Log:Wampa Stompa Jakku

The team goes shopping for parts

OOC Date: January 8, 2023
Location: Jakku Desert
Participants: Clan Kora, Nerys Greystorm, Hadrix Kora, Faath Kora, Kohnner, Sumi Kora

Drop pods were small transition pods fired from the belly of a large cruiser to land on a planet below. Being mass produced, the pods were designed to repel the heat of re-entry and withstand deep water through the floatation devices factored into their shell.

Everyone was to sit in their pod, fasten in, and allow the crew to close and secure the quick release door. This left the passenger in darkness until the pod's limited battery came to life. Ahead of them was a single monitor that flickered to life, showing the helmeted face of Sumi Kora, who also, sat in her own pod.

The pods begin to lock into their respective tubes to be launched, the sound of alarms warning personnel of moving cranes sounded. Additionally, Sumi's voice was heard over the monitor.

<"Simple mission today. We're aiming for one of the old graveyards from the Battle of Jakku. Zero has a detection apparatus to locate parts from old fighters we will need to retrieve. Our purpose? Is to defend Zero while she works, and set beacons on the loot she finds.">

The pods at this point, are all set and prepped to launch. One by one, they are jettisoned from the side of the cruiser to begin their descent to the sandy surface of the desert world, Jakku. They can see the planet through the one small window ahead of them, inside the pods.

Strapped in with his big rifle mounted to the right of the hatch and pistols worn across his body, Hadrix rested easy. Even when the hard KLANG and the brief pressure of being fired like a slug pushed him into his seat, he only clenched to allow his body to combat the G-forces before vacuum eased the pressure.

<"Copy, escort and mark for retrieval.">

Looking to readouts fed to his HUD by the pod, it wasn't a new sensation. A circumstance taught and used less than a half dozen times in his old life.

<"Opfor expectations?"> helm canting to one side. What would it be? Salvagers trying to lay claims? Pirates?

Finding treasure on some backwater world? Surely this was the sort of mission Nerys had been built for. Possibly literally. She settled into the drop pod, securing herself, and taking the time to feel and adjust all of her attachments, including her droids. She had done such a thing so often, she did not need the benefit of eyesight. Indeed, muscle memory alone often served in better stead than her senses. With her comms off, and only the two in the pod with her for company, Nerys switched from basic to binary, "Alright, you heard the Alor. No wandering off, and keep your eyes open. I want to see anything coming for us before they get close enough to cause a problem." Switching back to basic, Nerys hit her comms, <"Copy. Greystorm, ready for drop.">

CHON KOHNNER, stuck inside the cramped quarters off his drop pod held on tightly to the hand holds to either side of him. It was one thing to strap in but it was a whole other thing to start feeling the gravity hit once they slipped through atmosphere. The planet grew bigger and when flames started to flicker across the edge of that small view-port he saw the desert world of Jakku through the Klatooinian Warrior was happy that his new set of armor had a thermal suit.

Some might have noticed as he squeezed into his drop pod, after exiting his parked E-Wing, that he had 'upgraded a bit.' Dark now, a black cape over what would otherwise be called Bombman Armor. A heavy set of protection for tanks and damage dealers. Still no blasters on his kit, he did carry his Z6 stun baton at his side where a blaster should have gone, and a rather large Ebony Ryyk blade across his back. <<"Bought it from some King of some planet. Drip, Dink, Derp? Something like that.">> Wookiee weapon smiths were famous for their primitive and simple weapons... and the even deadlier bowcasters.

While she's not a scavenger, she can absolutely defend what she needs to. Her drop pod looks empty but the top of a turning mando head can barely be seen through the glass. She's strapped in and she has all her guns ready and prepped. The mini mando holds on tightly. <<"Copy.">> She growls quietly into the comms. Her eyes look up and scan over the controls but she shrugs. Today she's going to be a comet of destruction and she likes it. Faath shivers and flexes her arms against her belt.

<<"I'm hoping we come across some local gangs or something fun to take out,">> Sumi answers back, <<"I guess we'll see.">> Each pod entered the atmosphere and began to shake violently, the viewport glowing orange for several seconds. When it subsided, however, they broke through the fluffy white clouds and angled for a descent that landed them just outside an old Imperial walker, its ass up in the air and main chassis busted up.

Beyond the walker, several old ships lay in a state of decay, one being an Imperial Star Destroyer, and the other an old Mon-Cal cruiser. Fighters and other debris dotted the surface providing ample forms of cover.

When the pods hit the sand, the impact made fantastic sonic-boom noises, yielding tall explosions of towering sand and dirt that slowly rained back down around the pods. People inside only needed to release the front of the pod to free themselves from the confines of their vehicle. The top was designed to fall forward, or even launch outward, if there was an imminent threat.

Sumi's pod had landed upside down, so when her top popped, she fell from the thing and crumbled on the ground, rolling out onto the sand to make a grunting noise. <"Rekking thing..">

Voices nearby clue her in about incoming damage and she rushes ahead from her pod to find cover, motioning the others to engage. <<"We have contacts.. looks like a territorial gang of scavengers.. unknown number.. feel free to engage!">> Scavengers proved themselves hostile when they rushed the pod landing zone with blasters and melee weapons. Game on!

Striking the quick release with his boot heel even as he began to stand, Hadrix's arm was slipped through the strap of the big rifle in his passage out of the exit, finding himself angled facing the sky. Forced to step up and heave himself up in mimicry of trying leg up multiple steep stairs in the same step.

Oncoming scav-gangers noted and his HUD already bracketing them, <<"Points for gett'se...">> of course there's be a word in Mando'a meaning courage that also translated to 'balls'. Sliding down the incline of the landed pod, right arm swinging outward and the left raising forward. The heavy click of the hammer cocked on the outsized revolver chased by the shriek of air molecules reduced to component atoms that becomes a grease fry sizzle of a scav simply ceasing to be, looser clothing left to tumble to the ground as if it had been running and collapsed tired.

<"No number estimates. Gripper.">

"On it."

The black hulled seeker ejecting from her socket on his backplate and streaking upward at speed. Another of the scavs is blown back with the thunder of the Morellian revolver fired, guts and armor fragments thrown out the gaping hole in their back and into the faces of those behind who dive for cover when the next crash comes and the heavy slug smashes into scrap metal left of where he intended it.

Nerys held on, as the flames engulfed the pod, the grav belt at her waist primed, on the off chance that something tried to shoot her from the sky and she needed to get down on her own. But, thankfully, there was only a hard knock after the long drop, and she snapped the restraints open....just in time to hear Sumi's call. The droids, already attached, clung anyway, as Nerys kicked the door open, swinging it back a bit more quickly than it might have otherwise done on its own, hitting the ground running as she sighted the incoming scavengers, the blaster in her hand picking off targets as she went.

THe mushroom cloud from Kohnner's drop pod impact causes a small dust storm to obscure the vessel. As the particles dissipate, the large Klatooinian stands there in his Ebony colored armor, the door to the capsule pushed out and away indicating his more graceful escape.

His head slowly swivels about, the augmented reality system picking out the scavenger's announced by Sumi. He takes off at a run, running with canine speed and grace even in that more bulky armor. Klatooine was a desert world and his species was built for this type of environment. Up the sand dune he went, faster than most local creatures might even scurry. He came upon two of the group, reached back behind him and freed his massive ebony blade from it's break away sheath. With a single hand he struck down wards with great strength, cleaving through one. Then twisted his body and sliced clear through another. Blood erupted after his actions, spraying outwards from the two scavengers.

Faath's pod drops to the ground with a thud and the front just kind of slides open. She steps out and shakes out her limbs. A moment later and she readies her wookie gun. There is another massive gun on her back just in case. She turns a little and grunts quietly at Sumi. She doesn't move from the landing area just yet. She lifts the gun up and sets her aim to one of the Jakku scavengers. Her feet dig hard into the ground as the first bolt shoots off. A little 'hehe' is heard over the comms when a second bolt is released. The mini-mando pushes forward and rushes after Sumi. She quickly takes into account those that have come with them and takes note of any dings already there so she can triage later. A little nod of her head and she keeps moving.

Though something distracts her. A Klatooinian in all black wrecking enemies. She watches that blade decimate their foes and the small medic watches the blood like a kid watching fireworks. She shakes her head and readjusts one of her rather large guns. We must stay focused.

It wasn't all out chaos like they were used to, and their opponents weren't professionals, either. Scavengers were the worst sort of fighter, because they had something to lose: their livelihood! Trampling in on the territory of a scavenging group was a major offense, not that Jakku would serve them and pull them into court over the instance. When it came to scrapping, first come first serve, or in this instance? Whoever was left alive got the best!

Sumi fires blindly over her cover, then adjusts to see one man flanking their position. He gets to charging only to take a fiery bolt to the chest from her E-11, the burning flames spreading over his attire a second later. He screamed in agony.

Others repelled the initial assault, leaving behind a lot of dead. Sumi took the opportunity to get Zero to work. <"Zee, time to get after it! Go, mark these pick ups."> The ID-10 droid on Sumi's back unclipped and began to move away from the group, scanning the wastes for what was needed.

Meanwhile, a second wave of scavengers were arriving from a nearby speeder, unloading from their truck to join the fight. They open fire on the group.

Twisting on one boot when incoming fire rains, taking the first shot on the rounded shoulder pauldron to increase his momentum. The other boot momentarily planting and pushing him forward, his own droid's sensor feed sending data he begins relaying to the others. <"Incoming force assessment. Providing firing line suggestions."> blink tabbing and firing off data on instinct.

Walking forward, disruptor swinging to his left with his fist over left wrist, drawing down the revolver in the same motion when the weapon shrieks anew - the silhouette of a scavenger dissipating like a mirage. <<"Faath, on my Nine O'Clock">> the pistol roars and the figure in his line of sight is hurled like they were thrown like a wookiee had them in their grasp and he thumbs back the hammer again.

<<"Think they'll run?">> another falls with a half-moon blown out of a torso, the size of a fist, and the hapless sot drops boneless, eyes rolling back as shock takes them.

<<"I don't think they'll run.">> Hadrix's rumble over comms almost jovial.

Nerys moved along the sands, using the way the grains spun in the wind to show her where the ground was hardpan and where it was soft enough to slow her steps. She found a place where she could gain some cover, as she caught sight of the incoming speeder of scavengers. Well, they would simply have to handle this the way things were always handled on backwater worlds like this one. The blaster was still in hand, and she fired, hitting once, the second and third only whistling into impacts in the sand. Alas.

As the Large Klatooinian bounds his way across the sand and towards another group of Scavengers, one has the courage to shoot at him. The first bolt impacts against the plating of his arm, sparking and melting the plasteel plates there to some degree. The damage soaks through, causing Chon to turn just a bit as he absorbs the momentum. There is a growl from him, and despite his left side smoking from the blast and his upper body twisted away, he still bounds forwards.

The ebony Ryyk blade finds blood twice more, cutting deeply through two more of the thugs, curdling the evil looking weapons thirst for the souls and life blood of its enemies in combat.

The mini-mando gets struck by a shot right to her chest plate which takes the wind out of her but it's not really an injury. Faath's eyes turn to Hadrix when he calls his nine o'clock and she sees what he points out. She lifts her gun up and aims down sight and shoots. The small medic did not push her feet into the ground to make sure she didn't go flying but there she goes. The shot rings out, flying past Hadrix and missing the target and she goes in the opposite direction. She flies backwards towards the pods and lands on her back holding the gun. She's breathing heavily as the shot she had meant to hit someone misses but she's on her back grumbling annoyed that the gun launched her.

Sumi moves out from cover, ducking low when two shots intended for her are fired. It sparks off the metal of a junk pile behind her. She kills a scavenger outright, missing a second, as she approaches the next section of the junkyard. <<"They're putting up a hell of a fight.. can't imagine what they're hiding.">>

With eight scavengers remaining, they seem to be falling back toward the downed walker, abandoning the truck they had rode in on. Meanwhile, Zero has marked for locations for loot retrieval. She continues her search, largely unencumbered from the attention of the scavengers.

Ringing on his armor signals the impacts reflecting from the beskar that the big man wears in his forward march and determination to keep going rather than taking to cover. His momentum arrested some by the absorption of blaster strikes, left hand raised to check his cylinder to see it fully emptied and his leg comes up to slide the pistol into its holster and light off a trio of rocket darts into the mass.

<<"Status, Gripper?">>

<<"Scanning.">>

<<"Scan faster?">>

<<"Shut up, Hadrix.">> the droid's simulated voice filled with a chuckle that the big man mimics. Three forms are flipped airborne when the darts imbedding in armor of two detonates to tear flesh and crack bone, sending that hapless pair groaning to the ground and the first is rendered decapitated by the explosive in their neck going off and leaving a spraying stump and a pole-axed body dropping its blast-staff en route to the dirt.

Having found her spot, for the moment, Nerys took a knee, though her muscled were prepped to jump and run if necessary, as she sighted down the remaining scavengers, the barrel of her blaster shifting as Hadrix's shots took down target after target. She was not complaining. No, that was not what she was here for. She was here to find treasure gosh darnit, and they were standing in her way. Well, possibly falling in her way, if she ended up having to roll bodies off of a good find. Hopefully the blood didn't make the sand too sloppy. She hated that.

As the missles fired from Hadrix impact upon their target in quick succession, through the blasts and smoke leaps CHON KOHNNER. Like an immortal demon from hell, his blade raised over his head. The sharp single edge slices down, severing and arm from one of the scavengers. It takes a moment for the bloke to realize what's happened to him. Shock setting in. They fall to the ground just as blood starts to spurt out from the wounds.

The Klatooinian ignores the arm-less wonder and stalks towards the last remaining scavenger. Dauntingly Slow, methodically patient, like the hound of ones darkest nightmares. Two Hands grip the Ryyk blade. It twirls back and then swipes horizontally, felling the scavenger without any thought or pretense. No care, no remove. Khonner simply steps past the gravely wounded, bleeding enemy. <<"Live so you may find me and try to kill me.">> He says in that deep tone of his, not once looking back.

What is not a fun time is being launched by your gun and getting shot as you land. Right in the chest where the other shot hit her. She grumbles as she rolls onto her stomach and pushes herself up. The wookie gun is pulled to her back while the much larger gun comes out and she glances around slowly, a little dazed but she starts to move back up towards the group holding her familiar T-21. An almost five foot tall gun for a just over five foot tall medic.

She pats her chest and does a quick assessment of the damages to her suit. A pat over her chest and she winces slightly. She rushes after Hadrix and lightly boops him on the arm. She quickly looks at those in the landing party. Kohnner gets a note to fix him up later but the rest are fine so she rushes forward.

The scavengers are done. Whatever it was they had been hiding is not clear, but they were gone now and the pickings were open game. That is until the pods behind the group began to disappear in the sand. One by one, they sank into the sand only to be launched high up in the air to rain back down with loud crashes. A muffled roar heralded the arrival of the one responsible for such feats of strength, and it emerged from beneath the desert's sand.

Similar to a sand dragon, but much smaller and with thick arms and hands to throw. It emerged and trailed after the remaining group, its maw opening, hungry for fresh scavenger meats!

The sheer size of this creature was comparable to a speeder-truck. Not giant, by any means, but still extremely dangerous!

<<"So there's that.">> Gripper offers from above, staying well above right now... because it's easier to observe from up there. For certain and totally not out of range of being bit.

<"Kriff."> stepping back with the disruptor raising again, head inclining in the direction of Faath's prior touch before jerking backwards to indicate where to travel now.

<"Rekk."> Checking his jetpack status but not quite engaging when he fires, the beast juking to one side and opens it's maw again to offer a hissing roar for the temerity of the Massive Mandalorian. The flicker of the weapon shot drawing a line between the man and the hunk of desert warped metal that is vaporized by the shot.

<"You missed.">

<"Shut up, Gripper."> the two laughing again.

Well, that went south, quickly. Scavengers were one thing, but desert monsters, entirely another. Nerys, because of course she would, considered a foolish act, and she reached back, Bitty handing up a silvered sphere of death. But not for the sand dragon. Not today. Any little burrowing creatures in the sand though, as the detonator flew past the creature and exploded, glass. Utter glass. "Not my best plan. I suppose we do it the old fashioned way then."

As the rumbling sounds of the beast beneath the sand also shook the soft sand dunes that Kohnner stood on, flashbacks on his home-world and the beasts that roamed the harsh deserts erupted in his minds eye. As it emerged from the sands, Chon stood slowly, taking in the large but not overly so beast. The Klatooinian's shoulder raised and then lowered as he took a deep breath. Then, without any hesitation, he rushed towards the beast. His first upward swing was quickly thwarted, yet the back spinning slash wasn't and it cut deep into the beast.

Faath turns around as she hears the drop pods land back on the ground. She turns and stares at the creature coming out of the sand and she sighs quietly. She lifts it up slowly and aims. The grenade, Hadrix missing, everything going wonky. She steals herself and shoots her massive gun. Alas, it isn't even close to hitting the creature that just popped up. She keeps her eyes on everyone and keeps track of who is getting hit from the party. She takes a few steps forward and readies her gun again.

Sumi joins CHON KOHNNER after arriving by jetpack, and landing just after the War Dog's mighty slash. She slammed the electric-charged baton into the open wound, not once or twice, but three times, earning the beast's ire with a mighty roar.

<"Fire everything you got into this thing!"> Sumi yelled, backtracking as quickly as she could to get away from it. The sand dragon loomed above and used its tail to sweep, and send any in the tail's path airborne and away!

Visor blacking out to protect his eyes from the thermonuclear flash of the detonator going off, Hadrix is laughing hard enough to set off his helmet speakers. The sound like the Boar-Wolf he is titled after issuing warning gruffs, checking his display showing one charge left in the Tenloss.

<<"Faath. I'm going to to be running dry in a moment.">> throwing the pistol up to catch in his left hand and the foot long vibro-blade in his right vambrace extends. Leaning forward and carried into the air by his jets, the disruptor scream drowned out by the thrusters and the beast itself when a section of its haunch is atomized.

Pack cutting out and his belt kept offline to let him drop down onto the beast, vibroblade tearing into leathery hide again and again.

Switching back to her blaster, which, she was disappointed to see, was better for her than her throwing skills, Nerys kept to her knee, aiming and firing as she adjusted for the movements of the team as they closed to melee range, and the monster kicked up a dust storm as it tried to sweep the leg. Literally. Three more quick shots were fired, two impacting the creature while the third went wide as she adjusted to avoid hitting friendlies.

The best strikes out for him, naturally being as close as he was made himself a target. Good. He swiftly twisted to the side, twisting his single edged blade so that it faced upwards. Then with powerful canine arms, sliced upwards. The blade cleaved deep and true, spilling the deserts beast's blood and exposing its innards to the elements.

He then jabbed the curved blade forwards violently, impalling the monster. With a growl and a grunt, Chon twisted the blade before pulling it from his prey.

Faath glances over to Hadrix and nods her head. <<"Copy.">> She rushes forward and lines up her sight and shoots into the form of the creature blowing a chunk off of it. Her eyes narrow and she drops to a knee and quickly scans the horizon to see if anyone is coming up at their backs while they attack the creature. She turns her eyes back to the monster and waits quietly.

With the dragon taking shots from all angles, or good beatings and stabbings, it is warded back and away from the group. Releasing a protesting cry of anguish and anger, it eventually turns back and dives into the sand once more, its rumbling presence going AWAY from the group and leaving them in peace.

Both Gripper and Zero have finished running scans over all available fighter crashes, and a number of waypoints are popping up in HUDs. They just needed a ship to come down to pick them all up, which Sumi assumed Terek had drawn the short straw for that duty!

With the monster gone, scavengers defeated, and parts found, Sumi found the time to spark up a smoke and take a seat. With her helmet off, she comments, "Who would've thought going shopping was so much fun?"