Ask Caf, Blasters and Sabers

[Lorcan]

The suspect went off to check for a vehicle and despite everything else he trusted him to do so; the man had more reason than most to want to get a move on so he was going to be extra thorough in his search. With the suspect and Corran working together he was confident that if anything was to be found then they would find it.

"Make sure to stay safe during the search." he told them both, "I'm heading out with the Jedi so you'll be alone back here."

Walking through the bush with the Jedi ahead of him he cursed as he received the news about the lack of transport via the coms. He tapped his com link to send a short message back.

"Alright Corran, Dryden, see if you can find a way to seal the entrance the creatures used to get in. We don't want anything more than the front door."

Hearing chaotic sounds from ahead he swore loudly before rushing forwards with his rifle at the ready. Bursting through the bush as Izel faced off against three of the creatures he paused for only a second to get his aim before firing five times. Three of the blasts slammed into the head of one of the creatures, pulverizing it's head entirely.

One of the remaining shots missed while the other hit, scoring along the side of the creature, wounding it but not killing it.

Spoiler: Dice

Animal Control

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[Kel Dryden]

Kel had applied the healing stim and was gearing up when Lorcan contacted him and Corran about sealing the entrance. The ranger's plan made sense, so the scoundrel replied with another "On it." Armor plates secured; helmet back on the head; distress beacon still broadcasting—Kel left the room and took another corridor. So far, he hadn't seen a hole large enough for the local wildlife to fit through. It had to be somewhere else, in the unexplored area of the bunker.

Lighting his way with the remaining half of his electrostaff, Kel went down the corridor where the beasts had come from. Most of the passages were either shut, collapsed, or half-open—not enough for a large beast to fit through. However, as Kel delved further into the facility, he noticed that he was needing his staff less and less. His suspicions were confirmed when he finally stumbled across a large breach in the wall, with a nice view on the thicket of Dxun's treacherous jungle. The scoundrel's suit wasn't set to full cycle, so the smell of dung didn't elude Kel's attention. If there was any way that the wildlife had made it inside the bunker, this was it.

The sounds of shooting outside the bunker, and the general feeling that something had gone Malachor yet again made Kel pick up the pace. The scoundrel hurried through the passages to the first door that could isolate the breached area from the rest of the bunker. Luckily, the console was still on, and all there was to do was press a couple of buttons. With the door sealed, there'd only be one way out of the bunker... But also one way in. Hopefully, they wouldn't have to reopen it until someone arrived to the rescue.

"The bunker is secure, only one way in left," Kel rushed towards the main door and took position in the corridor, aiming his stun blaster at the only remaining entrance. The main reason was to fend off any wildlife coming through... And maybe provide covering fire for whomever needed it.

Spoiler: OOC and dice

Kel locating and sealing the back door.

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[Brienna Lanaamer]

Bri looked up at Izel as she talked, sensing that the Vratix have obviously had a traumatizing experience in the past on Dxun. The Knight also held a similar feeling regarding the spirit of the planet itself. Something felt off, not necessarily that Dxun was out of balance; rather, that it’s equity was as if unforeseen jagged spikes littered the planet, eager to prey on unsuspecting victims. Bri tried to put the image out of her head, offering a simple reply, “that’s an interesting hypothesis, and one that requires further study,” she paused, “preferably not when in danger of being eaten.”

Just as she finished her comment, the Knight sensed danger nearly at the same time as Izel, a pack of maalraas quickly descending upon the vulnerable passengers. Chaos erupted. Screaming drowned out the ambiance of the jungle. Everyone ran in all directions, ignoring both Bri and Izel’s commands to not do so. "Run to the bunker, that way!" Bri shouted, pointing the direction.

Maalraas were particularly troublesome creatures, utilizing the force to both cloak and prey on enemies. She would be the first to admit, though obviously not to anyone, that her knowledge of galactic creatures was not the greatest. However, she did know about Maalraas, largely because of their ability to use the Force to hunt for prey. There was a joke somewhere mixed in the situation about her now being the prey but the Jedi was too tired to try and pull it out. Luckily the Padawan had recovered enough to engage, killing one of them. A blaster shot followed, and Bri whipped around to see the Senior Ranger focused behind a laser sight, leaving two creatures still stalking.

The Knight tried to sense the creatures, but the exertions from the earlier fight, combined with the excessive use of Force healing abilities had left her spent, physically and emotionally. The creatures were cloaked, and it frustrated the Jedi that she was unable to locate either of them. She was catching just figments, shadows, shapes constantly changing. Realizing that her abilities would not be up to the par, she began to sense that danger was looming around her. Slowly retreating back to the bunker, Bri got a quick pang of warning, dodging just in time to avoid a life threatening slice. The creatures claw instead scraped down the side of her leg.

Grunting with a cry of pain, she slowly tried to hobble back to the cover of the bunker, grimacing not only from the pain in her leg, but knowing that she could not do more to help the terrified passengers.

Spoiler: OOC: Dice

Poor result in fighting the creatures.

 

[Corran Velt]

Corran intended to follow Lorcan's order to the letter. Sealing off the bunker from the deadly and vicious outside world is what he would have done too. A choke-point at the front of the bunker is more easily defended and survival made that much more likely. Dryden was further ahead, however, and while Corran attempted to follow the suspected criminal, he was soon out of sight. The Ranger wouldn't have been intimidated searching the fortification solo, but shrill cries and the echoes of blaster fire drew his immediate attention. Rapidly turning his head between the dark corridor and the way back to the sounds of battle, Corran groaned in frustration and took off at a sprint towards the chaos.

Before even reaching the front of the bunker, scores of frightened civilians were pouring into the facility. Some had wounds clearly from being trampled and others looked like something had slashed at them. More beasts. Great. Corran shoved through the crowd, his back against the wall, making his way to the front entryway. Outside, it wasn't entirely clear what the two Jedi were engaging or what Lorcan was shooting at. Bri was already limping back with the scared passengers. "Move quickly inside, I'll cover you!" Corran shouted to the wounded force-user and the remaining civilians fleeing.

There wasn't anything in view. A few creatures lay dead; one with massive protruding fangs, the other headless. How many more were there? Corran stared down the scope of the ancient Mandalorian rifle to scan for targets. Suddenly, the scope began targeting on its own. In a blue-hewed static, reticles highlighted two more of the beasts including curious spots on their heads or joints. The scope provided answers where Corran's own eyes could not - the predators could cloak! Taking the advice of the Mandalorian targeting scope, the Ranger sent blaster bolts downrange. Several well-timed shots hit the eye and snarling maw of the invisible killers. "One down!" Corran called out.

Sizing up for another shot, the junior Ranger unfortunately found the scope had become nothing but static. Instinctively, he began backing and smacking the side of the blaster. "Come on, come on," Corran tried to will the device into working again, "Not when I need you most!"

 

[Izel Thral]

Izel was glad to have company this time around, superior numbers seemed to be making quick work of the normally deadly maalraas. That still didn't mean they were to be taken lightly though, as the Padawan watched as Bri was injured by one of the attacking predators. Fortunately Corran was able to take it down before it harmed the Jedi Knight any further.

Lorcan had killed another one of the creatures and scored a hit on the other, but it cloaked quickly after being shot and disappeared from view again. That was fine, she didn't need her eyes to see it. Reaching out with her Force sense once more Izel located the invisible maalraas, bounding towards the senior ranger again while hidden from his sight. The Vratix scuttled forward and then leapt, brandishing her lightsaber with deadly intent. With the maalraas cloaked it may have looked like she was targeting the Ranger himself, but at the last moment she turned in the air and brought her pike around, slicing into the unarmored throat of the beast and bringing it up, decapitating the predator.

She landed in front of Lorcan, the corpse of the maalraas decloaking beneath her and it's head rolling past the Ranger's feet. Without missing a beat the Vratix stood up to her full height and took a quick look around the area, antennae twitching as she tried to sense any more dangerous creatures in the immediate area. Thankfully they seemed relatively safe for now.

"I think that's all of them..." She said while trying to regain her breath, and turned to look at Lorcan. "Sorry, there was a... Well, you know." She gestured to the dead maalraas. "What now?" Those passengers that hadn't fled into the jungle were now making their way into the bunker. They were terrified and shaken, but then that seemed to be par for the course by this point. There were still other survivors that had to be dealt with, and there was the matter of these pirates as well. Would they still be coming after them? Time would only tell. At least for the moment they would have a much needed respite.

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[Lorcan]

Stupid bloody Dxun dogs all over the place were driving him round the bend.

Lorcan's patience with this moon was quickly running out and yet he knew he had to keep it together. Despite the fact that only one of the people here had any real reason to listen to him, they were all looking to him to provide answers and a way forward. Some of them didn't realize it but putting out shite ideas just to fill dead air was the same as basically crying out desperately for someone to take charge so it was the same thing in his mind.

"Nice slash bug-girl." he congratulated the Jedi padawan flippantly as he touched his com link, "Alright - everyone form up at the entrance to the bunker. We gotta regroup."

Heading that way himself, he hurried the survivors inside until they were much deeper in the bunker, leaving himself, his Ranger ally, the suspect and the two Jedi. One of the Jedi wasn't looking so hot it had to be said...

"You alright?" he asked her with a frown, "We got time for brief medical attention but after that we're going to start the search. So speak up now if you don't think you can do at least a few hours hiking."

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[Kel Dryden]

By the time Kel reached his firing position, it was already over. Corran had dealt with the beasts inside; the surviving civilians were hurrying into the bunker, with the ranger and the two Jedi behind them. One of the Jedi—the one that had saved Kel from the beasts earlier—was limping.

After a few lengthy moments of consideration, Kel fished a healing stim out of his pocket. It was something he had grabbed from the medbay of the bunker for a rainy day. But now he was offering it to the blonde Jedi. "Here, that should help," he said through the helmet.

Kel's own state was almost as good as new: he had replaced the chest armor plate and already tended to his wound. Sure, his blaster was limited to stun, and the elecrostaff lacked one functional half. But apart from that, the scoundrel was ready for action. He assumed that Lorcan would be heading out in search of other survivors.

The scoundrel's mind, however, was focused on one of them: Trak Almir, the Gran scientist. The unwitting reason for all this madness.

@ModernMarvel, @TerranSteel, @Reyn, @Nefieslab

 

[Brienna Lanaamer]

Bri exhaled a sigh of relief as she watched the others expertly eliminate the attacking Maalraas. While the action was occurring she had managed to crawl (not very gracefully) back to the bunker entrance near the others. Maintaining a remedial knowledge on wound care, the Knight took off her jacket and managed to tie it around the wound, stopping any further bleeding. "Blast..." the Knight cursed, "that's going to be a nightmare to get out," she peered down, watching a dark red stain slowly creep into the tan colored jacket. Losing the carrying compartment for her lightsaber with the jacket turning into a tourniquet, Bri instead clipped it to her belt. There really was no further reason in trying to conceal her Jedi identity, if anyone in the group hadn't assumed as much know, they probably weren't paying attention very well.

The strange, ragtag team regrouped following the defeat of the current animal manifestation of death, as the Senior Ranger again began to take charge and order out commands. Bri generally concurred with his assessments once more, and if she did disagree, she doubted the rest of the group would take a Jedi with an injured leg very seriously. The minor positive was that his opinion slowly seemed to be changing of Izel, even if he did call her 'bug-girl,' which Bri assumed to be rather derogatory. "I'll be alright," Bri replied to the Ranger's question, sounding more trying to reassure herself, than anything else. The Knight worried slightly how she would be able to fare out in the murderous jungle, which seemed a challenge even if you were completely healthy. It was a place that offered no mercy to the weak, as Bri had quickly learned.

Before offering a secondary reply, Bri looked up to see the helmeted criminal reach out and offer a stim pack. Her own face flashed a look of confusion for a mere second, before changing to a thankful smile as she gratefully took the medical device. "Thanks," came a reply, with a friendly grin. Most criminals that the Knight had encountered (which were not many, it deserves to be noted) seemed to only care about themselves, yet the helmeted figure in front of her had at least offered a helping hand when she needed it. Further food for thought in her own moral calculations of him.

With a sharp inward hiss as she injected the stim into her leg, Bri felt a rush of warmth to the wounded areas, providing a dull, numbing sensation that began to alleviate the pain. Not exactly a permanent solution to be sure, but welcome none the less. The Jedi managed to stand back up and gingerly placed some weight on the affected leg, which seemed to be holding up quite well. "Good to go," she added to the Senior Ranger, gently shifting from side to side in preparation. Bri was man-enough, or woman-enough, to admit that if she was not prepared for a trek into the jungle, she would not have volunteered herself to go. Not only could she slow them down, but may also place others in danger if they were required to bail her out of trouble. Luckily the bacta-stim had done the job.

 

[Corran Velt]

A unsettling chill slid down Corran's back after Lorcan his new round of orders. A few hours in the Dxun jungle? The Mandalorians were a warrior people, trained from birth, and they couldn't even permanently settle on the Demon Moon. What would a former bulk-trader from Commenor do? The innate survival instinct pushed hard to stay in the bunker and await rescue, avoiding danger and death. But Corran did one thing better than all the rest and that was follow orders. Lorcan was the senior Ranger and had been personally reliable in all their work together. He hadn't let them astray before.

The female force-user looked worse-for-wear initially, but some ad-hoc first-aid seemed to bring her up to full readiness. Despite how Corran felt, they would need every possible advantage when moving beyond the bunker and wreckage of the starship. Jedi or no, Bri had been kind enough to make sure his own head-wound had been healed. That made her a friend, of sorts. At least helpful.

Corran adjusted his armor and checked the energy reading on his own personal blaster and the Mandalorian rifle he acquired. "If everyone is ready, I'll take point," Corran said to the group, nodding at Lorcan last, "Stay close together, keep your heads on a swivel, and maintain the buddy system." It didn't sound like a command; more like concerned advice. The junior Ranger had no experience in jungle expeditions but knew the Sector Ranger survival guide covered the topic and read it thoroughly for orientation and training. Theory into practice was another matter.

The jungle nearby the downed starship was easier to traverse than what came after. The knocked over trees and blasted foliage was easy to cross and left plenty of open ground to cover. Further the group went from the crash site, the more dense and foreboding the jungle became. Along the way, Corran would stop and scan the surroundings for a sure-footed path forward. A sharp snap of a twig would cause gun barrels to immediately greet it. Thankfully though, the journey didn't prove lethal and the group stumbled upon an escape pod, tilted on its side and passenger hatch blown open. The impact had caused an artificial clearing of shattered nature.

Carefully, rifle at the ready, the junior Ranger advanced on the pod and looked inside. A heavy sigh and slouched shoulders gave away the answer before Corran even spoke. "There's nobody here."

 

[Izel Thral]

Izel's grip tightened on her lightsaber in barely contained anger as the senior Ranger spoke. That was twice now he had called her that. She was trying to abide by Bri's advice and be empathetic, but the Ranger didn't seem to have any interest in making it easy on her. She had to say something, she just needed to figure out how best to approach the situation. She was well aware that speaking without tact would only make things worse.

Regrouping with the others she was glad to see her fellow Jedi had recovered from her wounds. Despite their success so far they were still in an incredibly hostile environment and needed to keep as many people in fighting condition as possible. While they set out into the jungle to find survivors the passengers settled into the bunker, doing their best to set up defensible positions. The Padawan worried for their safety, but knew they had done all they could to make the bunker safe for them.

She still wasn't thrilled to go trekking through this godforsaken jungle, but felt more comfortable in a group. The people she was with had clearly shown themselves to be more than competent fighters, even if she wasn't very fond of some of them. Since Corran seemed to be taking the initiative in tracking the path of the survivors Izel took the opportunity to walk beside Lorcan. She still felt nervous about speaking with him but felt some things needed to be addressed. Now was as good a time as any. When she finally worked up the nerve to speak she did so as diplomatically as possible, trying not to let her emotions get the better of her.

"It's completely reasonable for you not to be aware of this," She started, "But calling my kind 'bugs' is exceedingly rude. I'd appreciate it if you'd refrain from doing so in the future. Just calling me Jedi is perfectly acceptable." She paused, trying to find the right words to extend an olive branch. "I don't know what your experience is with my Order to create such animosity, but I want you to know my only desire is to see everyone off of this moon safely. Whatever our differences I think we can agree that is something worthy of cooperation. I understand this situation is stressful, but it's in all our best interest not to be at each others' throats. Let's leave the trying to kill us to the pirates and wildlife shall we?"

Before any more could be said the group stumbled across the escape pod, and Corran reported that there were none inside. Izel had used the Force repeatedly throughout this ordeal and was starting to feel the effects of fatigue, but resolved herself to try and use what was left of her energy to locate the missing passenger.

"Excuse me..." She said to the junior Ranger as she passed him, and sat down before the escape pod. Reaching out with the Force she tried to pinpoint where the passenger had gone. Finding someone on a world like Dxun took more concentration than usual, and the Padawan soon found herself under great strain. She could feel the presence of the Gran though, and right before she lost her focus an image popped into her head. Feeling the last of her strength leave her the Vratix gasped and took a moment to catch her breath before explaining what she had seen. "He was here... And left... West... A cliff by a waterfall..." She rubbed her head. She saw no more than that, and had a distinct feeling she wouldn't be able to call upon the Force for a while after this.

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[Lorcan]

Ugh was he going to have to take a sensitivity course after this kark because the bug woman had issues with being called a bug? Sure, he would probably take exception to being called a mammal all the time so... fine. He wasn't going to be a karker about it. He just wanted to get past it so the Jedi would stop talking to him. She wasn't even a fully trained Jedi if he was right about their ranks, which meant he was being given a "polite scolding" by a trainee.

"Alright no more bug stuff." he agreed bluntly, "Don't take things so personally kid - got nothing against you specifically."

Mainly because she had left so little of an impression upon him.

Who hated the trees you just kind of walked past? They were nothing to hate because they weren't anything to really fixate on at all. Just as he didn't hate the trees because they weren't significant enough to hate, he didn't personally hate the padawan because she was barely a thing to him.

"I just hate your Order. Don't think that being polite will change that."

One or two Jedi being polite wasn't going to erase decades of high-handed Jedi Order policies and actions as far as he was concerned. Hells even the Empire and the First Order had had some decent people in them - didn't make the organisations less full of shite now did it? Looking around, he frowned as he took the hint the trainee was able to give him.

West huh?

Waterfall...

Following along to the west, he checked around. Frowning slightly, he picked up a few pieces of broken twigs and the like as they reached a small river. He held up a hand for silence before pointing to the right, North, up along the river.

"The waterfall is that way. There's some heavier footsteps though... the doctor may have been tracked before us."

Spoiler: Dice

Tracking success

@Catbert @ModernMarvel @TerranSteel @Reyn

 

[Kel Dryden]

As before, the scoundrel was keeping to himself during the hike. Kel's helmet made it harder to be mindful of his surroundings. However, it would make a difference if some local beast decided to chew off his face. Speaking of that... Kel cast a concerned glance at the human Jedi and her impromptu jacket-made-tourniquet. Bloody. Probably smells like good dinner to the locals. Hopefully, the helmet would conceal Kel's expression of concern for himself, the Jedi, and the group.

Throughout the search, Kel would remain silent unless addressed. However, as Lorcan announced they were nearing the destination, the scoundrel had to interject: "We should spread out a little. It'll be harder to ambush us that way," he said through the helmet. "In fact, I'll take point. I might look the least suspicious and dangerous of you lot."

Whether Kel was right or wrong was up for debate, especially because of the helmet. But he was the least-armed in the group. A blaster pistol on Dxun wasn't much more than a rattler. As for the electrostaff... Kel put the 2 halves together and held it akin to a walking staff, with the non-broken business end pressed to the ground, so as not to draw attention. The scoundrel leaned on the staff, as if it was the only thing that kept him on his feet. He then slowly limped forward, head hanging down slightly. A typical crash victim; whoever saw him probably wouldn't consider him too much of a threat.

As the scoundrel gained some distance from the group, it also occurred to him: In the worst case, it won't make a difference who gets me off this rock. As Kel approached the waterfall, he heard the commotion and some arguing. Not a good sign. The scoundrel planned to take peek and evaluate the situation from behind a tree. But as he took position, the loud crack of a broken twig under his foot instantly gave it away. "Who's there? Better kriffin' show yourself! RIGHT NOW!"

With a sigh, the scoundrel put on his "crashed pilot" act and leaned onto his "walking" staff before limping into sight: "Please don't shoot! I'm not one of those thousand-teeth monsters. I just crashed on this mossy rock and looking for a way off world." As Kel appeared in the open, he saw the person they were probably after: a Gran snuggling on the ground. Trak Almir (if that was him) certainly looked worse for wear: bandages on an arm and a leg indicated that he had had his own run-in with local wildlife. But right now he had bigger problems: the Doctor was looking up the barrel of blaster pistol aimed at him by a Zabrak mercenary.

However, it wasn't the Zabrak who had noticed Kel. In fact, the Iridonian didn't even divert his attention from his target, apart from a sideways glance. It was his Weequay accomplice who now held Kel at gunpoint. "That's close enough. How many more of you are out there? And what the kriff happened aboard that liner?"

Kel imitated a grunt as he came to a stop, leaning on his staff again: "It's just me. The rest..." the scoundrel paused and scoffed, continuing somewhat sarcastically. "The rest became brunch or munch for local wildlife..." Kel shrugged, lowering his head: "Hopefully, the ranger kriffards as well. They were hauling me for detention when someone stirred up the poodoo aboard. A firefight happened, the liner crashed, the rangers and those other guys kicked the bucket, and now I'm here..."

He raised his head to look at the two armed goons and see if his story was working. Not to mention that he needed to see if any more pirates were around. Whether his teammates had heard the commotion remained to be seen...

Spoiler: Dice and OOC

Good luck at finding the Gran; bad luck at keeping a low profile.

P.S. Feel free to interrupt if you disagree with the action, and I'll adjust it accordingly. I just had to figure out how to account for the dice roll.

@ModernMarvel, @TerranSteel, @Reyn, @Nefieslab

 

[Brienna Lanaamer]

As they walked, Bri was glad to see Izel address the Senior Ranger for his repeated derogatory comments towards her. In her travels across the galaxy, the Knight felt like she had met many people like Lorcan the Sector Ranger. Crass, rude, brash, and seemingly faking a tough outer exterior. Bri listened to the conversation further, finding the Ranger’s excuse of ‘not meaning anything by it’ as severely lacking. There was no point to use prejudiced terms for flippant, non-existent reasons. His follow up comment about hating the Jedi Order elicited an eye roll from Bri. The Knight knew that no Jedi was perfect, and indeed there were past issues, but the ignorance on display bothered her for some reason. The quicker she could be finished with the Ranger could not come soon enough. Bri offered a knowing glance in the direction of the Vratix padawan.

Bri crossed her arms and watched as Izel used the force to attempt to sense the location of the missing Gran scientist. Despite not being able to pin point exactly the whereabouts, the Knight was impressed that the Padawan was able to lead them in the right direction. Sensing direction using the force was no easy task, especially in the crowded, dense jungle of Dxun.

The group continued on, trudging through dense brush, before the Senior Ranger stopped them, pointing out the footsteps that had tread before them. Almost immediately thereafter, the criminal suggested splitting up in order to cover more ground, and prevent an ambush. Bri wasn’t exactly in accordance with these suggestions, thinking that splitting up would just make them easier to eliminate by the viscous creatures. Nevertheless, before she could object, the criminal had taken his own advice and sneaked away from the group. It didn’t take a genius to see the clear attempt at evading his captors.

Bri quietly motioned for the others to follow, following the trail. She stopped abruptly, having heard voices in the clearing right in front of them. One of the few positives that Dxun presented was the ability to use the thick jungle foliage to conceal a hiding location. The scene in front of the Knight appeared to be precariously poised. A Gran lay struggling on the ground, obviously wounded. Bri judged this to be their Dr. Almir. The criminal, meanwhile, was attempting to talk his way out of having a blaster pointed at his face, with mixed results.

The Knight looked behind to see if the others had followed, choosing to wait to bail out the criminal until the precise opportune moment. One false move and they could all end up jumping from the frying pan to the proverbial fire.

 

[Corran Velt]

In the clearing caused by the downed escape pod, Corran took a knee to rest his legs a bit. The journey even here had been laborious and tense with danger. As the junior Ranger caught his breath,, he observed the alien Jedi - Izel, wasn’t it? - seem to move about and feel in various directions.Whatever she was doing, the strength soon left her and surprisingly the Jedi provided directions to the doctor, if vaguely. Corran shook his head to himself in disbelief. How could so few be born with some innate connection to a magical power and others, like him, never feel it at all. Vitality recovered, the young Ranger got to his feet and stopped beside Izel, “Take it easy if you need to. Pushing yourself too hard can burn all the strength you need to make it out of here.” Corran then gave a curt but respectful nod to Bri as he departed to follow Lorcan.

The junior Ranger wasn’t sure why he said it. Maybe because it was good advice. Maybe it was because the force-user had been speaking with Lorcan earlier, and though he couldn’t make out the conversation from the front of the group, he knew Lorcan was often a bit rough around the edges. The great irony was that Lorcan had given Corran the same advice earlier. It applied to everyone and maybe it was his little way of passing good advice along.

The rest of the march went better than expected. No animal or pirate attacks. Unfortunately, they didn’t discover any other survivors either. The senior Ranger led the way and that made Corran feel at ease. That is until Dryden took matters into his own hands to scout ahead. The junior Ranger didn’t trust it but he’d lost the trail of the suspect. Vanished into the underbrush. Bri, the human Jedi, motioned for the group to follow her though. He followed obediently until she stopped so suddenly that the junior Ranger almost collided right into her. Kneeling down next to the human Jedi, Corran grimaced with barely hidden disgust. “He’s going to hand us over,” the young man said in a harsh whisper, "... but not if we move first. Cover me." The zealous Ranger tapped Bri on the shoulder and signaled to Lorcan he was moving out.

Crouched low, rifle in hand, Corran waded through the thick brush. Breath steady and moving one foot methodically after the other, he avoided making any sounds. A large tree, split in the center of the trunk, provided the perfect vantage point to rest his rifle. Sweat dripped down the junior Ranger's forehead as he adjusted the scope on the rifle and lined up the shots. The static still obscured much of the view, but it provided enough zoom to make it all possible. The targeting reticule hovered on Dryden's back. Shallow breaths were the only audible sounds in Corran's ears. The rifle barrel shifted slowly. Two blue bursts erupted into the clearing. The pirates jittered and convulsed until they planted face-down into the dirt.

Suddenly, three more rushed from the brush on the other side of the clearing and began spraying red lasers all through the jungle. They reacted to the only information they knew - something had opened fire on them from that direction and didn't account for the Gran on the forest floor or Kel.

Bolts slammed into leaves, bushes, branches, and trees all around the Ranger. He pressed his back against the split tree and slid to the ground. It was the best and last cover until something interrupted the torrent of enemy fire.

 

[Izel Thral]

Izel was disappointed by the senior Ranger's response. It seemed that she had inadvertently frustrated him further. He said not to take things personally, but how could she not when he held such obvious disdain for an Order she had chosen to be a part of? Institutions and the people that comprised them were not so easily separated, and that kind of contempt on the macro level would undoubtably trickle down to an individual level as well. It already seemed like he had prejudged both her and Bri despite them making every effort to assist the rangers. She had hoped that the ranger would make an effort to provide a good example for his own organization as well, but if Izel was to judge the Sector Rangers solely from how he had conducted himself she would never want to call on them for help were she a common civilian.

Fortunately the junior Ranger seemed to be much more commendable in his approach to doing his job, if not a bit rigid. As Corran offered her some advice the Padawan bowed her head respectfully to him. "Thank you, I'll be fine." She replied. Even with her Force powers drained for the time being she had training and experience to fall back on. She had no intentions of being useless for this expedition.

She was pleased that her efforts were not in vain, as following up on the lead she had found Lorcan was able to locate the trail of the Gran scientist. She was however less pleased with the fugitive's sudden offer to scout ahead. "We should spread out a little. It'll be harder to ambush us that way. In fact, I'll take point. I might look the least suspicious and dangerous of you lot." The Vratix tilted her head in response. Had he learned nothing from what they'd experienced so far? Separated they'd be easy picking for the local predators, if not any pirates laying in wait. "That's a horrible idea..." She said bluntly, but the fugitive didn't bother to listen to any objections, simply turning around and charging off into the brush. Izel and the others followed from a distance, only to find he had walked right into the pirates and got himself caught.

From how things seemed to be going Izel disagreed with Corran that the fugitive was about to hand them over, but she still suspected he might have run off in an attempt to capture Dr. Almir for himself before they could rescue him. He seemed to be worth quite a lot to these criminals. Before she could voice these suspicions however the junior Ranger engaged the pirates. He succeeded in taking down the two that were holding Dr. Almir and Dryden hostage, only for three more pirates to reveal themselves and begin firing wildly in their direction.

While they had the cover of the underbrush to rely on the Gran and the fugitive were out in the open, left completely vulnerable. Rather then using the Force, which she was still drained of, the Vratix used her powerful legs to leap forward, igniting her lightsaber and landing between her allies and the pirates. "Move!" She shouted to the others while spinning her weapon and deflecting blaster bolts. Dr. Almir didn't need to be told twice, as he quickly scrambled to his feet and made a break for the jungle where the others were taking cover while covering his head.

Izel continued to deflect the blaster fire while slowly backing up, managing to reflect one bolt into the arm of one of her attackers. The pirate cried out in pain and fell to the ground, leading to the other two pirates retreating into the cover of the underbrush. They kept up the suppressing fire while ignoring their comrade writhing on the ground.

@Nefieslab @Catbert @ModernMarvel @TerranSteel

 

[Lorcan]

Well they found the Doctor.

After the pirates.

Well the Doctor wasn't harmed.

But he was still surrounded by danger.

So it was the kind of situation where things were halfway between alright and utterly karked. It would take literally a bare moment of bad luck and suddenly the Doctor would be in danger or dead. Being told to run was great and all but they needed to make sure that the Doctor started running in the right direction.

Rushing through the combat, Lorcan outright ignored the enemy as he dashed ahead and caught up with the Doctor. Covering him with his body, he grabbed tight hold of the doctor and began to guide him .

"Come on Doctor we're getting you away from this place."

Reassuring the target, he kept one hand tightly on his shoulder as he leveled his blaster with the other, firing into the body of a pirate who made to look at them through the cover of the trees. He fired three times, bursting open the young pirate's chest in a gory display that he mostly ignored.

"Package is on the move back to base." he reported over the com links as he stuck to the Doctor like glue, "Disengage when safe to do so and fall back to protect the asset en-route to base."

Killing pirates usually helped the local area but killing these pirates was a distraction and a waste of time. The doctor was the real objective and he needed to be secured before they could indulge in a good pirate purging.

Spoiler: Dice

Extraction of Doctor is successful

@Catbert @ModernMarvel @TerranSteel @Reyn

 

[Kel Dryden]

For a moment, things were going fine. Kel even thought that he could figure out why the kriff those guys had gone such a long way to get that Gran. The pirates even seemed like they were lowering their guns. But then two quick shots from the bushes took them out, and more people started raining blaster fire in the direction of the clearing. Kriff! Kel fell to the damp jungle ground, the back and sides of his flight suit now covered in dirt. They couldn't just wait for a better opening, could they? That was Kel's only thought while he tried staying low during the firefight.

Meanwile, Lorcan has extracted the Doctor. The order to fall back over the comms was all the incentive Kel needed to stand up and get moving. Especially since the insectoid decided to take one for the team and drew most of the enemy fire. The scoundrel grabbed his electrostaff from the ground and hurried after Lorcan and Dr. Almir, away from the scene. Holding his stun blaster with the free hand, he took a few poorly-aimed stun shots in the direction of the attackers. None of them hit the target, but that wasn't the point.

However, when Kel was about out of the scene, a stray blaster shot hit his back: burning through the armor and knocking the scoundrel on the ground with a loud pained grunt. Now he was covered in dirt entirely. His teeth clenched, Kel tried to stand up, this time leaning on his broken staff for real, and not just for show. He holstered the useless pistol to hold to the staff with two hands. Using it as a walking cane and as the means to stay on foot, the scoundrel slowly retreated into the jungle.

Of course, Kel followed Lorcan's path. The bunker was the safest place around, and the only one where medical supplies could be found. If only he hadn't given the human Jedi his own stim...

Spoiler: Dice and OOC

Roll for trying to help the team while escaping.
@ModernMarvel, @TerranSteel, @Reyn, @Nefieslab

 

[Brienna Lanaamer]

Bri looked up, slightly surprised, as the younger Ranger tapped her on the shoulder, signaling to the Senior Ranger and the others that urgent action was required to prevent the criminal selling them out. The Jedi felt conflicted, hoping that Kel did not intend to hand them over to the pirates, but still had to entertain the possibility. Being optimistic also required a necessary dose of realism. Bri’s own inner monologue was abruptly halted as the action started. Blasters were fired, and the Knight spotted the Senior Ranger grab Dr. Almir and evacuate the area.

The next sequences of events happened in quick succession as Padawan Izel expertly jumped into action, blocking the in coming blaster fire. The assistance came just in time too. A quick jump and somersault vaulted Bri out of danger as three bolts singed the plants she had been hiding behind. Her comlink crackled to life as the voice of the Senior Ranger came muffled, but signaled the successful acquisition of the Doctor. A hasty retreat was required, and Bri ensured that the others were gathered around her, before departing herself.

The thick jungle of Dxun was already tough to navigate, but was made even more challenging by repeated glances over the shoulder to ensure her colleagues were equally safe. On more than one occasion Bri’s ankles were clipped by tree roots and only her Jedi training on the similar terrain of Ajan Kloss bailed her out from an ungrateful face plant. The sound of a blaster firing echoed behind her, sizzling past her shoulder with a hiss. Unfortunately the blaster connected right in the back of the criminal, sending him to the ground.

Bri immediately turned around and ignited her lightsaber in a flash, expertly deflecting and redirecting a few more blaster bolts. It was nearly impossible to see the pirate attackers, but thanks to a helpful assist from the Force, Bri felt content that her defense had been successful. Turning back around, she noticed the criminal struggling back onto his feet. Quickly remembering how he had helped her earlier in the day, Bri was eager to return the favor. “Here, let me help,” she offered, taking the criminals arm over her shoulders to relieve some pressure from his legs.

“Don’t worry, we’re nearly there,” Bri added with a friendly grin, trying to sound reassuring.

Spoiler: OOC

Dice roll for helping Kel. @Nefieslab @Catbert @Reyn @TerranSteel

 

[Corran Velt]

The junior Ranger immediately noticed the reduction of incoming fire. Glancing around the edge of the split tree, Corran witnessed Izel deflecting blasts with ease. He’d never seen anything like it. These Jedi seemed to have an endless amount of power compared to a normal citizen of the galaxy. The Ranger’s headset barked to life with Lorcan’s orders, commanding them to action.

“Affirmative. Falling back, sir,” Corran replied into his commlink and pushed himself off the split tree he had used as cover. The foliage around it had been savaged and blasted to pieces. The force-users had performed super-natural feats in driving off the pirates and providing much needed cover for the Junior Ranger’s relocation. Falling back several meters, Corran set up a new support position and waited for the others move past him. Bri passed by, holding Dryden upright. His wounds looked serious. The Ranger gave a nod as they passed by, before opening covering fire. He rose to his feet and shot wildly from the hip. There was no need to hit target, just to suppress the pirates long enough for the group to make their escape and vanish into the jungle.

Blue lights thwacked against trees and tore leaves asunder as laser fire was disperse in a 180 degree arc, sweeping back and forth. No enemy fire returned. Taking one last quick look for any followers, Corran walked backwards for a few moments before eventually turning his back and sprinting into the underbrush. With heavy breath, Corran spoke into the commlink, “I think we lost them, sir. We’re not being followed.”

 

[Izel Thral]

Izel stole a glance over her shoulder to see the Gran scientist being spirited away by the senior Ranger and the rest of her allies retreating as well. That was good, with Dr. Almir secure they had no reason to continue this conflict with the pirates. She was happy to leave them, as they seemed dead set on getting themselves killed fighting a clearly superior opponent. If they really wanted to die so badly she'd rather it be at the hands of the wildlife than having to do it herself.

Continuing to slowly withdraw from the battlefield the Padawan stepped over the bodies of one of the pirates Corran had shot at the outbreak of the firefight. Taking a few more moments to deflect some more incoming blaster bolts she quickly reached down and searched over the body, finding what she was looking for before completely retreating into the brush. The pirates pursued them for some time, but the efforts of Bri deflecting shots as well as Dryden and Corran firing blindly into the jungle managed to dissuade them from following any further.

As she caught up with her allies Izel extinguished her lightsaber and nodded to Corran. Reaching into her pocket she revealed a pilfered comlink. "This was on one of the pirates." She informed the group. "I thought we might be able to use it to listen in on their communications." Perhaps it was a longshot. The pirates may have seen her grab the device and switch the channel they were using, but the Vratix considered it worth the effort. The comlink might be able to help them see an attack on the bunker coming ahead of time, or find where these pirates were based on the moon. At the time being they had no means of communicating with Onderon to request rescue, and if they were to find any way of calling for help it would likely require facing these enemies again.

@Nefieslab @Catbert @ModernMarvel @TerranSteel