Jelly Was quite confused as to why this raw recruit was talking to him decided he'd chat for a bit. "well Lucky sorry but I got to go make sure the rest of my squad mates don't get into trouble." Jelly said getting up from the table and walking away from her.

Jelly Sat down with Jag and Riqimo and ordered a simple water. "You know that Dug has continued to watch me its really creepy." Jag said glancing at the dug and shivered.

"So anything from Garet yet?" Jelly asked

"No he's still dealing with shipping checks." Riqimo said sipping at his drink while eyeing Brightstar.

"Well dang ok" Jelly said a bit nervous "I want to get to some action."




 
-----------------------
EclipseSquad

TRP/PFC Jelly Bean/2SQD/2PLT/1COMP/1BAT/1RGT/VEA/VE/Tadath[EW1C]

"Only problem with my Job is I dont get the pleasure of seeing the shock on your face when My Bullet passes through the back of your Skull"

"All Judgments are final we're not like the regular Court System we don't have a appeals. You can a peel your butt off the sidewalk though."

Eclipse Motto:
"Get rid of your pride, because we all die eventually."

Nkllon, Nomad City Cantina

Riqimo was starting to get uneasy, it couldn't possibly take Garet and Kairo this long to find their contact could it?  As the possibilities raced through his mind, most best left unmentioned, Riqimo started to pace the bar, causing some attention to be drawn to him.

Several minutes of pacing passed when Garet and Kairo slipped in through the doors and motioned to Riqimo.  The ASL noticed a slight worried look on their faces, and quickly decided something was wrong...

"Did you meet him?" Riqimo whispered as he slid into a booth with them.

"Technically no," Garet replied, "Alan met up with her and actually managed to find out there is a base where they are being held. Unfortunately, they had to separate. She just gave him a cryptic message at the exact spot we were supposed too," Riqimo had the note slid across the table to him and he tried to decipher it, but it was all scrambled letters and numbers.

"A code?"

Kairo nodded, "Yes, and we have no idea what it means."

Riq studied the code a bit, wondering if this was even relevant to their contact. RK apparently saw the three huddled over a piece of paper and came over, "What's the matter?"

Garet carefully explained, trying to choose his words so that the mission wouldn't seem compromised.  All the while Riq was playing around with rearranging the characters, substituting them... until...

"Kai, its a ship signature code, it has the exact number of characters as one."

"A scavenger hunt," Garet muttered under his breath, "Who does this contact think he is?  We don't have time for this."

"Maybe there is a reason," Kairo suggested, "Nonetheless, we must find the ship and see if she is there, it might be the ship we use to get you boys to the base.  Riqimo, you go get the squad, we're headed for the docks."

---------Later, Nomad City Docks---------

Riqimo was at the dock's administration office in a Dock Manager's uniform that he took off an unsuspecting man walking among some crates.  He turned to the secretary on duty and handed her the paper, "Excuse me, this signature is being broadcasted like a crazed bantha, I think they need to know that they have some malfunction.  Can you tell me which platform it is?"

"Of course," she replied without looking up at him.  After a few keystrokes, she replied, "Platform C12."

Riqimo thanked her and headed out to the squads, who were waiting by some crates marked "Fragile"

"Platform C12, over there," Riqimo pointed.  To maintain cover, Riqimo acted as a Dock Manager directing the workers (the squads) to carry the crates to a ship.

"Gar, pick up those feet, the ship ain't gonna wait forever," Riqimo shouted, and heard Garet mutter something.

Outside the ship, a beaten up light freighter, the squads placed their crates carefully down and Garet resumed the lead, with Kairo close behind.

"Hello?" Kai called out into the ship as the squads entered the cargo hold.

A voice responded from the cockpit, "Who is it?  I already paid the docking fee twice!"

Kairo glanced at Garet, who shrugged and headed to the cockpit, blaster ready.

A quite attractive looking woman came out, "Oh, you must be from the agency. Sorry about the meeting, but the government here is looking for me and I have to hide. They already got my partner so meeting there might have been compromising."

Garet starred at her coldly, "I hate scavenger hunts, just give us the intel, and Kai here might help you out."

The woman placed her weapon back in her hip holster, "Okay, but I'll warn you, it ain't gonna make ya happy."

"I am not gonna be happy if I don't have it soon."

"Fine," she responded, handing a datapad to Kairo, ignoring Garet on purpose.

-----------------------
Riqimo "Doc" Pershaw
EclipseSquad
ASL/CPL Riqimo/2SQD/2PLT/1COM/1RGT/1BAT/Tadath/VEA
Imperial Baronet

  Turning on the datapad, Kairo examined its information for a bit. "Great. Just what we needed." Sitting down in a chair, he tossed it to Garet and began to think. Once Garet was finished with it he let out a sigh. The woman just stared at them both. After a few minutes pause, Garet glanced over at Kairo and started to open his mouth. "Here's what we're going to do," Kairo stated first, standing up. "You," he pointed at the woman, "Are going to stay right here and wait until this whole thing blows over one way or another. Do not leave this ship. If you do, I can not guarantee your well being." With that, Kairo strode out of the cockpit and through the ship.

    Garet shrugged at the woman and started to leave. "I'd do what he says," He said at the door. Making his way through the ship, Garet started to wonder what Kairo had planned. After reading through the datapad, he did not have any good feeling toward what was going to happen next.

  As he exited the ship, Garet found Kairo motioning for the squad to pick up the crates of equipment and follow him back to their shuttle. It took a few minutes for them to make it back, but once they were all settled in the hanger bay, Kairo made one last check to make sure no one was within hearing range before starting.

  "Apparently, the rest of the POWs are being held inside a subterranean complex a few kilometers from here. This complex is completely sealed from the surface except for three entrances, which are kept closed at all times except when someone with the correct transponder approaches. This makes things very difficult for you. Thankfully, our city's host has a perfect gift ready for us to use. This city's main purpose is a mining center and refinery. Since this planets surface is extremely hard to dig through and mine, Lando Calrissian had to have specially designed mining vehicles created. They have all been equipped with modified plasma-jets that they use to mine the surface. We are going to steal one of these. Eclipse squad will then use it to drill through one of the complex's main entrances. Any questions?" Kairo asked.

  "Once we drill inside the place, won't they then know we are coming and either kill or move the hostages?" Rigimo asked.

  "That's a very good possibility, but I doubt they will kill them. Mainly, they aren't going to kill their only bargaining chip. Also, this is not something they will be expecting. You will be hitting them completely off guard. That should give you at least ten minutes before the smoke clears, and they actually realize what is happening. Ten minutes to at least find where the hostages are located. You guys should be able to move fast enough with your training and get to them. The actual hard part will be getting back out with the POWs. Any other questions?"

  "When did you come up with this whole plan? It seems like something that was planned the whole time." Kantar stated.

  "I actually came up with it on the way from our contact. This is the first time Garet's even hearing it. Don't worry though, all should go well with a little luck. If any of you have a better idea, please let me know once this is all over." A few people's faces looked confused for a second before realizing Kairo had told them to just follow his orders in a subtle way. "Now, this city will come within its closest approach to the complex in twenty minutes. We are to have Eclipse completely aboard one of the mole miners by then. To do this, we will be splitting up the squads. Eclipse, you are to open up those crates here and separate out the armor. You will then place them in individual containers and each of you will carry one. This will allow you to all move much quicker. While you are doing that, Nightstalkers and I will be discretely obtaining one of the miners."

  "Wait, are you telling me that the city is going to loan us one of these miners?" Jelly Bean asked.

  "Of course not. We'll be borrowing one." Kairo swallowed, as he prepared to reveal the next part of his plan. "Since Eclipse will essentially be stealing one of the miners, security will be after them pretty quickly. They'll dispatch a group to bring back the miner once they realize it wasn't scheduled to leave the city. Since Eclipse can't afford to have Nomad City security interfering with their mission as well, Nightstalkers are going to perform a few distractions through out the city to divert their attention. We will be attacking three of the cities ore refineries. That should cause enough of a problem for them to forget about the missing miner. Now, once Eclipse is at the complex, they will only have two hours before the sun reaches the complex. Also, this is only a city, and thus NS can only hold out so long. Therefore, this whole mission is to only take two hours or less once Eclipse is on board the miner. Any questions now?'

  There was complete silence. Everyone was too busy catching up with all the information Kairo had told them. "Alright then, get to it. Eclipse, once you have all your equipment packed up and ready to carry, follow Garet. I'll be giving him the location of which miner we are going to be stealing over our comlinks. Now, you'll probably need all the fire power you can carry, so when you are packing your armor, don't forget to take your weapons as well. Don't worry, it will look like you are all just carrying digging tools. NS, follow me."

  As the two groups split up, Kairo shot Garet a look. Garet just smirked and said, "Show off. I could have come up with something just as good."

  "Probably, it would have just taken you longer," Kairo retorted as he led his squad to the other side of the hanger where their equipment was stored. Turning to the troopers, he said, "We will be leaving here in five minutes. I do have a surprise for you though." Kicking the side off one of the crates, he revealed the squads storm commando armor reflecting the light off their dark black surfaces. "We'll be changing into these. I brought them just incase something like this happened. So, switch your armor into these and put your clothes back over them. We'll want to stay in disguise as long as possible. We'll get rid of the clothes eventually." Everyone nodded. They were used to switching plans on the run. Recon squads never really had set directives. Since there was no time to waste, people shrugged off their shyness and changed in front of each other. Once everyone had their armor and clothes back on, Kairo said, "Let's get going. We'll be coming back here after we hit the first refinery which is next to the mole miner hanger. Leave your helmets behind for this one. Kantar, leave your sniper rifle here but make sure you can get to it quickly. You'll be using that later. So, just follow my orders as we go from here on out. If you do that, hopefully we'll all come out of this alive."

  Picking up a heavy bag, Kairo handed it to Lion Heart. "This contains some explosives, so don't drop it." Lion let out a low Wookiee woof. Smiling, Kairo led the group toward the shuttle exit. As they passed Eclipse squad, they found them half way through moving their equipment. "See you guys in a few minutes." Kairo said as cheerfully as he could.

  "Good luck guys. Looks like you get to see some action before we do," Riqimo stated.

  A few more people shared some quick banter, trying to keep the mood light, before Nightstalkers left the shuttle. As he led the squad down through the city, he whispered to them their orders. "The mole miner hanger is at the bottom of the city. It should only take us a few minutes to get there with the turbo lifts. Once there, we'll take a look at the shift schedule and pick a miner soon to leave. We'll then persuade its crew to give it to us and wait for Eclipse. Once that is done, we'll move out for the first ore refinery. Hopefully, I'll have come up with a plan of attack by then." Everyone nodded. Things on Nomad City were about to heat up, and it had nothing to do with the sun.

  (OOC This has a lot in it for directions and what to really do for awhile in the story, so make sure you read the whole thing. There isn't a lot of action, but this is basically a second briefing post for the second part of the story. )
 
-----------------------
Platoon Sergeant Kairo
Platoon Commander

PC/PSGT Kairo/2PLT/1COMP/1BAT/1RGT/Tadath/VEA/VE [CDS][BoA][CoR][BC][CoV][IH]

Know your enemy and know yourself, and you will be victorious in ten thousand battles.
You may forget the past, but it will always haunt your future.
Men can die, but a symbol is eternal.

RK opened the crate in fron of him to reveal the E.A.S.T Suit, he pulled it out of the crate.

He slipped it on, a very uncomfortable fit, but it was the only thing he could use, I wish I sould use my bounty hunter armor, it a lot more comfortable. Opening a couple of his puches he inserted his throwing knives, he knever knew when one would come in handy. Next he holstered his DC-17 Interchangeable combat system, along with the systems he brought.

"So what do we do now Doc?" Rk was referring to Riqimo who was still gathering his gear and putting his armor on.

"We ait till everyon's ready, then when the first distraction is set out, we head towards one of those mining veichles."

"Sounds easy enough." He felt a slight tap on his should Jolting away from talking to Riq, Turning around to see the familiar face of his SL behind him.

"You ready?" His SL smiled, he probably noticed he was the first one ready to go and the first one to  have everything packed, except his helmet on.

"Yea I'm ready, a little worried considering what's going on, but I've been through hell compared ot this." Garet grinned, RK could tell Garet was nervous, even though he had been SL since RK and joined the VE, but this was something they have never done before.

"Good to hear it." He made his way around Rk and walked towards Riq where the SL and ASL talked about the mission.

Looking up from the two he looked out, people were still getting there armor on, some where even talking aomg themselves, some looked nervuse while other just patiently waited to get going. Times like these made Eclipse squad feel like home

-_-_-_-_-_-

RK sat down on one of the crates while Garet disscussed the overlay of the mission one more time to them.

"........Alright, don't forget. Let's get ready." Garet put his helmet on and so did Riq. Soone the whole hangar bay was filled with White helmeted Eclipse members.
 
-----------------------
Eclipse Squad

TRP/LCPL
RK/1SQD/2PLT/1COM/1RGT/1BAT/Tadath/VEA/VE [ES] [2nd Class] [CoR]

" I am the best at what I do. Only what I do isn't very nice." - Wolverine

"I will protect you with my life, All of you." - Kakashi Hatake

The first thing Jag thought when he put the armour on was that it's heavy .

If the NR don't hear me coming they gotta be deaf.  

Once he was in his armour he walked about getting used to the extra weight.  Once he got used to the restricted movements and a slightly slower pace of walking, he took his ESPO grenade launcher and slung it on his back in easy access.

This should come in handy to cave in any tunnels&

Once that was done he took his personal pistol and slipped it into an easy place to grab in a hurry. When that was in placed he picked up the standard issue blaster carbine and waited for the rest of the squad to get ready.

****Inside mining ship****

  Once Eclipse was in the mining drill and they left the drill hangar most of the squad went straight to strap themselves in, Jag slowly  at least tried to  lower himself on to the seat before the weight brought him on the seat with a loud thud .

Son of a& Jag almost shouted as the pieces of armour started pinching him and forced him to stand up. "This armour really wasn't designed to sit down in huh?"

There were a few grunts of agreement before Jag was nearly thrown to the floor as Garet turned the drill around as it missed the target.

Once they were inside the base and Riqimo announced that they were dealing with Thrawn troops, he muttered, "Fierfek!"

"What was that Jag?" Garet said over the squad's secure channel.

"Uh, nothing sir." He replied quickly as RK announced that there were more Thrawn troops were closing in&


-----------------------
EclipseSquad
TRP/LCPL Jag Fel/2SQD/2PLT/1COMP/1BAT/1RGT/Tadath/VEA/VE
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
"You think you can run this ship better?"
"Yeah."
"Well...you cant!"
Serenity

"Did you know the New Republic dont like to be shot at? Worked that out for myself."
Firefly

The Nightstalkers stood guard as the Eclipse squad entered the miner and departed.

"Let's move out" ordered Kairo

The Nightstalkers started to head off. Alan lingered for a bit watching the miner's departure wishing he was onboard to help with the rescue of the POWs.  He had promised himself that he wasn't going to let any other POW die but now it was out of his hands.

Kairo looked over at Alan as the Nightstalkers headed out.  "What's on your mind?" he asked.

Alan looked up at Kairo and said "I let a POW die in here and I promised that I wouldn't let another one die but now there's nothing I can do to prevent it".

Kairo looked sympathetically at him before replying "we can disrupt the city and get the security forces off the Eclipse squads back, that will ensure the POW's are rescued safely, now let's go and get the job done".

"Right with you boss" replied Alan as they moved out.

Moving swiftly through the shadows of the city, they arrived at the first of three ore refineries.  Kairo looked around to see what the security was like and smiled.  "Security is non existent here, this will be easy.  Lion, go set up some charges, we'll drive out the workers, move"

Lion roared and moved out with the bag of explosives and started to place them in key strategic locations.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?" asked one of the workers who suddenly noticed Lion.  The wookie roared at him.

"Hey, I need everyone to leave this facility NOW" barked Kairo to the worker.

"Or what" he replied.

Alan grabbed his blaster and fired several blasts around the area, "you heard him, I suggest you don't make him say it again".

With that, the worker shouted at his colleagues and they started running out of the refinery.

"You know they'll go straight to the security forces" said Alan.

"That's what I'm counting on" replied Kairo.

Kantar had been looking around the facility and came back "there's no-one left inside" he said to Kairo.

Lion rushed back and roared.

"Let's go" said Kairo and the Nightstalkers moved out.  When they were out of range, Kairo pressed a button and the refinery exploded, flames burst out and several mini explosions were also heard.

Alan glanced back at the devastation and thought to himself let the fun begin

 
-----------------------
TRP/PFC AlanRJ/3SQD/2PLT/1CMP/1RGT/1BAT/Tadath/VEA

(OOC - Let's get moving through the hallways now Eclipse)


After the second Thrawn squad was taken care of with a well aimed ESPO shot by Jag, the squad started heading down the hallway.  After a while they came to a corner and Riqimo peeked around cautiously.  Seeing nothing he stepped around and suddenly jumped back towards the squad as a droid of some sort rounded another corner up ahead, "There's a security droid up ahead I think, Jag have any ion grenades?"

"No I didn't think I needed to bring any..." Jag shrugged.

"No matter, it's alone so we can take care of it easily.  Count of three."

When Riqimo was holding up two fingers, the droid rounded the corner where the squad was hiding, with a quick movement one of the troopers behind Riqimo butted it with the end of his rifle.  The droid fell to the ground with a clang and Riq jumped out, blaster ready, to make sure the hallway was clear of any other ememy forces, droid or otherwise.  Seeing everything clear he turned to see who downed the droid, it was a new member, one whoese name was on the ip of Riqimo's tongue... This guy was rather quiet the whole trip... remaining a few feet away from us the whole time... Wicket!  that's it.

"Nice work Wicket, good reflexes," Garet commented as he checked to make sure the droid actually was disabled.

Riqimo was scouting ahead with Wicket at his side now, while the rest of the squad stayed back to make sure they were not snuck up on from behind.  This base must be understaffed, there are not many squads here, we only meet two... if this is as large as I think it is there can only be about six more squads here, plus obviously quite a few techs.

Riqimo paused his thoughts as he carefully opened a door and peeked in, he slammed the door and ran down the hallway, after Wicket who already started running.

"I think we stumbled into the barracks quarters, go that way!" Riqimo shouted, pointing towards another hallway, trying to hurry before the enemy squads could grab their weapons and chase after them, "Ten, fifteen squads, MOVE!"

Riqimo ran fast enought to catch up to the rest of the squad, thankful he did not decide upon the heavy armor option, which Garet must have been tiring quickly from, but wasn't showing.

"No way we can take a hundred Thrawn troopers on our own," Garet was speaking on the comm channel, pausing every few words for a quick breath, "We move to the control, shut down the facility and find the POWS, I want to avoid any enemy contact that we can."

-------
Ten Minutes later
-------

Eclipse was once again walking through the hallways, but this time with the entire base on full alert.

"How much time Doc?" Garet asked.

"Uh, we got an hour and 4 minutes, sorry 3."

The pressure to escape the base was high, there was no chance for Eclipse to survive in this base until it was night again on their side of the planet, add to it the pressure of rescuing the POWS, and Riqimo's head was spinning at every delay they ran into.

"Another squad on the right," Brightstar called out, Dang it, we are running out of time fast, that's at least five minutes there...

-------
In the control room (finally), 45 minutes remaining
-------

"Doc, find the controls for the light's power, we're putting the base on blackout, Jag and Wicket, search for the droid controls, rest of you, I want a map." Garet was shuffling through papers rapidly, "I don't want to waste time looking in every room to find the detention block."


-----------------------
Riqimo "Doc" Pershaw
EclipseSquad
ASL/CPL Riqimo/2SQD/2PLT/1COM/1RGT/1BAT/Tadath/VEA
Imperial Baronet


George: Oh, sir, just one thing - if we should happen to tread on a mine, what do we do?
Blackadder: Well, normal procedure, Lieutenant, is to jump 200 feet into the air and scatter yourself over a wide area.

As soon as they began to move again Brightstar felt more at ease. Whether she was a new recruit or not, she felt almost glad to be here with the rest of her squad. Even after the security droid rounded the corner. Of course it was taken out quickly enough. So thats the other new guy. I'd seen him on the way in but for got that he was there. Nodding her head in his direction, Brightstar hung back with the rest of the squqd as Wicket and Riqimo moved forward to scout ahead.

It wasn't long however before she spotted them again and silently hoped that they hadn't found something that they couldn't fight. What could she do. When Riqimo said move she moved. I can't take on 100 men myself. She thought.  never the less she continued to look behind her to make sure they really were getting away with no injuries at least for the time being. She couldn't take on a 100 or so men, but she could take out the one or two odd ones that might stumble within range of her blaster.

The last one to stop within hearing distance of the squad so she could hear Garret's orders, Brightstar placed herself on a look out point so she could view the hall way they had just vacated. No one was coming but she wasn't leaving her post till the squad moved out.


---------Ten minutes later.-----------

The entire base was on full alert now as they caustiously and quickly went hallway to hallway. Avoiding some squads altogether and others that they had no way of avoiding.

Checking her own timepiece Brightstar swore. How much longer are we going to keep doing this. If we wait much longer we're going to be nice and extremely toasted, or we're all going to be nice targets  to practice on. Either way we lose.

Giving the hall they were currently passing through another sweep, Brightstar spoted the Characteristic white of stormtrooper armor. There to her her right. Calling her find out, Bright gave an impressive string of curses, and imediately took out two Thrawn troopers before the others joined in.

----------45 Remaining, The Control Room--------------

Litening to the orders Garet gave Brightstar started on the otherside of the room from Garet, searching the papers and data pads avalible there. After about a minute and a half searching, Bright felt she may have hit the jackpot. Here was a map of the entire facility displayed on one data pad and on the papers underneath it she found duty rosters and schedule reports. She grinned wolfishly, If the schedule report was right only half of those men would actually be at the detention block. With all the rucus we've caused they will have taken some of these men out of the detention bay to patrol.  Brightstar quickly crossed the room to show the map and the reports to Garet.

-----------------------
Eclipse Squad


TRP/PFC Brightstar D'Jonoc/2SQD/2PLT/1COM/1BAT/1RGT/Tadath/VEA

Installment Four: Retreat? We're Advancing in the Other Direction...

Hearing Room Two, Army Headquarters, 1045 hours

Garet paused as a man stepped into view. He placed three glasses of water in front of the arbiters, saluted, and left. The old arbiter reached forward and took a sip from the glass, but the others went untouched.

"Well?" one of the three interrupted Garet's thoughts rudely. He snapped out of his concentration and drew in a breath.

By now he had established a rhythm of sorts about his storytelling. An air of confidence floated about him as he recounted every detail he could remember. But with the arbiters hiding their face, he still couldn't get a read on their reactions. The mix of confidence and doubt came forth as beads of sweat on his shiny dome, and Garet tugged at his collar for a little air.

"One moment, please," the old arbiter directed at whoever asked Garet to go on. Meticulously, he turned towards Garet. "You say there were at least one hundred troopers in that base, all coming after you?"

Garet wondered where he was going with this. "Yes, that's what it seemed like."

"Think of this rationally, Sergeant Daimun: One hundred Stormtroopers in an underground base that no one had ever found or even knew of. Would there be that much manpower for such a secluded base?"

Garet's eyes shifted down, showing the thought that had just passed through his head.

"Could you have possibly misjudged in your calculation?"

Garet was getting annoyed at the games being played in the room. The old man was obviously trying to infringe upon Garet's clear judgment, which his pride just wouldn't allow. "Sir, I'm telling you what I saw. Whether it was one hundred or fifty, I would've acted the same way. One recon squad simply does not have the firepower or training to take one that amount of Stormtroopers."

"Aha..."


Control Room, 43 Minutes Remaining.

Garet quickly scrolled through the datapad Brightstar had found as he caught his breath. The heavy armor didn't slow him down, but it sure did take a toll on his energy. His Annihilator pistol sat amid debris on a nearby desk and his helmet stared back at the squad from it's resting position near the pistol. Jag and Riqimo were having a conversation not far off about something Jag had found, which Garet would look into later. He patted Brightstar on the shoulder for the find, nodded, and thought nothing more of it.

"Alright, listen up!" Garet yelled through the shattered room. Eclipse members dropped whatever they were holding and walked over the bodies of fallen soldiers to come to Garet. "We've got forty three minutes to get those prisoners and get back to Nomad City  and we'll have to do it with at least platoon on our tail. The detention center isn't too far from here, so let's get it together and get a move on. Doc, you find find those lights?"

Riqimo hopped over a couple corpses and flipped a switch.

"Lights out in five," the Assistant Leader said. Right on cue, five seconds later, the lights dimmed throughout the base and the eerie green backup lights flickered on.



Outside Detention Center, 40 Minutes Remaining

Orange siren lights lights danced across the wall outside of the detention center. A giant, impenetrable door blocked Eclipse's entry into the center itself. "Ah hell," Garet whispered desperately into the Comm. He peered down at the map to find an alternate route. Seeing none, he turned to the Squad. "Anyone happen to be carrying a truck of explosives with them?"

Jag raised a hand. "Sir, I don't have explosives," there was a small laugh fro ma couple soldiers, "but I did find this." He stepped forward and passed a datapad to Garet. Riqimo voiced in.

"They're blueprints, sir. Blueprints for construction in the air vents. It looks like there's a way into the center from those."

Garet thought about for a sec, looking down the various corridors leading here. "Alright, Doc, take two troopers and go through those vents. Kill whoever's in there, get the prisoners, and open this door. The rest of you, take up defensive positions. We've got some squatting to do."
 
-----------------------
EclipseSquad

SL/GSG Garet Daimun/2SQD/2PLT/1COM/1RGT/1BAT/Tadath/VEA [ES2C] [ES1C] [IH]

Feeling alone?
The army's up the road;
Salvation a la mode and
A cup of tea. 
~Jethro Tull

(OOC - I wanted to have fun, Han Solo style )

Riqimo looked up at the vent and around at the troopers, figures, I am the smallest and get to go through these vents.  Hell I swore no more vents after that heist on Nar Shaddaa... let's see here...

"Ryan, get ready to do some crawling, and the rest of you figure out who will fit easiest."

Jag and Garet then stood beneath the air vent and boosted Riqimo up to open it.  After prying a few screws out, Riqimo pulled himself in and started crawling towards the objective.  He heard who he believe to be RK behind him and then a third trooper enter the vent.  About thirty seconds later, some blaster fire was heard as well as some explosions of what hopefully were from Jag's ESPO.

After about what seemed like hours, Riqimo found himself looking down through the vent system at some officers having a smoke.

"Wonder what's going on out there, command put us on full alert over a squad of what appear to be VE troopers, I hear one's a midget," a heavyset man chuckled as he waved his ciger through the air.  Midget?  I'll show you midget you fatso

"There has to be a leak somewhere, they know about the prisioners obviously.  Shouldn't we have more men defending this area?"  a woman with jet black hair asked the man.

A tech entered Riqimo's view "No way they can get through our heavy set blast do--" at this time Riqimo fell through the vent with the weight of three troopers in full stormtrooper gear.  Quickly gaining his composture, he looked about and saw the guards unconcious.

"Well, that's one way to do it..." Riqimo muttered.

Garet came on the comlink, "Doc, everything alright?  We heard something."

"Everything is clear, all the guards have been knocked out..."

"Knocked out?" Garet asked quizingly, "You weren't shooting them?"

"I'll explain it later," Riqimo said with a chuckle as he scanned the room one more time.  The heavy officer stirred.  Riqimo kneeled beside him to check vitals.

"He's awake?" Riqimo heard Bright come on the comlink and determined she was the third trooper to follow them in.

As the man's head started to lift, Riqimo punched him quickly in the head and replied innoncently, "Nope."  Getting up quickly, he waved to his two squadmates, "Let's go find the cell that these POWS are in."

He headed over to the desk on the far wall and started pulling up cell designations for the detention center.

"There are only five people here and they all have been added recently at the same time, cells 16A through 20A"

Immediately Bright and RK went off to the cells and Riq was about to follow them when the detention blocks comm system started beeping an incoming message.  Riqimo answered, "Hello?"

"Everything alright?  We got damage reports for your sector."

"Uhh... everything is fine, I uhh, think the base over here could use some more work, part of the ceiling fell."

"Sure, we'll put that on our tech list, we'll send a few squads up to keep the detetion block secure."

"Uh negative, we got, uhhh, posionous gas leak coming through the vents, errrr, give us about thirty minutes to patch it up."

"Who is this?  What's your operating number?"

"What is that?" Riqimo made some static noises, "I didn't get that you are breaking up..."

Riq shot the controls just as Garet came on, "Everything is clear out here, hurry up."

"Not for long, we're gonna have company..." Riqimo replied, running towards the cells to get the POWS out of their cells faster.  RK and Bright already got three out and Riqimo headed to the last one while they got the fourth.

"I told you, I'm not going to give in to your blasted torture!" was the reply to Riqimo openning the door.

"We're not Thrawn," Riqimo explained, "we're VE, we need to get you out of here, we have... twenty five minutes."

-----------------------
Riqimo "Doc" Pershaw
EclipseSquad
ASL/CPL Riqimo/2SQD/2PLT/1COM/1RGT/1BAT/Tadath/VEA
Imperial Baronet


George: Oh, sir, just one thing - if we should happen to tread on a mine, what do we do?
Blackadder: Well, normal procedure, Lieutenant, is to jump 200 feet into the air and scatter yourself over a wide area.

  "This is our objective. It is the next refinery we are to hit, but first we'll be picking up the rest of our gear. So here is what we are going to do. Since the next refinery is in a part of this city that is still under construction, it's going to be filled with workers, security by now, and probably have a lot of open space. The reason I'm assuming the space is because they've only recently sealed the area off and started construction on the mainframe. This plays right into our hands. We'll be using our jetpacks to move to key points on the structure and set detonators." Pausing a second, Kairo listened and moved to the door. "I think it's time that we should be moving," he stated, pulling out his Kylon-3.

  Looking down the hall where the gleam of the smoldering refinery could faintly be seen, he motioned for the squad to follow him. Running down the opposite way, he started to follow a roundabout path to the hanger where the rest of the equipment was stored. The sound of the squad's boots hitting the metal surface of the hallway irritated Kairo. Anyone near by would hear the noise, but there was no way around it. I hate enclosed complexes, and an entire city is no better. It makes things ten times harder.

  Noticing a group of workers up ahead, Kairo motioned for the squad to slow down. "Just act natural. We have every right to be here as they do. Just make sure your guns are concealed," He whispered. Nodding to the passing group of pedestrians, the smiled and motioned back, completely oblivious to the immediate death they would receive if they tried to stop the squad. Turning a corner, Kairo continued to the lead the squad at a sedate walk. They had left the first refinery district and loading zone and had entered the main city area again. The hallways widened out to form miniature walkways where groups of people walked to their destinations.

  "Shouldn't we hurry up?" Lucky asked from behind Kairo.

  "You need to learn to work with your surroundings better. Running here would only cause trouble. As long as we act like locals and blend in, no one will bother us." Kairo thought a second before adding, "Let's break into to groups. Our size is drawing a bit of attention. Three of you go with Alan. The rest with me. We'll meet at the hanger bay inside the shuttle." As soon as he finished, the squad separated. Alan led three of the members off down an adjoining walkway.

  The city was actually well designed for being created from a Dreadnaught ship. It had obviously been slightly modified to accommodate the needs of a city and mining outpost, but it still had a pleasant feel to it. Kairo assumed this was to keep the workers and traders sane as they lived completely encased in a metal shell. Small gardens had been set up in the middle of intersections to add a bit of color to the bleak grey and white hew of the hallways. A main eatery had been created for this living district which had a decorative sign. If it hadn't been a Republic city, Kairo would have congratulated the designer of the whole affair.

  Before he knew it, Kairo's group had reached the hanger. Looking around for Alan's team, he saw them entering from the opposite side. Continuing on toward the shuttle, Kairo punched in the access code for the cargo hold and entered through the opening door. Walking over to the crates, he picked up his helmet and slid it onto his head. Shedding his garments, he readjusted the armor which had grown uncomfortable beneath the clothes. Noticing what he was doing, the rest of the squad began removing their outerwear and gathering the rest of their equipment.. As Alan's team entered the cargo bay, Kairo walked over and said to him, "Make sure everyone gets ready, I have to go pick something up from my room." Leaving the area, Kairo rushed to the room he had stayed in during the trip and found the case. Unlocking it, he pulled out his modified blaster and slid in an ammo cartridge. Attaching it to the back of his armor with a strap, he pulled out two more cartridges for the weapon and another for his Kylon-3 then attached them to his belt. Before he left, he turned toward his terminal and scanned through the open files. Making sure all his knives were in easy reach, he left the room and met up with the rest of the squad.

  They were finishing up gathering their own weapons when he arrived. Kantar had his sniper rifle slung over his shoulder while Lion had readily picked up another bag of explosives, already aware of his designated role. Kicking the front off another crate, Kairo pulled out a jetpack and said, "It's time to use these again. Hope you've been practicing, because when we use these at the refinery, there won't be a lot of room to maneuver or altitude. It's mainly construction beam and machinery, but part of the area is complete. I don't know the specifics, but it isn't going to be fun." While he had been saying this, Kairo had attached the jetpack to his back, making sure all the straps and attachments were secure.

  "Sir, going out their like this is bound to draw enormous attention to us. We can't just walk down the halls without being noticed anymore. How are we to get to the refinery without being noticed?" Kantar asked.

  "Like back at the refinery, we want to get noticed. Everyone is going to run or stay out of our way when they see us, except for security or some foolhardy workers out on a hero rush. You remember though how I said that part of the area wasn't entirely sealed from the outside elements, well, we'll be flying there." A few heads turned away from their work at this new development. "Out through the hanger bay and into the refinery. I double checked the readout of the area and it is sealed off from the cold of night by a force field. We'll blast our way through the field and drop in from above. Any questions?"

  "Just one, are you completely insane?" Tanus asked.

  "I've been asked that before actually, but I never answer. I'll leave it up to you to decide once we're done with this mission. Now, is everyone ready?" Kairo asked, pulling out his Kylon-3.

  They all nodded. From their body language, Kairo could tell some of them were a bit anxious at the prospect of what they were about to do. Some of them probably realized their suits were not made to stand the cold and heat of the atmosphere of Nkllon for longer than maybe a few minutes. Hopefully, they would be back inside by then. Hopefully the force field would have a back up system once they destroyed it. Too many Hopefullys for my taste, but it has to be done. "Alright then. Once we get their, I want Kantar to find a higher place and set up a watch with your sniper rifle. Take out or scare off as many workers and security that are there and may arrive later. Alan, you will lead Tanus and Lucky to the structures support holds and destroy them. I'll be taking Lion and the rest to blow up the main refinery equipment that is in place. Also, I don't want you to kill any pedestrians unless they are attacking you. Let them run. We aren't here to kill innocent people. Let's move!"

  Exiting the shuttle, the squad started to move across the hanger bay towards the exit. Heads turned at this new presence and people began to move away. They didn't know where this group of shadowy figures had come from, but they weren't about to stick around to find out. Get a move on Garet. I'd like this to be the last refinery we have to hit, before you get here. These people might not be trained military, but when they finally catch up to us it isn't going to be pretty.

(OOC If you have any questions, ask me. It's not my best work, but it should keep you guys going and give you some direction. Good luck.)
 
-----------------------
Platoon Sergeant Kairo
Platoon Commander

PC/PSGT Kairo/2PLT/1COMP/1BAT/1RGT/Tadath/VEA/VE [CDS][BoA][CoR][BC][CoV][IH]

Know your enemy and know yourself, and you will be victorious in ten thousand battles.
You may forget the past, but it will always haunt your future.
Men can die, but a symbol is eternal.

The steel doors slid open slowly exposing the squad to the atmosphere.  Kairo and Alan's teams fired up their jetpacks and flew out.  En-route to the refinery Lucky enquired about the temperature and true enough it was getting warmer.  I hope we get to the refinery soon before we start burning up thought Alan to himself.

The Nightstalkers soon arrived at the refinery.  A few well placed shots from Kantar and Lion dropped the forcefield.  A back up system kicked in soon after they were all through and they found the temperature inside far more moderate.

Once inside Alan called Lucky and Tanus to follow him.  Kairo gathered up the rest of the squad and started to head off.

"Good luck sir" said Alan as they departed.

Kairo turned round saying "you too" and soon they were gone.

Alan looked up and knew that Kantar was somewhere up there but could not see him.  Tapping his comlink he asked "Kantar ole buddy, you in place".

"You betcha" he replied.

"Good" replied Alan smiling, "I feel safer already.  Keep your eyes peeled".

Alan, Tanus and Lucky flew down to the base of the refinery were the structure support holds were.

"Lucky, where did you hear the male voices?" asked Alan

Lucky pointed to where her keen sense of hearing had heard them. 

"Tanus, you go that way and start setting up charges on these support beams" said Alan as he pointed to his left, "Lucky, you set up charges over there" as he pointed to his right, "I'll surprise these  workers and convince them to leave the area.  Call me if you run into any trouble and remember, Kantar is watching over us, this is going to work".  Alan watched Tanus and Lucky move out and thought this has to work

 
-----------------------
TRP/LCPL AlanRJ/3SQD/2PLT/1CMP/1RGT/1BAT/Tadath/VEA

Sub-Installment: The Pit and the POW

Detention Center, 40 minutes remaining

Garet peered down at the datapad left on the floor. Three agonizing minutes of tension had passed since Riqimo and co. entered the vents. Silence fell over the rest of Eclipse as they held close to the walls, peering down the corridors for any movement. Jag took the position at the point, the corner of a wall and a corridor, and kept a close watch. Wicket was behind him, crouched against the wall, waiting for Jag to do something  he clutched the trigger readily. Just for insurance, Jelly stood patiently behind the two along the wall, ready to whip out for support.

On the opposite side, the second corridor, MkVenner took point and Garet held pistol in air waiting behind him. Garet kept one eye on the citadel-esque door looming over them at all times. Eclipse was cutting it close  they would need some thing faster to get them back  and so Garet felt the nervousness only a Leader could feel. Something echoed down the hallway, and soon after Mk tapped him on the shoulder. Mk pointed around the corner, then held up to fingers, then pointed to his ear. "There's two around the corner, listen," his movements said.

Garet listened in. There was definitely two voices, calm among what should be chaos. One superior, the other inferior. Mk got his blaster ready, but Garet held the gun down, letting the echoes fill the way.

"So what are they doing down there?"

"Hell if I know, I just open the door."

"You think they really are from the Vast Empire?"

"Don't the intruders prove it?"

"What's it like down there?"

"I dunno much... I peer in every so often. Just a big, circular room with a big, glass cage in the middle."

"You don't think... it's torture, do you?"

"Like I said, hell if I know. What I do know is that they're staying down there until this whole situation is dealt with."

Garet got his pistol ready and let go of Mk's rifle. The two crept out from behind the corner, weapons raised just in case, and snuck up to the backs of the two talking Stormtroopers. Garet held his pistol in the back of his victim and grabbed a keycard from his belt. "Thanks," Garet muttered before hitting the trooper in the back of the head. Mk followed suit.

The flashing lights came on again behind them, and they rushed to the door of the detention center. Slowly it moved aside, revealing Riqimo, RK, Bright, and the group of five prisoners they freed. Destitution and sorrow overwhelmed their physical being, Garet doubted them to stay alive before they could get out. He felt bad for the poor souls stuck down in the circular holding room, and wondered what they were being subjected to. Horrible, horrible thoughts. Something had to be done.
"Riqimo, take everyone and find a suitable escape vehicle. The miner's too slow, we'd be caught in the sun. We need something durable, and fast."

"What's going on, sir?" Riqimo asked, the enthusiasm drained in his voice at the daunting order.

"Not enough time, Riqimo! Just do it!" Garet barked back. "Radio in when you have an escape. Protect these Prisoners at all costs. Go!" Riqimo got his gun ready and trotted off, the parade of soldiers behind him. RK, at the back, gave Garet a nod in assurance. Garet trusted that brute of a soldier to do as he said.

The map of the base led him to a small, reclusive turbolift that they had clearly overlooked. Garet, being a one man team, was able to use stealth to get there unnoticed. He slipped the stolen keycard in and the turbolift jumped to life. Soon enough, he found himself in an extremely small, dark corridor with one door at the end. Using the key card again, the door slowly opened.

Cinder covered the metal walls of the otherwise clean, circular holding room. It appeared to be empty from the outside, save a cloud of heat rising in the middle, but one step in revealed something more: the entire middle of the floor had been cut out. Down below, in some sort of glass pit, two men lay unmoving. Garet wasn't so horrified at the bodies, but what was behind them. The glass was patterned with holes small enough a hand couldn't fit through, but big enough for heat to seep through and take it's effect. Under the pit, a river of fire flowed past in a cavernous passage; it's oozing magma just feet below the prisoners. Fire and heat, a torture even the most hardened of men couldn't even stand. Garet looked around for anything to get them out. Rope? No. Ladder? None. He was just about to jump in himself to save them, knowing he was wearing protective armor, when he paused. A voice coming from below.

"Close... the door," one of the bodies said from below, using energy from god knows where. "You're letting... the heat out."

Garet stared in, listening as best he could for what the man was saying.

"You... bastard," he added. The tortured man's attempts at goading his "captors" was valiant. He obviously wasn't in the talkative mood to give anything away about the VE. Still, Garet had to find a way to save him, and quick.

He turned around and saw another slot by the door. He slipped the keycard in. No good; but a shot from his blaster did the trick. The floor of the pit slowly began to rise, and as it did, vents kicked in overhead. Garet was blasted with a jet of compressed air the froze his armor on contact. The metal walls, covered in char, began to fog up near the series of cooling agent streaming out from the ceiling. Garet couldn't feel any of this, but the atmosphere changed visibly; the air seemed frigid and soothing in contrast to the the open lava pit.

Quite dramatically, the cooling jets surrounded the room, which completely rose and put the two bodies within reach. Garet ran to closest one and bent over him. No chest contractions, no throbbing arteries, no sign of life. He hopped to the second one. He placed his armored hand on the chest of the shirtless prisoner to check for signs of life, and immediately felt the chest contractions lacking from the first. He was so alive, in fact, that he grabbed Garet's arm; the cooling agent must've really given him an energy boost.

"Get your hands off me!" the man was able to say in a full sentence, not needed to suck in oxygen as much as before. He scrambled away and clawed his way to his feet using the wall as a balance. Despite the sweat-soaked skin and torn shirt (which now looked more like a vest), the prisoner stood in dignity. A heroic aura seemed to surround him as he struck a rather majestic stance and just invited himself to a fight. His muscular athletic build was intimidating, but the lack of energy to fight convinced Garet to take the path of inaction. The prisoner took a step forward and fell into Garet, who promptly caught him and stood him up.

"Come on," he said, under the weight of the prisoner. "Let's get you home." Garet led him to the turbolift and to a safe spot to wait for the signal to move.

He put the man up against a wall to sit, and took a seat next to him. "You're a friend?" asked the prisoner lazily, but who was obviously gaining energy at a great rate.

"I'm here to get you out," Garet replied as officially as he could.

"'bout time you guys showed up," he said with whatever he could muster up as a smile.

Garet unhooked his second pistol from his belt and placed it in the prisoner's hands. "Just liked riding a bike," he reassured the prisoner with an arm pat.

"Sir?" The voice of Doc piped in. "There's some resistance sir, but we've found another miner. It looks like it could be the one."

"Great, we're on our way."

"We?"

Garet helped the man get to his feet. Even with a surprisingly shaved face, Garet didn't recognize who he had just saved. It had been too long ago since they had worked together, and now couldn't have been a better time. Sergeant Jakireth was back.
 
-----------------------
EclipseSquad

SL/GSG Garet Daimun/2SQD/2PLT/1COM/1RGT/1BAT/Tadath/VEA [ES2C] [ES1C] [IH]

Feeling alone?
The army's up the road;
Salvation a la mode and
A cup of tea. 
~Jethro Tull

Kantar opened a channel with Alan, Lucky, and Tanus.
Alright people, be careful of other soldiers patrolling the area. I count about 8 so far, minus the one Tanus took out, not too sure, there might be more though.  Just keep your eyes peeled."

"Alan, I've got eyes on everyone, except for you, everything alright?"

"I'm fine, just taking care of our worker infestation problem."

"Well, stay out in the open, I can't give you cover if I can't see you."

"Roger that', Alan responded.

Switching over to a channel with Kairo, Kantar spoke up.
"Sir, Alan's team is placing the charges as we speak, PFC Tanus had a slight run in with a New Republic Soldier. There seems to be a small patrol of some sort, I advise keeping a lookout in your area, where there is one Rebel, there is definetly bound to be more."

"Roger", Kairo responded, "thanks for the info."

"No problem, jsut remember, don't hesitate to call on your friendly neighborhood Eye in the Sky, if you need me."

"Don't worry", Kairo said,"I won't, Kairo out."

With that, Kantar resumed keeping an eye on Alan's team.


-----------------------
TRP/LCPL Kantar Seldar/1SQD/2PLT/1CMP/1RGT/1BAT/Tadath/VEA



It's a Good Day to die in the Empire's name, but it's also a better day to kill in the name of the Empire.

Alan moved slowly to the worker's, hand on his blaster in case of trouble.  Tanus radioed in advising him of someone tampering with the explosives so Alan had told him to handle the situation.  Oh great thought Alan when Tanus radioed back to inform him that the person was actually a New Republic soldier.

"Guys!" shouted Alan to the workers, "I'm going to have to insist that you vacate the area immediately"

The workers looked at him as if he was insane.  "We don't do nothing unless our boss says so" replied one of the workers.

"Well I got your new boss right here and he says you go"

"Oh yeah" said the worker "and who is that then"

"This" said Alan as he whisked out his blaster and fired several shots into the air.

The workers panicked at the appearance of the weapon and fled.  A few of the workers however ducked down.  That looks a little too advanced for regular workers thought Alan.  He didn't have to wait long before he found out why as the remaining workers that had ducked, moved into a kneeling position and levelled their weapons at him and started firing.

Crap thought Alan as he dived for cover as blaster bolts whizzed over his head why the hell didn't I get back into the open, Kantar cannot help me out of this one.

Tapping his comlink Alan said "Tanus, Lucky, status report".

Tanus spoke first "Charges are placed, there doesn't seem to be any more troops tampering with the explosives"

"Yeah, just tampering with me instead" muttered Alan under his breath,

"Sir?" queried Tanus as he thought he heard something over the link.

"Understood Tanus, Lucky?" replied Alan

Lucky's voice came through next "charges are also set, no sign of enemy activity here"

"Great, double time it to my position and keep your heads down, it looks like the entire enemy is here and their weapons are pointing straight at me." 

"Roger that" replied both Tanus and Lucky.

"Kantar?" asked Alan, "you think you can get to a different vantage point so that you are covering my team.

"Will do my best" replied Kantar.

Alan peeked out from his covering area and fired off a few blasts, he was met with repeated blaster bolts which struck his covering area or whizzed over his head.

Great thought Alan I do have the entire New Republic army out there


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TRP/LCPL AlanRJ/3SQD/2PLT/1CMP/1RGT/1BAT/Tadath/VEA