yes Sir." The other also saluting and standing at attention. "Follow me Captain, I want to hear your report." Harna turned and walked back the way he came. David following him after he told his crew to take a deserved break.

David and Harna walked to the office where David was briefed about the mission. Now about to debrief him about the same mission.

"I will begin with congratulating you on returning without a single casualty Captain, not many here can say that."

"Thank you, General."

"Now if you please."

"All primary targets are destroyed, the hangars and barracks are disabled or destroyed. Resistance was minimal, they didn't expect us and the element of surprise bought us the time needed to execute our attack before they scrambled grounded fighters to engage us."

"I see, very good. What about the Tower?"

"Unfortunately it was heavily defended, by the time the primary targets were destroyed the enemy fighters were heading for us in great numbers. I decided it was better to return to base with no losses then risk losing everyone in my squadron to attack the Tower.

Harma murmured softly at this, stroking his chin.

"I can respect that decision, you don't want to lose an entire squadron and die when odds are not in your favor." He said with a sigh.

"But for all we know, that Tower is a very important structure and having it destroyed could in that case turn or end this war entirely. I fear we missed an opportunity here."

David was about to object to this, but Harna continued before he could.

"Do not fret Captain, I'm not here to scold you. It was a secondary objective after all. I simply worry about that Tower and its purpose."

"Well, for now, we got them on the defensive while they figure out what to do now we've shown their defenses are outdated. Meanwhile, you'll build more advanced ships while they don't have access to the same technology."

"Indeed, we've delayed their invasion and bought ourselves some time. Though their fleet and armies remain large. We estimate your attack will have destroyed less than 5% of their ships and 10% of their foot soldiers."

"Excuse me for saying it General but, that sounds like we didn't delay anything at all."

Harna smirked at David.

"I didn't expect you to hurt them so much it'll make them too weak to attack. No, I wanted them to see what we can do with just one Squadron."

He leaned back in the chair he was sitting in and kept smirking at David as he continued.

"And make them fear what a fleet can do so much they won't dare attack."

For the remainder of the week, David and his crew were put on stand-bye. They could continue training and such but had no planned missions for the time being. They did need to be on alert in case the Reptors would decide to attack regardless. Even though the Reptors had plenty of reserves to launch an invasion, it would take some time to mobilize them all again. Assuming they would be willing to risk an attack against an enemy that had a big tactical advantage. Harna and the other generals decided the Reptors wouldn't risk a costly attack so soon, but they had been wrong about them before so everyone was told to stay alert.

David relayed the orders and praise to the Squadron, and all of them were pleased with both. David also received plenty of praise for his tactical insight and commitment to his squadron. As proven by helping Farin's crippled fighter to safety at great personal risk. Carth pat on the shoulder made him buckle a little, even with his enhanced strength thanks to the lower gravity. And made the others chuckle.

Back in his quarters, David was looking at the evidence Merin had left him and Kayle. They contained the information needed to unravel the puzzle and discover who the leak was and to plug it before it was too late.

Staring at that picture of the camera pointed at Merin's lab. Him and David discussing something. He stared at it so many times already, but no matter what he did he couldn't figure out why this was the image that Merin send in his final moments. But he had the remainder of the week to try and figure out what Merin had left him. And David was not going to give up easily.