Log:Perlemian Rangers: With'ring In My Bloom
Perlemian Rangers: With'ring In My Bloom
OOC Date: November 6, 2015 (Optional)
Location: Cerberon System
Participants: Fshmaw, Threl Ravari, Lorcan, Jinx, K-5Z9, Alekzander Starlock, D'awn M'zeka, Callax Dalso
[Callax Dalso]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
A great many of us are fools for love, complete effing idiots. And, as it happens, it is idiotic love that tonight's tale revolves around. Basam Reele, youngest son of the influential Reele family - influential by dint of owning multiple major durasteel interests the Republic wishes to reclaim supply from - has, against all sense or familial objection, entered into a relationship with a Dastna Nayl-Kuat - yes, a branch of /those/ Kuats - herself a very wealty young person, and the two have decided to get married a month in. What was pitched to the young couple by members of their family to be a celebration cruise was, in actuality, meant to be an itervention out in the rarified zones of the Deep Core where they couldn't get away from a pack of angry family members. No doubt the scene of great drama, the yacht in which the squabbling would-be kinsmen traveled was set upon by members of the Trinaga Reavers gang. They are...well, they're not nice. They're not all that stupid, either, which is why the whole group is being held hostage for a volume of cash one imagines is shudderful simply to imagine. To admit the partnership to the press would bring both families into question by their respective governments and social circles, nevermind the merry hell it could potentially play wit te fledgeling industrial connections of the reforming New Republic. Socially-conscious, quiet hands are needed to liberate the poor gang. Which is, of course, where the Rangers come in.
Dispatched quietly aboard the scout-ship-cum-assault-vessel, /Peacekeeper/, the Rangers approach the great tombstone field of asteroids within the Cerberon system. Hung in the horrific shadow of the black hole roosting in the center of the system, the debris field is the remains of one of the several planets that drew too close to the so-caled 'empty sun'. Within that field is Asteroid BZ331A, a rock whose former research station now serves as the lair of the pirates. Armed with geological data and maps of the old rock, the rescue team will be dispatched a safe distance away to board the rock by grapple lines, enter the station, and free the hostages. One imagines that the pirates will make this difficult.
Sometime after midnight Coruscant time, /Peacemaker/ leaps into realspace shy of the belt, Callax at the controls. Normally this sort of entry would have been because somene screwed up and the ship arrived amid the clamoring of mass alarms - because Callax is flying, of course, this means that nobody is dead, nothing is damaged, and everying...well. Is under control. For now.
"Well," says Callax, looking out across the vast field of shattered rock, the utter darkness of Cerberon's black hole somewhere out there in the void. Darker than night, and twice as hungry. "That's a sight, isn't it?" They reach for the intercom. << We've arrived. Everyone gear up and get to the airlock. I'm taking us in. >>
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[K-5Z9]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
"It certainly looks like one." The snark, it is strong with this one. Kayfive retracts her scomp link from the dadtaport where she'd been helping maintain sensor watch, and heads towards the door. "See you downstairs, commander." Fortunately, gearing up was simple for a droid. check weapons, run a systems diagnostic... Everything reports green, and she's good to go.
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[Alekzander Starlock]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
"So what you are saying.." said Starlock when he was told about this mission, "Is that we are here to provide plausible deniability."
Skip ahead to the mission briefing, and he is in his all black armor, blacked out weapons on hand. His cape traded in for a black half-cape. If only to help identify him to the rank and file troops.
He spent his time leading up to this point making sure he was loaded for bear and ready to roll. Making sure his sword is loose in the scabbard, and that his vibro-dagger is secured at the small of his back... he does a quick check over his armor's tell-tales, the blaster weapons ready to roll, and his HUD updated with locations and vitals of the various troops going in.
As he steps intro the airlock, he activates him comm pickup and says, "Comms check." And once he gets a reply, he says flatly, "Starlock, ready."
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[Fshmaw]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Fshmaw's helmet is the last part of his gear, engaging with a *snakt-fsss,* and his dialogue comes in a slow basso voice. A beat behind his actions, at any rate. "Ready and set," he rumbles.
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[Jinx]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Jinx is riding along on her usual 'mount' of choice when Callax isn't available, that being that she's locked in place on Kayfive's back. She chirps an affirmative as Callax reports they're here and asks for a ready.
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[Threl Ravrari]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Threl never really got used to void suits. Yes, inherently she knew that it was necessary to wear such things to keep the good air from going elsewhere, but she still didn't have to like it. It was why she had carpet in her cockpit, after all, to let being barefoot feel better. Perking up at the call over the comms, Threl makes sure the headpiece is situated just so and tight before pulling her void helmet on and checking to make sure her blaster and spear were both ready and tight to where they wouldn't accidentally be dropped, thrown away, or lost due to sudden decompression. "I ready." she says cheerfully. "Be careful. No be estupid. Quiet steps."
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[Callax Dalso]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
<< That is the long and short of it, >> Callax replies over intercom to Alek's assertion. << Sometimes our work has political ramifications beyond direct interception of the enemy, Captain, that is the unfortunate lot we must burden with government legitimization. >> A beat. << Approaching target. We will reach dispatch point in three minutes. >>
In those three minutes, /Peacekeeper/ glides in a high speed, drives off and power at minimum, toward the opposite end of the asteroid. Asteroid BZ331A is a mass of rock and nickel-iron, one end of which has the research station cut into it - but according to intelligence, maintenance corridors run from the station into the rock itself to contain the scientific instruments long ago removed from the asteroid with the station's decommissioning. The ship shakes as Callax brakes it, then soon the Commander arrives in the blackened plates of their own Void armor, matte black thermospray over previously violet plates.
<< I'll head over and get this started," Callax says, through their helmet speakers, picking up an enormous coil of durasteel cable with a magnetic head on one end and a repulsor-grapnel on the other. << Lock to mission frequency and prepare for my word. >> They nod to a locker where a number of motorized slide-bars await to be placed on the cable for travel when the time comes, and then lugging the cable along disappears into the airlock.
It takes little time for Callax to jet across the way; their breath is the only thing sounded for some time as the jetpacked terrorist-turned-pilot makes the considerable gap - finally, the call comes. << Done, >> Callax calls. << Get the rails and come over. >>
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[K-5Z9]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
<<Copy.>> Kayfive's voice probably sounds a little strange over the comms, totally bereft of any background noise or echo from a suit helmet. The lanky droid snags one of the zipline bars from the locker, before making her way into the airlock. When it's cycled, she clips on and engages the drive, rifle maglocked to her back. On the other side, the bar is detatched and stuck to the surface of the asteroid with a convenient maglock. <<These are very well designed.>>
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[Alekzander Starlock]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Slinging rifle over his shoulder, Starlock readies to ferry over on the grapnel-line. He waits, waits, and then when Callax says it is clear, he reaches up to attach his zip-motor to the line and zips on over. Along the way, he unslings his rifle once more and points the barrel tip roughly towards the hatch they are planning to use to get inside.
But once over, he engages the magnetic boots to hold him to the exterior as he steps away, the zip-motor disengaging at the same time. Comms on the right frequency and encryption, he simply gives two clicks of the comm to indicate he has made it over.
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[Fshmaw]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Fshmaw clips the rifle to his belt, selecting a bar and awaiting his turn in the order-of-cycling. Exited, he steps confidently, *zzz-zzzsshhh* after Starlock, maglocks *snapping* on or off as appropriate. Though his breathing is slow, he gives the agreed-upon signal. 'click...click.' Eyes up, vigilant.
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[Jinx]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Jinx has little to do at this point but hold on, which she's good at considering she's locked in place on Kayfive. Her dome turns back and forth as she scans their surroundings though, just in case!
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[Threl Ravrari]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Last in line, Threl watches in trepidation as each one attaches to the durasteel line and leaps off into the void until the ship is empty and it's finally her turn. Taking hold and making sure cables are attached in the right spots, she attaches the motorized point to the line and, closing her eyes and gritting her teeth, leaps into the inky void. Her suit tightens around her, protecting her from the hard vacuum as she slides down, twisting like a leaf on the wind until her approach slows and, with a muffled beep, she's on the ground, shivering a little, but alive. So bonus points for living. Go team! "Down." she murmurs into comms, slipping into the well-worn, well-known pathways of being in battle. "Stay alert. No want have to fix you in vacuum."
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[Callax Dalso]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
The surface of the rock is hard, gray, and craggy, drenched in darkness - night-vision sensors assist, but the hungering black hole at the heart of the system ensures that there is little light but hwat is artificially generated. Callax awaits them all, nodding to each in turn as they arrive. << Good, >> the Commander says. << I've placed the breaching charge - there's no gravity down here, so we can leap up from the bottom to the base itself. Be ready. >> They point up the rock a way, to where a dome the size of a tea saucer has been placed. << Let's hope the intelligence was correct. >>
A moment, then another...and then, a sudden, brilliant flare of light - and then nothing. A small crater has been melted in the rock, glassy and bright but nothing else.
<< Well, >> Callax says, tone grim. << I suppose it wasn't. All right, break out the blasters. I'll set another charge up higher. It'll let them know we're coming. >>
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[Alekzander Starlock]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Eyes closing, Starlock shakes his head. Well, odds are the enemy know they are under attack.. or maybe they think they got hit by a fast moving micro-meteorite. HE lifts his blaster rifle and takes aim. Again, waiting silently for the commander to give the orders. Communication is difficult enough in combat situations without everyone crowding the line as it stands.
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[K-5Z9]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
<<It could be worse. One time when I was with my first... employers, a boarding party had an incident with a force pike. One of them had a maglock failure and took off another's arm instead of cutting through the hull plates.>> Fairly verbose, but that's what text displays on helmet HUDs were for. And Kayfive can cheat because droid. Unlimbering her own A280 and flicking the safety off, she waits.
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[Fshmaw]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Fshmaw *checks* the charge on his gas-cell, judges it sufficient without a word. Likewise he puts scope-to-eye and merely... waits. Although it is worth noting he shuffles positions, slightly, angling to be 'less observable from this distance.'
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[Jinx]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Luckily, in space, no one can hear Jinx beep. Or make other noises. Therefore, NOTHING SEEMS TO HAPPEN. Other than internal dialogue. Which is internal. Meaning you all don't hear it.
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[Threl Ravrari]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Threl knows a lot of things. How to stop a sucking chest wound, how to butcher a djeba, and how to keep your head down in a firefight while flanking among other things. Demolitions? Not so much. Sure, it sounds easy - I mean, how hard can it be to just blow a hole in something. Apply force until desired result is achieved, after all, but there's math involved. Calculations. All sorts of fun stuff that means the boom goes the right way or, in this case, the melt. Apparently something went wrong with Callax's calculations which meant that it was about to get fun. She draws her blaster and takes cover behind one of the rocky projections, looking towards the teacup, watching for movement as another charge is prepared. "These tunnels pressurized? If so....be fun for anyone inside them."
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[Lorcan]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Meanwhile, as the raid party of the Perlemian Rangers is making way into the guarded facility, a single Gambit Predator-class vessel jumps from hyperspace into the Cerberon system. The IFF code, should it be investigated openly identifies it as - 'The Skull Roller'. The bounty hunter-affiliated starship is armed with laser cannons and shrouded with a deflector shield of a light blue hue surrounding the frontal side of the small transport. It stalks through the vast field of the corpse of a planet, directly poised for the inhabited rock with purpose alike a primitive arrow, though it professionally steers clear of the asteroid field with graceful finesse.
Approaching the surface of Asteroid BZ331A, thrusters on the spine of Skull Roller come to life with a roaring neon blue flame. Engines at the back dull out and decrease in intensity, as the momentum is steered into a clear landing zone nearby the facility. Rapidly engaging frontal thrusters -- it virtually hovers, maintaining orbit that sets trajectory executed into landing. Folds unveil landing gear in the form of standard legs, three in a shape of an arrowhead formation. Whatever particles of dust in the surrounding several dozen meter radius may have been left untouched by the lack of atmosphere, rose in a cloud from it's lifeless habitat into the ever so colder embrace of dark void.
"This is Gambit Skull Roller to Station B-Z-*crackle*-A: Under the Bondsman *crackle* waiver Subparagraph 16; you are compelled to produce assets *crackle* the Guild immediately. Any indication of confrontation or resist-*crackle* potentially lethal consequences." - a deep, raspy tone distorted heavily by subspace communication systems that experienced interference due to nearby event horizon emerges from an incoming transmission voiced over the station's intercom.
As the airlock unseals, a ferocious blast escapes - with no sound in the void. Slug-weaponry based force slams into a side-airlock shredding it with a jagged hole left behind, shrapnel filling the tunnel beyond. Shortly after, a red durasteel-clad figure with marks of burning orange and a dark visor steps out, his palm unfastens velcro of a black-holster, the immense masculine figure wandering in the direction of one of the derelict entrances; as he sets his sidearm safety off...
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[Alekzander Starlock]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
So, time for plan B. And apparently plan B is... if the first idea didn't work... shoot it with a giant kriffing gun. Starlock slides behind a rocky protrusion himself and ducks down as the comms crackle... and after the shot blasts through the crust of the big spacerock, he pops up, bracing his rifle on the edge of the rocky protrusion and aiming it towards the hole for just a moment before he starts moving and gives three clicks to indicate... FORWARD to the general troopers under his command.
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[Callax Dalso]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
From the other side of the rock, the sight is very different. Out of the void, a quarter-mile down the rock, Lorcan's ship hurtles out from the darkness; its nose cannon opens fire, spewing a torrent of red light into the distant facility. Flames plume from metal, fragments glimmering in the halo of destruction as they spin away in legion. Callax is just setting the melter when the explosion goes off.
<< What in the name of the gods of blood -- >> Callax's voice is hard-edged in its astonishment, as if someone had just changed the channel of a favorite program. Jetting down the line to the group, Callax's tone is flat and urgent as they return. << Starlock, the team is yours. I'm going to get back to the ship and get it prepared to get you out where they came in - if anything, a further distraction is going to be needed. Go. >> Behind them, a faint golden flash and a plume of vaporized rock marks the entry point, where a vast borehole lined with rungs will lead up to a maintenance hatch waiting to be sliced into. And then they're gone, kicking of the rock and heading back to the quiet shape of the /Peacekeeper/ and apparently needed fire support.
Meanwhile, Lorcan's entrance has gotten EVERYONE'S ATTENTION in the facility. In sealed armor come a number of pirates, who stack up around a doorway once the airshield snaps into place and the bay begins to pressurize again. Blaster fire pours from the doorway into the side of his armored ship like water from a sprinkler hose, trying to get to him.
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[K-5Z9]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
<<Recieving transmission in the clear. Sounds like a bounty hunter. Moving to breach point while everyone's distracted.>> Kayfive lopes across the surface of the rock, gait somewhat altered by the maglocks, making her way to the ladder and rapidly pulling herself along it with elongated arms. <<SLicer to the front. Hatch is locked.>>
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[Alekzander Starlock]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
The blasting of the hole makes Starlock wince as he ducks into cover. But the moment that finishes, he is up and moving as fast as his magnetic boot cyucling will allow. A hand lifts and he points an index finger into the air, spinning the hand about as if to say, 'circle up, let's go'. And then he reaches the edge of the new hole.
Pausing just long enough to aim down into it, he confirms that it's clear.. and then he's heading down the ladder, pausing at the bottom to cover the bore-hole while he waits for the rest of the team to come down.
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[Fshmaw]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Fshmaw hustles-as-bid, scrambling after Starlock. Hurrying down next, he's checking for a shielded or dark corner to operate from-- if one cannot be found, then the answer is merely ruthless efficiency.
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[Jinx]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
As Kayfive makes her way in, Jinx unlocks now that she has mass to push off with her repulsor and flies along, slowing to a halt by the hatch lock as she extends a computer probe, linking in as she tries to unlock the system. With a *ca-chunk of magnetic locks disengaging, the hatch seal goes from red to green.
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[Threl Ravrari]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
<<Make it no locked!>> Threl calls urgently from her cover on their private channel, moving quickly from point to point to point towards the freshly-blasted hole that leads to the maintenance hatch. << Big guy have all attention. >> She doesn't go down the hole until she knows it's open. Better to not crawl in a hole and plug it up. She takes cover, paying attention to the hole, her blaster at the ready. Here's hoping the black plates on her armor and the attention Lorcan has keeps the pirates looking towards him and not them.
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[Fshmaw]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Fshmaw tends to keep a half-dozen paces back, eyes always on the next target-- or failing that, the horizon. His modulated not-voice comes through: "Stay calm, everyone. Focused. We're on a very short clock. In and out, nothing else."
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[Jinx]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Jinx burbles slightly, waiting for everyone to get a good grip and lock their boots down, before she rotates the control for the hach as it pops with a woosh of escaping air "boop, ee click beep beep beep beep beep too!"
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[Lorcan]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
PEW-PEW-PEW-PEW-PEW-PEW
Well for whatever oxygen they had in that station which was briefly sucked out and hopefully replenished; it carried the flurry of projectiles and it's deafening thunder of zips of lasers screaming. Lorcan pressed his broad back against one of the metallic walls forming the pirates' shelter, peeking out every now and again to fire off ice-blue blasts from his front-heavy sidearm, two finding purchase in a single man's chest, the third burning a glowing hole in the ground, fizzling out before it can release more pressure of the hideout.
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[Callax Dalso]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
The airlock leading into the maitenance tunnels unseals with the hiss of depressurization and the clanking of internal machinery. The outer door unseals to allow them through, and once entered, cycles to open the inside door to expose a small anteroom filled with long-abandoned tools and a few decades-old spacesuits. The air is musty and dry, and the glowbulbs have gone so long without changing that their inner workings now only radiate a dim blue-white glow. True to intelligence, it seems like nobody's been down here since the station was decommissioned. But up above, somewhere in the base, the soft sound of a klaxon can be heard, noting well that things are, indeed, /up/ elsewhere in the facility...
Meanwhile, the hangar bay is the scene of carnage. Having dispatched a pair of the pirates stacking up at the door leading deeper into the base, blaster bolts are still being furiously exchanged with the two survivors. Of course, the hull of Lorcan's ship gives him a sizable defensive advantage. It's still two to one, though, and the pirates press on their attack.
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[Alekzander Starlock]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
A quick peek out of the airlock, Starlock pulls his head back. It -was- just a quick peek after all. But then he nods his head and gestures with a hand, pointing index finger upwards and spinning it about.
That done, he trots out and seeks a location where he can cover those coming out of the airlock and have -some- cover from anyone who may be approaching from the corridor. Again, not bothering to speak as he aims downrange.
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[K-5Z9]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Fortunately, this isn't Kayfive's first boarding action, having taken part in several... notable ones over the course of her career. She smoothly moves up after Starlock, surprisingly nimble for such a large droid, A280 at the ready.
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[Jinx]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Jinx promptly latches back onto Kayfive's back after getting teh door open, where it's nice and full of cover between her and incoming blaster bolts.
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[Fshmaw]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Fshmaw spreads out as bid, though leaving his helmet in place. Possibly just for the translator, ssh. No basso growl emerges, though, the Aqualish content to prowl for kidnappers in relative silence...
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[Lorcan]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
The bounty hunter clad in striking crimson and orange as if blood engulfed by the flames of a brilliant, yellow star; has since mananged to secure cover within the hangar. Blasts flying over his head ducked against one of the durasteel containers - likely filled with generations old laboratory equipment, or the new inhabitants' supplies. Regardless of what was giving the Zabrak the purchase of safety, he used it. Likewise, he did not hesistate to peek out from above and not without poising the front-heavy sidearm atop the container to blast off further ice-blue shots in the direction of the walking, breathing bags of credits.
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[D'awn M'zeka]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
The hand-held trustpod sputters itself out of fuel, and Dawn... keeps her arm outstretched as if the pod was still pulling her. After all, equal and opposite reactions are a thing she knows a little bit about. Once she's actually getting into the station itself, and there's some gravity, she tosses it aside and comes in for as controlled a landing as she's able -- considering that she's got her toolbelt packed with tools and odds and ends she thought she might need on the mission, and the packs containing extra civilian-grade vaccsuits (just like the one she's wearing, herself).
What this means is that the twi'lek woman, when she realizes that her feet stopping on the deck while her momentum was still pulling the rest of her foward is about to make her face-plant, manages to turn herself around to instead land on her butt, sliding backwards a meter or two before coming to a stop, the packs on her back the only reason she didn't end up fully prone in the process. <<"I'm okay!">>, Dawn whispers into her vaccsuit's comm -- as if whispering makes a difference -- as she rolls over onto her hands and knees to get to her feet. She stutter-steps a bit as she gets used to the amount of gravity in the asteroid base, making her way quickly to cover as the team's 'point' elements keep doing their part of the job.
Dawn's blaster is still nicely locked down into its holster on her belt, too, as she peeks around into the airlock a good two seconds after everyone else has gone in... and then follows through.
As soon as the twi'lek is inside, though, she doesn't go for cover -- instead she turns to the control panel of the airlock.. and pulls a specific tool from her belt, to get the panel open before starting to work at the electronics inside.
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[Callax Dalso]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
While the last of the advance guard die at the bay entrance, Alek and his team make their way through the twisting guts of the research station. Being built before the death of the original Republic, the technology is markedly old and the iconography that of the long-dissolved government. And yet, while dust-choked and ancient, the station is in remarkably good condition even when mostly left alone over the decades - such that nobody falls through panels or other nonsense as they tromp along. The ring of bootheels on metal is bright and well, loud.
But there is other tromping, and soon the Rangers find themselves staring at the headlamps and gunlights of a pack of disheveled and angry beings in the usual personalized gear of pirates and spacers; there's no surprise, despite their being fairly quiet, because their lights are bright and the Rangers' eyes are sharp. The Rangers get the drop on them!
Meanwhile, Lorcan is free to proceed to step over the steaming corpses of the pirates he has just slain and move inside the complex, where much better-lit corridors (and much more cover in the form of crates and other things draped in tarpaulins) await him. He too has the maps of the system, after all, and the pirate captan is supposed to hole up with spice and women in the hab block not far away...
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[Alekzander Starlock]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Sudden encounter. Starlock blinks and says, "Stun setting if capable." Even as he lifts his weapon for a snap shot that hits the corridor wall even as he surges to his left to find a stanchon or bulkhead or other ripple in the corridor to use for cover.
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[Fshmaw]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Fshmaw *klik-klik?* Foosh tries the toggle, which is either ornamental or not present. (BLAM. BLAM.) At least he's making good on his promise to Callax to practice. Belatedly, the synth-voice croaks: "No stun, only kill?" Yes, Fshmaw, we-- we see that.
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[K-5Z9]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Kayfive could have used her mounted stun rifle, but that would have taken time to re-aim, and stow the much longer A280. Instead, an aimed shot burns off one pirate's leg at the hip, sending the mook toppling to the floor, their gun skittering away across the deckplates
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[Jinx]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Jinx continues to cling to Kayfive, peering over her shoulder as they advance. And then ducking right down when the pirates are caught by suprise!
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[Lorcan]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Lorcan rises from a crouch behind the durasteel container; reaching his prime, towering height. A few shots ringed off from his blaster, the hunter circles around, aiming in the direction of the fallen, lifeless bodies with glowing, orange holes in their center of mass... just in case. As he nears each corpse, the whirr of his pale-blue HUD over the interior of his tinted visor emits. Each target gets scanned, every single one so far registered for meagre bounties, though a cred is a cred... and there's more to be earned here.
The wall of flesh beneath his black jumpsuit slips into the lengthy, derelict tunnels maintained just enough to preserve the lifesupport system and thus his path through the web of corridors from cover to cover moves smoothly, despite his imposing and brawny frame. So far so good, for he closes distance between himself and the key point of interest -- the presumed location of the chief of this primal tribe. Take out the head and the body will be disorganized. Or so he hopes, as he strives with soft thuds of his hard nylon soles against the ancient durasteel hull, quietly making his way into the seperate facility of the station in search of the Cap' and his goons. Blaster ready!
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[D'awn M'zeka]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Dawn slaps the airlock control panel's cover back into place with a few good (and kinda loud) whacks with the butt-end of her tool, and it looks just like it did before she went to work. <<"They can't lock the door on us now, even if they get past you, Jinx!">>, she says into the comms as she turns away from the panel, tucking her tool back away -- all without taking cover or anything of the sort. Then, she follows the rest of the team. Her lack of any soft of combat training and/or experience is very clearly shown in how she follows; she makes no real use of cover, doesn't seem to have a clue about stealth... simply put, it's a GOOD thing she's at the back end of the group.
<<"Jabba's dusty backside!">>, she exclaims into her comm when the shooting in her vicinity begins and she looks for some place to get OUT of the line of fire! <<"I thought we had the drop on them! What riled them up?">>, she squeaks as she drops heavily behind whatever crate of wall-spur she can find, fumbling to finally get her blaster out of its holster. She ends up with a wrench in her hand... and then quickly stashes that back away, going back to fumbling for the blaster yet again; this time, she actually draws the blaster, holding it in a two-handed grip -- but she's trembling, the muzzle of the pistol visibly shaking as she stays completely out of the line of fire.
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[Callax Dalso]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Two of their number taken down hard in a bewildering and /thoroughly messy/ hail of heavy rifle bolts, the remaining pirates are salted enough to return fire - and doing so, fill the corridor with their own lethal barrage, some of which finds purchase in Lorcan and poor Dawn. "Frag, frag, frag," someone's yelling over the fire, "Die, you fragging--"
Meanwhile, Lorcan makes his way down a side corridor into the habitation block a good bit down into the complex. Quiet as a stainless steel mouse, the bounty hunter rounds a corner...and surprises three men with blasters setting up a barricade. They're surprised, but Lorcan is as well - not enough to not get the first shot off, though.
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[Alekzander Starlock]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Having taken the shot on his way into cover, Starlock grunts as the armor absorbs a good chunk of the damage. HE doesn't bother with the telltales on the armor because right now fighting is more important than whether or not his armor is still sealed.
But he slams into the bulkhead and then turns to poke his rifle out of cover... popping a shot of blue stun energy right into the face of a pirate. FWOOSH! Down the guy goes....
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[K-5Z9]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Kayfive makes a surprisingly angry snarl for a droid vocabulator, shifting a bit to better shield D'awn from incoming fire. Leveling her A280 at the pirate unfortunate enough to have wounded the tech, she fires. Whether through sheer luck or good reflexes, he manages to duck and the bolt scorches past his head.
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[Fshmaw]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Fshmaw's next blaster-bolt cleaves a pirate almost entirely, leaving two barely-attached chunks skittering across the floor. Gross.
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[D'awn M'zeka]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Dawn yelps as she, leading with the shaking muzzle of her pistol, starts to come over the top of her cover... and a blaster bolt hits her left shoulder. Her blaster pistol clatters to the top of the crate she's behind as she drops back down behind it. The twi'lek woman, behind cover, looks around for her gun... eyes widening in horror as she doesn't spot it... and staying wide when she looks up towards the top of the crate she's completely hidden behind and realizes that's where it is, where all that blaster fire could get her again! She reaches up and blindly slaps her hand around the top of the crate, trying to find her blaster by feel! When her hand lands on the weapon, she grabs it to pull back down to where she is... and her finger hits the trigger, sending a blaster bolt down towards the pirate who's left... it sails a good half-meter over the pirate's head, but it did go in his general diretion -- somehow.
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[Lorcan]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
PEW-PEW-PEW
Lorcan pulls the trigger three times, icicles sent in the direction of the trio skittering about a second before his broad, plated back threw itself and stuck against virtually anything capable of fizzling out a focused, highly-powered laser willing to take this Zabrak down! In this case? One of the grey, durasteel walls where paint and marking of the former Republic has washed off with time, resting against the pillar supporting the asteroid-based structure. The two seperate sounds of heavy thuds suggest he hit his mark twice, or else, they were feinting it... Hm.
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[Callax Dalso]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
The Rangers have taken a few hits, but each wound is responded to in the old Tarisian Way - the Rangers might get put in the medbay, but these pirates are going to the morgue. The sight of one of his comrades being literally sawn in half by Fshmaw's next rifle blast shakes the last of the survivors (the filth-mouthed one, naturally), but pirates are a scrappy lot, and he manages to dig up some hard iron in his soul. That does not, however, apply to his aim.
Meanwhile, Lorcan makes two of the three men he's encountered wish that they were behind the barricade when he arrived, and not just setting it up. The last has a moment of supreme intelligence - or maybe just self-preservation - and he drops his weapon, hands up. "He's in the end cell," the pirate says desperately. "The end cell! Code's five-two-two-besh-seven."
So there's that.
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[Alekzander Starlock]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
A snap shot comes from Starlock's weapon as he surges out from around the corner he was taking cover behind. He runs past the single remaining pirate and says, "I might consider surrender. Might help you survive this." calmly as he passes the guy.
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[K-5Z9]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Oh, there's only one left. Well this is convenient. Kayfive rises to her full height, leveling the rifle at the remaining pirate and stalking forwards. Stealth no longer needed, her photoreceptor lights turn back on. "You should surrender. One of you shot my friend, and it'll mean I don't feel as much of an urge to space you. Especially if you tell us where the prisoners are."
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[Lorcan]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
"You know, I've worked in crews like yours." The Zabrak's hefty sidearm simply peeked out, alongside with a glimpse of his visor before an icicle is sent in the direction of the surrendering pirate, "That's a favour there." - the gruff tone offered as he'd remove himself from cover, set towards the so-proclaimed final cell, though his glance would explore every single other with caution on the way.
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[D'awn M'zeka]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Dawn pops up, her blaster held only in her right hand (because it kinda hurts to move her left arm right now!). The muzzles still trembling as she points it down range... and sees that the fight's over, the last pirate facing the Rangers surrendering. Releasing a breath she didn't even realize she was holding, she reholsters her weapon... then sits heavily back down. "Ow... ow... ow...!", she says, putting her right hand over her wounded left shoulder. She does struggle back to her feet, though, to follow the rest of the team as they continue.
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[Callax Dalso]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
With the last pirate subdued, their suits patched with flashfoam and their wounds patched by Threl, the Rangers are able to rattle out the information they need from the survivor - who, after a few choice words and demonstrations of strength from the uncannily terrifying K-5, capitulates entirely and rattles of the location of the prisoners and allowing themselves to be tied up securely with cable. They ain't going nowhere once the job's done and their commlink removed. The prisoners are located not in the storeroom as was thought, but in the habitation block, where...
Lorcan stands at the door of the end bunkroom, the panel there and ready to be accessed. There's the faint sound of crying on the other side, and a loud voice growling in Huttese. << Shut up, >> roars a masculine voice, slurring heavily. << They'll fragging /hear/ you! Kriff's /sake/! >> Of course, this does nothing to hide them, as his voice is stupidly loud...
Down a maintenance corridor and around a bend, and the Rangers can file out and find where Lorcan stands. Alek, one assumes, will do the talking...
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[Alekzander Starlock]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Starlock will also make with utterly manly grunts of pain, just so you know. But he walks near to where Lorcan is at. He hears the loud broadcast and inclines his head, "Any pirates still active on this rock?" he asks the rest of the team, hoping they will sound off to confirm the situation. HE is doing this so that maybe, just maybe, he won't get shot the moment he coimes around the corner. In fact, he slings his rifle before he does, so better appear non-piratey.
But either way, he rounds that corner and approaches with hands empty and exposed. "Captain." he says to the intercom, "I highly suggest you not make the situation any worse for yourself. It's the difference between captured and left to die of exposure."
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[K-5Z9]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
After helping Dawn up Kayfive forges ahead, although she also does switch over to her stun rifle. Less chance of accidentally hitting a hostage. Lorcan gets... a rather curious appraising look as the droid takes a few steps past Starlock to cover him while he's busy. "Hello. We're here to rescue the prisoners. You can have any of the living pirates back if you want. We don't need them."
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[Fshmaw]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Fshmaw turns his rifle to check his own charge, again, not displeased. He takes up a position on the wall facing the locked door, in case someone inside needs to be "forcefully de-escalated." He busies himself adjusting the scope.
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[Lorcan]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
A tower of durasteel awaited, corpses along the corridor; highly specialised equipment too, for the HUD-equipped visor tinted enough just for the soft glow of blue to be visible but not the visage beneath. The masculine figure of flesh, bone and blood (presumably) is of great proportions for typical humanoids and they seem confident enough with the sidearm in his grip, which initially sets right for the only slightly shorter male. A silent scan and shift of details on his scanner, Lorcan gradually tilts the barrel of his Glie-44 to the side before maintaining strict trigger-discipline as if with an allied fireteam, despite still being active and within his grasp, "Not New Republic nor the Order; who are you?" - the Iridonian dialect bleeds through the fluent Basic, as he makes a step nearby the intercom. He does not act upon any figure though the caution is there and patience debatable for figuring out their affiliation.
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[D'awn M'zeka]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Dawn follows along, still favoring her wounded left shoulder as she walks. She's not really paying attention as she goes, and walks right up alongside Kayfive before she realizes she's not 'bringing up the rear' anymore, and, behind the mostly-clear-bubble faceplate of her civilian-grade vaccsuit, her eyes widen when she sees the bounty hunter.
Dawn quickly steps back behind, to peek around and past, the droid (she's peeking around the opposite shoulder of the one Jinx, the smaller droid, is peeking around as Jinx ride's Kayfive's back). When she was fully observable, the twi'lek could clearly be seen to wearing, over the top of the vaccsuit, a work belt filled with tools, and a holstered blaster pistol... and she's carrying a pack on her back that pretty obviously contains more vaccsuits like the one she's wearing.
"We're... uhm... we're the Perlemian Rangers. We're from Chandrila, but we're not Republic military", she says. "We came to rescue people."
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[Callax Dalso]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
While the group meets, and manages to somehow escape getting into a gunfight all over again, the Captain is ranting. << I'll...I'll... >> And then he switches to Basic. << Fine. I'll release the hostages! But I'm not coming out without assurances that you people aren't going to kill me! >>
Meanwhile, the crying has subsided, if a little. There's hope! A woman calls, her accent stiff and Kuati but her voice young and tight with terror. << Please, hello? Hello? My name is Dastna Nayl-Kuat. Please, whoever you are, just take us home. We won't press any charges, we just want to go home. My Basam, he's been hurt! >>
<< I only hit him twice, >> the rough voice on the other side intones. << Bounty hunter. You can assure my safety? >>
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[Alekzander Starlock]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Holding up a hand, Starlock gestures towards the intercom and draws a line across his throat before he reaches out to try to mute the mic-pickup. Once muted, he says, "He doesn't need to come out of there. Let us get the hostages out and do what you want with him. Rangers make no claim to any of the pirates. We were contracted to bring these hostages home. That is all. Think we can come to an understanding here?" he asks Lorcan before stepping back to let him have control of the intercom.
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[Lorcan]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
The hunter merely stares at Starlock and likely blinks behind his visor before taking a step ahead once there is no palm blocking the intercom. A few stabs of his digit insert the code kindly offered by the once-alive pirate, before allowing the doors to open. The still unholstered sidearm rises, before a glow of blue emits and an PEW is heard; a thud being the Captain collapsing with a gaping hole in their species' certainly vital part. Regardless, Lorcan would step back, indifferently, "Hostages are yours."
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[K-5Z9]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
The final pirate subdued, Kayfive is left to wave to the now freed hostages. "Congratulations. You are being rescued. Please do not resist. She has your suits." Waving towards Dawn, the droid then wanders off back towards the airlock they'd entered at. <<Hostages secure. Might want to bring the ship a little closer. I don't think some of them have their space legs.>>
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[D'awn M'zeka]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Dawn unshoulders the bag of vaccsuits and starts handing them out. "Why don't we just bring our ship into the hangar...? They won't need the suits, then", she suggests.
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[Callax Dalso]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
With their captor now an inert, smoking mass on the floor, the five captives - the aforementioned, stoic young woman named Dastna Nayl-Kuat, two cousins, her equally stoic aunt and a young man with a heavily bruised face who turns out to be the idiotic beau in question, Basam Reele. All of them are significantly stunned to find an Imperial-era security droid walking in past the dead pirate chief, especially with its pithy humor; they dutifully capitulate and suit up as requested, just in case 'resistance' gets them more of what came to the dead pirate. As D'awn suggests, the now-emptied laboratory is able to host the /Peacekeeper/, which lands not long after the all-clear signal is given, though naturally Callax eyes the lot of them as they're brought back with their saviors and Lorcan as a plus-one. All in all, however, the mission is a success: nobody died that counted, the hostages were saved, and Lorcan - one assumes - will be able to haul the dead man back for a payday. At least, with all that effort, one certainly hopes so.
Gold stars for everyone. Well. Credits for Lorcan. But mostly gold stars.
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