Silence Shattered {Symm & Ysmir}

[Zarkan]

"So, how much you wanna bet command's right about them giving up?" Eli leaned back to peer around one of the monitors surrounding her across the turret to catch sight of the young man who served as the tank's gunner. "Ha! you think I'm dumb enough to take that bet Rictor?" shot a short reply from the tank's driver along with a short snort. "Aw come on Cecilia live a little." Replied Rictor with just a hint of a pout to his voice. "What about you commander?" he asked catching sight of Eli glancing across the vehicle at him in the glow of the monitors. Eli shook her head while speaking. "As much as I'd like the command to be on the money, I'm afraid I'm going to have to side with Cecilia on this one." Eli replied turning her attention back to the displays and tuning out the rest of the good-natured bickering between the driver and gunner.

"Do you have anything on scanners Raven-4?" She asked over the comm net pressing the two pickups tightly to her throat. "Negative commander, the scope's clear. Maybe we'll have a cakewalk for once." Came the baritone-voiced reply from the TC of Raven-4. "Hopefully, keep your eyes on the scanner Micheal." Eli gave a quick reply before switching back to the internal comm relay. "Cecilia stay on course I'm going to check on our guests." she stated before standing in the cramped space and folding her seat out of the way to reach the floor hatch. With a sharp twist of a lever, the hatch dropped open into the passenger compartment along with a short ladder. Even with just a few light plasteel plates one the opening was tight with armor on still she managed to climb down the ladder into the dimly lit compartment and looped her right arm around the ladder to steady herself against the movement of the Titan over the uneven arid ground.

"How are you two doing?" she asked the pair giving them a quick once over while waiting patiently for them to reply before continuing. "I didn't get a chance to properly introduce myself earlier, I'm First-Lieutenant Elinenna Kanduur commander of third platoon." She said giving the Jedi and commando a slightly stiff smile and short salute. "I wanted to quickly go over the operational details with you two since you were late additions to the mission." she began glancing at her watch quickly. "Mission objective is to capture Rashid Thalmos and his cadre. Command is hoping this show of force will get them to surrender peacefully, but it pays to be prepared." She said shrugging at the pair. "The mission is pretty easy, once we reach the out skirts we disgorge our infantry and sweep and clear to the colonies' central plaza. There Raven element with secure the zone while you two take a small squad into the central HQ and capture Rashid." She finished glancing between the pair. "Any questions?"   

[Symm]

Kathar found it challenging to concentrate on the mission briefing text as it scrolled past on his datapad. It wasn't the loud noise of the engine, nor the occasional bump as the tank rolled over something inconsequential to its bulk, that distracted the Jedi so. No, it was the man Kathar found sitting across from him: Captain Alstom Storm.

The Jedi Temple taught Republic History, and that included the conflicts and wars that ravaged the democratic government. Amongst those histories, specific individuals rose to prominence. One of those people was Storm. Upon realising he was to be paired up with the republic commando and remembering his name from history lessons, Kathar sought the file on the man. He came away even more impressed and had dozens of questions for him - but the Jedi kept them to himself. Kathar didn't want to appear like a fanboy, after all.

It was a tricky proposition, however. Storm oozed Republic. He looked as though the force had gathered all the right parts of the Republic together and fused them into one man. The hair, the facial structure, the body - it was all perfect. It wasn't that Kathar found himself attracted to the man - at least not physically. He did, however, find himself admiring him.

Kathar, for his part, looked every part the Jedi Knight at this moment - albeit one kitted out for war. The dull tans, whites, and browns of the Jedi covered him head to toe, from his combat boots to his tunic. The only armour he wore, bearing the Jedi symbol, covered his shoulders, parts of his upper arms and part of his upper chest and back. This protection afforded him some shielding while not restricting his freedom of movement. On his hip, he wore his lightsaber - a smooth cylinder, free from any glyphs, runes, or accoutrement, designed for simplicity over aesthetic.

It was just as Kathar found the courage to speak to Alston when the Lieutenant found her way into the cabin. He released a breath, both relieved and disappointed - he wouldn't have a chance to make a fool of himself, then. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Lieutenant," he replied, smoothly returning the salute. While the Jedi Order was not, ostensibly, a militant order, they did work closely with the Republic and so many of their traditions filtered through the ranks.

He listened as she listed the mission objectives, nodding along at each of them. "No questions. But I do want to make it clear," he began, glancing from Eli to Alston, "I'm here to make sure they're given every chance to surrender. I know I'm not in charge here, but everyone out there," he pointed in the direction of travel, "is a Republic citizen. Please make sure that is relayed to your troops."

The Jedi were peacekeepers, after all.

[Ysmir]

---

There was something comforting about the rumble of a tank.

Perhaps it reminded him of basic, a simpler time when he was an idealistic young warrior like his father before him. There'd be times where they broke protocol to take some of the tumblers out when they were on weekend leave, just to break the monotony of enlisted life. It was reflecting on those moments where he reinforced the idea, more and more, that designating commando was the greatest career decision he had ever made. He had Captain -- General -- Stellar to thank for pushing that decision on him. It wasn't one he chose lightly, but it paid dividends for the satisfaction he felt when it came to the roll he played in the Galaxy. It was liberating.

The task he undertook today was no small feat, but seemed easy on paper. On the Republic world of Montitia, an insurrectionist group had risen to take advantage of the rampant poverty that had struck the planet over the last few decades. Once a crowning industrial jewel of the Expansion Region, it served as little more than a representation of the Republic's far-reaching borders. However, a show of control was still important for overall morale and belief in the Republic and its capabilities. More than that, though, innocent people were still put at riks by a tyrant exercising power over them, and that was something Alston could not stand for.

Today, it was only him. The Skyburners were on assignment as security detail at Prazhi for the ongoing negotiations between the Republic and the Empire, and he didn't dare pull them away from such a task.

And not like it mattered -- he believed whole-heartedly in the capabilities of his squad, but one thing that he wasn't briefed on was the presence of a Jedi Knight.

One thing he could gather as they sat in mutual silence in the crew hold of the tank was that the Knight was young. He had caught his name, Kathar, as they loaded onto the vehicle at the landing bay earlier, but didn't glean much else information about him. Still, Alston had learned in his time around the Jedi that the Force followed each individual that felt it like a tangible aura, and Kathar was no different. Simply being in his presence was like basking in the glow of a low evening sun, enough to warm one's skin but not so overbearing as to blind you when you looked its way. It was a strange but comforting sensation, one Alston always hearkened back to when he ruminated on the Order and its place in the Republic. Suffice it to say, he was glad to have the man along for the ride. A Jedi was sure to serve as a strong negotiating point in the proceedings.

As the Lieutenant made her entrance, Alston stood from his position as best he could and offered the same salute, rigid and practiced from decades of service. "A pleasure, ma'am. Captain Alston Storm, at your service."

After the brief introduction, he returned to his seat, and Kathar had answered before he did. The Captain nodded in agreement to the Jedi's words. "Absolutely. The less bloodshed, the better, especially in times like these," he said as he turned his eyes back to the Lieutenant. "I'll be doing all I can to make sure there's as little resistance to be found as possible. Hopefully, if they're smart, they'll end this little charade before we even need to lift our weapons."

The tank, Alston thought, should be reason enough not to be stupid.

He quirked upward, turning his eyes back to the Lieutenant. "On the subject -- what kind of numbers are we expecting? And are there any exterior defenses we should be aware of?"

[Zarkan]

Eli nodded as the Jedi spoke she generally agreed with what he said. "We can only hope." The young woman replied to the spec-ops trooper's statement before turning to reply to the Jedi. "I haven't violated the Republic articles on war yet and I don't intend to do so today." She took a moment to sweep her pale lilac hair to one side before continuing. "It seems we're all on the same page on this at least." She said before focusing on the commando. "We have less intel then I would like." She began while mentally skimming of the dossier in her mind."The camp originally had twelve buildings surrounding the main HQ and a population of seventy-six. However, the navy's orbital shots show a small shanty down growing up on the Southern side of the encampment enough space potentially for another fifty to sixty miners. As for defenses, we know they have eight towers with automated laser cannon turrets as well as some lightly armed land speeders for raider defense and it's likely most if not all of the miners are armed with civilian weapons, but we, unfortunately, don't have any clear intelligence on weather they've acquired any additional military-grade ordnance." Eli's expression turned sour at the thought of what would happen if this went south. "If they decide to fight this could go very bad those prefabs are built like bunkers and they could easily have bombs planted all over the camp." Eli gave the pair a serious look. "if that happens we're relying on you to lead the infantry, make sure you both keep your IFF tags one we woul-"

"Commander!" Eli snapped her head up to look through the hatch into the turret her face snapping into a blank countenance. "Gunner report." She replied heaving herself up onto the ladder. "I got eyes on a land speeder booking it to the camp." Eli looked back at the pair in the troop compartment before replying "Affirmative I'll be up in a moment hold your fire." Eli prepared to pull herself back into the turret when the tank shuddered shifted suddenly on its suspension. The comm channel lit up with reports of near misses from artillery. "Damnit." Eli cursed under her breath before switching to the element channel. "Raven's Evasive maneuvres get into the shade of the buildings and watch those laser cannon towers I don't want to lose anyone. She ordered before levering herself into the turret and slamming the hatch closed and reactivating her screens and switching over to the tank's internal comms. "Cecilia punch it. Knight Maiavel, Captain Storm, You both might want to hold on it's going to be kinda rough I don't think they're in the mood for the easy way."

The heavy Titan battle tank rumbled across the dusty regolith as its engine surged pushing the massive machine at impressive speed across the open terrain. "Any other sign of vehicles?" She asked across the comms while scanning with the optics attached to her commander's screens. "Negative, I have nothing on sensors." Came the Terse reply from Raven-4 Eli replied in the affirmative as she kept a close eye on the edge of the settlement and the tall towers housing the camp's quad medium laser cannon turrets. As she and Raven-3 neared the outermost perimeter wall several windows lit up with blaster fire arcing towards the moving vehicles. "Raven Element you're clear to engage on blaster flashes, but do not stop to engage." Eli tuned out the whine of the tanks heavy blaster cannon sending bolts flying into duracrete buildings as she focused on the tactical map display below her main display. "I need to find somewhere to drop the infantry." She thought to herself as she scanned her map "There!" she thought as she spotted a small courtyard surrounded by low walls and artificial vegetation. "All units converge on grid location Alpha twenty-six North, Lambda Eighty-two East."

[Symm]

"I know you won't, lieutenant," Kathar began in response to her rebuttal, "but I know that in the thick of fighting sometimes lines can be blurred. I want to make sure everyone remains focused on the goal of this mission; that's all."

The briefing continued with Kathar paying rapt attention. Intelligence was, more often than not, the difference between victory and defeat; and the difference between injury and casualty. The mention of the potential additional miners furrowed Kathar's brow, but the rest of the briefing seemed to flow by without any other insight from the Jedi. Automated defence towers weren't unheard of, especially in the outer reaches where pirates were rife. The bombs as well, Kathar reckoned the miners would have had access to plenty of mining charges which could easily act as bombs.

At the reminder of his IFF tags, Kathar nodded and patted his chest, just where the light armour ended. He figured that if he got shot there and it took out the transponder, he'd have more things to worry about than friendly fire.

Then suddenly it started. Kathar had found it was often the case: Everything was quiet and calm one moment, then everything popped off all at once. Kathar reached up to hold on to one of the overhead rails but mostly seemed to roll with the movements of the tank, allowing the Force to guide him and ensure he didn't slam his head into something.

"You know," Kathar said, looking across at Alston, "You're something of a legend, even amongst the Jedi; you and your Skyburners. Your defence of Coruscant, taking down two supercarriers practically unaided?" He shook his head, "I'd imagine there would have been a lot more deaths if you and your unit hadn't been there. I was on Coruscant as well, but defending the Temple."

[Ysmir]

Alston closed his eyes as the Lieutenant outlined the little intel they had.

As he always had in the past, Alston constructed a mental landscape of the words that were sent his way.

Twelve buildings. Central HQ.

A concentric circle formed, but then wiped away. No, too uniform. Not architects. When he rebuilt it in his mind, it was less patterned, more uneven, as an urban mining sector would be. The central HQ was given prominence as a point of interest in his own mind. Next, the shanty, and the eight automated defense towers. Ramshackle, but functional, most likely. If he could just get inside them, he could probably disable them rather easily. Eliminating key defensive points wasn't just a strategically sound option, but also the one most beneficial toward establishing a strong bargaining position should hostilities climb. Alston made no efforts to hide his mental machinations, and to Kathar, it might have felt like the Captain was truly in his own flow state when dishing out strategem in the safety of his own head.

"I'll be on the forefront the entire time, don't worry, I just wanna mak--"

His words were cut short as he went to speak, looking up to the sudden interruption above them. It seemed things were about to get interesting, to say the least. Alston sat back and nodded to the Lieutenant as she climbed up into the hatch above.

He reached up and grasped onto the support beam as the artillery fire and rocky terrain rocked the chassis of the tank, coming through the exterior panelling as nothing more than dull thudding and booming. In his career, Alston had seen and experienced far tougher insertions; this was just another notch on the list. His outward demeanor reflected his calm dispostion as he turned his head to the Jedi when he was addressed.

At the commendation, Alston smiled; it was at once bashful and thankful. He turned his eyes down to the floor. "Well, I'm glad somebody thinks so. Most of the brass just called us reckless," Alston admitted, turning back to Kathar, "Not General Stellar, though. He's a good man. I guess what I mean to say is, thank you. Coming from someone in your position--"

A close blast as the tank redirected rumbled it more than usual, requiring Alston to brace himself in his seat in the middle of his sentence. Once the tank settled again, he refocused on Kathar. "--... it means a lot. You ever been on an assignment like this one before? Civil Apprehension, they like to call it."

[Zarkan]

"Matriarch, this is raven-1." Eli began sending a message across the void to the GRS Tyko in low orbit. "Raven element has engaged hostile forces and continuing mission; Will advise as the situation develops." The officer clicked her mic off as a long stream of crimson bolts cut through the air and ripped through the third story of a nearby building. "Copy Raven-1 we have a flight of starfighters on stand by if you require fire support." "Affirmative" Eli could see the buildings thinning as the cloud of vehicles drew near the courtyard. "Raven-2 stick close to me, Raven-3 take raven-4 and fall back to the rear we need to cover the transports while they unload." She ordered across the platoon channel as the low plain duracrete wall with a large corroded gate. "Looks like we get to be gate crashers today." Eli could all, but hear the smirk in Rictor's voice followed by a loud groan from the young driver. She sighed slightly ordering Celina to move the Titan into the open area the metal gate easily giving way and crunching under the vehicle's four treads.

Eli watched the main opening from the courtyard into the random scattering of one to three-story apartment blocks that made up the bulk of the outer area of the camp. "Halt," Eli called wrapping one hand around part of her harness and her other gripped the armrest of her seat as the tank's rapid stop jerked her against her restraints. "Raven Element circle up and deploy your troops I want Raven-3 and the Mobile gun to cover the rear entrance."

"We've got a fair number of blips closing on us." Eli quickly acknowledged Raven-4's report before reaching over and pressing the button to lower the right side hatch to the troop bay and opening a channel to her passengers. "Alright you two time to stretch your legs grab some cover we have hostiles in bound."