Would the 42nd survive the encounter with a familiar enemy? Also, war is hell, so expect explicit mention of atrocities associated with war, and this is not an endorsement!

BGM title: The Enemy Will Not Pass by CEPHEI

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"Rizieq" I said to myself upon I recognized the voice. Furthermore, the AWACS also had identified the planes they're now flying; TAI TF-25s, replacing the Typhoons. We know those things too well. Almost as fast as our Sukhoi and maneuverable as well with 3D thrust vectoring nozzles. The only advantage we have is weapon range.

"Sir.. just for you to know that I got info that the 13th had encountered him as well.." Pandu told me.

"Granted.." I flatly answered him.

"... Be extremely careful in engaging the Waleed Squadron fighters, because they have been confirmed to possess pod-mounted lasers on their fighter.." finished AWACS Gandiwa.

"This is the end of the road of you, Emeralds. I can read your every move.." Aulia taunted.

We decided to answer his challenge with crisscrossing maneuver as the enemy TF-1 merged on us, already firing their Equalizer cannons or TLPs.

Because we don't have any choice but to engage.

"Watch out!" Medi called as we broke left and right to avoid the oncoming cannon barrage and laser beams.

"Here come the drones!" I shouted on the mike as from our left side another missile barrage is coming at us. Waleeds in front of us, and in our relative nine o'clock my radar detected swarm of Sofreh Mahi and Bayraktar MIUS II combat drones attempted to box us in, already firing their air to air missiles

"Missile... missile... " The ARS are doing it's job again as it automatically dispensed chaffs, but sure, even machine had its limits, as a bad news arrived on the mike.

"Emerald 4-3 to Emerald lead... i'm hit, bailing out.." called Capt. Andrea. I can see her Sukhoi had spiraled out of control; it's starboard side stabilizer gave up after shrapnel a size of telephone poles perforated the airframe.

"Good luck.." I can only said that to him as I can see the parachute, clearly, in a split second before I obtained a good gun range and destroyed one Sofreh Mahi before it can close in to fire its laser.

"Splash one drone!"

"Splash one drone..." two separate reports added into the traffic, from Olivia, flying as Emerald 3-3 and Nur, Emerald 4-2.

On the other hand.. "This is 2-4, I'm in trouble!" It's Wenda calling for help. Moreover he's dangerously close to the mountains near the city of Askhezar as he struggled to shake off two Waleed TF-1s pursuing him. However before I can shed my altitude to support him the MAWS blared.

"I found you now" the cold voice indicated Rizieq had found which one is my jet. Smartass. I rolled right hard, losing the IRIS-T missile went my way just before his aircraft went in front of me, only to pull a Cobra.

"You're not getting away!" Instinctively I executed high yo-yo as a counter. Meanwhile to my relief I hear that the entire Emerald 2 had successfully help Wenda out of his predicament.

"Beautiful work, 2-1" I said to myself, as I called my entire flight that I'm engaged and somebody should come to assist me.

"3-2 here, on my way, just splashed two drones." Pandu answered my call.

"3-3, we're engaging"

"3-4 to Lead. Quite busy here."

I pulled of a Kulbit as he is one again on my tail just in time before he fired his laser. He soon breaks left in response of the development. A duel between aces on its finest.

"Slash" Pandu, which broke left before Rizieq' attempt to use his laser, had called for the pulse laser shot, then... "Splash another Waleed."

At the other side of the engagement. "He's flying clean and Rizieq has him busy.. I'll show him!"

"Wise, look out!" It's slightly too late as the AI had warned me that I'm hit. Even without the system I can feel it with the airframe shuddered upon the impact of 25mm ammunition. Thankfully no significant damage so far, but my displays laid the truth bare.

"Structural integrity, 90%"

Somehow, Rizieq decided that Pandu is more worthy as a target, leaving me in a good position to engage another TF-1 that had just attacked me from below. Soon my twisting and rolling maneuver left him disoriented and soon I can see a fireball behind me as I climbed. He had slammed into one of the mountains. I decided to went back to the last known position of Rizieq.

"You won't stop me!" he taunted as I approached my own flight and Colonel's one, which situated above the city, which already engaging up to ten TF-25s along with newly arrived Su-34 fighter bombers, desperate to take out the air base while the rest are dealing with the drones.

"Fox three!" I switched the four K-87 inside my internal bay into the anti-radiation mode as I detected the Waleed jets were powering up their ECM. Two explosions registered, and I'm out of radar missiles.

"3-2 to 3-1, thanks for the assistance!" Pandu called.

"You're welcome" I replied as I am diving into the fireworks again.

Then it happened. I saw with my planes nose down; one TF-1 fired a missile below me, and as I launched my own R-75 at the said aircraft and disintegrated it, but the missile still tracking and found the target; Captain Ali Saleh, Emerald 1-3.

"1-3, are you alright?" Called Kuk, his wingman.

"1-3, respond" this time our CO called.

"Just a flesh wound, Colonel. This bird is still be able to stay in the air a little longer..." Ali answered.

"...Besides you know machines are in the end were expendable, right?" I can see the Colonel's voice went serious, not amused upon his remark after being hit.

"This is an order.. Eject!" barked Medi.

"Negative Colonel... there's nothing but houses below. Whoever they are, I just can't leave this plane yet" Ali replied.

I'm listened to it with anxiety budding up inside as I activated the pulse laser and proceed to take down three Fullbacks while Pandu took out one that was closer to the air base.

Meanwhile Gandiwa piped us up with an update. "All airborne aircraft currently in the area, keep engaging unless bingo or Winchester, we must prevent Askhezar Air Base for being bombed, as bandits are confirmed to carry anti-runway munitions!"

Ali went on comm again "Anybody can show me when I can drop my plane and bail out?"

"Got it" answered Medi. "1-3, the mountains, can you hear me?"

After a few statics he responded "Yes sir.."

"Drop it there and bail out, understood?"

"Roger that. You people gave me hope that I will make it out!" Ali replied.

On the other side of the fighting "We are close to take out one of those demons. We're going to got a medal for it. Waleed 2, follow me, aim at that Sukhoi!" he ordered.

Back to the 42nd, Ali went on the comm and I can feel he's not going to make it. "AI's offline, radar's toast, and there goes all avionics.."

"For God sake 1-3, eject NOW!" called Medi again, significantly more forceful than the first order.

"Just bail out, 1-3, please!" plead Erwin, flying Emerald 1-4.

"This is Gandiwa, Captain Saleh, say your status"

"I'm out of the populated area, I'm dropping over there"

"Roger, now bail out!" Medi hollered.

"Negative sir.. I lost all electrical, backup also busted. The canopy won't blow" replied Ali again.

Seconds later.

"... Well everyone, see you in the next great adventure."

As the radio went frantic as pilots shouted his callsign "Roller!" I grunted.

"No time for mourning, not now..." as I finally obtain a good heatseeker lock on Rizieq's jet. And I managed to hit him, but in my disappointment I discovered that it was a near miss. However it definitely left the mark on his plane as I saw a black smoke on the right engine.

"This is for Roller, you prick." I taunted on the open channel.

"Argh! You just like that damn convict pilot. Whatever, Azrael, we've got relieved, and our commanders had called us off. Mark my word, we are going to meet again! And I'll make sure that you're all dead!" Upon Rizieq's statement Waleed Squadron orderly withdrew from the battle area in full afterburner, had lost five of their own, with three out of the five managed to bail out.

His words about reinforcements were also true as AWACS Gandiwa called "New hostile contact, bearing 125, angels 15, 20 klicks and closing! ID'ed as TF-25s and Bayraktar and Sofreh Mahi combat drones!"

"Gandiwa, this is Emerald Lead, we're running low on ordnance and fuel, requesting permission to withdraw."

"Granted, Sea Ghost and Buster flight are in position to relieve you.. Gandiwa out!"

But we're not out of the woods yet. We landed at Torbat-e-Herdariyeh after a saluting pass ordered by Medi; it's airport had just been captured by Malaysian PASKAU commandos and had Russian and Indian ordnances ready for our aircraft. Meanwhile the significantly damaged one were directed straight to Quetta or Gwadar for repairs.

---

It's now December, and the first three days of the last month of the year are a blur for me and the rest. But I can remember exactly what happened in the fourth day as I wrote in the mandatory logbook:

- December 1st, three sorties, the most memorable moments were following; we slaughtered a squadron of Rafales threating our strike package, before duking it out with a couple of JF-20s.

- December 2nd, four sorties; the most memorable was the fourth sortie when we exclusively faced drone fighters. Sure that their mounting pilot losses affect things. Our own drones also helped much! Co-existence of man and machine at its finest.

- December 3rd, three sorties.

At the rate of things going I am sure that we're going to lose somebody again. Furthermore Bachtiar and Andrea weren't yet been found despite the effort of the Allied CSAR dispatched in the area. Everyone were afraid that they will be captured and in most cases, killed on the spot. On the other hand to be killed on the spot is arguably much better than being captured, as before deployment we have been shown how the UCC or it's predecessor entity, both states like Saudi and Iran, and non-state like the ISIL tortured and executed its prisoners, uncensored, including arguably the most horrifying one; eye-gouging, common in Islamic-era Iran but abolished by the restored Pahlavi Dynasty for a time prior to the UCC occupation.

Things will be worse if you are a woman. In fact Evy admitted to me that all female pilots of the 42nd were offered pills containing saxitoxin, a very potent neurotoxin, prior to mission and she is one of the few who took it. She also told me that the practice was increasingly common in the entire IDAF.

No wonder that some of ground-pounders out there, began to have some tit-for-tat by collecting body parts of UCC soldiers or Fedayeen militias as souvenirs with videos and photos widely circulated around the Net virtually devoid from any censorship whatsoever. And I've seen it myself too after the attack on our base in Quetta with some Paskhas commandos and other ground personnel including the maintainers walked around two days later with ears sliced off from dead Fedayeen militiamen stuck on belts with safety pins from expended grenades while Nur blatantly admitted that his girlfriend in Boyolali had requested him a skull upon she learned about the attack on the base.

I then confronted him.

"Tell your girlfriend immediately that it can't be done, otherwise I'll report this to the base commander or the Colonel. As you know, he had relieved three maintainers that cut off Caliphate ears and gave their case to the MPs. Furthermore, would you want to make them more likely to blow themselves up, especially back at home thanks to your treatment to their dead?"

"Those people treat their, and our women like animals, pardon, animals have higher dignity than them. So that's what they deserve. What do you expect, Major? I think you got a better understanding about what savagery they are capable with because you fought on the Civil War back then, while I have to left my home in Cianjur way east to Boyolali just to avoid being killed because I am not Islamic enough in their eyes!" he retorted.

"I understand. Everybody are angry with the UCC. And killing as many as we can (of Caliphate) are our orders and it's non-negotiable, but would it be better if we show that we are different than them in other things? Some of them will definitely be useful and could be changed just by our treatment! (in captivity)"

The said question silenced him. Nur then snapped to a salute and then he told me that he had do as instructed.

---

Along with the sight of the mutilations we were also exposed with instances when Allied soldiers or militias will cut off wounded UCC soldier's genitals and left them to die there during combat ops. In fact there were incidents when some combat medics specifically refused to treat wounded or dying UCC soldiers brought to the Allied lines. In both cases however those who do such thing were immediately relieved from duty and faced court-martial. Other Allied atrocities including "Red Drum" (mostly Pakistanis being tortured until lost consciousness and were then burnt dead or alive in oil drums, with perpetrators mainly from Thai military), and various plain old summary execution by shootings, mostly captured UCC soldiers and Fedayeen insurgents.

Especially when we were for the first time brought the fight into Pakistan. To be truthful, when I am for the first time be exposed to the videos of such brutality by the Allied forces, including our own Army, I immediately turned back and went out from the MWR (Morale, Welfare, and Relaxation) room. Inside my heart was wrenching, not at seeing at the dead enemy, but at looking of some people in this alliance, and in particular from the Armed Forces of Indonesia, in light of our own checkered history of human rights in the past, including the Civil War, had treated the enemy in general.

I'm once was so immersed in hatred on anything Wahhabist or its Shiite counterpart, Khomeinist, prior, during, and even after the Civil War. that I won't really be bothered to look at them as just like us. However, those graphic view of the mutilations, along with prior exposure of mine to the cruelty from both sides, finally disturbed me a great deal. Pretty soon I went to the hangar and sat down near my plane, knowing that I'm soon to have a meltdown. Evy found me inside and on my side, embraced me. She knew what I was feeling. In fact I decided to let in out on her, tears running down my face.

---

In the fourth day we have our little memorial as Ali's body was finally retrieved, with the city securely in the Allied hands. I am further reminded that everyone will die, but the timing that we will never know until it happens. The common saying of "patah tumbuh hilang berganti" or in English, everything lost will be replaced rung on my mind here. The next afternoon we're ordered to be airborne again, with Colonel Medi, which in this mission doesn't fly himself, personally designated me as mission leader.

We are to head south into Bushehr Province after intel had received report that the UCC are about to sabotage the gas field in Asaluyeh, one of the counties in the said province to deny its use by the Allies. Especially after two separate ILF-instigated workers uprising had occurred in the facility against the Caliphate government three days ago, both were dispersed and the ringleaders were beheaded in public square.

Other concern of the Allies was the nuclear plant in the city of Bushehr might be the next to be sabotaged.

The detail of the mission is the following: Allied commandos and IIFI/ILF fighters in the city are to thwart the sabotage attempt from the ground while we gave them top cover from air or missile strikes. The Allied force doesn't want to rely with drones alone, so we were sent into the fire.

On the other hand I also think how the Shiite RAI is doing and how they might mess up our plans.

We rendezvoused with the AWACS above Allied-occupied Bandar Abbas, orbiting in a delicate pattern to avoid being targeted by SAM and DEAD system in nearby Arab Gulf region. "Be advised, this is AWACS Bushmaster..." I remembered the voice from our second notable mission in India and the first time we've encountered UCC aces, as the operator aboard the Australian E-7 Wedgetail are calling us and the other squadron involved in this mission; the No. 3 Squadron RAAF flying their recently upgraded F-35As, already with their Boeing Australia Boomerang combat drone accompanying the manned platform.

"Stay in formation" I called my wingman, Capt. Nana as I saw he is going to break the formation, just as we began our low level flight above the Persian Gulf, for the same reason as the E-7.

As the ARS suggested us to raise altitude due to we are closing at the city, I broke the de facto radio silence by tuning the radio to the specific frequency given prior to the mission and keyed the mike.

The only thing we know that our men on the ground will be called "Macan 1"

"Attention to anyone in this frequency, this is Emerald 1, to anyone in this frequency please respond." I called.

"Please don't let this be a trap" I think to myself as we're anxiously awaiting response as we are orbiting the gas facility in an eight ship flight, as the sun went down, with Evy commanded Emerald 2.

"... Emerald 1.. good evening. This is Macan 1" The said callsign then explained that they have infiltrated the gas facility with the help of sympathetic security and local inhabitants, before continue straight to the point after he finished his introduction. "We've just detected explosives already planted inside this complex and our team is working under the radar to neutralize it. But it will need some time. Also, the UCC are closing on us. So watch our back as we are clearing all of it!"

"Roger" I answered as the Kopassus commandos began their work; but also as my radar detected eight drones. Saeghehs.

"Bandits were armed with both air to air and air to ground weaponry, prioritize to intercept the drones immediately, One explosion at the facility and the entire city will be an inferno."

"Understood Bushmaster, Opossum 2, moving to support Emerald. Connecting datalink now." called a RAAF pilot. Not long we and the Australians had obtained good lock on the approaching drones, but before that the drone dispersed, clearly looking for another firing position for their AGMs.

"I have you now" I whispered as one drone went in front of me, chasing Lt. Melissa, Emerald 1-4. However it swerved abruptly to the left, breaking the lock, forcing me to play with the thrust vector to regain it, only for Nana to call "Fox two" and the drone disintegrated as the R-75 hit it.

I shed altitude with Nana covered my top side as the AEW had warned one drone is closer to the missile's firing range. The drone, knowing my presence, abruptly climbs but not before I gain a solid lock. Heatseeker launch. Message "TARGET DESTROYED" displayed on HMD.

As I found myself chased by one Saegheh that decided to switch to AA mode; the Aussies had reported kills on their own, in many cases with the assistance of the Boomerangs.

Upon I splashed the said drone Bushmaster called again. "Be advised... we have multiple contacts, angels 10 and closing fast"