Ask Operation Zuri: Head of the Snake.

[Dax Ryder]

On a Gladiator Class Destroyer orbiting over Ossus, eight men from the IAF's Special forces Echo team were gearing up for war. Leading them was their new Lieutenant, Dax Ryder. This was not his first time leading men, far from it. It was however his first time leading men with so many eyes on the mission. Echo was to be the dagger in the spine of the enemy before the Grand Marshal's final assault on the Stronghold.

Like his men, Dax readied his gear. Standard IAF armor painted urban camo, along with his standard guns and kit. Save for the flashbangs he was swapping for "droid poppers." As was his usual routine before a the brief, he said a little prayer. Then, addressed the squad.

"Jack, show the holo." The BA-10 droid quickly floated over to the center of the team room and opened the projector atop it's head. Withing seconds the image of the "Stronghold" appeared. "Alright Echo, listen up. Command has given us the capture/kill mission to secure the "King". Knight Lann and I will have team one. Deez will have team two. When the main force starts it's assault, a Kaba shuttle will take us low and fast though the canyons a mile from the base. We'll patrol in from there. Orbital scans show old clone war era mining tunnels running below the base. Plan A, use Jack to scan a way in. Power isn't flowing above ground, so it must be in the tunnels....questions?"

@Eccles

 

[Vena Lann]

In contrast to the eight men of Special Forces team Echo, Vena Lann did not need to check her gear before their training exercize. Her armor was standard issue Imperial Knight armor and she only had two weapons. A white lightsaber and the Force. Especially the latter would be all she needed. All she would ever need to show these puny droids that the Force was strong enough to overpower all.

Lieutenant Ryder was assigned as the leader of the Echo team and as such her superior officer throughout Operation Zuri. She hadn't had the time to form an opinion of him yet, but at least his briefings were short and to the point. When asked if there were any questions, however, Vena did decide to prop up a hand. "The King's a droid, yes? Its droid brain should be enough for the intel?" she really did not want to be stuck behind enemy lines trying to transport a droid and its durasteel frame and weight back through old mining tunnels no one knew how ramshackle they might be. Training exercize or not, that King was going to end up in pieces. 'No further questions, Lieutenant."

It was roughly forty minutes until the assault of the main force, Vena wasn't sure, but she knew the lieutenant would have a timer going to the second exactly. All these military special forces types were the same in that regard. Thirty minutes later she entered the Kaba-class Shuttle and climbed into the safety harnass attached to the side. It'd most likely be a bumpy ride through the canyon, so strapping in couldn't hurt.

"Two minutes to departure," the pilot informed them over the intercom, prompting Vena to take a deep breath. Despite all her bravado and her little missions of tracking down the less talented Sith with those fake holocrons, she had never actually fought in a proper military operation. This would be a new experience altogether.

@Taz

 

[Dax Ryder]

Dax gave a low sigh as the Imperial Knight approached the rest of the team. Irritated by her arrival. Not by the female herself, War didn't give a shit was between your legs, so long as you were willing to fight. No, Dax just hated the fire speeder colored shoot that way red of the Knights armor. Sure, the finger wiggler had the force, but his men didn't.

In any case for this mission she was part of the team, and she would be treated as such. So when he asked for questions and she raised her hand, Dax addressed her. "Miss Lann?".

Her question was more a matter of fact. Of which the entire team, including Dax happened to agree. As if on cue, the team looked around at one another and then, without warning all unanimously replied. "Rodger, Rodger!"

With that the team returned to their final preparations until launch. Vena was right in her train of thought. Dax did have a chrono set. To the second, thirty minutes later they were all filing into the shuttle. The crew giving the two minute warning as the soldiers strapped in.

Even through her helmet, Dax could sense Knight's anxiety. The woman had super natural abilities, but feared flying. How normal, he thought. "Just close your eyes, breath in through the nose and slowly out your mouth. It's no different then those pumper speeder rides on Nar Shaddaa." Soon as he tried to comfort her, they lifted off. Sucking them to the walls of the shuttle.

Moments later the mock invasion was underway. Overhead the Imperial navy unleashed turbo laser volleys and ground forces moved in the meet the robot army. Just as the Commander had intended. The droids unleashed a defensive assault of their own. Heavy stun anti aircraft and EMP rockets filled the skies as the Kaba bobbed and weaved around mid air explosions and near miss impacts.

As the ship got close to the Imhar Canyon, it dropped to map of the planet. flying as close to the surface as the pilot's dared to go. "One minutes!" came the call over the intercom, Echo repeating, confirming the command. Then released their harnesses and stacked up on the ramp of the ship.

@Eccles

 

[Vena Lann]

Vena regarded the IAF lieutenant for a moment as he referenced pumper speeder rides on Nar Shaddaa. She had never gone to the Smuggler's Moon and never been on one of its rides, but somehow to this lieutenant she appeared to have. Perhaps it was her otherworldly good looks, or perhaps he didn't think anyone could've lead such a cloistered life. Sith Academies weren't everything she'd seen, but they sure did make up a large portion of her youth.

During the ride over she mostly did what she had been told. She closed her eyes, breathed in through her nose and exhaled through her mouth, yet it wasn't because she was afraid and more because she was meditation on the Force energies of the valley they were rocketing through. She felt the pilot's intention to bank left or right, his panic upon incoming cannon fire and missile explosions and by the end was able to predict the moment he told them the stronghold was in sight.

Vena unclipped her harness at the last moment and moved quickly to follow the Echo Team down the ramp. They had barely left it when the shuttle lifted up again and continued down the valley. In front of them was a dilapited, barred-off, mine entrance and it was now clear to the Imperial Knight why they had brought her on this mission. "Step back from entrance," she told Echo Team and its commanding officer as she stepped forward and gathered the force around the wooden and durasteel construction that blocked the way inside. With a fierce yank she pulled the constuction towards her, forcing it to crumble and joints to shatter as it skidded across the sand and came to a stop a mere feet from where Echo Team was standing.

As the dust settled it seemed like -after some initial rockfall- there was an opening left large enough to enter the mine single-file by climbing over some rocks. It wasn't great, but it was something that they couldn't have done without a Force user in their team.


@Taz