Zafo had been away from the Vast Empire for quite some time. So, where some troopers might have been restless with no official task for a week, he embraced it. It provided him with the time he needed get settled once again into life with the Dragoons. Despite the dramatic change in line-up from the squad he had been forced to leave, the same indescribable atmosphere hung about the Dragoons' lounge area. It was impossible for Zafo to imagine this oneness with any other squad.

The news of a mission couldn't have arrived at a more perfect time. While Zafo had taken it upon himself to become acquainted with the strange faces, the most significant things about each Dragoon would be learned under more stressful conditions. Immediately after making the announcement, Sam approached Zafo who had re-claimed his chair by the fire.

"You ready for this?" The Squad Leader inquired. There was a hint of concern in his voice. Very few people knew where Zafo had been during his absence and even fewer knew all the details of his condition.

"How hard could it be?" Zafo replied, letting lose a tiny grin.

"That's all I needed to hear."

---------------------------------------------------------

Back at his place, Zafo found the packing to be incredibly easy, as most things were still sorted in boxes. Upon his return to Tadath, Zafo had moved from his small house to a much more private luxury condo. It was a bit farther out than his old place, but when you had a Nightfalcon bike like his, it barely even mattered.

"Man, when this mission is done with, I defiantly need to get this place set-up" Zafo thought to himself as he tripped over a box full of records.

Seeing as Zafo had no idea about what the mission actually was, he only got together the things he would've brought along no matter what. These included a small array of explosives, the marksman edition of the E-11 blaster rifle, ammunition, his weapon detector fooling cloak and last but not least, his golden pistol which his father left him the last night he ever saw him.

After the essentials had been gathered, Zafo's gaze shifted over to the opaque container sitting in the center of his table. It was relatively short and cylindrically shaped. He walked up to it and gave it a little shake. There was a small rattling sound followed by a sigh from Zafo.

"Guess I gotta get this filled before we leave." Zafo grumbled.

Very few people knew of the contents of that bottle. Many strings had to be pulled to get Zafo back into the army so early with a condition as unpredictable as his. Unpredictable; assuming Zafo refused to take a pill every morning. However, since it was extremely important that he did so, a blood sample device had been installed into his datapad. If ever Zafo failed to deliver a sample, proving that he took his medication, he would be off Tadath in a matter of minutes.
   
The clock that hung over table pressed Zafo to get on his way. There was only one hour to go until he had to be sitting in the briefing room with the rest of his squadmates. Often times, there was a decent wait at the pharmacy as well.

Within a matter of minutes, Zafo was sitting on the back of his Nightfalcon, gunning it in the direction of his destination. The wind rushed through his hair, giving that all too familiar adrenaline rush.

"I wonder how I haven't got a speeding ticket yet...

 
-----------------------
~ZaFo

*DarkDragoons*

TRP/GSG ZaFo/2SQD/2PLT/1COM/1BAT/1RGT/VEA/VE [BC] [EW2]

Live Fast, Ride Faster.

This new mission assigned to the squad was exactly what the Dark Dragoons needed. With his new promotion, Urakai felt a new responsibility to the squad's activity, though it was no position of power. Urakai was sitting in his quarters when his datapad blinked carrying the message that raised his spirits. This is what we have been training for. This is a chance to show my new skills he thought, as he had recently been training in the area of Combat Medic. In fact, he was flipping through his notes from the last course when his data pad began to blink. Urakai decided to check up on the squad lounge, see what everyone was up to before he decided to pack.

Sam, Zafo and Fallen were sitting on a sofa as entered the room. He hadn't seen them since the day the simulation ended, as he was in his medic training.

"Nice to have you back." Sam stated with a smile.

Urakai nodded back, and noticed the longer standing Dark Dragoon, Zafo. He saw Fallen quite excited as Urakai was, and soon Fallen left along with Zafo. Urakai took a seat on the sofa to the left and rested his eyes from the long hours of scanning through the medical holograms. Just then, Fallen walked through the door in gleaming armour.

Urakai was the first to notice this a stood up, commenting on the appearance, "I guess the armor changed you immediately, just now I saw you jumping around in your trooper pajamas, now you're a new person under that shining white armor"

"It's the pride of wearing this armor Urakai, it's a feeling that you get when you sacrifice your life for the Corps." the Tech replied holding a firm salute, before retiring his position to at ease.

I've got to get me some of that Gleen.

Urakai soon stood up and walked down the hall passed the barracks to his quarters to begin packing. He entered the code on the digit pad and the door flew open to reveal his desk, the closet, bed and drawers. On his desk, the medical hologram was still projecting. Urakai rewinded it to the part he was up to and shut it down, dropping it into his drawer. While it was open, he grabbed his standard E-11 out and dropped it onto his bed with ammunition. Two ration packs and a medkit were put upright on his desk, so he grabbed them and put them onto his bed also. Then he opened the closet to reveal the fine white stormtrooper armor hanging in the back. He smiled because this was the first time it was to be used, so he grabbed it out and carefully laid it on the bed next to his other equipment. Last, Urakai saw, glistening in the light behind where the stormtrooper armor was hanging, two small, thick vibro blades placed on to the wall. With pride, Urakai pulled them off the back, and felt the grip of the handles. Once again, he was back on his home planet, about to engage in a duel with his old master...

There was 25 minutes left until the meeting, so Urakai picked up the white armor piece by piece, and strapped it to his body. Then came the preparation, as Urakai found two thermal detonators which he strapped to his utility belt along with the DL-44 blaster pistol, medpack and one ration pack. The E-11 he carried after filling it with ammo and placing extra clips in the pouches. Urakai then walked out to the lounge, carrying his helmet and E-11, which he found only Zafo and Fallen chatting in.

"Where's Sam?" Urakai asked.

"Preparing the briefing room. It hasn't been used in a while." Zafo smirked.

Urakai sat down, looking at his E-11, making sure the barrel was clean and as he was doing so, found his datapad inside one of his pouches. He grinned at the seemingly useless thing for a mission, but did not remove it. As a medic in the training, it was his duty to make sure he was properly equipped with whatever he would need for the worst.

Urakai looked down at his datapad, and saw the standard time for their area. It was time for the briefing.


-----------------------
Urakai

*Dark Dragoons*
ASL/CPL Urakai/2SQD/1PLT/1CMP/1REG/1BAT/Tadath/VEA [LoR] [RoM]

Sam waited in the briefing room, while the rest of the squad got all their gear ready. He paced back and forth in an excited fit about the mission. Every so often he would pause take a drink from his glass on the table and return to his pacing.

After two hours passed, the Dragoons began to trickle into the briefing room. The first to enter was Zafo. He entered rather calmly and took his seat and did not even notice Sam pacing at the head of the table. Closely following Zafo was Tech and Urakai. They both quickly entered and took their seats. And the last to enter was Twin Blade, who fumbled about as he entered.

Sam stopped pacing and turned to his squad mates. He moved slowly and methodically towards his seat and sat down.

"Our mission is quite different from the ones we have been on in the past. Mainly due to we already knew what we were up against. This time, we don't," Sam said slowly. "Along with this rather unknown opponent, we will be facing some terrain that we haven't before."

Tech fidgeted in his seat with the news of something new. "Goodie, another way I can show of my skills," he thought to himself.

"We will be heading to the planet Sesid. It is primarily an aquatic planet, which is obviously something we have not encountered before. There is some dry land, but it is island chains. We will be heading to the mainland of the governmental rule of the planet," Sam continued. "Once we get there we will be more informed as to exactly what we are up against. What I know of currently is that there is a group of people that are becoming a major thorn in the side of the officials there."

A hand shot into the air just as Sam finished his statement, "If it is mostly ocean then how are we going to get around, and how do these trouble makers get around?"

"Well, if you would let me continue, Tech, I was just about to get to that," Sam said rather harshly, "We are being supplied with an Amphibion aquatic transport craft, which will act as our transportation and our mobile base of operations. As far as the trouble makers go, they have acquired some Draedan technology. The Draedans are the native inhabitants of this planet and life in the water mostly, but have developed ways of quicker underwater travel."

Sam stood up and moved to a console at the side of the room. He flipped a few switched, hit a button or two, and an image appeared floating in the middle of the conference table. It was an image of three islands clustered together.

"This is where we will be going and it just so happens to be the center of this bothersome activity," Sam stated as he began moving towards the table.

"This island is the one home to the officials and general inhabitants." He pointed to the middle sized island.

"This is one is uninhabited due to the large amounts of volcanic activity." Sam pointed to the largest of the three.

"And this one is controlled by the Draedans as their military land base. No officials ever go to this one so as to keep on the good side of the Draedans," Sam stated pointing to the small island, which is only slightly smaller than the middle island, "That is all I have. Remember that we ship out in two days, so make sure you are ready to go then."

Sam was about to give a salute to dismiss the Dragoons, but then he remembered something, "Oh, one more thing. You don't need to wear your armor to a briefing, just for future reference." Sam through a salute to the squad and they stood up and left.

Sam waited for everyone to leave before letting out a long sigh of relief. "It has been a long time since I've done that," Sam thought aloud as he headed out of the briefing room and down the hall and out the barracks exit.

 
-----------------------
*DarkDragoons*


SL/SSG Sandwich Sam/2SQD/1PLT/1CMP/1REG/1BAT/Tadath/VEA [LoR][BM][GS][EW1]
The Dark Dragoons' Site

Durandal slowly stepped down the empty hallway, the raw recruit Darian walking with him. He was in full gear, but only cause it was convienant at the time, easier to carry. He looked up to see Urakai walking out a door and he smiled.

"Forgetting someone?" he yelled down the hall, watching Urakai turn slightly.

"Ha, I knew you couldn't turn down a mission." he replied. Durandal smiled at himself wider and hoisted his pack slightly, moving a little faster.

Darion went with Sam to get briefed, he decided to let them get aquainted before he talked with Sam about the details of the mission.

Durandal walked with Urakai down the hall and conversed with him, then got to the shuttle and stowed his things there, he greeted with Twin and Zafo, and after relaxing for a while, taking off some of his armor and stowing it away for later, making sure it was all in prime condition, he decided to go see Sam. He got up and headed back towards the building.

Durandal walked down the hallway, which seemed so small to him. He was wearing the bottom portion of his armor, and on his torso he just wore the underlay. He liked the skin tight fit that the underlay gave; it felt oddly comfortable to him. He stepped up to the doorway and knocked once.

There was no answer after a moment and so he knocked again. He stood back and placed his arms behind his back. After a few minutes and no answer he started to wonder if he had gone to the correct door. Finally the door opened and Sam stood there. Durandal saluted and Sam nodded, waving him in. Durandal walked in obediantly and sat at the prooffered chair.

He looked around the slightly bland room. At least bland in his tastes, there were a few pictures on the wall, a very strange looking plant in one corner, and medals in frames along the walls and on his desk.

"You came here just in time Durandal, we've just been assigned a mission to the planet Sesid, are you familiar with it?" Said Sam, leaning back in the chair slightly and watching Durandal.

Durandal nodded slightly, recalling what he knew about Sesid, "It's mostly covered in water if I remember correctly, and there is a native intelligent species." Durandal paused, thinking, trying to recall the name of the species; his brow furrowed in concentration. Finally he looked up and it came to his mind, "The Draedans, I don't know much about them, and I couldn't tell you what they look like, because I've only seen one picture of them, years ago. May I ask sir, what will we be doing there?"

Sam sighed and leaned forward, "The main officials... leaders if you will, have been bothered for the past few months by another group of people, he brought up a small image of it and Durandal studied it, he saw three islands, one large one, which was uninhabited due to volcanic activity, according to the key, and the one on the left was the residence of the officials, while the one on the right was the presumed outpost of the opposing... force, for lack of words.

 
-----------------------
Without our rifles and our brothers, we are nothing.

All right, they're on our left, they're on our right, they're in front of us, they're behind us... they can't get away this time. -Lieutenant General Lewis B."Chesty" Puller (when surrounded by 8 enemy divisions)
-----------------------
*DarkDragoons*
TRP/LCPL_Durandal/2SQD/1PLT/1CMP/1REG/1BAT/Tadath/VEA