Log:Gambling With Guns
Gambling With Guns
OOC Date: July 2, 2018
Location: Ord Mantell
Participants: Devii Keva, Nova Korell, Jaya Kassis, Dawn Antilles, Jessika Pava, The Resistance
Salvage of Imperial-era war materials is big business on Ord Mantell. While most of the scavenged ship components go to pirates and smugglers through the black market, some is diverted to the Resistance through sympathetic arms dealers. One such crew, carrying salvaged capital ship power couplings, has gone missing. When they disappeared, a distress call went out to the Renegade from their supplier: find the missing crew before the Stormtroopers do, and keep anyone from learning of the Resistance's involvement.
Hours in Hyperspace later, and the troopers in their civilian shuttle behold the light destroyer Galica in orbit. The First Order ship scans the shuttle, and issues the typically terse warning to complete their business and leave the system immediately. Standard First Order procedure. Upon entering the atmosphere and starting toward Great Rock, the shuttle receives a prompt communication. <<You all got here pretty quick, that's good. Verify that we've got a solid encryption on this channel and tell me whether you want the good news or bad news first.>>
---
Devii is leaned up against the bulkhead to the bridge. She's got her gloves on, that jacket she likes to wear, and those CoruSex equivilant of first class blood stripes on her breeches. It's that Gloria Hoole persona she's adopted, and named now with those forged documents thanks to Astro and Normick. They might come in handy some day. "Bad news. Always Bad new first." Says the seemingly serious and stern Mirialan, a bit different from her usual persona.
---
Jessika Pava eases the lever on the shuttle's panel and reverts the ship from hyperspace to real space. There's a soft parting of her lips and a gentle suck of breath in through her lips as her eyes settle on a ship that could easily blow them out of the void if it wanted to. Gone are the usual Resistance colors she's normally seen wearing. This time, her flightsuit is nothing but a simple black jumpsuit that's halfway unzipped to reveal part of the synthfiber shirt underneath. Acknowledgment is sent to traffic control after the strict orders, and afterwards, as Jessika eases the shuttle into the atmosphere, she reaches over to one panel and goes through the familiar motions that had been shown to her to make sure that their channel is encrypted.
<<Bad news first, I guess.>>
Back in the hold of the shuttle, Private Vakla Naqurka is checking and rechecking a weapon, ensuring that the power pack is fresh and everything else is in order. There's nothing to distinguish the Private as Resistance, but it's obvious she's a bit nervous on such an important outing and mission. She nonetheless looks ready to go, and glances to the other members of the ground team as she waits to do her part.
---
Clad in body armor, Nova hovers behind the pilot seats, monitoring the comm traffic. "Just your typical Order hospitality," she observes supportively, noting Jessika's momentary qualm. "They shouldn't know us from any of the other hull rats around here."
She winces faintly at the mention of bad news, and nods in agreement with the other two women in the cockpit.
---
Jaya is lounging in the back, one boot up on a seat, her leg rocking idly, and the other planted firmly on the deck. For the first time since she'd join the Resistance, she was wearing her old Corellian threads. She of course had her blaster holstered, and wasn't playing with it mid-flight. She could recall an incident when one of the new CorSec nuggets negligantly discharged in the personnel hold and damn near injured everyone in there. Jaya's thoughts roamed past events while she waited, her hands cushioning the back of her head. She whistled softly, an idle habit for combat drops.
---
She has spent the flight over quietly watching Devii where she's standing, though the expression on her pale face is largely inscrutable. Dawn Antilles, naval officer and admiral's aide, is a particularly odd duck in the present party, considering her absolute lack of combat capabilities. But she is here regardless, dressed in a black jumpsuit similar to Jessika's, as well as a helmet, which she keeps to her hip and hanging on a strap. Her electronics rig is attached to her arm and her expression is tight, but determined, green eyes intent on their destination.
She waits for the bad news, even while she accesses her datapad and withdraws the brief report on what happened and why they were called.
---
The voice on the other end of the transmission answers promptly. <<Bad news: my people got grabbed by Lyra Toltek's gang. Bounty hunters, looking to cash in on a Hutt smuggling price on my team. Somehow they got the hunch that the First Order might be willing to pay more, and they've been negotiating a price with the Galica for the past hour. I've got their location in the low district, forwarding it to you now.>> The shuttle computer beeps with a received datastream between breaths. <<More bad news is that the First Order is starting to zero in on their position too, and there's a squad of Stormtroopers on the ground with some Light Infantry Speeders on the hunt.>>
A short breath is drawn. <<Good news being that you now have their exact position and the Stormies don't.>>
---
Devii listens for a moment, thought sparkling in those orange eyes of hers. With a finger to her chin she looks over towards Dawn. "Say we drop in, right on top of them. Take out the gang and blast out of here before the troopers find the location. Less that brain of yours has a better idea." Let's face it, it probably does. The Mirialan moves back to sit down as Jessika continues her flying.
---
Monitoring the panel, Jessika takes note of some interesting pings. "I think someone's trying to slice into our signal. I'm getting pings from a source in orbit and one on the ground, according to these metrics." Jessika glances over to Dawn, who knows way more about this than she does. She's just here to fly the ship and make sure they've got someone capable of getting them out of a bad spot if the shit hits the fan. It's worrisome that they're getting pings almost immediately like this, but there might not be that much encrypted traffic flying around. Jessika glances back at the communications system. "Oh, good." Jessika leans farther forward, and the movement causes something to slip free from the jumpsuit, hanging on a corded band around her neck. A green crystal.
Scanning for nearby landing ports, Jessika spies one that's close. Before she can even ask if they're going to land or try something more crazy, Devii suggests the latter. "You're the leader here. I'm just doing the flying. If you want to drop in right on top of them and shoot first instead of asking questions, we can do it. Just need you to make the decision."
---
Good news, bad news it did not seem to matter on these missions. Regardless of the news, she saw that the Resistance pushed forward regardless. It made them seem crazy, or like fanatics, or just willing to do what needed to be done. Jaya didn't wrestle with the implications of what if, like many of the others didn't. She just focused on the 'how to' of the mission and tried to keep up. Keeping up for now meant remaining where she was though. They had not quite landed, and it seemed like stress was already weighing down the air.
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"If they're expecting Stormtroopers to pick them up, they'll be looking for white uniforms," Dawn replies from her side of the transport, before she eases up from her sitting position to move towards Jessika and take a look at what she's seeing on the digital array. "So there goes our shot at pretending to be First Order agents and catching them with the element of surprise. They'll be wary right away when they see us, so your plan is actually more surprising. What's imperative in the end is that they don't know about the Resistance's involvement."
Unfolding her rig, she attaches a few cables on the console. "Though I don't know /how/ we're going to prevent that now with the kidnappers negotiating with the First Order. Already tells me that they suspect, unless they want them for some other reason." There is a glance at Jessika, and the small green crystal that slips out of her shirt. "Let me see what I can find out with these people trying to peek under our hood."
Slicing is definitely more difficult in transit, and as ones and zeroes spill across her screen, she shakes her head. "If I want to check it out, I'll have to be on the ground," she informs their pilot, plucking the cables away and pushing them back into the panel.
---
Nova keeps a quiet eye on the sensors. "Let's hope we can pull this out without disguises, then. Anyone know anything about this Lyra Toltek?"
---
The Low district is easy to find; it's at the base of the Great Rock highlands, where all the orange rainwater that runs off the junk fields drains. As the shuttle descends, details of their target become clear: amidst the ramshackle lean-tos is the legless shell of an old Imperial AT-AT; the bounty hunters and their quarry appear to be holed up inside. Even at a distance of over a mile, the stark white armor of Stormtroopers can be spied picking through the Low district, searching.
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Devii looks to Jessika but dosn't say anything, instead looking to Dawn as she explains her thoughts on the matter. "Alright." She says standing and moving back towards the bridge to get a look outside. She eyes the compound, and then something more. "They've a look out on the roof. Let's get in as close as we can. Not right on top of them, but as close as we can so Dawn can get to work properly and ahead of those troopers. Then we can deal with Toltek. Should only be four to six down there. Least, last time I ran into her that's how many she was traveling with." She takes a moment, shaking her head. "Something else might be going on here. Toltek isn't this smart... or this brave. She's mid level at best." That was going to bug her.
---
"So, shock and awe is the best way to handle this, it sounds like." Jessika is fine with the plan, even if she has her own reservations about it. This shuttle isn't a nimble starfighter, after all. But it's size might work to their advantage, in a way. "If you want to avoid them knowing, the best thing we can do is grab them as fast as possible. Just because someone picks them up doesn't mean it was the Resistance. We're using some pretty good covers and IFF spoofing, so I don't think there's any chance of that. I hope." All this secretive stuff is beyond her. "But if you're curious as to why they might grab that crew, the fact remains that they're siphoning off supplies to somewhere. That'd earn someone attention no matter who they're going to."
Jessika handles the descent of the shuttle so that they get as close as they can to the junk fields without remaining a giant target in the sky. "Got it. Hold on to your butts. This is a pretty narrow path." The look of concentration on her face doesn't betray any of the worry that she's going to graze a huge pile of junk and send it toppling onto the shuttle as she maneuvers even lower and eats up the distance to the base. Finding what looks to be a clearing big enough to set down in and not that far from where the base has been marked. "Alright, I can't promise they didn't hear the engines," Jessika warns as she flicks the sublight engines over to repulsorlifts and kicks up dust around the landing site itself. There's a shudder as the shuttle touches down, and Jessika cuts the repulsors off, too, so that it settles onto the deployed landing struts. "But they shouldn't have detected us."
---
This is exactly the kind of place Nova remembers visiting on more than one occasion. The details are different, but the basics are the same: Old, scuzzy, littered with junk. Even from the air. "Copy that. Stacking up," she says, moving quickly to the shuttle's boarding ramp. And grabbing hold of the grab rail next to it with both hands. The sound of this descent is a warning of a potential rough landing...
Once the shuttle's down, she thumps the boarding ramp's button and counts impatiently to thirty as it grooooooooaans its way to the ground on its slow servos. Hearing the telltale crunch of duranium on debris, she rushes to the bottom of the ramp, taking a knee and sweeping the surrounding terrain with her optical gunsight to cover the debarkation.
---
Jaya rolls to her feet slowly and casually, then rises up so she can reach the handles above to keep from bouncing all over the place. Remaining calm and trusting Jessika's flying capability, Jaya turns her attention to Nova, who is ahead of her. Jaya places her free hand over the grip of her blaster, unfastening the secured strap which keeps it firmly in place against her thigh. When the ramp comes down, she watches Nova go down it first, then follows but not with as much youthful vigor. Jaya releases the hold above and descends confidently, pausing once at the bottom and stepping left, off the ramp and onto the ground itself. She has not pulled her weapon yet, old habits insisted on establishing first, positive ID from potential enemy personnel before just shooting anyone.
---
Word about the lookout has her biting back a curse under her breath. "They'll see us coming even if we did try to be clever and take those uniforms," the young tactician remarks, once the Stormtropers are pointed out.
"That's concerning," Dawn murmurs in reply to Devii's remarks about Toltek. "Someone might be pulling her strings." There's a glance at the digital array before them, and the attempt to slice into their transport. "We won't know unless we manage to find out more, though, and I can't do anything while we're up here."
Jessika's reassurances earn her a bit of a smile; it's in her nature to hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. "Let's hope. Just have to do our best to make sure we leave enough damage behind that they'll be forced to think it was another bounty hunter group trying to snare a piece of the pie. If nothing else, the lack of subtlety might work in our favor, when it comes to hiding our involvement." With that, she puts on her helmet, checks her blaster (like it was going to do her any good), and starts heading out of the transport with the others.
"Let's just hope they don't decide to shoot everyone if things don't go their way," she mutters.
---
Puddles of liquid rust splash underfoot as the troopers go to ground. Visibility from the ground is terrible, small wonder the Stormtroopers are still so far off. Lacking straight streets, all must pick their way generally toward the target, grateful for the guidance of clear destination coordinates. A groan of tortured scrap metal compressing can be heard under the shuttle, but apart from a flash of dread for Jessika, all remains stable. Soon enough, even from the ground, the looming, angular shell of the long-dead AT-AT can be spied, ahead.
---
Devii moves out with the rest of them, shaking off the rough landing with a wrenched neck and maybe a sore shoulder from it bumping against the bulkhead and twisting around from the strap she was grasping on to. "Alright... just stay close to me, got it?" She informs Dawn in a commanding sort of tone. Which is odd considering Dawn is actually the superior Officer. Devii keeps telling people it makes no sense. She bringes her blaster pistol from it's holster, keeping to the alleyways and against the walls. Once the ATAT comes into view, the Mirialan picks a bombed out bilding to duck into, instructing her team via hand signals to follow. "I need eyes on that compound. What's the next set of defelate we can get to for cover?" Said softly.
---
Vakla Naqurka deploys with the rest of the squad, wearing a civilian attire underneath a poncho garment that covers down to the tops of her thighs. Beneath is webbing that carries extra power packs and other equipment essential to a soldier's function. The stock of her EL-16HFE is braced against her shoulder, and the sling of the weapon crimps against the poncho's material, with the twisted tether that has its buckle attatched to the stock mostly hidden with how she's got her weapon trained at the low ready, so the barrel is pointed towards the ground. Or what constitutes as a ground. Her greatest fear in the initial moment is somehow getting a shiv of rusted material stabbed through her boot and into her foot. Who knows what kind of havoc that would wreak? Either way, she keeps moving, taking up position on the Sergeant's six.
---
A bit to the fore, Nova pauses in the shadow of some towering metal rubbish to slip out her quadnoculars and glass the AT-AT and its surroundings. It's a moment before she can comm her findings.
<<Variable, this is Knife. It looks like they've got an eye on defense: I see only two ways in. They're using the AT-AT's belly hatch for a gateway, and they've repaired the hatch on top for a sniper perch. Only three guards, plus the lookout. I can't see anything inside, though.>>
She catches sight of a movement up top, and quickly snaps her quadnoculars up to look at the lookout. Looking at her. She quickly ducks back behind the sturdy wreck of a speeder truck. <<Variable, I've been made! Taking cover!>>
---
Jaya finds the first solid wall of cover she can plant herself against. The idea behind a gun fight is being the smallest target, or not a target at all. Listening to the comm chatter, she comes to realize they've been spotted. At this point, Jaya prepares herself for combat and takes a steady breath that could be interpretted as a sigh. She looks to their team leader for direction, but until it's received, Jaya remains behind cover.
---
The helmeted lieutenant flashes her a thumbs up, the green-skinned woman's reflection on the black of her helmet. She doesn't take issue with the commanding tone, not when the woman intends to keep her alive, and she is determined not to be a liability to the rest of her team. Dawn slipping up close to Devii, tightening her hold on the strap of her bag. Sweat starts to trickle down the shallow channel of her back, her heart beating hard against her ribcage.
At Knife's transmission that they've been made, she does what she is bid - she sticks close to Devii, moves where /she/ moves, hides where she hides, or at least close enough. She peers out from her hiding place, sharp eyes gleaming like a cat's in the shadows, hidden by the visor of her black helmet. Only two ways in, and three guards plus the lookout.
"No ways around it, sergeant," she tells Devii softly. "No clean way to do this, the building's fortified and they already know we're coming - it's risky, but we could always go in hot and storm it and hope that the one way in that's accessible to us isn't rigged with any explosives. If we have grenades, we can toss it on the lookout nest, and neutralize the guards out front."
---
The humanoid on lookout perched high atop the armored transport is peering through the scope of a long barreled rifle, twisting a dial to increase magnification when he sees a face staring back at him. As Nova ducks out of sight, the sentry fires a screeching blaster bolt into the scrapped speeder truck blocking her from view, causing the wreck to rock slightly. Added to the warning shot are the hollered words, "Piss off!"
---
"Sithspit..." Devii says as Nova takes incomming fire. "Always... ALWAYS a mission I should have brought my flamethrower..." She looks to Jaya and the Private, "See if you two can flank around the left. Get in a good position and get some supressive fire on that look out and hopefully take it out like Dawn said." She looks to Dawn, "We're going to go help out Nova and make sure they're distracted enough to do that. Yeah?" She tugs on the woman's jump suit and starts to head down and out the building, moving to where Nova is and getting back behind cover. "Hey there Moonbeam, holding up alright. Looks like this is a strait shot but I'm guna try something." She turns and shouts. "Hey! Dickweed! Tell Toltek Inspector Devii Keva is here to collect on that ass of hers. Tell her to come out here and rumble with me herself. We got a score to settle!"
---
The discharge of a rifle echoes throughout the jagged columns of junk towering all around them, though it's not so unexpected given Nova's announcement over the microbead that she's been discovered. Peaking her head out from around the column she's braced up against, Vakla tries to get a glimpse of the marksman that's saddled up on top of the downed AT-AT. "Ser'nt, I don't think a flamethrower would have helped. Probably just set off something noxious and we'd all die horrible deaths from breathing in something toxic. Pretty sure we're breathing in something toxic right now." Still, there's orders, and giving a sharp nod of understanding, Vakla breaks away from the column and starts sweeping around to the left. There's got to be some way through this junk.
It doesn't really take her long, though, before she can see the AT-AT and slink into cover closer. Close enough that she can get a shot off. Lifting her left hand up to her throat, Vakla depresses the little stud so it keys up. "In position. Suppression on the count of five."
On board the shuttle, Jessika monitors the comms going on. "Mention--," Jessika starts to say to herself, then keys up her own comms. <<Mention Megalox! That always scares people.>>
Once the count of five is up, Vakla fires a single shot at the silhouette of the marksman on top.
---
"Oh yeah?" the lookout yells back at Devii. "Alright, I'll go tell her. None of you peek out until I get back, alright?" Those with another line of sight in the sniper can clearly see he hasn't moved, still looking through the scope, and just waiting for Devii or Nova to peek out. Before they do, a blaster bolt from Vakla hisses his way, leaving a carbon score on the walker armor to his right. With an audible yelp, the lookout swings his rifle toward Valka, peering to find the source of that shot...
---
Now /that/ is something Nova is emphatically NOT going to do. She pivots from behind the speeder truck, snaps up her weapon, and bullseyes the lookout cleanly. "Take your own advice, /fierfek/!"
She ducks back quickly. There are still other guards to worry about, and she sees no point in giving them a target. <<Variable, this is Knife. Lookout is DX'ed.>>
---
Given orders, Jaya reacts and twists herself to orient in the direction given. Instead of blindly running to a flank and needlessly get to a spot that's compromised, she shifts from her cover while remaining low, then runs low along a wall that gives a favorable angle but provides enough cover. Not far from the private assigned to accompany her in this mission. Just as the private opens fire, a subsequent shot is produced from Nova and Jaya tracks it long enough to see it strike true. Jaya ducks back behind cover and starts to chuckle. "That was one helluva shot!"
---
Distraction, Devii says. Dawn swallows, and thankfully she has her helmet on, it keeps the more experienced sergeant from seeing her face drain of color. "Alright," she whispers, her voice tight with strain, letting the green-skinned woman tug her along. Nerves on fire with adrenaline and various flight or fight responses, she keeps close to the other soldier as they scuttle towards Nova's position.
And then, she starts yelling.
She flashes a sheepish grin over at Nova, before she looks around her cover. With the sniper neutralized by Nova, she doesn't have to worry too much about a well-aimed blaster bolt through the skull. Instead: "There's more of us coming," she calls out towards the remaining guards. "They know your location and they're bringing cutters and explosives! You're all done for, drop your weapons and surrender!"
---
The lookout's body tumbles down the steep sides of the junked AT-AT, landing with both an ugly crunch and and a resounding *bong*. There are no more visible guards, and whatever those inside think of the shouted threats, the belly hatch does not open.
---
Devii watches the lookout fall, her eyes a look od surprise. "Well call me daddy and slap me." She chuckles and peeks out to take anther look around. Though she raises na eyebrow at Dawns addition to her attempted 'call out' of their leader. "Yeah... uh... you better do that! Megalox!" SHe looks to her chrono and frowns as nothing is happening. "We don't have time for this. Let's advance and find a way in. Slowly, carefully. Understood." She says over the shared comm. Towing Dawn along, she gives Nova a pat on the Butt as she passes her. "Nice job, Moonbeam. Let's get going." On to the next cover so Nova can Leapfrog.
---
As soon as she'd fired, Vakla had the common sense to duck down and out of the way, so that return fire in her direction wasn't going to earn her a blaster bolt to the face. Her distraction gives Nova plenty of time to take the lookout down, and Vakla swings back up to survey the area, just to be sure. She can see a body in an awkward position in her line of sight, and it doesn't look like it's moving. At all. Devii orders a slow advance and Vakla warily steps up and out of cover while keeping her rifle at a new position in the high ready. She waits, though, for a signal from Jaya before advancing with her weapon trained and ready to snap to the first target that presents itself. Her finger has gone back to the trigger guard, but is ready to slip back in in a moment.
"Moving," Vakla says over the microbead.
---
Nova manages not to jerk at the unexpected low-five, but forms up to leapfrog-advance with Devii, covering the Mirialan's advance. <<Advancing. Watch for any more guards.>>
---
When the first half of the team moved up, Jaya motioned to Vakla to do the same. Their goal was to cover ground quickly, but in a manner where each side provided ample cover should they need it. Alternating positions meant identifying new locations to move to. Given Jaya's weapon was meant more for close quarters, she tasked herself with finding the next spot to run to, leaving the security of their approach to Vakla. When they arrived at one point, Jaya spoke over comms just saying, <<Set.>> She ensured she was giving a good look around before moving though. It wasn't always gumdrops and nexu kittens.
---
She continues to follow after Devii, closer and closer to the hatch. Once they're close enough to the dead body upon their move, Dawn fishes around his pockets for a bit to see if there's anything that might be useful, only to come up with a shattered comlink. "Must've broken in the fall," she murmurs. Otherwise, she finds nothing else that could be of use and proceeds closer to the legless AT-AT shell.
---
Devii keeps moving, looking and searching for the best way in along with any enemies that may pop up. She knows they needed to make it quick as the First Order would be here soon enough and then they'd have a /whole/ different situation on their hands. "Let's find a way in people and deal with this quick like. Let me know if you find anything." Said over the comm.
---
Moving through the debris in militaristic fashion, Vakla eventually reaches the downed AT-AT with Jaya, and there's not been a shot fired off at them for their efforts. That's one good positive. The negative is that they've got to figure out a way into this thing somehow. And it doesn't look like it's really going to be that easy. Vakla does more than a precursory glance at the thing and finds what she thinks to be a way in that's half-submerged into the ground and, thus, might not be something they're expecting. "Ser'nt, I've got a half-buried hatch over here. Might not be guarding it for that reason. Gonna need someone small, though, to make it in. I might be able to squeeze through. Or someone else can. I dunno." It's above her paygrade to decide.
---
"There's still the top hatch, where he was," Nova points out in a whisper, gesturing to the dead sniper. "I think it's still open."
---
Jaya took one look at the hatch the Private had uncovered and shook her head. Her big ass wasn't going into that thing first until she knew there was an exit at the other end, in particular an exit that didn't have a blaster waiting. Small spaces bothered her to some degree.
---
She looks down at the half-buried hatch and swallows. "I can fit," Dawn says quietly, glancing over at Devii and pulls out a blaster. "I mean, they're going to have to reach in there to get me, and I can just....shoot them in the face if they try." Or so she thinks. She's liable to shoot /herself/ in the face at this rate. She'll just have to go about this slowly.
So she slowly gets on her knees, and proceeds to try and crawl into it.
---
Devii is about to protest to the young Naval officer but she's already about head into the thing. "Wait Dawn, aw hell... too late. Stay Frosty kid, I'm not hearing it from your uncle when ya die." SHe comms the private, "Private... I need you over here. See if you can't get to the top and make it down the top hatch while the rest of us go through the belly." And she moves that way to try and open that hatch, inpecting it for booms.
---
"Roger. Moving." Height sucks, but she's not about to try and talk her way out of it. Rank doesn't allow for it, for one thing, and she can't really turn it down when there's the greater stake of lives at risk. She comes prepared, though, and as she eases her rifle down to hang from its sling, she approaches where the Sergeant is standing and takes another look at this thing. Without much more hesitation, she approaches next to it and starts looking for the handholds necessary to hoist herself up, hoping to scale the machine. It's not going very well, though, and those first few moments make it apparent that she's not having much luck. Not for lack of trying, though, that's for sure.
---
"Here, let me try, Vakla," Nova says softly, moving to the head. Slinging her rifle, she boosts herself up to the top of the side weapon mount, carefully avoiding the scrapped weapon still there, then scrambles up to the top of the head. With a few quick steps, she crosses the none-too-flexible neck assembly and in seconds is at the hatch, peering down inside.
---
For now, Jaya stays out of the way and let's the NCO sort out her strategy. She's content to wait until they're all moving again. She keeps her blaster at a low ready though, and remains vigilant in case of a surprise ambush.
---
Slipping further into the darkness of the hatch, Dawn crawls in a few feet forward. She does this slowly, painstakingly, because she definitely does not want to die down here and Devii's warnings are still ringing in her ear. She doesn't dare flash a light in these quarters, and once she's further in, she lies flat on her stomach, blaster aimed in front of her and /waits/. Patience is a virtue that she has long since learned to respect; she knows the members of her team are presently attempting to breach elsewhere, and she doesn't intend to move until they do. What she /does/ do, however, is to keep her ears open.
---
Devii watches Nova as she tries climbing instead. "Right, Vakla you're with us then. Nice try though. Nice hussel." She even pats her on the butt too. SARNT then moves to near the belly hatch but dosn't open it yet. Over the comm, "Moonbeam, Cooha. What do you see. What can you tell me?"
---
<<Cooha, Knife. I've got four bounty hunters in ambush positions just inside the belly hatch. Don't open that without a good life insurance policy. Our people are in the head, bound. Watch out for them. I might be able to get down inside, but I'm not liking my chances. If you could make some noise, maybe?>>
---
/Cooha/. The expression on Dawn's face is /indescribable/. In the dark, hunched in a lower hatch, thankfully nobody can see it.
Instead, she patches through: <<Can confirm what Knife is seeing. There's some chatter...they're spooked. Maybe because of us, or something else. Ringleader's got a combat vest and a carbine, grey skin, purple hair. That sound like your dance partner, Variable?>>
---
Devii purces her lips and thinks a moment. "Can't get a stun or cryobann down there Moonbeam?" She grumbles, "And yeah, Cooha. That's her." The SARRNT clears her throat and knocks on the hatch. "Aye... You in there you stupid Sephi coward." She says with a booming case of authority that's just completely muffled into nothing via the armor plating. "That's right. I work for the First Order now. THey pay me a ton of money to come after dumb stupid criminals like you. So come out and give up, yeah?"
---
Nova slings her rifle, tightens the sling to keep it from dangling around and banging things, and shimmies down through the open hatch. Once inside, she drops low and edges back into the neck of the derelict AT-AT. A good place to ambush the ambushers.
<<Variable, Knife. In position,>> comes a cool whisper over the comlink.
---
Devii lets out a booming laugher wich is only halted by a bit of a crazed smirk and a twinkle in those orange eyes of hers. "Yeah... that's why Hux got me down here scowering buildings trying to find you. He knows one thing, and that's talent Toltek, which you aparently have none of. So. I'm going to make you this deal. You take your team. Get the hell out of town right now and leave us your captured and I'll let you go. Don't, and that big old ship in orbit. They got orders to turn this whole area to slag on my command." She shrugs, "Choice is yours sweetheart."
---
"You are a TRASH liar, Keva!" the bounty hunter hollers back, visibly grinding her teeth to the sight of Dawn and Nova. "I know you're lying just as much as you do!" One of her gang- a skinny human mumbles, "But- what if the Stormtroopers get here before we cut a deal?" Only to be met with an angry look from the grey Near-Human. "Shut it," Toltek growls. Biting her lip in thought, only to let out a curse to blister durasteel, she yells through the hatch, "I have no time for this! Back off, and we'll leave you your scummy little smuggler pals. Back off NOW."
---
Devii sighs and shakes her head, "No I'm guna stay right here an open this hatch and you're guna run far the hell away from here... Now" She says quietly over the calm, moving to open the hatch.
---
Nova and Dawn can watch the psychological domino effect as the hatch cracks open, and the hope of a clean getaway takes hold. For an instant the lesser thugs glance between each other, with Toltek trying in vain to keep them in line, but the moment the first one breaks and runs, the floodgates are open, and the second and third are close behind. With no intention to stand and face the music alone, Lyra is out the hatch on their heels, lingering only long enough to growl, "Hate you SO much," at Devii in swift passing, before breaking into a full sprint into the junk fields, clearly wary of catching a bolt in the back.
---
Devii watches Toltek run out the ATAT and towards the junk fields. "But I love that ass..." She says softly to herself before looking into the the now abandoned ATAT. "Alright, Nurf Herders. Let's gather up these poor bastards and get back to the ship!"
---
When Dawn finally emerges from the buried hatch, she keeps her blaster up, stepping away from the bounty hunters clustered at the door once Devii starts opening it. She makes at the very least a good impression of a capable marksman; she graduated from a naval academy after all, she knows /how/ to hold a weapon though using it might be another story. Her movements are slow, but she will maneuver towards the captive smugglers and once they make a break for it, she, too, moves quickly. Knife in hand, she slices through their bonds.
"We should probably get out of here in a hurry," she says, scanning the interior. "The Stormtroopers will be here in a minute."
---
Nova stares for a long moment as the doors open and feet start pounding... and then just has to laugh, watching a well-placed ambush party turn into a track meet. "I guess we win this one," she says, shaking her head. Turning, she steps into the head of the AT-AT to begin freeing the prisoners.
---
Devii moves to take hold of the smugglers with the rest of the squad. She leaves them bound unless it hampers their movement. "Let's go..." She says with a nod to both Nova and Dawn.
---
Hearing the call, Vakla quickly sets to helping the rest of her team gather up the crew that they've been after so they can safely get them back to the shuttle. Back aboard, Jessika is getting ready, too. The hatch is opened, allowing everyone to board into it, and once they are all on board, she ensures that it's closed and that everyone is ready to go. Deftly maneuvering her hands over the controls, Jessika guides the shuttle up from its resting spot and quickly turns face towards the atmosphere. "These stormtroopers could send a message up to the destroyer up there, so this is going to be rough and quick." She opens the vessel's throttle wide open and gets the navicomputer locked into the destination that they're heading to. Once they clear the gravity well of the planet, Jessika pushes the lever forward and sends the ship into hyperspace.
