Scubby

He cocked his head. Looking at Fifteen. Why did it matter if he saw her injured? Just then McNamara popped up. With a snarl Jazce piped onto the open freq. "McNamara Their were five people in our immediate vicinity who heard my plan plus the field commanders. You and your two lackeys were three of them. Take a wild guess at who the other two were. Not many options for traitors there. I suggest you take a good long hard look at your two subordinates and decide which one is better at sucking up and shoot him." He then awitched off his comm. He didn't have the patience right now. He needed to see to his injuries and could probably help with Cassandras. Removing his own helmet he took a look around the room. Suppressing a whistle. Interesting array of medical and torture devices. Many he was even familiar with. His appraisal of the girl needed to be redone. Young though she was his respect grew. Though the application of Kolto confused him. Bacta was a stronger healing agent than Kolto was. Looking at Cassandra's arm he narrowed his eyes. Bacta would kill infection but to properly fix that she needed more. "You'll have to set that. Otherwise it'll only get worse. Don't worry about me most of this is the other guy. He took a facefull of grenado and I caught what missed him. All I need to do is pick out the pieces hat got through and I'm set. I've got plenty of infection busting drugs besides. Ones my body have metabolised too" Taking off his webbing one handed he dropped it to the ground next to him and hit the quick release for his armour's chest piece on his control pad. It was the heaviest perforated surface so he'd deal with that first. Stopping quickly to assess his condition he grimaced. Shot high in the left shoulder, worst of the blast reflected off but its still damaged and will take a bit of fixing later on. For now its operation. Shrapnel injuries to most of my front barring the head and right arm. Easy to fix. Taking off the plate he looked at the blood spotted tunic below. Pulling that up he had a look at. Lots of very small holes. Most of them have clotted by now. That'll be painful to open up again and pull out the shrapnel. Lucky for me I'm pro-painkiller. For now all he could really do is stop the infection. He could deal with the rest later. Going in to his webbing he pulled out his medkit and selected several of the anti-biotics. They would stop anything dead in its tracks for a day or so before he needed to either eat more or get the shrapnel out. Picking it out now was too long. Pills eaten he took a swab out and swabbed his front down. Kill any nasty stuff on the outside. "Alright I'm good to continue. You have a plan for getting these ratbags to deal straight and finding the broken link? Or shall we do this my way. Hard. Fast and brutal."

McNamara was speaking to Jazce. Updating him on the situation in the skies. Considering his mood was murderous and he was in a great deal of pain he might have been a little on the rude side but the CoreSec agent could care less. They had come here in good faith and from the start they had been double dealed. Lack of information, lack of any real quality in manpower or training. The only thing they'd done with any calibre of success was tackle the route. Fighters in the air did help. If they'd had more time he'd have done a reccy first and identified the shuttles and the AA guns and come up with a counter solution to prevent them coming in to play. Hopefully not all locals would be this incompetent. I really have to shake this stormtrooper voice out of my head. He doesn't like admitting people have different talents then strategy and combat. He thought to himself as he considered McNamara's report. "Tell your pilots to keep the pressure and see if they can't get escape vectors on any of the ones that do get away. Also I reccomend gettin ships out there to secure thopse disabled shuttles. Wouldn't do to have them crash to the ground. Oh and once you get back from that... Please explain to me why the comms came back up so early. And why they were so well prepared and waiting for us. Because I am very unhappy with the mess they made of my armour. Also what steps have you taken to root him out." Whilst his voice sounded calm their was no mistaking how close to lethal violence he was. These people were really starting to get on his nerves. He didn't ask about Fifteen as he'd seen the nav markers she was putting up and heard the lack of communications. Something was wrong. He was going to go find her as soon as he'd had a chance to pick these ball bearings out of his chest. Turning he followed one of the CSF agents to a chair and took a seat. Immediately the pain seemed to double. Swearing in four different languages he pulled out his field medkit from the back of his webbing. Opening the private channel with Fifteen as he worked. "Fifteen I was right their is a rat around here. Until we know who I don't think we should trust anyone. I'll come find you as soon as I finish pulling bits of grenade out of myself." Grabbing out bits and pieces he began trawling over his chest piece. Not taking it off. Just using the special device to reach in, grab hold of shrapnel pieces and pull them out. It hurt. A lot. Dropping them to the floor he ignored the same CSF agent returning with a cup of tea and a stupid grin. Useless fools. Jazce didn't drink things others gave to him when he didn't trust them implicitly. These people had a traitor in their midst. His spine started tingling again. And then he felt a flash of pain. Damn force. Get out of my head! he swore internally though. He had recognised it. Quickly packing his kit up he stood. Ignoring the CSF pers and heading straight out of the command post. Walking through the dark city he looked up to the stars. From here the battle was invisible. But if he applied his visual enhancers he could probably see flashes of light. Not that he cared. Their was nothing he could do about it. And the pilots were doing fine without him. Sill covered in mud, blood and body pieces it would be hard not to stick out. But he still spotted Cassandra fin though clearly she wanted to hide. That wasn't what partners did however. Swearing he approached her. "You need medical treatment. Proper treatment. I hope you have something on your ship because that arm shouldn't be hanging like that and if that is crepitus I'm hearing and not gravel..." He left it unsaid that meant broken bones. Her right arm was dangling which wasn't a good sign. Mind you he needed at least a bacta patch himself. He'd pulled out several of the pieces but their were still plenty to go. He had control of the blood loss but the risk of infection was rising the longer he left them in there.

"Roger that Fifteen. I'm breakin in to the hospital now. Stiff resistance but it sounds like the troops up top are doing their job. Shold be secure in five mike over." Jazce acknowledged Cassandra's comm. Hiding behind the desk in the foyer he had broken through the front window barricade with a grenade. A very effective grenado. They hadn't expected him to be so close and they hadn't wanted to abandon their E-Web. It would have made chaos for the boys upstairs if they had moved it and also could have been used to shoot down the transports from the other buildings. Either way it was cleared and their were now only three enemy left in here out of the original seven. A very scared three it seemed they were debating running. Where too Gren didn't know this city was locked down, the hospital had him down the bottom and CSF up top. Personally Jazce figured they'd try to get through CSF, they had a better chance that way. As he listened to the debate with growing impatience and considered ways to end it permanently he heard another noise. A low whine that was rapidly building. It was hard to hear over the noise of fighting but it was definitely there. Niggling at his mind. The audio enhancers from his helmet caught everything. Is that a shuttle? no. The noise has too much resonance. Too many points. Its many shuttles. Small by the level. One or two man. AS the whine became heard by even those without audio enhancers the debate outside stopped. One of the men swore and suddenly they were all sprinting away. JAzce swore profoundly. The agent was officially sick of prisoners. The two he had taken ealier would suffice. Everyone else here was going to die. His blood was up. His mind clear and cold. The Ice Killer was going to ensure that as many of these scum reaped the rewards of their crime as possible and be damned to the locals. Those clowns would get some of the same if they continued this charade of covering everything up. Especially the traitor. Getting on the open channel comm even as he stood and fired into the retreating backs of the pirates. Neatly cutting a bolt through one mans spine and out the other side before they rounded the corner. He was off like a shot in pursuit. "Cass, McNamara be advised red force has several shuttles taking off from the hospital. I recomend having those fighters in high altitude intercept until we clear any possible AA guns." Rounding the corner he saw one man sprint through the doorway. The other. Close on his heels took a blaster shot that removed most of his head from Jazce. Sprinting forwards to the door he rounded in and ducked back as a blaster chewed into the doorframe. Hostages inside. The ship taking off wouldn't be healthy for them. His brief view of the room had given him some insight though. The shuttles were small. One man. Snub fighters really. Just not as heavily armed or armoured. A deathtrap. Jazce could either grenade the one or shoot out its engines. He liked that idea. It would give him a chance to get his hands on the last pirate from the foyer. The take off method was simple. Propped, straight up. The ceiling was gone. Jazce could see straight up to the sky in his glance. How the CF had missed that he didn't know. Maybe it was covered. But thermals or IR surely. Listening to the sounds coming from inside he determined the man was inside the last fighter. Arming a HE det for command, it wouldn't do for the grenade to go off of its own accord. The agent rounded the corner then swore. That maniac had dragged some kids into the fighter with him. The armed grenade was going to be useless. Turning he calmly chucked it back out the door, it landed in the mess he'd made of the other guy. Taking a knee he brought his rifle up, found the spot, aimed and fired. The ARC was state of the art. A heavy blaster like no other. Deadly accurate in the right hands with the punching power of a much heavier weapon. It was why he loved it. The shot punched straight through the light armour on the fighters body. Straight into its powerhouse. With a brilliant flash of light and an internal explosion everything turned off. Lucky really that could have made the thing go up taking me and everyone else here too if I did it wrong. Jazce looked around at the hostages. They were all staring at him. Fear in their eyes. More then when the hostage taker had been here. C'mon seriously? I know I look like a stormtrooper. I even used to be one but this is ridiculous! Standing once more he was trying to decide what to do with them. Left on their own they'd be fine but if more pirates showed up that was not going to be the case with two fights still to launch from this room. He could hear from the outsdie the steady rumble of many ships taking off. It seemed this was a well planned retreat. Turning back to the hostages theirs eyes flickered to the door and relief showed on some of the faces. More dismay on others. With a snarl Jazce spun and dropped, the shot aimed for his back struck high in the left shoulder, spinning him to the side. Partially deflected by his armour the rest penetrated and suddenly his world was pain, but Jazce still had a shaved knuckle in the hole. Activating his command detonator he saw more than heard the flash, his world was spinning and ears ringing. But he did turn to face the door and lurch up just in time for the two bodies their to be reduced to parts. Blood and pieces flying into the room coating him along with the few bits of shrapnel to make it through striking him instead of hostages. His armour saved him from the worst. Though it was now pitted with ball bearings. A few did penetrate. He would need to pick them out later. Further adding to his pain. Pain he would survive. The explosion did however knock him on his back. Lying he gritted his teeth against the pain and the screams from the terrified civis. Even as more bodies appeared in the door. CSF this time. "Agent Leaf! Medic!" Struggling to sit upright and get on his feet he grabbed a proffered hand and stood. Much to the protest of the section commander. "I'm fine mate. No medic. I'll patch myself up later. Whats the situation." "Teams are scouring the hospital for any more resistance. Most of it seems to have fled in these snubs though. This was the last of the rooftop resistance that tried to come in here." Nodding Jazce turned away. His shoulder burned, the injury was only light. A fleshwound if anything but still. It wasn't plesant with the added ball bearins sticking out of his chest, arms and legs. He would need to attend to that soon. Getting on the comm he piped in. "Cass, McNamara Hospital is about to be secure. They've abandoned it it seems. I'm making my way back to HQ to ascertain the situation there. Over." He suppresed any sound of pain in his voice. They didn't need to know. Turning back to the troops he judged their condition. Servicable. "Finish clearing the hospital then get an E-Web I left in the foyer. Take it to the roof and provide fire support for the school assaults." Ignoring any protestions of needing immediate medical help. His bleeding wasn't that bad. He picked up his rifle, checked it and made his way back to the foyer. His suit had sealed around the injuries. Isolating them. Maybe I should invest in on of those self-medicating suits flying around. He though as he made his way outside the building. Looking up to see the engines lighting the sky, followed by laserfire as the remaining CSF fighters engaged. Turning from the vista he trudged back through the shadows to the HQ. His thoughts bent on wringing the truth out of these monkeys one way or another. Activating his comm again he raised Fifteen. "I don't know about you Fifteen but I am really really sick of all the surprises we keep running into here. I'm feeling urges I haven't felt in a few years. Namely beating someone to death with their own arms."

Jazce ducked his head back around the corner just as a series of blaster bolts blew chunks of super heated duracrete all through where his face had just been. His helmet protected him from the worst of the blowback but he swore and edged away regardless. What had happened? It had been going smoothly, judging from the fire from the ridge Fifteen had at least half a dozen kills and the fighters maneuver had worked a charm... Up until one of the fighters go shot down. Its death had very nearly taken Jazce with it. The gouge out of the city and the impact crater went right through the yard he had been sneaking through. Then a group of six reds appeared. One had died instantly a blaster to the throat but before he could gun down the rest they had started firing forcing him to take cover and turn the firefight into all kinds of messed up. One the plus side the fighters had reacted well. Instead of panicking one had simply changed course and demolished the shots location with a laser blast. Crouching in the alleyway just past the still burning fighter Jazce swore as everything was put into sharp relief by the flames. That would only make things harder. He swore again when comms came back and actually fell over when the ground under him moved. A hundred meters away a sewer port exploded into the air. Rocketed up by fire. Watching it Jazce shook his head to clear it of the ringing. His first guess had been right. The sewers were a trap. But the comms returning... Could only point to one thing. A traitor somewhere within the organisation. When Jazce got back he would find that man or woman and murder him. In great detail. But no! He was a law enforcement officer now. Not an assassin. He would simply have to arrest the man. With any luck McNamara would have answers for him. Or Jazce could just wring them out of his scrawny hide. As he regained his feet he pulled out a thermal detonator, armed it and primed for four seconds on release. From his earlier look they had occupied a terraced garden accross the street and up one house from his position. Some were probably moving to flank, at least one behind this house to act as cut off and the others in the remains of the house renovated by the fighter. That was the easiest way to cut off all his options. Moving in a blur he poked around the corner, lobbed his grenado and was back in his position in another flash even as blaster fire from the garden chewed up his wall again. But this time he didn't wait, slinging his rifle he began climbing the wall using windows and the gutter to gain purchase as a blast and screams came to him. At least one man had gone down in that garden. Possibly more. He would know when he got eyes. Finally grabbing hold of a balcony lip he hauled himself over the edge and rolled into cover. Eyes out for the remaining enemy. Edging around the balcony he got eyes on the yard. Noting two casualties in pieces and one still screaming as his life blood leaked into the dirt. Touch luck. Quicker would have been better. Standing he jumped and grabbed the roof edge above him and hauled himself up onto the roof. From here he had a good vantage point. And from all appearances the enemy were pulling back. Pulling his rifle around he sighted on the one moving back from the ruined house. Switiching to stun he fired and watched the body drop and twitch once. to be sure he put two more bolts into the man before moving on, the otehr was now out of sight. heading towards the hospital even as the transports landed and disgorged troops onto the roofs. Why the retreat? He thought. With a traitor in our midst they have everything they need to eliminate us. Hell I'm surprised we made it this far. They could have anticipated me coming and shot me up before I managed to eliminate the snipers. Or at least move my bombs. With another curse Jazce activated his comlink. "McNamara this is Leaf pull your fighters back before more get shot down. I reccomend havin them patrol just outside of range though. In case we need them." Looking around he judged he was only a klick from the hospital. Good. I can run that in a couple of minutes. Taking off into a steady run he leaped from rooftop to rooftop as he made his way through towards the hospital. Stopping a house away to slip back down to ground level. As he began controlling his breathing he listened to the sounds of the firefight going on inside. Unslinging his rifle he switched it to the battle sling and began moving around the corner at the alert. Coming out between two houses facing the hospitals main entrance he viewed his target. Darkened interior, upper floors lit with blaster fire. Low wall around the perimeter. No more than a meter high. Useful. It was a wide roadway with at least thrity meters of open ground to cover. Not good. Pulling three smoke grenades he primed them all and hrew them in gentles arcs to just the other side of the road about ten meters apart. There. Nice wide smokescreen to cover me moving in. He though even as the smoke created an impentrable yellow barrier between him and the hospital. Even as he broke cover and ran, zig zagging across the road on a diagonal path to the entrance fire errupted from the hospital, or so he assumed judging its location. It ripped right through the center of the cloud at where he had been between the houses. Not a threat. He continued to cross as he came up to where he estiamted the edge of the road to be he stopped and knelt. Feeling hands out for it until his fingers encountered gutter. Good. Crawling over it he he fell to the ground. Leopard crawling the rest of the way to the wall he had spotted earlier. Before propping up on one knee, careful to stay under cover. Reactivating his comlink he got in touch with Fifteen. "We've been had. Red knew we were coming and tagged us. I'm beginning my attack on the hospital. With any luck enough troops made it through the ambush to not make this suicide. Good luck."

(its all good buddy. Life gets hectic sometimes. I just needed to do a lot of stuff in that post.) Jazce had been in position only a few minutes when he got the signal. At Fifteens comm Jazce face broke out in a cold grin. This was it. This was what he had lived for. That cold moment before the first kill. The start of the battle. Their was still a minute until go time. The fighters and the shuttles were on the way. The ground troops in position. Thirty seconds. He closed his eyes and loosened his grip on the rifle. Concentrated on his breathing, before reopening his eyes and tightening his grip again. Target centered. Perfect. Ten seconds to go. His tightened his aim. Five. One deep breath out. Mark. The shot rang out. A single shot and the sentry collapsed in the thermals. Pieces of bodymatter flying and a small fire alight in hsi hair. The report rung out. Any sounds of a second report. Fifteens, was lost in the explosion a second later. As Jazce set off his bombs. As the shockwave blew over him he spotted fighters flying in fast and low. He couldn't hear them yet, but that was the idea. They would be on them in seconds. As yells broke out in the distance Jazce stood and began moving down the street towards the hospital. Still sticking to cover and moving through the shadows as was his way. But this time with a sense of urgency. Regardless by the time he reached it this battle would be in full swing. The transports and the troops onboard would arrive first. But Jazce would strike from the unexpected direction of the front door.

Jazce nodded as Fifteen left to get Chuck. Who or what Chuck was he didn't know. But he would find out soon at a guess. For now he had to scan for entrypoints. Gazing down at the map he studied the terrain they were dealing with. Hill. Cityscape. Light scrubland. Cityscape easily dominated the terrain being all through the center of the field and where the HQ was poisitoned. The battlefield was on the other side of the city being seperated by a great deal of cityscape. The most direct route was clearly the sewers but that was also the most obvious and the most dangerous. It was a basically several housand potential chokepoints and mine risks. Clearing it in the rapid onset of darkness in the already dark underbelly would be hazardous to an extravagent level. Not really an option. The ridgeline was as earlier pointed out the best overview spot but also a killing ground for the three snipers. That left the light scrubland and residential cityscape surrounding the hostile zone. Too large to be completey trapped up. Too complex to be patrolled effectively. The glaring weakness in the defence. Yet that was also a worry. If it was a obvious weakness to him what of them? bah it was the only option that wasn't suicide at the outset. Jazce was born to walk shadows. He would find a way through. Swinging his pack off his back he pulled out all his stun and flash munitions. Planting them on the table between him and the local agents. The mixture of gray, gray with violet stripes and gray with red stripes indicated which did what. They would all do to neutralise the schools with as little bloodshed as possible. The five survivors would likely come from there if the Chandrillans weren't too bloodthirsty about it. Than he pulled out the multi-sight from his pack and clipped it on to his rifle. Normally that would ruin the zero but the ARC was incredibly accurate as it were and Jazce had been careful to ensure he'd marked the method and placement of the sight on the railings from when he zeroed it last. Finally he prepped his own HE explosives for the tower. Enough to wipe out its base and suppurtoing structure. If he planted it inside it would reduce collateral by imploding the buildings structure causing it to fall straight down instead of toppling on another structure too. As Fifteen re-entered the HQ Jazce looked up and nodded to her. Trying to connect with her eyes behind the visor. Owning AI was no small thing. They were vastly superior to any and all regular droid intelligences and they could also be deadly. Machine logic could lead to a revoloution that would result in a Biological Vs Mechnical war. Such had happened on planets in the past. With disasterous results. He nodded to imply he understood the trust she placed in him. Perhaps once this was all over he would tell her his own history. The unabridged version. He figured his story might able her to trust him a bit more. Trust was key in a partnership against the enemies they would commonly fight. Swapping stories would help that. Most of it anyway. Some parts of who he was needed to die with him. Though he ddn't approve of cutting comms this early. It would hinder their own deployment and alert the enemy to impending actions. SOPs for an assault with the rangers was to activate jammers just after the initial strike. That being the explosion. Upon hearing that they would all panic and flood their communcations. If it cut off just as they started the panic would grow and their discipline would waver as fear and knowledge of impending attack and no organisation or time to create an alternate comms plan or even try to order a withdraw would be possible. It would simply be a route or in the case of well disciplined forces a series of ground battles conducted with speed and aggression to halt the coalescing of forces. Antarian Rangers had spent millenia perfecting their assault tactics. They did it well. But he wouldn't gainsay his partner. Not publicly. He would tell her in private later. Their was still something wrong with this whole situation that he didn't like. Too little information. Too many unknowns and variables. But no matter. He would deal with everything as he encountered it. Getting on the open channel he gave one final set of advisory instructions. "Remember timing is crucial. Everyone in position. Detonate tower and snipers. Fighters flyby. Transports land as soon as possible afterwards and assaults begin. Civillian will undoubtedly be in the middle of this mess. It is up to us to check fire and ensure none are hit or killed. Also ensure any support elements follow right up the tailpipe to clear casualties and to handle booby traps. I expect a few in areas." Looking once again to Fifteen he sent a private comm just before he finished off his open comm. "We're good. Good luck." It was about as much emotion as he could muster for the moment. Checking the time in the corner of his visual he made some calculations. "I'll send a double click through the commlink one the charges are in place and I am ready to fire from there I wait until the go ahead is given before we start this party. I have midnight. If I haven't sent the signal by zero-three-hundred hours than I may be compromised. The alternate plan is to go ahead but use a fighter to destroy my two towers on its pass. May the force be with us." Turning he made his way outside of the HQ building.night had well and truely fallen. Activating his helmets night vision and darkness turned to day. He'd heard stories of ancient days when night vision was considered the naked eye or uncomfortable eye pieces that gave the user headaches and turned the world a dull green and white. Those days were long gone thankfully. Just before he went far he made one last transmission to Cassandra. This time on their private channel. "Fifteen. If things go bad I reccomend rendevousing on top of the residential block at the base of the ridge. That'll give us a good position to pull back and cover your ship from visuals below altitude." Moving from memory he made his way through the darkened backstreets. Stopping briefly to coat himself in mud. It would assist his armours IR dampening abilities. Not much of a threat against these guys but it had other advantages too. He continued on through the city like a wraith. This is what he had been born doing. Stealth and sabotage had been his lifeswork for twenty-five years. Ghosting through dead ground silent and deadly, hugging the deepest shadows. Moving slowly but surely through the city towards his target building. Stopping briefly to inspect his surroundings. He kept low and moved with nary a whisper. His helmet augmenting his own hearing to listen to local wildlife crawling through the scattered undergrowth. He stopped once. To let a four man patrol go past. Marking their location and direction of travel mentally. He would find them later and elminate them from the equation. Slipping into the warren of structures that marked the lower class residential block surrounding the bell tower. It would cover his entry and exit perfectly. He glanced up briefly. Eyes looking for the sniper. Using his helmets augmented visuals to scan closely at range. There! Window one level down from the top. A barrel. Sloppy. Snipers should always be back in cover. Never expsoing any part of themselves to visual. Slinking back he moved in under the snipers arc. Ensuring he didn't move into open ground. This was the most dangerous part. They would be fools to not have a ground sentry. The key was to eliminate him before he discovered he had company. It had taken him an half an hour thus far. He still had another two and a half hours to spare before the fighters would come. Gaining eyes on the foyer to the buidling Jazce settled in position. Watching for any movement. Waiting for a slip or a sentry change. It came with with just over fifty minutes to spare. That was good. With roations that far apart no chance of early discovery. A pair of reds crept through the warren and moved to the foyer entrance. Calling out softly. Another two appeared to meet them. One from inside the building, another from out of Jazce's view to the left of the foyer entrance. Bingo. That was the shaved knuckle in the hole. He would spot anything entering the foyer. He would die first. jazce lightly brushed the knife on his wrist scabbard. This would need to be quiet. Silently clipping his rifle onto its combat sling he waited for the sentries to change over and move to their new positions. Than he ghosted the long way around the block. Climbing a terrace to overlook the courtyard where he suspected the knuckle was hiding. Found. Inbetween a stairwell and the wall. Perfect spot to keep eyes on the foyer entrance. Slowly and carefully moving around behind the sentry Jazce approached the stairwell from the top. Absolutely silent. Checking the wall that cornered the stairs he lowered himself gently to the ground behind the sentry. Avoiding the stairs. Unsheathing the knife he prepared to kill. Wait! She wanted some alive. Better make this my first. SHeathing the knife considered how best to do it silently. The sentry was human. Therefore all the usal weaknesses would apply. Simple to deal with. Creeping behind the sentry he opted for a swift knifehand blow to the neck. Momentarily cutting off the carotid artery for a second. Causing the human to 'microsleep'. It was more than enough. In a flash Jazce had his arms around the man. One hand deftly removed the rifle from the still weakened grip then swung up and around the the neck and pressing in, safely putting the rfile behind the stumbling mans back whilst simutaneously cutting off his airflow with pressure applied to his windpipe. The other arm came up and around the opposite shoulder with the hand on the back of the head forcing the head and neck further into the choke whilst imobilsing the arm from reaching around to Jazces head. Classic sleeper hold. With one finaly twist. Jazce lifted the man clean off the ground. So his kicking feet wouldn't make a noise. It wasn't easy as the man did weigh a decent amount and the hold was awkward with a second rifle in hand but it was done. Within a minute the panicked mans struggles weakened and subsided. jazce waited an extra thirty seconds from the last twitch before gently laying the man down. Taking the rifle he silently cleared it and set it aside before he removed three sets of flexi-cuffs and a gag from his webbing. He had enough for three people. The last two he'd have to hope Fifteen got or improvise. Cuffing the mans hands and feet to eachother. Then both to a central point under the stairs he finished with the gag. Under here he would be protected from the blast and any shrapnel. With luck he would survive. Leaving the unconcious human behind he swiftly moved to the edge of the foyer. It was darkness incarnate within. The only light coming from the visible moon that cast everything in shadows. To normal eyes anyway. The image intensifiers of Jazce's night vision had him well equipped for the dark. Checking time Jazce decided fortune favoured the bold. Unsheathing his knife he held it accross his body. hidden in shadow, then moved forward into the foyer entrance. A rustle from the corner and the second sentry stood. Squinting at the dark silhouette "Andy. What're you doing? Did ya see some-" The whispered voice cut off as the man realised Andy didn't quite fit the image in front of him. Even as Jazce's thrown knife flashed into his eye and the brain beyond and Jazce silently rushed forward. Catching the dead man before he could hit the ground and easing him down with his rifle. Silently clearing the second weapon he retrieved his knife and cleaned it on the mans clothes before quickly moving around the room planting the charges where they would most effectively implode the building and rigging them to explode on command from his wristpad. Then silent as a wraith he left the building leaving nothing but death and impending death behind. Checking briefly on his unconcious prisoner he moved out. Heading towards the vantage point he had marked as the most likely spot he could eliminate the second sniper. He still had fifteen minutes to spare when he found it. Searching his target building he found the sniper almost immediately. This one whilst more competent at hiding his location had a far worse position. The water tower was open to all sides. No place to hide. Just try and take what concealment it could offer. A shame for him. Good for Jazce. Settling down Jazce found his own position well concealed in the warren of buildings. Taking aim he activated his multi-scopes thermal imager. Just to ensure it wasn't a decoy. It wasn't. Switiching it to regualr night vision he sent in the double click. IThe otehrs would get back to him when he should detonate.

(Nevermatter its not really any kind of an issue.) Jazce nodded, taking in the wider tactical situation. The map had a decent amount of detail. It wouldn't be hard to devise an attack strategy. He had planned many when he led a Company of the 501st. But those days were long gone. These weren't Shock Troops. They were a local police force. So what to do... Roughly thirty enemy. Roughly thirty friendly. Two attachments bein Jazce and Cassandra. Not odds any attacking force wanted. Ideally three to one. One to one wasn't ideal. Especially not with hostages in the mix. Four different points of interest they needed to secure. Explosives? He had enough stun and flash munitions for two of them. They just had to sneak in and pepper a room and presto, everyone was down but not out. Perhaps the schools. They would be the hardest to take in a firefight. And more kids would be there. He wouldn't risk kids. Not after his last job. The gym would be relatively easy. Most gyms were open and had plenty of windows. If they got lucky they could conduct a timed mark. That left the hospital. Big. Tight passages. Lots of rooms. The snipers would be easiest. Isolated. High locations. Good views of the surroundings but he would bet any credits he owned that he could sneak up to any one of them and eliminate the sniper without anyone knowning. If the citizens didn't mind some collateral (Lets face it. Considering what was happening they could build a new bell tower.) He could plant explosives on the bell tower, get in position to snipe the church and Cassandra or one of McNamara's men could snipe the third. Getting on the private channel with Fifteen he spoke his mind. "Plan B sounds good to me. With some slight adjustments. If I may." Without waiting for a response he stepped up to the map and leant over it. "This will be tough. Lots of points. Not enough firepower. But I think I can even the odds a bit. If any of your men are trained in explosives I can provide enough stun and flash munitions to neutralise the two schools. The gym will be relatively easy to assault. Its open with plenty of windows and plenty of visuals to snipe early warning. The hospital will be hardest. If you have any shuttles with ramp capability we can use them to rush the buildings and launch assaults from the roofs. They won't be expectin it. Its risky but I doubt they'll have anti-air up there." Now Jazce concentrated on the snipers. Problematic but not overly so. He had ideas for them too. "But thats all dependent on takin out the early warning. These snipers. Now I can get close enough to eliminate one but that'll leave me vulnerable to the other two. If you are agreeable to some... Collateral I will wire up the bell tower before hand and detonate it just as I snipe the water tower. That'll distract the church shooter long enough for a shooter just below the ridge to pop up and take him out. It'll also signal the shuttles to fly ing and land troops and... My personal favorite. The flyover. Moments before I shoot I will signal a fighter to swoop all four buildings. I mean as close as we can get them. Meters, engines full power, throttle at max. It'll create a hell of a sonic boom. The faster the fighter and the bigger the engines the better. It'll shatter every window and it'll have every being within with eardrums on the ground. Unharmed but with a mighty big headache. Our troops will have the advantage. From there I'll scramble to the hospital and start a ground assault. It'll be the most complicated to take and its what they'll expect. Hopefully I drag enough of them over to give our boys up top a good chance. Pure urban warfare with those deep inside the building not really getting affected by the flyover. Captain you know the enemy disposition best. Spread your troops as you see fit." Turning away from the map he considered the plan he'd just layed out. Built on top of Fifteens. It was a good plan she'd had. The best plans were those that were easy to build on. It carried risks. People could die. If they had anti-air the fighter would hopefully bring it out before the shuttles got in range. They would only need four... And worst comes to worst the Veritas could be used if Fifteen didn't mind. Simple and uncomplicated. He liked that. He thumbed his private channel with Fifteen. "I don't know where you want to be in all this but if you think you can follow me in the second sniper would be a good spot. From there we can rush the hospital. That will be where the fighting will be the worst. Also if they don't have a fighter can we use yours? You have it fly right over the gym, the two schools and the hospital moments after we take out the towers. I mean as low as you can get her. Risky but do that... With her engines on full hike and the sonic boom will shatter every window and have every person within on the ground holding their ears. It'll give an intrusion team the edge they need. Call it a modified trench run its risky but its a proven method. Your call. They may have fighters. Something with sizey engines. X-Wing or Tie Interceptor would be good." Turning back to the map he looked around, "Of course these are just my intial thoughts. Rough. Pickin them apart could save lives." (A callout? Uni?)

Jazce simply stared at Fifteen when she asked him if his helmet had a comm system... It didn't just look like a Stormtrooper helmet. It was one... Once it was modified now. Visual enhancers of all kinds mostly. Comms were standard. Regardless of what he thought of the questions he obligingly switched to the frequency she settled on. Having comms with your team was a priority for him. Their was no team without comms. Just a bunch of individuals trying to get stuff done. As they landed he conducted one final check of his gear. It wouldn't do to have spent all that time preparing only to forget something now. Unstrappin himself and standin he shrugged his webbing into place and pulled on his pack. Keeping it snug. All the spare munitions were in there.... And a lot of bombs. Remainin silent as Fifteen did her thin he followed her down the ramp. Looking to the welcoming comittee of three that met them. Human Chandrillans. Male. Armed but not danerous. Security personnel no doubt. He assessed. His eye critical as he took in the state of their equipment, dress and bearin. The fact that they all holstered weapons in what was clearly a combat zone wasn't a good sign either. The only reason his had a sling was the simple fact of expedience when handling explosives. He never used it unless he was laying bombs. As Fifteen spoke Jazce scanned the area. Looking for any possible threats. Only once pausing to look at her when she introduced them as Cass and 'Leaf'. Leaf? Why the deception? Her comm didn't clear his mind on that either. He'd been thoroughly trained to spot oddities and take every advantage to its furthest bound. Yet beyond simple mistrust... Then again he whole heartedly agreed with her if she did mistrust this man and his people. His actions to this point had done nothin but cost lives. Even calling for CoreSec the way he did was only a way to et himself out of trouble it seemed. Starving us of information because he didn't want to look as incompetent as this situation suggests? Brilliant move. Jazce was gettin more disgruntled by the second. Though now that they were actually talkin situation his mind could finally work through other problems rather than picking apart these men and their incompetence though it riled him so. Ridgeline? This man sent six snipers up on a ridge overlooking a city? Foolish. Cities had far more hidin places and vantage points than a rideline did. Add to that to get over the ridge and look dow on the city the snipers would have silhouetted themselves... It would have been a massacre. Best off infiltratin the city, providing a white rabbit on the ridge and huntin them in their lair. Or if the pirates control was that advanced they could simply use the white rabbit to pinpoint the counter snipers locations and use a lesser position to deal with them. Real snipers moved after every shot. But these weren't real snipers. they were pirates. Nodding to Fifteen as they descended into the HQ he filed away what he had observed so far. "Captain. At any stage of the losing six men bit did you or any of your men attempt to locate where the shots were comin from? Also where are these hostages being kept and are you aware of how the captors intend on killing them if we don't co-operate with the demands?" He had trouble kkeping his derision under control.. Luckily for him all his voice sounded like to them was metallic. Like a Stormtrooper. He didn't like entering a dark hole after strangers and it strained his already strained 'dealing with people politely' nerve. But he needed to control it better. These men were trying their best. Perhaps. Undecided as yet, but this was no ordinary situation. He thumbed his freq with Fifteen so he could speak in private. "I don't know what you think of these situations but in my experience the key to solvin it is to act with speed, aggression and precision. Those snipers are problematic but I can handle that. The real problem is once the bad guys know we're here they may start the killing. We need to stop them doin that."

Interesting...Probably best if we just delete this one eh.

(No worries, this is your show so I'll follow your lead on it.) Jazce nodded at Fifteen's statement, though he hadn't realised the ship had some kind of intelligence on board. Whether it was AI or some form of droid intelligence. Strapping himself in he felt a slight lurch. Too early to be heading into the atmosphere. Droid? Or perhaps controlled by the intelligence unit onboard. "Interesting ship. Being ex-Imperial I've had some experience with the Curich. But it seems you've made some... Interesting modifications to this one." Reaching over to his bag he started pulling out more of his armour. He always wore some form of it. He was too paranoid too not wear any armour. He'd spent fourteen years fighting and being hunted to even consider not putting it on. He didn't know what they were about to fall into. But he wanted to be ready for whatever these pirates could throw at him. This McNamara had been too close lipped about the situation for Jazce to be anything but suspicious of it all. He smelt a tauntaun. A dead one. Shrugging on the last of his armour he reached for his webbing. It was a modified rig that he'd put together himself using the best ideas he could dredge together from the Imperial Navy, the Antarian Rangers and the various groups he'd worked with over the years. Webbing was the ultimate tool of any soldier and the ultimate show of pride in ones webbing was to modify it to perfectly suit your needs. He had a great deal of love for his webbing. Even using it as a pillow when he was in th field. Once all his gear was ready he strapped a sling on to his rifle and waited patiently. He'd grabbed out a number of explosives, recon and intrusion bits. Enough to deal with this situation anyway. The last thing he did was put on his helmet. I forgot how comfortable these could be. He thought to himself as he adjusted it on his head. Camoed up like the rest of his kit... The helmet was however still the same Scout trooper helmet he'd been given when he moved over to recon and got his own Company. It could cause trouble. But he was willing to have that. "Alright Fifteen. Whats the plan?" His voice came out with a metallic tang to it now too.

"I don't like it either. I smell a rat. A dead one. SOPs across most military, para-military and security organisations galaxy-wide is to give as much data to assisting forces as soon as available. Not keep them in the dark until they arrive." Jazce had been dozing lightly, all soldiers learnt to rest whenever possible and Fifteen hadn't said a word in an hour. It had been an uneventful trip anyway. Jazce was hardly surprised. The only way hyperspace got eventful was when someone put a interdictor cruiser in the way. Nav systems were well up to speed these days. Especially in the Core worlds where such a close proximity of stars could lead to accidents on a more regular basis than the less condensed Mid or Outer rims. But Cassandra or Fifteen had remained fairly close lipped after her initial chatter. At a guess. I'd say she is a little sore over the loss of this fiance of hers. Fair enough really. I was the same when my father was killed. Sore enough to betray everything he believed in and everyone who believed in him. Using his skills as a ranger to become an assasin and hunt down all those involved in his old man's death. It was a good thing it was a short flight. The sooner they got there the sooner they could force some real answers out of the locals. Everything about this was now makin his hand itch.

Female! It all added up now. The overbright ship, the walk and the interior oddities. Jazce was still surprised. She was young. Maybe in her early to mid twenties. His datapad buzzed again but he ignored it. Though she updated him on the situation. Hostages dead at one every six hours. They needed details. Lots of them. Demands made. Number of hostages. Number of reds. Equipment of reds. History of reds. Location of hostages. Number of blues. Though the fact that it had all gone this far didn't give Jazce much faith in the local security enforcement. Chandrilla. Whilst a key location during the war never really had much in the way of Garrisons or bases after the Alliance beat the Empire out of there the first time. Only the occasional battle. Usually in space. But as for Cassandra. Taking a seat Jazce introduced himself properly. "Good to meet you Fifteen. I'm sometimes known as Scubby as well. I was born a Toprawan Antarian Ranger and I lived there until I was seventeen. I went freelancer after that, hunting down pirates and operating in mercenary groups for eight years. Than I joined the Imperial Navy, served with with 501st Stormtooper Legion, eventually I was a Company Commander there before I went into hiding. That was three years ago. I've been underground ever since. Stormtroopers are persistant when they want to hunt you down. As for what I do. Stealth and explosives are my specialties. Recon, Int gathering, elimination, hand-to-hand combat and espionage. I'm good for head to head but I prefer to get my work done quietly from the shadows. I'm a good pilot myself. Not the best the Antarian Rangers ever produced but I hold my own..." As Jazce trailed off he pulled out his own weapons to show Cassandra. A simple DL-88 Heavy Blaster, his knockout knuckle dusters and a multitude of explosives. Thermals, protons, concussion and disorientators for now. He also had a number of espionage tools in his webbing and a deconstructed ARC-9965 in his pack. Though he left those where they were. No need to fill his hands up just yet. "Don't worry about hurting my feelings. The galaxy is far too sensitive a place these days. You can barely get up in the morning and brush your teeth without stepping on someones toes now. You don't like hostage situations? Other than the obvious... Whats not to like?"

Jazce Leife Identity Real Name: Jazce Leife Homeworld: Toprawa Species: Human Physical Description Age: 36 Height: 196CM Weight: 87KG Hair: Black Eyes: Brown Sex: Male Equipment Clothing or Armor: Old Combat boots, worn pants with a utility belt and a flak jacket. Tends to wear modified stormtrooper plates under his clothing which makes it look bulkier then it is and also gives him access to several useful items. Armour Specifics - Looks like the Standard Scout Trooper Armour System but with several subtle (And not so subtle) differences. The most important being its not just regular armour. It is in fact a Powered Combat Suit with an array of components. The first being colour. It is not Stormtrooper white. It is a Deceptive Pattern Camouflage Uniform design. Meaning its several different colours, dark shades and light shades in a mix designed to throw off the eye. Due to the nature of his equipment this can and does change colour based on the environment with a little effort on Jazce's part. The second is material. It is stronger than the standard Stormtrooper armour and more importantly has two different layers. The outer layer. Or shell is designed to deflect and hopefully stop attacks, it also has the ability to run an Ion current across its entire surface. The inner material is softer, breathable and melded to the user. In effect it is a power armour making the user stronger, faster and more resilient to attack. A shock gel that hardens instantly on command then loosens (also on command) provides great protection from falls and impacts spotted before contact and an added bonus is air conditioning. Armour gets hot! It also makes up for the conductor quality of the outer surface by being Ion resistant and is the home for all the instrumental and power units. The backplate - Thoroughly modified as to fit a Ysalamiri in a minaturised nutrient frame fairly comfortable up top, and two miniaturised power generators down the bottom to power his suits suite of functions. It is the most heavily armoured part of his body seeing as it is where the most valuable parts are. Makes it a bit back heavy but nothing he can't handle. Especially considering as long as those gennies are running (Which they can do indefinitely damage notwithstanding) he doesn't really have to bear the burden of the weight himself. Helmet - The key to it all. State-Of-The-Art with an AI Computer. Easy to use with both verbally, visually and synaptic controlled systems. HUD system with links to both his ship (most importantly remote weapons) and Spy's Delight. Visual links to all his weapon systems for easy targeting. Provides him with datafeeds on his surroundings, his Armour systems, Ysalamiri, potential tactical options, combat information, key capable communications, Facial and Weapon Identification systems, multiple view spectrometry and a nice zoom. Enhanced visual and audio receptors with a optional voice-scrambler for verbal communications capable of altering his voice to say... Copy another person as required. Bonus head-scratcher also. Weapon: DL-44 Heavy Blaster, Charric blaster pistol Various Explosives, Vibroblade, Customized Knuckle-Dusters. Modified and networked ARC-9965 Common Inventory: Datapad, Multitool, Weapons, Credit Chips, Small Scanner and a small custom created tool called Spy's Delight. (Wristlink) Faction Information Force Sensitive Alignment: The Darker Side of Neutral Current Faction Affiliation: CoreSec Current Faction Rank: Lieutenant History: Force Side: None Trained by: Untrained Trained who: No-one Known Skills: Former Antarian Ranger, Former Assassin, Former Stormtrooper. Skillsets specific to those plus an affinity for machinery. Background: A warrior old far beyond his years, he is constantly haunted by the ghosts of his past. This reflects much he believes and colours his actions. Scubby excels at combat, sadly he recognises the feeling of joy that comes when he fights, though he does his best to bury it. History: Born on Toprawa, Jazce's father was one of the revered Antarian Rangers, his mother died in childbirth, he was an only child. In the expectation he would follow his father from an early age he was trained in the martial traditions of the Rangers, learning to shoot all sorts of weapons, survive in any conditions, fly any number of ships, fight hand-to-hand, fight with a vibroblade, the many uses and construction of explosives and stealth were but a few of the many fighting arts he learnt. He was one the greatest to ever be trained in the expectation of becoming an Ranger. When it became apparent he had a strong ability to use the force plans for his future were written up. At the too young age of seventeen Jazce's father was murdered by a band of pirates. Furious at the death of his father, mentor, teacher and friend Jazce stole a ship from a local hangar, Forsaking his teaching and unknowingly betraying the trust and effort his father had placed in his son's future, even his force ability was forsaken and pushed aside. He was intent on revenge. He proceeded to track them down. It took eight years for him to hunt them all, his fury never subsided. Jazce didn't care what the pirates who'd murdered his pirates were doing when he found them, he didn't care whether they had turned over a new leaf, were still as evil as they were they day the killed his father or were married with kids. He made a name for himself in those eight long years. His training served him well, it became apparent to those he met and those who heard of him that he was a merciless killer, uncaring of anything or anyone in the way of him and vengeance. To finance his ongoing search he took out contract killings, he was soon feared as one of the finest, most vicious and efficient killers in that part of the galaxy, his search had him experience almost the entire known galaxy. He learnt new tactics and tricks too his already considerable inventory. With each passing week he became more and more deadly, he learnt much of the galaxy including many of its languages, he fought against Jedi, Sith and many other warriors who used the force or not. His experience of combat became unmatched, his knowledge of death and killing left him scarred, both mentally and physically. Finally with the death of the last pirate his quest for vengeance was over. His furious lust for vengeance, his driving force, his life was quenched. Now he had no reason to go on killing, to continue his dark life, but he knew no other way to live. This cold killing machine that he had become was who he was. For five years he continued on as a bounty hunter, mercenary and jack of all trades. It was then at the age of thirty that something happened that shook the Ice Killer too the core, it changed his view of life, changed his goals and nearly killed him. It was just another killing, a semi-powerful man who had angered a local crime lord, beyond the reach of the crime boss, Jazce had been asked to assassinate the target in a suitably gruesome fashion. It was routine, he easily entered the compound, too high security for the local thugs, but no challenge for him. He quickly made his way to the targets room. The target was there going over datapads at his desk. Pulling his heavy blaster he turned it to maximum and fired. Most of the target disappeared in a cloud of smoke, blood and gore. A noise from the corner earned another shot and another cloud of gore, at a second glance the remains of a woman were apparent, a wife perhaps. It was then that it happened, a patter of bare feet on the floor came from behind, before he could turn a small form thumped lightly into his back, a pair of fist repeatedly thumping into his shoulders, using an elbow he knocked his attacker to the floor, turning he leveled his blaster. But he froze, what he was looking at could have been him, twenty years ago. The young boy, no older then ten had black hair, just as his had been, brown eyes with his determination, and a furious hatred burning in them, aimed at him. It was a sort of awakening for him, an opening to something greater. His mind seemed to open and it wasn't pretty, remorse flooded him. But not sense, he fled the building, the planet, the sector. He spent nearly a year in seclusion trying to find himself, it eventually returned, with his remembrance of the Force. It spoke to him, in a way, guiding his actions, showing him a path. That path led nowhere for far too long. But eventually it led to the Empire. For Several years he worked hard as part of the 501st Imperial Stormtrooper Legion. Yet after watching senseless brutality one time too many Jazce left the Empire. It wasn't had as he and his men had been abandoned on Tatooine. Left to rot by those in command. Changing his name he left the Empire behind. Trying once again to find a new place for a one-time Ranger. Assassin. Soldier. He eventually did find a place. A small newly minted security organisation called CoreSec. Ship Registration Name: Everready Class: Light Freighter Model: YT-1300 Manufacturer: Correllian Engineering Corporation Length: 34.75 meters Armaments: Dorsal and Ventral Quad Laser Cannon Turrets, Forward firing linked Laser cannons, Ion cannons and Concussion Missile Launcher. Armor: Light with Military-grade shielding, flare and chaff burst. Anti-Personnel Defences: His droid and a Body Scanner Appearance: Old and battered Modifications: Weapons, Shielding, Engines, Generators and various other ship systems. - Scan Jammer - Modified Scanners and Sensors - Mulitple Ship IFFs - External Slice Module - Linked to Armour 12MAY11 - Edited in New Armour

Sitting in his ship Scubby pulled idly through files from the holonet... Apparently that had been a joint strike by the Hutts and the Rebel Alliance he had just witnessed... Something struck a chord though... Death Strikers... They had been involved in the battle... The last time Death Strikers had been around to his knowledge was when he was still working as an assassin... Scubby kind of liked the idea of working for an group with the reputation of the Death Strikers... It appealed to him... How to contact them though?

Appearing out of hyperspace the pilot of the Hero's Hammer swore as he saw the Alliance fleet in orbit over the ruins of the shipyards and defences... "Great... The first place I go to happens to be a warzone... Perfect" He muttered to himself as his shields came up and he activated his comm unit... Switching to a general frequency he sent out a message... "Uhh hello... This is Jazce Leife of the Hero's Hammer... I seem to have walked into a firefight... Please don't fire on me... I would hate to be forced to shoot back... Leife out," ((OOC: Any Death Strikers in the system still i've been trying to 'join' for a while now and this seemed the best way to get into contact with you lot... If one of you can somehow build on this I'd be stoked... Thanks. ))

Finally deciding on a course Jazce put his ship into hyperspace. ((OOC: Short post to get me out of the space thread.))

Popping out of hyperspace in empty space... Scubby examined his surroundings... Nothing... No one. No bodies. Only him... Completely alone... Good.... He needed time to think. The Ex-Imperial Stormtrooper officer was emotionally and mentally battered... He had no home... Toprawa was no longer home... Carida never was... No friends... The 501st would kill him as soon as they found him... The Rangers would arrest and execute him... No family... His only known relative was part of the Alliance... A commander... Scubby had no contact with him besides a few tabs with some of his old Assassin intelligence network... Nothing... Besides his belongings and a few million credits stored in different accounts... No place in this galaxy... One thing a man needed... Was a purpose... Scubby had none... He had to find one... Now most probably a bounty on his head too... Going to a small locker hidden under the sleeping bunk on his old YT-1300... The Everready Scubby pulled out several IDs... He could use any of them... An ID called to him... It hadn't been used ever... Jazce Leife... A young human from Corellia he was an expert pilot and an Ex-Commando from the Corellian Armed Forces... Jazce would do... Jazce owned a YT-1300 called 'Hero's Hammer'... Scubby got out the necessary tools to change the transponders... He kept a full set of all his personal and ship IDs along with ship transponders on the ship... In case of overflight changes... His appearance new would change later... When he had access to medical facilities.... A few hours later the Hero's Hammer floated in deep space... Jazce leife sat at in th empty cockpit... Contemplating his next move...

Scubby... Tired of the needless brutality of the Empire.... Especially after the brutal execution of the admiral he had followed and the attack on Csilla... Decided it was time to leave... Packing his few belongings away he boarded his ship and left... He would of course need to change his name and transponder on his ship to avoid Imperial retribution...

Once on the ground Scubby didn't take long to debrief his company and send a report to his senior officer. Plenty of slaves had been retrieved... Even more captured Hutt troops... Whatever they were needed for it had been a good haul. Once back in the silence of his room the Imperial Officer considered his next move... Waiting for orders...

A pair of Sentinel-class landing craft appeared from hyperspace. Their destination... The Carida Military Base. On board was Scubby and his Company of the 501st. Ninety out of a hundred left... They'd taken relatively light losses compared to some on Tatooine. Activating the comm Scubby patched through to Carida Command. "Command this is Scubby of the 501st Omicron Company. Returning to base from Tatooine. Requesting permission to land." He sat back in his chair. Awaiting the answer...

whoops

It hadn't taken them long to secure the outside of the Palace... A company of stormtroopers were outside, taking prisoners whilst the rest of them... Headed by the 501st assaulted the palace itself. Getting on his comlink he sent a message to the overhead Star Destroyers... "The exterior is secure. The assault on the interior has just begun." With that he followed his troops in... The main door was down. Blown clear off its mechanism. Imperial Stormtroopers were securing stunned Hutt thugs... The sound of fighting could be heard from deeper in the palace... Quickly he made his way to the largest center of resistance... It was time to get to work. His own weapons in his hands. A blaster shot chewed a hole in the wall next to him... Leaping to the right and rolling he came up and returned fire... His opponent collapsed... Unconscious... A second and a third followed... Then he caught up with three stormtroopers... Three dead stormtroopers and a blond haired man wearing a mask... ((OOC: 3 post modded duel you first. Up for it Angel?))

"Launch" That was it, a single command and then Scubby and his troops were dropping the dropships were making their way down to the surface. As they entered the atmosphere the ships began rocking around., nearly throwing him off balance. Making his way to the cockpit he stood behind the pilot. Watching the rising desert and the other ships... Suddenly a laser blast flashed up from the surface... Narrowly missing a ship to starboard! These Hutts had set up defences! Another laser flashed up... This time shearing the wing off a ship... It corkscrewed out of control. Checking the comm chatter he found it was a squad of the 1080th Legion... Good. Not one of his... A few more ships were taken down before they hit dirt. Then the ramp was down and Scubby and his troops were charging down into enemy fire along with a small army of stormtroopers. It was chaos. Pure and simple. The Hutts hadn't had time to set up properly... But they had made a damn good effort at it. E-web fire rained down on the little gullies where the dropships carrying the 501st were landing. Looking up he planned and gave orders. "We have to take that ridge before they massacre us. 1st unit will charge straight up and give them a target to shoot at. 2nd unit will take up sniper positions down here and attempt to pick off the gunners. 3rd unit will flank to the left. 4th unit will flank to the right. 5th unit, we're going to try and connect as many of the companies down here as possible move out soldiers!" The soldiers were disciplined. They knew what to do. 1st unit, knowing it was suicide charged up without a word. Scubby said a small prayer for them. It would surprise him if more then about three remained after this. But they did their duty. Sacrifices had to be made and that was why the entire galaxy trembled at the name of the 501st. As he watched 3rd and 4th units moved off. To make their way around and up. 2nd unit moved to various patches of cover and pulled out their sniper attachments. A few seconds later they began firing and the 501st under Scubby had their first kill. An rodian manning an E-web, his partner took over for him and promptly died too. It gained life for some of the 1st unit for a few more precious seconds... As he waited other companies and squads began co-ordinating with him... It seemed the Hutts had been far more organized then they fire. But Scubby had erred. He'd miscalculated the quality of his snipers... From the moment they opened fire the E-webs fire was cut down by 25%. Now they couldn't touch a emplacement for more then three seconds without dying. As he watched the 1st, 3rd and 4th units gained the ridge and began exchanging fire with enemies beyond. ordering the remaining troops on the bottom to follow he made his way up to the top... Once their Scubby surveyed the situation. They were looking at a shallow bowl. The enemy had dug in several AA cannons and had hasty fortifications. On the other side of the bowl was the palace. "Turn those E-webs around 1st unit, use them to cover the rest of us while we make our way into the bowl and destroy those AA guns. 2nd unit, sniper time again. 3rd, 4th and 5th with me." With that he moved down into the bowl the fire from above resuming a few moments later... This time in the opposite direction.

Scubby opened his eyes when the alarm went off... He had been meditating on the floor of his quarters. Standing up he quickly donned his 501st armour. It was time. Moving to the staging area for his troops he found them already ready to go, standing in neat lines... Awaiting permission to board the dropships that would take them to the surface. "Board your ships men. Be ready for a hot entry." Doffing his helmet he spoke through his comm unit. Then switching channels as he boarded his own dropship he sent a message to his superiors. "501st Strike Team Alpha Five Ready to go Sir."

Nodding at his new orders Scubby issued some of his own. A short while later his troops were loaded onto several combat dropships. They made their way to their transport. A Star Destroyer. From their they would make the jump.