Private Debacle on Saleucami

[Mygeleto]

Location: Abandoned Outpost Talos, Saleucami
Objective: Slave Raid, Collection to Processing before leaving system.

-- The raid had been a mighty success, the conflict between the Sith and Jedi in the near by system had pulled away much of the boarders protection set by the Silvers. He and his men were planned to get a pretty credit in exchange for the souls they pulled from this planet. Saleucami was a backwater for many, but a lifeline that was needed for the Kuthic Worlds that were even more backwater then most worlds in Wild Space. Farming Culture with little defense, they were largely forgotten by most of the galaxy since the wars between the Republic of Old and the Techno Union from years ago. Since then it just traded hands and masters while living in peace. It was one of the few worlds that had a ripe population for the taking.

-- Raids were a conflict where the outcome was already understood, it was the profit that was yet undecided. He and his men destroyed many farmsteads in this area. With only the local militia there to protect the planet, Mygeleto took out most of them by himself without much of a fight. The Warlord even took a few as prisoners to serve whoever he sold them to next. It was not an honorable combat that he preferred, but he needed the credits and investment to future conflicts.

-- The Gen'Dai stood in the command room that overlooked the staging area where the shuttles were coming in to pick up the product. Standing there with his helmet off and on the table beside him he stood straight and looked forward to his next pray.

-- "Boss, the Looters hold is full, should we call in the smaller transports or call it here?" One of his underlings was a thin and lengthy human. Found the boy on a backwater like this and now he was the brains of the operation.

-- "Still got about Twenty around, have the ones left over fight one another for a spot, losers will be killed and thrown in the lake." He looked out the window, "grab the stronger looking children, our ranks are getting thin."

[member="Beltran Rarr"]

 

[Beltran Rarr]

“W-what do we do, sir?” The boy asked, a waver in his voice.

Beltran struggled to keep from rolling his eyes as he looked back at the boy, Dek, and the half dozen men who lay near him on a hill over looking the raiders’ staging area. This squad, if it could even be called that, appeared to be all that remained of the district militia unit assigned to this part of Saleucami. They wore “uniforms” that looked like they’d literally been sowed by their mothers. Dek and another man each carried blaster pistols that looked like they’d been old when Luke Skywalker had blown up the Death Star while the rest carried long barreled slug throwers that looked positively Pre-Industrial.

As he understood it, Saleucami had only recently come under the control of the Silver Jedi Order. Prior to that, it had been a listening post for the Sith Empire as they’d prosecuted their war throughout the sector. In the time that he’d been away from Kashyyyk, Beltran found that the Jedi finally seemed to be making a little headway in beating them back.

Good for them, He thought to himself before looking Dek in the eye.

“First thing you do,” He said simply. “Stop calling me sir.”

Beltran could see the glimmer of confusion in the boy’s eyes as he stammered out. “I d-don’t understand, si-I mean I don’t understand. Aren’t you an Antarian Ranger.”

“I am,” Beltran said, half truthfully. In point of fact, Beltran had been a Ranger a little more than a year earlier. But he’d just spent the last year under the not so tender mercy of some old enemies. Some old enemies who hadn’t bothered to check with his C.O. about leave before kidnapping him.

Odds were, he’d imagined, that he’d been listed as AWOL. Maybe, M.I.A., if Colonel Calderon had been generous. Regardless, at the present moment Beltran’s status as a soldier of the Silver Jedi Order was….a little murky. But that wasn’t something that these idiots needed to know about.

With a huff of air, he continued. “I am an Antarian Ranger, but I’m not an officer. My rank is Specialist, which means that you don’t call me sir.”

“Then what do I call you?” Dek asked dumbly.

“Specialist will do,” Beltran answered. Turning his attention back to the scene in front of him. With a blink of his eye, he ordered the HUD system in his helmet to zoom in.

“About thirty to forty enemy combatants,” He murmured more to himself than to the others. “Mostly human, though their leader is a species I don’t recognize. Looks like a bruiser too. That’s good.” Beltran liked bruisers. The bigger the enemy, the more fun it was for the Lorrdian to bring him down. Looking back at the men, he spoke.

“We need to get down there before the transports leave,” He said. “Who hear can shoot?”

Dek’s hand shot up immediately, and Beltran wasted no time lowering it for him. “No, who else?”
When of the other men, an older man with a large bush beard flashed a toothy grin at the Lorrdian. He carried one of the slug throwers. It was an old model, much like the others, but Beltran could see that it was in immaculate condition.

“I been known to do sum huntin’,” He said in a thick backwoods accent. “Names Doss, if yer wonderin’.”

Beltran hadn’t been, but that didn’t matter. What did matter was that he might actually prove useful. “Alright Doss,” He replied. “I’m going to need you to start picking off anyone down there you don’t recognize. Don’t bother with the brute, I’ll take him myself. Fire then move, then fire again. I don’t want them to be able to make out your position, got it?”

When Doss nodded, Beltran continued addressing the whole squad. “While Doss has them scurrying about, we’re going to need to sneak up as close to the staging area as we can. We’re lucky in that there’s enough trees and underbrush that we should be able to get pretty close before they spot us. Just don’t fall.” The last part, he addressed specifically to Dek.

“Once we get to the treeline, you’re going to divide into two fireteams. Dek, you’ll take Kip and Delvin. Gogh, you’ll take Merv and Stonn.”

He gave them a moment for the team leaders to lock eyes with the men that they’d be leading. When I give the signal, Dek you’re going to attack from the left. Your only job is to kill Raiders. As many of them as you can, as fast as you can. We need surprise and battle confusion if we’re going to have a chance at making this work.”

Dek nodded slowly. It seemed to have finally dawned on the kid that this wasn’t a holo-action film, but real life.

“Gogh,” Beltran pressed on. “Your job is to gain access to the transport and kill the flight crew. Do that first, then work on freeing the prisoners. Do not make a break for it until I tell you to and when you do, make for the trees as fast as you can. Anyone who can’t keep up get’s left behind. Got it?”

The tightening in the middle-aged man’s shoulders told Beltran that he didn’t like the idea of leaving his people to die, but he knew better than to voice that opinion. “Doss, once the attack is underway, concentrate your sniper fire on the raiders closest to the transport. Don’t bother moving positions after each shot. Odds are, they’ll forget all about you once we’re on them.”

The Lorrdian waited until it felt like all the men understood what they were supposed to do and then he nodded. “Okay everyone, let’s get moving. Doss, give us ten seconds then take your first shot.”

With that, Beltran led the six men over the ridge and into the tree line. Approximately twelve seconds later, a loud crrraaaaaack! Sounded through the air. From his position, Beltran couldn’t see whether Doss’ shot had struck home, but he hoped that one of the Raiders now lay on the ground in a puddle of his own brain matter.

They moved as quietly as they could while still making good enough time. Inwardly, Beltran cursed each time one of them tripped or stumbled, but he was thankful that they didn’t fall. About halfway down, he had Dek’s team split from the group and start making their way to the left side of the staging area.

A another craaaaaack! Split the air and another. In front of him, Beltran could hear the faint sound of men yelling. At the very least, Doss seemed to have gotten their attention.

When Beltran and Gogh’s team were about ten paces from the tree line, he beckoned them to keep heading straight. Alone, he split to the right and with his rifle at ready, he crouch walked to the right most flank of the staging area. As he got closer, he activated the sound dampening field on his armor and moved and slowly stuck his head out of the trees. Another crrraaaack sounded and Beltran had the pleasure of watching another Raider, seemingly picked at random, fall to the ground. Men were running to and fro, while the large giant who was their leader seemed intent on figuring out the sniper’s position.

Clicking on his radio, Beltran whispered. “Okay, we’re a go.”

He then stepped out of the tree line, into plain view and began to unload a full volley of rapid blaster fire at the group of men standing near the leader. He walked toward them calmly, deliberately, pouring as much fire into their midst as he could. Hopefully he would give them something to focus on while the others stormed the camp.

 

[Mygeleto]

-- The events of the raid were going smoothly for the most part, the milita offered little resistance and no real threat was left on the planet. A quick hit and run with some slaves to take to market for a quick buck. That was the plan.

-- He loved it when things did not go as planned, that meant more to kill.

-- The behemoth of a monster stood there as he noticed the sound of slugs bouncing through the skulls of his troopers and they fell to the force. He grinned as he placed his helmet over his head and the displays came up with the updated information given to him from his mens operational systems. They were nothing more then bodies to offer him more data to kill those that fought him. Their armor would offer positional data and vitals, with that information he could tell the generalized direction the enemy was shooting from. He picked up his shield and walked over to the railing facing the forest where he assumed the shoots were coming from. With one massive hand he pulled a weapon from his back and leveled it on the railings. Within seconds and a smile behind his helmet there was a extensive sound of 9.3mm rounds buzzing through the forest and cutting through the trees like a hot knife through butter.

-- Mygeleto laughed loudly as he cut through the trees, "Who is there knocking on my door?"

-- It was however the sound of his raiders at near him hitting the ground dead that caught his attention. He did not even notice the presence of another being nearby as several bullets bounced off his armor. One or Two of the weapons rounds found his meaty flesh between the plates of armor, which only pissed him off more. Lifting his shield to protect him from the bullets he let go of his weapon and pulled out his Vibro-Mace that was at his side.

-- "Well what do we have here." The Gen'Dai showed his helmeted face as he looked at [member="Beltran Rarr"] approaching him, "White Knight?"

 

[Beltran Rarr]

Beltran wasn’t known for his sense of humor. In fact, he rarely even smiled. Occasionally, if something came across as vaguely funny, the Lorrdian might offer a slight puff of air or a smirk. So when he actually laughed out loud at the large being’s question, the act surprised him as much as it might have anyone else.

“Hardly,” He called over to the giant thing. The vox modulator in his helmet masked his voice, and it came out as a crackly almost hiss. “You’re not that lucky.” He didn’t recognize the being’s species but that didn’t matter. He could see small splatters of the creature’s blood from the areas where his hail of blaster bolts had made it through the creature’s armor plates.

If it can bleed, He thought to himself. It can die.

In the background, he could still hear the din of battle. The rag-tag unit of militia seemed to still be alive, something that surprised Beltran even more than his laugh had. Maybe they can actually pull this off…

“Hey, I’ve got a question.” He called out again as he lowered his rifle. He knew that the weapon, even set to it’s highest setting, wouldn’t be able to get through the creature’s shield. “What kind of power converters does that transport use?”

He paused as he dropped the rifle to the ground and slowly drew the large Krath Itak Sword, he’d procured on Svivren. He hadn’t yet had the chance to test out the weapon’s true capabilities and he was excited to see what it could do. The moment it was in his hand, Beltran once more felt the cold, icy, death-like feeling he’d felt back on Svivren when he’d come across it’s maker. The Lorrdian hadn’t yet figured out what it meant, but he liked it.

“I only ask, because my ship is in need of spare parts.” He continued as he approached, stopping to stand only a few paces in front of the giant being. “And when you’re dead, I plan on raiding it for parts.”

 

[Mygeleto]

-- The warrior inside him boiled as the combated brought up a weapon to his armor and shield. He had not been in combat for some time now and someone more willing to fight him then a desperate slave. Challenge was what he was looking for and it was near a point of boiling over as he dropped his weapon to bring up his shield.

-- As he lifting the Airspeeder Door of a shield it moved with unrepresented speed, as if the monster lifting it was waving around an Aluminum Sheet. Mygeleto could not help but grin under his helmet.

-- "Power Converter?" He spoke loudly, as if somewhat interested in what the man had to share. Once he stated that he was going to take it off his dead corps, he laughed out loud. He brought out his Mace and swung it at the enemies position. "Once I kill you, Ill place your skull next to it so you can have a nice long look."

-- The men around him were trying to hold out against the enemy, but the sniper in the treeline was a waking concern for most of them. They were not like Mygeleto, unafraid of the bullets and lasers that were flying around. However, he cared little for what else they were doing, only that of the warrior before him.

Beltran Rarr

 

[Beltran Rarr]

The creature struck out with a speed that Beltran hadn’t expected from something so big. As its mace flew through the air, the Lorrdian barely had time to duck out of the way. As it was, the massive alien was able to score glancing blow on Beltran’s shoulder, the force of which sent the much smaller man flying.

Pain shot through his entire being as he hit the ground nearly a meter away, rolling with the momentum of the strike. Not so long ago, before Beltran’s had been painfully and brutally augmented with large cybernetic implants against his will, such a strike (even a glancing one) would have been enough to shatter every bone in his shoulder and arm.

As he came to a sitting position, he looked up at the giant being and tentatively moved his shoulder. It hurt, but it still worked. “I guess getting butchered up by those Sithspawn does have an upside.” He muttered to himself before coming to a stand just outside of the being’s strike range.

“Owww!” He called over to the creature. “That hurt!”

With his sword still in his right hand, Beltran reached down to his utility belt with his left. First he pulled out a frag grenade from his utility belt, armed it and tossed it directly at the ground beneath where his enemy stood. Without waiting for it to detonate, he then pulled a stun grenade from the other side of his belt and did the same.

The grenades were not especially powerful, but he hoped that at the very least they might cause the menacing giant to drop his giant shield. Or even just slow him down a fraction of a second.

Just as the first grenade detonated, Beltran sprinted forward, closing the distance with his enemy and striking out with his blade.