Ask Tatooine Raiding the Raiders

[Kliedden Raxx]

"Fair enough." Klied said in reply to Crossac declining his suggestion. "I'll take the lead. I've got a good eye, and in the off chance they have set up another sentry I'll know what to look for." Taking up his cycler rifle he started cautiously down the precariously thin path, pebbles shifting under his feet and tumbling down into the canyon far below.

Slowly but surely they would make their way down into the belly of the canyon, the shade finally giving them a reprieve from the oppressive heat of the suns. As time went by and they continued along the path those suns would begin to set, turning the whole valley a darkened purplish-orange. "We can use that to our advantage..." Klied said to Crossac quietly as they walked on. Not long afterwards he stopped suddenly in his tracks and held up a hand, signaling the scoundrel to stop. While his ally would keep watch Klied knelt down to inspect the ground beneath them. "There's a lot of crisscrossing bantha tracks here," He explained. "That means high activity..." Looking up he saw another bend in the canyon path ahead of them. "Most likely the camp is right around there. We won't want to make our assault head on..." He looked around the canyon, taking notice of a cave cutting into the cliff face to their right. He pointed it out to his ally. "That might give us a route to flank them from." He explained before standing up and turning to Crossac. "They could have a sentry posted in there though, so keep your guard up."

With that warning the hunter began moving into the tight cavern, almost completely in the dark. Not wanting to risk alerting their enemy to their position with a light Klied moved very slowly, touching the walls around him and listening closely for any audial cues. Eventually they could both hear the sound of Tusken Raiders babbling not far ahead. Crawling over a pile of rocks Klied crouched down low and looked ahead. Before them was the end of the cave passage, with the silhouette of a Raider standing watch. Behind him they could see a sliver of the main camp. From their limited view it would look like the Raiders were not on guard. They seemed to be walking around as though it was an average night. It was impossible to tell their total numbers from here though. The hunter looked thoughtful for a moment then motioned for Crossac to move back. Once the scoundrel had he pulled out his knife before kicking down a few small rocks and jumping behind cover as well. The Raider came forward to investigate the noise, only for Klied to grab him once he got close and deliver two quick stabs to his torso. This time he managed to do it quietly, and then gently lowered the Raider's body to the ground. Wiping off his blade and sheathing it he looked expectantly to Crossac.

"Things are likely to go to hell fast once we get down there." He said. "You've likely got more experience in these types of situations than me, plus you've got a blaster made for open combat. Your turn to take the lead, I'll follow whatever direction you give me." He leaned back against the cave wall, waiting for a response.

@Pyrenees

 

[Armand T Crossac]

Glad that Klied accepted him declining the suggestion, Crossac gave him a grateful nod and nodded once again when the Hunter agreed to take the lead. "Sounds good to me" he said, content to fall in behind his ally. Once the descent started, the young scoundrel was happy that he was indeed following the hunter as he nervously walked down the narrow path, keeping a careful eye on where the other set down his feet. Throughout the entire descent, Armand kept a hand close to the wall and often took hold of it or leaned against it to better keep his balance. A wave of relief washed over him as they reached the bottom, both because he no longer had to fear falling down, and because the shadows provided relief from the heat of the suns.

He hadn't thought of using the darker shades to their advantage, but it made sense as it could hide them and one thing was for sure, the sandpeople were more used to the heat than he was, so this was solely positive. "Yeah, you're right" he said rather simply as the two moved on. Suddenly, the hunter signalled for him to stop and having come to trust him, Crossac complied without a second thought. Once Klied mentioned it, Crossac could see it too, there were indeed many bantha tracks and the other's analysis made sense. "Avoiding an head-on assault does sound like a good idea" he said with a low voice. Once again, Klied found an alternative - proving once and for all that he was a much better guide than bringing a few of the locals. Agreeing that it was probably the best path, the scoundrel readied his rifle "I'll stay on the alert" he said, once again letting his temporary companion take the lead.

Once inside, Crossac repeated what he did before and made it a point to follow Klied's lead, taking the very same path that his friend did. While it did get more narrow than he would have preferred sometimes, it did explain why they encountered so little resistance in the form of guards - they didn't expect an attack from the tunnel as it only allowed for a small force and wouldn't be large enough for heavy weaponry to be brought through. Still, there was one person standing by the entrance. For a while, Armand thought about dragging him in with a hand covering his mouth - the idea wasn't a very good one, as a muffled scream and flailing from the savage's limbs would surely earn the attention of the others. He wouldn't have to think for very long, however, as the hunter soon figured out a much better approach. With an aimed rifle, Armand simply looked on, prepared to act if something went awry.

"Well done" he said, coming out form his cover. So far, Crossac had viewed Klied as his better. Someone who wiser, smarter and more experienced. It was surprising to hear the other suggest that he take the lead but after a few moments, the young scoundrel nodded "Thank you." Feeling like a fool for not having looked at what weaponry his ally carried earlier, Crossac's forehead furrowed. While the cycler rifle did have capacity to kill, it was not a weapon designed for more heated combat. Pulling out his blaster pistol from its holster, Crossac handed it to the hunter "Just in case. If they get close to you" he said, hoping that his ally wouldn't mind borrowing the weapon for a bit.

Walking closer to the exit of the cave, the scoundrel looked out over the camp whilst trying to stay hidden in the shadows. The cave exit was on a somewhat elevated platform, allowing for a good overview of the camp. A somewhat primitive barricade faced the front, proving that a head-on assault would have been foolish. With a closer look, Crossac could see that a couple of them were on guard by the gate and a few others sat or stood rather near their weapons whilst a few more were fully occupied with tasks that removed them from any kind of weaponry. "Can you stay back and cover me from here?" he asked, knowing that the hunter's rifle was well suited for long distance shooting. "I'll go in and try to draw their attention to ensure that they don't come up here to you. But if they do, you've got the blaster" he continued, looking to Klied for approval.

Soon, the young scoundrel ran out from the cave and hopped down a small, one meter high, ledge to land behind the barrier inside the camp. Quickly, he fired off two shots which hit the first raider that spotted him. Turning to the other side, he fired four shots, two of which hit the barricade whilst the other two hit one of the guards. Soon, all the sandpeople in the camp were scrambling for their weapons. The battle was beginning.

@Reyn

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

Klied took the blaster pistol from Crossac with a nod, stowing the weapon in his belt in case he'd have need of it later. He followed the scoundrel to the end of the cave, making sure to remain hidden in the shadows behind him. After listening to Crossac's plan he nodded again in compliance. "I'll clean up any you miss." He said as he took up his cycler rifle. The weapon had a low fire rate considering it was built for hunting not warfare, but he figured it would be enough to pick off a few of the Sandpeople. Crossac would need to do the lion's share of the fighting though. "Just be careful down there, you'll be outnumbered even with my assistance. Keep moving, don't let them swarm you or they'll take you apart with those gaffi sticks." He paused, realizing his advice might do more to make the scoundrel nervous than reassure him. "Uh... May the Force be with you," He offered awkwardly. "If you believe in that sort of thing, or whatever..." He pat the man on the shoulder, than prepared for the battle to commence.

As Crossac leapt down into the camp Klied got down on his belly and leveled his rifle, training his sights on the Sandpeople below. He watched as Crossac opened fire, killing one of the Raiders and then turning his attention to the barricade. It was a smart move, considering they were the ones already armed. With the attention of the barricade guards squarely on Crossac, Klied was easily able to take aim on the immobile enemy. He fired a single shot, popping the second gate guard in the head. Next he moved his sights towards the other Raiders that were now scrambling to arm themselves. He fired another shot, winging one in the shoulder as he reached for a blaster rifle. As his target rolled on the ground howling in pain the others dove for cover. He managed to get another shot off, killing one more Raider before the rest returned fire on him, forcing him to back up deeper into the cave.

Taking cover behind the rocks he realized in order to reposition he'd need to leave Crossac alone for several minutes at least. Setting up at the cave mouth may have been a bad idea after all. He exchanged his half-emptied clip for a fresh one and waited for the Sandpeople to shift their attention back to Crossac. Only then he could attempt to give him covering fire again. He only hoped the scoundrel could last that long.

@Pyrenees

 

[Armand T Crossac]

After he took down the one guard by the barricade, Crossac saw the second one being shot in the head and quickly falling to the ground. A smirk appeared as he knew that his friend had his back. Turning around, the scoundrel caught a Raider appear from the tent right next to him - it was an easy target seeing as he stood so close and was still a bit slowed from getting past the cloth 'door'. A single shot was fired, hitting the foe square in the chest.

Klied's words about staying on the move echoed through Armand's mind. More often than not, he relied on raw talent alone as he was often stronger than his foes and had a pretty good aim. This fight was bound to be challenging and he was glad to follow the advice of his companion. After waiting for just a second to see if another one would plop out of the tent, Crossac started moving out, passing by the entrance of it and then back in between the same tent and the one next to it. It was fortunate that the hunter was still active as he fired and killed an Tusken who would otherwise have been able to fire upon Crossac as he made his run.

Once there, he kept going deeper in between the tents until a raider appeared from behind it, apparently wanting to take him from behind with a gaderffii stick. In the nick of time, he leaned backwards, just barely escaping the reach of the weapon's pointy end. Letting loose three bolts, he noticed how all but the first one had missed. The Tusken, now falling to the ground from being hit in the leg, howled wildly before being killed by two more bolts.

Crossac then quickly turned around, satisfied that his rear was safe for now. Once he looked out from between the tents, he could see at least three enemies firing at the cave "Shit, shit shit" he mumbled, initially having hoped to be able to keep them from attacking his friend. Quickly, started running to a rock next to a tent and simultaneously fired two bolts at a Tusken standing behind a tipped over table. Unfortunately, one of the bolts flew right past the raider whilst the other only hit the table. Hoping that he had at least drawn the attention of the raider, he then fired a bolt at the other one which also missed. His new position did, however put him at an advantage as the final raider who was shooting at Klied had no cover against him. With that, he fired three bolts with two of them hitting the Tusken. The remaining two now switched their attention to Crossac who still hid behind his big rock.

He was somewhat surprised when their shots seemed die down a little. They suddenly seemed more precisely aimed and were fired at a slower rate. Feeling that something was off, the scoundrel turned, only to find a Tusken thrusting a Gaderffii stick at him from behind. Almost in a panic, Crossac fired his E-11, only to completely miss its mark. Continuing the momentum he had in moving the rifle, he brought it in between himself and the stick, just barely managing to prevent it from stabbing him. In the background, he could hear the footsteps of approaching enemies from the other side of the rock, but at this moment, his focus was at surviving.

After both one and two moments of struggle, Crossac managed to point the rifle at his foe. But as he pulled the trigger, an utter sense of confusion spread across his face as he realised that no bolt was fired. Using an E-11 to block a melee attack turned out to be a rather stupid idea. Finding renewed zeal, the Tusken started swinging at the young scoundrel repeatedly and time after time, he continued to block the attacks with his rifle as his back was pressed against the rock. Finally, Armand managed to redirect a thrust and during the time the savage recovered, he brought out his stun baton. With the momentum of bringing it out and the Tusken still recovering, Crossac managed to hit and stun his foe with a bash to his torso. But now, the two raiders who were rushing towards him became an obvious threat, a threat which he was not well prepared for at the moment.

@Reyn

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

Klied cringed as blaster bolts whizzed over his head, scoring against the cave walls around him and lighting up the whole place. He kept his head low, staying behind cover until the shots suddenly stopped. Assuming Crossac had managed to tear the Sandpeople's attention away he quickly got up and leveled his rifle over the rock he was crouched behind, taking aim once more.

One of the Raiders that had been firing at him was dead, and the other two were now focused on the scoundrel on the other side of the camp. Taking aim he fired once, hitting one of the attackers square in the back. As the Raider collapsed dead his comrade stopped firing on Crossac's position to look at him, only to get his own shot in the side of the head. Klied raised his rifle to try and locate Crossac, only to find the scoundrel engaged in hand-to-hand combat with another raider. The hunter kept his cool, attempting to train his sights on the Raider. Unfortunately the two of them were moving around too much as they fought, and he didn't want to risk hitting his ally.

"Come on..." He hissed through his teeth, both rooting for his friend while continuing to look for an opening to fire. He was so engrossed in this task he didn't take notice of more Sandpeople approaching his position until his scope was suddenly obscured by a much closer object. Klied looked up from his scope and his eyes went wide as he found a Raider standing directly over him, gaffi stick held over his head as he shrieked a savage war cry.

Klied raised his rifle in an attempt to fire at him only for the Raider to swing his gaffi stick and knock the weapon aside. The hunter fell back on his rear and scooted backwards in a panic as the Raider leapt over the rock and brought his gaffi stick down on the ground right between his legs. Klied lifted his legs and kicked the Raider in the chest, knocking him back against the rock. He then quickly pulled Crossac's pistol from his belt and shot him three times in the chest, killing him. Sitting back in shock for a moment as smoke rose from the blaster Klied shook his head and got up, trying to get back to his rifle.

He returned to his former position and grabbed his cycler rifle just in time to see two more Raiders rushing up the hill towards the cave. One had a gaffi stick in their hands, the other armed with a blaster aimed directly at him. Klied cursed before turning to run deeper into the cave, avoiding another blaster bolt in the process. As he disappeared into the darkness of the cave with the enemy on his heels Klied could only hope he had done enough to make things easier on Crossac.

@Pyrenees

 

[Armand T Crossac]

With heavy breaths, Crossac stood against the rock, trying to brace for the next two raiders, knowing that he stood little chance against them. But the footsteps had ceased and he soon realised why. Klied had taken care of them. Another thing he noticed were the sound of three blaster pistol shots going off and now two armed sandpeople having made it up the ledge and heading in towards the cave. Hoping to return the favour of providing cover fire, Crossac raised his rifle and held in the trigger, wanting to spray a flurry of bolts at the two raiders in the distance. Unfortunately, his rifle had not magically fixed itself and only made a sick metallic sound. Deciding that it might be too risky to run back and climb the ledge himself, the scoundrel decided to hope that his companion would be alright in there. With that, he sheathed the stun baton, let the rifle hang by his side on the leather band and picked up the gaderffii stick, having grown rather fond of the weapon.

Peeking out from behind the rock, Crossac saw that two more raiders had just picked up weapons and started pointing at the rock. Knowing that it was foolish to face them in the open armed with only melee weapons, he crouched and made his way in behind the tent, hoping that the rock would block their line of sight and thus ensure that they were unaware of him having changed his position. Sneaking in behind the tent did give the scoundrel a moment of respite. It was good to not fight for a bit, but he knew that every moment he gave them was only letting them grow more organised and better armed. An amusing sight struck him as he rounded the corner. Having reached a 'corner' of the camp with a bit more open space than the narrow alley-like corridors he had been in between the tent, Crossac saw a Tusken raider standing by a weapons rack, apparently having a hard time choosing between two of the Gaderffii sticks. Just as he started rushing forth, the two armed opponents who wanted to take him behind the rock let out a loud scream, seemingly notifying the others that he was on the loose.

In an unfortunate turn, the indecisive Tusken discovered that he was about to be attacked and quickly grabbed a stick at random whilst letting out a guttural scream. Whilst the raider was able to deflect Crossac's thrust, the scoundrel kept charging, making use of his larger bulk and already built momentum to push through the raider's defence and tackle him. Apparently, Armand was very lucky - the raider fell back onto the weapons rack and had his back pierced by the Gaderffii stick that he didn't pick up. Satisfied that the unfortunate Tusken was out of the fight, the scoundrel turned around, rushing back towards the tent. Staying close to one of the corners, he waited for the other two to appear. Sure enough, the other two soon came, having stayed relatively careful as they made their way around the tent. Although both of them were watchful, the scoundrel managed to plop out of cover and throw a swing at the one at the front without the foe being able to put up a defence.

The one behind raised her rifle to fire which put Crossac at a rather precarious situation. Choosing to momentarily disarm himself, he quickly let go of the stick and grabbed the body of the now dead sandperson just before it managed to fall, holding it tight under the armpits. He felt disgusted by using a corpse like this but was desperate enough to push past his moral qualms. Using the body as a shield, he rushed forth the two meters that were needed to get to his foe, cringing both times he felt it being shot at. Once he had arrived by the final foe, Crossac pushed on whilst she tried to push the body aside. It resulted in the body actually being pushed to the side, but with the scoundrel falling on top of the raider. His breath was heavy by now, but just as be brought out his stun baton, he felt something hit him from behind. It was a swing with a gaderffii stick, hitting him in the back. Armand thanked his lucky stars for wearing his protective vest. Still, he was in grave danger since another swing would probably be the end of him and his back hurt tremendously.

@Reyn

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

Klied slipped deeper into the cave, quickly maneuvering around the tight darkened passages. He could hear the Sandpeople howling angrily behind him. He knew he had to be careful here. With the visibility what it was he'd need to get very close in order to attack his opponent, and in a two on one situation that could quickly go south for him. At least for the moment he had the element of surprise on his side.

Setting down his cycler rifle for the moment he drew his knife in one hand and held Crossac's blaster in the other, pressing himself up against the cave wall as he slowly moved forward, running his fingers along the stone for guidance. Closing his eyes the hunter took a deep breath and listened closely. The Raiders had quieted down no so as not to give themselves away. But he could still tell they were there. The footsteps, the sound of panting from their earlier sprint up the hill. They were getting closer... Closer... Closer...

Klied opened his eyes and jumped out from around the corner, driving his knife into the Raider in front of him and pointing his pistol over his shoulder, firing blindly into the dark. With each red bolt the cave was lit up momentarily, and he saw the second Raider drop their rifle and duck, avoiding the shots. Klied pulled his knife out of the Raider in front of him and let him drop to the ground, blinking several times from the sudden flash of light. The second Raider ran into him, shoving him up against the cave wall and grabbing both his wrists to prevent him from using his weapons.

The Raider howled, his foul breath in the hunter's face. Klied scowled and grit his teeth as he brought his knee up between the Raider's legs. It grunted, but didn't react quite as he had expected. Oh, Klied thought, it's a woman. He was somewhat amused by that right before she headbutted him, leaving him dazed as he slid to the floor. The Raider then began beating him with her fists, battering the man senselessly as he scrambled in the dark for a means of defending himself. Finally he got it together enough to put up his arms and start blocking her punches, then grabbed one arm as she swung at him and held it tight. With his free hand he grabbed the side of her head and slammed it against the cave wall once, twice, and with the third time she was out.

Klied pushed the Raider off of him and stumbled around in the dark, finding and sheathing his knife before grabbing Crossac's pistol and making a break for the cave mouth by the camp. Once he got back there he looked around desperately and spotted the scoundrel below. He was on his back with a Raider above him, getting ready to deliver the killing blow. Klied raised his pistol and closed one eye, aiming carefully. He fired once and missed, but the Raider looked up, his attention drawn away. Klied fired once more, this time hitting him in the chest. As the Raider collapsed he looked around what remained of the camp. All the fighters seemed to be dead. Or they had cut their losses and ran. There may have been more hiding in the tents though. Slowly he made his way down the slope, shouting to Crossac as he walked. "You alright kid?" He pulled his mask down as he approached the scoundrel, a wry grin on his face. This had been an exciting fight, and the young man had definitely earned his respect and then some.

@Pyrenees

 

[Armand T Crossac]

An advantage of being much stronger than his foe was that the young scoundrel could overpower her whenever a contest of strength was happening. Although he was still in great pain from the hit, his mind was still keeping itself incredibly busy as he tried to figure out how to get through the situation. Deciding that both raiders needed to be taken out, he tried to wrestle control over the rifle but found himself surprisingly weak after being hit. It was a condition which would only last for a few minutes, ten at most, but which was still very much a problem right now. Using what power he had, Crossac rolled off of the savage and used his momentum and body weight in order to gain the upper hand. Soon, the weapon was directed at her and the blast went off.

With the weapon being of a more analogue nature, Crossac knew that he wouldn't be able to use it to kill the remaining foe with it - at least not by shooting him. His mind was racing, should he bring up the rifle to defend himself with or should he drop it and try to bring up his stun baton? At any rate, a decision would have to be made right away as the savage standing above him seemed to be raising his arms to strike a final blow. A shot could be heard in the distance and he dearly wished that it was Klied. At any rate, the Tusken did look up, giving the scoundrel the chance to drop the rifle and quickly bring up his baton defensively. Ultimately, it was not necessary as the hunter killed his prey, ending the raider's life with a shot to the chest.

Slowly, he started getting up, using his baton as support. "Thank you" he said with pain present in his voice. "I think they should all be gone now" he said, clearly relieved that it was all over. Turning around, the young scoundrel felt a strange anger building within him as memories of his last battle against the Sandpeople flashed past. He bit his lip as he could practically hear the creams of their civilian settler guides being shot in the back, stabbed and killed as they sobbed over a lost loved one. His eyes watered, but there were no tears - they were held back. "You are all gone now, aren't you?" he screamed from the top of his lungs, looking out over the encampment. "Savages! You're all Sithspawn and now you're gone!" he continued, taking his anger out by letting his screams echo throughout the canyon.

Finally turning back around, the scoundrel's breath was heavy and his gazed turned to the floor. He was doing his best to collect himself and let out a spontaneous "That felt good" Surprised at how efficient screaming really was. But then, a wave of awkwardness washed over him, causing him to look up at the hunter "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that. It was reckless, sudden and rude" he said, sincerely hoping that it wouldn't be the impression that the man he now considered his friend, was left with of him. "We did well today. I don't have much pull, you know, but I'll be sure to put in a good word for you." Trying to assume a more serious tone after his recent outburst whilst at the same time trying to sound calm and collected with a varying degree of success. "If we, or perhaps just I, get lucky, we'll get to work together in the future."

@Reyn

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

Klied was smiling under his mask as he approached, although as Crossac started shouting he immediately gestured for him to stop, and looked around the camp to see if there were any more Raiders. Thankfully the scoundrel's outburst didn't seem to draw any unwanted attention. With a sigh Klied pulled down his mask and looked back to his ally. He understood what the kid must have been going through. Death was never an easy thing to cope with, and Sandpeople killed folks slower than most. The battle he survived earlier must have been awful.

"No need to apologize," He said flatly, the two standing across from each other awkwardly. "Just... Try not to do that in the future? I get it but... It's not exactly tactful..." He took another look around the camp. "At any rate I doubt these Raiders will be bothering your employers anymore. If there are any members of the tribe left out there they'll have gotten a pretty clear message." The hunter couldn't hide a slight wince as the scoundrel mentioned putting in a good word for him. He looked to the young man uneasily for a few moments before speaking up.

"No offense..." He started. "But I'd like to avoid making a habit of working for the Syndicates. Jobs like this? I'm your man. Shakedowns and turf wars? Not my style." He paused, feeling a bit guilty for speaking his mind. He did like Crossac after all, he wanted that much to be clear. "If you ever need a hand with something though, or if you'd like to come with me on expedition I'd be glad to have your talents. I could teach you a few of my tricks as well. I'm sure your bosses would like that." He offered a consolatory grin, and extended his hand to shake.

@Pyrenees

 

[Armand T Crossac]

Klied was right - of course he was. It wasn't tactful, far from it. "Yeah. I'm sorry" he said, letting out a heavy sigh "I'll avoid it the best I can in the future" he continued, sending the hunter a confirmatory and somewhat enthusiastic nod, happy that he didn't seem to condemn the outburst too harshly.

A somewhat concerned expression spread across the young scoundrel's face as his new friend winced and began with a careful "No offense" Slowly, the expression faded as the hunter explained his point of view. Shakedowns and turfwars? There was a duality to it all - whilst at the one hand, he was really good at it, on the other, he often felt ashamed for participating. Armand felt a great deal of shame fall over him and the man practically shrank where he stood with his head slouching and shoulders collapsing. If there was a hole for him to crawl into, Crossac would probably do it. Shrinking in place with his considerable bulk wasn't something which happened often or easily - but this time, it did. A quiet "Yeah" escaped him, almost too low for the hunter to hear. It was lucky that his head was tilted down as it effectively hid a sad expression on his face "I understand" he said. Looking back up, the young scoundrel tried to force a smile onto his lips "I liked working with you" his words were genuine but mixed in an ocean of different emotions.

Hearing what Klied had to say, Crossac nodded eagerly. A true smile started growing on his lips "I'd like that too" he said - both because he found the hunter to be relatively pleasant company with his quiet, safe and stable personality and because he always liked to learn new things. "Just give me a holler and I'll try to clear my schedule" he said happily before clapping his hands together "Now, I bet Mena would like something to snack before we head back" he said, prepared to start walking towards where they had left her - not revealing that the food break was more to cure his own hunger than anyone else's.

With that, the two made their way back to the trusty animal, ready to report their success to their employer.

End Thread

Reyn