Send in the Clowns

[Vinn Esper]

Airen was in the process of setting her freighter down about a hundred fifty meters from the objective. Other Jedi were supposed to join her on this mission, but she wasn't sure whom the other Jedi were, or where they were. Truth be told she didn't care, she would do this mission alone if she had to. Airen was having a bad day. On top of being sent on a mission into Sith territory, which was stressful for any Jedi, she was having a bad hair day.

It was the stupid planet she'd been sent to. Rocky desert planets like Jedha and Jakku always messed with her hair. Not to mention, they were boring and stale. Airen exited the Freighter, after arming the security protocols. She was armed with her xpc around her shoulder, two sunspear pistols clipped to her belt along with her lightsaber. She was also carrying an extra clip for each gun. She was wearing a suit of Jedi Modular Armor which had been decorated in her typical fashion.

The heavy gear made the heat even more intense, but Airen wasn't gonna risk traveling in Sith territory without it. The rendezvous point was approximately twenty meters from her current position. She began to head in that direction at a jog. Airen really didn't want to be on this planet any longer then necessary.

The rendezvous point appeared to be a cave of some sort, as Airen got closer. She began to slow her jog to a brisk walk as she approached the cave. Such a place could be perfect for an ambush. Airen decided not to enter the cave. Instead she briefly allowed her presence to flicker in the force. If there were Jedi in the cave, they would feel it and hopefully come out. If not, Airen was prepared to destroy this Sith station herself.
@Vosrik @Shalken

Spoiler: OOC

@Valen Pelora tagging you to let you know the mission is up.

 

[Shalken]

Hearing the ship touch down, Shalken emerged from the little cavern that was only a meter or two deep. Back before his five-year sojourn in the Outer Rim, the Jedi would have complained bitterly about the heat; but now, he was acclimatized to extreme temperatures. Even after having just come from a planet that was frigidly cold, he was not bothered by the climate, though his suit's regulated internal temperature definitely helped.

Masking his presence in the Force, Shalken approached Airen. He wore all of his typical gear, but also carried with him an EMP grenade, a can of foam spray, and two thermal detonators. His wolf, Vaskr, was not by his side this time - he'd told the direwolf to stay behind. Shalken kept his presence in the Force hidden. When he reached the other Jedi's side, he spoke quietly, "Greetings. I am Shalken Tanari, and I will accompany you for this mission."

 

[Vosrik]

Five years.

Five long years of grueling training and working from the shadows, never truly revealing himself. It was time to finally return to the light, rejoin the Jedi Order and take the fight directly to their enemies once again. Vosrik and his brother responded to the call from Ando Prime while investigating the disappearance of a Justicar. Emerging from the cave, now empty, he followed quietly behind his brother to meet the other Knight. Seeing who it was, the former Jedi Lord immediately recognized her when they met on the forested planet of Trian many years ago. Orrin wasn't with him today, but Airen would likely recognize Vosrik's voice again despite the helmet he wore with the rest of his armour.

"Hello Knight Airen, it's been some time," he also greeted quietly, having his Force signature hidden. When they last met, Vosrik was just starting his training as a Justicar and forged his new lightsaber on the largely uninhabited Trian near Sith territory. As it turned out shortly thereafter, Vosrik's blade was created too quickly and he had to re-craft it on Orto Plutonia. Using Aranrúth was necessary during his time as a Justicar and working against the Empire from the shadows, but today he'd taken his original twin blades from his ship to use today. It was time people knew that Vosrik Tanari, the Lord who stripped his nemesis Kira Elan of her connection to the Force, had returned to the Order.

Now he'd been to some pretty nasty planets in the last five years, but this planet....well, Jakku was a junkheap. Clearly the Empire was making the most of it though, and this mission called for some demolition. In light of this, Vosrik had brought two thermal detonators and an EMP grenade to boot. He motioned to Shalken and Airen, beginning the short trek to the listening post. While destroying the control tower would be prudent, the communications disk would need to be taken down too. Gesturing silently, Vosrik let the others know that he'd go take out the control tower if the others could detonate the base of the disk right next to it. Crouching low among the large rocks between the cave and the tower, he crossed the distance from cover to cover until he was a few meters from the entrance.

@Vinn Esper @Shalken​

 

[Shalken]

Nodding to Vosrik, Shalken motioned to Airen and relayed lowly, "I can demolish the disk. You scout the perimeter," before heading in the direction of the structure. Moving silently and quickly from cover to cover, Shalken headed towards the comms disk, scanning the structure while also staying alert for any intruders.

Crouching down beside the base of the comms tower, Shalken noted a guard standing nearby, oblivious to the Jedi that had arrived on the scene. Sneaking up behind the guard, Shalken swiftly caught the man in a crushing headlock, instantly snapping the guard's neck and rendering him lifeless. About to step away from the man, the Jedi noted three thermal detonators clipped to the sentry's belt. ⁝⁝ Excellent. ⁝⁝ Taking the explosives from the corpse, he crouched up against the base of the tower once more. Attaching the detonator to the side of the structure, he then circled around to plant another, keeping a lookout for intruders and his body prepared to react at any moment. While Shalken would be more capable of detecting foes from a greater distance through his attuned Force senses, he decided to retain his stealth and hide his metaphysical presence from others that could sense him.

(OOC: Vinn Esper has left the site and will not be participating in this mission anymore. That being said, Vos and I will carry on without him. Also, seeing as Jakku is no longer Sith territory, we'll just substitute the owners of the tower with mercenary NPCs.)

@Vosrik​

 

[Vosrik]

Seeing his brother advancing to the disk with little resistance was a promising sight. Vosrik crossed the next few meters to the door, attempting to open it but finding it sealed shut. His mind raced, looking up and spying a camera locked onto his position. Whether the men inside were actually paying attention and had spied him, the former Jedi Lord didn't know — but he wasn't about to take the chance they had. Drawing his Thunderbuster, he blasted the camera point-blank with the heavy payload. Wasting no time, he aimed and obliterated the control panel for the door. It slid open immediately, revealing the entrance to the facility, surprisingly empty.

"I'm inside. No resistance yet, but keep a watch out for cameras," he relayed to Shalken. It wouldn't be long before the whole listening post was on high alert. Tapping the control panel to open the next door, Vosrik was greeted with blasterfire at his feet. Dodging back behind cover, he holstered the RXA-310 and drew his lightsabers without igniting them, taking a moment for the blaster shots to cease.

@Shalken​

 

[Shalken]

Receiving the message from his brother, Shalken inwardly rebuked himself for not looking out for them earlier. Quickly scanning his surroundings, he spotted a camera higher up the radio dish's base. Drawing his thunderbuster, he squeezed off a shot at the device, pulverizing it instantly. Another sweeping glance about the structure revealed yet another closer to the tower, which the Jedi dealt with just as swiftly as the first.

Having placed all the explosives at the base of the large disc, he rejoined with Vosrik inside the tower. Hearing the hail of blasterfire from the other room, Shalken slid up to the wall opposite his brother. While could make use of his EMP grenade, the Master decided to save it for later, instead drawing his lightbow and thumbing the dial to high payload. Drawing the energy string back and crouching down, Shalken peeked out for a moment before releasing the shot. Inside the control room were five guards, all of which had taken cover behind the consoles and desks that lined the room. Letting loose the string, the high-energy bolt flew across the room and collided with the central console, releasing a shower of sparks and smoke and knocking aside several of the mercenaries.

@Vosrik​

 

[Vosrik]

As Vosrik was nearly about to enter the room himself, Shalken returned from setting the detonators on the disc. Nodding briefly in approval, he noticed the Vanguard-Justicar had brought along his lightbow, something Vosrik hadn't done for this mission and was already regretting it. The destruction of the central console caused the lights in the facility to flicker and blink out for a few moments before a generator fired up somewhere deeper. Igniting his blades, Vosrik stood and strode regally through the smoke-filled doorway. For a moment, there was no sound except the hum of the twin lightsabers as the mercenaries recovered and got a glimpse of one of the two mighty warriors that apprehended them today.

Then they opened fire, shooting wildly in the direction of the Jedi as he lifted his lightsabers in ease to deflect the burning plasma and carve through consoles. The remaining men nearest the exit dropped their rifles and scrambled out of the room, running deeper into the facility. Turning to his brother, Vosrik took a look around the destroyed room. "Not sure what exactly this powered, but I doubt it was more than just lights and basic security. I wouldn't be surprised if there were more surprises hidden closer to the central control room."

@Shalken​

 

[Shalken]

Stepping in to assist his twin, Shalken ignited his azure lightsaber and readied himself for combat, only to realize that the few that survived had already retreated further into the building. He frowned, "Strange, it seems they have dropped their primary weapons as they fled, but they did not surrender. They must think they have some way of fending us off, even without the use of their blaster rifles. We must proceed with caution." Perhaps these men had hired a Sith to assist them? Maybe they were holding hostages as a failsafe. The Jedi found it implausible that they had time to install any kind of defense system, even a rudimentary one.

Despite the potential threat that lay before them, Shalken was unperturbed, and swiftly sliced through the lock on the door that blocked the two Jedi from their goal. The next room was empty, with several boxes, parts, and loose materials scattered across the floor in a hasty effort to impede the Justicars' advance. Casually stepping over or pushing aside most of the debris, Shalken cut through the next door's lock, revealing the reason for the mercenaries' actions: before them stood two massive droids, one of which turned towards the brothers and opened fire with its large cannon-arm. The second stood by, powering up, with one of the thugs working frantically to get them operational. Shalken's saber shot up reflexively, easily deflecting the first Endbringer's shot into the man's torso, instantly killing him.

@Vosrik​