Rae watches 5 tinker and shakes her head at his assessment. "They never bother to update the systems." she mutters. "Guarantee the mechanics in there are all rubbish, too. Frayed wires, burst caps. Any way I can give you a hand?"
XJ7 emits a digital growl as he continues to access the controls. Of course I tried that! A moment passes. Frustrating! A few moments more and there is the distinct sound of locks disengaging both on the doors and the docks. A secondary claxon then erupts from the panels in the room.
I have successfully accessed security control for the complex. Everything is now unlocked...and I may have set off a secondary warning system indicating an illegal attempt to remove the ship...apparently the imperials did update one part of the system. We...um...well...everyone knows where we are headed but the ship is ready to go?
So let me get this straight, we've got to get across the ground between here and the Krayt's hangar with no transport, no cover, a docking control officer with a vendetta against Tok, and an entire shuttle's worth of Imperials on our tails, not to mention a hive's worth of scum and villainy in the employ of our ex-boss spread across Mos Shuuta hunting us...?
She waits a moment before grinning and adding
sounds like the kind of action I can get my teeth in to!
She gives her ComLink ident to R5 so he can relay her communications in case no-one else has a 'link, then slides open the outside door and vanishes up the alleyway.
Moving like a ghost and on the lookout for something that can help the team, she spots a rusty old speeder that would probably hold them all, presuming its ancient engine doesn't give out. She slinks over and after making sure the owner isn't nearby watching, is about to pop the ignition access panel when she realises it's long gone. Shrugging her shoulders she uses her claws to strip wires, twisting them together and promising to get religious with whoever's listening if this will just work.
The wires emit a blue flash and there is the ragged thrum of the repulsors starting up, just as Valkyr realises someone has run a repaired power coupling right through the nest of wires she's been stripping with her bare hands, suppressing a shudder she brings the comlink up
OK if you wouldn't mind exiting the building in a calm and orderly manner then running 100 feet south down the alleyway and across the road you should find an escape option open for you
she glances around to make sure no-one is paying the stolen speeder any attention, then stares at the unfamiliar controls of the vehicle before adding
and I hope one of you can drive...
Valkyr finds an old Trast A-A2 Light Speeder Truck. This one has seen better days, but it should suffice. It has four seats in an open-topped configuration in the front, and an open cargo flatbed in the back.
Rae stares widely at 5 as he nonchalantly explains setting off the alarm. "Marvelous. Well done." She replies. As Valkyr rushes off, she glares at 5. "The most armed of us just left. It's your fault if we die."
Pleased to find that Valkyr has a plan, Rae follows the instructions, and upon stepping outside, flashes a wide grin at the speeder. "Now you're in my world."
Jumping in behind the wheel, Rae cracks her knuckles and gets to work. "Alright gang, hang tight, it's been a while since I've had a busted old light speeder." Despite the words she uses, she clearly already has a fondness for what other's might call the vehicle's "character".
Revving the engine as much as one can with such a vehicle, she cracks another smile at Valkyr. "I reckon we have a ship to board."
Valkyr grins a mouthful of razor sharp pointed teeth at Rae then hops in to the front passenger seat, settling her blaster in an easy to maneuver position in case they have pursuers.
R5 trundles down the alleyway and activates a ramp at the back of the speeder-truck. He rolls up the ramp, beeping whistling in rapid succession. Once he reaches the top, he locks himself into place. His 'head' turns towards Rae and emits a quick whistle.
Valkyr turns to Rae
Right we're all aboard, let's go! I hope you have a better memory for the street layout than I do, I cannot recall how to get to the landing pad!
XJ7 offers a shrug to the Twi'lek as they leave and hops aboard as instructed as the group races to their destination.
Let me see if I can recall...
"Don't worry, I've got this." Rae replies with a grin as she guns the speeder, happy to be away from gunfire and driving a vehicle once again.
"Yeeeeehaw!" Tok yells. "What? How long's it been since you were in a speeder?? Might as well enjoy. he grins.
The light speeder truck slides out of the alleyway and into the Mos Shutta street. It s fairly crowded for the late afternoon, but there's no sign of any of Teemo's goons. Rae can move the truck at a decent clip down this side street.
After a hundred meters or so, the side street turns into the main drag of Mos Shuuta. Here, the street is filed with other speeders, dewbacks and banthas carrying cargo, and a throng of people. A quick right turn and it's a short run down this main drag to Landing Bay Aurek and freedom!
The Trast A-A2 light truck speeder handles like it sounds: solid but ungainly. Still, Rae has no problem guiding the bulky vehicle through the crowded street. Halfway home, you enter what would be considered the center of Mos Shuuta, a circle drive where three major streets come to together.
Easing the truck into the circle, Rae moves to go around a train of three banthas, their backs stacked high with goods heading into the Wastes. As she guides your vehicle to get around the shaggy beasts, you are confronted with the sight you feared most: three soldiers in the white laminate armor of the Imperial Stormtroopers! They are looking right at you as the truck comes in their view. The mechanical voice of the leader can be heard clearly:
"That's them! Blast them!" They heft their blaster rifles and prepare to shoot!
"F$@#!" Tok blurts as he stands and takes a shot at the leader.
"This may seem brutal Rae but perhaps you should drive right at them? They are well trained and should move..."
-Posted with Wayfinder
Tok's shot hits the leader squarely in the chest, but his laminate armor shrugs off most of the energy.
Having spent the last few minutes scanning the team's surroundings, the appearance of the stormtroopers simply elicits a grudging nod form the Selonian. She calmly takes aim at the leader, flicks the selector switch of her rifle to full-auto and squeezes off a multiple bolts of energy in his direction.
The flashing bolts of light tear up the ground all around the leader, before stitching a neat line of burn marks across the chest plate of his armor .
She glances sideways at Tok whilst still focusing down the sights of her weapon
We're going to have to buy you a proper gun...
The rain of fire wrought by her weapon discharge unnerves the stormtroopers somewhat
Valkyr's blaster rifle makes short work of the leader, and the collateral damage of her burst takes down another.
The last stormtrooper takes aim and shoots at Valkyr, deeming her to be the greater threat.
The shot impacts high on Valkyr's chest, the smell of burnt fur is overwhelming. The force of the shot knocks her backward down into the seat of the speeder truck.
More blaster bolts streak overhead and splash around the truck. Down a street to your right, you can see another squad of stormtroopers firing at you. Fortunately, the range and the moving speeder foiled them...for now. As you watch , they begin moving up rapidly.
WT 5/13
"Only Imperial Stormtroopers are so precise..."
Valkyr stares at the scorched hole in her top, and her eyes narrow dangerously. Somewhat unnervingly, as the smoke from her scorched flesh still curls through the air, she takes careful aim at the last trooper, flicking her weapon's selector switch to single shot and squeezing off a single bolt.
The bolt drills in to the stormtrooper's helmet, dead centre .
Nodding at the result of her shot, she hunkers down behind the scant cover of the speeder windscreen, the set of her jaw showing she expects another volley of blaster fire from the group in the alleyway.
Whipping the speeder around to the side, Rae blasts her engines towards the troopers, reflexively causing them to throw their hands up for protecting their faces. After only a moment's pause in that position, she pushes forward on the accelerator, blasting the ship forward.
The last trooper from the squad nearest you is down, leaving only the squad down the other street. Rae's maneuver causes a great deal of dust and sand to whip up, obscuring the speeder from the view of the troopers. Coms crackle to life on the speeders main panel. Sounds like news of the firefight is spreading...
As Rae struggles to maneuver the ungainly truck through the streets while blaster bolts fly all around, a Bantha panics and darts out in front of you.
There is a possibility the trooper are broadcasting on an encrypted imperial signal, I am going to see if I can find the right frequency and listen in.
"5" offers a laconic Oh! A Bantha! as he moves his hand towards the side of his head then moves his hand to the datapad on his other arm.
Not sure how hard something like that would be. Probably "Hard"?[/ooc]
Hmm. Maybe not...
The stormtroopers rush forward, appearing at the edge of the cloud of dust. Blaster bolts hit in and around the speeder. The sturdy vehicle rocks with the impacts, but it doesn't come apart.
"Boss Teemo says a thousand credits for anyone who brings him a piece of stormtrooper armor!"
Grinning at the sight of the troopers floundering in the dust Rae's piloting has kicked up, Valkyr braces her weapon on the side of the speeder and lets them have it, full auto.
The hail of blaster bolts chews across the group, inflicting significant damage on both troopers and the surrounding terrain.
I'm thinking we've outstayed our welcome here, and by here I mean any space near any Imperial presence...
Valkyr's blaster rifle cuts down two of the troopers, the energy of her shots burning through their laminate armor. The last trooper is buried under a crowd of people as the street folk try to earn Teemo's bounty on stormtrooper armor.
Rae guides the speeder around the panicked Bantha. As the beast rears, a large pile of crates and barrels tips over, blocking the street behind you. With a quick motion, Rae guns the speeder truck and you are clear!
On the way to the landing bay, chatter overheard on the coms net tells you that the word is out on you. Imperials, Teemo's goons, and others are out looking for you.
A few tense minutes later, you arrive outside of landing bay Aurek. From here you can see the main opening to the hangar. There are two guard droids posted outside of the large doors. They are alert and watchful.
Just through the doors, you can see the bottom half of the landing gear of a YT-1300. The KRAYT FANG!
Glancing with undisguised want at the landing pad, Valkyr turns
With the gear we have I can't think of anything to distract those droids away from that hangar. I'm loathe to start shooting again, but unless anyone has any other ideas...
the sentence hangs in the air for but a moment before Valkyr whips her head around and transfixed Rae with a stare
Could you rig this thing on autopilot to drive itself at the entrance? It could distract or destroy the droids and give us the upper hand...
I could attempt to deceive them but I confess I have little skill in doing so. It seems that removing them physically WOULD be the best course in this circumstance/
"Deception is more my thing ...not so sure about security droids but it'd be worth a shot. How detailed are the descriptions of us? They got visuals?"
The descriptions are out there, as well as the names. You know that from the coms chatter. They'll know who you are...
Rae is quiet for several seconds, staring at the lower section of the Krayt Fang. It's not until the other start devising plans that she snaps back out of it. "Racket we've made, they've got every damn thing." Rae mutters to Tok. "I ain't got any better ideas than the auto-pilot, much as I hate to destroy a beautiful piece of machinery. Then again, I s'pose I'm about to get a nicer one."
With that, Rae gets to work trying to rewire the autopilot systems.
Valkyr readies herself to act as soon as Rae's distraction hits the guard droids.
R5 rolls off the back ramp of the truck, setting himself down behind a pile of crates on the street.
The Trast A-A2 speeder truck trundles off towards the droids, slowing building speed. They do not appear to notice it until it is almost on top of them. At the last second, one them looks up and commands it to halt, but too late. The impact of the truck sends the droid flying backwards into the pourcrete wall with a 'clang'! The second droid can only watch as the truck continues to grind the first into gears...