The Battle of Yaga Minor[All]

[Jace]

[ I plan to have Yaga Minor be a ground focused battle rather than space. Though if anyone wishes to NPC a space battle than please PM me]

Beautiful. That was the only word to describe the scene before him. The sky was alive with friendly troopships and enemy anti-air. Of course it was a dangerous situation, but there was a certain elegance to it. The sort of art only a true soldier could understand and appreciate. The colonel had to steady himself as the ship lurched to the side to avoid flak. He had just made his way up to the cockpit to assess the situation but didn't want to bother the pilot.

The fleet had done their job, and provided cover for the ground invasion. There was a relatively light presence of enemy ships considering this was a major shipbuilding planet. Then again, the Republic had probably needed to spread their resources all over the Rim. They had definitely caught the Republic off-guard with this attack. That didn't mean that this was going to be a walk in the park. Yaga Minor was one of their most fortified planets out on the Rim. Hadrian believed that they were up to the task though. The Republic was in for a rude surprise.

"Colonel, ETA 2 minutes. I hope you and your troops are ready sir cause we got a hot LZ" stated the pilot rather matter of factly.

This was a woman that Hadrian could respect. Many of the pilots he had met were just spoiled flyboys who were all talk. This pilot was dodging AA fire like she was weaving through traffic. She was a cool customer, and that meant that Hadrian and his boys would make it to the ground in one piece. It was these sort of people who made him proud to be a soldier.

The colonel moved back towards the rear of the ship where the other troops were. They each gave him a solid nod, and he reciprocated. He walked over to a soldier who looked a little jumpy and rested a placating hand on his shoulder. The man visibly relaxed and Hadrian gave him a reassuring nod.

"ETA one minute" came the pilot's voice over the comm

"We got a hot LZ people, so saddle up!"

Hadrian made his way over to his seat and strapped himself in. He made a quick weapons check and then went over the landing specs.

"30 seconds"

He looked over his troops one final time. Their faces were calm, some even showed a little excitement. A part of him new that he wouldn't see some of them again, but that was war. Hopefully their training and experience would keep most of them alive. Though he knew that could possibly be wishful thinking on his part. He was lurched out of such thoughts as the ship prepared to land.

5...4...3...2...1

There was a rough bump as the ship touched down, followed by a series of beeps. They unbuckled almost in perfect unison, and stood up. One final beep and the landing ramp lowered. Hadrian was the first up and out of the ship. His eyes quickly surveyed the LZ, gathering as much of the situation as he could. Many other dropships had already landed and troops were streaming toward the main battle.

Their LZ was on the outskirts of one of Yaga Minor's major cities. It was a fortress world afterall, this wasn't meant to be easy. They needed to push from the outskirts to the city, where the real battle would begin. They had caught the Republic on the off foot but that advantage would only last for so long. The ship took off, revealing the main objective. Blaster bolts shot passed him as he continued to assess the situation. Some units were still getting organized, others were already right in the heart of the battle. That was where he needed to be. His objective was to break the Republic foothold on the outskirts. It would be quite an interesting task, one which he needed his immediate attention. Hadrian checked his rifle, signaled the all forward, smiled and then charged forward.

The battle for Yaga Minor had begun...

[Dutch]

There will be blood.

That was all the Major could think. His heart pounded and his palm sweated. It had been too long since he lasted tasted combat, and Balax Brason was ready. His hazel eyes went to his various gear, one had to be sure their tools were ready. Type-02 Carbine, check, grenades, check, Hand Dragon, check, pistol, check. Bal's prosthetic arm came up and made a fist, the two hidden blades shot out with a Shink!. A wicked grin touched his lips before the blades retracted. This was gonna be fun.

His eyes turned to Colonel Rowe- a man Bal could respect. He knew the rules of war- that there were none. They were soldiers, not philanthropists. Balax was payed, quite well in fact, to not think- something he had no problem doing. It was almost time, Rowe came back from the cockpit, Bal nodded towards him and received one back. He turned to the seat next to him where an old partner-in-crime sat. Kaven Valli, a fellow Jedi Hunter. His metallic arm came to smack the back of it's hand against Kaven's knee, a grin touched Bal's lips.

"Y'ready boy?"

"We got a hot LZ people, so saddle up!"

Bal knew the Kiffar was, but as per tradition, it was asked anyway. This was far from the first time Kaven and Balax had worked together, but was the first time they were away from the Zeltron and her baldy. Rowe approached them and took the seat across from Bal. The Major grinned at the Colonel wickedly, the Sith allowed him to get his rushes so greatly. A mere minute till landing, and Balax needed to be ready. His right hand reached into one of the ammo pockets on his harness and pulled out a fat cigar. He brought it up to bite down on, and pulled a sparker from the same pocket. The cigar would be lit with a crackle and the cherry glowed orange.

"Now I'm ready."

He smirked and grabbed his carbine, it was almost time. A shake of the drop ship would signal it's landing. His mechanical fist slammed into the buckle and Bal sat up accordingly, his tools of the trade stowed in their places and the cigar sent wafts of smoke around his head. The ramp descended and he followed Rowe out of it, his grip firm on the familiar rifle. Chaos erupted after the ship left, a stray blaster bolt shot at Bal and pinked off his metal arm's bicep. A harsh chuckle came from the Major at that, how he loved this. His chuckle continued as Hadrian signaled the go ahead and he charged forward right behind the Colonel, eye glinted with battle lust as they already started to search for a life to end...

[Rugs]

Kaven Valli's emerald green eyes almost glinted with delight as the dropship fell through the heavens towards Yaga Minor. His mouth was a grin, shaped by the same mirth that glistened in his eyes. There'd be a battle today. That meant there'd be killing today. Fun. And, if he was lucky, he might get to use the ZU-85R--his handy little torture droid that could be used for far more than interrogation--on a few unfortunate souls. Even more fun.

Of course, it'd be hard to know the nature of the thoughts going through Kaven's mind by looking at him. On the outside, he was a nice man, calm and friendly, and always one to give respect where it was due. But on the inside, Kaven was a demon. And it'd been far too long since he'd last been unleashed.

"Of course, Bal," he said, smiling a bit at the big Human's question. Balax, like Kaven, was a member of the elite Jedi Hunter group, though the two of them had been pulled away to participate in the battle. Sera would be here as well, though he wasn't sure if her tall friend would be. But that was neither here nor there.

There was another in the dropship with them. Hadrian Rowe. Kaven had heard of the man. Many had. I guess we'll see if the man lives up to the legend today, the Kiffar thought as he regarded Hadrian with those brilliant green eyes. Should be fun.

He reached up to tie his dreadlocks back behind his head before running over all of his equipment. He had all of his weapons--and his droid, of course. He obviously had his armor. And it was a new suit of armor. He'd been given T-33 armor for the battle. It was heavier than what he was used to working in, but it was nice. Everything was in place. And just in time. The ship touched down, and he slipped the armor's helmet into place before stepping out onto Yaga Minor behind Bal and Hadrian. That same smile lit came onto his face once more as he took in the seen of chaos around him. Yes, there would be a lot of killing today. Today was going to be a good day. He could feel it.

[Dire Wolf]

((Yeah, I know, I stole it from Fallout. Stop whining. xD))

War. War never changes. Since the dawn of human kind, when our anscestors first discovered the killing power of rock and bone. Blood has been spilled in the name of everything from God, to justice, to simple psychotic rage. This day, blood certainly wouldn't be spilled for the first two... and it wouldn't surprise her if a small amount of blood was spilled for the latter. She only shook her black-clad head as she gazed out of the view port at the rapidly approaching ground. There was a light rustle of synthetic leaves and brush as she shifted her weight from one leg to the other.

Ghillie suits.

Amazing.

She was about to have some fun in the long battles to come. If it was in a field, she was nigh invisible. Unless, of course, the enemy happened to have thermal scope. But most Republican infantry units didn't sport that kind of equipment. It was far more "cost effective" to have a single guy in the platoon, or company, to sport a visor that had a secondary function. And they were generally pretty easy to pick out... and off... as they had some apparatus infront of their visor. A small smirk creased her lips as those emerald green eyes gazed out at the battle below.

Besides the urban landscape of a fortress world that sprawled out as far as the eye could see, those green eyes spied the triple a spewing ordinance up toward the hulking dropships. Beautiful. One of those brilliant red lines streaked up into the dropship adjacent, tearing through its sheilds and ripping apart its hull like it was a kleenex at a snot party. The scorching flames that erupted from the dropship caused the woman to throw a hand in front of the transparisteel.

By the time that her hand pulled away from the view port, the ship was nothing but a spinning dot whose only direction was down. Soon enough, the ship spun into one of the taller skyscrapers with another small explosion detonating the face of the structure. The duracrete and reinforced durasteel that comprised the innards and outtards of the building did little to stop the speed and momentum from the multi-ton armored craft. Which smashed through both sides like a bullet through butter.

THIRTY SECONDS!

Those two words thrust the woman's mind back into the task at hand. Granted, the man that it to them at the tippy top of his little lungs, and that alone was probably enough to scare the defecation out of most troops. But then... Sera wasn't most troops. She was a battle trained, and hardened, Jedi Hunter. A proud member of the even prouder Task Force One-Four-Two, and certainly not an operator who should have been shipping down with the regular troops. A small scowl appeared behind the woman's visor at the thought. The Zeltron was far too skilled to be deployed next to some idiot grunt who barely passed his testing to get in.

"Ya know, Ghost, we should be at Rhen Var. Killing those gorram Jedi in their home. Not here, beside some grunt who barely passed his basic exam," she grunted into the mic through the private channel with her team. The man quickly chimed back, "hmm... you know what happens when you retire from the army?"

A light giggle shook the woman's armored chest lightly, she knew where this was going, "you die in a hail of blaster fire and lightsabers?" A black helmet shook lightly towards the bow of the ship, "hnn... you get your brain back, Staff Sardn't." That light giggle quickly turned into a chuckle at his words. He was too right. Normally, the woman would have inserted a snarky retort where applicable, but the bone crushing WHAM! of the ship as it crashed into the deck cut off any mode of thought.

She was a being of action and reaction as the thick and small-arms proof ramp opened up behind the actual ship, giving the troops that landed a chance to survive the hail of plasma and blaster bolts. Her previously clear visor quickly polarized to a dull black as she sped from the ship, the need to get as far away from the main herd was evident.

As, well, they likely had artillery. And artillery tended to aim where there were lots of people.

It didn't take particularly long for the woman to find a spot with a decent hillock behind it. It was always a sound practice to put dirt behind your back rather than sky, simply because it was harder to see dark-green-on-green rather than dark-green-on-sky-friggin'-blue. In a matter of moments, the woman had her all ghillied up rifle set up on its bi-pod and was ready to rock and/or roll.

[sparrow]

Earlier...

The instructions were simple. The Sith military was launching an attack on Yaga Minor, and Zarene Yin, Sith Initiate, was to observe and report back, and assist in the attack if she thought it prudent. Just an hour ago, after having a few words with the commander overseeing the attack and flashing a few important looking papers, she had been given a spot on one of the landing craft.

"Private Yin, reporting for duty."

The officer, denoted by a stripe in his armor, raised an eyebrow as he looked her over. "I've never seen you before."

"Just transferred."

His brow furrowed as he looked over his datapad. "So it would seem. Fine. I hope you can pull your own weight."

"I didn't get these from falling down the stairs, you know."

He motioned her into the craft after a soft chuckle. Zarene took a seat, spending the next few moments adjusting her armor. Standard Sith trooper issue stuff, it was a bit heavier and more restrictive than she was used to, especially with the helmet, but for now it was best for her to keep things low-key. Her two blasters were hidden away in her pack. For now she'd make do with a normal Sith assault rifle.

She had commanded small operations in the past, like the taking of the Bakura facility, for instance, but the most she had ever handled was a dozen, and that had been only once, as part of a larger Exchange operation against the Hutts. Observing a large military operation like this would certainly be an eye-opener, a beneficial experience if she was going to play a larger part of the Sith war effort.

The first craft commanded by Colonel Rowe touched down, and the one Zarene was on landed soon after. Loading a fresh power pack into her rifle she followed the other soldiers as they filed off the ship.

[Cavalry King]

~ Several days before the attack ~

The war had begun. Jedi Master Atu Soka, Weaponsmaster of the Jedi order and member of the High Council had undertaken the actions he had foreseen necessary even before he had returned to the Jedi Council. He had ran through several combat scenarios and had determined that Yaga Minor was at risk and that the ship yards there had to be protected. He had no idea how soon the Sith would arrive. A feeling had called him to Yaga Minor to inspect the shipyards there and help prepare the defenses of this vital facility.

His ship landed at the docking bay and Master Soka was greeted by the commanding officer of the defending forces and the Executive officer of the docking facility. He had chosen the central facility for it was of the most importance and the planet could only be held if this facility was operational. The feeble greeting party that greeted him worried him slightly. It was not that he felt he was so important that he demanded proper greetings, it was just that a well staffed facility usually tried to impress incoming officials. If these were all the troops that could be spared for an honor guard this facility may be in worse shape than he thought.

After exchanging the formal greetings, the commander and executive officer brought Master Soka to the Central Command Station and gave him a debriefing of the facility's defenses, operation status, and the status of the outlying systems. Soka could tell that they may have overestimated their chances in the case of an invasion. He quickly calculated that the facility had neither the manpower to adequately man the defenses nor enough ships to properly resist an invasion of a Sith Fleet. He shook his head at the conclusion of the debriefing. He walked over to the holographic tactical display. "Commander, Should an orbital attack take place, your Orbital Planetary defenses will likely prove inadequate. Your guns do not have the range to engage the Battleships that will likely cover the initial orbital assault. The fighters and bombers you have intended to fulfill this role will be slaughtered in space. There aren't any Republic Fleets within several systems so support cannot be counted on. With the ships you do have, we can only hope to possibly cover a retreat with whatever supplies you can manage to take with you. Your ground forces will not be enough to properly defend the entire planet in the event on an invasion. Not enough...."

Atu Soka was cut off by the commander who responded to these criticisms with "Master Jedi, we have no reports of enemy fleets nearby nor any intelligence to suggest an attack on this facility. The Sith fleets are currently occupied elsewhere. High Command deemed it more important for the bulk of our forces to be engaging the Sith rather than babysitting this heavily fortified facility."

Soka looked at this man with a questioning glance and a raised eyebrow. "You underestimate our opponents Commander. They have been planning their movements for some time. Defeating our forces in the initial conflict may serve for morale but we can quickly replace troops lost this early in the conflict. No, they will seek strategic targets. I suspect their other movements are at least in part, diversionary. This facility is the most at risk and the most valuable to us. They will hit us here... soon. I do not know exactly when, but soon commander."

With a sigh and understanding of what had to be done Master Soka made a difficult decision, "Withdraw all security forces to this facility. The outlying facility's must remain operational for as long as possible, but we will need the troops here immediately in case of an attack. Pull back all your orbiting ships and bring them down into the atmosphere. We must draw their transports as close as possible to where their battleships cannot cover them. A token force will engage any ships they send to cover the assault while the others ambush their transports. We will allow some of their transports to land before we set off this trap. Our fleet will emerge from the shipyards and attempt to cut off their supports and catch the majority of their transports in the air away from their cover. There we can knock them out of the sky quite easily. Our only hope for survival is to draw them in as close as possible. Applying all of our firepower here, including any ships on the planet, we will be able to deliver the hardest blow to their forces. Once the ships engaging the battleships are destroyed, we will need to bring the ambushing fleet back into the facility in preparation for our evacuation movement. Bring all orbital defense platforms over this facility in a defensive formation. If they do attack soon, this will allow us time to prepare our selves and evacuate those we can. Until then, this facility must remain operational. Double shifts for all, focus on the ships that will take the least time to complete, ignore the newer efforts. As the battle progresses, we will have the ability to create additional ships and defenses. if they breach our perimeter with their ground forces the facility and the planet, are all but lost. Our only hope is keeping the Shield Generator operational and those long range guns keeping their battleships away from the facility. If they do break through, the remaining warships will cover our evacuation."

Atu Soka stopped speaking for a moment to survey the facility through the clear viewing panel of the command center. The Commander and the Executive officer were in awe at his plan. "Worst case scenario, we destroy the facility and wipe the computers. Have a team of engineers begin this immediately. This facility must not be used to support our enemies. Every station must be primed for destruction. We leave them nothing."

After he finished speaking, a silence fell over the room. The Executive officer finally broke the silence after a few minutes. "What you suggest is... is... madness! We will be abandoning thousands to their fates if we concentrate defenses here but forbid them to cease operations. Plus we would be set back enormously if the outlying facilities were destroyed. No, the enemy must not be allowed to land, I will not jeopardize this facility or its inhabitants. It would cost billions to recoup our losses if we were to implement your strategy in case of an attack. No, we will maintain the commander's orbital strategy and have our ships and defense platforms do their duty."

The Commander nodded his head in agreement. "Master Jedi there is no need for such drastic measures."

Atu Soka turned from the viewport to these two. They were so short sighted. It was to be expected though, this was their home and those were their friends. "I am sorry, but this is the only way. Your strategy would only succeed if we had a proper fleet to engage our opponents in space. As the commander has pointed out, the Republic has determined it needs its forces elsewhere. We will make do with what we have. I foresee an attack very soon, begin immediately. My final command. All ships currently being built for commercial or private customers are to be commandeered. Whatever state the ships are in are to be brought to the most minimum of functionality with basic life supports and hyperdrive. Nothing more. Once a ship has this, they are to be brought to the central square in the event of an evacuation. I fear we may not be able to hold this facility for very much longer and the worst scenario must be accounted for. We must take what we can, any extra supplies and materials are to be brought here and rationed from this facility. To fully accomplish our preparations, we will need at least a week. We may not have that much time, so we must do this as quickly as possible. I expect my orders to be carried out with the greatest of haste. Do not inform the people what is going on, this will only create chaos and slow our plans. Plus we may not be attacked for several weeks."

The commander shook his head. He held the sentiments of all present. This facility would not be attacked hence these precautions would not be necessary and would be detrimental to the war effort. If this place was to be attacked, the Republic would have accounted for it and sent adequate forces. Atu Soka was alone in his fear, hence the reason he traveled personally to this facility. As a blade, Jedi Master, Jedi Weaponmaster, and High Council member, he outranked anyone within several systems politically and militarily. His decision could only be overridden by High Command, and that was unlikely considering the other conflicts going on. Atu Soka's orders would be carried out, however begrudgingly. He stayed vigilant to ensure that the military forces were acting as quickly as possible, especially since many doubted him. Others did not know what was going on and were wondering why they were doing these strange maneuvers. It was all very hush-hush though.

~ The day of the assault ~

"General, we are under attack, I repeat, we are under attack! God help us, there are so many!" reported the Orbital defense commander, the fear in his voice quite evident.

"Maintain orbital defensive formation! You must hold your position for as long as possible. We are preparing our defensive strategy but we need you to buy us time. Feinting ships are being scrambled. We must draw them in. May the force be with you." Atu Soka bid him. He sighed, those who were manning the Orbital defense Platforms were going to be blasted out of the sky. The little support he was intentionally giving them would not help their situation any more. He hoped their sacrifice would not be in vain.

Soka's plan was implemented in full force. Stations across the planet were being evacuated and primed for destruction, but he did not think they had enough time to complete their defenses. He feared he might have to leave a great deal of people to their fates. He did not expect them to attack so soon. Report of the preparations must have reached the Sith high command and hastened their invasion.

Soka could only watch as what he expected came true. The outer facilities were quickly overrun as they had nearly no defense. The defensive platforms and dummy resistance in space had done better than he had predicted but was smashed to pieces. The Sith began dropping troops on the ground and moving in toward the facility - just as he had hoped. He held his trap as long as possible before giving the order for its commencing. The Sith Dropships were everywhere and more importantly within range of his forces. The hiding ships were unleashed on the nearly defenseless dropships while another portion of the ship went to engage the battleships for as long as possible. Fighters strafed the Sith troops on the ground and knocked off transports. They buzzed around the battleships protecting the bombers while they did what damage they could. The only hope this facility had was to cripple their land forces and eliminate their ability to occupy the planet. The Anti-Aircraft would keep the bigger ships at bay.

His plan was bold and had little chance for success but it was the best option for the Republic. He stood in the Command Center watching the tactical projectors. He could at least be pleased that the trap had worked, he was just unsure if it could do enough damage before the outer perimeter was overrun. Luckily, Soka's measures had ensured that the fortress was properly manned. It would be one hell of a fight to break through this city. As long as the Shield Generator was protecting the facility from Arial bombardment and attacks, and the long range guns were keeping the Battleships away, the facility had a chance.

[Jace]

Rifle raised, trigger depressed, another dead soldier. So the pattern continued as Hadrian took down one Republic soldier after another. Though that wasn't to say that he hadn't taken a few nicks here and there. His armor was a sort of double sided blade. It could take more damage than standard armor but also made him somewhat conspicuous on the battlefield. Well that was part of its purpose afterall, to inspire both courage and fear. Hadrian looked to his side and thought

There is another person who inspires fear

Major Brason. Hell he even scared Hadrian a bit. He was one Hell of a soldier but not the type of man he would consider a friend. The colonel had heard stories about Balax, and none of them were for a child's ears. Though Hadrian couldn't deny, he was the perfect example of the type of soldier needed in a war. There were soldiers who looked good, and then those who did whatever was necessary to achieve their objective. Major Balax Brason was the latter.

He didn't know the other one, only that he was a Jedi Hunter just like Balax. Which meant that his skills must be top notch. His uniform marked him as a 1st sergeant. That was as high as one could go as an NCO, and that said a great deal about the man. Though they didn't have a spotless reputation, there was one thing Hadrian was sure about. That he was glad that he was fighting alongside dependable men of these caliber.

"Colonel, message from HQ" came a voice over his comm

"Go ahead"

"Primary objective altered. New primary objective. Eliminate enemy AA installments at locations Alpha, Tango, and Zulu. Confirm reception of order"

"Baker company will eliminate enemy AA installments at locations Alpha, Tango, and Zulu"

Hadrian knelt down and relayed the following orders to his platoons.

"2nd platoon move to Alpha. 3rd platoon, Zulu is yours. 1st platoon and myself are going to go Tango."

Tango just happened to be the AA gun that was most heavily fortified. Hadrian turned to Balax and nodded his head in the direction of their objective. A look which could only be described as "Shall we?" He signaled the move out, and the platoon pushed forward towards the gun. Good soldiers were being killed before they even got to get their feet on the ground. Hadrian and his men were going to change that.

He tossed a thermal detonator a good deal ahead of him, waited two seconds and began sprinting forward. The explosion sent two soldiers flying bodily through the air. Hadrian's rifle took care of the third and the fourth, and he continued to push through towards the gun. It seemed that those guardian the AA gun, seemed to have taken notice to this incoming threat and began to turn their weapons in his direction.

Hadrian dived forward right into the trench in front of him before he could be mowed down. The rest of the platoon seemed to have followed and made it in one piece. There was no way they were going to hit that emplacement head on. Way too much firepower.

"Alright captain, I want your men to flank right, and draw fire as you do. Make them think that they have caught you flanking. The Major, 1st sergeant, and myself will flank left and hit em hard. Alright, lets move out!"

It was a rather simple plan but then again Republic soldiers were rather simple minded people. They needed to take out this emplacement and they needed to do it now. If there were any trio qualified for such a task, then it was these three. There would be blood indeed.

[Dutch]

Let the bodies hit the floor.

Balax's grin had his cigar clenched in his teeth as the bullets flew. The familiar sounds of bullets striking meat rang out in the street. These Republicans were weak, and stupid. The man dodged and rolled left and right. Blaster fire and the rare grenade flew past him, but Bal wasn't afraid. Every explosion made his pulse race, and every missed shot made him grin- Major Brason was born for this. He caught Hadrian's gaze as he looked over at Bal, the man grinned at the Colonel, that glint in his eyes told the Major that Rowe felt the same as he did- Alive.

His hazel eyes turned to Kaven and the Major laughed. It felt good to be out on the battlefield again, let alone with an ally he could actually depend on. Bal wouldn't really call the young man a friend, or anyone for that matter, but the big man knew that Valli was a dependable type. And Colonel Rowe- who hadn't heard stories about the mighty soldier, it prided the Major to think that he was assigned to work with one so high and mighty, maybe if he approved of Brason's work, Bal could get a little 'R&R' with some locals at a cantina...

A bullet whizzed past Bal, which opened a cut across his cheek. Bal growled and spun away from the offender, a broken down speeder provided good cover.

"Blasted Reps..."

Spat the Major as more bullets thudded harmlessly into the speeder's side. He had the perfect thing to stop this game. His mechanical hand grabbed at the bandoleer across his chest and grabbed a pair of thermal detonators from it. His organic hand thumbed the switches before he grabbed them with his mechanical arm. Bal lunged from behind the speeder and whipped the detonators at the offender. The two explosives hit the soldiers chest just in time to explode. The result was a complete liquidation of the soldier, only his helm remained intact.

A guttural laugh came from Bal as he jogged back to the ditch where Rowe and Kaven were, and promptly jumped in next to the Colonel. He listened to Rowe's plan, and grinned. A pincer attack- Bal liked the sound of that. It was time to get this party started. After he saw that the soldiers guarding the tower had their gaze turned to the first group, Bal began to move. He kept low and sneaked around then behind them, those two hidden blades slide from the fist in his mechanical arm. Bal needed to do this as quietly as possible, or else he was sure more reinforcements would come.

The Major charged forward when he was close enough, his left arm shone from the light cast from flames and blasters alike. The arm came back and Bal rammed it forward into the first soldiers back, the telltale feel of a spine severing told Bal that he was dead. The blades retracted so that Bal could quickly disengage the now dead man. With a Shink! they popped back out in time for Bal to rake those claws across his stomach. Red dripped from the tears in the Republicans gear but Balax wouldn't let him get a break. The claws buried up into his jaw and the Major pulled the jaw right off the man's face.

Bal didn't get all the soldiers outside the tower though, but he was certain his attack would distract the group enough for his comrades to polish them off. The Major leaped back away from them and took shelter behind a ruined wall. His next objective was the AA tower itself. Chances were, there was several people inside to guard the actual interior of the AA tower, and Bal had a lovely surprise for them.

His Type-02 Carbine was slung over his shoulder, and his favorite tool of destruction was pulled from it's holder on his back. The small tanks at his hip were connected to the weapon by the large man, the thin but durable chord unraveled from the weapon itself. His hand squeezed the handle and the Hand Dragon roared to life. Balax laughed and grinned as he brought the weapon close to his face to relight his cigar. Now that he was prepared, the barbecue would begin.

He almost casually moved up to the door to the AA tower with the Hand Dragon held in his right hand as it leaned against his shoulder. Bal grabbed a flash bang grenade from the bandoleer and brought his right boot up. With a might kick Bal punted the door open just as he tossed the flash-bang in. He ducked to the side until the telltale bang told him the grenade went off. Balax grinned and turned back to face the room, but he wouldn't see who was inside. The handle to the Hand Dragon was pressed at full tilt, and flames spat into the room. The stream of fire roard and Bal's harsh laugh mixed with it as smoke came from both the room and his cigar.

After a couple minute where he was sure the men inside were well done, Bal let off the handle and held the weapon up. Balax turned his gaze to Rowe and winked at the Colonel- surely he would appreciate a job well done.

"Hope y'like 'em extra crispy, Colonel."

[Rugs]

It was a killing field, really.

Getting down to the surface had been simple enough, but once they'd landed, things had grown a bit more complicated. The Republic's AA guns had roared to life cutting off any more waves that were coming for the time being, and now the group that had made it to the ground needed to do something about that.

Simple.

Or at least Kaven thought is was as he wrenched his short jagged vibroblade from the gut of an unfortunate Republic soldier, the serrated edge ripping out masses of flesh as it left the poor man's body. He was in the group--along with Bal and Hadrian--that would be assaulting the tower that had the heaviest defense. I'm sure Balax will love that, he thought as he put his blade away before pulling his own Type-02 rifle out. He'd lost sight of the big man in the chaos, but surely, he was around.

Kaven kept pushing forward, knocking down soldier after soldier as the Sith team advanced. One fool tried to stand in front of him, and was knocked to the ground before he had a number of bullets put into his face. "Poor guy," Kaven muttered to himself as he moved on. It'd really been a bit disconcerting to watch the man's face just kind of get turned to oatmeal like that. The things he did for the Empire.

It seemed Balax had cleared out the ground floor of the AA tower by the time Kaven caught up to him and Hadrian. "Nice to see you're still in good form, Bal," he said to the Human as he stepped into the bottom floor of the tower. The Major had been quite thorough. Good.

"Somebody... ple... please"

That got Kaven's attention. He walked over to where the plea had originated, noting the charred remains of those that had fallen to Balax. Over in the corner, there was a man--or what he was assuming had been a man--who really probably could have benefited from being a bit closer to where Balax had been. But he'd probably run away in an attempt to survive. And survive he had.

"Please," the soldier said, looking up at Kaven with eyes that gleamed darkly amongst the burnt flesh of his face, "please he... help me...."

Kaven looked down, glad that his helmet kept his face coldly emotionless to the other man. He wouldn't help the man with his injuries, but he could provide a mercy to him, one that would in reality probably be better than dragging his life out. He moved to aim his rifle at the man's head, and held it there for a second. Then, there was a single shot, made louder by the confined space of the room sounded out, and it was done. He slung his rifle back across his back and went back over to stand by where Balax was. "Bottom floor's clear, Major," he said in his usual somewhat-cheery tone, "we're ready to start moving up."

The things he did for the Empire indeed.

[sparrow]

Boom.

A tingling in the back of her neck was the only warning she had as the landing craft erupted in a huge fireball as it was hit by Republic artillery only moments after she had disembarked. Quickly rolling behind a large boulder for cover, she scrambled to her feet. Most of the rest weren't nearly as lucky, having had no warning at all. Well, that was just great. A minute into the bio and most of the squad that she was supposed to be in was already dead, including, judging by the lack of orders coming through the comm, the commander.

Alone, that was how she normally operated, what she was most used to. Look around, assess the situation, make a plan of attack. After removing her helmet (she had no idea how does other troopers could see at all in those things, she poked her head out from behind the boulder to take a quick peek at what was going on. A small platoon was moving towards a heavily fortified AA tower, drawing fire from the defenders. Just a feint though, considering the three individuals she saw moving towards the tower from the other side. If the assault was to succeed, the tower had to come down.

The Sith trooper rifle and her heavy blasters were fine for mowing down ground troops, but against gun emplacements she'd need something with a bit more punch. Heavy weapons troops had been some of the first to fall. The rocket launchers that they carried, while powerful, were unwieldy, and large cloud of smoke and exhaust produced after firing made them obvious targets for the gun emplacements and snipers. It didn't take long for her to locate two such rocket launchers. Grabbing one in each hand (with a bit of Force assistance of course), she sprinted towards the AA tower, stopping about a hundred feet away behind another pile of boulders, shielding her from view from the many gunners.

She propped the two launchers up, aiming both at the rotating joint of the turret. The turret was well-armored, and she doubted that two rockets could actually take out the turret. She only had time to fire two, one from each launcher. But if luck was on her side, the rockets could jam up the rotating mechanism, restricting the gun's field of fire. And if she wasn't that lucky, it would at least get the tower's defenders to concentrate of this threat coming from the outside, and even less likely to notice the three that were going to take it from the inside.

As soon as those things launched defensive fire was going to pulverize the area, so she was going to leave before that happened. She got clear, a good hundred feet away. A thin tendril of Force power pressed down on each trigger.

The rockets streaked towards the turret. Half a dozen defensive guns turned their fire on where they had been launched. And Zarene Yin was moving, rifle in hand, toward the base of the tower.

(( Meet you guys outside? ))

[Dire Wolf]

Kick! The stock of her rifle pushed the woman's shoulder back a few degrees as it launched a hypersonic slug of tungsten and silicone gel towards a republic soldier at near hyper-sonic speeds. That slug slashed through the distant gap between the gaping maw of Sera's heavy anti-vehicle magnetic accelerator rifle within half of a blink of an eye. The ferro-tungsten slug slammed into the man's armored body with the force that not even mother nature can muster. Mushrooming is the term that is used to describe the rapid transformation that the bullet makes as it hits flesh. Simply because the bullet mushrooms out and back when it hits something, turning as much flesh as possible into mincemeat.

The bullet did more than that. Much more. In its passing, the near-artillery shell left multiple tons of pressure... causing the man's body to practically detonate outwards in a show of blood and gore. A small smirk etched its way across the woman's face as she slowly shifted her sights to another man... one that was wildly flailing his arms back and forth: Wordless communication to his subordinates. Those green eyes flickered up to the automatic range finder at the top right hand corner of her oracle scope. Fifty Meters. That smirk turned into a full blown grin behind her visor as those eyes shifted back over to the officer.

At that range she could pick out which hair she wanted shot.

Despite this, the woman meticulously lined up the shot. She put her ghostly blue crosshairs just below the man's feet, seeing as her scope was sighted in for a considerably greater distance than what the actual distance to the target was. There was simply no need to begin regulation of her breathing at such a distance, seeing as she was prone... and the soft dirt gave her all the support she'd need. "Bam," she half mumbled to herself... almost absentmindedly. Her finger lightly nuzzled against the trigger, then gently pulled it back until the silent report of the rifle and the solid punch to her shoulder met in her brain. The red skinned woman watched in an almost devilish delight as the republican officer nearly detonated under the outstanding pressures his body was put through. "You're dead," that sickening mumble reappeared in her voice again.

Soon enough, she was searching for a new target. Her search didn't last long, however, as soon enough she saw the flames sprout out from a window in the AA tower. And who was pouring that liquid flame into it? None other than Balax Brason. A half snarl soon replaced that sadistic grin as the woman twisted her rifle around a little too fast. Flashes of their meeting on the stealth ship quickly ripped their way into her mind's eye, and the accompanying images of her servitude under the republic senator. Anger. It soon began to curl around inside of her chest like a throbbing python, one that heated and constricted everything within its cage.

But no. She couldn't allow the monster to show itself just yet. Not until the battle was nearly over, and his part in the battle had come to an end. Then, and only then, would she put a bullet through his neck. A wicked grin curled around her face at the thought. Defeating another one of your demons was a great task. Suddenly, a flash of movement caught her eye. It was just to the left of the heavily armored colonel, and it was sprinting up to his form from behind.

The coward was going to kill him with a vibroblade. In a flash of anger and defiance the woman swept her rifle's barrel about and fired off a quick shot into the would-be backstabber. A single kick and the popping of cork later, the man was nothing but a fine red paste across the landscape. Surely, the good colonel would have felt the wind of the bullet as it narrowly passed his form. "All in a day's work," she thought with a hefty sigh.

It wouldn't be long until the AA defenses fell, and after that... her use to the battle would surely come to an end. She'd have to ditch her rifle and grab a fallen man's type-02, then tactically advance through the city like every other grunt. Using her active camouflage, of course.

[Cavalry King]

Master Soka stood in the command room, in the command tower of the facility that towered over the other buildings in the white sector. From this vantage he had a great visual on the south sector of the battlefield. From what he saw,vhe was not pleased. he stayed calm and cool, analyzing the shifting battle scenarios, always planning for every eventuality. He knew his visual of the battle was limited and turned around to the control room to face his communications officers and the tactical map of the battlefield. With a cool calm he commanded to his operators, "All sectors report."

Protocol had established that North would report first and then the others in a clockwise fashion. "North reports outer perimeter standing firm. Sith are still engaging but the lines are holding." "East sector reports lines are secure, Sith have been repelled and are regrouping outside the range of our guns." "South reports heavy losses sir. Perimeter is threatened. A colonel seems to have broken through and is leading his men to our AA towers." "West reports lines are faltering but the perimeter is still secure."

Soka looked over his holographic map, his concern was immediately for the Southern Sector. If the perimeter was totally compromised in the South, the entire sector would have to be abandoned because the Sith could simply feed their troops in through the south and roll up Soka's lines from the flanks. This could not be allowed. This had been planned for, hence the reason the regulars were kept in reserve. With his solid core of reserves, he could shift his lines to plug up any holes wherever they appeared and it seemed that this hole in the South was threatening to break open. Soka did not take his eyes off the tactical map but said to the communications officer, "Detailed situation report on the South." He was still calm and contemplating. It was one of his best traits in battle, nothing seemed to phase him.

"Sir, it seems that the unit is being lead by a colonel. Intel reports that he and several of his officers seem to be from an elite unit, but we cannot be sure. His men are decimating our soldiers quite handily," the officer reported back to him.

Soka leaned over the tactical display, holding his weight by pressing against the edges of the map with his arms. He would execute contingency plan Alpha. To his tactical officer, the commander of the troops here, he ordered, "Execute Contingency plan Alpha - shift eastern regular reserves and all of the southern regular reserves to that position. With his men focused on our AA towers, i doubt they are prepared for a quick counter attack, especially since it is unlikely they knew of our ability to counter attack. Let us see if we can seal this leak before it becomes a flood."

It seemed as if Soka was playing a game of dejarik as opposed to being in battle. His commands were not hasty or passionate but were given with authority. He seemed as if he was in total control. This was clearly not the case but he always trained to remain completely collected in battle. His years of focus on the art of combat and the meditations and conditioning it took were not purely physical. They transformed his frame of mind and thinking ability. A fight was another instance of life where one must be focused but not frantic or emotional. This was the exact situation Atu Soka had trained himself for and it showed, he was in his element.

He now moved another piece forward in this ever changing game, "Concentrate artillery fire in the south as close to our positions as possible without hitting them. We will create a wall of fire that will prevent the colonel from receiving reinforcements. Implement this strategy throughout the outer perimeter. If the perimeter is compromised in an area, have the defenders regroup, shift the lines to fill the whole and block in the attackers with artillery. We will let them in little by little and then smash them inside the city. We cannot allow for that hole to grow." He said with finality.

The basic defensive strategy was still the same but now he added another element that would allow them to hold onto the outer perimeter longer. If they maintained their hold on the outer sector, the battle might be won. He did not get his hopes up though. He would see how the attackers in the south would respond to this new strategy. If they pulled through, he would have to abandon the outer sector.

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

"Alright boys, we just got word from command. We are heading out. Seems there is a leak on the wall and the good general wants us to patch it up. Get your gear and move out." Major Nathan Samuels ordered the men sitting around him. He was in command of the Republic regulars in the southern sector. He was also happy he was getting reinforcements, but he was sure his men could get the job done. A couple Sith broke in, so what? He would clean them up. They couldn't run due to the artillery so he would just get to shoot at them from all sides, walk over their corpses and retake the AA tower then business as usual.

He was not excited about the heavy vehicles being deeper inside the city but he was sure he could get the job done with the light vehicles he had at his disposal - a few jeeps, IFV and AFVs, and a few light tanks. He figured he had enough. He gave the command and his men fanned out. They would be like a hand crushing the encircled Sith - attacking from three sides and trapping the Sith against the artillery fire. These damn planetary sec. boys might not be able to hold back a couple of Sith, but his men sure could.

They moved as planned and opened fire on the Sith assaulting the tower. It seemed they had almost taken it totally, but his men were now flanking them badly and likely had them outgunned with their vehicles. They poured fire into the breech in the outer defenses, but were careful not to hit the AA tower with anything too heavy - they were trying to take it back in one piece.

[Meira]

Some might have called Dal stoic as their drop ship approached their landing zone. His face was blank, almost empty. Next to him, Rocky slept, as if there wasn't a battle raging around them. The two were a strange sight on the transport, to all but the red skinned woman Dal was accompanying. She understood him, at least to an extent. The preparation for battle was an inward matter for him, not external. He didn't need to "psych himself up" No. That was something that might get one killed. Dal controlled himself in battle. This of course isn't to say that he didn't enjoy the havoc he caused while fighting. No, he enjoyed it quite a bit. But he didn't let that lust for blood rule him.

This was the way things were supposed to be, mostly. It was him and Sera... and Rocky of course. There were no others to complicate matters. Specifically, Brason was not among them... not immediately anyway. The Valli kid, well, he wasn't much of a bother. But in general Dal was content to be back in the old operation of things. The only thing that was missing was that they weren't hunting Jedi. But he didn't completely squander the hope that they'd face one today.

The drop ship touched down and Dal was up and moving just as fast as Sera. Right behind her, he jogged as she sought out her cover. When she found a suitable place, he went about his own business of making himself as invisible as possible. Like his companion, he was all gillied up, but he carried no sniper riffle. No, Dal was not patient enough for the fine art that Sera excelled at. Nor did he care for the numerous calculations that accompanied the job. Instead, Dal was happy to keep an eye on their more immediate surroundings, in case a brave Republic soldier dared to venture too close. He carried his trusty rifle and his beloved blade. This was all he needed.

With the little patience he had, Dal settled into waiting for Sera to make a few kills. Often times she would get caught up in the hunt, and so he was there to ensure she didn't drift off into her own world where bodies exploded at her will, misting the sky around them with a paint that reflected her own skin tone. Sometimes he wondered if she had a sick fantacy of turning men inside out until they all looked like her.

He counted her shots. If he allowed her to play too long, she'd expose her position and a rival sniper might try to pick her off as she did his comrades. Dal doubted there was any other sniper in existence that matched Sera in raw talent and lust for her preferred method of killing... but even fools got lucky every now and then. At Dal's side, Rocky was getting antsy, and so was he. She'd fired off enough long range shots for now. It was time to either move to a new location or get their hands dirty by joining the ones Sera referred to as Grunts.

Time to go, doll. He said as he checked to make sure his gear was in place. So what'll it be? Find another hole to shoot from, or let me have some fun?

[Jace]

Hadrian wasn't all that surprised when Balax took the lead. This sort of scenario would be perfect for him. The colonel had heard of the rumored flamethrower that the man carried. He watched as Balax made quick work of two soldiers. There were still others though, and Hadrian wasn't about to be left behind. His rifle raised, he squeezed the trigger multiple times, dropping three soldiers. He then turned, and checked the six to make sure they weren't flanked. Hadrian turned around just in time to see Balax unleash the dragon. Even he had to admit that it was quite a sight.

"Hope y'like 'em extra crispy, Colonel." said Balax as he turned to Hadrian

Well he couldn't argue with its effectiveness, that was for damn sure. Kaven soon followed after and gave the all clear. Hadrian had been a little distracted and didn't notice the Republic solder behind him. He turned just in time to watch the man disappear in a cloud of grisly red. It seemed that he had a guardian angel out there somewhere, he would have to thank them later. He made to enter the AA tower when two rockets collided into the turret.

Too many godamn heroes

"Looks like we may have some visitors. You two, gather the rest of the men and prepare to welcome our guests." ordered Hadrian as he jerked his head in the direction of the sentry guns. The Republic soldiers were now dead, but that didn't mean their weapons would go to waste.

The colonel shouldered his rifle and drew The Prestige. He checked the gun, and then ran into the AA tower. Getting to this tower had been a little too easy, and that made him uncomfortable. There was a possibility that they may shift troops over here since the other AA towers still seemed to be active. He was jarred out of thought as he turned the corner, lowered his gun, and blew a hole the size of Korriban in a man's chest.

Hot damn!

He had almost forgotten how powerful this bad boy was. He pushed towards the control station in the tower. Hadrian left a wake of death behind him. Half these soldiers were cowards, hiding behind some corner. War wasn't a place for cowards. Hadrian had reached the control station only to find that there was a locked door in his way. It seemed that his presence in the tower had been noted. A door wasn't going to stop him. He could pulled out some demo, and placed it on the door, set the timer and moved back. The door had proved more resilient then he had expected but caved in as Hadrian crashed into it.

Hadrian stumbled into the room but quickly gained his footing. He leveled his magnum, fired, and watched the man's head disappear. Quickly rotating he found his next target, and then his next. The colonel had got nicked by a blaster bolt but his armor had took the brunt of it. He was getting sloppy, he must be getting old. Moving to the console, Hadrian quickly took control of the AA tower's turrets. He turned them to the tower on the east, aimed, and fired. The rockets earlier prevented him from targeting the west tower or anything else for that matter. He placed some more demo on the console and made his way out of the tower.

Artillery fire began just as Hadrian exited the AA tower. It wasn't a bad tactic, cutting off reinforcements with an artillery bombardment. He also saw what seemed to be a young girl running towards the tower at a rather unusual speed. Hadrian was surprised that a Sith was here, he had assumed they all went to Rhen Var. Well she would make a valuable military asset. He made his way to the sentry turrets were he hoped everyone had gathered. Hadrian motioned for the new member(Zarene) to follow.

"Alright listen up people. Apparently our hospitality is being underestimated. They think that cutting off reinforcements is going to slow us down. We hold this position and then make for the artillery. I will be sorely disappointed if any of you die this early in the game. Now get to your positions!"

There were multiple sentry guns that were used to guard the AA tower and so they would be used once again. The only difference is that they would be firing in a different direction. A smile grew on Hadrian's face, the Republic had greatly underestimated his troops abilities and they were about to find out by how much.

[Dutch]

{OK- it's overdue I know, and Jace, if I misunderstood something in your post and you want something changed, lemme know babe.}

Balax grinned his yellowed smile at Kaven as he spoke. Yes, he indeed was in good form still. Hours of training and weapon maintenance didn't equal him getting dull. His teeth clenched the cigar tighter in a sick grin as Kaven ended the pleading Republican. Oh how they squirmed, begged for their life at the end. Cowards, all of them. And Major Brason was more than glad to end them all. He winked at Kaven as the younger man moved next to him, the cherry of his cigar glowed faintly in the smoky, hazy room.

"I'm sure the good Colonel will be glad to hear. Let's just hope he doesn't mind the smell."

A harsh laugh sounded from behind gritted teeth. A typical joke for the sinister Brason to make.It was quickly cut off when a massive pair of explosions rocked the tower. A few choice swears were spat and a thing of dust fell past Bal's face, and extinguished his cigar. A guttural growl sounded from his chest and he grabbed the cigar with a bare hand. The heat of it hissed as it met the calluses on Bal's hand before the cigar was crumbled. No one messes with Major Brason's cigars.

Just as Hadiran ran into the AA tower, Bal brushed shoulders with him as he stormed out of the tower. Once more the Hand Dragon was in his hands and ready, and just in time to see a fire team of Republic troopers round a corner. He snarled and pulled on the handle to unleash the fury of a man that lost his smoke. An audible roar sounded from the cone of flames that burst forward. The shocked and pained cries of agony sounded from the four man team, and Bal let up on the handle. The cone dissipated to reveal four roiling bodies on the ground. The men clutch and tried to pat out the flames that stuck to their body.

Balax watched with a glint in his eye as the men burned. One who's hand was still on their rifle squeezed a shot off . The bullet whizzed through the air, and collided with Balax's chest. He stepped back and was stunned not to be killed by the shot. That was until his hand went to the hole in his leather armor, and found out that the back of cigars that sat in the pocket where the bullet hit had stopped it. He was alive- but those bastards just ruined his last cigars for the mission. Another growl sounded from him and the big man stormed forward.

His boot went right to the shooters throat, and Bal pushed hard into the soft flesh. Yellowed teeth pushed forward in a snarl and the Hand Dragon would be pressed against the charred cheek of the trooper. His flesh sizzled at the heat of the nozzle and it burned a perfect circle in the cheek.

"You ruined my cigars..."

Growled Balax before he twisted his leg to snap the man's neck. No one messed with Bal's addiction. His eyes turned to see Rowe emerge from the building. Balax turned from the smoldering bodies of the mostly alive fire team and strode to where his fellow Sith had gathered. He holstered the Hand Dragon and pulled his carbine out again. His cells were getting depleted, and they needed to be saved for later. He nodded to Hadrian, ready for the next step.

[sparrow]

(( Quick note... I would prefer it if the Sith soldiers aren't completely aware just yet that Zarene is Sith Order. So far the only thing she'd done in their sight that might be interpreted as force sensitive is running fast, and that probably isn't going to be the first thing about her appearance that they notice. Oh yeah, and if I describe anything inconsistently compared to previous posts, let me know. ))

As others climbed into the sentry turrets, Zarene pressed against the side of the AA tower for some cover. The Republic troops were counterattacking, strafing the reinforcements that were coming up the slope with small-arms fire, vehicle weapons and artillery. But the area immediately around the tower was surprisingly clear of heavier fire. Evidently the Republic troops were hoping to recapture the tower in one piece. That should have realized that this particular tower was already lost.

The sentry guns, once the Sith troopers managed to turn them around, would provide covering fire and solidify their foothold on this area. The heavy artillery of the enemy was staying far away from those structures, but the light vehicles could potential cause some trouble for the soldiers spreading out to the various turrets.

Observe, report, and assist where possible. That was her job here. Most of the rest of the Sith were at Rhen Var. A few had been sent to Subterrel. But she was here, and as far as she knew, the only one. It probably had something to do with her unique skills among the Sith, eschewing lightsabers in favor of ranged weapons, a definite advantage here. An activated lightsaber on this battlefield would draw fire from all sides faster than you could say "bantha poodoo."

She lifted up her rifle, a standard Sith assault trooper weapon, and found her target. A light speeder, sporting an anti-personnel turret gun. It's armor wasn't particularly heavy, but heavy enough so that a normal infantry rifle would not be able to take it down. That is, unless it hit the right spot. Such a shot would take skill, and fair amount of luck. But the Force was better than luck. The speeder was moving quickly, and as it came closer to her position, Zarene lined up her shot, making sure to lead her target. Ready, aim, fire. A short burst of red plasma spears exited the barrel and streaked through the air.

The driver's side viewport of the small vehicle shattered and its driver slumped over. With no one at the controls, the speeder was suddenly unable to steer its course, colliding with another friendly vehicle, taking them both out of the fight. The first of the soldiers were just climbing into the sentry guns. Funtime.

[Dire Wolf]

A small smirk caused the woman's pink-ish lips to contort behind that dull visor at Dal's words and gave a sideways glance at her large companion, "shoot 'n scoot, Dal. Why don't we get up close and personal? Besides, these arty boys may not know where we are... but they might get lucky." Artillery had that effect on snipers. Sure, the woman had barely gotten a few kills from her position, but each shot she took gave enemy forward observers more time to train artillery on her position. Sera slowly crawled backwards down into the small saddle, so that she could leave (and hide) the rather large anti-material magnetic accelerator rifle in relative safety.

Concealing the overly-large weapon was IQ-loweringly (yes, its a word now) simple, seeing as the rifle was already shrouded in a mesh not unlike her ghillie suit. Her other weapon, the semi-automatic rifle designed for urban sniping, lay snuggled into a drag-bag resting at the bottom of the saddle between the two grassy knolls. The woman quickly retrieved the rifle from the bag, along with its ammo, and raised her stance to a low crouch. "Lets be bad guys," she said with a smirk as she rose up over the hill, taking care to head towards the craters made by artillery strikes. Artillery, especially heavy artillery, was like lightning: It never struck the same place twice. So, in theory, a recently made crater was arguably the safest place to be in a battlefield.

After reaching the first wide, blackened hole, Sera propped up her elbow up on its crest and placed the chevron of her battle scope up on the first man's armored chest. Emerald green eyes shifted about as they looked through the relatively weak scope, taking in all the details of the area behind her target. Smoke curled from the area behind the armor-clad soldier like malevolent tendrils of some angry god. Flashing red plasma sped past her narrow field of amplified vision, traveling in both directions. Taptaptap! The rifle kicked against her shoulder three quick times as the trigger clicked against the back of the trigger guard. This simply signaled the end of the man battling Sith Forces, as three hypersonic armor piercing seven point two millimeter bullets slammed into the side of his chest, just below his arms. These bullets ripped through the anti-energy plating like it was butter, and cleaved through his heart and both lungs... leaving nothing but mincemeat in their wake.

The three loud cracks! from her rifle were barely heard over the sounds of hundreds of blaster discharges, making it even easier for the woman and her teammate to advance. Without a moments hesitation, the woman let another three round burst fly from her rifle (killing another soldier), before storming towards the next crater. Her black-and-ghillie-clad head shifted over to Dal as she leaned up against the wall of the crater, and her voice was less than calm. Adrenaline did that. "Dal," she exclaimed through the mic, "we aren't too far away from those dogs, what do ya say that we lay down the hurt from their flank? Stupid sonsasith won't know what hit 'em." Granted, that expletive wasn't exactly the correct one to use in her occupation... but it was a battle situation. Worse things have been said.

[Meira]

Dal's chuckle was full of the joy he felt at hearing Sera's words. His suggestions rarely worked with the woman. She so loved being the sniper, the far away killer. Not that she wasn't good up close. He smirked. Oh, she was good. But he figured it was the skill of sniping that really thrilled her. The same way gutting someone with his blade thrilled him. We all seek out to satisfy those thrills. He thought to himself as Sera moved herself back down into the dip of the saddle with him. She hid her large rifle and prepared her other.

Dal smiled again. Whenever she unwrapped that bad boy it was time for fun. As if to confirm his thoughts, Sera spoke. In a strange moment of building adrenalin and excitement, Dal wanted to plant a kiss on the red skinned woman's lips as he moved to jump out from their hiding spot and dash towards the next patch of cover. He didn't of course, and the urge was gone as fast as it had come. He'd passed it off as nothing, except perhaps a little amusing.

Once again, Dal waited as Sera cleared the way for them both. Sometimes this was annoying. He didn't like her getting in all the fun while he sat around waiting. But he'd done his fair share of killing while she watched as well. After all, people get lucky from time to time. And one or two soldiers had gotten lucky before, stumbling upon their hiding place while Sera's mind and eyes were down the scope who knows how far away. Of course their luck soon ended and Dal's began as he got to take those foolish soldiers out. So in the end, perhaps it balanced out. At least, that's what he told himself while he waited, checking his rifle.

"...what do ya say that we lay down the hurt from their flank?..."

You keep talkin' dirty to me like that, doll.... well, we won't be doin' much talkin'... or fightin'. He winked at her. Let's move.

Doing just what Sera suggested, Dal sprang from their cover, moving in on the enemy from the flank. He ran, crouching as low as he could with his massive frame. Rocky bounded along beside him. In the cat's eyes, it was obvious he was itching to jump on some unsuspecting soldier, perhaps delight in the taste of his blood as he ripped into his throat. But the feline stayed close to Dal, disciplined as ever. They weren't close enough... yet.

Quick, small bursts of fire fell one or two enemy soldiers before Dal found his cover. He took stock of the area around him as he made sure Sera was safe to follow him. He brought up his wrist, which held a device that gave him the rough location of other allies, and specifically the colonel who was leading the mission. They weren't too far away. And by the change in the feel of the fire shot around the battle field, it was fairly evident they'd succeeded in taking the AA tower. It wouldn't be too hard to meet up with him and perhaps get more specific orders. In any case, that was more Sera's call to make. His job was just to watch her ass in case she couldn't. Not too bad of a job.

[Cavalry King]

Major Nathan Samuels crouched behind the husk of the transport that carried him over to the tower. The metal was still hot and smoke from the fires burning within it made it difficult to see and be seen. The major called over for his communication operative. "Damnit private, get over here. Get command on the wire. Tell them we can't retake that position unless we can get some real firepower over there." The private got on the channel and answering was none other than Atu Soka himself. "Major, lines are wavering but are holding across the city. Hold this position at all costs or they will break into the city. I am calling for a full scale bombardment on that AA tower. You will be vulnerable to aircraft and airborne reinforcements but you will have enough cover with the rubble. I trust you to accomplish this task Major. If the artillery bombardment fails and you cannot push the Sith from the city, begin the withdrawal to the second ring. Preserve the armor at all costs, it will be vital inside the city."

Following that conversation the major got in contact with his armored commander, "Captain, heavy weapons live on the AA tower. Pull back at least 50 meters were gonna hit it hard!."

Several moments later once the commanders had reported in, a heavy bombardment of highly accurate cannon opened fire and let loose on the AA tower and its surroundings, trying to bury the attackers in the tower. Following the bombardment Nathan and his men popped up and began pushing forward in a hail of energy fire, machine guns, and tank bombardments. This was an all or nothing gamble. Push them out or fall back.

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

Atu Soka stood in the command room reports were coming in from all sectors, the first ring was almost at breaking point but the Sith had paid for it heavily. Sith dead lined the walls of the city and the fields around it. Everything was going better than he hoped except for one strike team that was spearheading a huge assault along the southern sector. More Sith were flooding in and preparing to push with the strike team despite the heavy bombardment. Soka could not afford to spare anymore reinforcements to the position without fear of weakening one of the other positions too badly. The factories were churning out small ships, weapons, and tanks to replace the ones that were lost rather quickly. If the outer ring was lost, he would have to decide whether to keep the factories operational or begin the evacuation. It seemed this single Colonel was the deciding factor of this battle. If he persisted in being a nuisance, Soka might have to take more drastic measures to stop him.

[Jace]

Hot damn!This is some firefight!

Hadrian hadn't felt a rush like this since he was back on Dantooine. Even then, the resistance they faced there was nowhere near this heavy. Like any true soldier, he relished the challenge of a fight. Yes, he was losing soldiers, but that was the price of war. Every soldier should know that. There was an old proverb that one of his drill sergeant's used to recite. Go into battle expecting to die, and you will live. Go into battle expecting to live, and you will surely die. It also happened to be a mantra which Hadrian repeated to all those under his command.

The colonel would have been able to feel the heat from his gun, had he not been wearing his armor. At this point in the battle, he had found himself a nice little sentry gun, and was causing what could only be described as mayhem for the Republic forces. The sentry gun was essentially a repeating blaster but with much more firepower and firepower is exactly what they needed at this point. That wasn't to say that he was just spraying randomly across the battlefield. The colonel was targeting some of the lighter armor and vehicles that a normal blaster wouldn't penetrate.

Things were heating up, but that didn't mean it was going bad for them. They were managing to hold off the Republic assault. Reinforcements were slowly beginning to trickle in. Moments earlier, reports of the other AA tower to the west had almost fallen. Those in the east were making progress. Perfect Just as Hadrian had expected, his group was receiving the brunt of the Republic's attention. Either they would break through, or another company would. It was at that exact moment that things suddenly got relatively quiet. The bombardment had stopped, the Republic troops were suddenly retreating. That could only mean one thing. He had only two options...retreat or charge forward....scratch that, he only had one option.

"Move!!!!This place is about to get rocked, so unless you want to be blown into oblivion, haul ass!!"yelled Hadrian to those around him and also over the comm

The heavily armored soldier exited his sentry placement and began to sprint forward. His gut told him that the Republic was about to give up on retaking the AA station which could only mean one thing. They were going to destroy it, and the Sith along with it. Charging forward meant they would avoid a majority of the bombardment but probably also run strait into the Republic forces. Well, he could kill soldiers, not artillery shells. Besides, it wasn't like he didn't have a little surprise up his sleeve either.

"This is Hadrian to command. Roll out strike package Bravo. Coordinates are 33-490-11"

"Copy colonel, ETA 2 minutes"

Strike package Bravo was a light air assault on designated targets. His target being the Republic position ahead of them, which would atleast buy his men sometime to close in on the enemy. Just as he had thought, as the bombardment ceased, the Republic began their counterattack. Hadrian hit dirt just as the Republic began to fire. Any time now... It was then that he heard the sounds of air cavalry. It was a glorious sound which was followed by scattered screams and a torrent of explosions. Well it was all or nothing now...

"Charge!!!"