It's time for another sub-story from the rejected squadron! (Influenced by AC7 "First Contact")

...

"You know" Colonel Purnama started his briefing. "As we're winning I've got myself two medals for your contribution so far to the war effort. But always remember, if you disobey orders, there's a special place in solitary confinement or firing squad. You definitely won't forget what happen to your friend."

Major Heru, the one that was sent to the 13th due to embezzlement has, in the word of the Colonel, had 'complained too much' blowing away his chance for redemption. As the result, the entire squadron was forced to saw the former Lieutenant Colonel being frog-marched into his executioners.

"Hmmmph" is the only voice from the Major as he was dragged with his mouth gagged into one of the base's hangar, than a squad of MPs proceeded with the execution.

"Your so called right for redress was forfeited the moment you choose to break the law. Okay, then. It's time for you to make yourself useful in the eyes of the people. We have an Indonesian squadron, the 19th, which is currently inside UCC-occupied Iranian territory for long range surgical raids in support of pro-Shah resistance forces. Due to certain factors, their return route has been changed. The new return route will be partially through the Zagros Mountains. The enemy's radar facilities and anti-aircraft weapons hidden on the mountainside pose a serious threat. Your mission is to destroy them and get our people out in one piece, even if it means your life will be in danger. And it is important to remember that the Caliphate will send up fighters and drones if you're detected. So you need to prioritize what your targets will be in a dogfight. The weather won't be on your side with thunderstorms here, people, but you're doing this whether you like it or not. Worry about our allies' return route, not your own. Your mission is to get them back safely no matter the cost. Which I think is the perfect punishment for your crimes."

...

It was a long flight and there were storms all along the way. For the most part, however, Doni took the time to appreciate the scenery. The dark greens and brown and white of the mountains below covered with the grays and whites of the storm clouds.

He and Red Cap were at the front leading the way through the clouds and area surrounding the mountains, while behind them are Scale and Full House. The rest of the squadron spread out in various altitude and around the valley where the said strike squadron will possibly pass through. In a strange way, Doni felt some comfort. Everybody seems to know that to survive in the hellhole that was the 13th, they need to watch each others back.

The wind began to pick up and the clouds became thicker and obscured the already limited view they had of the terrain ahead of them. With no other choice, the rest of the Padlock pilots went lower to be under the cloud while keeping tab on the surrounding area and instruments. Then several blips appeared on his radar, catching his attention. Doni looked up and also checked his instrument before confirming it as radar sites. "Sipir, be advised," he radioed the AWACS, who'd been unusually quiet through the entire trip. "Got a visual on the targets. There don't appear to be that many. But there definitely be more."

"That's for a better, Charge. Padlock Squadron, let's get to the point. This mission have to be quick. Target their radar facilities and air defense weaponry located on the mountainside and we have thunderclouds in the area. And you will fly near, or through it." explained AWACS Sipir which are orbiting somewhere just near the port city of Bandar Abbas with it's drone escorts.

Doni could hear just a hint of concern in Sipir's voice. Perhaps the intelligence that Joseph uncover had softened his attitude a little bit. Then again, he could be acting on his best behavior for their VIPs. Speaking of which, they should be arriving anytime now. Doni decided it's time for him to start his attack run for the first target. "Everybody, you heard the man. If you want your freedom back, let's get to work! Oh, and always check your warnings when you go down."

"Wait.. who's the pencil-pushing jackass who came up with this hare-brained plan?" asked Padlock 3-4, 1st Lt. Evan Ramdhani, callsign "Sausage" maintaining a steady altitude while the rest of the squadron all got to work. The answer was easy enough to figure out, but Doni knew that Sausage wasn't renowned for his intelligence. Quite the opposite, actually. In fact in his opinion, Sausage spent his time in solitary more than the rest of the squadron. However he decided to put it aside as he continued his approach at the radar site and SAM launcher that he intended to destroy.

"Just do your job, 3-4" Sipir let out an exasperated sigh at the said pilot which is among ten in the squadron convicted due to their sympathy towards Islamist cause.

"Target locked, 1-2 Magnum" Two AGM-88G HARMs went out from Doni's IF-33A which quickly silenced the radar site and the SAM located roughly 300 meter away from the radar site, in another hill nearby.

"Understood" said Sipir, as the cons split into pairs and called "Magnum". Four more enemy air defenses went offline just in time as a new, female voice came over the radio. "13th Independent Squadron, this is Beartrap 1. Please call me Genesis." She went on, "Beartrap squadron contained eight aircraft and is currently egressing out after a raid against a Caliphate command bunker housing a company worth of their cyber-specialists. Stand by. We'll be reaching your position in 5 minutes."

"Understood," was Sipir's short reply.

As Doni weaved through the rocks to get to the next target with the sound of rain hitting his canopy, he saw that the rest of the squadron was all taking different routes to take out the rest of the AA weaponry or pursue the enemy, mostly patrolling attack helicopters but also a few pair of Fedayeen HESA Saeqeh and MiG-21 type fighters. The rain pelted down against them, a few were struggling against the wind. Somehow the rain, in his mind, in soothing but also increased concentration as he focused in navigating the treacherous mountains.

Between the magnum calls, Genesis went on to explain their tactical situations. "Be advised, we're low on air-to-air ordnance. It'll be hard to take on hostiles, especially drones, so we'll have to rely on you people to make it home." She seemed hesitant in saying this, probably dubious of the penal squadron and their reliability.

"Rinjani 1, this is Sipir," Sipir replied. "We need the job done on time, so you shouldn't have to worry too much about support cooperating. They'll do what it takes, trust me." Doni can recognize a weak, underlying threat to the 13th hidden in his words. He'd tell Joseph after the mission that he should be careful in working with Reformer or Sipir. Rather safe than sorry.

"Sipir.. a fitting name" said the Rinjani Leader. "Nice working with you, Mr. Prison Police." With that, the arriving allies went quiet. He and Red Cap checked their radar and confirmed their presence, fast approaching. While 75% SAM and AA in the vicinity have been taken out, they need to work faster to further make the squadron's time easier. Through the fog Doni maneuvered carefully and then spotting just another radar site beside a copied Pantsir just near one small hill, which as the Rinjani squadron are flying low below the clouds even one single of it pose a significant threat. So he kept himself flying low and at an angle, deciding that it was a good time to use his last two remaining HARMs. It wasn't long before he got a lock on the first target.

"Padlock 1-2, magnum"

The missile warnings in his ear were the next thing to go, ceasing as soon as the SA-22 was destroyed. All that was left was two ZU-23-2s which he wanted to take out to further smooth things up. However this time his element lead Red Cap took over and destroyed the AA gun.

Meanwhile "This is a piece of cake." laughed Full House as he carefully maneuvered through the rocks and took down a radar facility.

"Don't think so... crosswinds are pain in the ass," his wingman Scale countered.

"Use the winds for to guide you.. remember your training." Red Cap told him, slightly amused on his predicament but a hint of concern as well.

"You stole my word, Red Cap" Full House replied.

"God...I'd rather be back in my cell right now," grumbled Padlock 4-2. "If I have to choose solitary or this shit. I choose solitary."

"Are you mad?" asked his flight leader, callsign Black Jack. Doni and his leader both found the comparison unfair. In the air, the only person they need to worry was Sipir, or possibly barrier squadrons, in which Reformer often threaten them with for desertion.

"Lead is right, No way I'm going back to that shithole! This is better than solitary!" bellowed Padlock 4-4, callsign Butcher.

Sipir ignored his outburst like everyone else, since it wasn't interfering with their task. If anything, it was motivating Scale to work even harder. In fact he's taken out two MiGs and two SAM sites, but they weren't done just yet. "Well then, back to the mission and take down the last two targets"

"Padlock 3-1, magnum" Then he and 3-2 circled around and even formed up near Red Cap's flight. Sipir radioed them all once again, sounding satisfied, "All targets confirmed destroyed. No complaints here. Looks like most of you lot will be out of solitary for a longer period of time."

Doni then looked out to the distance where a thunderstorm was closing in fast. Purple-ish blue lightning crackled, lighting up the dark gray clouds. A flight of eight two seater IF-21Ds was flying below them, napping the ground in a perfect formation.

He felt a pang of jealousy at the fact that they were able to fly like that. So effortlessly and with order and skill that could match Su-65 elite drivers like Paulus Hutapea, Evelyn Hardikusumo, Medi Agung, or Pandu Tandoko and IF-21/-24 top guns such as Patricia Devina, Teddy Mulyadi, Yoel Angsana, or Yanuar Dharma.

"Warning, we got more bandits inbound!" warned Sipir. "Identified as Saegheh combat drones. Padlock squadron, destroy all the drones, they are heading towards Beartrap!"

Here we go again. Doni groaned in frustration.

"It appears a couple of Fedayeens on the ground had spotted us and called those little things here." Genesis said calmly. "We have no AAM, repeat, no AAM! Leave this one to our friends!"

The Boramaes discarded the drop tanks under their wings and veered away from the swarm of drones, flying right into the thunderstorm. Another bolt of lightning light up the sky, narrowly missing their planes.

"A German general once said that 'No plan ever survives contact with the enemy' " Genesis told her wingman. All of the planes broke their formation and spread out throughout the clouds, ECM output increased, in an attempt to make themselves more difficult targets. They all split off into groups of two, some climbing above the clouds, some climbing below to the rocks, and the rest spreading out into the storm. If the UAVs got hit by lightning then things might just be a little easier on them.

More bolt of lightnings light up the sky, some narrowly missing both Padlock and Rinjani planes. Doni deeply exhaled on his oxygen mask as he saw the lightning becoming more and more frequent. They didn't have a choice. Their allies needed their help. Soon he took off for the nearest UAV that she was tracking on radar, which was chasing down one of Rinjani Squadron's Golden Dragon.

To conserve his missile Doni decided to get into a dive attack into the said UAV with guns. The 25mm went straight and true, destroying it. Sonny also followed suit with another UAV behind the wingman of the said IF-21D.

"Red Cap to Sipir, splash one drone!"

"I'm not flyin' in there to bail out some dickheads I don't know shit about!" Sausage snarled. Some other Padlock pilots were hesitating to engage, meanwhile Full House, Scale, Leaflet, and his wingman named 1st Lt. Zulkarnain, convicted due to his involvement in a letter-bomb plot targeting two government ministers which was exposed one month before the war started, began to follow to assist, maintaining an altitude high enough so they wouldn't be in any danger of crashing into the mountains, or getting shaken by the lightning.

"Padlock Squadron, follow Charge's example!" Sipir called them.

"Everyone, if you all want your freedom back, show a little bravery! Rather die trying than live like a coward!" Doni pushed his fellow cons as he was tracking his second drone target, maneuvering through the valleys and hills as he tried to get missile lock on the slippery bastard.

"Quoting some game character from almost 30 years ago, there's a thin line between bravery and stupidity, you know." Scale told him. Nonetheless, he and his leader Full House proceeded to help the Rinjani squadron. "Well, rather than rat cell I might as well get this over with. Guns, guns.. Sipir, splash one drone!"

"That's the spirit, but there are still drones to be dealt with. Continue the attack!" Sipir chukcled as he replied to Scale's report. Meanwhile, Beartrap 1-3, the pilot that was saved by Scale told him "Thanks, I owed you one pack of Djarum Coklat"

"Ummm.. while I don't smoke, but you're welcome." Joseph replied at Rinjani 1-3. With that, plane exited the area, able to fly freely while the drones chased down his wingman. That must not have been too pleasant. Being helpless when something was happening to your friends wasn't a fun feeling.

"Padlock 3-1 and 3-2 reporting, splash two drones." It seems his rallying call is working. Fair enough.

"Oh yeah.. but I am ready for more. Like Sipir says, Let's follow Red Cap, Charge, and Scale!" shouted Full House.

"We are going to survive!"

The four then began pursuing and making the drones chasing them instead of the rest of Rinjani squadron.

Both Capt. Sonny and Lt. Doni somehow managed to have a little laugh to set aside the urgency of their situation for a moment as they pursued the drone through the rocks. After two separate failed lock Sonny obtained his chance, locked on, and fired a Sidewinder. Down the drone went, crashing into the valley. Scale must have been aware of the kill. "Come on, Red Cap! Set some aside for Full House and me."

"Two more UCAVs splashed," Sipir announced. "Take care of the rest."

"All right, good start," Genesis said, certainly impressed by the display. "Now let's get the remaining two out of there."

The next one that Doni saw on his radar was hiding in one of the clouds, chasing down one IF-21Ds who'd flown up in an attempt to shake the drone off. He took a deep breath and pulled her plane up and into the thundercloud, shrugging off a lightning bolt in the process with a notable bump.

Like a good leader, Red Cap followed him into the cloud as well, in order to stay in pair.

"Hey, look at Red Cap and Charge!" Full House shouted in awe.

Sonny and Doni emerged from the cloud and dived in pursuit of the UCAV.

"Red Cap and Charge had just broke out from the clouds, a good idea, indeed." Doni smiled a little upon hearing Sipir complimented him and his leader.

"Planes are built to withstand lightning, still, flying directly into a thundercloud is really something to behold.." Sausage observed, with admiration but also nervousness on his voice. Doni grinned, finding some sort of satisfaction in the compliments he was receiving from his fellow pilots. Seems that he is making a difference within the 13th Squadron. Red Cap and him approached the last two UAV from the south, but before that, Padlock 3-3 and 3-4, approaching from the east of their position fired their two Sidewinders and take down one of the drones.

"Good shooting!" exclaimed Doni, which broke off and climb to avoid hitting the mountainside.

"Beartrap 2-3, breaking off!" the pilot announced and turned his plane away from the storm to join the first Rinjani 2 pairs. And finally Padlock 4-1 and 4-2 took care of the last UAV.

"These things move pretty good for machines," Red Cap chuckled. "But, they're a little sluggish in increment weather, I say. Maybe because their smaller airframe compared to ours."

"Rinjani 2-4 has broken off. All Rinjani squadron aircraft are accounted for." Genesis announced. "All my pilots managed to escape. Got big gratitude for you."

"Genesis, check your six!" called Padlock 3-1 as two more Saeghehs arrived and fired at Genesis, forcing her to take evasive actions. Doni and the others were struggling with the drones on Genesis's tail, since they were proving themselves to be especially stubborn. She managed to shake off its lock.

Meanwhile, Evan decided to prove his worth by shot past his fellow cons to take on the two drones on his own. Sausage got a lock on the first and fired. It hit and the drone went down. His leader Black Jack locked the last drone but his missiles were dodged. As the result Evan took action by closing in for a gun kill. With the help of Genesis and Black Jack which corraled the drone into a vulnerable spot, he managed to get in range and downed it with the Equalizer. With that, Genesis broke away and joined the rest of her squadron.

"All UCAVs in the vicinity have been destroyed. Beartrap 1 has broken off," Sipir announced.

"Any more surprises for us?" asked Doni as he and Sonny led the way to regroup with the rest of the squadron. The thunderstorm continued, but now the entire squadron no longer had to fly into it.

"Well, keep your eyes peeled.. " Sipir replied. "By the way, I know I'll regret saying this, but I can see that most of you had shown significant improvement. Keep this up, and your freedom is in sight!"

"Nice teamwork! Thanks!" Genesis laughed. "Hey, who was it that got those last two drones? Tell him or her I'm grateful!"

"Copy that, Beartrap 1," Sipir said cheerfully. I can feel Evan's pride went up as he is the one who destroyed the last pair of drones.

"Padlock Squadron, command has given us permission to return.. Wait a minute, something's not right. Hold it!"

"Oh, you're going to be kidding me!" Sausage groaned, clearly anxious to be back on land. "You're right, Sipir.. I see bogeys head straight to us. Going to check it out." Doni checked his radar and confirmed Sausage's statement. Whatever plane is it, it was heading straight for Padlock 3-4. He asked himself.

Was Evan somehow get extra motivation to prove his worth?

"Padlock 3-4! Sausage! Bandits approaching fast from the rear!" Sipir warned him. The panic set in when they all realized that something was about to go really wrong. "All available units, support Padlock 3-4!" Sonny and Doni were the first to respond, both men obtained a visual on the approaching aircraft, stealth TF-25 fighters, followed by Full House and Scale. Meanwhile Sausage continue to head straight for them.

"1-4 to 1-1.. I think those planes are Waleed Squadron." said Scale.