Ask Plot Automated Defense - Doctor's Orders

Corran Velt

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The bright lights of the modern city felt like a welcome change of pace after months out on the Rim. More civilized. More orderly. Land Speeder drivers actually obeyed traffic laws and not everyone carried a blaster. However, this wasn’t a vacation. Sector Ranger Headquarters had ordered a few of their officers to support the action of justice regarding some corporate spat.

[T.A.U.], the lit-up sign declared. Other than that, the office building was non-descript and blended into the skyline of urban living. If it was some research facility, few would be the wiser. Probably meant to avoid suspicion if it was such a thing.

Corran stood at the entrance of the office, dressed in the most strait-laced attire he could be adorned with. Polished boots. Pants tucked in. Jacket secured up to the neck. Sector Ranger Badge secured over his heart. Even his blaster was secured on the hip instead of the thigh, like he usually wore on the Outer Rim. There would be little confusion that he was law enforcement. While awaiting the arrival of his partner for the assignment, Corran reviewed their orders on his datapad.

Dr. Zafina Strop. Key Witness. Protect from harm, the lawman thought to himself, Simple enough.

The sun was beginning to set on the urban landscape. The good Doctor appeared to be a workaholic as well. Either that or Transport Automated demanded long shifts. Corran lightly chuckled to himself in amusement; one could say the same about the Sector Rangers. He checked his chrono. Per usual, the young Ranger was here a bit early and he would wait until his partner arrived before meeting their assigned ward.

@Ecclessey
 

Darmus Onn

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When Darmus had gotten this assignment he was pleasantly surprised at first. Protection detail was usually a walk in the park and he hadn't ever experienced one the upper-class core worlders to get attacked in the same way you as on the Outer Rim. Less blasters on the street usually meant less blaster showdowns in the streets, which was a good thing, mind you. His initial joy quickly evaporated when he recognized the name of the ranger that was assigned to the detail with him. Corran Velt. Darmus vividly remembered the kid's actions after the funeral on Corellia and he knew they wouldn't see eye to eye on... well, anything.

As the forty-something ranger approached his much younger partner he seemed rather preoccupied by the datapad in his hands and Corran would have a hard time spotting both his blaster as his badge. "I see that she's supposed to have her freedom of movement," Darmus said in way of greeting, "but let's see if we can convince her to stay in. Easier to protect that way." When he finally looked up from his datapad and noticed Corran standing there all dressed up, boots shined and shirt tucked, he couldn't suppress a smile. "Ah, of a single mind already. I was about to suggest you honeypot her." It wasn't professional to sleep with the witness you're supposed to protect, but let's just say that some things never really make it to the reports. Darmus remembered his first protection detail. He'd been paired with an older ranger who had suggested the same thing to him. It was the first time he slept with an alien. A Sullustan ten years his senior who's life was threatened for a reason Darmus couldn't really remember... but you never forget your first alien.

Lowering the datapad properly now, Darmus hoped the target was open to a young human man's charms. You weren't always that lucky, after all, but there was also only one way to find out. "Alright, let's get ourselves buzzed in." That was, in fact, the easiest part of their assignment as they were expected. According to the guards the witness was in her office on the fifth floor and they escorted both rangers to the elevator.


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Corran Velt

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When Corran had read that his partner for the assignment was a ‘Darmus Onn’, he wasn’t certain who that was. The voice that greeted him with, “I see that she's supposed to have her freedom of movement," was unmistakable. It was that veteran Ranger who had told him off back at the funeral mourning on Corellia. Though, in alcohol-hazed memory, he had given quite a good speech on a top of a bar or something like that. Regardless, Corran was the junior officer on this detail and Ranger Onn is the senior. Protocol applied and they were on duty. No matter his personal feelings, discipline and decorum would hold fast.

Darmus recommended trying to convince their ward to stay in that evening. The junior lawman nodded in understanding. That made sense; harder to ambush someone in their own place of dwelling. Ranger Onn’s second offering of wisdom was less clear.

“Honeypot her, sir?” The tone in the younger Ranger’s voice suggested he was unclear what the phrase meant. Though Darmus seemed to suggest Corran’s attire had something to do with it. That was odd; he always dressed to the recommended standard on Core worlds. In contrast, Corran couldn’t even locate Ranger Onn’s badge or sidearm. Perhaps the more experienced companion knew something he didn’t.

The doors to the elevator slid open and one of the lobby guards attended them. Once inside, the sentry pressed the button for the 5th floor, scanned his badge, and entered in another code. Only then did the mechanical lift begin to move. Whatever T.A.U. was doing on the 5th floor, it required protection.

With a gentle shudder, the elevator came to a stop. The doors spread open and revealed only a hallway that went to the left and to the right. On the left was a sealed door, reinforced by the look of it, and offices to the right. The guard exited first, standing in the way to the left. With a wordless extended hand, he guided the Rangers to the office down the hall.

Soon, there was a door with the holotag labeled “DR. ZAFINA STROP - T.A.U. RESEARCH”

Corran rigidly knocked on the closed office door,“Well, here we go.” His voice sounded a bit anxious, but with some self-encouragement in the phrase. A brief moment ticked by before the Doctor opened the door to her office. She looked to be in her late-twenties to early-thirties. Dark hair pulled back in a tight ponytail, standard for work in laboratories. Her lab coat was unbuttoned and hung loosely off her shoulders. “Ah. My baby-sitters. Come in, gentlemen. I have some work I can finish up while you go over your list of big no-nos.”

Turning around on her heel, Dr. Strop strode around her desk and took a seat in her ergonomic chair and crossed her legs. Indifferently, she began typing on her console.

@Ecclessey
 

Darmus Onn

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There was a certain pleasure written on Darmus' face as he refused to answer Corran's confused question. Yes, be the Ke'vin to her Wit'ney. Needless to say the forty-something ranger was expecting this assignment to go smooth, but when the entered the doctor's office he felt positively jealous of Corran. Doctor Zafina Strop was gorgeous. "Doctor-" Darmus said, gently pushing the younger ranger forward, "-I'm Darmus Onn and this is Corran Velt. He'll stick to your body for the duration of this assignment while I'll handle the grid security." He was about to nudge the younger ranger to lay down the "no-go's" when the doctor frowned and looked at him with profound indignation, "You're not getting access to our grid, ranger Onn." The doctor shook her head and then turned her frown into an insincere and haughty smile, "Besides, our security is top notch. Nothing to worry about."

"And yet we were called," Darmus replied, coldly, suddenly no longer captivated by her beauty and glad it was Corran who had to try and thaw her iced-over heart. It was clear that they'd be at the mercy of any one slicer skilled enough to slice into a basic corporate security system and Darmus didn't like that. "Why don't you explain the no-go's to the doctor, Corran."

Turning away from both of them, the veteran ranger walked over to the modest liquor cabinet and without asking poured himself a stiff drink. Protection details might generally be easy assignments, but they weren't all fun.

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Corran Velt

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The junior Ranger gave his senior companion a side-eye as the man rummaged through the liquor. Drinking on duty was not only a potential hazard, but more importantly it was against the rarely-enforced Code of Conduct article on intoxication while on assignment. Corran might decide to bring it up later, but not in front of their ward.

“Our goal is to keep you safe from harm, Doctor Strop,” The rookie lawman began in a serious tone, “so we just need to follow a few ground rules.” Corran began counting on his fingers as he spoke to the Doctor, emphasizing each point with a corresponding digit. “One: You must always be within an actionable distance from Ranger Onn or myself. That includes line of sight in most cases.
Two: Ranger Onn and I will maintain a sterile zone around your person. This is the safest security measure to prevent harm to you or your property.
Three: When it comes to your safety, we are the arbiters of what the wisest choice is. If we decide to take a different route than normal, it is for good reason.”


There was an intentional pause in the air, letting the three rules settle into the memory. When it came to his duty, Corran was always as clear as possible. It likely grated on some people, but better safe than sorry. He learned that while working the trade lanes.

“However, it must be stated that you have complete freedom of movement,” Corran’s tone was softer now; more consultative than authoritative, “I would, personally, advise that you stay-in until the trial. It is easier to protect you from assailants or other concerns that way.”

When the inexperienced Ranger changed his tone, Dr. Strop ceased typing on her console and swiveled in her chair to make direct eye-contact with him. A smile snuck across her face as she rested her chin in the palm of her hand. “No need to be so stern… Corran, was it? If you believe I should stay-in for the evening, I think I can oblige you.” Her calculating eyes glided over the novice Ranger’s physique, “As long as you stay within… actionable distance, I can leave my safety in your capable hands.”

Corran cleared his throat, “Of course, Dr. Strop. I will do my best.”

The scientist tapped a few keys on her console with one hand, only sparing a brief glance away from her preferred escort. The system gave a synthetic chime as it shut down. “Please, call me Zafina.”

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Darmus Onn

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Darmus took a sip as he watched the doctor flirt with the awkward young ranger. So far so good, but Darmus still wanted to poke around in the security grid and if Corran went to go do some poking of his own in a staff bedroom then he'd have all the time he needed. Ofcourse, things never went that well.

A guard entered the office unannounced and with a worried look on his face, "Eh, doctor-" he said, but he was already turning to Darmus, who by mere seniority was assumed to be the lead ranger on this assignment. "-rangers, there's a, well-" he cast a quick glance to the doctor, alarming everyone in the room that whatever reason he had for coming up there had to do with the fact that the doctor's life was in danger. "Spit it out," the impatient Darmus said, putting his glass on the table with a clank and finally swinging open his jacket and revealing on only his badge, but more importantly, the blaster pistol. "-three entry-floor camera's died just after we spotted a dark figure on them."

Eyes widening, Darmus immediately headed for the door. "Get her somewhere no one can get to her, now!" he told Corran in a raised voice. If camera's had been disabled they weren't dealing with your run-of-the-mill Black Sun enforcer and unpredictability right now was the worst thing they could find. "You-" he physically turned the guard around and pushed him out of the office with him, "-take me to the control room."

They took the elevator two floors down to the third and walked through three separate corridors before entering some kind of technical hub with about a dozen screens and two confused-looking humans. "I don't understand why I can't-" one of them said before he noticed Darmus and stopped abruptly. "Sector Ranger Darmus Onn," the forty-something ranger identified himself further by showing his badge and the without warning plugged his portable computer into the security grid. "Sounds like you've been sliced-" he said as matter of justification just before a holo-projection emerged from his computer showing lines of code with here and there a red blot. "-looks like it, too."

It had been ages since he'd squared off against a criminal slicer on a security grid and his frustration grew once his first three attempts to source the scoundrel failed. "He's got himself walled up," he growled, "How long has he been in here!?" All three guards looked at each other and failed to answer, which told Darmus enough: too long. It would take him some time to trace and eject the slicer and then get the security grid functioning optimal again. Hopefully Corran would manage to keep the doctor safe in the meantime...

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Corran Velt

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Ranger Onn and the stupefied corporate guard left Dr. Strop’s office in a determined gait. An unknown intruder had cracked the uncrackable and now the T.A.U office was technologically defenseless. Corran didn’t know anything about combating a Slicer on the mainframe, but he did know how to follow orders. Dr. Strop was to be taken somewhere secure and protected as all costs.
“Dr. Strop,” Corran’s voice had returned to the stern tone of authority, “We need to go. Does this office contain a panic room?”

Zafina sat in her chair, eyes staring forward at her blank work console. “Sliced? How? Our cyber-security is state of the art. I… I helped program it myself. Im-impossible...” Panic was setting in. Untrained civilians often froze or became incoherent when real danger presented itself. It’s even worse when that civilian knows they are the target, specifically. Her manicured nails dug into the ergonomic seat.

“Dr. Strop?” Corran asked again and louder in an attempt to shake her out of it, “Zafina!” Her mumbling and continuing analysis of everything going wrong had paralyzed her. Novice as he was, Corran knew they couldn’t stay here. Even the most incapable of assailants would check the window office of their prey and this one was capable.

Hoisting the young doctor up by her arm, her Ranger attendant hustled her down the hallway towards the elevator. In the event of an emergency, protocol said to never take the elevator. Half-walking, half-dragging Zafina down the hallway, Corran looked for a secure room or an emergency exit of some kind. Past the elevator and near the reinforced security door that likely led to the 5th floor research section was another security door reinforced just as strongly. It didn’t appear locked. Corran shouldered into it and pulled Zafina along with him. The reinforced door gave way to a stairwell that zig-zagged down the rest of the building height. Of course. Every building needs stairs in case of fires or natural disasters. The reinforced door then slammed behind them, metal securing bars slid back into place, and the frame beeped. A red light faintly glowed over the handle.

“Wait, wait!” Dr. Strop tugged against her handler. Corran stopped shoving her along and froze to listen. “I-I-I left my keycard in my office. My badge. Without it, I can’t get into any secure floors or rooms.”

The rookie Sector Ranger glanced back at the reinforced doorway they had just passed through. It had a number-pad and a keycard reader, just like the elevator to the 5th floor. No going back that way.

The pair was now stranded in a grey stairway, with no cover, and the only way was down. Towards the Slicer. Instinctively, Corran grabbed Dr. Strop’s arm and began man-handling her down the stairs. Their only option now was to get down to an unsecured floor to find a way out of the building, hide in place from the attacker, or fight.

Corran glanced up to a camera in a corner of the descending stairwell. He prayed that his partner could see them. If Darmus could, they weren’t truly alone. If he couldn’t, things were worse than ever.

@Ecclessey
 

Darmus Onn

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"Damnit," Darmus growled as yet another attempt to identify the slicer failed. He knew he had to be fast about this since all it was, was an attempt to cover the approach of assassins to the target. Determined to make quick work of it he took a security spike from his pockets and put it in the main console, forcing a tsunami of data in one end of the system while he scoured what remained. It wasn't without risk, for there was a chance the spike could disable some of the systems they'd need to track the attackers, but it couldn't be avoided. With the spike and while furiously working on his portable computer it took Darmus only twenty seconds to find the slicer's presence in the system and eject him from it.

Seemingly exhausted he leaned back in his chair, "done." He enjoyed his short moment of victory as he felt the praise coming from the three guards. It was too bad the job wasn't over yet and he leaned in again, "Now let's find that figure you were talking about."

It took another twenty second before the video feeds of the various camera's came back online and sure enough, Darmus spotted three masked humanoids with blaster pistols exited the elevator and heading for the doctor's office. It looked like they were aware of ranger presence as they moved in a coordinated manner and allowed the barrels of their blasters to lead into a corner or new room. Fearing the worst, Darmus pressed his communictor, "Corran, please tell me you got her out of her office."

For privacy reasons there wasn't a camera in the office, but when the assassins ran out three seconds after getting in, looked around and then headed for the stairs it was quite clear they found it empty. Darmus noticed that one of them trailed behind with his left hand against his ear.. as if he was listening. Suddenly he looked up to the camera and aimed his blaster, "Kriff," Darmus cried and then a bright red flash and the feed went dark. "That slicer just warned them off." the remaining camera feeds showed no movement, not of the assassins and not of Corran and the doctor. Seemed the "top-notch" security didn't cover the stairwells.

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Corran Velt

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A steady voice chirped from Corran’s communicator, “Corran, please tell me you got her out of her office."

Darmus’ message was a welcome reassurance, even if it implied bad news. The ton of the senior Ranger suggested that a threat had reached the room they had been in just moments before. Corran at least felt some confidence that his instincts had given then a few more moments. The Ranger and Doctor we still heading down the stairwell, looking for an unsecured exit out of the potential killzone. “I got her out. Moving down the stairwell on the left side of the building. We lost the keycard. No access to secure locations.”

Corran’s breathing interrupted every sentence. It would be apparent that he was moving briskly and hauling another human being with him as they descended. “Do you have eyes on the assailants? How many? Over.”

Zafina began struggling again, tugging on the arm the Ranger had around her back. “Stop! Here! 4th Floor. It’s unlocked.” Corran was too busy heading down the stairs that he had lost track of where he was going. Thankfully, it seemed that Dr. Strop had come to her senses enough to give him some guidance around the building. For now, at least. Zafina threw open the unlocked door that opened up general office space. Cubicles stretched across the entire floor in neat rows with two private offices against the windows and a space for idle chitchat near the water cooler. All the way at the end of the layout was a hallway that hooked right, as if the floor wrapped around the building and the stairwell. Corran didn’t see an elevator entrance at first glance, but there must be a way to it somewhere on this level.

A flight above, the heavy reinforced door slammed open, a pause, and then determined footsteps could be heard methodically moving down the steps. The rookie lawman didn’t know whose footsteps those were and he didn’t want to find out. Moving quickly, he backed into the 4th floor office space and slowly shut the door. As it shut, it clanked as the push-bar latched into place. The reinforced door on the floor above did the same, though with heavier weight.

Kriff. There was no way someone in that stairwell didn’t hear that. The office space was poorly lit, abandoned at the end of the work day. Zafina was nowhere in sight. “Zafina!” Corran whispered harshly as he advanced down the dark walkway between cubicles. A hand shot out of the darkness and tugged his sleeve to the ground. Dr. Strop was leaning against a drawer and shushed her bodyguard silently with an index finger.

A few tense moments went by. Nothing. Corran slowly peered out from behind the cubicle wall so that as little of his face and as much of his eye could see around it. He withdrew quickly, holding in his breath. Through the thin slit of viewing glass of the door that led to the stairwell, there were two masked beings standing there. He didn’t look long enough to get a good look at what they were doing, but they hadn’t come in yet. Maybe they weren’t certain to check this floor or keep going. To them, every second counted that their quarry could get away.

Silently, Corran unbuckled the holster on his hip and delicately drew out his Power 5 pistol. He didn’t intend to use it, but he would if he had to. Slowly, he clicked the respond button four times on the communicator. With the assailants being so close, talking aloud would potentially alert them. Hopefully, Darmus would get the hint. Four clicks. Fourth floor.

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Darmus Onn

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Trying his best to be Corran's eyes, Darmus watched the feeds closely, "Looks like there's two following you into the stairwell. I'll see about overriding doors, but I-" he was rudely interrupted when the door to the control swung open and the third attacker entered with a carbine ready for action. Before Darmus could react the assassin had double-tapped two guards, but the third was close enough to try and wrestle him to the ground and while he failed utterly and met with a burst of bolts in the gut, it gave Darmus enough time to unholster his own sidearm and plant a stun bolt in the assassin's chest. Suddenly hyperventilating due to an extreme adrenaline spike, the forty-something ranger got up from his chair and walked over to the unconscious assassin.

No doubt the sudden interruption would've send the younger ranger into a panic, so the first thing Darmus did was re-establish comms, "I've got one of the assassins alive in the control room. Three guards dead." Hopefully that was enough to put Corran at ease for Darmus was already distracted and knelt down next to the masked intruder. He carefully removed the mask, showing that it was a human man in his thirties, and his communicator, which he plugged into his portable computer. Once he sat himself down in his chair it was a matter of seconds before he was linked into the enemy comms and he could overhear their conversations.

<<"Tello? Hey, Tello, you there? Did you take out the control room yet?">>

<<"Shut it, Kal. We're trying to find the doctor and your blabbering doesn't help.">>

<<"Yeah, they said you were one of the best slicers on this planet. Not worth your cut at all.">>

This was at about the same time as he heard Corran click four times over his own earpiece. They were in a tricky situation because there was no way Darmus could pretend to be Tello and lead them away from the fourth flour. The only thing he could reasonably do was... well, unpredictable. To make sure Corrant was kept updated he said the next part in both communicators. "Hey, Kal. Fella's. This is Sector Ranger Darmus Onn. My fellow rangers and I have gone ahead and closed all exits of the stairwell. Drop your weapons and make your way to ground level unarmed and you wont end up like Tello here. You failed. There's no reason to get yourself killed in a foolish escape attempt."


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Corran Velt

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The message about three corporate guards dead wasn’t exactly the best news to come from Darmus. Only two assailants coming down the stairwell after Dr. Strop was mildly less bad information. Ranger Onn capturing one alive was the only good news in the whole lot. Still... if an attacker can be taken down, the rest of them aren’t invincible either. They are mortal beings, just as Corran is. The rookie ranger gave the grip of his Power 5 a confident squeeze.

Patiently he waited for some sign or signal from his Ranger partner who was still alive, well, and alone in the security room. Wherever that was. Darmus had survived as a Sector Ranger for decades. He likely was coming up with some brilliant plan to turn the tables on the assassins.

Then the bluff came over the communicator in Corran’s ear. What? He silently mouthed the word, his face contorting in disbelief. Dr. Strop quizzically searched her bodyguard’s face for some explanation. Unfortunately, she would never get any answer. The situation became much more critical.

Outside of Corran’s vision, the two attackers froze for a moment. Their eyes met in unspoken panic. Before they could make a decision, however, Kal gave a hearty chuckle over the communicators, “Ranger Onn is bluffing. In the time between battling me back on the system and now, there is no way local law enforcement would have arrived yet, much less Sector Rangers. What is he protecting? Search the nearest floor to you. She can’t be far.“

There was a brief pause over the communicator before the two other assailants affirmed the orders. Kal spoke again with dark intent in his voice, “As for you, Ranger Onn, I can’t let someone who besmirched my slicing talents live. I’ve got a reputation to uphold.” The slights from Kal’s allies had cut a little deep, it seemed.

On the fourth floor, the door from the stairway flung open and the two attackers methodically stepped in, blaster carbines held at the ready. Corran didn’t need to make visual contact. He who was coming in. He turned to warn Dr. Strop to flee while he took the attackers head on, but she was already gone. Frantically, he crawled over to where she had sat. A quick motion caught his eye. Down an adjacent walkway between cubicles, Dr. Strop waved for Corran to follow. Glancing quickly behind him, the Ranger then followed obediently.

The two attackers were methodical. Too methodical. Every cubicle, every row, they stopped and swung their carbines into the vacant desk spaces. In a room with several columns and many rows of such desks in the cubicle farm, they were slower than Corran and Zafina who walked hunched over further away from the hired gunmen.

By now, the Ranger and the Doctor had made it near the hallway that turned the corner from the cubicle farm. To Corran, it looked like a small break room that adjoined another maze of cubicles. When the two gunmen turned simultaneously to check a pair of desk spaces with their blaster sights, Zafina darted across the gap of the column they searched on. She gave Corran the hand signal to wait. He nodded. The gunmen did the motion again. Corran darted across quickly. When he crossed the gap, he unintentionally pushed off the cubicle wall he leaned against. It clanged once. The attackers both turned, carbines drawn. Slowly they advanced, one step other another. Dr. Strop pulled out her personal communicator and pressed a few buttons on it. The water cooler on the far wall lit up and began pouring water from both spouts. The two gunmen swiveled their carbines again and advanced more quickly towards the water dispenser.

Zafina pulled on Corran’s shoulder and he followed her into the other room of cubicles, and hopefully, the elevator.

The assailants reached the pooling water on the office floor. They quickly scanned around. No one. One of the attackers held his communicator down, <<“She’s still here.”>>

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Darmus Onn

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Darmus could curse himself for the timing of his bluff, but more importantly he was vowing to get that slicer if it was the last thing he'd ever do. He also knew that a rookie ranger armed with just a blaster pistol wouldn't survive an encounter with two carbine-wielding assassins and thus he made the only decision he felt he could justify. His own blaster still in hand he ran out of the control room and towards the nearest elevators, "Get to an elevator if you can, Corran." There wasn't a fiber in his body that wasn't regretting this, for Darmus never had put himself purposefully in danger before and that was the whole reason he was still alive at his advanced age. Something had changed after Corellia, though, something that had him subconsciously feeling like he was already living on borrowed time...

By the time the elevator reached the fourth floor, which took mere seconds, Darmus was in as good a combat mode as he possibly could as he entered into the uncertainty. "I'm on the fourth floor, west wing-" he paused and searched around for something that could tell the doctor where he was exactly, "-looks like Doctor Morrow's office." He had just said it when he saw the both of them entering the room of cubicles in front of him, "Corran!" he cried in a hushed voice and motioned for them to double-time it over to him.

Meanwhile the slicer had channeled his own anger into snorting some glitterdust up his nose and the newly acquired focus enabled him to quickly bypass the walls Darmus had put up on the office's security system. He was back in and that made him feel more superior than ever. He searched the camera feeds of the fourth floor and found both rangers and the doctor almost immediately.

<<"Got them! Two rangers and the doctor. Fourth floor west elevator.">>

As Darmus was still tapped into their comm line he heard the slicer's statement and an intense fear gripped his heart. He had made a terrible mistake leaving that control room undefended and it was about to cost them their lives. His voice sounded hoarse when he raised it in a desperate warning; "Run!"

Running forward, the forty-something ranger passed both the doctor and Corran and took cover in one of the cubicles. By the time the assassins reached his position he was the only one left in the room and at a distinct disadvantage. The slicer, too focused on killing that ranger that had booted him, kept looking at the feed that showed the room Darmus was hiding in.

<<"Kriffing ranger Darmus Onn is in that room. Kill him.">>

<<"We're not here for the ranger, Kal. Where's the doctor.">>

This was the moment Darmus had chosen to act and keeping low her dashed to another cubicle and fired his blaster twice in the assassins' general direction. He had hoped that it would force them into cover but instead they unleashed a torrent of bolts his way and shattering the cubicle he intended to hide behind. Turned out they weren't resistant to blaster bolts at all and in order to not get riddled with them Darmus needed to continue his mad dash, zigzagging as much as he could until he reached a supporting pillar.

He was hyperventilating and felt his heart beating at nearly 130 times a minute, his hand was shaking and his tunic was drenched in sweat. When the blaster fire stopped he heard footsteps approaching his position and he knew he was done for. Peeking around the pillar he managed to only get a glimpse of two very determined humanoids before another torrent of bolts forced him back into cover. Darmus didn't like his chances, but at least he'd have slowed them down somewhat.

@TerranSteel
 

Corran Velt

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Corran heard the senior Ranger’s order to get to the elevator halfway through the break room. He would get the Doctor to that elevator no matter what it took. It was their only way out. Darmus continued giving updates. Dr. Morrow’s office. Fourth Floor, west wing. Zafina rounded the corner first with Corran right behind her.

And there he was. Ranger Darmus Onn. Even though they had only been separated for a small amount of time, seeing the cavalry arrive was always the most welcoming sight in any dangerous situation. In a hushed tone, the experienced ranger called Corran’s name with a hand motion to hustle. In a crouched run, the rookie began to almost overtake Dr. Strop. She wasn’t trained in combat maneuvers or athletically experienced in this type of exertion. Corran embraced her and pulled her along into the elevator. He quickly put Zafina in the corner, out of immediate sight from rows of cubicles.

A storm of blaster fire erupted back in the office space, causing Corran to instinctively take cover behind the floor-selection console inside the lift. Glancing around the corner, he saw that Darmus was behind a pillar and one of the cubicles was now nothing but debris. Another burst of fire kept the experienced Ranger pinned. Corran had to make a choice. Protect the objective or work to save his partner.

Darmus had put his life on the line for the mission and Corran. He wouldn’t let his partner regret it. Quickly, Corran reached out with his blaster. The barrel slid along the wall and pressed the button along the wall. The lights above the gunmen immediately turned on, illuminating them in clinical, fluorescent white. The sun had set and the room had been noted to be dark. A sudden burst of light caused the gunmen to shield their eyes and draw their carbines off Darmus. The lights then began advancing, cascading towards the elevator in a delayed start.

Before the assassins could recover, Corran swung his blaster barrel towards the two gunmen. His finger squeezed the trigger as quickly as he could. Red blurs shot down the bright pathway between cubicles, striking the floor, cubicle walls, desks, consoles. Shards flew and the two temporarily disoriented attackers dove to the floor, covering their heads with their hands.

“Darmus, move!” Corran shouted, followed by the blasts of a Power 5 belching suppressing fire.

@Ecclessey
 

Darmus Onn

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Kriffing kid. He should've taken the doctor to safety instead of helping Darmus and while the latter cursed him for it he was more grateful than he'd ever dare to admit. The kid had created perhaps the best opportunity to take the assassins out and Darmus couldn't simply ignore that in favor of running away to new cover..

But that's where it all went to shit.

By the time the forty-something ranger left cover one of the assassins had recovered and was just about to raise his carbine towards the elevator when he saw Darmus and this time the ranger wasn't the faster gun. Bolts shrieked towards him as Darmus desperately tried to return to cover, hitting him in the upper right leg, right hipbone and stomach.

Back in cover he barely noticed that his entire body started shaking as it went into shock, "Kriff," he opened the comm line with Corran, "I'm hit."


@TerranSteel
 

Corran Velt

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The expectation was for Ranger Onn to fall back to the elevator and the trio could then exfiltrate the building. Darmus defied those expectations. The more experienced Sector Ranger either saw a better opportunity or thought the escape was unlikely to succeed. Instead, he pivoted and was met with blaster fire. Darmus slid back into cover, his wounds smoking.

A chilling set of words arrived over the communicator: “I’m hit.”

“NO!”, Corran shouted gut-wrenchingly. His blaster pistol already pointed down range, all it took was the split-second flick of the thumb to switch the Power 5 from lethal to stun. The assassin that had shot Darmus barely had a breath before a blue jolt locked his muscles and he collapsed to the floor, unconscious. The second gunmen rose up from his prone position, his eyes uncertain if he should flee or return fire. They never got to make the choice. Another blue stun bolt sent the would-be assassin into fidgeting unconsciousness.

The rookie ranger motioned for Dr. Strop to follow him out of the elevator as he rose to his feet, still aiming down the sights of his trusty Power 5. Zafina crawled out from her scant protection and leaned against the nearest cubicle, trying to calm her anxiety from the firefight. Before checking on the wounded, protocol advised securing the area. For his own feeling of security, Corran was quickly on the downed assassins. He detained their hands quickly and took their two carbines under one arm and laid them near Zafina. The nervousness in her eyes were replaced with grim curiosity as she looked over the weapons that would have taken her life.

The junior ranger knelt down by his senior partner near the pillar, “Onn... We are going to get you some help, okay? You just have to stay with me, sir.”

“Dr. Strop,”
Corran called out over his shoulder, “We are out of immediate peril. Call emergency services.” She nodded and dutifully pulled out her civilian communicator and dialed for local law enforcement and medical services. The sooner Darmus had access to proper medical care, the likelier chance he would survive his wounds and without life-changing effects. Corran took off his jacket and ripped one of the sleeves off his shirt and tied it around the wound on the thigh. “Aren’t the young rookies supposed to take all the risks, sir?” he joked to his partner. In the background, Zafina was telling the local dispatch about the situation and calling for medical help and additional local officers on scene. “Y-y-yes, I’ll stay on the line. Yes, please send medical help; we have a ranger down. There is still one gunmen in the building, I... I think.”

@Ecclessey
 

Darmus Onn

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Darmus grimaced, "didn't want to ruin your chances with the doctor." Just telling the joke somehow made the pain worse. He was in bad shape, for sure, but then again it wasn't anything a bacta-bath couldn't fix and on Core worlds those things were always only ten minutes away. The doctor seemed to have heard it as well and looked their way. She didn't let on whether or not there even existed a chance for Corran, but based on their earlier interaction the veteran ranger figured both of them wouldn't know what else to do with the remaining adrenaline in about thirty minutes and if he were a betting man...

Back-up arrived quickly and took all three assassins into custody while an ambulance speeder transported Darmus to the nearest government-owned bacta tank. He'd be in there for a while if he wanted to avoid lasting damage. Which was fine. He'd unknowingly be missing a lot of kriffing fights with Dark Siders and be excused from attending funerals.

At least their mission was finished. The assassins had failed and the doctor was still alive thanks to Corran's good care.

_____________________

End Thread


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