Chapter 3: Archaic

[Mara 29]

Stuffing his small bag under his seat, Kaden smiled at the sound of the Headhunter's engine coming to life. Not quite as beautiful to his hears as the roar of an X-wing but pretty close. He gave one more look around the console to familiarize himself with the controls before strapping himself in tightly. In addition to the other upgrades, he was pleasantly surprised to find that this one had been equipped with a hyperdrive, which would prove handy, if needed.

Engaging his repulsors, he opened up a closed comm feed to the ship Arlan headed to, whose transponder read Gundark Gypsy across his screen. Kaden briefly wondered if that name was one of her many cover IDs used by Zak's family or the real thing.

"Gundark Gypsy, this is..." Kaden groaned when he read his own ship's ID. "Lover Boy." He had a feeling he knew which family member had named the Headhunter. "I'll head out first and provide air support for the team."

And make sure there's no cobweb in these laser cannons or concussion missile launch tubes...

"Keep me posted."

With that, Kaden armed both his missiles, did one last check through his instruments and shot towards the hangar's entrance. Once out, he turned sharply and headed towards the estate. Soon, he could see two figures running, one with Mandalorian armor.

Knowing that with his current prey subtlety wasn't on the menu, Kaden tripled his lasers and aimed them directly on the Mandalorian's heels. A couple seconds later, he peeled away, not expecting to do any major damage and expecting some form of retaliation, hoping it was enough to give Nat a bigger head start.

[Drake 53]

The 360 degree view afforded by Jaing's heads-up display showed the Headhunter approach from behind. There was little he could do to out-maneuver the vehicle out in the open like this, save for jumping back into the burning and collapsing house. Once his sensors blared a target-lock, Jaing fired a burst from his jetpack. He launched a few feet into the air just as the ground beneath his feet erupted with a linked laser strike.

When he was back on his feet and running again, Jaing took note that the Headhunter was now moving away. Shouldn't have ditched the Plex, he thought. The missile launcher's secondary firing mode, a guided seeker, would have come in handy for taking down that fighter.

[Mara 29]

Kaden took the Headhunter back and around low, behind the huge house while keeping a cursory ear out for Arlan. There was still enough left standing to give him cover briefly before coming back out. Obviously the man wasn't spooking easily, but to give Nat a chance, Kaden needed to give the helmeted man something else to think about.

He came out 180 degrees from before, this time facing the running pair. Gaining altitude to decrease the chances of hitting his lieutenant, Kaden locked his lasers on where the Mando's helmet was. He fired and blew past the pair skyward.

[Rogue 4]

Layla felt hope swell in her as Deign turned off the comm. It might have been a small action to some, but to her, that was Deign Argos choosing her over the job, and that was simply incredible. That gave her hope, that maybe he could change. Maybe the man she used to love was buried in there somewhere after all. Maybe the man she was making love to now could be the man she'd always dreamed of him becoming.

Maybe he could be saved.

And maybe, she actually wanted to save him.

-------------------

Nat dived for cover behind a speeder as Kaden's laser struck a little too close for comfort. As the blast exploded he reached for his comm, pulling it to his lips. "Red team, it's Blue One! Sorry, I'm a little preoccupied here. Hold your position for now! I'll comm you back with orders!"

He saw the Mandalorian heading towards him again and stood, moving around the parked speeders. He used them for cover as he shot bursts off in his direction, trying to listen to keep track of the Headhunter over the roar of the flames. The flames were getting steadily higher and he hoped Nima had gotten Aston out of there.

[Drake 53]

The Headhunter returned and fired once again. This time Jaing dropped into a roll and the laser fire flew past overhead. He wished that the rocket atop his jetpack was a seeker but, since it wasn't, firing it at the fighter would be a waste. Jaing came back to his feet and found the Lieutenant firing at him. The flechette launcher belched out a rain of metal again and again followed by a pair of proximity grenades.

[Princess 35]

Nima dragged Aston to under a nearby tree. "Of all the stupid nerf brained schemes that you have had, what in the 7 Corellian Hells were you thinking of Aston?" She paused as she checked him over for injuries. "Taking on a Mandalorian hell bent on killing us all? Are you insane?"

[Andy 60]

"I just lost rational thought for a moment," Aston replied sheepishly. "Besides, if he really wanted to kill us all we'd probably be dead by now."

He winced as Nima checked out his head wound, "I think it looks worse than feels. I'll be all right if the bleeding will stop; I didn't have time to grab a medkit."

Edited October 16, 2008 by Andy

[Princess 35]

"Well, you're in luck that I always have mine with me." She probed the wound and then dug around in her bag. She grabbed some spray to stop the bleeding, "Okay Aston, this is going to sting." She sprayed the wound with the spray that had an antibiotic in it too.

[Rogue 4]

Nat cursed as some of the metal from the fletchette launcher hit him, even though he'd blocked as much as he could with the profile of his rifle. Just be glad it hit your arm and not your face.

He registered the switch to secondary fire in an instant, and dived behind another speeder before the proximity grenades could go off. The twin explosions nearly knocked out his hearing, and nearly hit him. He needed to do something about that Mandalorian before he ended up being a bloody smear on the pavement.

He needed to think, and fast. The mandalorian was gaining on him steadily.

Steadily. And Nat could control what path he took, at least to some degree. He rose an arm up over the speeder, resting his rifle against it as he fired in the direction of the armored apparition, meanwhile, thumbing the timer on his first detonator. He wedged it in the paneling on the side of the speeder before picking himself up, and running to his next position.

[Bad furday 57]

Arlan sent the transport soaring out of the hangar, and then swung around back towards the house. He needed to find a space where he could set the ship down-temporarily of course- so that the squadron could board.

"Lieutenant Riamor, hold your team's position! Be there in a few!" commed Arlan. He kept his message ambiguous, lest the grey Mando was

eavesdropping.

Locking on to Nat's comm signal, Arlan looked out the viewport and saw Nima and Aston under a nearby tree. A glimpse of dark blue showed Nat

crouched behind a chunk of debris.

And the Mando is...where? thought Arlan, looking around.

"Cover me Kaden!"

[Chickenman 9]

Scowling, Cale switched off the comlink. The PSS would arrive any minute, and there was always the chance that one of the officers handling the scene wasn't on the take. Only one other man, a Quarren named Vakin, had been unscathed by the blasts. The two set to work removing anything that could identify the dead men as members of Archaic. Cale frowned when he saw that one of the bodies wasn't as still as a dead man should be.

"S-sir...help...me" A quick glance at the man's state told that he was in no condition to walk. Cale's frown deepened. He hated making decisions like this.

"Kill him," he ordered, turning away as Vakin pumped two bolts into the wounded man's bleeding face. "Now let's get out of here."

Cale and Vakin descended the stairs in silence, making their way back to the hovervan as a crowdgathered. Cale was climbing into the van just as a fleet of PSS vehicles arrived. He nodded to the PSS Officer in charge, a man he played cards with regularly, and slammed the van's door shut behind him. The vehicle slipped its way into the night.

[Mara 29]

Kaden turned the Headhunter around and came at the Mando perpendicularly, untripling his lasers as well. With Nat on the other side of the speeders, then running away, he sent a scattering of lasers bolts all around the armored man, focusing on the jetpack. If just one could penetrate it...

With one last burst of fire at the Mandalorian's back, he headed past the debris-strewn area and towards where the assault transport showed on his display. Kaden kept a fair amount of altitude about a half klick from where Arlan was hovering, preparing for landing. This way he had both groups in his view, particularly one in his sights.

[Drake 53]

Jaing cursed and unholstered his old DC-17 blaster pistol. He aimed at the Headhunter's engine housing and let loose half a dozen shots before turning it on the Twi'lek, who was running ahead again.

"You can run, Lieutenant, but you can't..." he trailed off as a glint to his right caught his eye. Looking down, he saw a grenade wedged in the panelling of the speeder parked a couple metres away. "...huh."

The detonator exploded. A split second later, the concussive blast hit Jaing, picking him up off his feet and sending him flying backwards. He smashed through the wall right before that section of the house collapsed on top of him.

[Rogue 4]

Nat picked himself up, catching his breath. That had worked. He really couldn't believe that had worked. He pulled out his comm, dialing Arlan and Kaden as he headed over to Nima and Aston. "He's down. Repeat, he's down. You can land and take passengers. Let's get out of here as fast as we can. I'm going to call the fire department and we don't know if the PSS will be coming."

He knelt down next to Nima, looking at Aston. He shook his head, smiling just slightly in amusement. "You know...bravery doesn't do much good without a plan. You alright?"

[Princess 35]

Nima glanced at Nat. "That was sure one impressive move boss. Aston doesn't appear to be hurt too bad. I've stopped the bleeding with some glue spray and I'll reassess when we get to safety. You ok?"

[Rogue 4]

"Got hit with a fletchette launcher in the arm." Nat moved the arm carefully, testing it. He had too much adrenaline running through his system to feel the pain from the metal barbs. "But I'm alright for now. Arlan should be coming in to pick us up."

He dialed the fire department to inform them of the fire here. He felt sympathetic. The Fae family had had their home nearly destroyed. He hoped that none of them had been injured. He called Jaim back on the comm. "Blue Team to Red Team. Good news, we have a Mandalorian down, and everyone's alright. Call Green Lead and tell him what's going on. Let's see if we can get a rendevous and a plan. We need to move quickly."

[Ender 8]

Jaim was just reaching for his comm to answer Nat when a blaster bolt sizzled the grass next to his hand. Rolling out to his left, Jaim saw another disguised guard on the other side of the ridge.

"Negative, we've been spotted! We... agh!" Jaim grunted as the comlink was struck by a shot from the other guard, searing his hand. Taking aim, he shot the first guard through the head, and would have taken out the other if not for Jya getting to him first.

"Come on, if we don't get in there now, we never will. Move!" Jaim grabbed Jya's arm to help her up and sprinted for the entrance.

[Princess 35]

"As soon as I'm done with Aston, I'll take a look at that arm Boss. I really hope that you killed that Mando, Brier's family doesn't deserve this." She looked up as Arlan landed the transport near them. Pulling Aston's arm Nima grabbed her bag, "Let's go!"

[Vergere 1]

Taner and Wes finally reemerge from the tunnels below, and finding some Revenants, make their way towards them.

"Finished already?" Taner smiled, then furrowed his brow. "Where's Brier and Zak? And do you need more medical supplies?"

[Mara 29]

After Arlan landed the transport, Kaden shifted his own position to keep a better eye out. He stayed roughly at the third point of a triangle, with the corner of the house the Mando fell through as one and the Revenants at the transport at the other. Knowing he wouldn't believe the threat was gone until he saw a corpse, he kept a hand on the missile launcher.

[Bad furday 57]

Jya sprinted after Jaim towards the hidden entrance. Boot marks in the dirt appeared to walk through the rock wall, betraying the base's location. The facade of stone and bushes disappeared as they ran through it, coming to a stop infront of a set of metal doors.

Jaim looked around the entryway.

"If we attach the beacon to this metal bulkhead, it'll stand out too easily. We'll have to hide it in the nearby rocks."

Jya took the beacon from Jaim.

"I'll find a spot. Keep a watch for anymore sentries!" The two of them left the entryway, walking through the hologram

and out into the sunlight.

"I'll climb up and put it right over the entrance," murmured Jya. Jaim nodded, and partially hid behind a rock, scanning the

expanse of nature preserve that lay before them.

A quick glance above him showed Jya hoisting herself onto a rocky ledge above. Jaim tried to be a gentleman and not stare, but it

was hard.

"All set!" she said, and began climbing back down.

* * * *

Arlan kept the engines idling and set the controls to auto, as he hurried from the cockpit. He helped Nima help Nat and Aston into the transport.

Arlan gestured towards the cargo/passenger area.

"Get yourselves settled and hang on. We'll take off in just a moment!"

Arlan re-entered the cockpit and began flipping switches. Within moments, the ship rose from the grounds and headed off towards the city.

Edited November 6, 2008 by Bad furday

[Andy 60]

(( I was away over the weekend so when you come to edit this part you'll prolly have to rearrange it slightly as I'm responding to several posts back, lol. ))

Aston looked back at Nat with a sheepish grin, "I'm fine, really it was just a bump on the head. I figured he didn't want us dead otherwise he could have done it already. Thought I could at least distract him for a minute..."

Soon, Arlan was there to get them aboard the transport, with Nima almost yanking his arm off as she pulled him up, "Easy now; good job it wasn't my arm I injured!"

Minutes later they were headed towards the city.

[Mara 29]

Watching Arlan and the rest fly off in the assault transport, Kaden's mind ran through possible scenarios. He thought briefly about staying behind for when the Mandolorian emerged, because he was sure he wasn't dead, not yet. But he knew the best course of action would be to follow the rest, and if followed, he could deal with him then. If not, Brier and her family could take care it.

With one last glance at the damaged estate house, he turned the Headhunter, engaged the engines to full power and roared on after the transport. Seeing they were headed toward the city, he tried to keep a low profile, remaining a klick or two behind them and off to the starboard at all times, keeping a higher altitude.

[Vergere 1]

Taner shrugged as the transport took off. "Guess they had what they needed." He sighed, "Let's go find the others." With that, they headed - with a bit more caution than their reckless abandon from earlier - up to where they figured Brier and Zak had last been, turning on a few personal fire droids to try and control the damage. Coming up what remained of a nearby staircase, they saw the rubble of another collapsed part of the ceiling move, and Zak pull himself out from under the debris.

Grumbling, "Brier, how is it you always manage to get us in situations like this."

Muffled, "ME?" Another pile of roofing begins to move. "You're the one tha- ufh." She slipped back into whatever position she had been in.

Taner and Wes just shook their heads and moved to help the younger pair out of the rubble before it, too, caught on fire.

Sometime later, Brier and Zak were both led out to the plaza where Taner and Wes began to work on their injuries. "Didn't you use personal shields?"

Brier glared at Zak. "Yeah, then the intelligent one decided to push against the failing wall so that we could get through to the other room, before I could stop him. The roof's continual pressure on the shield made it spark out on us."

[Chickenman 9]

Cale sighed to himself as he stood before the door to the makeshift interrogation. He had arrived back at the base a scant only a short while ago, leaving him only five minute's rest. He had spent it facing a bathroom mirror and letting the weight of the world finally cascade atop him. What had started as the investigation of a disaster had led to a disaster in and of itself. Men had died, not particularly good men, but men all the same, and his quarry had escaped.

Now he stood at a door, behind which sat a man who might hold the key to what exactly what was going on. Or maybe not. Perhaps he was just another goose chase. Whatever the case, today was amounting to be a headache and a half. If only he could hold Nasha in his arms again for but a moment...

He shook the thought aside and opened the door, not quite ready to face a man that was by all accounts a one-man army. Cale was proud of himself for not gulping.