WoL II: Farm Patrol

[Tyler Ward]

News of the Mandalorians taking Corellia spread like wildfire, even if the Empire is increasing their presence outside the Core, it won't stop their precious, important core worlds from falling. It just so happens that Duro and Nubia are now neutral system now that Corellia is now under firm Mandalorian control. The Galactic Alliance sees an opportunity and now has it's sights set on bringing Nubia into it's fold. If all goes well, the GA will have a major shipyard and a presence of their own in the Core Worlds as well.

Tyler is looking through the view port of a Antelope-class Shuttle while the pilots are flying the ship. The planet is easy on the eyes, it looks almost like Alderaan. The Rebel Commander is in his armor and has all his weapons, as well as his PIPE VII within arm's reach inside the ship. Tyler also has a squad of four GA troopers with him to accompany him.

There have been reports of ever increasing pirate attacks on even a planet like this. For a Core World that's not a good thing, but for the most part the pirates have been straying from the populated cities and other vital areas and have been plundering the various isolated farms instead. The planetary authority isn't handling it so the GA will chip in. The shuttle has been on patrol in the skies of Nubia for some time, for hours with various stops here and there, they are just waiting for a distress call then they will fly there will all due haste.

So far, all quiet on this front, until a buzzing came through the pilot's controls. An SOS. Well there it is, the pilot relayed that is indeed a pirate attack to Tyler, and then the shuttle would then turn around at full speed where the signal is coming from. Tyler would then step out of the cockpit and then reach for his PIPE. Looks like they will be seeing some action soon.

@Ecclessey

 

[Davis Jan]

Davis had been seated next to Tyler and felt somewhat..diminished.. in the rebel commander's presence. Here Davis was, armed with a vibro-knife and a simple blaster pistol, looking at the younger man carrying a proper sword, a rifle, pistol, four grenades, tracking equipment and a bloody PIPE VII. Not to mention the cryocaster and jetpack on his well-maintained armor. No wonder he felt comfortable rushing in to fight a group of pirates.

When the shuttle made its approach on the farm that had transmitted the SOS, Davis found it mere child's play to recognize that modified freighter parked next to the main building as a pirate vessel. "Ship like that-" he began as the shuttle began its descend a good twenty meter away, "-there's probably about a dozen of them and all armed like-" he wanted to say they were better armed than the common spacer, but considering that meant they had about as much weapons on them as Davis had, Tyler probably wouldn't be impressed. "-well, they're not armed like Mandalorians or Rebel Commander I can tell you that."

The second the ship actually touched down, the small group of rebels followed their commander outside.. only to see no suspicious activity at all. It made sense to Davis, as the shuttle's approach had been easy to spot from a distance and that meant they had some time to either get scarce or worse, prepared.

Davis took the R-5 blaster pistol into his right hand and kept his eyes fixed on the main building. "I got a bad feeling about this."

@Faster Than Light

 

[Tyler Ward]

Davis' last comment before the Rebel ship landed actually reminded Tyler about how he got mistaken for a Mandalorian by a Sith on Nar Shaddaa that one time because of his jetpack despite not wearing a t-visor or anything. What interesting times...

The pirate ship there plain as day. Davis' estimation about numbers seems about right, Tyler nodded in agreement. He's most likely right be right about them being not as well armed as a Mandalorian or anything as well. "Yeah, sounds about right." he snickered and replied back.

With the Rebel Ship landed and the door open, Tyler would his blaster rifle in his hands and stepping out, same with his men. As far as he can see, nothing suspicious outside. Just the sounds of the wind, no signs of life from the farmhouse at a glance or any other activity, just that pirate freighter.

"Me too. Lets be careful." Tyler replied to Davis, getting bad vibes as well. "They could be lying in wait, could have hostages..." Unfortunately, all very likely possibilities and not just limited to those either, so the Rebels would have to keep on the guard. They are out in plain daylight and the roar of the shuttle forewarned the Rebel's approach, no element of surprise for the Rebels today. With that in mind, Tyler and his troopers would slowly make their approach towards the farmhouse, cautiously of course, weapons ready.

@Ecclessey

 

[Davis Jan]

Davis frowned and looked at the rebel commander with an incredious look, "no shit?" Internally the pirate screamed for he didn't know a way to approach a hostile compound in a worse way that 'slowly moving towards it'. Still, the other man was a commander and apparently this was how the Galactic Alliance fought their battles...which kinda figured, considering their successes in the past years.

They had moved about ten meters when small arms blaster fire came from every window of the farmhouse, hitting three rebel operatives walking in front, killing two of them instantly while the third wailed and cried over the intense pain he felt in his lower abdomen. Davis knew a wound like that was lethal, so he didn't bother trying to drag him to safety and instead dashed a good twenty meters to his right where he could hide behind a cattle shed.

Alone, Davis muttered angrily "open ground," he peeked cautiously around the corner, seeing the pirates taking pot shots at the dying rebel that lay in the open, "I've only ever seen Imperials that cocky." What Davis didn't know was that Tyler was actually trained by the Imperials and first served in the Imperial Republica. Best he wouldn't find that out today.

He also had to misfortune of watching the dying rebel the moment he was fatally hit in the face by bolt coming from the farmhouse. "Kriff-" Davis had it with this mission already, "Force be with you, kid."

Anger properly redirected to the pirates, Davis turned around and made his way around the shed to get a better angle of approach on the farmhouse. They might be pirates just like he is, but he never killed anyone if he had the chance not to.. and they just executed that kid for the fun of it. Needless to say, he'd make them pay for that.

@Faster Than Light

 

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

Crix chose a corner in the back of the shuttle and prepped his gear for the upcoming fight. His experience with the pirates had been extensive and in the vacuum in space. Currently, The Highwind was stationed at the local space station. The list of repairs he had to complete in order to get it back into space was so expansive even thinking about it put him into a sour mood. He sighed as he checked his gear again.

Crix was wearing his Ranger Scout armor. Around his waist, he wore his newly acquired Renegade Heavy Blaster and his lightsaber. His Quickdraw was in it's thigh holster and his holdout blaster was tucked into his boot. He'd snagged a couple of frags for good measure, and figured he was as ready as he could be. He felt the ship begin it's decent and decided to ready up. He fell in with the other grunts, happy to let someone else do the commanding for a mission. They began their approach over open ground and Crix immediately changed his mind.

As they moved he began making his way toward the commander, but he never made it. Blaster fire rang out and without thinking his lightsaber flew into his hand as went on the defensive.

"GET TO COVER," he called out! Their ranks were ruined and chaos was taking control if someone didn't do something these rebels would be dead before they could get a shot off. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a rebel dash off to the right toward a shed. Crix sent any Rebels he could to back up the lone soldier. The being was either a coward or cunning and Crix had a feeling it was the latter.

The Jedi rallied a squad around him and circled off to the left. He positioned himself between the farmhouse and his men the best he could, deflecting as many shots as possible, but even Jedi weren't omnipresent. Crix couldn't let his despair overwhelm him. The wounded wailed their agony a lament to the dead as he pushed those around him to move faster. By the time they made the barn only a handful stood unscathed. Crix quickly took stock of his men and then came up with a plan.

The group that moved toward the right would soon begin their attack and without support, they'd be in trouble.

"Alright, boys-er and lady," he smiled apologetically at a human female he'd only just noticed before continuing, "Follow the white glowstick, blasters up and eyes peeled. You protect me and I'll do my best to block you, stay as close to single-file as possible, that'll make my job easier."

Crix eased up to the edge of the barn closest to the farmhouse and from a crouched position chanced a glance around the corner. He was able to spot two guards on the porch, weapons ready. He slipped back around the corner and after a three count stood and checked once more. He peered into the opened windows. The curtains were singed with blaster fire from the surprise attack, but from his vantage point he couldn't make out more. Rushing the house would be just as dumb as approaching from open ground, he needed a distraction.

"You," he gestured to the closest rebel, "What's your name?"

The Rebel replied nervously, "Dart, sir."

Crix gestured toward his blaster which had a pretty decent scope on it, "You any good with that thing?"

Dart's eyes glanced down and then he looked back up and nodded, "Yessir."

"Good, I want you to take a friend and be my cover. We've all know the frequency, sync up now, and let me know when you're in position."

Dart beckoned the rebel closest to him and they both saluted before entering the barn. A few tense seconds later Crix heard, "In position sir."

"Copy that," he replied, to the rest of his squad he said, "Let's move out."

@Ecclessey

 

[Davis Jan]

As Davis made his way around the cattle shed he heard two other rebels fall in behind him, "Hey Davis-" one of them began with a tone of voice clearly drenched in shock and anxiety, "-the Jedi send us to back you up. What's the plan?"

Davis stopped. Turned around. Looked the boy in the eye and said, "What kriffing Jedi?"

The kid was about to reply, but Davis held up his hand and shook his head. "Doesn't matter-" he turned back around after giving the third man an encouraging nod, "-we just go in and shoot them." Plans were for kriffers. In the endless black it was easy: either they surrender before you board, or they do so after you shot through their initial defensive measures. They were clearly in the initial defensive measures fase, so the logical response would be to shoot through them. Boy, did Davis want to make them kiss the other end of his blaster pistol..

Making good ground on their way to the farm house on account of the lightsaber drawing most of the pirates' attention towards it, they managed to approach the farmhouse without incident of their own. "Stay one me-" the Atlas-born pirate said, "-shoot everyone with a gun you don't recognize."

Not long after he said it he kicked against the back-door, heard it crack and then bounced back in shock. The door didn't open. "Oh Kriff thi-" a bolt screeched from the window to his right and hit the boy right in the chest, killing him before he hit the ground. Startled, Davis took a step back and fired thrice into the window until he heard a yelp and a thud. "Get in!"

Jumping through the window with the other rebel in tow, Davis looked around what seemed to be a child's bedroom until he saw the pirate on the floor. He was a weequay and clearly still alive as he was clutching a wound in his right shoulder and whimpered some words about mercy. Davis, however, only saw the look in that young boy's eyes behind the cattle shed and send a bolt of fiery plasma straight into the weequay's face.

@Zay

 

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

Crix ignited his lightsaber and rushed for the house. His pale blade at the ready as he prepared to protect the rebels following him. Blaster fire erupted from the other side of the house snapping the two guards into high alert. They spotted Crix and raised their blasters to fire, but never got the chance. Smoldering wounds adorned their clothing as they dropped to the floor. From Crix's vantage, he could see several silhouettes moving inside the house as he closed in. Dart continued to fire into the house, the blaster fire from the house focused on him long enough for Crix and his company to in range. The two rebels with him opened fire into the windows aiming for the origins of their enemies fire.

Crix rushed the door with plunged his lightsaber into the lock. The durasteel lock liquified under the superheated blade. Their path was open. His squad caught up and on a three count, they breached. The Jedi shouldered the door and as it swung in he drew his Quickdraw and fired twice from the hip. His first shot clipped a pirate and in reaction, the bastard reflexively fired off three shots in a horizontal arc. Crix deflected one shot, narrowly slipped the second and grunted with anger as he felt the third bolt graze his upper thigh.

The Jedi swiped his lightsaber to the side unleashing a force push that sent the gunman sprawling across the floor. Crix took aim and fired one. The duel bolts slammed into their mark and just like that they had one less pirate to worry about. Distracted by the guy in front of him, he failed to notice the being in the cut. The Bith lunged forward grabbing Crix's saber hand at the wrist. A blaster cauterized a hole in the Bith's shoulder and the beings grasp went slack.

The Jedi drove his shoulder into his attacker slamming them into a nearby wall. It grasped it's arm as perspiration beaded up on it's head. Crix stepped forward, his pale blade free of its would-be captor. Fear colored the expression of the being as it awaited it's death, but today wasn't their day. In a single swift movement, The smuggler drove his knee into the bith's face. The being's head slammed into the wall putting a hole in the drywall behind him.

Crix extinguished his lightsaber and pulled his Renegade blaster. He looked back and thanked the force his squad was still breathing.

"Alright, let's sweep this floor and move up."
@Ecclessey

 

[Davis Jan]

Davis had just executed the weequay when he heard commotion on the other side of the door. The sound of blaster fire was mixed in with something different, something Davis had never heard before and yet he knew immediately what it was; "Sounds like the Jedi is inside, too." Despite their rocky start to this operation and the painful losses already forced to endure, Davis' fellow rebel couldn't help but grin as he nodded eagerly in confirmation. Strangely enough the pirate didn't share in his companion's enthusiasm and felt rather irritated. Perhaps Davis blamed him for the death of the boy? Or maybe it was a general displeasure towards Force sensitives.

He opened the door just as Crix ordered the squad to sweep the ground floor. "This room's clear-" his tone of voice echoed how he felt -irritated- and instead of following most of squad through what was left on their current floor, approached the Jedi and shook his head as he said, "-but at a heavy cost."

As the rebels cleared the ground floor without any more enemy encounters or other news, Davis' stomach turned. "That was a kid's room-" he said, raising his blaster towards the stairs and following it up with his eyes, "-if they got hostages up there they'll be getting mighty desperate." Davis didn't want to think about what would happen if the pirates got too desperate while holding that innocent family at the end of their blasters, but the nagging sense of impending dread did begin to grow more and more present in his mind. "Kriff this," the Atlas-born rebel sighed and suddenly dashed up the stairs.

As he rounded the corner between flights he was met with a stream of blasterfire, immediately catching a bolt in the left shoulder and then one against his helmet, jerking his head back against the wall. While dazed, Davis' entire body ran on an anger-fueled adrenaline spurt and he wasn't slow to take aim. He fired four times and finally with his last shot managed to take out the rifle-wielding pirate at the top of the stairs.

His arm fell back down and grabbed his left elbow to support the arm. A gaping but cauterized wound had destroyed many of the nerves connecting his arm to the rest of his body and while the helmet had very well saved his life, his brain had still taken a double beating and was left reeling. Slumping back against the wall, Davis blindly motioned for the other rebels to storm the second floor. "Go! go-" his head bobbed, "-ghow."


@Zay

 

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

As Crix gave his order a rebel burst out of a side room causing both rebel's with him to level their weapons in his direction instinctively. The Jedi recognized him and waved his had to lower their weapons. Davis said the room was clear and Crix believed him, He jerked his chin toward the other two and got the sweep underway. As Davis informed him of the cost paid. Crix looked him in the eye and refused to break the gaze. He wasn't sure why, but the man seemed to need someone to blame for the loss of life, luckily, Crix was used to being disliked. Knowing they couldn't stare at each other forever he stepped away contacting Dart who was still posted in the upper level of the barn.

"Dart, what can you see?" There was a moment of silence and he came back.

"I can't see much --wait, I found them. Room furthest to the right, directly above where the other squad hit." Crix turned toward the room and then looked up, wondering what the safest course of action would be. They'd lost so many already. The thought of losing anyone else made his stomach hurt.

"I need specifics, can you give me numbers?" Dart didn't respond immediately and when his voice came back over the line it was distressing.

"They've got hostages... Wh-what are we gonna do, sir?" Crix's eyes closed as he attempted to process this worst-case scenario. Before he could come up with a plan Davis snapped. He muttered something and raised his blaster before Crix could stop him the rebel dashed up the stairs. Frak...

Crix signaled for the other's to follow and they chased after Davis. He watched as the rebel rounded the corner between flights and sucked in a startled breath as blaster fire lit up the landing where Davis stood. The attack and returned happened faster than the Jedi could react. Davis took some serious damage and went down, but not without taking down the pirate at the top of the stairs.

Crix barked into his comm, "Dart I need eyes on that room NOW!"

Dart came back quickly, "Uh, two are positioned on either side of the door ready to take down anyone who comes in, and-- one, one has a kid by the throat with a blaster pressed to the side of their head."

The Jedi swore as he reached Davis and ordered the other two to take care of him. He holstered his blaster and pulled his lightsaber. Crix lept up the remaining stairs and closed in on the door. He could feel the swirling terror emanating from the family. His heart was heavy with the pain of the wounded and dying, but he couldn't allow him to lose focus. He had to be centered for this encounter.

He whispered into his com, "Dart I'm moving in. If you get a clear shot take it."

There was a long pause and a solum response, "Yes sir."

Crix placed a hand on the wall just outside of the door and closed his eyes. He reached out through the force felt the first pirate. His eyes snapped open, his face was emotionless as he positioned the end of his lightsaber against the wall, then ignited the blade. Rolling to his right he delivered a back kick to the door just above the knob and it swung inward slamming into the other guard, Crix plunged his pale blade through the door and into the pirate on the other side. Cries of pain and terror ripped out across the room. Crix slowly began to gather the force. He was only going to get one chance at this...

"DON'T MOVE JEDI! DON'T FRAKKING MOVE!!!" Screamed the bothan holding a child as a hostage. Crix clenched his jaw and raised his hands in surrender. His lightsaber deactivated as he slowly turned to face the coward.

"That's r-right, nice and easy!" The bothan ordered. Crix glanced around and spotted the child's parents. The mother, a twilek, was visibly shaken, but she looked fine considering the situation. The father was a human and had clearly put up a fight. He was sprawled out on his back with a nasty looking gash on his head. The little girl, a perfect mix between her parents was crying indignantly. Tears streaked her cheeks and she trembled under the pirate's embrace, but her eyes held a fire that was absent in her parents. She still wanted to fight. Strong kid, he thought.

"Now, drop the lightsaber." Crix hesitated and the Pirate barked impatiently, "DO YOU WANT ME TO KILL HER!" The beast shoved the gun into the little girl's temple hard and a little whimper escaped her lips as he tried to wriggle away.

"Easy buddy, I'm listening," said Crix. The force began to swell within him and he knew he was as ready as he could be. He released his lightsaber. The pirate's eyes watched gleefully as the dangerous weapon tumbled end over end toward the ground, in the meantime, Crix yanked the blaster from his distracted hand and called his saber back into his hand. The pirate's eyes lost their gleeful quality as the glow of the Jedi's pale blade passed under his chin. The movement happened so quickly that the pirates head remained intact until he fell backward.

Into his com he said, "Hostage secured. Dart, hail Evac and tell them to send as many medical personnel as they can."

@Ecclessey

 

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

Evac arrived thirty minutes after the final standoff, but even with their quick arrival it wasn't enough. The death count was atrocious. Crix sat on the roof of the farmhouse smoking a cigara. His gaze swept back and forth across the blood field where so many good soldiers had been mowed down thanks to poor leadership. The Smuggler was shaken. His hands shook and even though the breeze was comfortable sweat beaded at his temples and forehead. He could feel their pain, and in some cases feel their life wink out of existence.

Crix took a long drag on his vice when his comm went off. "Sir, the family would like to see you."

Great... he thought blowing out the smoke. The Jedi stuck his cigara between his lips and kicked off the roof, as he came down he called to the force to ease his fall and landed easily.

"Sure, where am I headed?" he asked.

"They're in the living room of the house sir." Dart replied.

"Copy that, thanks Dart," he replied cutting the transmission as he stepped up the porch steps.

Crix entered the house and was ushered into a mock med center set up in the living room of the farmhouse. The triage was rudimentary and many wounded were still awaiting treatment. The Jedi scanned the room and spotted the family. He approached apprehensively expecting the worst. The mother saw him first and her expression told him this wasn't going to be good.

She rose from her place and made a b-line toward him. Crix braced for an attack but was met with a hug. His brow furrowed in confusion and his hands hung awkwardly at his side. He gingerly patted her on the back, clearing his throat and saying, "Er, you wanted to see me ma'am?"

The woman looked up to him with tears brimming in her eyes. "Thank you."

For the first time in his life, Crix was speechless. He bobbed his head in appreciation and then respectfully removed himself from her embrace. "You showed up just in time. Th-they were gonna kill my little girl," the statement forced a sob from her lips. She took a moment to calm down and said, "I know this won't mean much, but we believe in the Alliance because of the sacrifices you made here today."

Crix found himself fighting back tears. The beings that had fallen here were going to be remembered as heroes and while that was a small concession to life, it was better than dying forgotten.

"W-we're happy to help," was all he could get out. A small voice cried out and he looked over to see the little girl and her father sharing a bed. He held her close and she hugged him tightly. He turned back toward the mother and said, "Thank you for your kind words, please rest, we'll be out of your hair shortly."

She gave him a kind smile. "Stay as long as you need."

He bobbed his head in appreciation and then stepped back outside. He stared back out over the field where so many had fallen and vowed to never allow his attitude or fatigue to compromise his sense of duty. Each and every one of the fallen rebels were owed that. This mission was technically a success, but to the Jedi Padawan, this was his greatest failure.

End​

@Ecclessey @Raydo @Faster Than Light