Indira was quite surprised when she received a message on Camilla’s transmitter. She had rebel communications coming in her right ear and a direct line to Black Death in her left. A mission was being put together and there were eight spots left open. After considering it for a moment, she decided to go through with it. I think this has something to do with that filthy half-breed I saw speaking with Zanne, Indira thought. I want to see what kind of leader she is. More importantly, I don’t want to see this fail. Whatever it is, it must be a big deal, otherwise Zane wouldn’t have come here personally. As much as she disliked the rebellion, Indira didn’t want to see them fail. They were on the same side. She was sure the halfie would screw this up somehow. I’d better go bail them out, she thought as she signed her name on the list and the officer in charge handed her a secret file with the details. She tracked down Daryn, her second-in-command, and met with him in the mess hall. To anyone who saw, they just looked like two soldiers having dinner together. She explained the situation and told him to take care of things in her absence. “This doesn’t change anything,” Indira explained. “I’m leaving you in charge. Get the stuff and get out of this camp in one piece. We’ll rendezvous elsewhere, after I’m done.” “What about you-know-who?” he said, lowering his voice. He was referring to the real Camilla. “Should we… get rid of her? No loose ends.” Indira thought for a moment. Killing her and disposing of the body would make things much easier… “No,” she said after a long pause. “Leave her be. I don’t plan on coming back, so she won’t be a problem.” When she finished with Daryn, it was time to head to the briefing. Camilla took a seat at the table and kept her mouth shut while the others spoke. She didn’t like the way the Rebellion did things. They were too timid. Indira and her men would never wait for the enemy to make the first move. Black Death always struck first. If she were in charge, she would go now and lace the power plant with so many booby traps, sniper nests, and anti-aircraft guns, not even a cockroach could get in without being killed a dozen times over. Then again, maybe that’s why she and her men were running out of supplies now. She had a penchant for overkill. To her surprise, a dark elf suggested something along the lines of what she was more accustomed to. Camilla couldn’t help but smile. I like the way he thinks, she thought. But he hasn’t gone far enough. She raised her hand. “Technician Camilla Azerin, ma’am. I volunteer to lead the advance squad.” What advance squad? Captain Kelly hadn’t even created one yet. But she will, Camilla thought as she stared at the filthy half-breed. There was nothing but admiration in her eyes… but deep down she despised this revolting creature. She’s a lost cause. If this mission is going to succeed, it’s up to us.
Doctor M Briefing at 1900 hours M wondered what they had planned this time. But a briefing normally meant one thing, a mission and he doubted it was peaceful. He checked the time, 6:30. M got up and washed taking as long as he could in the shower. It was peaceful under the water. He could think here. On his draws someone had left a rebel uniform. He ignored it and pulled on his coat bare chested. His coat offered far more protection than a uniform, and besides if he needed to transform it would be ruined. Giving his guns a final check he headed out. He drew a few looks as he walked through the halls of the base. Pixies were something of a rarity these days. There glands meant humans had hunted them like animals. They didn't like the pixies but they had no problem getting drugged up on their blood. The only thing rare than a pixie these days was a mere-folk. M reached into his pocket to fetch his sunglasses before putting them on. The dark lenses hid his eyes and stopped people staring. M reached the mission room and slipped in as quietly as he could. The room was full of what he assumed were the rebels best to offer. He looked up as the mission leader walked in, recognising the half-elf pilot. She took a seat at the front and after a pause began speaking. The plan seemed simple enough, that was good, a complex plan was likely to fail. "Aeros will be leading the ground troops to fight against any NCF ground troops they send in. What we need, is plan of defence. Perhaps traps and other things of that nature. Any suggestions." M remained silent as a dark elf suggested an ambush. He was about to speak when another woman spoke. “Technician Camilla Azeri, ma’am. I volunteer to lead the advance squad.” M wondered if there was an advanced squad. And would a technician really be the best person to lead it? He coughed to get people attention before talking. "No offense to you ma'am but if your a technician are you not better suited staying with ships or other technological things? And I would like to accompany the air support. If we do get attacked one of you can fly me over them and I can drop down and attack from behind. They'll never see it comming. And it may be necessary if they send judicators."
Alistair “Technician Camilla Azeri, ma’am. I volunteer to lead the advance squad.” Alistair started at the slight elven girl. He was about to object when the pixie Doctor spoke up. "No offense to you ma'am but if your a technician are you not better suited staying with ships or other technological things? And I would like to accompany the air support. If we do get attacked one of you can fly me over them and I can drop down and attack from behind. They'll never see it comming. And it may be necessary if they send judicators." "I agree with the Dr." Alistair said quickly. "If the advance team is sent in before the main attack, I should lead it. I have far more experience with black ops like this than anyone here. If the attack team and advance team are the same, Aeros should lead. No offense, but you're hardly qualified to leaf an infiltration." He directed the last part to Camilla. "You all know my qualifications." He didn't say it boastfully, but rather as one confident in his ability. "Aeros, what are your thoughts?"
Camilla shot the pixie a very sharp glace. She should probably keep her mouth shut. The real Camilla would never refute or argue with someone, especially over something so petty. On the other hand, the real Camilla wouln't have volunteered for this mission, nor would she have stood up and requested to lead part of it. I'm already out of character. Might as well go all in, Indira thought, picturing the poor girl she'd left unconscious, hogtied, and locked in a box. The real Camilla isn't here. She doesn't matter. "Technicians should deal with technical matters, such as the placement of traps and mines and setting up defense grids. I'm willing to follow the dark elf. I wish to be on that team, one way or another," she said, making her case to the half-breed. But she quickly shifted her gaze to the pixie from across the table. "Your job is to drop in and hit things, brute. Don't tell me how to do mine." She looked to the half-beed and smiled. Part of a leader's job was to settle conflicts. Let's see if she has what it takes, Indira thought. I'm going to make this the worst day of your life, little girl. Possibly your last...
Aeros "Aeros, what are your thoughts?" Aeros interrupted the tension, attempting to redirect the brief from any aggressive posturing. “There will, without a reasonable doubt, be Judicators, doctor. I think that is something we can depend on. I second your placement, you would do the most good attached to the air support.” He confirmed. "As for the technician leading the advanced squad, it is, needless to say, ambitious. It is also a risk, and an extreme one. I am left to ask," He said, turning to Camilla, "If she can justify the acceptance of the risk." Just then, a powerful knock fell on the door to the briefing room. “Stand by!” Kelly commanded. She nodded to Aeros, seated closest to the door, and he moved quickly to open it. “Brigadier, good evening.” He said, snapping to attention with a Rebel salute. “Please, join us.” “Thank you, Aeros.” Zanne entered the room quietly, followed by a female dark elf, and a female human. She strode confidently to the head of the room, and turned to Kelly. “I hope you don't mind, Captain, but I have a brief announcement for your team.” “Please, go ahead, ma'am!” Kelly responded. The Brigadier turned to address the room. “Good evening, everyone. I have two very important people to introduce to you. This,” she said, lifting her opened palm to the dark elf, “Is Lieutenant Commander Rea, special embassador of the UEFSF Scientific Division. She has come this evening to share with you a plan for the advancement of our, now mutual, cause. Please, Ms. Rea, the floor is yours.” The dark elf walked to Zanne, taking her place, and turned to the group of Rebels. Her skin was ink-black; it seemed to suck the light from the air around it, almost glistening in its thick, enveloping darkness. Her green eyes scanned the room fiercely and her star-white hair, thick and long, was wrapped tightly and intricately around and above her head. “Good evening. I am attached to the Sundew, and as you are aware, we have recently compromised our mandatory position of 'neutrality' by interfering in an NCF attempt to ground your evacuation shuttle. We have received much official rebuke for this, and it is likely that our command cadre will suffering longstanding repercussions for this violation of non-intervention.” She paused briefly, and took note of the edging anxiety creeping across the Rebels. “However... this young woman is an instrumental part of a plan to gather evidence that would lead to our uninterrupted and unimpeded ability to offer you, the Rebel Forces, our unwavering allegiance. Our forensic data specialists have created a set of forged orders for her, detailing her assignment to the NCF's specialist forces. Her orders claim her allegiances to be to the “Human League”, an extremist faction on Eris, much of whom are currently serving political detention sentences, while the remaining few are labeled a terrorist organization on Eris. They are known supporters of the NCF, and her presence will be perceived as a welcomed shot in the arm to their aggressive offensive forces.” She stopped, looking to the human woman. “Ms. Kate, why don't you share with the team your unique origins?”
Alistair Alistair's deep red eyes went wide. It was the girl whom he had fought the previous day. "You!" He said, leaping from his chair and grabbing a pen off the table. There were worse weapons to have than a pen. His first instinct was to attack, then and there. But everyone was looking at him. "Alistair, is there a problem?" The Brigadier asked calmly, noting the pen he was holding, poised to attack. Alistair's blood boiled. "This human attacked my yesterday!" He wished to the Makers that he could just pop a vortex into this girls chest and end her, but still, no one else seemed to have moved. He felt distinctly like he was missing something. He did not like that feeling. Then he noticed the dark elf woman. He couldn't imagine that one of his own would travel with a human without a good reason. "Sit back down and everything will be explained." The Brigadier said. Alistair still felt anger swirling within him. "Yes ma'am." He replied, his rage barely contained, and resumed his seat. He still had the pen in hand though.
Kate, awkward moments Kate was already nervous entering the room. Outside she calmed herself by talking to Nate, accepting his non-existent comfort. But now the feeling of pressure was even worse as she saw both Aeros and Alister gawking at her in surprise. "Yikes," she thought, looks like I have a lot of explaining to do. She was half expecting Alister to jump across the table and attack her. Clearing her throat and hiding her nervousness she began. "Um..." Um? that wasn't the chosen words? "Get it together Kate!" she thought to herself. "I'm from earth!" as the words came out tension seemed to lift off her chest. Her nervousness seemed to melt away as she continued. "From my world I can if I wish; see your world rise and fall with the seasons, now you maybe thinking that this is impossible." She held her finger up and wagged it back and forth, being a little proud. "Do not underestimate the tenacity of humans, we are a stubborn breed, and even in that hostile planet some of us managed to survive. I am one of those survivors from that world. One day ago I came to this planet from earth for the very first time. If you don't believe me take it up with Tal, he is the one who sent me. Until recently I had no knowledge of New hope. I didn't know anything about the NCF, or the rebels, I had not even seen an elf before." She paused gazing at their expressions’; one female elf in particular couldn't hide her disdain. "After I learned about your plight I vowed to fight against the NCF, what they are doing is wrong. Now I am human, and I will not make apologies for that!" She shot the elf girl and Alister a short glare before continuing. "But I pray that with time, I will show you that there is still good to be found in my race." Another pause, she stared at Aeros, the first person she had met, what did he think of her now. "All I want is for New Hope to be peaceful again. On earth we dreamed of coming here, we were told it was paradise. All of my family died agonizing deaths from disease and radiation trying desperately to come here, out of 1000 people, over 600 years we dwindled to only 10. I am the last of them, and I'll be damned if their dreams and efforts are crushed. I'll be damned if New Hope becomes just another earth! So please accept me, I'm on your side." She bowed, deeply trying to show her respect, her loyalty, Praying at least some one would trust her.
Kelly McKeller Kelly smiled deeply and bowed her head in respect to the human girl. Then, she turned to the people sitting at the table with her. "Kate here is young, from earth, knows next to nothing about the culture of the people of New Hope; and yet, she is willing to go undercover in the midst of those who feel no regret for killing humoids or even fellow humans. I see disdain in some of your eyes...but see that she is braver than most of us combined. Where we fight in defense of our freedom, Kate's intel will give us the opportunity to finally go on the offence...and perhaps end this war forever." Kelly stood and clapped a fist to her chest. "You have our gratitude, brave human. Your actions for the Rebellion will not be forgotten or under-appreciated."
Indira watched the earthling the way a bird watches a worm. She didn’t openly glare at her, but the directness and intensity of her gaze made it quite clear they would never be friends, especially when the foolish girl had the audacity to declare with pride that she had survived the devastation. She spoke of how her people’s numbers had dwindled from a thousand to one. That was the only part of the tale Indira enjoyed. The rest of it was laced with typical human arrogance and an inability to understand the hell they had created. But the greatest insult of all came when the half-breed bowed to this insufferable human. A halfie bowing to a human! Even you should know better, Indira thought as her hatred shifted back to the Captain. When this travesty finally ended, Camilla composed herself, looked to the human and spoke. “Welcome to New Hope, friend,” she said, in the most gracious tone imaginable. Kindness could cut as sharply as any blade. “I am sorry to hear your people perished in the fallout of the nuclear holocaust they created. I am sorry to hear you were forced to flee that radioactive dust ball so many of us once called ‘home’ before your kind blasted it into oblivion. And I am sorry to hear you will now be joining us in this war… which was also started by your people. As my colleague said, 'your actions will not be forgotten or underappreciated.'” She stood, placed a fist over her chest, and bowed at the waist. “Welcome to New Hope, human. I am sure many others have questions for you, so I shall take my seat and leave you to them.” She looked to Kelly. “But I do ask that we get this operation underway. I thought this briefing was called to discuss the slaying of humans, not have tea with them.”
Kate, the tension is riseing “Welcome to New Hope, friend,” she said, in the most gracious tone imaginable. Kindness could cut as sharply as any blade. “I am sorry to hear your people perished in the fallout of the nuclear holocaust they created. I am sorry to hear you were forced to flee that radioactive dust ball so many of us once called ‘home’ before your kind blasted it into oblivion. And I am sorry to hear you will now be joining us in this war… which was also started by your people. As my colleague said, 'your actions will not be forgotten or underappreciated.'” Does this girl think I'm an idiot? "I take offence to your words. My people didn't start anything, My people were ten sickly and poisoned humans slowly wasting away underground, some of the kindness people you will ever meet. And I did not start anything on New Hope, you can not blame me for the actions of others. What is more we are not trying to merely kill humans no, that would make the rebels just as evil and disgusting as the NCF, what we are trying to do is end the injustice done against you. Human or not the NCF must be punished." Kate was very upset by the tone of this girls voice, yes it was nice enough but it's word betrayed the elfs thoughts. To have her poor family even be grouped with the monsters who started the great war, was the ultimate insult. Had she not been so desperate to please everyone she may have lost it on her. "That is what the rebels are trying to do...right?" Her question was directed to everyone, she was testing them; what kind of response would they give?
Aeros "I thought this brief was called to discuss the slaying of humans, not to have tea with them." Aeros watched as the seemingly mild-mannered technician became increasingly more irate. Her ruthlessness is uncharacteristic of her rate... He turned to Camilla, asking blithely, "Camilla, if I may redirect this conversation for a moment, when did you join the Rebellion? More importantly, why are you a technician? Surely your taste for battle would be better employed in a combat role." He rose to his feet, and stepped behind his chair. "I will let you reflect on that question for a moment, Camilla. In the meantime," He pointed to the Earthling, "I think it is clear, young lady. No one in this room trusts you. I'm not entirely certain I trust you, either. However, it would be remiss if I withheld an important artifact in my possession; one that may, in fact, exonerate you of any guilt in this war." He reached into the pocket of his dark gray overcoat, and produced a small crystal sphere. "I believe this belongs to you, Kate." Aeros gently handed it to the dark elf seated next to him. "Please, inspect it, and pass it around the table, Alistair. This is a piece of equipment that some of you, especially pilots and navigators, may be familiar with. For those of you who are not, allow me to explain. This artifact was taken, by me, from Kate's vessel. In addition to the strange mechanics and primitive electronics of her spacecraft, including no radio-transmitter, or Interplanetary Vessel numbers, she had this; a magnetic compass, as her only means of navigation." He then turned to Camilla. "I hope I have given you sufficient time to consider your role in this rebellion. If you are willing to share, that is."
Indira could tell when she was being presented with an opportunity. If she wanted to reveal herself, this might be the time to do it. But she didn’t like to take risks. She was grossly outnumbered. There was only one way into or out of the room and to reach it she’d have to get by a dozen trained military officials. If she revealed she wasn’t the real Camilla and they responded violently --which they almost certainly would-- she had no way out. Therefore, this was a bad time. To answer Aeros’s question, Indira decided to go with what she knew of Camilla’s service record. The elf girl had said a lot before the mermaid silenced her. Every word was information she could use to steal Camilla’s identity. “I am a technician because technology is my specialty. I was attending university to be a computer scientist before this war broke out, but I won’t let my skills go to waste, sir,” she said, reciting the facts as Camilla had said them. “I joined the Rebellion six months ago because I felt they would give me the chance to do that. A little over a week ago, I was transferred here from Rebel Base 9 because someone felt there was a shortage of technicians here. "I don't have a taste for battle," she clarified. "I have a taste for victory. I don't want to fight, I want to win. If I can do that by laying traps, sabotaging enemy installations, and wiring minefields, I will do so. A single technician can be infinitely more effective than a gun-toting soldier.” She smiled at Aeros. “When people like me do our jobs right, people like you don’t get your legs blown off crossing a minefield.” She was exaggerating slightly. There was nothing in Camilla’s record about mines and sabotage. The girl mostly did computer work. Her most recent ‘mission’ had been to update the operating systems on the base’s desktop PCs five days ago. Her most dangerous assignment was three months ago, when she was tasked with shutting down an NCF missile launch facility. She was escorted there by a fire team and they encountered almost no resistance. Most of her assignments involved little or no enemy action. Indira looked to Kate and swallowed her pride: “I wish you the best of luck, ma’am,” she said humbly. “Human or otherwise, every successful operation aids the Rebellion, which in turns aids the greater cause of freedom. I won’t apologize for my words, but I will say I hope you return alive with the fruits of your labor.” The more intel you get, the more humans we can kill.
As they rode through the outskirts of New Hope, en-route to the power facility, Arun inspected the device he was to plant on the main reactor. It fit neatly into his gloved hand and looked almost like a bomb, but it wasn't. The device was a lot more clever than that. Arun had to hand it to these NCF engineers - they had made something to rival the sabotage technology on Eris. The device would hack into the mainframe of the primary solar reactor and plant a virus that would shut down its core for sixteen days - just until the darkness was lifted. As the rebellion had limited night vision equipment, or equipment of any kind for that matter, it would serve as the primary time to shut down their operation. They had met about two hours ago in Conference Room 211, which was much more relaxed than the previous day. In fact, nobody spoke a word to each other. The Deputy Commander briefed the NCF officers on their mission and introduced them to the mission leader - a short, stocky man that went by the name of Simon. Simon eyed Arun with particular disgust, and tried to sit as far away from him as possible in the artillery vehicle. He was an Exterminist, and of the worst kind. How a man like that had been granted a leadership role, Arun did not know. It must've been General Wilson's doing. Now ten hours until sundown and the NCF squad dropped Simon off at a convenient sniper location with a spotter. The rest of the team - the four Judicators, twelve NCF soldiers, and a bloodthirsty, enthusiastic driver - continued to the plant to make an entrance.
Kate Kate breathed a sigh of relief, grateful that Aeros had at the very least, counted her worthy enough to stand up for. The elf seemed to back off a little. But a question seemed to be bugging her as the topic of war came up. "If I may there is something I don't understand. Why if this world was such a nice place before hand did the humans and other creatures suddenly start fighting? Why do the NCF hate you so much?" She shook her head, a habit she was starting to do a lot. "Why does war break out in paradise? I don't understand how things were allowed to get so bad. Was not everyone living together peacefully before?"
Aurora Redd Redd oozed with excitement as she watched the plant come closer and closer into her sight. She still felt the high from the shot of adrenaline and the morphine drip that she had received in the infirmary. She was lucky to be found by the final patrol conducting the last sweep of the area that her fighter plane had gone down in. She woke up in the infirmary ward, drugged and bandaged, and then was quickly ushered into conference room 211. She felt like she had been rewarded for her diligence after the briefing concluded and her mission was given to her. After she was given a new fight suit before they took off for the mission, she located her goggles and spiked knuckle leather gloves. Her eyes rolled in the back of her head in ecstasy as she felt the sleek leather rub against her hands as she pulled them on. The feeling of her gloves triggered memories, memories of the chaos and suffering that she has delivered to the infectious humanoid race that has polluted their potential paradise. Once in the vehicle, she pulled back her fiery red hair and used her goggles as a headband to keep her hair from obstructing her line of sight, her vision was key. She couldn't help but twitch and shift around with the adrenaline pumping around in her system as well as the pure and unadulterated excitement this mission gave her. She drove silently, as far as the others could tell, but was screaming on the inside. The plant itself seemed to be acting as a magnet, pulling their vehicle closer to it. After Redd delivered Simon to his sniper spot of choice, she hurriedly stepped on the gas, the anticipation felt torturous to her. Her heart felt like it was going to burst out of her chest as she increasingly put more weight on the gas as to build momentum, for they were going to need it. Slowly, a dark smirk spread across Redd's face. Her eyes glistened with the craving. The craving to infiltrate orderliness with chaos. To find madness as a source of peace among the madness. Her gloved hands squeaked ever so softly as she gripped the wheel tighter. She gave a quick glance and nod to the rest of her party, her smirk growing all the more crazier as they braced for impact. Redd used the vehicle as a weapon, crashing through a wall under a guard tower, sending it plummeting to the ground, killing several guards inside. Once she crashed through the wall, she executed a very sharp J-turn and threw it in park. "Let's go, boys!" She called out, rapidly exiting the vehicle and pulling her M16 around from her back. She had crashed through as planned and now NFC soldiers poured from the back of the vehicle, armed and ready.
They crashed through the wall on the side of the entrance to the plant, completely knocking over a guard tower. The debris from the tower fell, nearly crushing them as it covered the entire entrance. They would have to drive out another way. The passengers in the assault vehicle shook from the impact, but quickly found their footing as the driver, Redd, abruptly stopped in the middle of the entrance to the facility. Rebel soldiers poured out from further inside, but that was to be expected. The NCF quickly got to their positions. Riley was out of the vehicle first, sword in one hand, transparent riot shield in the other. He was a menacing sight on the battlefield - tall, with a suit of black armor heftier than any of the other Judicators. The commander was often mistaken for an Ogre. The rebels opened fire, most of which was deflected by Riley's shield and armor as the NCF took cover around the room and vehicle. One soldier manned the 50 calibre machine gun by the rear passenger port, opening fire on the onslaught of rebels. The fire-fight provided enough of a distraction for Arun and Kerys to sneak away. They went over to the front of the vehicle, and then out through the main doors of the facility, as if nothing had happened. They quickly set to look for another entrance, one closer to the back, where the solar farm was.
Aeros "Why does war break out in paradise? I don't understand how things were allowed to get so bad. Was not everyone living together peacefully before? Aeros looked to the Earthling. "We haven't the time to answer you now, Kate. However, if we survive our mission, and you do the same, you'll find more than a few people willing to share our history with you." “Well then,” Kelly started, as a tense silence fell over the briefing room. “We've wasted enough time already. If anyone has any further objections, they can share them in the airship.” She smiled wryly. This is it. As the airship approached the power facility, the team could hear gunfire ringing out from inside the building. “We need to get inside before our ground forces are overwhelmed!” Aeros shouted over the roar of the three turbofan engines. Kelly nodded, and the airship dropped dramatically, cutting altitude by the second. Aeros' stomach tightened, and his diaphragm contracted; he held his breath until the descent came to a jarring halt. He, and three other Rebels, would enter through the roof of the building, once the attention was drawn to the remaining Rebel forces dropped on the ground. Aeros looked around the cabin once more. I hope I see these faces come home. Mid-thought, he realized his lungs burned; he was still holding his breath. He exhaled and commanded, “NOW!” Aeros was the first to jump. The airship hovered just twenty feet above the solid glass roof of the solar farm. The team could see the battle raging inside the entrance to the facility, 75 meters below, as white-hot rounds traced bright lines across the lobby of the dimly lit building. The guards had prevented the NCF from getting to the photo-voltaic arrays. At least, for now. He signaled to the pilot, and just as quickly as they had descended, she climbed above the surrounding buildings, and blasted off toward the entry of the plant. He turned quickly to his team, yelling to make himself heard over the powerful jet engines as they roared off to the second drop. "We have to make it to the array before the NCF does! If their intention is to destroy this building, they're likely to start here! Let's go! Aeros and his team sprinted silently across the 50mm thick palladium glass. They saw the emergency roof access just 15 meters ahead of them. It was unlikely that any round the NCF soldiers had could pierce the palladium, but secrecy was as important and safety in this evolution. It was imperative that the team reached the hatch unnoticed. Only 3 meter remained between the Rebels as they dashed over the last few steps of glass. They now stood on the outer edge of the facility, on a thick titanium edge, wrought with pipes, gauges, and service ladders. The four knelt down around the hatch, as Alistair removed a device called “hot knife” from his rucksack. In an instant, the black, 9 inch blade began to glow a blazing white and orange. He sank the superheated blade of the hot knife into the locking mechanism of the hatch. As the weather-tight seal popped loose, free from the pressure of the lock, the squad again heard gunfire leaking out of the plant. Alistair returned the knife to his pack, and looked to Aeros. Aeros spoke quietly. “We're going to open this now. I'm equipped for low-light conditions; I'll use my rifle's scope to spot the NCF. We need to be in place,” he said, peering into the glass just meters behind them, “in case they are anticipating our presence here.” He motioned to Alistair and the stocky, heavily-armored dwarven Rebel next to him. “You two keep watch at the edge of the glass. I will watch from the hatch. The squad nodded in agreement, and Aeros pulled his rifle strap, swinging the G36E into his two hands. He motioned toward the Orc on his left. “Open in three, two, one...” His eye was already placed on the scope of his HK G36E when a devastating explosion percussed the rooftop hatch. It was quickly followed by a blast of orange and blue flame, and the door of the hatch was ripped from its hinges, and sent flying into the black sky. The Orc howled in pain. Aeros looked up, realizing he was on his back. His was blurred, and all he could see was the Orc Rebel, writhing on the glass ceiling 10 meters away from him. As his vision slowly returned, he saw a pool of blood surrounding the Orc as it steadily flowed from his chest. Aeros groaned, choking as he pulled himself to a sitting position. Blood... it tastes like blood. Still disorientated, he looked around for Alistair and the dwarf. His attention quickly snapped back to the Orc as he heard a fragile cracking, and the sound of water dancing across an ice cube. The sound quickly grew, the cracking more thunderous, the glass beneath the Orc crumbled under the weight of his heavily muscled body. The Orc screamed as he plummeted the 75 meters to the battleground below. Aeros yelled in fright, and fought to scramble to his feet. He stood shakily, nursing his right arm, when a new sound came into focus. “Aeros! AEROS, DON'T MOVE!” It was Alistair. Aeros winced, and opened his mouth to speak; he was cut short as an enormous, thundering crack filled his ears. He looked down, and saw the rippling streaks of broken glass growing fast around his feet. The roof! It will break any second now!
Kate, the double agent Kate did not go with the other rebels in Kelly ship, no she took her own ship and too a longer route, purposefully trying to arrive after the battle began. Her plan was simple, she would crash land near the NCF and claim her ship was damaged by Kellies gun ship. She also would claim to be a prisoner who escaped the some rebel forces, and to complete the deception she ordered Nate to punch her in the nose. It hurt, but now she looked banged up and a little bloody, just what you would expect from a prisoner of war. As she neared the battle zone sending out an s.o.s signal to the NCF her sensors picked up a familiar signature. Her brain identifies it as the snipers pager, the man she had met before. She had already helped him once, she would use him again. Hey sniper dude, it's me the girl from before, you know the one who saved you from being captured. I was captured by the rebels and is currently incoming on your position. DO NOT SHOOT! Her ship passed over his head and smashed into the dirt in the direction of the battle, sending dirt flying up like a cloud.
Alistair The glass beneath his feet was deteriorating with each passing second. He stepped lightly and quickly until he stood on a support beam. Aeros was still laying on the glass. There was no way he could get up before it shattered, sending him a very long way down. "Aeros! AEROS DON"T MOVE!" He closed his eyes and concentrated. He saw the dark matter bubble, latched onto it with his mind, wrapped it around Aeros and lifted. He felt his energy draining from the exertion. Controlled reactions like this were infinitely more difficult to control than the unleashed chaos of a vortex. He went to one knee on the beam, as Aeros floated over. Finally when he could hold it no longer, he released the effect and let Aeros fall unceremoniously onto the support. It was better than falling the 75 meters. Alistair collapsed next to Aeros, panting. Below the battle raged. Aeros started up into the darkening sky and breathed deeply, feeling the dark of night rejuvenating him, slowly, but surely. He turned to Aeros. "Are you hurt?"
Indira, the stalker Indira didn’t say a word the entire way to the plant. Even when Aeros started laying out his plan of attack, she remained silently strapped to her seat aboard the airship. She noticed he didn’t mention her name at all. What, am I supposed to stay here with the halfie? she thought. Not a chance. She had to admit, the half-breed wasn’t half bad at flying. Kelly skillfully brought the ship in low for Aeros and his team to drop in. Indira already knew what to do. She stayed in her seat, as if intending to remain behind. But, just as the ship began to pull up, she unfastened her safety belt and rolled out the open hatch before it could close. She tumbled about thirty feet to the roof, where she landed as silently as a cat. Indira followed Aeros’s group from a distance. She hung back, lurking behind some thick pipes while the elf used a hot knife to open a door into the lower sections of the facility. He stepped back and readied his rifle as his team got into position. Suddenly, the door exploded off its hinges. Aeros was thrown back. An orc was sent flying onto the glass floor. Thin cracks began to branch outward from beneath the wounded orc. Indira moved away, so she was no longer standing on the breaking glass. By the time the glass shattered, she was already making her way around the metal perimeter, sneaking from cover to cover. She arrived at the door just as Alistair set down Aeros. Dark elf magic, Indira thought. Impressive... but nothing I haven't seen before. They were barely five minutes into this operation and one orc had already fallen to his death, their leader had nearly plummeted after him, and a third spent so much energy rescuing him, that he instantly collapsed. With a pistol in hand, Camilla emerged from her hiding place. She ignored the stares from Aeros's team as she walked to the edge of the broken glass and gazed into the abyss. It was a long way down. “Looks like you’re down a man,” she said, looking to Aeros. “Fortunately, a replacement has arrived. What's our next move, brave leader?”
Aeros "Are you hurt?" "No, I'll be fine. My scope is destroyed, but I've still got my front sights. I'll manage." Aeros responded, grimacing. Suddenly, the group stopped as they heard the soft patter of swift feet on metal. “Looks like you’re down a man. Fortunately, a replacement has arrived. What's our next move, brave leader?" Aeros wasn't surprised to see the technician standing before him. I should have seen this coming. There's something about this woman... never mind. It can be addressed later. "There's no time to wait for an airlift; and that," Aeros said, pointing to the gaping, twisted metal hole, "Was our only way in from this height. According to the facility's detailed blueprint, however, there is another service entrance on a walkway that extends the radius of the building. There is only one caveat; it's 30 meters down a nearly sheer glass precipice.” He stared at Camilla. It was the first time he'd looked at her since she asked for direction. He tried to discern her intent. What could she stand to gain from this? What ulterior motives does she have? What does she know that I don't? He paused, pushing himself to think first about the mission. I can ask these questions later. The Rebellion depends on us now. His expression reluctantly softened. “Any ideas?”
Simon ey sniper dude its me the girl from before you know the one who saved you from being captured was captured by the rebels and is currently incoming on your position Simon cursed under his breath. His Spotter had managed to spot the same dark elf that with the halberd that had attacked days ago, and Simon had almost steadied his aim onto the pest when his communicator vibrated. He had almost forgotten the thing existed; being made mission leader and all, he had been temporarily given much better communicators than the old one, which couldn't even recognize capitals and punctuation. The communicator was quickly retrieved from his pocket, and read with the same slowness Simon always had when an eighth of the characters were missing. He remembered that girl; she had helped that elf, like a pest-hugging Sympathizer. But, she had helped him later and had some remarkable abilities. Now, he just had to figure out what she was telling him: was she saying the rebels forced her to try and kill him, or was she joining his side? Maybe she was supposed to kill him, but was disobeying their orders? She certainly seemed like the kind of girl who wouldn't take nonsense, especially when captured by a bunch of the lower-races. So many questions. Well, he could have his flanker take care of that; the flanker's assault rifle and no-nonsense looks should make the girl talk. After informing the flanker of the situation with the girl, Simon went back to sniping the dark elf. The vermin was still there, lying down as though exhausted: perfect. Missing this shot should be impossible. Simon decided that, once this particular annoyance was dead, he'd contact Kerys and see how her and the pest were going along with the infiltration. Hopefully, the battle was still contained at the site of the vehicle's crash. He fired.
Captian Kelly Mckeller Kelly dropped off the ground troops and flew around the building hoping to draw the attention of the NCF away from the troops she had just dropped off. She spotted a set of troops rushing through the doorway of the facility. A warning light beeped on her console. The ship was detecting an odd energy reading making its way through the plan. It could have been a number of things...but it was moving thus bringing her to a horrible conclusion. The NCF had a bomb. "Ground troops, be advised. I'm detecting a strange energy reading moving through the main part of the facility. I'm 90% sure that the NCF have a bomb. I'll try and slow the progress of the other troops." With that she turned her head towards the crew manning her machine guns. "Fire away gentelmen. Don't let any more troops get inside the facility." Lowering the ship she flew at the lowest possible speed as a rain of bullets was sent flying towards the group of NCF troops.
Alistair Alistair felt the impact before he heard the shot. His shoulder sang with pain as his pauldron was ripped of his arm by the force. He had just been stirring to get back up, shifting his arm just enough for the hardened alabative plate to take the bullet. Still, he was rocked half a meter and rolled off the edge of the support beam. At the last moment he grasped onto the ledge and hung there. He wasn't ready for this. "Sniper!" He screamed. He dared not climb back up, so as his grip failed, he had no other option. He left go altogether and prayed he didn't kill himself with the insanity that had just formed in his mind. As he fell, he used his last reserves to toss a small vortex on the ground he was about to hit. He felt himself hit it, slow, and then was tossed to the side. He crashed into a wall, the wind thrown from him. He had landed in the middle of a battle, used all his remaining energy, and just nearly been sniped. He stood up, coughed blood, unleashed his halberd and started cutting down anything that was wearing NCF white and moving.
Aeros heard a crack, and watched as Alistair was violently ripped backwards by an unseen force. ”Sniper!” Alistair screamed. He was now dangling from the support beam, 75 meters above the facility's floor. Aeros stabilized himself and reached out to grab Alistair, his grasp missing by a fraction of a second. He watched in horror as Alistair fell through the empty space between life and death. “You heard him, RUN!” Aeros screamed to Camilla and the dwarf. The shot came from 160 degrees my position. Sniper rifle, high-caliber, probably an exterminist. “I'll lay suppressing fire, you two just make it to the hatch!” “Aeros, there's no way down! The ladderwell was destroyed with the blast!” The dwarf hurriedly proclaimed. “Just go, Haldrin! You'll figure something out!” “Aye!” Yelled Haldrin over his shoulder, already tugging Camilla along behind him. Aeros spun on the ball of his right foot, facing the direction of the sniper. He lifted his rifle to his shoulder, and stared balefully down its barrel. His senses diminished; his peripheral sight vanished to creeping blankets of deep shadows, his hearing dimmed until a faint, whispering whine was all he could hear. He felt nothing. His pupils widened across the sclera of his eyes, drinking in the light, and focusing his immensely powerful Elven vision. Then, and only then, did he see him. An Exterminist and his spotter, wielding the rifle, the other using an advanced scope to target their prey. Aeros waited, finger poised firmly over the trigger, until he was sure they saw him. He saw the glint of a light reflected in the cornea of the spotter through his lense. The man's eye widened. Aeros pulled the trigger.
