Nightlash



"Bwahahahaa! Did you see that one blow up?"
 * Name: Nightlash
 * Faction: Decepticon
 * Species: Transformer
 * Function: Wildcard
 * Division: None
 * Sub-Group: None
 * Type: OC

Nightlash is, at best, a loose cannon. While certainly skilled at creating strategy, when the time comes to execute she will often favor outright wanton destruction over meticulous tactics. Nightlash has retained a cunning intellect, but uses this to pursue personal agendas that, typically, only make sense to her own mind. Crass, unrefined, and chaotic, she’d sooner blow something up for the sake of entertainment than actually follow through on valid goals defined by fellow Decepticons, leaving her as an absolute wildcard in the field of battle. This, while potent when unexpected by foes, can often times lead to poor battlefield decisions that hinder performance.

Armament
Nightlash carries a wide array of weapon systems primarily built for her unique airframe. Most of these systems are available as handheld devices when she is out of her alt-mode form.
 * Nose-mounted light laser battery.
 * Rearward facing 20mm Anti-Aircraft autocannons behind her cockpit.
 * Not usable if drone is docked with airframe.
 * The drone carries twin heavy laser cannons.
 * Can be fired while drone is mounted.
 * FRAS-4C "Hydra" Unguided rockets
 * Payload of 6 in forward-facing underbelly armament bay.
 * AA-X-15 "Python" Missiles in the rearward-facing under-wing mounted missile pods.
 * 4 in wing-mounted rearward facing missile pods.
 * 2 forward-facing in underbelly armament bay.

The armament systems appear to be more oriented towards old-style Soviet-Era weapon systems rather than NATO or US systems. She is capable of swapping the missiles out for various bomb payloads, but does not seem to have exercised this capability. Due to her unique design and nature, replenishment of most of her armament has to come from external sources.

History
A relic of a bygone age, and at one point a skilled ambassador for the Decepticons, Nightlash carried dealings with the organization known as COBRA. Adopting the form and function of one of their advanced Night Raven S3P aircraft, she kept a low profile while keeping up relations, right up until relations fell apart. However, during that time something happened, something that still remains locked within the secure vaults of COBRA history. Whether it was manipulation, coersion, or simply over-exposure, processors began misfiring and her demeanor changed significantly. No longer a calm, cool, and collected mech, she thrives for the chaos that can be brought to any given battlefield. Unpredictable is the name of the game when certain core synapse fail to fire in the correct sequence, and even if she is admonished for it, there is no hiding that she loved every last minute of it.

Recently, Nightlash grew bored of working alone and, upon hearing about unrest and discord amongst the other Decepticons, decided to return to her station within their ranks. Still, time away has left its mark, and even though she now works with the Decepticon faction, the markings that adorn her robot and alt-mode forms still proudly display the stark red, spread-hood Cobra that she'd carried during her involvement with that faction. Likewise, unless she deems it fit to do so, she will often stay in her alt-mode form for most operations. Though, to be fair, it is a very nice aircraft. In fact, often times she can be overheard talking to herself and lamenting the lack of having a proper pilot to assist in flights.



Doubts about proper loyalty and thought processes aside, she is relatively fearless and will not hesitate to add her own special brand of chaos and destruction to a fight. Much to the chagrin of higher-ranking Decepticons, though, she will often times strike out on her own without the consent of command, taking on missions she either deems entertaining or involving herself in the affairs of alleged enemies to the Decepticon Empire in the hopes of establishing the ambassadorial link she once maintained.

Due to her erratic behavior and refusal to fall in line with the Decepticon command structure and authority, Nightlash was recently disavowed from the Seekers by Commander Starscream.

MUX History
23Jun2013 - Reports of a Cobra Night Raven S3P engaged in air-to-air combat with the Autobot, Slingshot, and a G.I.Joe Skystriker, piloted by General Hawk, surfaced following an attack on a conventional power-plant in Springfield, MO. Accompanying the Night Raven was a Decepticon Tetrajet identified as the Decepticon, Windshear.

27Jun2013 - Nightlash was involved heavily in the Cobra-led invasion of Syria, providing air support and superiority alongside Interrogator, who was piloting a Mamba attack helicopter. While air supremacy was attained, both craft were shot down during the ordeal. Their opponents in the air were Ace, piloting a Skystriker, and Wisp, piloting an F-35B JSF. Nightlash was able to depart the scene under her own power.

30Jun2013 - Following her involvement with Cobra operations in Syria, and a harsh verbal admonishment from Starscream, Nightlash found herself dismissed from her role as a Seeker within the Decepticon Aerospace division. Or, at least from falling under Starscream's command.

01Jul2013 - Feeling cooped up and stir-crazy, Nightlash went for a flight and encountered the Autobots Encore and Fanfare, joining the two for a race inside the Grand Canyon. Along for the ride was Slugfest and on her wing was Thundercracker. Unfortunately, Thundercracker and Fanfare were called back to duty by their respective commands, leaving Encore and Nightlash to carry on the race on their own. There was no clear winner.

02Jul2013 - Nightlash appeared at Cobra's Camp Daraa, in Syria. No combat ensued, however, talks became tense when Slugfest appeared as a stowaway aboard Nightlash's drone. She was, rather sternly, asked to depart the area and not return.

03Jul2013 - Unfortunate problems arise when Nightlash, not paying attention to her flight systems, inevitably ends up flying over Offut Air Force Base. Attempting to take advantage of the situation, she observes the Autobot Throttle and Joe Pilot, Slipstream. However, her observations were interrupted when General Hawk arrived on-scene with his Skystriker XP-21F. The Decepticon was nearly destroyed, but not before shooting Slipstream in the back.

04Jul2013 - After being rigged with a tracker and repaired just enough to remain functional by Spike Witwicky, Jetfire, and Throttle, Nightlash was found by Decepticon forces in a comatose state. Assisted by Rainmaker, the sweeps Scourge and Plunder managed to get her stabilized and back safely to Trypticon. During the flight back, a tracking device belonging to the Autobots was found on Nightlash and destroyed.

01Aug2013 - After returning to full operational capacity following her unfortunate encounter at Offut Air Force Base, Nightlash finds herself flying recon over Los Angeles, where she relays a distress call, and camera footage of the carnage being caused by the Quintesson Invasion, for those trapped behind enemy lines. She would later return to assist Interrogator in covering a medivac helicopter delivering aid for a severely wounded Angel before having to retreat to safety.

02Aug2013 - Cobra forces, led by Interrogator, made a daring rescue of numerous civilians and a severely wounded Angel from the Quintesson-Occupied Los Angeles. Supported from the ground by Reverb, Nightlash managed to hold off the actions of a Quintesson Warship, The Oppugnatio, long enough for the evac to take place before succumbing to hostile fire. Fortunately, Sit-Com was on station to pull her out.

12Aug2013 - Having recovered from Los Angeles, Nightlash met with Interrogator at a run-down, out of the way airstrip in Mexico to exchange the information she had gathered on the Quintesson threat. Following the exchange, she caught the jetstream and enjoyed a hasty flight to Moscow, where she had a rendezvous with Angel to discuss further plans on dealing with the hostile invasion.

14Aug2013 - In an effort to gain intel on the Quintesson threat in Moscow, Nightlash offered to serve the role as bait and a diversion so that Angel could salvage tech from a fallen Quintesson Warship, The Oppugnatio. There, she encountered the Seacon, Seawing. Minor injuries were sustained, but the snatch-and-run mission was a success. Angel turned the acquired equipment over to the Techno Vipers for analysis.

16Aug2013 - While assisting a civilian evacuation spearheaded by Grimlock and a GI JOE team, Nightlash and Blast Off engaged the Quintesson Spire, the Bellum. Nightlash was knocked out of the fight when her systems became scrambled by what seemed to be an advanced E.M.P. discharge.

18Aug2013 - During a self-assigned mission to gather intel on the growing Quintesson threat in Los Angeles, Nightlash finds herself in pursuit of Seacons (Nautilator, Seawing, Snaptrap, and Overbite) as they attempt something beneath the ocean's surface. While not suited for combat in such an environment, she held out long enough for reinforcements to arrive. However, the GI JOE and Autobot forces that arrived on-scene ultimately lost, the U.S.S. FLAGG ultimately going down as a result. COBRA Commander authorized a Cobra-led recovery and subsequent repairsto Nightlash conditionally.

19Aug2013 - After being recovered by COBRA forces, Nightlash is brought back online with some heavy assistance and has a rather meaningful conversation with Interrogator. Tentative deals are struck, but nothing is ever promised.

Jun 20 - Returning to Active Duty
The Decepticon spinny appears, though static seems to interfere with it sporadically as hints of red and some other emblem keep trying to superimpose themselves. However, the Decepticon emblem proves to hold out (mostly) as a voice transmits over the splash-screen. No video feed is provided, however, the voice does indeed sound female.

"Well, rumors have spread and, lucky you, I've opted to return and once again provide my services to you lot. Hahah...no, not really. I'm bored. So I'm coming back for the sake of entertainment. Flying mindlessly about has proven to be lackluster at best. Believe me, there is not much interesting down in South America, except this volcano that loves to eradicate the poor city next to it every ten years or so. Ha! Ah, good times... good times. It didn't erupt for me.

"Uh, at any rate... much like a failure volcano not erupting when it was supposed to, I have not heard from you lot in a while either. Yeah...we'll just go with that. Radio silence is bad, mmkay? Can we say 'never again, Nightlash'? Good, good. You keep me in the loop, I do things for you, that's how it's supposed to be, right? Eh, slag it all, who am I kidding... I hope this isn't a waste of my time. Who's left operational anyway? Hmmm... Anyway, toodles! Nightlash out, er...reporting in. But also out. I hope my Friend-or-Foe code sequence is still on file, too. Ah well! We shall see! Ha!"

There's the flicker of what appears to be a Cobra emblem before the broadcast terminates completely.

Aug 02 - Unofficial Sources - Part 1
A female anchor for the morning news looks at the camera, face graven. "Shocking footage from Los Angeles was released by an unconfirmed source last night. We warn you, the following is not for the faint of heart."

The image shifts to a side-by-side camera feed. Left side standard and the right side infrared. Buildings are toppled, several heat signatures on the infrared side could be fires, but also could belong to those trapped in rubble.

The aircraft taking the images rolls, cameras offering a brief glance of a sleek, black underbelly and what appears to be a Cobra emblem. Exotic and fearsome fightercraft belonging to the Quintesson armada swarm the skies, angling to pursue. There is a momentary flash as a missile is launched from the surveillance aircraft, managing to knock one out of the sky.

The camera rotates to the ground again, showing a Junkion taking on more than a few Sharkticons before the image is filled with laser fire and becomes blindingly bright. The last image is rearward as Los Angeles is left behind, the jet clearly having gone supersonic.

The anchor returns to the screen. "I have been told this video feed was released on a broad spectrum of signals, accompanying a repeating SOS transmission targeted at the Autobots, the Joe teams, and Cobra forces. The pilot of the aircraft which recorded the images is, as of yet, unknown."

Aug 06 - Unofficial Sources - Part 2
A splash-screen reading 'News Alert' flashes across most of the major news-hosting channels as a female anchor's voice speaks over the feed. "Shocking first-hand footage of an evacuation in Los Angeles has been delivered to us this evening."

The video changes from the splash-screen to an overhead view of a beleaguered Los Angeles, brought in a dual-camera feed. One side is standard hi-def, the other is an infrared feed. "Our analysts state this is brought to us by the same source that brought the dramatic feed seen just days ago." The Quintesson spiral releases a warship, which then proceeds to deposit a sled-born machine and numerous Sharkticons into discolored water off-shore. The camera then pans to a group of apparent refugees on the ground, but just briefly, before panning towards a Cobra Anaconda transport helicopter and an CH-53e which promptly transforms into Reverb.

"We do not know all names of those involved, however what we do know is that this appears to have been a combined effort on the part of numerous factions. We will let the video roll in its unedited form." The camera pans suddenly towards the warship, which appears to be charging some sort of weapon. The whine of jet engines can be heard predominantly, coupled with a distinctly female voice from the cockpit, though it is simply from the automated systems.

"Warning: Lock Detected. Warning: Lock Detected."

The camera feed angles sharply as the aircraft engages the warship head on, striking the charging weapon before falling under a barrage of fire. "Droneship: Disengaged."

Again, the view changes, this time showing a far more broad view of the Anaconda in one corner, loading refugees. Reverb in another corner taking on Sharkticons. Two other figures, human, are on the ground and can barely be seen, but a quick zoom-in shows Lowdown and Wiretap engaging some ugly turtle-looking mech (Snaptrap). The aircraft is also revealed to be a Night Raven of Cobra design, which promptly takes a spectacular hit between the two tailfins from the warship, but remains aloft to continue fighting.

The widespread combat continues in earnest until the Anaconda helicopter pulls off the ground, followed by an escort of Mambas. The two combatant humans are no longer seen. Though, it abruptly zooms in on the Night Raven as the aircraft disappears in a spectacular ball of fire, a flame-engulfed fuselage seen streaking towards the ground.

Text appears over the video feed: 'HOST SIGNAL LOST | | | RECOVERY SYSTEMS ACTIVATED'

The feed cuts abruptly as the Night Raven is last seen hitting the ground, and the Quintesson warship is seen charging up a massive-looking weapon again while the Anaconda, in one corner, is hightailing it out of the city.

The news anchor is seen. "We are working on securing more information and will keep you posted as best we can as more developments come. Thus far, officials have not commented on the identity of the crew of the downed Night Raven."

Aug 19 - One of ours, but not quite.
A technician appears, seated at a computer. The webcam shows the open expanse of a hangar with what appears to be a typical COBRA-owned and operated Night Raven S3P. However, unlike most of the COBRA-owned Night Ravens, this one is swarming with technicians and scientists alike, each wearing a COBRA issued badge that denotes them as part of the R&D department's 'Special Weapons' program. Naturally, no names are listed on the badges, just photos, for the sake of security.

"Alright, Sir, you asked and we're delivering," the technician's heavy Aussie accent is fairly clear over the video feed. "This Night Raven you gave me, it's definitely one of ours, only it isn't." He pauses, tapping a few keys on an unseen keyboard. "Hold on, I'll explain."

Pictures flash up on the side of the screen. "This is the aircraft, tail number Theta Zero-One-Seven-Three. She belonged to R&D a while back, has a rather sparse history in the archives, though. This was back when Ritter ran the show, and he was too secretive for his own good. Pity he can't answer much from six feet under. The pilot, Strato-Viper Seven-Nine-One, likewise had a very involved service in R&D, but was shot down and never recovered alive, making this a curious case."

He clears his throat, letting the old images, all time-stamped around 2010. They show the aircraft in various areas, each time from a bit of a distance and marked with the title 'PROJECT : NIGHTLASH'. The technician dismisses them once they've run they're course. "I looked up Project Nightlash. Big surprise, no records. Checked the aircraft's tail number, going straight to M.A.R.S. Another big surprise, they show no records of ever producing that particular tail-number. That's when we found this."

The Night Raven's image appears in wire-frame format, zooming in on a cross-section of the cockpit. "We've got here an R/A-37-1a transponder module, Cobra standard in our Ravens. Allows the pilot to control the drone while it's unmanned, likewise allows for some automated functions and presets. We've upgraded our platforms to the R/A-42-7b as of last year for advanced functions, but this unit shows up as having been ordered Depot-level repairable without a carcass to turn in."

The cross-section lights up with numerous other modules, an indicator on the side showing a count of 73. "All in all, we found seventy-three different modules, all DLR, uh… depot level repairables, installed throughout the aircraft to give it form and function similar to our own birds, all ordered without a carcass. But here's where it gets stranger still." An image pops up of wiring and circuitry, heavily zoomed in and magnified. "What we see here is non-standard wiring, it's not quite matching our technical publications. Alien technology similar to samples we've recovered in the past, from these… Cybertron automatons, has infused itself with the tech installed that came from us."

<p class="MsoNormal">Several more images of similar situations, alien tech paired up with COBRA branded and M.A.R.S. branded modules flash across the screen. "So, like I said, this bird… she was ours. But she's not ours. But this, as they say, is the coup-de-grace." The screen fills up with what looks like a micro-nuclear reactor, glowing a bright, almost pure white with purple arcs of lightning crackling along its surface. Several lines are affixed to the metal cylinder, carrying a pink glowing substance throughout the airframe. "It's like the energon sample we have in the labs, only remarkably pure. It all flows through this device. This is how it's powered. Without this, it'd probably cease to function entirely."

<p class="MsoNormal">The images show the device from several angles, one with marks on it indicating measurements. "It's about a foot and a half in diameter overall with a secondary plating shielding it that takes it out to just shy of two feet. Fairly substantial armor, if you ask me. Nothing like the titanium we use on our birds. This thing's built to take a bruising, which is fortunate because this bird most certainly took a bruising."

<p class="MsoNormal">The screen returns to normal, showing the technician seated at his desk. "We'll keep digging while repairing the old girl. Got a few studies on the news footage and a few social-media videos that show that tail-number in action, and I've even got Tech-33 working on a spectro-analysis to match it against the alleged Cybertronian automaton, Nightlash, and likewise crossing it against our own birds still in service. She's an impressive beast. A bit…hodge-podge as far as construction goes, but I'm excited to get her back online. Oh, speaking of."

<p class="MsoNormal">A series of jagged lines, almost like an EKG, fill the screen. "This is her primary computer's activity for as long as we can trace it back, which is a ways. There's volumes of stored data here. But this is interesting. Activity is fairly consistent until about 2010, when this project Nightlash kicked off. Activity straight drops off the grid. Nothing, not a peep. Then, 2012, it spiked again, only erratic. There's a few points where it's so erratic I can't even tell if the bird was dying or just trapped in a nightmare. There's a few more points of inactivity, the most recent being yesterday, but the consistent activity died when Ritter started his work. Not sure what that means, but rest assured we'll find out. Might have to do with how our tech interfaced with alien tech."

<p class="MsoNormal">He settles back in his chair with a sigh. "Until we've got more, Tech-01 out."

<p class="MsoNormal">

<h4 class="MsoNormal">Aug 20 - Project : Nightlash 2.0

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">The screen flickers and the familiar Aussie, Tech-01, appears on screen sipping from a mug that reads 'I <3 Jet Exhaust' in bold lettering. There's a few agonizing moments of silence as he makes sure everything is recording properly.

"Alright, so... Sir, here is the updates as they stand. We've checked over comms systems. SINCGARS was outdated, using an old A/N-131, we decided to test cross-compatability with upgrades on devices by putting in the newer A/N-188 and matching up the Freq-Hop to our own test channel. Updated the SATCOM encryption as well. Short story, it works. Whatever Ritter did, he made sure she worked with our tech. I'd love to know who else worked on this project, but either they are tight-lipped, or everyone who did is gone. Ritter's records do not even mention a roster."

He brings up an older image, dated 2010, with several persons standing around the Night Raven on the tarmac at night. "Here's what we're working with. Five figures. I've got this guy," he highlights the pilot, "as our former Strato-Viper 719. Here's Ritter," another is highlighted, "and I'm assuming this to be his former second-in-command, Strausus. Likewise not on our active roster anymore. That leaves the last two unknown. What's more, I can't seem to find a good quality shot of their faces. Scrubbing rosters, though, we did have some of our aviation maintenance personnel relocated shortly before the flood hit, and they were never recovered. I know this might sound coincidental, but they were moved to stations that had no air program in place. I checked their service records, there's a few gaps around that time. Stellar performance on both, followed by a lapse, and then reprimands for improper behavior preceding and resulting in their transfers off-station."

The technician shrugs. "So, that leaves us in an interesting spot. Ritter was up to something, and we're just here trying to put together a puzzle. So, on to the puzzle. With her on standby as of last night, we're having an easy time with diagnostics and other scans. Power levels are rising slowly, but still dismally low, she's at about 13%. We've still got the power-cart and huffer hooked up to augment that so her systems aren't draining her back down to 0.

"As per your request, we've focused on the weapon systems first. She was honest about her assessment. The systems she's using came out of a Sukhoi SU-27. It's nothing impressive, at first blush. In fact, the wiring and work to integrate it does not even come close to matching what Ritter's team did with the old tech. The time of install also coincides with a major shutdown in 2011. My guess is she went down, they couldn't find M.A.R.S. tech to replace systems, and swapped. She was inactive for about six months, but there's no real chatter as to what she was up to outside of a possible sighting in Argentina."

He pulls up a display of armament systems. "Here's what she's carrying, and the probable reason for the system swap. FRAS-4C rockets, Soviet-era for sure. However they're Anti-Submarine. Someone shoe-horned these in and made them work, but they're horribly inefficient unless going after a water-borne subsurface target no more than, oh, ten meters deep, fifteen at best from an aircraft. They were meant to fire from a submerged vehicle, though. I've taken two of the rockets from her bay and we'll study those. The last reports from the USSR before it collapsed were the FRAS-1 being under development, and it was a nuclear assisted projectile. While our wing-clipped bird can't use them well, we might be able to on other applications."

The image shifts to a missile. "This is another anomaly. It carries a designator 'AA-X-15'. Last records show the AA-12 to be the last Soviet missile developed, dubbed the 'Adder'. We've dubbed this one the 'Python'. It's rather complex with an upgraded guidance system. However, it's not communicating with the SU-27 system very well. There's a jumbled mix of code that does not translate well. It's like using a 4g phone with a 3g tower, you just won't get the performance you're looking for." He cycles through some photos. "We've kept two samples of this missile as well to see if there's anything of use for our own applications. They're not terrible, but they're not world-class either. Tech-4413 has pointed out an interesting configuration of the gyroscopes that handle target tracking and acquisition that might be of use. It's innovative, if nothing else. These particular AA-X-15's also have the R-73M2 tag, indicating a decent range extension over standard service missiles, in excess of a mile."

The Tech settles back in his chair in thought. "We've also spoken with the subject, Nightlash, since your conversation with her. She claims she cannot exceed the Mach 3.5 boundary, or even cross beyond 3.2 without severe structural stress. That's a limitation our own birds have as well. At 3.5, for more than a few minutes, they will literally disintegrate mid-air. However, the structural engineers are telling me that she's wrong. She should be able to cross Mach 5 without breaking a sweat. She refuses to believe this, though, and actually cited the Night Raven tech manual as proof of her claim. I'm very curious to know why she thinks this way, though, and I'm going back to our earlier scans of processor activity for clues. We'll keep you up to date, as always, Sir."

There is a pause. "As for the weapon system upgrades, we're working on procuring the systems from M.A.R.S. without a carcass. Naturally, they are Depot-level repairable items. But we're using another aircraft's tail number, the one that went down in LA, to compensate. We had hoped to salvage the systems from that aircraft, but they are damaged beyond repair or reasonable use. If M.A.R.S. insists on a carcass, we can gladly send them the scrap as compensation, but when we rebuild the recovered bird from LA, we'll have to go through the process again.

"Tech-01, out."

Logs
27Jun2013 - Assault on Dael - Nightlash takes to the skies to provide air support and air superiority for Cobra forces in Syria.



07Jul2013 - Get Along Lil Steggy - Nightlash crashes a rodeo where Wild Bill and Slugfest provide entertainment. During a talk with Angel, a few secrets are revealed, but unbeknownst to both, Interrogator is listening in.

02Aug2013  - Evacuation of Los Angeles - Nightlash assists Interrogator, and Reverb in evacuating Lowdown, Wiretap, Angel, and other civilians out of the Quintesson occupied LA.

16Aug2013 - Disaster over Los Angeles - While assisting joint forces in rescuing civilians from Los Angeles, Nightlash gets taken out of the fight early. It was, overall, a bad night for everyone involved.

Players
User:Savage Ravage