<div class="floatright">(https://elliquiy.com/elluiki/images/e/ef/Damian_Harper.jpg)</div><strong>Damian Harper (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=207352.msg10168756#msg10168756)</strong><br/><strong>On the battlefield in Charybdis.</strong><br/><strong>Tagged: Everyone</strong><br/><hr/><br/><strong>Santa Prisca Desert, Librios<br/>Deneb Algedi, Benjamin District<br/>Draconis Combine<br/>1 January 3145</strong><br/><br/><div style="text-align: justify;">The Firestarter went down, hard, as expected. Its pilot had been foolish enough to rush forward to aid a comrade. Noble cause, but it was going to get him killed. The chatter over the communications channel kept the ex-clanner informed of the progress his allies were making. As far as he could tell, the Crushers were being hammered into the sand quite thoroughly. Getting cocky was going to get them killed, however, so he was pleased to hear the commander keeping a level-head and stressing some caution in her orders. The base still had its garrison and those active turrets. They might be in disrepair and far less of a threat than a lance of 'Mechs, but it wouldn't be the first time he saw lucky shots kill an otherwise skilled pilot.<br/><br/>As his target struggled to get back up from the painful crash it had sustained, Charybdis closed in for the kill. It was clear the Light 'Mech wasn't going to be surrendering anytime soon, and he wasn't going to be taking any chances. Targeting the stationary machine, he released another volley of missiles from both launchers, the projectiles crashing into the back and legs of the Firestarter, crippling it where it lay. Several notifications on Damian's HUD informed of the death of its systems. It would still be more than salvageable for useful parts, though its legs had been torn to shreds.<br/><br/>Having closed the distance to inspect the results, he quickly broke his usual radio silence to inform the Lance of another target going down.<br/><strong>"Seraph secured. Firestarter disabled. Pilot may have survived,"</strong> he informed with his usual professional brevity. Stopping by the disabled and smoldering husk, he stared down at it briefly, noting the damage to its back. <strong>"Unlikely, though,"</strong> he added coldly, before pressing on.<br/><br/>They needed to keep the Lance from retreating back to the base, and the best way of doing so, in his eyes, was to lay down enough suppressive fire to force their backs or flanks to the canyon that ran along it, also clearing the runway.<br/><strong>"Seraph, with me. Open fire on targets at these nav points,"</strong> he communicated, using a private channel to Angeline to make sure the chatter didn't disturb the other pilots' concentration, as they were in the thick of the fight. The data he sent were the two 'Mechs holding the left flank of the Crusher formation, furthest away from the canyon. More precisely, the Blade and the Exhumer, with the former being pressured by the Recon Lance. If they bombarded them hard enough, they were going to keep inching away from the incoming fire, as both the Ha Otoko and Longbow could stay well out of their range and they seemed frantic to protect their damaged Banshee.<br/><br/>Swinging around the dune in a wide arc, assuming Angeline would follow suit, Charybdis opened fire again, a spray of missiles only narrowly avoided by the nimble Blade. But it visibly freaked its pilot out, as he began to veer away towards the inside of the formation. When a mortar shell struck the ground nearby, chaos began to reign even more.<br/>Damian was all too aware of how impractical some of his load-out was, but he often countered with how effective some good fear tactics were. Having explosions all around had a tendency to distract and even though the shells weren't necessarily the biggest thread to Heavy and Assault 'Mechs, the loud impacts were more than enough to start shaking anyone's resolve.<br/><br/>Damian had lost sight of his positioning somewhat, however, and had started lingering too close to the Exhumer, entering the range of its missiles. Alarms quickly started sounded, but his evasive maneuvers came too late. Fortunately, the impact of the LRMs was minor. Some superficial damage to the massive plating protecting the Ha Otoko, as well the trigger mechanism of his left arm's Mech Mortar/8 malfunctioning. It took away one of his weapons, but at least the ammunition hadn't decided to explode from the inside out.</div>