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The sun sets on Alexandria, a city full of history and civilization. But that's not the only thing it is full of. Refugees still continue to escape the city, as shells and explosions rocked the city. Minarets burst around the city as artillery pieces from the 87th Integrated Fleet let loose with their ferocious volleys. High up in the sky, Jim Irwin's Tin Cod led a patrol of Tin Cods, while Scott Archer and other Jet Core Boosters flew below their flight deck, buzzing the city and guiding the high yield explosives from the 87th. Jim sighed to himself as he watched the JCBs perform completely needless stunts. He'd have to remind them of their duties during debriefing. After all, that's his duty as CAG. Within the city itself, Zeonic defenders, both on foot and in mobile suit, pressed the defenses forwards. Marines dodged exploding rubble as Zaku Cannons dropped their support pylons. Massive artillery shells launched from their shoulders, returning fire in the direction of the Big Trays. Aisha Vemunio and Malak Lazarevich stood by their mobile weapons, the various soldiers of the AU contingent with them trying to guide the refugees out of the city, while the Federation and Zeon shelled each other, while the city, once housing the greatest library in all of Antiquity, suffered the damage. The shelling continued throughout the night, long into the early morning hours, each side firing artillery pieces into each other, but neither pressing the advance. Many of Zeon's soldiers whispered amongst themselves how this could have been prevented had Von August survived Constantinople. Charles Gano: 1 VP Gained, No Damage Cray Vermillion: 1 VP Gained, No Damage Edmund Blackadder: 1 VP Gained, No Damage Jim Irwin: 1 VP Gained, No Damage Aaron McCaskey: 1 VP Gained, No Damage Scott Archer: 1 VP Gained, No Damage Thierry Mersault: 1 VP Gained, No Damage Aisha Vemunio: 1 VP Gained, No Damage Malak Lazarevich: 1 VP Gained, No Damage For the last several hours, Haifa Hahnemuehle had diligently moved her GM Command forward silently toward the hidden Federation base that she was supposed to attack in coordination with the rest of the fleet. At least, as silently as a metal giant can move through a thick jungle. As was standard for her, she moved at night to try to hide her GM visually at least. There was no rain to mask the sound of her movement or soften the ground to silence her footsteps. At least there was no mud this time. She was making good time, but it had been a while since she last checked her position. Halting her GM behind a thick copse of trees near a clearing and pulling out her map, she carefully began trying to locate herself. The last thing she wanted to do was accidentally veer off course and stumble across a Feddie controlled road or stream, not without the rest of the fleet anyway. She figured the trees should help keep her hidden and the clearing should be pretty easy to identify on her map. As she began to trace her position on the map, she heard several loud thuds behind her. Hurriedly she scanned the dimly lit horizon for the source, and to her horror discovered that the clearing she had chosen to help navigate was actually more of a path. Apparently a Federation patrol route by the sound of things. Had she come too close? There was no time to figure things out, she needed to run. Just as she took her first steps in the opposite direction a voice came over the radio. "Hey! You there! Why aren't you monitoring the usual frequency? There were three of them. Two of them standard GMs, One a Cold Climate type and all apparently unconvinced of her allegiance one way or the other, despite her altered paint scheme. Perhaps they couldn't see it in the dark? Maybe she could get out of this without having to run. As one of them approached to inspect more closely, Haifa's decision was made for her. "Hey this one's not--" The pilot was cut short as a beam saber erupted from the torso of the GM. Using the fallen GM as extra cover from the impending barrage of machinegun shells, Haifa took aim with her beam gun and fired a few shots in rapid succession at each of the two remaining GMs. She scored three direct hits on the last standard GM, who was caught off guard from Haifa's sudden attack, destroying a leg, its weapon arm and its head. The last thing she needed was more attention from a mobile suit reactor explosion. The GM CCT was more experienced and escaped Haifa's initial barrage with only a glancing blow to his shield arm. Machine gun fire poured in until the GM that Haifa held was nearly worthless as a shield. Haifa and the CCT circled each other trading fire, neither able to land a decisive blow on the other. After what seemed entirely too short a period, Haifa's Beam gun ran dry of ammunition. Fortunately it seemed her opponent had also run out. Furthermore it seemed he didn't realize she was out as well as he suddenly retreated into the woods behind him. She began to think of retreating back toward where the fleet should be coming through, despite having been detected, but again her decision was made for her. A flare shot through the canopy of the trees and ignited high in the sky signaling the CCT's position. Her position. Flare shot off and reinforcements signaled, the CCT charged forward, beam saber ignited and determined not to lose her in the woods. Haifa blocked the first blow with her shield and quickly drew her own saber to keep the CCT from eating through the shield and into her suit's arm. The two exchanged a flurry of blows and despite having been initially caught off guard in this new melee fight, Haifa soon began to gain the upper hand. After a particularly vicious combo the CCT lost his balance falling backwards over a fallen tree. Keeping up with Haifa's attacks had cost him his awareness of his surroundings. Haifa raised her saber to finish the CCT but just as she was bring the final blow down, a beam lanced out from the jungle severing her hand from the rest of her suit's arm. Five beam sabers ignited around her. She was surrounded. "ON YOUR KNEES! We have you surrounded, and we'll shoot if you try to escape." One of her captors called over the radio. Haifa quietly obeyed, placing her GM Command into a kneeling position and opening her cockpit and displaying her hands for the marines to see. In relatively short order she was bound and walking through the jungle surrounded by a dozen marines and several GM's, including her now handless GM Command. At least I shouldn't have to be a prisoner too long. When the fleet attacks, they should be able to recover me quickly. Haifa thought to herself trying to steel her resolve against whatever the Federation might try to do to her. Haifa Hahnemuehle: 4 VP gained, Repairing 4, Captured |