Good lord, the weather has been terrible lately. Tanus thought as he checked the reports on his computer. His recent venture to Strak with the rest of the Stormtrooper Corps had left him no worse for ware, but he was beginning to feel the mission in his body: the nightmares had been hellish and he couldn’t get the barren, irradiated wasteland out of his head. As he pulled out a glass and a bottle of scotch, Riqimo walked in with a folder and several datachips. Tanus moved frantically to put the bottle away, but Riqimo just waved his hand and smiled.

“Oh spare me. Offer your PC a drink and we can get started.”

Tanus pulled out another glass and put ice cubes in each glass. He poured some of the brown-amber liquid for both Doc and himself. Doc took one sip and winced a little; he wasn’t used to Onderonian scotch whiskey. Tanus merely chuckled and took a large sip from his glass. It burned all the way down – he had missed that feeling. He put his glass down and folded his hands across his chest, staring at Riqimo.

“Well, what do you have for me Doc?”

Doc slid the file across the table to Tanus, and it came to a stop right in front of him. The datachips soon came after.

“About a day ago, we received word of visiting Imperial dignitaries to the planet Balmorra. This is very important, because Balmorra is a neutral planet. The dignitaries are there to sway the populace into joining our cause, but unfortunately some of the populace doesn’t see it that way. To answer them in a sense, they have started committing various acts of terrorism around the city. Now the dignitaries will be there one more week, and it looks to be all-out war of they don’t leave sooner. There have already been some attempts on their lives, but no one has come forward to claim responsibility. The local security forces have declared martial law, but that doesn’t seem to be helping, and they are getting bogged down against the people. They are trying their hardest to keep the peace, but that has all but dissolved at this point. Now, this is where my work ends and Blackjack squad’s begins. I want you to take your men to Balmorra and act as a bodyguard and Special Forces detail for the local forces and the dignitaries. Keep them alive at all costs, but most of all try to maintain order as much as possible. And now I leave this in your capable hands.”

Tanus and Riqimo saluted, and then Riqimo left the office. Tanus sent out a squad-wide message:

Meet in the ready room in twenty minutes.

--- --- ---

Soon all of Blackjack squad was in the room, and they were ready to explode with anticipation. Tanus stood off to the side of the holoprojector, juggling datachips in his hands; Alater was busy lighting up another cigar. The others were getting restless. Tanus stepped forward and all fell silent.

“Good morning gentlemen. And welcome to the new Blackjack squad. Now, as you may have guessed, we have a mission, so let’s cut to the chase. About one week ago, Intel reported Imperial dignitaries on the planet Balmorra. Balmorra is a neutral planet, and they like it that way.”

Tanus popped a datachip into the holoprojector, bringing up a recording of rioting citizens.

“This has been the reaction of the people for about a week now. They really don’t want these guys there, and have even gone as far as to try and kill them. Other than that, martial law has been declared, and the local forces are doing all they can to try and maintain order, but that is a battle uphill. Having said that, there has been blood lost on both sides, and both sides want a resolution as soon as possible. Unfortunately, they seem to have different views on how this should be fixed. This whole debacle has pushed the planet to near civil war, and its making headlines everywhere. So, here is the reason we’ve been called in: we are to act as both a bodyguard detail for the dignitaries as well as extra muscle for the local forces."

"Now, when I say that I mean cooperate, but only take orders from Alater and myself; you are still my men and mine alone to keep alive. This both entails keeping watch over the dignitaries at all times as well as going on patrols and keeping the populace in check during the day. Now, the dignitaries will be there for about one week more, and we need to keep them alive until this thing evens out, so we’ll be taking our squad standard only; I don’t need any cowboys on this mission. We will be taken there via a Cygnus spaceworks shuttle with our full gear, because I have a feeling that this will get dirty quickly. Now, speaking of gear, I have some things to show you. Follow me.”

Tanus moved for the door on the right and punched in a code and it slid open; the others fell in single file and followed him in.

“This is our gear, boys. We have urban camo Shocktrooper armor, two E-HWB cannons and one Starcat grenade launcher. But now we have the personal weapons.”

Tanus unveiled three very shiny new weapons from inside of a crate.

“This is the R-88 Suppressor rifle. It’s an anti-riot weapon, so it fires non-lethal rounds that knock the target out. If we do need killing weapons, we have the E-11/F and my personal favorite, the Merr-Sonn taser stave. Both of the aforementioned weapons have a stun and kill setting, so if it’s necessary go full power. But of course, we have one more little number.”

Tanus pressed a button on the wall and parts of the wall opened, revealing a very dark and very large mass of shadow. Tanus flicked another switch and lights came on, revealing a rather large repulsorlift vehicle.

“Gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to the Strikebreaker air platform. This thing is armed to the teeth, and will be our friend for much of this mission I am guessing. It has enough room to carry all of our gear around, including us, so we’ll be fine for transport.”

Tanus turned around to face the troopers one at a time, straight in the eye.

“Gentlemen, this mission is very important. If we succeed, the Vast Empire will net a new ally; failure is not an option. We leave in one hour, and the trip itself will take five. I suggest you take snacks and something to entertain yourselves. Dismissed.”

OOC:

Well, boys, this is it. Someone post us getting on the shuttle and we're good to go. Its a five hour trip, so please post something.

*Clang!* rang out thru the transport as Tank let his spacer's chest hit the deck, before sliding it into the underseat stowage.

Garryll notes the third trooper to arrive is already in his urban camo Shock Trooper Armor with all the assigned gear in place.

*Addressing Gates* "Forgive me, Sergeant, but what is it with you guys & death sticks?"

"I can't speak for the others, but it relaxes me.  Why do you ask?"

"I don't understand how people can enjoy poisoning themselves.  As soldiers, we should make every effort to maintain our second most important weapon in best condition possible."

"But if you're saying our body is our second most important weapon, then what is our first?"

"That's easy!" says Alater as he boards the ship, "Our minds."

Noting Alater & Tanus elect not to comment on their smoking habits, Tank drops the subject & pulls his personal datapad from his utility belt.  He didn't get to know his squadmates in the Dark Dragoons; he and Alhzen were last-minute additions as other troops were rotated out.  The mission was happening so fast, there was no time to really bond, but they did earn his respect.  The rest he figures will come in time

Orobos asks "Is that some kind of GameDroid, Tank?"

"No, Sergeant.  I cobled together primers & sims to familiarize myself with the Strikebreaker Riot Control Vehicle.  They didn't have those at either Academy, and I like to know my vehicles."

"Well, now I know why they call you Tank!" exclaims Garryll.

"Thats part of it Sarge; the rest it how much has to hit me to stop me.  Nickname from my friends at the Corellian Miltia Academy, and it stuck.  Unless Tanus wants to drive I'm the default driver, as the Vehicle Specialist of the Squad.  Alhzen is a tech & could co-pilot the vehicle, and he's a Combat Medic.  But I haven't yet learned what everyone else's specializations are."

"Well, that's easy; I'm the Heavy Weapons Specialist; Orobos is a Combat Engineer (in traing?); Alater has completed his Heavy Weapon Specialist training & Tanus is (if I recall correctly) both an architectural & weapons engineer."

"Wow.  Most Impressive.  Good to know.  Well I geuss if he doesn't already, then by the time we arrive Sgt. Solvona will have planned who takes what duty on the Strikebreaker."

"So what else can you tell me about the Strikebreaker.  And call me Garryll."

"Okay, Garryll, the Strikebreaker, like the Floating Fortress, sports heavy armor of the same grade as what you find on the large walkers, such as the AT-ATs & AT-TEs.  Even Better, the Strikebreaker has more firepower than the HAVr A9 Floating Fortress!"

"Ohhh, yeeaahh..." Garryll says as lips stretch into a wide, evil grin...

"Hey, Alh!  What kept ya?" Tank asks as his fellow Dreshda-alum is the last to arrive.

"Sorry about that; I was only allowed to take a single flask of corellian ale.  So, Tank, not taking your upgraded Stormtrooper Armor?"

"We're not allowed to on this mission, Alh.  Though I suppose it makes sense politacally."

"How so, buddy?"

"A lot of the modifications we can make to our weapons & armor are illegal in most parts of the galaxy.  This mission, more so than the last Dragoons' mision is politically sensitve; they both were."

"Hmn, I think I see what you mean."

"I admit I was temped to modify the Shock Trooper Armor, but that would've only made the quartermaster prissier than a 3P0 unit, then charges would go up the chain of command until Riqimo has to come down to personally kick my can; you get the idea..."

"Um, yeah..."

Noticing no other troops boarding the Cygnus spaceworks shuttle he asks, "Sgt. Solvona, there's only 6 of us.  The Strikebreaker needs 9 troopers to operate at peak capacity and can carry 40 troops.  Shouldn't there be a lot more troopers on this mission?"

Tanus stood in the hangar bay, waiting for the squad to get here. As it turned out, they had a trooper added to their number last minute: Zolos. Tanus waited for him to show up before going over a last minute check of equipment and orders before introducing him.

“Gentlemen, I’d like you to meet Zolos. He is our newest trooper. Welcome to the family.”

Tanus gave him a slap on the back as he turned and made his way towards the shuttle. Alater caught up with him as Tanus made it to the ramp.

“You know, Tanus, its lucky that we got this mission. The boys were starting to get a bit restless.”

Tanus nodded. He didn’t say anything; he didn’t need to. He knew exactly how his men felt, because he was getting just as anxious. He took his seat towards the back as usual, and Alater sat next to him lit up a cigar. Tanus closed his eyes and started to doze. Of course, his squad quickly ruined this, as the malcontents quickly woke him up. Tanus got up and walked to where they were sitting; Zolos was abnormally quiet. I’m not surprised. It’s his first mission with a new squad. And this one is going to be a big one. He bent down low so that his head was level with everyone else’s.

“Listen, guys, its great that you’re hyped up over the mission and all, but so help me God if any of you wake me up, you’re getting shoved out the airlock. Understand?”

Tanus walked back to his seat and sat down; Alater started chuckling. Tanus merely shook his head and smiled a little as he drifted of into a dreamless sleep.

---Two Hours Later---

Tanus woke up to the sound of silence. He looked around and saw that the others had been either reading or playing cards. He looked over and saw that Alater was wide awake, merely glancing over every so often at the squad. Tanus got up again and walked toward where everyone was.

“Okay boys, I think its time you got acquainted with your equipment, so take out your gear and study it – hard. Take it apart and see how to repair it, stuff along those lines. I want us ready to move as soon as we hit planetside. As for me, I’m going to check our kit in the cargo hold.”

Tanus turned around and went back towards the cargo hold, which was a large interior lit by fluorescent lights. He went over to the two E-HWB cannons to make sure everything was there. He then moved to the Strikebreaker and ran a hand along one of the durasteel handles.

Good lord, this is going to be a long flight.

Zolos was sitting in the front seats, looking around. Everybody was a stranger to him, which was exactly what he was expecting. At least Tanus helped him make the first step in making friends with the rest of the team. He knew it wouldn't be hard, but he wasn't sure when he would make his first friend. He was also a little bit nervous about his first mission, although he was feeling ready. He then heard Tanus saying to the rest of the squad to experiment with fixing their blasters.

Nice idea, I've got the feeling I'm gonna need this, Zolos thought

He experimented for about half an hour and then saw some squad members gathered round a table and playing cards. They were talking and smoking, and a cloud of smoke floated over their heads. They were playing with money, so the game looked more interesting. They seemed to have fun. Zolos stood up to see if it was interesting to watch, but the smoke made it difficult to see, so he sat down again. The smoke could be seen spreading around and then entering the air recycling system like a stream.

Thank goodness there is air recycling in here, Zolos thought. He didn't like cigarette smoke very much. First of all, it made him cough, and he also knew about the dangers of being a smoker.

There was still plenty of time until they would reach Balmorra, so  he comforted himself in his seat, looking at the cigarette smoke flowing over him.

Tanus and Alater had been in the cargo hold for some time, shooting back stories between the two of them and ideas, talking about the squad making sure the equipment was in order. A few hours had passed, and Tanus could feel it in his bones: they were getting close. He looked at his chrono; it read 16:00. One more hour till debark, better let the men know, Tanus thought. Tanus put down what he was doing and looked over at Alater.

“We’d better get ready. We only have one hour till landing and debark. Run whatever remaining diagnostics you have to, and then come back to the main hold and get ready. I have a feeling entry is going to be a little bit bumpy.”

Alater nodded and started tapping some more functions on his datapad as Tanus walked out the door and saw that the squad was being loud and boisterous; apparently the lack of the squad leader had meant going on a verbal field trip. Tanus walked up to them and nodded to them all.

“Well boys, in another hour we’ll be planet side. Do whatever remaining gear you have to, because we won’t have a lot of time on planet to do that. Just letting you know.”

Tanus walked back to his seat and started checking his weapons and armor. He hadn’t put it on yet, and figured now was as good a time as any. He took it to an isolated part of the shuttle and started attaching armor pieces. When he finished he went back to his seat and put his helmet on the one next to him, facing the main viewport out. Alater walked back in at this point and took a seat, taking a look at his weapons. Tanus didn’t look up to really get a look.

“So, how did everything check out? Is all the kit accounted for, or will we be needing new toys come planet-side?”

Alater shook his; he was getting g into the warrior spirit now, and there wasn’t anything that was going to bring him out of it.

“No, we’ll be fine,” he said with a hiss. “All we have to do is make sure none of it gets burned out. But if it does, chances are they’ll have some cooling rods or power generators on hand. I mean, in all seriousness the shield generator should give it ample cover from whatever the rioters have.”

Tanus nodded; he wanted to be sure that none of his men, or anyone else, had to die on Balmorra. He had finished checking his E-11 when a message came over the comm system:

“We’ll be hitting the atmosphere of Balmorra in ten minutes. Secure all sliding gear for entry. Fasten safety harnesses, gentlemen.”

Tanus slid the extendable belt across his chest and waist, holding the E-11 firmly in his hands. His R-88 was strapped to the wall, and everything was in the cargo hold, help down by magnetic locks and lord knew what else. Tanus knew the kit would be fine; the question was: would he?



The entry into Balmorra was a tad bit shaky. More than a few times, Tanus had been jerked around in his. He looked at the others to see how they were dealing with it: Alter was sitting cross-legged, eyes closed and arms crossed across his chest. The others seemed to be hanging on for dear life; Tanus guess that this was their first planet entry in a long time, perhaps ever. Tanus was just happy he wasn’t free falling this time. Once they cleared the turbulence, they still had about twenty more minutes before reaching the capital city starport. The rest of the city had been closed off, and because of martial law, no commercial transport, save food stores, could enter or leave the city. However, the military had special access and Blackjack was landing smack dab in the middle of one of the riots.

Tanus got a chance peer through one of the viewports. Balmorra’s capital was a sprawling metropolis, covered by skyscrapers and buildings as far as the eye could see. Military police speeders were cruising all around the city. Out of the corner of his eye, Tanus could see two Z-95 Headhunter starfighters coming to both the port and starboard sides of the shuttle. Tanus looked to Alater and didn’t speak, but Alater knew why he had looked at him: They meant business. The fighters guided down the shuttle towards the city where the Cygnus shuttle landed in one of the docking bays. Tanus felt the slight lurch forward as the hydraulics let out a hiss as the gangplank lowered. Tanus nodded to Alater, and Tanus got up and grabbed his helmet and rifles; Alater followed close behind. The squad was silent as they made their way off the shuttle. When they reached the ground, they were greeted by a small contingent of soldiers holding A280 assault rifles. Tanus looked them over carefully: they were wearing full riot gear and looked ready to blow anything that moved away. Out of the back, a rather tall human male came forward and saluted Tanus; Tanus saluted back.

“Sergeant Tanus Solvona I presume?”

Tanus nodded. “Yes sir, I am. This is Blackjack Squad. And you are?”

The man folded his hands behind his back. “I am Captain Borsa Ventura. I am the head officer of the military forces in the city currently. I’m glad you made it. Its become an absolute nightmare here.”

Tanus nodded; he knew what the man was dealing with.

“Tell me the situation, Captain. I know that we’re being sent off rather soon as it is. Do you mind telling us what is going?”

The captain cleared his throat. "Certainly Sergeant. About three standard hours ago a bomb went off in the city center, wounding sixty and killing 13. The populace has become totally involved in sending these delegates from your government off planet, in a body bag if needed. We just don’t have the manpower to deal with them any longer. I know that we’re supposed to be getting two additional brigades soon, bringing the total military forces to ten thousand troopers, along with armored divisions. However, at the moment we can’t protect the delegates and keep the populace in check without spreading ourselves too thin. What I’m asking is that you take over as body guards units for the delegates.”

Tanus nodded. “Not to worry, Captain. Those were our orders from the start. We will of course cooperate with your men, but will act outside of your jurisdiction; we have separate orders and directives than you do. Also, I’ll need to borrow four men to help pilot our vehicle into the riot. Everything will be taken care of by us.”

Borsa nodded and motioned for four of his men to step forward. “These are four of my best. They will take your orders without fail.”

Tanus nodded. “Excellent. Thank you Captain.” He saluted and the Captain did so as well before leaving. Then Tanus turned to his squad.

“Gentlemen, this is it. We’re being called in as support for a growing riot near the city center, about two kilometers from where the bomb went off that the Captain mentioned. We’re taking the Strikebreaker in as added cover for the delegates and to act as support for if things get out of hand. Start loading everything onto the Strikebreaker. Don’t leave anything behind. The shuttle will come back for us in about a week if these negotiations go as planned. Let’s move gentlemen.”



It took about 45 minutes to load everything onto the Strikebreaker and to move out. Tanus was at the head of the vehicle, piloting it towards their rendezvous point. Everyone else had taken positions on one of the weapons mounts, with Alater manning the grenade launcher, two separate crates of grenades next to him: Tear gas and fragmentation. It took a few minutes to reach the riot from the hangar, but when they got there, Tanus’ eyes went wide: there were hundreds of thousands of people shouting and yelling against a wall of riot police and military police standing behind a barricade with the delegates moving behind them to an armored meeting area. Tanus moved the Strikebreaker low over the military police barricade, having the port side face out. He turned to Alter and nodded; Alter loaded a tear gas grenade into the weapon, but held his fire. Then Tanus turned to the rest of the squad.

“Blackjack squad, lock and load.”

Tanus heard the buzz of the blaster cannons charging up on the Strikebreaker’s outer frame. And then, somewhere in the crowd, the first bomb went off.

Orobos stood crouched low in the Strikebreaker watching out of one of the windows as tear gas spread amongst the rioting crowd with the occassional burst of a frag landing near the more trigger happy members of the crowd. All weapons on the side of the hull which was facing the rioters were manned. Orobos looked around when he heard Tanus yell over the roar of the weapons.

"Where the hell are you going you crazy lizard?!"

Alatar had popped the rear entrance open and now he and Zolos with a large package between them jumped out. Orobos looked out the hatch as they ran around the other side of the hull away from the rioters.

"Will I close it back up?" Orobos shouted up to Tanus,

"Leave it," He said,"Make sure no one else gets back in,"

"No problem," Orobos said smiling at the prospect of punching in some of the rioters faces.

Orobos looked around out the door to where the two had gone but wasn't able to spot them. A moment later however he heard the unmistakable sound of heavy blaster fire. Orobos reached back and grabbed one of the Tazer Staves. He switched it on and was greeted with a humming sound and the ends of the stave started to glow a lazy looking blue. The first of the rioters seemed to figure out that the vehicle where all the grenades and blaster fire was coming from had it's rear hatch open and exposed. Unluckily for him though Orobos had figured out which setting was kill and which was stun and was ready for anyone coming near the door.

The man holding a small slugthrower pistol in one had and a piece of piping in the other looked up at the large stormtrooper. He raised the gun and let of a round which pinned uselessly off the armour as though it was just a stone. He then ran forward grabbing the doorframe of the rear hatch he started hauling himself up. Orobos shoved the stave forward catching the man right in the middle of his chest. The man screamed then fell back to the concrete below. The other rioters seeing this surged forward. Orobos also watched as the same man he'd just electrocuted got back up and joined them. There was a hole in his shirt and it revealed a worn out-dated body protector. Orobos set the Stave up high and started jabbing wildly into the crowd around the foot of the vehicle.

A lot of the rioters fell but there were more to take their places. The heavy fire still coming from Alaters position signaled he or Zolos wasn't finished yet. Orobos jabbed once again into the crowd but before he grabbed it back about half a dozen rioters grabbed on to the none electrified end and pulled. Orobos lost his grip and watched as one of them turned it around and pointed in back towards the vehicle and started jabbing it into hulls weapons which were sticking out.

"Sarge, we have a problem," Orobos yelled back while pulling out his E-11, setting it on full auto started blasting into the crowd,

"Alater and Zolos will be back, hold them," Tanus said holding the shuttle in the same poisition.

Orobos half closed the rear hatch to decrease the amount of space which they could get in. Then turning around from a second he ran, crouched over to TX who was still launching grenades into the crowd and still had a crate of them left.

"Can I borrow one of these?" Orobos said and then without waiting for a response took a tear gas and a frag grenade out of one of the near empty crates.

Orobos ran back to the rear of the vehicle, where one of the rioters were just after climbing in and was helping another up. Orobos kicked the man in the back sending him flying out of the door. Then chucking a tear gas grenade out the door after him he watched as the red smoke began to consume the group. He'd save the frag to clear the crowd when Alater and Zolos needed to get back in. Far off in the distance Orobos could see the rioters at the end even though they hadn't been hit by anything started to run seeing what was happening to the rioters nearer the police, military and stormtroopers.

"C'mon," Orobos shouted lashing out into the smoke and catching one of the men in the neck.

In about ten minutes the tide had turned.  The Stormtroopers unleashing their own brand of chaos on the rioters with their Strikebreaker & one E-HWB cannon; those who could run were.  The crowd was clearing faster than the red gas clouds.

Seeing the others who dared to challenge the Stormies on the E-HWB were dead or seriously injured, the rest of the rioters near the vehicle thought better of it and ran for their lives!

Alater almost opened fire on them but discipline & training won out.  Waiting until the police and local militia had things under control (for the moment) Alater had Zolos help him repack the artillery.

As they returned to the Strikebreaker Orobos kicked a corpse out of their way.
"Enjoying the party, Sergeant?"

Alater merely smiles wide, satisfied, as he stows the E-HWB.  He lights a fresh cigar in victory as the hatch closes.  Tanus steers the Strikebreaker toward the fortified building holding the delegates.

As Tanus navigates the Strikebreaker around Riot Police & EMTs, some MPs help clear the way to the building's garage.  "Secure the vehicle & Move out!" Sgt. Solvona orders.  "Our first priority is to get the delegates to the Strikebreaker."

As Tank locks up the Strikebreaker Lance Corporal Alhzen sees a girl on the ground; apparently trample by fleeing rioters.  His instincts kick in and he runs to the girl as he automatically grabs a medkit from his belt...

"Alhzen!  Get back here, you fool!"

"I got him, Sergeant!" Tank says as he heads after Alh, his R-88 Suppressor riot rifle at the ready.  As Alh starts checking the little girl's injuries Tank spots a shooter on the next building taking aim with a slugthorwer rifle; Tank gives the shooter a nap with a blast from the R-88 Suppressor rifle.

"Alh, we have to return to the Squad" Tank tells his friend; Alhzen is focused on stabilizing her wounds.

"TOK" a cardboard tube bounces hamlessly off Tank's urban camo Shocktrooper armor.  "What the..." Tank turns to see a small group of teenagers charging him!

He drops two with the Suppressor rifle then switches to the Merr-Sonn taser stave.  The first kid lunges at him with a cardboard tube and Tank disarms him with a swift & firm whack of the taser to the boy's arm.

The next kid swings his cardboard tube like a sword and Tank stikes it with his taser; the tube breaks and the rocks taped inside scatter in all directions!  Doesn't even scratch the shockguard coating Tank notes as many stones patter harmlessly of his armor as he backhands the boy in the face with plasteel-armored-fist.

As the boy slumps to the ground, the next assailant breaks his cardboard tube (stuffed full of sticks) on Tank's helmeted head!  What the hell's possessing these kids?!?.  Tank taps his attacker on the solar plexus with the stun baton once; the kid goes down.

Alhzen picks up his patient & double times it back to the garage.  As Tank follows him a lone thug breaks through the riot police's barricade with a Tire Iron!  He charges Tank only to get clotheslined by the taser!  The unconscious man hit the pavement & Tank grabs the tire iron.  Could use this later he thinks as he heads into the garage; Orobos hits the switch, closing the blast doors.

"Don't do that again, Lance Corporal Alhzen!" Tanus barks out.  "We don't need heroes!  We need to protect the delegates!  Squad, move out!"  With that he leads the squad deeper into the building to meet up with the delegates.  With all the hovering holocams we saw out there, this will likely be all over the local media by tomorrow; I hope it'll be a good thing... Tanus ponders briefly before putting full focus on his suroundings...

"That was bizarre, Tank!  Did those kids think they were Jedi or something?" Orobos asks.

"Beats me, Senior Sergeant Orobos." Tank shrugs, "Maybe they were on stims or something."

"Cut the chatter, Tank.  Everyone, stay alert!"  Now it's time to meet the delegates...

Tank's comlink burst with static "Tank!  This is Tanus!  Get the Strikebreaker turned around & ready for a fast exit!"

"Yes Sergeant!  I'm on it!"

Changing channels with his tongue "Orobos, you and the keep the our flanks clear!  I've got the delegates; be ready to move out!"

With that Orobos & Gates used their respective E-HWBs to drive back the crowd some more as Alhzen & Zolos got ready to strip down the cannons.

As the building shook from another distant explosion and dust rained down, Orobos & Gates switched to their E-11/F rifles to provide cover as Alhzen & Zolos shut down & disassembled the cannons.

The Strikebreaker rumbled to life, rising off the duracrete, dust falling off.  The four local troops continued providing cover fire as the quartet of Stormtroopers loaded the cannons on the Strikebreaker.

As some rioters tried getting closer the MPs started tossing stun & tear gas grenades with abandon!

SSGT Orobos orders the four local soldiers aboard; as soon as the last man is on deck Tank rotates the vehicle in place.

As Tanus reaches the garage Tank is lining up the open hatch with the hallway; ignoring the delegates' complaints Tanus & Alater practically thro their charges into the Strikebreaker, then dash in themslves!

Alater secures the hatch as Tanus runs to the front, taking control from Tank; the rest of BlackJack are already manning their gunnery stations.

"Hang on!" is the only warning Tanus gives as he sends the vehicle into chaos at full speed!  Changing comm-frequencies again, "Captain Ventura?  Sgt Solvona here, we need a secure location!  Now, damnit!"

"We location Noble-Delta ready for you!  Here's the coordinates now!"  With the Tanus & Tank's HUDs turned the datastream into topographical & route data, superimposed on visuals of the vehicle's exterior; carnage and chaos in all directions.

Tanus made a hard right, following the course he was given.  Some of the bolder (or less sane) rioters try running in front of the Strikebreaker, only to bounce off the Stun barricade like ragdolls to land unconscious; more than likely minor injuries at least.

Tank increases power to the repulsorlifts, gaining some altitude; at ten meters Tanus lets him level out, clear or rioters and their makeshift barricades.

Things seem to go smoothly for a bit; but it doesn't last!  A repulsorlift Fuel Truck comes onto their route at high speed, aiming for a head-on collision!  The delegates scream in terror as Tanus & Tank work like madmen to make the Strikebreaker rise faster!

Not fast enough as the two titanic vehicles collide in mid-air!  The Fuel Truck explodes, swiftly blossoming into a fireball that spans the space between buildings!  Windows shatter on all the surrounding buildins.  Moments later the Strikebreaker soars clear of the inferno; blackened but undamaged!

Keeping at an altitude of 30 meters, they avoid further catastrophe and reach the base Noble-Delta and set down inside the walled compound...

Orobos sat in the strikebreaker as it sped off leaving the mob behind them. The disgruntled delegates were on board, straightening out their robes and grumbling at the way they'd been treated.

"I don't think that was necessary," one of the delegates said glaring at Tanus who had thrown him into the vehicle.

"Trust me," Tanus said looking out one of the windows at the rioters,"It was necessary."

"Hmph, easy for you to say," another one of the delegates said cradling a sprained wrist,

"You would've gotten a lot worse then a sprained wrist if those guys had got you," Orobos said to the man who stared at him,

"Lucky we got there when we did or that building would've been in ruins," Alater hissed,

"What do those people want anyway," one of the delegates said. He looked like the leader of them judging by how elaborately decorated his robe was compared to the others.

"They want you off their planet Alive or Dead. They seem to prefer the latter," Tanus replied bluntly still staring out the window of the strikebreaker.

"What the hell," Orobos heard someone shout before the vehicle was thrown wildly forward by an explosion but steadied itself straight away.

"What was that?" Orobos asked staring around,

"Oil truck," Zolos said looking out the back window.

The vehicle began its descent towards a large square which was completely empty apart from a squad or two of around two dozen of the local police. The vehicle set down and hovered about a foot off the ground. Orobos moved forward and opened up the rear hatch. Alater jumped out first, looked around and then motioned for everyone to follow. Orobos jumped out next and Zolos followed. Next the delegates came out and wandered over towards the local police who created a protective semi-cricle around them facing away from the strikebreaker. A tall broad shouldered man broke away from the group and moved towards Tanus his hand held out.

"Lieutenant Robert Garner," he introduced himself as,

"Gunnery Sergeant Tanus Solvona," Tanus replied grasping the mans hand and they shook.

"I was sent to help you and your squad to escort the delegates," the man said looking over Tanus's shoulder at the stormtroopers who were standing around the strikebreaker weapons raised ready for any threat,

"Ok," Tanus said nodding," Follow us and stick close,"

They moved across the square the delegates struggling to keep up encouraged to move faster by Alaters and Orobos's Large forms moving behind them. They heard them before they saw them. They could hear the rioters screaming and yelling. The air was punctuated with the sound of windows being smashed.

"Lets quicken the pace," Tanus said and started into a light run.

A carbomb blows up down the street, a few blocks shy of it's target...

Orobos kicked down the metallic door of a pawn shop. The clatter of the door hitting the ground seemed to have alerted someone in the next room as some random blaster fire came through the walls. Orobos crouched as low as he could expecting the attacker to be aiming around chest height. He ran into the room. There was a man standing there with a large cumbersome blaster rifle. He spun around and aimed at the him. Orobos kicked at a large wooden chair against the wall sending it flying towards the man and then followed up with a flurry of shots. The man hit the ground and Lay there motionless.

Orobos moved quickly over to one of the smashed out windows the glass littering the street. Taking up a firing position he stared out the window in the direction in which the noise of the rioters was coming from. A large group came around the corner alert and ready for action. A flurry of shots came from Tanus's position and Orobos watched as one of the rioters fell to the ground. Following suit Orobos fired dropping another one as the rioters opened fire on Tanus's position.

The rest of the local police that that were accompanying them opened fire and the rioters ran for cover. Orobos caught one of the fleeing rioters around the legs sending him flying forwards. The rest of the rioters after finding something to hide behind started to return fire.

The fire-fight continued on for a few minutes each side exchanging fire. Orobos heard a yell come from across the street and he looked over as one of the local officers fell a large burn mark through his armour. His rifle still clutched in his hands the man was still alive as he rolled over. His fellow Officers reached out pulling the man into cover. One of their number started to attend to the mans wounds.

The fire fight continued the rioters growing smaller and smaller in number. Their accuracy lessened as the group, which was growing smaller quickly, became more desperate. They started to run. Some of the police began to pursue but Tanus stopped them reminding them they had to protect the delegates and meet up with Alater and his group again.

Orobos heard Tanus give the order to get a building and clear it. He moved out and further up the street. He reached a door which was partially open and light spilled out onto the street flickering. Someone had lit a fire inside. Orobos moved in his E-11 raised. Whoever had been in the room was gone. Orobos searched the rest of the building but didn't find anyone. He moved back out into the street.

"Droid shop on this street cleared," Orobos said over the com.

OOC:

Just a reminder, please let at least one of these guys post, if not both. None of you are familiar with their characters and should give them a chance to introduce themselves and what not.

Alater looked down the street to his left and caught site of Tanus and Orobos running towards them. Tanus was making a double time down the middle of the street with the rest of the local militia, and Orobos was clearing buildings of interest along the way. Both of them seemed completely oblivious to the force of nearly sixty men barreling down on them from an opposing alley. Alater watched, and homed that the Comm call he had just gotten was indeed accurate. Otherwise his friend and Squad Leader were about to be fried.


"What are we waiting for?" A delegate asked, the one that had previously ran straight into the sergeant's back. Alater just hissed for him to be silent and adjusted his weapon on his shoulder. They were past the alley now, and had spotted the threat. Unfortunately the threat had spotted them and the mob was rounding the corner, Orobos and Tanus sprinting a good hundred meters in full gear in mere seconds to slide in next to Alater.

"What's the sit," Was all Tanus got out before his chest hit the ground and the wind flew from his lungs. Alater closed his fist and pumped once, motioning to the ground.

"Down!" He yelled for the sake of those that didn't understand what he was commaBnding. Alater himself dropped down to the dusty street and tried to get a fix on the sky, but just couldn't. The roar was approaching and the mob had obviously just seen their own death.

An entire payload of missiles exploded into the group. Followed up were blasts from the power turrets of the Dx-9. The specifically designed Stormtrooper transport roared in from low orbit, unleashing hell on the new retreating and more manageable sized mob. Both hatches were open as the ship descended the last few meters on its repulsorlift. A squad of snipers from the local police force was positioned facing the few stragglers of the retreating mob. Their leader hopped out and shook hands with Tanus.

"Good afternoon sir, I understand you've got some men for us." The man said, giving the squad leader a firm handshake. Tanus returned it in earnest.

"I'm very glad you showed up when you did. We've got the delegates and your men, all here in one piece, save a twisted ankle from a rather large push from my assistant squad leader." Tanus said, motioning more or less towards Alater and the afore mentioned delegate. Alater simply smiled a toothy grin and adjusted his rifle. Something smelled weird here.

The delegates and the militia forces of the local city all filed onto the vehicle. Alater had just started to explain how they were going to have to meet up with the group later because the area was too hot, when two people lept from the vehicle and headed for the squad. Both Urakai and Giovanni had smiles on their faces.