Ask Stealing From Pirates Is Legal, Right?

[Arthos Vizsla]

Arthos' ship is old.

Old enough that when it was originally rolled off the production line, the Mandalorian people were still arguing about Pacifism and Jango Fett's face hadn't been copy and pasted over a million times. But despite that it was still a beautiful ship, gleaming and well maintained because it was HIS. It had been his ship since the time his adopted mother had sent him off into the Galaxy after his initial training, to either thrive or die.

It was his ship but it was more than that - it was his home and the first thing, aside from his helmet, that could be considered his own property. Everything else he had gotten from the clan and he had known it could be taken away again at the drop of a hat. This though? The ship was his.

It had taken him a long time to finally accept others aboard his ship but it had happened. Only after he had started to earn respect, only after he had clawed his way to the rank of Rally Master did he bring others onto his ship.

"Coming out of hyperspace now Rally Master."

Sitting on the bridge, in overall piloting control, Arthos nodded to the Mando he had operating as his astro-navigation specialist. As they exited hyperspace, sensors burst to life as they began their final approach. There were over fifty Mandalorian warriors in the hold of his ship, all of them ready to act as the boarding party when they were ready. Still, they were not alone. He opened the com channel they had agreed, directly to the cockpit of Van'Aria Solus' starfighter.

"Solus, we're here." he spoke through his helmet as his grip on the controls tightened, "You have one squadron of starfighters and they have many more. Fight like a cornered nexu and give no quarter."

Ahead of them, both Defense Stations began to release their fighters, dozens of swarming out en masse.

"Bic cuyir a jate tuur par them at ash'amur."

Spoiler: Translation

It is a good day for them to die.

@Bread

 

[Van'Aria Solus]

Van'Aria had served both in tandem and UNDER Arthos before during the larger crusade of Nox, surely they have butted heads on occassional moments but nowhere enough to shake the resolve of her Respect for his dedication, which always remained very very positive in her Mind, seeing him get the recognition that was deserved made bitter at first given that during her time Nox afforded her no such luxury, but with the Alor now being AWOL with the Solus Clan having no indication of where or what, someone has to step up and make sure Solus remains a vital part to the Mandalorian efforts.

Bringing with herself a host of Solus forces that gave her atleast some wiggle room she sought to brovve herself to her people that she was capable of taking responsibility for them, those few that did stand with her had similiar respect for the Rally Master of the Vizsla it is likely they had fought alongside his forces before, clad in the colours of their clan as were their Starfighters which Arthos being the Master of this albeit hastily forged Assault party would come to appreciate.

With Nox having been the Mand'alor and Clan Solus essentially being "at the very source" of the "goods" of the major Crusade efforts, this came with access to the newer equipment, albeit they were due for checkups on multiple accounts now, Clan Solus showed up prepared in their sleek Jaigaalar-Class Starfighters.

"Arthos. Solus keeps its promise, we will do as asked." her familiar voice echoed back to him, the usual abrasiveness and questioning tone he was so used to was gone. "...Bic cuyir jate at susulur gar jorad tug'yc, Vizsla."

Her helmeted Visage would fade if he had his Comlink configured that way and shortly afterwards Solus would filter out as ordered to meet the first of many Squadrons to stop the Mandalorian advancement. Normally she would elect to lead a ground Assault in her heavy clad manner but today piloting a Ship would have to do.

She opened up a Comlink between two of her most close Clanmembers that came along on this to keep coordinated: "We form an Arrow, they will try to contain us with mass, I will form the tip so they see me as the first threat, use me as your prediction."

<"First Squadron coming in range, Weapons Hot.">

It was time to meet them and meet them Van'Aria did, sure enough not shortly after her engaging, the rest would surely filter in but that was not the entire idea, her idea was to keep attention as much as she could to give Arthos the time and space to maneuver forwards and lead his many Forces forth.

Spoiler: Translation

It is good to hear your voice again, Vizsla.

@Nefieslab

 

[Arthos Vizsla]

Clan Solus had a reputation for a lot of things - some of them were good and some of them were bad. In recent years, both sides of the Mandalorian schism had benefitted from the presence and active membership of people from Clan Solus. But Van'Aira Solus was someone he had worked with and they had butted buckets over a few things.

Which was probably better than them getting along all the time, really.

Because since they had butted buckets, they had come to an understanding and a bit of a mutual respect between the two of them. It was enough that when she agreed to come and assist, he believed her with nothing more than her word. After all, at this point he doubted that Clan Solus kept it's promises because it was even more a clan divided than his own.

But he believed in Van'Aria.

"Ni'll partaylir ibic Solus. Vor entye vod."

Taking a deep breath as the com link line cut off, Arthos turned to his bridge staff. They were waiting but they did a good job of acting like they weren't - stubborn bucketheads. Taking the controls in his hands firmly, Arthos began to accelerate.

"Guns at the ready." he commanded with a snap as his gunships started its run directly toward one of the stations, "Provide cover fire for the squadron. Open fire!"

The large, old, gunship shuddered slightly as it's weapons began to open fire on the enemy starfighters. Unlike the attacking Mando squadrons, the gunship wasn't trying to actually hit their enemies so much as give them something to focus on so the Solus fighters would be able to pick them off without much issue.

The ship shuddered as they took a hit to the shields, Arthos swinging the ship wide to avoid a second barrage. This? With his hands clutching the controls and the entire ship inches away from death? Alive only because of his piloting skills?

This was what made Arthos smile when so little else did these days.

@Bread

 

[Van'Aria Solus]

A moment later when Combat ensued, the shrieking of her own Ship filling them empty Space alongside the various vaccous sounds of Starfighter Cannons and mounted Laser Cannons of the Station, one thing was certain however, very soon it was clear that the Mandalorian had to show that they knew how to come up with a plan and fast at that.

<"On your left, Valkyr!">

Valkyr. Thats a nickname rarely heard, Van'Aria thought to herself, it was coined during Ubrikkia, and frankly sometimes she didn't see the comparison her Peers drew, however almost immedietly she tilted her Ship a whole 90 degrees along the X-Axis, her hands moved in tandem with her piloting, she narrowly avoided a close cut barrage that went between the seperation of her Starfighter Wings, seeing the shots pass through she immedietly closed said wings up to mix up the aim for the assailant.

"Persistent one... arent you?"

She spoke to herself as the ship ghosting her didnt let go but that was fine, she did a full round passing by two more intercepting ships picking up their attention on the way, in the meantime... her Clanmates had locked their targets in, and sure enough counterfire ensued.

<"We are getting closer to the Station. The longer we stay out here the worse it will get.">

They were right, or so Van'Aria thought, a side-banking maneuver executed she put the Ship to full throttle before killing the heat entirely whilst pulling up, soon she found herself overhead, front to front with the tailing starfighter, letting out a stressed grunt she pressed the buttons to discharge all 4 laser weapon systems on the ship reducing it to a pile of smoke which she accelerated through.

"Solus, with me. We are reforming with Vizsla, our objective is to cut a path for them to prepare a proper Assault. Protect the Vizsla with your life, know that I will do the same."

As their ranks reformed, Arthos found himself soon reinforced from his left side, a few assailing Ships down courtesy of Clan Solus working in tandem with Arthos's superior Aerial Prowess, with her now forming a escort for him it was clear that he didn't have to pull too many crazy attempts at saving his own skin, it was akin to a Scorpion, Arthos formed the large firepower whilst she and her Peers struck out whatever he suppressed.

"Arthos. These Fighters are fast. Im sure we could risk a full atmospheric Assault but I doubt it would be wise." Van'Aria's voice came crackling over the Com-Link as her ship rushed past his cockpit whilst unleashing a barrage of laser forwards. "Solus has Warheads loaded. If you need a hole, we will make you one."

<"They are launching another Squadron from the Second Octet's Hangar.">

Van'Aria's attention shifted to the right of the escorted Gunship. "More company, Vizsla." she made him aware as she shifted over to intercept, this... was not going to be an easy fight today.

<"Shields struck! Superficial Damage...">

@Nefieslab

 

[Arthos Vizsla]

Arthos' grip on the controls of his ship tightened and loosened seemingly at random but only ever with just enough pressure and skill to move the old boat as well as he was. Starfighters from the enemy station attempted attack runs, only to find that the larger ship was able to bank in ways they were unable to copy and adjust to so quickly. And with the Solus starfighters making them pay for their distractions?

It was, dare he say it, rather fun.

"Approaching first of the two stations, Van'Aria - we're doing a Sundari Drive-by."

A Sundari Drive-by was a tactic that Arthos was fond of using and one that had been developed by Mandalorians purely for Mandalorians. Ratcheting up the speed on his ship as he began his run against the first of the stations, slipping away from his escorts intentionally so they would be given clean shots on the starfighters forming up for their attack runs on him. Already he could feel his ship shaking slightly as hits pinged against his shields.

But as he approached the station, Arthos pulled off the Drive-by; he cut the forward speed, swinging the back-end of his ship out as the cargo bay opened.

Mandalorians in vacuum-secure suits flew from the open cargo bay by the momentum that Arthos had built up. Twenty five of the Mandalorian commandos were intentionally injected at speed, the group using short bursts from their jetpacks to navigate their way into and through the ray shielding of the hanger bay closest to the station's control room.

The cargo bay closed up as Arthos skimmed around the surface of the first station, making good on his escape.

"First shot away." he confirmed over the coms, "Solus, the second one will be ready for the drive-by and guard their hangers better. Get me a warhead breach as close to the control centre as you can."

@Bread

 

[Van'Aria Solus]

A Sundari Driveby? What a gift to receive.

"Is this your idea of a good time, Vizsla? If so, keep it up. I might just be impressed."

Rarity came over the Comms, Van'Aria was known for being the dryest wall to speak to, she never budged to speak about anything but her duties and seldom took time off, it was as if she was an automaton hellbent on providing as good and as best as she could, and the fact that Arthos managed to make her break such a stalwart character must mean that he really did something that she approved of.

<"Solus 1-3 coming in for the Assist. 1-2 Is right behind me.">

And indeed, like a deadly triangle, Arthos could see the Starfighters swarm the previous spot his Gunship occupied, the briefest element of surprise well earned from the Vizsla Rally Master, If his cockpit permitted he could some of the pesky buzzards that assailed him previously go up in flame and sparks as the Mandalorian Squadron made quick work of them, however there was far not enough to keep him entirely protected, with him now isolating himself he took a bold risk one that payed off however.

"Solus, Form up, Chevron. Frontal face load, two Salvos, override input to my Ship."

Van'Aria took in a deep breath, her helmet fogged up briefly as she exhaled, hands hovering over the targeting-stick for her Warheads, a moment later a brief trill came in as the override for both Solus 1-3 and 1-2 came in, she had all three shipsworth of Warheads on one Trigger.

"Transition, form a triangle, I will form the top."

<"Transitioning into Triangle Formation.">

With Arthos's request to target the Control Centre directly she hoped that he was able to fend for himself whilst she prepared this break through. In unison the Mandalorian Starfighters flew almost in direct synchronity.

"Approaching Control Centre, Vizsla."

She commed briefly only to feel a heavy thud rock her entire ship, she had been struck by a broadside, the plating held but it had been enough to punch through the shields. She cared not, she would give the man what he wanted, no matter the cost. She put her crosshairs as close to the Control Centre before firing away, the first salvo was away consisting of 6 Warheads total each of the ships releasing two simultanously.

Impact, superficial damage but the Shield alone seemed strained from this concentrated attack, Van'Arias voice crackled over a Alarm from her ship as she informed the Vizsla.

"The First Salvo was eaten. Firing second, prepare yourself."

And so she did, the triangle of Fighters did a big circle before coming back around to strike at the very same spot they targeted afore, once again, letting loose 6 Warheads.

"Second Salvo away... standby..."

Impact. The Shield crackled and cracked and sure enough... Hull damage! A hole... no two! This was Arthos's chance.

"Impact confirmed! Hole I repeat! Hole! Solus! Prepare to rejoin the Vizsla! Disperse and take care of our flying bakyaor. We cant afford him to lose that pretty Helmet of his now can we?"

@Nefieslab

 

[Arthos Vizsla]

Ah Arthos might have even indulged in some trashtalk/Mandalorian flirting with Solus if they had the time but, alas, it was not time for them to talk yet. Instead they needed to make sure that the second station could also be infiltrated. Already he could see a multitude of enemy fighters making their way towards him and they were outnumbering the allied fighters - they really wanted to stop him from performing his second attack run.

Taking a deep breath, Arthos flipped the heavier ship into a roll, narrowly avoiding a missile that had been launched at him by one of the enemy fighters. Already shots were pinging against his shields, mostly glancing blows really, but he could see his shields beginning to flag before his eyes.

The shield rating was not a number he wanted to watch tick down.

"Acting as bait." he confirmed to Solus as the allied fighters began their warhead runs on the second station, "You got a couple more seconds before they might get wise."

True to form, the enemy were quick to follow him but they were beginning to grow wary when the Solus starfighters did their best to focus on their new goal rather than acting as full cover for himself. As the scanners lit up that the station had suffered hull breaches, Arthos gestured for one of his crew to take the controls and they quickly did so. Standing, Arthos quickly ensured he was fully equipped as he ran towards the hanger bay.

"Solus, I'm taking part in this next drive-by." he informed Van'Aria over a private channel as he approached the exit ramp, "Look after my ship and I'll get the station defences trained on these shitbirds in return."

Not waiting for a response, Arthos sealed his helmet to the void and readied his jetpack before perching on the edge of the cargo bay ramp, holding on for dear life as the pilot swung around - launching Arthos and the remaining boarding vod into space at speed. Hearing nothing but his breathing, Arthos grunted as he flipped himself over once and activated his jetpack to aim himself, feet-first, through the hole in the side of the station, rolling to a stop when the artificial gravity took hold.

Drawing his blaster pistol, Arthos didn't wait for the boarding party to finish boarding before running towards the bridge of the station.

@Bread

 

[Van'Aria Solus]

"Gar ganar pabida at cuyir larga'ye ni..."

Her voice crackled over the communication line and sure enough both Solus Clanmates that flew with her returned a bemused chuckle, forming a defensive perimeter around her whilst Arthos's words came crackling in, sure enough it was a risky move that Arthos was performing but with how things turned out... protecting his Ship might be not so bad as it sounded.

"Ill keep it safe."

She slammed her fist into the same button that launched her Warheads once and used up the rest that were at her disposal to make swift work of two hecklers of the large Gunship, doing a VERY CLOSE flyby of the cargo doors as she did so, taking in a deep breath as she pulled the flight control up doing half a loop around the Gunship slowing down only when she was beginning to circle above it.

"Solus 1-2 and 1-3. Patrol flight pattern. Nothing enters within striking distance."

<"Aiming to impress him, Aria?">

"You would do well to watch yourself, Aurelian. Especially on shared channels."

Endurance was the key factor of this endeavor, sure enough they were still escorting the Ship but this time she knew that as soon as Arthos battles his way to the controls of that Station, tables would turn VERY FAST, but the opposing force did not feel like relenting that easily.

<"Im hit!">

A loud explosion was heard as one of the Solus Squadron was hit by a missile, everything felt on edge all of a sudden, the smoke cleared and sure enough the Ship was still flying, yet it lost an engine, this was a problem, but one they would have to work through.

<"Still alive. Lost an engine...">

Seeing the second boarding party now depart for the Station, the opposing force launched another squadron hoping to overwhelm the Solus Starfighters which held their ground defiantly, they would hold... but how long was uncertain, Arthos eventually would see Van'Aria's helmeted visage pop up into his HUD.

"How far along are you on your side?"

@Nefieslab

 

[Arthos Vizsla]

Landing done, Arthos quickly ensured the landing of the rest of the squad was done properly before heading off at a run down the corridors. In his preparation for this attack he had done the research and he knew the layout well enough to know exactly where he was going.

"Appreciated, Solus, it's a functional antique after all."

Catching a pair of pirates off guard at an intersection, Arthos opened fire on one and the squad with him did the same. The two men fell to the ground in pieces and he didn't shed a single tear - he was just annoyed that one of them managed to get a shout out for the captain of the station to close the blast doors to the command centre.

Sprinting didn't make a difference - by the time he made it round the corner the doors were closing and alarms were blaring throughout the station. He made a series of quick hand signals to his squad to form up against the door and prepare for a breach but even as the explosions specialist looked at the doors, he knew it was going to take awhile. Swearing loudly to himself, he nodded and moved back up to the intersection of the corridors with the rest of the squad to hold the line against the reinforcements.

And they didn't disappoint.

Cursing as he pulled himself back into cover to avoid being shot at by the friends of the man he just gunned down, Arthos took a minute to update Van'Aria on his progress.

"We're at the doors to the station control centre but they shut the blast doors. Think you can handle things out there for a little longer?"

@Bread

 

[Van'Aria Solus]

As the fighting inside ensued so did the brutal assault in space continue, Van'Aria would have to exceed herself if she is going to keep Arthos's "Antique" in one piece, pulling harshly on the flight stick to narrowly avoid a barrage coming dead on in front of her she directed her ship to take a deep dive, meanwhile she heard the resounding barrage of her two clansmen tear the assailant to shreds.

"Close one..."

<"We have you, Big Sister.">

"Right. I've had enough of this farce. Give them no mercy."

Renewed... ferocity entered the Solus Fold, that trademark fighting spirit of Clan Solus was making its debut, and honestly it was more than terrifying to behold, each fighter broke off on their own but at the same time constantly had each other's backs, it felt as if there were vultures in space picking of lone fighters one by one, however even the best fighters eventually are struck.

<"Took a hit, ngh... they trashed my shield generator. Its all-in now.">

"1-3 support 1-2 as best as you can."

Van'Aria did a close flyby of her hit clan mate and sent a rocket straight into the side of another enemy fighter, she exhaled loudly all while realizing... Arthos likely heard all of it, she did not have time to close the communication, and whilst the excessive amount of concentrative grunting and hectic button presses weren't the worst of it... it can get distracting.

"You have Five Minutes, Vizsla. Don't keep me waiting."

Five Minutes likely was generous for the state the Solus fighters were in, two were definently in need of repairs after today, however as she spoke something else immediately caught her eye.

"Rocket! It's heading for the gunship!"

<"Locking in... firing!">

Two fatal laser salvos unleashed and a large explosion RIGHT INFRONT of the Vizsla Gunship later... a crisis was averted, even if it nearly gave the Rally Master an Aneurysm.

"Close up those groupings!"

@Nefieslab

 

[Arthos Vizsla]

Arthos leaned out of cover, blasting twice and hitting once before he was forced back into the cover that he had managed to obtain for himself. The corner was his alone now - one of the Mandos who had come with him had taken a lucky hit to the bucket and was too injured to shoot straight, thought they were still alive. Their visor had shattered and the glass and mechanicals had blasted inward.

Messy, painful but not fatal and, hopefully, nothing permanent as well.

Leaning back out as the pirates made another push at him, Arthos blasted the lead pirate to death with a shot that took out the creature's throat and left it gasping out it's last breath on it's back while it's allies retreated back to cover. For now. They had the numbers to swarm Arthos and his squad - the only reason that they hadn't, so far, was because they were literally pirates.

They didn't have the head for tactics or the discipline to push through adversity.

But all it would take was a delay in return fire and they wouldn't even need to have either of those. Enough sheer dumb luck and numbers on their side would achieve the same results. Letting out a breath, Arthos moved away from the contested junction, jogging over to where his breach team was working on the door.

"Working on the door now." he replied to Van'Aria, "Feel free to pull back, out of range of their station defences. Their fighters are less likely to stray that far without the defensive net of their friendly guns."

And, after all, they were already here and already on the second station.

"What have you got for me?" he pushed his breach expert, "The outer team can't last much longer."

The Mando he had put on the mission let out a breath.

"Another hour to break through it fully... or I can force it open just wide enough for one person to slide through. If they're very quick."

Arthos reloaded his blaster pistol.

"Do it. I'll go."

Waiting on the breach specialist to finish his prep, Arthos did his best to centre himself as he waited.

Rolled 13/20

@Bread

 

[Van'Aria Solus]

"I can't leave your antique all by itself now, can I?"

Van'Aria had an iron determination, but that didn't solve the predicament her Squadron more and more was in, but it was that Solus... Pride that kept them in the game, it was over and over that they won't admit defeat and retreat, another pair of lasers impacted Van'Aria's side, predominantly cockpit side, an alarm went off which she promptly silenced with a Mandalorian Handshake.

"Not now..."

Van'Aria quietly exclaimed to herself as she kept the ball rolling, her comrades however... didn't fare so well, about a minute passed until all that could be heard over the channels was a solemn... loud explosion.

"What was that?"

<"1-3? 1-3 are you... there?">

A moment later... the wreck came hurtling through dead space, one of the Solus Starfighters had been lost to the Pirates and with it one of Van'Aria's greatest friends.

"No! Aurelian pull back now!"

<"Trying my best here...">

The Solus force was on the backfoot and sure enough... the second Solus Fighter elected to leave the battle entirely he was too damaged to continue on which left Van'Aria and the antique Gunship as the sole Mandalorian assets, her ship took already a hefty beating, but she refused to give up just yet.

"I'm pulling... into long-range. It's only me now."

Van'Aria crackled through the Communications-Line into Arthos's Helmet, the situation was dire and with only her being left the urgency of pushing forwards should be more than apparent, canting the Ship to a slight right she narrowly avoided another missile fired at her and was reduced to playing chicken with her assailants, it was incredibly hard for her to pick off targets being by herself, so numbers were periodically piling on, it was only a matter of time until she was entirely subsumed in the onslaught.

Roll: 1/20. Result: The Solus force was reduced to one damaged Fighter.

@Nefieslab

 

[Arthos Vizsla]

Kark.

Things were beginning to get messier by the second and he knew that they were only going to get worse as time went on. Already he could hear reports from the squad holding down the intersection and they were not good. Nodding to his breach expert, Arthos took a deep breath before bringing his left arm up and activating his buckler shield in preparation for his advance.

Even pirates wouldn't be able to miss the tactical sense of keeping blasters trained on their only entrance to the control station and they were going to pour it onto him without mercy the second they could.

"Stay back and take my ship with you." he confirmed over the coms to Van'Aria, "I'm breaching the control centre alone - breaching now!"

Nodding to his breaching specialist, Arthos threw himself toward the gap that opened in the main doors. Immediately blaster bolts started flying from him and from the bridge staff as well. While there were only half a dozen of the pirates within, they were still all pouring their fire on the small entrance and the tall Mandalorian.

Grunting as shots bounced off armour and his buckler, Arthos activated his jetpack in a short burst - flying through the gap and into the control centre in a sudden acceleration. As he was doing so, a blaster bolt clipped his jetpack and he swore as it hit the control section, sending him literally flying into the side of a wall. Skidding across the wall, Arthos manually reached up, unclipping his jetpack and landing heavily on the ground as it crashed into a corner and stopped functioning.

Pulling himself behind a console, Arthos winced in pain even as blaster bolts peppered the console he was using as cover. Sighing, he steadied his breathing.

He would not die panting like a dog.

Rolled 5/20

@Bread

 

[Van'Aria Solus]

"Alone?!"

Rare. Exceedingly rare. Van'Aria exclaimed at the notion that Arthos made, but at the same time... she wasn't exactly in a position to fuss either with what she put herself into, the drone of space combat slowly but surely numbed her senses to a point where she just worked off of instinct... dodge left... adjust axis right... roll... fire, she alternated maneuvers over and over and only when she had an absolutely secure shot would she pick a pirate off, and sure enough... it worked, she ferried the Gunship at a snails pace but did not give in, a true testament to Solus Tenacity.

"Don't think I forgot you, mongrel..."

She pushed through seething teeth as she came down upon a Pirate Ship like a Sledgehammer upon iron, her breathing grew staggered, it was concentration that kept her entirely in the game, and the fact that she couldn't leave the Vizsla with all the glory, but something... something kept itching in her mind, a sense of worry, she didn't normally worry this much about someone that wasn't of her own clan, but it was still there.

"Arthos? Arthos tell me you are still alive. I'm not leaving this Station with your corpse in it."

A bold claim but since it came from the large stoic Solus Woman it was more likely than not that what she said would be the truth, were he to fall she would do anything in her power to reclaim his remains, but that is hoping it doesn't come to that.

"I bought myself some more time... but I'm running out of options and fast, I hate to admit it, but I need your help here."

The sound of a stray graze of laser tearing into a wing of hers could be heard as she spoke, one thing was for certain... she was still alive, even if that might not mean too much to the Vizsla.

Roll: 17/20.

@Nefieslab

 

[Arthos Vizsla]

Ignoring the indignant squawk from Van'Aria, Arthos levelled his breathing and steadied his aim. Cocking his blaster pistol, Arthos didn't aim around the console immediately. Instead he carefully pulled his helmet free, exposing his pale skin to the artificial lights as he instead placed his helmet over his left foot... and stuck his foot out, as if he was peaking out around the console at a lower level.

Immediately blaster bolts started ringing out as the pirates assumed his head was in his helmet. After all, many Mandalorians didn't ever take off their helmets for anything it stood to reason that it was his head.

Which allowed him to pull himself up, popping up over the top of the console and catching them by surprise. He immediately caught two off guard even more with blaster bolts slamming into them violently, killing them. The creed, according to hardliners, meant never showing your face to anyone.

Arthos wasn't a hardliner and he didn't count corpses.

Still, as the remaining pirates cowered behind cover, Arthos pulled himself back into cover and popped his helmet back on. As the helmet secured itself, he took careful aim and blasted the door controls, opening the blast doors and letting the squad of angry Mandos swarm in, catching the pirates from the flank.

"Sorry, I was away from my com for a minute there. Got the squad in now, just mopping up then we'll be able to turn the defences against them. You good?"

Roll: 16/20

@Bread

 

[Van'Aria Solus]

"Good... is a statement. I was almost sad to have lost you there."

She answered him only after a short moment, it was enough to calm her senses knowing that she did not have to leave anyone behind today, she had seen Nox plummet face-first into dirt before, she did not need another experience like that.

She pivoted her controls with a hasted sigh, the progress she made was already dwindling again, which came with little surprise, though she showed little problems in engaging in that little cat and mouse game that kept being repeated, curiously even now she kept the "antique" in good shape, suffice to say... she was taking good care of it.

"I'll hold for a few moments longer, don't keep me waiting, would you?"

As cliché as it sounded she meant it, she wasn't exactly looking forwards to more flying hours because unlike Arthos... she preferred boots on the ground, first to face over... pressing buttons and being thrown around like a pinball in a pinball machine.

Seeing a Pirate divert his path from her... to the Vizsla gunship, Van'Aria immediately gave chase, a deadly barrage of laser sent right after the assailant unfortunately however not enough to disable the threat, enough however to stay alive and divert its course from performing a successful run.

She rolled her eyes, upset with her own Aim, Lasers and Blasters... always the same.

"I'm going to do an elaborate flyby of your station, given that they are glued to my behind like no other... you should have easy pickings."

And with that she put herself into gear and broke off, pushing the power of the engines to max she began her approach with those seeking her destruction in tow, she fought with the controls briefly as it warned her that her vector was... a bit too close for comfort, but she trusted her judgement she only hoped that Arthos wouldn't abuse this moment to toy with her.

Roll 7/20. Partial Success.

@Nefieslab

 

[Arthos Vizsla]

Arthos really wished that he could eagerly report to Van'Aria that things had turned around and they were going to be turning the guns against their previous owners. He really wished he could honestly tell her that - but he couldn't. Because he was very busy trying to keep the rest of his squad alive as the pirates on the bridge seemed to have unexpectedly rallied behind one of their largest members.

A massive besalisk gentleman with a pair of swords and a pair of pistols was tearing through the attack of his squad of Mandalorians and Arthos was going to need to do something about that.

Rushing forward, he didn't bother to send a message back to Van'Aria, instead focusing on getting the enemy before him. Ducking under a slash from one of the swords, Arthos countered another with the blade of his vibroknife and used his right foot to kick away one of the blaster-armed hands before it could be brought up against him.

Using his entire body and his armour both, the young Mandalorian did his best to grapple with someone with a decent foot of height on him and many dozens of pounds more muscle as well. His armour could take the hits from the impacts against him but his skin and bones beneath bruised and rattled with every heavy hit and he could do nothing but grit his teeth and power through, looking for any chance he might be able to steal in order to fight back effectively against his giant opponent.

He lunged forward, seemingly spotting such an opening, before the ugly smile of the pirate let him know that he had been mistaken, that he had fallen for a feint. A blaster pistol went off, the bolt catching Arthos in the left side, between the armour plates covering his front and back, sending him spinning, bleeding, to the ground.

Roll 3/20

@Bread

 

[Van'Aria Solus]

Something did not feel right, nothing about this felt right. Arthos didn't usually take this long, this was uncanny for the man she remembered to be rather... to the book when it came to executing his plan, but then again it has been quite a time since the Crusade, people could have neglected their own training, grown rusty or simply made a wrong call.

Nevertheless... this radio silence worried her, every inch in her body wanted to vacate her Starfighter and go boots on the ground to see for herself what could have happened, she had almost made a full flyby of the Station by now and... still nothing, what had happened down there?

The fact that the relief of action did not come meant Van'Aria had to turn to action once more and this time...way too close to the station's defences to begin with, she heard a lock on of a Missile beep into her cockpit, this was... troublesome, swerving in large eights she tried to shake the missile but ultimately came to a better idea, she crossed the immediate flightpath of an assailing Pirate and in turn sent the missile previously locked onto her... directly into his side.

"Bad traffic..."

She quipped to herself before pulling the controls up and around to centre on another fighter unleashing another barrage of deadly laser fire before pushing the throttle to max again, Time... with time if she kept this up she would survive, but it was a slog fest, if she had another fighter... more people at her disposal she would've rushed through the same hole that Arthos had, but... she could not abandon the fight so easily let alone without consequence.

"Come on, Arthos... don't die on me now..." she muttered this quietly into her helmet. She rarely admitted anything of the like, but the Vizsla Rally Master was the closest she would call a candidate to an equal, and that carried an innate fondness.

Right when things looked more chipper, a black painted ship shot out of the Pirate Squadron nailing itself to Van'Aria's trail, this one flew more precise... tailed her almost perfectly, this one would prove to be a challenge to shake.

Roll: 12/20.

@Nefieslab

 

[Arthos Vizsla]

The large pirate took a step forward, roaring his victory to the ragtag remains of his crew and the remaining, battered, members of the Mandalorian squad that Arthos had brought with him. Before he could do much more than vocalized wordlessly, the captain froze before letting out a high-pitched screech of pain as Arthos' blaster pistol literally neutered the large besalisk and sent him to the ground, clutching desperately at a bloody, pulpy, mess.

Arthos pulled himself up to his feet, leaning heavily against one of the consoles as he glared through his visor at the remains of the pirate crew, who all seemed to be gaping at him. As he had their attention, Arthos aimed carefully and pulled the trigger five times at the besalisk captain's head.

His head was broken open and the captain dead after the first shot - the other four were enough to utterly shatter the morale of the crew. Enough that they were unable to react in time for when his Mandalorian squad opened fire on them before assuming their positions along the gun controls.

"... defensive guns coming online to your aid." he commed over to Van'Aria as he moved over to the most important console on the ship, "Took a bad hit. I'll manage."

It had taken him a number of years to even feel comfortable letting someone know that he was injured at all but he had gotten better at it. Reaching the console he wanted, Arthos began to drain the atmosphere from the entire space station - only the Mandalorians in their vacuum-ready helmets were safe.

"Suffocating the rest of the station now." he reported with a sigh as he slumped against the console, whispering to himself, "Nothing worth anything is earned without sacrifice..."

Roll: 12/20

@Bread

 

[Van'Aria Solus]

"I'd take a look myself, but I doubt you would approve. The Citadel would be a welcome point for you to stay and recover, it's an offer, even if it comes with the added perdition of having to suffer through my company."

Van'Aria was known to personally oversee some of the recoveries of key Solus Members, she took great interest in seeing people properly nursed up to shape and sometimes the most prude of hands knows when and where to lay correctly, but she expected the Vizsla to not even entertain the thought, his... stalwart nature was both commendable and foolhardy alike but only the foolhardy were capable of giving results.

Only a few moments passed until Arthos's gallant reinforcement of Space came in, and by reinforcements... intense laser fire was meant, as soon as the Cannons began their firing renewed zeal overcame the Solus Rally Master, it was as if an ancient war drum was struck, a call to clean up... a call to get even.

She throttled her Ship entirely by pulling the thrust entirely back causing her Ship to almost flip intentionally causing the major tail she had to shoot past her like a missile on a mission, reaffirming her thrust shortly afterwards... the Hunter has become the hunted, with less to worry about now that the guns were aiding her she could methodically... calmly dismantle this lone Pirate.

She started piece by piece, first she sent enough barrages into him to force him to fly in more predictable patterns and then... when a hefty broadside of the station took his shields offline she went in for the Kill, disabling his engines before sending two hefty shots through his Cockpit leaving the wreck to drift by itself, she exhaled... pleased with the outcome.

"I'm just about done cleaning up here thanks to your boys. Do you want me to bring your Ship down and meet you? I'd like to see the man face to face who held his promise after all, that, and I think with all the heavy lifting you've done already it would be the least I could do."

Van'Aria made a firm circle around the gunship of the Vizsla, triumphant almost as the rest were cleaned up by the turrets of the Station, she would not easily forget this battle today and whatever bad blood there was, to her mattered no more, if the Vizsla needed her again he must only ask, yet she knew she discounted her own actions on this Mission, she always did, to her, it mattered naught how much she did as long as another Mandalorian benefitted from it.

A lingering feeling stayed however... remorse. She lost a good man today, there was time to say her words on that but not now, now was a time of Victory, a time when... Mandalorians took back just a little bit more of what was once theirs.

Roll: 20/20.

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