Nonpareils

((Unknown if Jax is coming back ~<3, moving on to keep the momentum going)) A sniper shot rang out, the high energy quarrel eating through Runtime's chest, the armor providing moderate protection, but not enough to prevent a mortal wound from a blast of that magnitude. The man crumpled to his knees and rolled forward with the momentum he'd been sprinting at, coming to rest in a gangly pile. He was alive, but that wouldn't last, and his body wouldn't provide him the strength to keep moving through all the pain. He managed to see an artillery shell take out Baby blue, almost as if by luck, as it was obviously aiming more for Wubbadub but she'd been unlucky in trailing him. Her mangled corpse was thrown sky high as she died almost immediately, the only thing holding her together was part of her spine and some skin and armor from her back. Two seconds later, merely ten feet from the door, Wubbadub caught a sniper round in the back of his skull. Red company had pushed hard, and the Mandalorians would not soon forget them. If they were lucky, they would have songs sung to their bravery in battle, dying like honorable enemies. But for now, it simply served to showcase what the Sith forces still held up their sleeves. ----------------------------------------------------- Kingsnake gripped his disruptor sidearm tightly, waiting in a small side room. There was one way in, and one way out. And he could wait. Come nightfall, he would have a much easier time sneaking about. And if nightfall came, then here was where he would make his last stand, and the Mandalorians would pay to take him out. ((You guys are free to take out Blackflame however you see fit in the next post. He is hiding in a separate building.))

This had all gone south in more ways than Kingsnake cared to count. Their Sith had been engaged by a seemingly wounded but capable Jedi, their team had splintered and were likely on a suicide run, and there was no retreat, the path had been cut off, the wound in the front lines resealed. Whether it was luck or skill, Kingsnake didn't care, but he wouldn't likely live to be able warn anyone else. As he snapped off a few more rounds, he saw Highwind crumple, taking a high energy shot to the head, followed by the bright flash of another grenade, a thermal detonator this time, which would likely have blown up the comms jammer Highwind carried. Which also meant reinforcements were about to swarm them. He spoke to his exo-skeleton clad squadmate, tearing off his comlink. "Blackflame. Get into a building. This mission is a failure. Make them suffer if they're going to take you. If you can, steal a uniform off your dead and get out. Rally point Tau." The Commander and the exo-skeleton wearing soldier split up, going into different buildings, hunkering down like their commando training taught. Stay away from windows, and kill when opportune. If able, get the hell out of dodge. ---------------------------------- Meanwhile, the three who were nearing the power station found minimal resistance on the way there, most of the Mandalorian resistance they had were behind them giving chase rather than in front of them. The generator building was large enough to track over the roofs of the other buildings they wove through, but as they neared, a large field filled with power transformers meant they would need to reach it in a dead sprint. Again, Wubbadub fired off a few rockets, enjoying the mayhem while it lasted, turning powerlines and cabling into twisted scrap. ----------------------------------- Zalus struggled against the Jedi, the rage building in his blood as this...this cripple was managing to halt his advance. No Jedi were supposed to be here, much less a Jedi that could match him blade for blade, especially with his style. As expected, however, one of the Mandalorians had tried to take a potshot at him from his backside as he fought with the silver haired old man, and while Zalus had deflected the first shot, it was followed by a flechette round that a lightsaber could not reflect. It tore through the armor he wore, the pieces lodging in many critical organs. Zalus crumpled to the road, a guttural death gurgle escaping the crimson-stained lips underneath the helmet.

Zalus halted abruptly before he ran into the Force barrier that snapped up in front of him, the Force tipping him off to the invisible wall of hardened air that now separated him from his quarry. Desperate, the Mando snapped off several stun shots followed by a barrage of blaster bolts from her advancing friend, which splayed harmlessly on the barrier. Several other carbine shots barked out from behind him as well from the Red Company soldiers, again impacting and crumpling on the barrier. The Sith paid her little mind, though, she was no longer his largest concern. Rather, he snarled up at the Jedi in restrained rage. He was a much larger threat. The Mandalorians weren't supposed to have Jedi support from what Zalus knew, and this changed the game quite considerably. No matter, the Jedi was a challenge that Zalus would overcome. The Dark Side was a foe that could not be matched. He reached out with malice, commanding the Force to telekinetically erupt in a violent blast at the small of the Jedi's back, aiming to fling him off the rooftop directly into Zalus's waiting blades. He began swinging his nunchukau sabers impossibly fast, spinning and whipping them about, moving to intercept the Jedi like an unholy blender of red glowing death. Meanwhile, Kingsnake had realized their bullets were doing nothing shooting at the retreating Mando, and called to refocus fire on the groups that now moved to flank them. Drunk Uncle drew a bead and began laying suppressive fire at the roof of a building a Mando had taken cover on ((Tresha)). However, just as that happened there was a familiar tink of a thrown metallic object, to which both Drunk Uncle and Highwind instinctively dove away from the blast, but only Highwind managed to survive. She gripped her carbine, rolling and rising to bring it to bear on the most likely source it had come from, but blaster fire caught her in her chest armor, blowing her backwards. While the blaster bolts didn't kill her thanks to her armor, the kinetic force slammed her into a wall, dizzying her a bit. At the same time, Kingsnake and Blackflame retreated a bit down their road, Blackflame occasionally opening suppression fire on advancing Mandalorians while Kingsnake managed to catch one or two in their extremities, slowing them down. The group that had split had their own concerns, though, and as the first shots zipped by them, they split up again, each quickly taking a different route to the looming generator facility via the streets and through alleyways, now just a little over a stadium's length away. Wubbadub even fired two rockets as he advanced at the far edge of the building where it looked like power lines may have been coming out, a little early demolition in case the main show somehow got stopped, but only one managed to impact due to the range at which he was firing.

Kingsnake dove as the first of the blaster fire peppered the squad, shoulder rolling behind cover. Most of the rest of the squad did the same, stopping quickly until it was safe to exit cover. He peeked around the corner briefly, noting only the one Mandalorian firing, but far movement looked like backup was on the way. Across their unjammed encrypted frequencies, Highwind's voice snapped in urgency. "Comm jammer operational!" "Incoming Mandos...looks like they're onto us sir." Kingsnake swore as Baby blue's voice followed, she'd already taken up a position on a nearby high building. It was too late. They'd been spotted. Very well, time for plan B. He thumbed his wrist, activating his comm unit. "Change of plans, ladies and gentlemen. We've already been spotted. Time to split up. Baby blue, take Runtime and Wubbadub, proceed to target. Stay separated and move fast. The rest of us are the decoy. Darth Zalus...have fun. This is where we hold, drawing away from the other three when able. Highwind, Drunk uncle, move to the other street, set up a crossfire zone. Blackflame, on me, we'll be covering Darth Zalus while he makes corpses." Kingsnake could almost hear the Sith grin as the man charged forward towards the Mandalorian's position ((Mellanie)), the lightsaber nunchuckau whipping around him, deflecting blaster bolts as he closed. The rest of his squad started moving immediately as their instructions were made clear, especially Baby blue, whose adaptive camouflage would aid her greatly as she made her way across rooftops towards the objective. Red company's commander took up a kneeling stance using the corner of the building for cover, lining up a bead on the nearest Mandalorian who was rushing to reinforce their lone assailant. A single round sent the man down to the street. It was a painful gut shot, and would render the man incapacitated, slowly dying if aid was not rendered. The perfect bait. Across the street, Blackflame's rotary gatling blaster warmed up, readying for the battle ahead of them.

A large explosion heralded the arrival of a new threat on the battlefield. On the extreme north of Keldabe, a group of commandos escorted by a Sith Lord made their presence known, already having slaughtered most of the defenders at the position. The commander, code name Kingsnake, snapped on his comm after shooting another two Mandalorians through their chests, the armor piercing rounds puncturing their lungs and rendering them noncombatants. His team finished them off as his gruff voice snapped across their encrypted comm channel. "Highwind, activate the jammer. Wubbadub, Blackflame, Drunk Uncle, perimeter guard. Watch for Mando heavy armor. Baby blue, take position on a rooftop, cover our flanks while we advance. Runtime, you're with me doing sweeps. Zalus...You do what you do best. Recommend sticking with myself and Runtime." The Sith sneered back at him over the comlink as the other commando members scrambled to orders. "The name is Darth Zalus...and I will go where I will cause the most damage to our enemy." Kingsnake ignored him, knowing full well that was their mission already: to knock out the city's main power grid. The generator buildings were still a half a click west of the squad's current position according to intel, and unfortunately would likely resist any artillery the Sith had brought with them. Which, of course, meant a commando strike team would need to surgically demolition the place. It wasn't an easy mission, but Red Company wasn't known for taking easy missions. "Alright people, move out, stay frosty. This city is crawling with Mandos. Don't engage unless engaged or it is mission critical. Our objective is the generators, not body count." Kingsnake pulled up a minimap readout on his HUD, and scanned for hostiles, moving hastily with the rest of his team.

RED COMPANY CHARACTER SHEETS Members Identity Real Name: Captain Grant Cutter Callsign: Kingsnake Homeworld: Unknown Species: Human Physical Description Age: 39 Height: 5'8" Weight: 200 lbs (with gear) Hair: Black Eyes: Brown Sex: Male Equipment Clothing or Armor: Combat armor to include a helmet. The armor is designed to be resistant to blasters, edged weapons, sonics/flashbangs, extreme heat fluctuations, and gas/liquids/acids. The helmet is equipped with an advanced HUD that can mark targets and aim assist with haptic feedback, as well as a comm system linking the commando unit together. Weapon: Kingsnake has selected a heavy slugthrower carbine with armor piercing rounds for this op, with a disruptor pistol as a last resort sidearm. History: Grant Cutter knew only war and conflict. It was the one constant in the galaxy, the unchanging fact of life that he clung to early in his youth and held close to his heart as he aged and became more and more experienced with his craft. He had served under many different banners over the years, but the only thing that tended to change was his age. Now he found himself commanding Red Company, an elite unit of commandos, enlisted to eliminate the Mandalorians. It would be a tough task, but it wasn’t anything new. Kingsnake would treat this war like any other, and he would bring Hell with him. -------------------------------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Chris Danvers Callsign: Foxfire Homeworld: Corellia Species: Human Physical Description Age: 27 Height: 5’9” Weight: 195 lbs (with gear) Hair: Dark Brown Eyes: Brown Sex: Male Equipment Clothing or Armor: Combat armor to include a helmet. The armor is designed to be resistant to blasters, edged weapons, sonics/flashbangs, extreme heat fluctuations, and gas/liquids/acids. The helmet is equipped with an advanced HUD that can mark targets and aim assist with haptic feedback, as well as a comm system linking the commando unit together. Weapon: Foxfire’s standard loadout includes a heavy slugthrower carbine with armor piercing rounds, and a few grenades, mostly concussion but a few thermal detonators. Lastly, he carries the breaching explosives. History: Chris is one of the youngest members of Red Company, having been plucked from Corellia’s Planetary Defense Force’s special forces. He has a natural knack for all things that go ‘BOOM’, and as such it makes him a perfect fit for the company’s sapper role. Besides that, however, he is generally trained as a superb marksman and rifleman. -------------------------------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Timothy Meeras Callsign: Black Betty Homeworld: Coruscant Species: Zabrak Physical Description Age: 32 Height: 6’ Weight: 215 lbs (with gear) Hair: Bald, horns sharpened. Eyes: Blue Sex: Male Equipment Clothing or Armor: Combat armor to include a helmet. The armor is designed to be resistant to blasters, edged weapons, sonics/flashbangs, extreme heat fluctuations, and gas/liquids/acids. The helmet is equipped with an advanced HUD that can mark targets and aim assist with haptic feedback, as well as a comm system linking the commando unit together. Weapon: Black Betty has selected a Xerrol Nightstinger sniper rifle for this mission, but has a disruptor rifle as a backup weapon. History: Timothy was adopted at a young age, having been orphaned in a conflict on the outer rim. He grew up to be an excellent marksman originally in the Imperial ranks, but now life has found him in Red Company. Still, wherever he is or whatever he is doing, all he needs is a rifle and a target, and he’ll be right at home. -------------------------------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Tohl Arsen Callsign: Wubbadub Homeworld: Duros Species: Duro Physical Description Age: 43 Height: 6’2” Weight: 210 lbs (with gear) Hair: None Eyes: Black Sex: Male Equipment Clothing or Armor: Combat armor to include a helmet. The armor is designed to be resistant to blasters, edged weapons, sonics/flashbangs, extreme heat fluctuations, and gas/liquids/acids. The helmet is equipped with an advanced HUD that can mark targets and aim assist with haptic feedback, as well as a comm system linking the commando unit together. Weapon: Wubbadub’s weapon of choice is a shoulder slung rocket launcher, modified to be able to fire a variety of rounds, to include high explosive, anti-vehicle, and flechette antipersonnel. He carries a disruptor pistol as a backup weapon. History: Let’s be honest, you’re not really reading these, are you? Tohl’s life wasn’t all that interesting anyways, he came from a military family and as such followed the military life. Now he was on Mandalore under Red Company as a mortarman. Also, Tohl was kind of a jerk, the kind who liked watching the red mist, if you catch my drift. -------------------------------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Amanda Hornsworth Callsign: Highwind Homeworld: Naboo Species: Half Human, Half Miraluka Physical Description Age: 36 Height: 5’6” Weight: 190 lbs (with gear) Hair: Ginger Eyes: Green Sex: Female Equipment Clothing or Armor: Combat armor to include a helmet. The armor is designed to be resistant to blasters, edged weapons, sonics/flashbangs, extreme heat fluctuations, and gas/liquids/acids. The helmet is equipped with an advanced HUD that can mark targets and aim assist with haptic feedback, as well as a comm system linking the commando unit together. Weapon: Highwind has been issued a standard heavy slugthrower carbine with armor piercing rounds. She also has a mobile comm jammer to disrupt the enemy’s electronic capabilities, which has been calibrated to not interfere with the unit’s own tech. History: Amanda was a bad girl growing up, hanging with rough and tumble gangs until her parents finally threw her into a military school to try and beat her aggressive tendencies out of her. What resulted was one of the toughest soldiers Naboo had ever seen, opening up a future to legalized bloodshed and violence. Though calm on the outside, her military training helping to focus her blood lust, she is an absolute beast on the battlefield. -------------------------------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Caed Rialtar Callsign: Blackflame Homeworld: Carida (?) Species: Human Cyborg Physical Description Age: 37 Height: 6’2” Weight: 1,235 (with gear) Hair: Bald Eyes: None (Mechanical Implants) Sex: Male Anatomy Equipment Clothing or Armor: Heavily armored Combat armor to include a helmet. The armor is designed to be resistant to blasters, edged weapons, sonics/flashbangs, extreme heat fluctuations, and gas/liquids/acids. The helmet is equipped with an advanced HUD that can mark targets and aim assist with haptic feedback, as well as a comm system linking the commando unit together. Blackflame’s armor in particular is a powered exoskeleton variant, making him much heavier but a walking nightmare to encounter on the battlefield. Weapon: Blackflame prefers his rotary blaster cannon mounted on the left shoulder of his suit’s exoskeleton, but also carries the standard heavy slugthrower carbine issued to most of the rest of the company. His cybernetic implants make it difficult for him to miss a shot, as he is actively tracking trajectories and potential physics when running in combat mode, and he has reactions that more align with an assassin droid than any biological life form. History: Caed Rialtar was grown on [REDACTED], bred as a prototype [REDACTED] for the [REDACTED] program. The [REDACTED] program was a failure, but Caed has found his way through the ranks of the Empire and private militaries until finally winding up with Red Company, deployed to Mandalore to assault Keldabe. For his enemies, it would be their worst experience. For Caed, it would be Tuesday. -------------------------------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Michael Reeds Callsign: Runtime Homeworld: Coruscant Species: Human Physical Description Age: 42 Height: 5’7” Weight: 195 (with gear) Hair: Blond Eyes: Blue Sex: Male Equipment Clothing or Armor: Combat armor to include a helmet. The armor is designed to be resistant to blasters, edged weapons, sonics/flashbangs, extreme heat fluctuations, and gas/liquids/acids. The helmet is equipped with an advanced HUD that can mark targets and aim assist with haptic feedback, as well as a comm system linking the commando unit together. Weapon: Runtime has a modified heavy slugthrower carbine with an underslung grenade launcher. The carbine rounds are standard armor piercing rounds, but the grenades are tipped with miniature thermal detonator warheads, meant to punch holes in buildings and act as an anti-vehicle weapon. He also has a heavy blaster pistol as a backup weapon. History: Michael Reeds was a rising star in CoreSec’s SWAT units, and was selected for military operations with the GA, but got a rather lucrative contract from Red Company to put his wetwork skills to the test. He has a wife and child, but hasn’t seen either in some time outside of holonet communications, and as such has a strained relationship with them. -------------------------------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Jet Nessange Callsign: Drunk Uncle Homeworld: Hapes Species: Near Human Mutant Physical Description Age: 35 Height: 5’10” Weight: 210 lbs (with gear) Hair: Dark Brown Eyes: Black Sex: Male Equipment Clothing or Armor: Combat armor to include a helmet. The armor is designed to be resistant to blasters, edged weapons, sonics/flashbangs, extreme heat fluctuations, and gas/liquids/acids. The helmet is equipped with an advanced HUD that can mark targets and aim assist with haptic feedback, as well as a comm system linking the commando unit together. Weapon: Drunk Uncle is a rifleman first and foremost, and while he uses the standard heavy slugthrower carbine with armor piercing rounds that the company tended to use, his was calibrated to his exacting specifications to better facilitate mid and close range combat. History: Jet is a near human with incredible eyesight. It has helped him become an expert operator in various militaries, as not only can he see in the dark, but he can also see some ultraviolet light and can pick out detail from incredible distances. As such, he has a reputation for being able to ‘snipe’ a body part that is barely sticking out from cover. His callsign is more or less an old inside joke between him and Red Company’s commander, as he’s been with the unit the longest besides the commander. -------------------------------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Rev Langstrom Callsign: Baby Blue Homeworld: Corellia Species: Sephi Physical Description Age: 45 Height: 5’6” Weight: 190 (with gear) Hair: Black Eyes: Purple Sex: Female Equipment Clothing or Armor: Combat armor to include a helmet. The armor is designed to be resistant to blasters, edged weapons, sonics/flashbangs, extreme heat fluctuations, and gas/liquids/acids. The helmet is equipped with an advanced HUD that can mark targets and aim assist with haptic feedback, as well as a comm system linking the commando unit together. Baby Blue’s armor has been equipped with an active camouflage unit, with several microcameras on her suit picking up terrain imagery of her immediate surroundings, and shifting the chroma inks in her armor so as to better match and help her blend in. Weapon: Baby Blue has been issued a standard heavy slugthrower carbine with armor piercing rounds, but modified with a longer barrel for longer range engagements, and the rounds propellant has been tweaked in such a fashion as to eliminate muzzle flash. She has a disruptor pistol for backup. History: Rev’s history isn’t colorful or interesting, she’s just a girl who more or less enjoys putting rounds to targets. She has worked with militaries before, and has the discipline for it, but prefers to privately contract her skills. Now she is contracted to Red Company as a battlefield sniper, and she intends to come back with some good war stories. -------------------------------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Khris Phell A.K.A: Darth Zalus Homeworld: Born in Space Species: Human Cyborg Physical Description Age: 28 Height: 6’2” Weight: 195 Hair: Black Eyes: Brown Sex: Male Equipment Clothing or Armor: Zalus was issued a combat suit from Red Company to aid in his survivability. The armor is designed to be resistant to blasters, edged weapons, sonics/flashbangs, extreme heat fluctuations, and gas/liquids/acids. The helmet is equipped with an advanced HUD that can mark targets and aim assist with haptic feedback, as well as a comm system linking the commando unit together. However, Zalus has disabled the haptic feedback option on his suit so it won’t interfere with his lightsaber skills. Weapon: Lightsaber nunchukau, with activation studs that can be activated remotely via a comlink signal from his cyborg implants. The hilts are made from Phrik, as is the chain that links them. This allows for a rather unique fighting style, allowing him to use this weapon as a physical weapon or as a lightsaber at will, activating and deactivating the blade with blinding speed in order to slip in defenses or prevent it from cutting himself while manipulating the blade. The comm frequencies have been tuned so as to work with the frequencies Red Company operates off of, rendering it immune to friendly jamming, though there are physical studs he can use for backups. History: The History of Zalus is a long and dark one, rising from the ashes of being offered to the Sith as a child slave so that they wouldn’t kill his parents. His parents died anyways. The only reason he was spared is because the Sith Lord present felt the latent skill within him, and designed to train him. As he grew, the Sith ‘modified’ him by replacing some of his organs, and even parts of his brain with cybernetic body parts, trying to make him ‘better’. Many years later, Khris took his revenge on his once master, ascended to the rank of Sith Lord, and took the name of Darth Zalus. Under the banner of Ab’ki, he now finds himself on Mandalore, tasked with escorting Red Company in their assault on Keldabe.

The first to die was Frik. His death was merciful, quick, but still unbelievably painful as his molecules were ripped apart subatomically by the disruptor's blast, practically burning him from the inside out at the point of impact. He let out a brief roar of pain before silence befell him, and the remains of his charred corpse, mostly his legs and one of his arms at this point, tumbled back down into the ditch they had used for cover. In time, plants would bloom and cover the remains, using the organic parts for nutrients and erasing the traces of metal under fresh soil. Many years later, a mighty tree would grow in this spot, but those years were yet to pass. Were it not for Frik's cry, Jirai would not have been distracted, the cryo grenade hitting her chest with a brief tink before detonating, encasing her and Nollo in a thin layer of ice, momentarily immobilizing them. Enraged, Jirai looked up, struggling to free herself, but her rage was met with a shot that met her between her eyes, killing her instantly, her light snuffed out before she could ever realize her true potential. Nollo thought he saw his wife and child as the ice froze him, stinging his skin, and he didn't even struggle because of the pain of frostbite. They stared at him, not a few meters away, just barely behind the remains of a small building, almost hidden by the hushed shadows cast from the still ignited luma dart. Their large black eyes were filled with curiosity and confusion more than sadness, as Nollo had dug his own grave, but his lies were the true wound upon his family. His head snapped back as the shot entered the large cavity that was once his right eye, blowing the contents of his skull out behind him in a charred salmon spray. Kred fought, and fought well, his experience allowing him to generally hold his own with the Mandalorian he had chosen to fight, but she had more tricks up her sleeve than he did, and the last vision to grace his gaze was the mud he was weakly deposited in, many major nerves and arteries severed by her hidden blade that had torn through his throat. He tried weakly to fight it, to stop the flow of blood loss out of the gash in his neck, but couldn't. At least he finally knew what it felt like. He died with a grin on his lips. And no matter how many rounds Bob fired, none of them hit their marks. Nothing like this had ever happened to the Nautolan marksman, where every single shot had missed its target. He was experienced with moving targets, and the chaos of a battlefield didn't phase him. At the least, he should have been able to wound one of them...at the least he wanted to avenge the deaths of his friends, the only family he had ever known. The sonic blast hit him in the upper chest and head as he still focused on the Mandalorian in the dark armor, snapping his spine and turning his brain to hamburger in the ensuing concussion. He was dead before his head-tendrils even touched the soil. But before his death, he was certain he had been graced by the presence of gods...he was merely on the wrong side of the gun. A pity. That day on Mandalore, in the first night of the battle for Keldabe, the Death's Gate Pirates found themselves before death's gate. Whatever awaited them, it was no longer among the worlds of the living. No one would mourn their deaths, no one would contemplate their loss. The battle would continue, and their blood would nourish the soil. And the battle raged on.

It was the Acolytes that felt the approach first, both developing jarring headaches that interfered with their concentration. However, they weren't unfamiliar to combat, and when the first rounds of sonic shots went off they dove behind cover, lucky to have done so. Like this, they were unable to even focus on deflecting blaster bolts, and it was more out of instinct. Clearly, something was affecting them, but neither Ghren or Fuld knew what it could be. Fire swept down into their trench then, burning Ghren badly and scorching Fuld's leg. Frik took the opening to open fire on the offending Mando in the darkened armor, lighting up his position and barely missing him as he dove down, but Jirai clenched his shoulder soon after, and Frik knew what she bid him to do. The Pirate captain had seen the ricochet, noting the distinct lack of an explosion from one of Nollo's shots, and had been paying more attention trying to track its trajectory than laying down suppressing fire. Frik activated his shield at the last second, the blast shielded from the main crew, but tore towards Ghren and Fuld with a wave of shrapnel that outright killed the former and mortally wounded the latter. Gritting her teeth, Jirai began suppressing fire on the Mandalorian positions with her carbine along with Bob and his blaster pistols, taking careful aim for the Mandalorian with the dark armor. He was the dangerous one, and if they could take him out or remove him from the equation, they were a lot likelier to survive the night. With the two Sith acolytes now unable to assist them, they were at a severe disadvantage. Nollo fired another grenade round, aiming this time for the cover the closer Mandalorian had chosen, hoping to destroy it and him in the blast. Meanwhile, Frik had changed out his spent energy cells, and was beginning to wind up his gatling blaster arm. The crew spread out, Kred taking to the shadows and flanking far to the side, fast and nimble, a nearby prefab emplacement wall soon cutting off line of sight between him and the Mandalorians. It was time they pressed up. Bob stayed back, hoping to catch a target with a poisoned round, while most of the others pushed towards the attackers. At the last second, Kred pounced at the shorter red-armored Mandalorian, vibroblades swinging wildly but expertly aimed at the niches in her armor, his twisting melee attack intending to continue on to her nearby companion ((TeVerd)) if she was unable to halt his progress. In any case, a cryo grenade was left at her feet as the whirling Dug stood as the main distraction, its red light flashing softly but faster and faster...

Frik advanced slowly, his shield taking the brunt of any blaster fire aimed at the Death's Gate. Behind the group leered the two Pau'ans, every now and then raising their hand to reach out with some kind of Sith wizardry and deflect a missile aimed at them. Every now and then Bob would tap him on the shoulder, and Frik would wait, watching the Nautolan ready himself, then quickly dropped the shield and bringing it back up, Bob firing in the split second the shield was down, usually taking a Mandalorian out of the fight with every round. Mandalorian Iron was tough, but even the strong armor wasn't immune to the right armor piercing rounds. And even if Bob somehow missed a killshot, the fragments of the core were still laced with a nerve toxin that would slowly render them unable to control their muscles and was eventually fatal over a number of hours. "Move left, Frik. There's an opening we can take advantage of." Jirai's cold voice cut through the cacophony of the battlefield as if there could have been no fighting at all. Frik nodded to the captain, the heavily armored Togorian slowly moving forward and to the left, still offering cover to the six others trailing behind him. A warning klaxon sounded on his shield emitter as the fire intensified, and the Togorian readied a power cell, and checked to see if his companions were ready for the hot swap. They were, and in a smooth motion Frik ejected the spent cell, dropping the shield, and jammed another one in as two of Nollo's grenades shot out, as well as a hail of covering fire from Captain Jirai and Bob. He shouted as the shield began to power up, and the two stopped just as the bubble popped up around them again. Again they advanced. Taking cover behind a natural ditch near the city's perimeter, the group fanned out before charging an emplacement, Frik raining fury down with his gatling blaster while Nollo peppered the area with explosions. What few blaster shots were returned were easily deflected by Ghren and Fuld's crimson blades. Kred unsheathed his blades, a sinister grin on his elongated face as he prepared to slice and dice at the weak points in their enemies' Armor. In moments, they were upon the Mandalorians.

DEATH’S GATE PIRATES CHARACTER SHEETS Members Identity Real Name: Jirai Rheno A.K.A: “Captain” Homeworld: Hapes Species: Zabrak Physical Description Age: 42 Height: 5’ 11” Weight: 280 lb (to include gear and armor) Hair: Black ponytail, often worn in a bun. Facial tattoos mark her from an exiled great family. Eyes: Red Sex: Female with Red skin Equipment Clothing or Armor: Medium combat armor designed to offer the best protection while prioritizing maneuverability and minimizing extra weight. Several plates designed to be blaster reflective and vibroblade resistant, to include chestplate, forearm and upper arm guards, and thigh guards. Plates do not cover the entirety of the body part. Armor painted matte black with red symbols representing the house of Rheno. Wears minimalist headset with ocular device that assists in aiming weapons. Weapon: High caliber slugthrower carbine rifle equipped with explosive ammunition. Meant for pinpoint targeting and maximum damage. Backup disruptor pistol holstered on right thigh, left thigh has straps holding several backup power packs. History: Jirai grew up in a hard time in her family’s history. House Rheno was at one point a Great House located in the Hapes cluster, with large influence in the Hapan government. However, shortly after Jirai was born, several scandals (some engineered by enemies of the House within the Hapan government) caused the family to be shamefully exiled from Hapes, violently so. Jirai spent most of her late childhood and early adult years on the run from bounty hunters and in hiding, until finally she joined a pirate crew. Eventually, she came to lead the crew, having killed the previous captain in a mutiny over the captain withholding fair shares of loot to the rest of the crew. She now leads the Death’s Gate Pirates into battle against Mandalorians, and if they live to tell the tale, all of the Death’s Gate could easily go into early retirement from what the cult would pay them. Never ones to turn down fortune and glory, and some of the meanest pirates in the eastern outer rim, the Death’s Gate represents a formidable opponent for any group, Mandalorian or no. ----------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Frik’inni’thurrr A.K.A: “Frik” (pronounced ‘freak’) Homeworld: Togoria Species: Togorian Physical Description Age: 39 Height: 11’4” Weight: 560lbs (to include gear and armor) Hair: Dark grey with streaks of brown Eyes: Green Sex: Male Equipment Clothing or Armor: Frik wears heavy armor, made with molecularly bonded plating custom made from a starship hull. He has a personal shield generator mounted on the left forearm of the armor, capable of generating a 10ft radius spherical shield that can’t be fired through from the inside. He primarily uses it to help his mates advance under heavy fire. It is mounted in such a way that overloading power cells won’t affect his arm, and can be ejected with a quick release so as to rapidly replace them. These large power cells are configured to also work with his gatling blaster arm, and he wears two bandoliers of backup ammunition. Weapon: Frik’s right arm is amputated and has been replaced with a bionic arm ending in a forearm gatling blaster cannon based off the Z-6 design except the power cell input has been customized to accept the ones used to power his shield. History: Growing up, Frik fell in with the wrong crowds on his homeworld, stealing from many families in his camp. Eventually, he stole from the wrong spacer, who caught and kidnapped him, subsequently selling him into slavery. He was purchased by a pirate group for his muscle, eventually getting into a fight that resulted in the loss of his right arm. Still, Frik held his own in the fight even after that, cauterizing the stump with a hot blaster barrel and buying the pirates enough time to escape the fight otherwise unscathed. Feeling he had earned his freedom, Frik was released from slavery and given a specialized bionic arm. Instead of leaving, though, the Pirates were the closest family he’d ever known, and chose to stay on as a full-time crewman, eventually making First Mate when Jirai took over. ----------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Kred Nulan A.K.A: Homeworld: Malastare Species: Dug Physical Description Age: 23 Height: 3’3” Weight: 130lbs Hair: N/A Eyes: Brown Sex: Male Equipment Clothing or Armor: Leather armor, non reinforced, mostly meant for maximum movement. Weapon: Short vibroswords (2ft each), grenades (cryo grenades, concussion grenades, custom glop grenades - fast hardening glue) History: Kred is a vicious Dug, having come from a mostly boring youth in the middle class of his species on mandalore. He got started young in arena fighting, and prefers vibroweapons, being extremely agile and acrobatic in his fighting style. Eventually he got involved in the underground circuit, fighting to the death. He is known to use grenades, but nonlethal ones, slowing and immobilizing his enemy so he can get close and cut into their flesh, relishing in causing pain and death. Now wanted on Malastare, he joined a pirate crew to escape the authorities, and has been running with them for almost a year now. ----------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Nollo Forn A.K.A: Homeworld: Sullust Species: Sullustian Physical Description Age: 36 Height: 4’9” Weight: 215lbs (to include gear and weapons) Hair: N/A Eyes: Black Sex: Male Equipment Clothing or Armor: Pilot’s clothing Weapon: Micro-grenade launcher, thermal detonators, plasma grenades, concussion grenades, plastic explosives. History: Nollo comes from a good family, having a wife and two kids. Because Sullustians traditionally make excellent pilots, it made sense for Nollo to pursue that lifestyle, and is often away from his family for long stretches at a time. He was quickly hired on by a pirate crew who was in need of a good pilot. Nollo also had a natural skill for mechanics and electronics, and became particularly fascinated with explosives. His skills naturally made him suitable as the group’s grenadier. He keeps his pirate life hidden from his family when he comes home every few months, telling them he is a cargo pilot for a large business. But soon, after they finish the Mandalorians off, he’ll be able to give them the life they deserve. ----------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Unknown A.K.A: “Bob” Homeworld: Glee Anslem Species: Nautolan Physical Description Age: Unknown Height: 6’5” Weight: 255lbs Hair: N/A Eyes: Black Sex: Male, grey skinned Equipment Clothing or Armor: Bob wears sleeveless medium combat armor that is designed to help protect from blaster fire but not impede his quickdraw. Weapon: Twin custom blaster pistols designed for sharpshooting and close to medium range fighting. A sniper carbine using poisoned armor piercing rounds. The poison is lethal, but slow acting, affecting the nervous system slowly. It can be counteracted, but it takes a bit to synthesize the antidote. Mostly, Bob uses it in case he wings a shot, crippling his target so his mates can finish it off. History: Little is known about “Bob”, except that he was a close friend to the first captain of the crew. At some point before the rest of the current crew got to know him, Bob’s tongue was cut out, and he is mute. He didn’t help the original captain when the mutiny happened, suggesting that Bob didn’t care all that much for him, even less so when it was revealed the captain was keeping more than his fair share. Jirai kept him on, enjoying the one member of the crew that didn’t always talk. ----------------------------------------- Identity Real Name: Ghren and Fuld Morr A.K.A: “The Twins” Homeworld: Utupau Species: Pau’an Physical Description (Each) Age: 67 Height: 7’2” Weight: 270lbs Hair: N/A Eyes: Black Sex: Male Equipment Clothing or Armor: Each of the twins wears a helmet that protects their ears from sudden loud noises while allowing them to maintain their heightened sense of hearing, as well as enhancing their vision with an enhanced visor that not only provides a tactical readout, but night vision and protection from flashbangs. Their Weapon: Ghren uses twin red lightsabers in combat, while Fuld uses a red staff saber. Both are moderately talented with the Force, capable of telekinesis and versed in lightsaber combat. History: Ghren and Fuld, still youths among their kind, have fallen in with a powerful darksider cult after it was discovered that they were Force Sensitive. They have both trained together in the Dark Side, and now follow Ab’ki so as to help drown the galaxy in darkness, starting with Mandalore. Assigned to the Death’s Gate Pirates, they are to escort and help them initially assault the Mandalorians, hopefully providing for an important foothold at the edge of the city.