Log:First Order: Fall of Kalarba Part III

First Order: Fall of Kalarba, Part III

OOC Date: March 14, 2019
Location: Kalarba
Participants: First Order: Kylo Ren, Artemis, Drath, Karys, Hadrix Rol, Saanvi, and Duke; with Knights of Ren Erisi Auslese and Oran Arcantael

"It was believed after the shield had fallen, Kalarba would surrender. They haven't." Kylo is addressing the operatives in hologram form once again. "I'd be there with you but there's been a sighting of the Force witch. Supposedly. You'll have to complete this mission alone." The Vanguard members and any Knight Assets are gathered in a mobile command center on the outskirts of the capital city.

Kylo's image fades out and is replaced by a map based on scans of the city with a simple route through it highlighted in yellow. "The planet's leader still believes they can restore function to the main shield. Your mission is to destroy what's left of the generator completely. While we could bombard it from orbit, a small auxillary shield that covers only the generator has been installed, and we'd waste valuable time. Instead I want you to take this modified utility vehicle and infiltrate the generator's facility and bring it down from the inside."

The utility vehicle looks a lot like a Light Infantry Utility Vehicle, but scaled up to hold their entire team instead of three members only. There's a space for a driver and a copilot, two gunners, and the rest seats for free-fire with regular weapons.

Drath is here, the Trooper strapped with a cord of detonite explosives around his armored chest. The kind that has to be activated before going live, thankfully. Lest a stray piece of shrapnel kill everyone. Or just Drath, depending. His helmet firmly in place, and his F-11D rifle held at an eased position, the Trooper looks on quietly as the mission is explained. "Copy, Supreme Leader." he provides over his external comms.

If he's shaken up about the mission the previous cycle, he doesn't show it, and instead turns once the instructions are given and steps over towards the vehicle. Swapping to his external comms, the Trooper slips his rifle around to maglock it to the back of his armor. <<Grabbing the gunnery position.>> And that he does, hopping up onto the vehicle and taking one of those mounted guns for himself.

Fatigue. Artemis feels as if she's moving through a thick malaise of klatooine pond scum. Its cloying, fetid filth laced with disease and bacteria somehow managing to get its scrabbling claws about her limbs so that each movement is a test of will versus nature. As a consequence, the Supreme Leader's lamentation for not being present only gets a cursory glance from behind her plastoid helmet, rather than a more aggressively quizzical tilt. Since when does he justify himself to them?

"Nine-Oh," Artemis intones over the comms as she rises from her squatted position where she was scrutinizing the guide for the powerpacks that insert in to the bottom of her rifle, "you're behind the wheel. Everyone else get in where it makes sense." For her, the spot she is more comfortable is aboard one of the free-fire seats. Her punctuation for this desire is found in the whine of her weapon as its capacitive coils shriek with the energy she forces to into it with a flick of a switch.

And like that Erisi hops into one of the drivers seats, tugging up her robes to get into the front seat, sleeves rolled up. A glance down to the controls as the woman puckers out her bottom lip, reaching under to try and fiddle around, "I ..I always see in the holomovies Jawas just ..do something under here and .." Nope, she ...she can't drive, "This'll be my first time driving /ever/, this is exciting." Fiddle fiddle, crouched to the side on her seat trying to figure out what goes where.

Checking each pistol and fitting a new powercell into place Karys listens as the plan is set into motion with layout displayed. One pistol tucked away, the other is set to ready and kept in hand as she looks up to Artemis and Drath. "Copy, ten-fifteen," she remarks and steps aside. Her hand reaches up to grasp at the side of the vehicle to hoist herself in. Once in place and securely tucked she pulls her other pistol free to offer cover fire for the group and mostly the gunner who is likely to be targeted.

A brief nod is given to Artemis as she settles into ready for the ride to the hit point.

<<"Copy lead.">> Hadrix looks to Artemis as she issues the order, head tilting again as he listens to the tone of her orders and studies her movement before he heads to swing up into one of the drive seats. Erisi's expression and her fiddling about eliciting a sigh he keeps his externals offline for.

"Knight, allow me please. You have much more important duties." attempting a little schmooze as he carefully moves to show the ignition sequence after adjusting the settings to neutral.

"Lead, on your order - ready to move." spoken over his externals before he sends a private comm.

Saanvi inspects the vehicle, slate eyes intent as she seeks out the 'modificatinos'. Noted is the weaponry and the frame and a hand yanks open a door, "Hello, Deathtrap. We would be most obliged if you refrained frm showing us any of your shortcomings." once settled she makes sure her helm is on good and snug and her gear's strapped in.

Oran is not a person who drives. Oran is a person who /has drivers/, and thus, he is studiously avoiding either the drivers' or the gunners' positions on this transport. Black clad as usual in hooded robes, gloves, he is perched watchfully in a 'free fire' position, though he lacks a weapon besides the sword? whip? he hasn't drawn. Listening, waiting, observing, though it seems to be Artemis who has most of his attention. Something watchful there, but inscrutable.

The transport hums up from the ground as Hadrix successfully powers it on, the vehicle specially built with the Vanguard in mind. In reality, this means it's slightly longer and some seats have been stuck places where there really shouldn't be seats, and some armor has been built up around those, but it's not a whole hell of a lot.

Nevertheless, they each find space for themselves in appropriate spots and get situated to surge forward into the city. Luckily, a heads-up display on the dash shows their route with a nice glowing line, an arrow at the end of it.

As the city streets start to grow up around them, it's oddly quiet. There is no civilian traffic and no military presence to be seen either.

Drath remains quiet up on that gunning position, his mount kept on a swivel as he gazes at the buildings and streets around them. It's quiet, but why wouldn't it be, this is a warzone after all! Noise gets you shot at. <<All clear up top.>> the Trooper announces, his gaze trailing over a billboard in the distance. <<Can this thing actually pass the shield, or are we going to have to go in on foot? Anyone know off hand?>> It's a decent enough question, he feels.

"Forward," Artemis grunts over the comms before she sniffs and settles her rifle between her legs. It gives her a chance to use her newly freed hands to lift her helmet and wipe her nose on the back of her arm. That brief glance allows those that are observant enough to note the flushed coloration to her skin and her matted hair speaking of sweat even before the Vanguard have gotten to the good stuff. Down goes the lid and quickly enough she becomes just another anonymous trooper: the face of the First Order's war.

Shouldering her rifle, its bipod settled on whatever's convenient, Artemis begins hunting along the horizon line and the buildings with a trained rhythm, allowing her eyes to lose focus and instead take in the entire picture. Along with the targetting computer newly installed to her rifle, it isn't long before she sees the flash of something that she is often mindful of not exposing herself: the glint of a sniper just like her staring at them from a rooftop in the distance.

"Contact! 2:00 o'clock." Artemis calls in to the comms, "we're rolling in to an ambush. Get ready."

Erisi is a sucker for schmoozin', though she does laugh in a sorta sweet way as she rolls her eyes, "Aaaaah, I wouldn't let me drive either, if I'm being honest. But, you know the Supreme Leader wants us to learn things outsida our circle of comfort, right? So I figured one of you helmets would drive, and I could learn, so .." Had, you are stuck with the chatty Kathy up front, still touching the controls, the computer programmer figuring at the very least this stuff can't be too hard, "Oooh lookit you, getting this baby goin', yassss, Troopah Pow-ah!" Her voice deepens on the last two words, and as if she has the gift of timing a button touched along with another causes the vehicle to begin bouncing up and down on the front end like a Hutt Mobile trollin' through the streets of Nar, "Ha ha ...like Moon Royalty .." She bounces hard in her seat with every down motion of the front of the vehicle, hearing Arts' warning, hands flying up to tug her hood forwards, half-twisting in her seat, the kindness of youth keeping her from putting her back out with each bounce, left hand pressing in against the window on her side of the vehicle. Hazel eyes are scanning for a target, the freedom of driving now put to the back burner.

In an armored seat, Karys presses her foot forward into the grated floor and twists her hip to undo the other pistol from it's holster. The general movements are ones to get herself situated so that she can ready to fire and thus is distracted from the current vista. Her head is still turned down to be sure her pistols are set to kill and not stun and then she is lifting to she can set her knee to the seat and lower her foot beneath her backend to give her a bit more height. That other foot remains extended at an angle to wedge her into place and be able to take any unexpected shifts.

When she finally looks up her attention catches on something about manicures with its large view of a hand (probably from some unrealistic Hapan hand model) and then looks down at her armored hand to consider it. "Seems like they would get in the way...strange thing. And ...garish colors." This of course is observed in a mumble to herself. <<Not sure, Ninety-one. I might have been able to do some research but I am going to suspect it can.>> Or hope. Because the Supreme Leader would never leave them in the lurch!

Artemis' call for ready has Karys up and lifting her pistols clear and aiming to the two o'clock she searches for contact but it takes a moment. Finally she sights down the firt and begins to fire. At least she can point the direction he is in as she tries to steady herself.

Standing in the back of the vehicle, Duke reaches up to slide one of the firing panels out of the way so he can peer out of it. As per usual, the man is silent, but he does take a few moments to take a mental inventory of the other soldiers and Knights around him. He's the height of sociable.

Visor turning back to the port, Duke spots another form positioned on a balcony. "Second contact, ten o'clock," he offers to the rest of the squad, shouldering his F-11 and preparing for the inevitable call to open fire.

With the vehicle bucking and bouncing like the mechanical nerf at the Blue Light (where he actually holds a record...) the big man leans and shifts into the movements with a semi-natural ease. Frowning behind his helmet, Hadrix growls as he fights the command yolk.

"Not that button! Tha'" he looks when Artemis calls contact and Karys begins firing. He tries to reach for the same switches Erisi had struck but it's all he can do to keep the truck from bouncing itself into the side of the building as a little influence from Oran comes through,

"Bloody hell!" At loss for any other sort of expression of his frustration.

Saanvi is snapped from her oogling at some lifeform of abouter, her helmed head lifting and then scanning out a window but seeing nothing. A pistol is eased from it's holster onto a gloved gripp and powered on. <<Awknowledged, Lead. Medic on standby if required.>> Giving no intention of engaging. At least not yet though she does twist around in her seat to get a bead on where personel are.

Snipers. Enemy combatants appearing out of nowhere. Par for the course, there's a war afoot! "Steady on," he remarks, sounding relatively unperturbed so far as the vehicle bounces around under Hadrix's control like that darn mechanical nerf. "Stop the vehicle. There's a string, a cord... a filament of some sort across this street, doubtless to set off something unpleasant, and I'd rather it goes off before we arrive in its radius." Oran reaches toward said string, and from afar, gives it a tug.

BOOM!

When Oran pulls at the string, an explosion shakes the street ahead, spitting smoke out onto the street as the base of one of the buildings is abruptly blown from underneath it. It's not that tall, as skyscrapers go, but as it twists and falls into the path of their route ahead, the shrieking metal and shattering glass will doubtless prove a worthy obstacle nonetheless. At their current speed and bounce, the vehicle will make impact unless something is done.

Meanwhile, the rooftop sniper Artemis sighted opens fire, singling out the stormtrooper that took the first few shots for a scorching blast from the long-barreled rifle she has set up against the low wall meant to keep maintenance workers from falling.

Drath is snapped out of his observation of that billboard in the distance by the arrival of blaster fire and the call that there are combatants in the area. <<Copy, targeting sniper.>> the Trooper replies over the comms, the turret he's found himself on turning and letting out a stream of blaster fire in the direction of the sniper. Not that any of it finds purchase, however it's at least in the right area of where it should be. Mostly. The zip and fizzle of bolts fires out, scoring the low wall and surrounding area of the building she's set up in.

Meanwhile, the explosion that the vehicle seems to be driving towards causes him to duck, prematurely cutting off that stream of fire so he can shield himself behind the side plating of the gun mount until the immediate danger is over.

Artemis breathes heavily, each pull from her lungs labored as if she could no longer shoulder the weight of the composite armor wrapped about her person, but her rifle remains steady despite the bouncing vehicle. One booted foot wedges forward, the other aft. It's a tableau of a firing position vaguely reminiscient of the one she adopts while on foot but macguyvered to compensate for the shakey ride.

Beep! The targetting computer in her EZ-Snap finds her mark just as her gut instinct whispers of impending death. All it takes is a simple squeeze and her rifle screams, kicking back in to Artemis' shoulder where the stock's springloaded design dampens the recoil. Superheated plasma soars like a phoenix through the hail of glass to find the sniper's exposed flag and ravage armor, skin, and muscle with equal voracity. The heat vents from the fins on the side of the rifle as Artemis recovers from the kickback. The gentle clinking of glass on her armor is strangely peaceful - a melodic drizzle on the theatre of war.

It's too late by the time Erisi realizes the vehicle she's co-driving (read: not driving) is about to crash into a fallen building, her focus had been outside the passenger side window. With her hand on the window and trying to find through the windshield some sight on the targets Artemis' called out. A sidelong glance to see and judge where they're at and the full view of the building comes into view, "STOP US!" She calls out, left hand swinging from the window to slap down onto the console, but it's too late and CRUNCH. The passenger side window pops out into shatters and the windshield from the vehicle is similarly destroyed, sending shards of glass into the front. Erisi catches a few cuts, mainly on her forearms, and hisses out, "It can still drive--" And how does she glean this? Because it's still running. Vroom vroom bishes, "Hold on -" She's rollin' up her sleeves, gittin' ready to do ~something~.

Nothing like calling attention to herself. Karys' shots are a hail to the sniper and even as they go wide and do nothing she feels the bold and not moving fast enough she still moves to keep her chest from being hit. It means her left boulder receives the bolt with a flash and sizzle as it bypasses a good portion of the armor. Gritting her teeth behind her helmet she tries to settle herself, lifting her left arm a bit more lamely than before as she tries to slide in her seat only to feel the vehicle jerk a bit as they go careening for the fallen building. The glass does nothing to her, merely showers her and pings, bouncing off her armor harmlessly as she reaches out to brace herself.

Explosions, bouncing, blasterfire. "Kriff!" trying to bring the vehicle over before -KRUMP- that. Hadrix is thrown against his restraints, letting out a strangled sound that is either a string of expletives or possibly a statement of his current dislike for certain people, at this moment.

A moment to examine the readouts, and he is able to at least state <<"Lead... still functional. Somehow... Attempting to get us out of here.">>

Saanvi's gasp is heard through her visor of her helm. She lifts her arms up and braces her feet down trying to wedge herself in her seat bracing for impact. This doesn't stop the sharp grunt as she's rattled and shook as if she owes a hutt credits. As soon as they come to a stop she frees herself from her seat belt and without a single apology goes climbing and crawling over towards where Karys is and tersely requests << Injury Inventory?>> asking for those who may have suffered any injuries she might not have noticed happening to notify her. In practiced fast-draw motions she tugs on latex gloves and whips out a tool to cut open the armor to gain access to Karys wound.

Flush with sterile saline, bleeding identified, disinfectant and anesthetic applied before she begins to dig in there with fingers and tools to stop the bleeding. Bacta field dressings are hastilty applied and the armor is just glued back where it is in condition enough for this to be practical.

The melodic tinkle of glass in this theatre of war is somewhat less melodic when your face, your beautiful face, is not protected by a helmet. Oran winces against the onslaught as glass and debris rains toward him, one hand raised against it like it's going to do any good. It doesn't. He gets cut across one cheekbone but it's missed his eye, and after a fingertips-to-cheek touch to see how bad this is, he ignores the blood. War paint. "Keep your eyes on the other contact. Determine if they're hostile," he issues an order, then the short, physically unimpressive Coruscanti knight stands up to whip a hand out towards the obstructing rubble in a gesture like he's throwing dice. Huge chunks of debris, small piles of glass, pieces of wall, pipes still smoking with the exhaled remains of some very, very broken industry, it all flies out of the path of the transport, clearing its way. "Go to the generator."

The rubble shifts and slides and lifts out of the way as Oran's powers are on full display, the man's training as a Knight of Ren clearly paying off. With the path clear, the vehicle has a straight shot to the generator again.

But what's this? The random dude that Duke spotted way back when reaches down to the floor of the balcony and returns to vertical with a rocket launcher. No longer just a random dude, he takes aim and sends a high-explosive round careening towards the Vanguard's vehicle.

Rather than a direct hit, it's glancing blow that sprays shrapnel into the passenger area, where the medic and her patient take the worst of it, while the random dude (with a rocket launcher) starts loading another rocket into the tube.

Armored grip holding onto the side of the armoring around the turret, Drath uses it to pull himself back up, gripping the controls of the turret again as he observes the location the sniper was previously located. <<Ninenty-One, no injuries.>> he chirps out over the comms for Saanvi's benefit, a short, simple response to indicate his lack of injury. Swinging the turret back around to the front, the Trooper keeps an eye out in front of the vehicle as the others assess the threat level of the other man to port of the vehicle. <<You're getting pretty kriffing good at that.>> is commented over the comms back to Oran with his Space Wizardry.

Suddenly, however, there's a rocket launcher! Drath turns the turret, taking aim at the (Now) combatant and opens fire in the man's direction, the flying bolts of plasma careening around him in an uncontrolled area. "Kriffing... I may as well pull out my blaster rifle." he complains privately, but hopefully the drivers will get them out of immediate danger. Hopefully. <<Target is loading a second round. Focus fire!>>

"Copy Nine-Oh," Artemis croaks in response although the fact that they are still alive is proof enough that the vehicle is still mobile. But then there's a rocket and the trooper can do little but drop her rifle between her legs and clutch the railing like a ravenous Avril grasping with lethal intent for its prey.

"Krif-- agh!" Artemis shouts with more than a tiny modicum of fear for her mortal coil as the rock glances against the vehicle and sends her teetering. Her returned shot is panicked, whatever entropic effect she was suffering from earlier somehow dampening her instincts so she can not shut down all the chaos around her for a clean shot.

"One," Artemis snarls.

"//Rockets?!//" Erisi exclaims as she just caught the rocket flying and barely missing the entire vehicle, instead snaking in to hit the back where her new friend and her sorta new friend (she's never hung out with either outside of work) catch the brunt. Her plan to try and attack a dude is abandoned after she kicks the console to try to get the vehicle going on her way back in through the window she had just half-way crawled out of to focus. Instead she's back in, and with a few button touches she doesn't completely screw over the vehicle in it's entirety. The first kick though? Maybe they're bouncin' like a Hutt Mobile once more, "You know, we'd all be safer on foot as opposed to this clunker barely protecting us." Eri comments to Hadrix with some urgency, "Like, way safer, shoot as we go, hack into their shields and boom."

The collision of the missile is unexpected as it slams into the side where Saanvi is treating her. She gasps as her shoulder, injured as it is wrenches while the medic throws herself in the way. The motion shields Karys thankfully but not so much for Saanvi. Once the shrapnel stops flying she turns her head and grabbing Saanvi with one arm she carefully tries to lower the medic down to the floor. She lifts her one pistol and tries to squeeze off return fire but nothing hits.

Her attention returns to Saanvi and she bends over to look at the medic. <<Are you able to treat yourself?>> She grunts a moment, moving her shoulder that was addressed and tries to get them both into a position to help the rest. <<Do you need anything?>> Comes KS-0218's question to the group's medic.

"You shrakking..." Duke trails off, before he does his best to curl up into a ball that'll most likely send all of the incoming shrapnel into the less vital areas of his body. Noting that he's not damaged at all, the Stormie's head perks back up and swivels. "Optimal."

Hauling himself back up again, Duke props his rifle up on the open firing port and takes aim at the rocketeer. Grunting quietly to himself, the half-crazed bushman that is DK-4077 peers down at the scope and lets a bolt fly. Screeching through the air, the plasma connects with the assailant's right hip, seperating leg from body and putting an end to that particular threat. "Contact is down."

"Carking..." Hadrix drops down as the explosive strikes, arms folded over his head to protect his vitals before he looks to Erisi, "I agree...". He hears Artemis next, and inside his helmet his eyes goes wide. Another expletive is loosed from his lips, but he keeps his externals, and comms off as he wrestles

"Ground force, suggest abandon vehicle and proceed on foot, Knight is correct, we are exposed in this thing!" Already biting toggles and chinning another as preps to get moved out, sending another message specifically to 1015.

Saanvi shoves a mirror to Karys <<Hold this at precisely thirty eight degrees in my direction so I may see.>> As she works she recides elements on the periodic table starting with the heavy metals. As she workd and tends her own wounds her words increase in volume and the tone sears from between thin lips as if it were the most hateful vitrol as she pours her pain out her mouth "Praseodymium, Neodymium-worst metaphors! Promethium, Samarium, Gadolinium-" she arggghhhs in a hateful snarl while she works " I FORGOT EUROPIUM!!!"

Oran does not look as though he loves the plan of abandoning their vehicle, but he's warily rising from a crouch to get cover from rockets, rockets are not awesome when they are not your rockets. Both drivers vote to proceed on foot, and he seems disinclined to argue, climbing over the side of the vehicle and hopping down with a crunch of boots in broken glass. He presses his lips together briefly in a line, then remarks, "We're slower and we're vulnerable. Watch out." Then it's back toward the generator. On foot! "Conclude whatever is happening over there, KS-0218. She did her job so that you can do yours."

If they leave the vehicle behind, they abandon the nav computer that was showing them the route to the generator, but, how far can it be? The shimmery dome of the much much smaller shield is visible past the wreckage of the tower, after all, so, perhaps all is well with going on foot.

With the decision made, the Vanguard are able to filter through the broken building without too much difficulty and proceed on foot to within clear sight of the generator. No threats present themselves in the interim, and maybe they've already made it past the worst of it! Then again, can it really be true that the city is seemingly abandoned and left to the defense of two people?

At least around the generator itself, a facility the size of a small powerplant, three turret emplacements swivel, and uniformed guards are at the ready, arrayed to repel any ground force that should try to enter.

"More simulations." Drath mumbles in his helmet, keeping his comms off for that comment. <<At least we didn't blow up.>> Yet. As the group seems to decide to proceed on foot, the Trooper climbs up and out of the turret, sliding down the side off the vehicle and landing on his feet with a thump on the street below. Rifle being retrieved from its maglocked state at his back, Drath brings it to bear, proceeding to step ahead of the vehicle so as to fall into their standard formation once everyone has come out and about.

Upon approaching the structure, Drath lowers to one knee, keeping his rifle at an eased position as the Trooper gazes across at the structures with an appraising hum of thought. Glancing down to the charges around his chest, the Trooper takes a moment to examine them for any compromising issues, and ascertains that <<Huh, they seem to have given me pre-activated charges. Regardless, I'll need to get inside to figure out the best way to bring this thing down.>>

Artemis jumps out of the vehicle and lands with a crunch, her fist colliding with the ground as the clatter of plates and the weight of her weapon bring her to her knees. Rising then, she adopts a stomping gait and slogs along as she brings up the rear rather than ambling for the front. Her weapon is lowered slightly, cradled in her arms with the business end towards the ground.

When the structure comes in to view, Artemis also drops to one knee but it's a resting position rather than being done out of any desire to free up her eyes to peer at the situation. For now, she's content to leave the considerations to her squadmates, breathing heavily behind her helmet.

It takes a brief moment for Erisi to realize they're all actually following her idea. Long enough in fact that most people are out of the vehicle before she's looking over to see where Hadrix is and make some comment to him about how she can maybe rig the vehicle to work on auto-matic, but he's gone. Hazel eyes blink thrice, eyebrows raising up, "Well, lookit you Knight Asset." Some pride is in her voice, the door opened and woman sliding out, her robes picked up as she shuffles forwards to keep pace with the others, and catch up.

Finally when they make it she says breathlessly, "Oh, guys, I got this, I ..I may have accidentally dated a weapon before so ..hold on." She got this. Straightening up, left hand raising up to fiddle with her bangs to fix them, she's soon dropping the hand once she looks cute and reaches out towards the turrets, lips screwing to the side as she uses her witch powers to communicate with the dangerous machines. Lips move as she softly whispers to herself, or rather to the turrets, head tilting to one side at a point, eyes widening as if she's saying 'no duh'.

Beyond them the turrents will seemingly turn to each other as if confirming something, perhaps reaching a consensus, robo-like shrug as they raise and drop down to normal positions before they begin to fire on their own people. Erisi's lips part into a wide smile, "I owe them some good oil, but ..they're causing enough of a scene for us to get the jump on the organics." So PROUD of herself, shoulders rising and dropping to and from her ears as the guards yelp and jump/hop trying to avoid the wild fire - it's not insanely effective at KILLING them, but as a distraction it's proving helpful.

Oran's call for her to step back from helping Saanvi is answered only after the medic takes the time to try to treat her own wounds while Karys holds the mirror. That done she offers it back to her and then rises, extending her own hand down to the other woman. <<My thanks.>> Once the two are off the ship she checks her cells, weapons and is on the move with the rest, a set to her walk as the under glove of her armor is torn open at her boulder from the treatment given by the medic.

Their new position with the shield in view has her dropping out of her side and adjusting her armor at her shoulder a moment - that moment is long enough for Erisi the fire witch to work even more strange powers. About to call out that she lower down so she is not standing the sudden movement of the turrets quiets KS-0218 turns her head to watch as they start a shower of friendly fire on their own and she starts to lift her pistols. <<Permission to engage>>

Coming to a stop along with the rest of his squadmates, Duke hunkers down and takes this moment to catch his breath. War is hell, after all. Even if you're winning. With the safety toggled on, Duke uses his rifle to prop himself up, waiting to hear what everyone comes up with. Then Erisi's just getting down with her bad self and handling the whole thing. Duke will lift his hands awkwardly and give the woman a round of applause.

Surveying from the ground, Hadrix frowns in consideration, mouth a tight line. Datapad out, linking it to his suit he begins tapping while sending out to the vanguard... and the Knights, those with HUDs getting route markers, those with datapads getting GPS points.

<<"Ground force, sending route. Circle counter-clockwise - pastry shop, ingress silent - Ninety One can make a door inside there with obfuscation from observation while we stack up and take them by surprise">>. Looking to Erisi now, head popping back slightly, "You are my favorite." Busting out one of Domino's phrases.

He turns slightly, looking to Artemis, her gait, what of her visible demeanor he can make out through plastoid shell,

<<"Ten-Fifteen, you're in the center, Seventy-Seven, on our six, overwatch. Feed Ten-Fifteen firing points as neccessary. Eighteen, Eighty-Five, with Ten-Fifteen. Milady">> He pauses, and decides that Oran knows what Oran does. <<"Behind me, and Ninety One if you would honor us.>> Schmooooooooze. <<"Ground squad execute.">>

Saanvi gives up, she can't reach her wound and there's too much going on. She stows her gear and seeks cover with Karys. Disposing of blood-stained latex gloves and yanks her blaster from it's holster. << I think I might be going into shock did someone just say 'milady? Did they mean malady?>> She exhales <<Medic bringing in the rear.>>

Pandemonium breaks out at the front of the facility, but not many of the guards actually fall to the turrets; there's a scuffle, to be sure, and a few take hits, but after a few moments of outright consternation and confusion, they manage to get the things shut off. Deactivated turrets cannot shoot you.

There is indeed a pastry shop abutting the facility, via which the strike force could make an incursion. The inside of the pastry shop is, like almost everything else they've encountered, empty, and otherwise resembles a totally standard shop where pastries are purchased at a counter and there's limited seating to consume them. From the outside, it appears the access point would be somewhere on the wall behind the counter.

Watching as pandemonium breaks out amongst the personnel with those turrets, Drath grins behind his helmet, commenting <<Nice distraction.>> over the comms, supposedly to Erisi, considering she's the one who caused it. Turning at the wait to gaze back at Hadrix as he lists off the details of the plan, the black visor trails over to the indicated pastry shop, a sharp bob of the helmet being given, along with a <<Copy, Nine-Oh. Moving to create point of ingress.>>

Pushing up from his knee, Drath keeps himself low as he starts off in the direction of the pastry shop indicated. The distraction seems well enough to get him there without issue, and once inside the Trooper steps around behind the counter. It's a wall, it's not exactly a huge deal, and as such only a small stick of detonite is tugged from his bandolier. Magnetizing it, the explosive is stuck on the wall and the Trooper steps back. Turning his attention back to the others, he pulls a detonator out of his utility belt, and once they're all in place, he hits the button to cause a building-shaking /BOOM/ as a portion of the connecting wall is blasted down with ease.

BOOM goes the ...detonite. When the smoke and rubble clears, the Vanguard are left looking in on the interior of the shield generator facility, where the delicate workings of the generator are exposed, and staring back are the eyes of four very large, very gruff mechanics who've been equipped with riot gear and the biggest guns that the local police force had left over. "ALRIGHT, BOYS, LET'S SHOW 'EM A KALARBA MILITIA!" one yells, a barrel-chested man with a mustache that may actually be composed of the same material as a push-broom.

And after yelling that, Havgro Stouts of the formidable stache runs toward the front of the facility, slamming through the front door to warn the others. "THEY'RE HERE, BOYS!" Not like they didn't know already.

"It's so kriffing hot," Artemis whines to herself as she changes the parameters of the climate control within her armor. She has been paying attention, despite her faltering step, and her visor slides from side to side as she surveys the battlefield and the faint hiss of cool air between her under armor and the plastoid composite lends to the backdrop of the theatre.

<<Plan's sound. Let's give them something to pay attention to then.>> Artemis commands over the comms with forced fire, trying to dig deep to keep her muscles driving and her legs beating against the ground like pistons as she vectors in the opposite direction of Drath at a flat run. Even floundering as she is, the trooper circles clockwise and hunts for cover before skidding to a halt. Hefting her rifle's bipod, the weapon vampires power from the cell on its underside to charge the capacitative battery along its body. <<Fire at will!>>

Artemis starts things off with a shot but it may as well have been a flare as it zips harmlessly in to the shield. "Two."

"...." A moments worth of consideration to Saanvi's assessment, "No, I think you're right, I'm more of a malady than a, you know, Mi-lady. Or an ass. /Ass//et/." Ha ha. A soft snicker at her own expense, "Who can't drive!" Whisper. She's stage whispering this all, reaching up to touch her ear to fiddle with her ear comms. It's on, right? To the pastry shop she follows, one hand hefting up her robes as she hustles along, darting into the shop. The array of treats on display is too much of a draw, and eager to escape the awkwardness she feels over being complimented by the others (and set right by Saanvi), she'll stop near the front of the shop to pluck up a display case HUGE cupcake with bright blue frosting and little jawa shaped sugar bits, a delightful marbled cake hidden beneath said icing.

As Drath explodes the wall she peels back a bit of the wrapping at the bottom of the cupcake, hunching over with her back to the explosion, robes and hair flying forwards as she's rocked a bit, the momentum helping her to get a firm bite of her cupcake, "Rfff-"

She mutters round the bite, turning around to lift up her free hand, keeping hold of that cupcake as she chews, veins once again getting a bit glowy along with dem eyes, a coy smile touching those lips as she continues with her cupcake as she sets her gaze on Rott. A flex of her fingertips and a gentle push with her palm, a lick of her lips to rid them of icing and crumbs playing on the fleshy bits as Rott erupts into flames that start within his flesh first only to extend out to his clothes, a living torch who is no doubt screaming at the top of his lungs before he drops dead from shock and the loss of his largest organ, "Highly recommend these!" The woman offers to the others around another bite, refocusing to see whom else there is in the way of their intended target beyond the exploded wall.

Moving into formation off Artemis' left, Karys is quick, crossing the distance with the group as 1015 takes lead. Pistols at ready she sets her stance as the detonation goes off and out come their own targets. The soft patter of dust and bits falling from the building on the outside are an accent to the din before their targets speak. She picks the one that Artemis sights in on. She narrows her gaze beneath that helmet and squeeze off one shot which does nothing, going wide when she curses inside her helmet.

The second is even worse and then out goes the pistol in her right hand as an ebb of frustration sparks her focus and the next shot hits, flaring to smack against the leader with deadly intent as it sears through his armor and she attempts to make good on the issue to fire.

"Copy," Duke says, nodding to Hadrix's plan. Following along like a good little soldier. He'll slide into cover near Artemis and ready a shot. His breathing is slow and controlled. With Arty and Karys focusing on the big hero man, Duke takes aim at one of his lackeys. A pull of the trigger and a superheated bolt of manufactured mean goes sailing through the air to smack right into the enemy's crotch. Blood and offal goes splattering all of the ground behind him as the top half splits away from the bottom half. Gross.

Saanvi follows Karys, her visions becoming a bit spotty as blood leaks down her unpatched side-she keeps Karys in her field of vision like a goalpost. When Karys ifts her blaster so does Saanvi and when Karys target does't fall Saanvi fires. More a menace in general than to anyone in particular alas.

Rolling back at the detonation, Hadrix nods to Drath and then preps to open fire, even as Erisi does her thing and immolates some poor bastard. She eats during a fight... he can appreciate that. He'll live vicariously through her for the time being.

He leans around cover at her motion, rifle spewing plasma through the hole and into the control room. Its mostly blind fire, and the lack of aim is clear as he does little besides set the floor and the cieling alight.

<<"Ninety-One, tell me where you need fire.'">> Best to let the demo-expert to dictate that.

And the battle is joined, between the beefy maintenance men (wait, one of them is a woman, but she's also beefy and she is here to KILL), and the Vanguard. Out front, things are not going well for the defenders, but they valiantly return fire. Determined to stop the saboteurs despite the hole in the wall and the fiery death of a comrade, the mechanics fire back on Erisi and Hadrix.

Drath keeps himself on the other side of the wall, his arms both crossed over his chest as the firefight breaks out. As he'd said earlier, the detonite is /apparently/ already active. <<Kriff.>> the Trooper curses over the comms as those shots come out and hit both of the other parts of his ingress team. <<Just keep their fire directed away from me, Nine-Oh, I'm going to set the charges.>> Surely this isn't all of the militia. They have to be somewhere. Best to get in and out as soon as possible. Pushing himself up from the wall, his rifle cradled against his chest in such a way as to protect the explosives, Drath turns as soon as the enemy finish their current volley.

<<Keep me covered!>> With little to no hesitation, DL-1991 turns and runs out from behind his cover, crossing in between the firing lines of his allies and his enemies as he rushes to the side. Ducking around a machine, the Trooper soon emerges next to the shield generator, and begins to rush around it. 'Tink' each charge goes, as they're each maglocked to the side of the generator. He's not running fast enough to provide himself effective cover, but he is fast enough to get it done as quickly as possible. Maybe having them pre-activated was a blessing?

Artemis' vision tunnels as she keeps trying to pin down the higher ranked trooper on the opposite side of the field with one shot after another. Each squeeze of the trigger is met with another screech from her weapon, its recoil pounding back in to Artemis' shoulder before venting heat out the side to prepare for yet another shot as each flies just short or wide of the target. Each miss is an affront and the woman's frustration mounts but she does not get angrier. Instead, her head shakes as if trying to dust off the cobwebs and she swallows hard, gasping for breath.

"Three," Artemis rumbles under her breath before allowing the rifle to tilt back and hit the ground, teetering on its bipod as if it were a seesaw. With a flick of her hands, she scoops the weapon back up and presses it against her shoulder once more, edging the targetting computer's vision towards another target.

Savoring the cupcake she will, that is Erisi will, track Drath as he dashes out to set the charges, mid-air bite to the cupcake to finish it off before she's shot in her shoulder, the shot sending her stumbling back into the display case in the window behind her, sending cupcakes flying and icing to dirty her robes as she's forced to sit back heavily, left arm useless and the remainder of her cupcake on the floor, having landed paper-down, meaning it's retrievable after, "Why can't you do the SMART THING and just RUN." The usually amicable Erisi is ANGRY and in PAIN, and she does this adorable little scrunched up nose thing with a screwing of her lips to one side as uninjured hand darts out to set the woman who shot her on fire.

This is her first real injury ever, and she's not sure how she's still alive, but she's too pissed off to really mull over that, remaining where she is and readying to send those flames higher around the Big Boss Lady, helping to protect Drath best she can.

Karys is close enough to hear Artemis speak below her breath: counting. 0218 says nothing as her pistols remain trained upon big bad leader who already carries one of her bolts. This time? Again one. She squeezes off her rounds, muttering to herself. Maybe she is counting inside that helmet, in any case she keeps close, dropping the target as she swings about and aims down at the Sargeant beside him - TOO FAR.

The bolt goes wide enough and she might actually be letting out a vexated sound inside her helmet.

Catching a blaster bolt to the gut, Duke hits the ground. Clutching at his stomach, the soldier pulls a blood-soaked hand away and looks it over. Uh-oh. Felucia flashbacks incoming. "No..." the man growls, pushing himself back up to his feet. He's wobbly, but not dead just yet. A guttural scream crackles through the man's vocoder and he stands up straight, firing a duo of shots toward the remaining shoulder. The first one streaks by close enough to give the man a haircut, the second smacks him right in the gut. Tit for tat.

Not quick enough to get behind cover before the defenders shoot back, Hadrix is caught full in the side of his mid-thigh. Molten metal spraying out of the impact zone like glittery rain before the smell of cooking meat and vaporzing blood hit the air.

His comms turning off at the sudden volume, the big trooper is roaring in pain as his vision starts to white out. Hadrix hits the ground, hard, teeth gritted as he fights to lock the agony out of his consciousness. Slamming his helmeted head against the ground, to distract from the greater pain in his leg.

<<"Copy... Ninety-One - Providing cover">> grating it out as he lurches upward, forcing his right leg to bend, calling out in raw pain as he leans from cover, plasma spraying at the one who wounded him, soaking them in liquified fire.

The combat continues, but what the burly mechanics failed to recognize in the midst of all the literal fire was the most important happening of the operation: Drath running in and planting a bomb on the delicate machinery that'd already been half-fried by yesterday's Falling Star. And so it is that the reserved amount of high explosive put into place explodes, with a deep, throaty -thud- that shakes the facility walls, and instantly a wave of shrapnel is propelled out from around it, hot on Drath's heels as he runs back to the safety of the pastry shop. The pair still defending it were on fire already, and the explosion does not make matters any better for them. Those outside turn to stare with horror back at the sound of the explosion. The defense had failed.