AQUILA's revenge

Entry: four hundred thirty, supplementary log one.

Almost as soon as I connected to Galactic Network via "logging in", I heard comms going crazy over neutrals. A fleet was already forming up to take on the intruders. The intruders were some we had seen before: AQUILA.

Among my alliance members, there is a distinctly hateful respect of AQUILA. They are dedicated wormhole dwellers, and not only do they live in class five and class six w-space, they prosper. Not only do they prosper despite the nastiest and toughest Sleepers known anywhere, they are extremely well versed combat pilots. Not only are they extremely well versed combat pilots, their tactics and fleet cohesion is on a level far beyond the defense fleets usually formed up to deal with them. I think those in the alliance hate them out of envy and admiration, and respect them because unlike Morsus Mihi and RAZOR and BORG, they don't drop supercapitals.

Granted, they don't drop them because they can't, but they don't, and that's the more important issue.

We got our fleet together at 49-U6U. Fleet filled to approximately twenty within ten minutes, which is fairly quick. After a short time, we grouped up on the station. AQUILA landed. Orders came out to get points, and I in my Rifter did my best to fulfill this role. I managed to get a point on one Drake, fire at another, and get shot down rather quickly.

I warped away, and didn't redock until the call came to disengage, thus allowing me to show on the killmail.

As it turned out, the Drakes were fit to kill damn near anything, especially tackle frigates like myself.

Given this information, we regrouped and reformed. About fifteen minutes later, we had gained some new members in alpha ships and ranged damage dealers in the form of Hurricanes and Drakes. AQUILA most likely found out via directional scan, and ran: destination, Efa.

As one of but a few fast tacklers, I was given the job to follow them.

5V-, 3-J, L3-, K-L, NDII-, 9CG6-, UYU-, YW-, Z-UZZN, C-7, I1Y-...

Our fleet managed to get ahead of AQUILA into 3-F via Jumpbridges. With their escape route cut off, and several of us watching every gate in I1Y-, we waited, and camped, while they bounced around multiple and random safe spots.

We waited for almost thirty minutes before a new FC came in and got us a prober. The prober, however, was also unable to scan down anyone in AQUILA.

A little more time passed, and AQUILA jumped into LS-, thinking to throw us off. The main fleet warped to the 9SBB- gate while AQUILA went ED- then 9SBB-. They would have no choice except to come through 3-F, however.

They jumped into 3-F, and we engaged. I landed point on another Drake, now in my Wolf, while shooting at another Drake. I was targeted quickly, and I aligned to planet two to make my timely escape.

"No one should be dying," called the FC. "If you're taking damage, warp out...until that bubble went up."

I groaned, spamming the warp command, aligned with my microwarpdrive burning me towards the distant planet. I never made it though, my ship exploding around me. I found myself in my pod a mere few hundred meters from the edge of the bubble, from the edge of the salvation of my Wolf. Curse the bastard who launched that bubble, as it didn't even enable the fleet to kill any more of the AQUILA fleet. AQUILA managed to get away to the Efa gate and jumped through.

That bubble quite easily makes into my top two of most fail bubbles ever, the only other one worse being in 6VDT-H when I was at the hellcamp, when IT was failscading.

In exchange for three Drakes, AQUILA destroyed a Dramiel, my Rifter, my Wolf, two Hurricanes, and a Hound. My Wolf and Rifter almost equal one Drake in ISK, a Hound approximately equals a Drake in loss, a Dramiel approximates a Drake in cost, and each Hurricane equals a Drake as well. This puts AQUILA in the lead on the ISK front with a win loss ratio of five to three and in the black approximately one hundred million ISK.

Despite being out manned, outgunned, and outrun, they managed to out position us at every turn, and they defeated us handily.

Hats off to AQUILA, pro combat pilots to say the least, with an FC I wish I had around to fly under. AQUILA got their revenge, and as the saying goes, had it too.

Computer: terminate recording.