Chapter 2: Forges of Ithyari

[Rogue 4]

"Right here." Layla said, walking forward to hand him the datapad she kept. She was forcing her body to decrease pheromone production but it was a slow process. Aston's focus on the task at hand despite this was a testament to how great an asset he really was. "Drop that grid like a bad date, and take out as much of it as possible...in scattered sections if you can. That way they won't know where group two is landing. Kilee, it's almost time to send out that signal, girl. I need you ready as soon as he's finished."

[Drake 53]

Aston took the datapad containing the Revenant starfighter group's insertion coordinates. "Thanks." He returned to his work, taking precious time to decrypt the sensor codes that would allow him access into the network. If he rushed, he knew that there was a slight chance that he would slip up somewhere and get them all caught. Of course, he thought, the longer I take, the more of a chance someone walks in and catches us. So, he worked as fast as he dared.

Finally, after five agonizing minutes, he was in. "Alright, I'm into the network now." He tapped a few instructions into his datapad and it began a transfer to the sensor network. "I'm uploading a little viral package I made up in my spare time earlier. Once inside the network, it will disguise itself as a routine diagnostic and maintenance AI, scanning each sensor relay grid. While that happens, it'll randomly chose a section of the grid, drop in a virus, then shut it down for 'maintenance', if you know what I mean."

The datapad beeped at Aston. "Alright, the package is through and will get to work as soon as I log out of this station. It will take about ten minutes for the grid we need to go down and another twenty for the antivirus protocols to purge the effected sensors, so you might want to let the others know."

Edited September 27, 2007 by Drake

[Rogue 4]

"Good job." Layla beamed at him. "I'll take care of that, you do your thing."

She walked over to the corner and pulled out her comm, making sure she had a good vantage point of the door in case anybody decided to interrupt them. "This is Three to Nine. Can you read me Nine?"

[Drake 53]

Takeshi had just finished changing out of his black clothes and into his Kruger Jast outfit when his commlink went off. He quickly recognized the transmission as being from Layla and answered it.

"Affirmative, Three. What's your status?"

[Rogue 4]

Layla secretly breathed out a sigh of relief upon hearing his voice. If something had happened to him before their earlier conversation could be resolved... "The Boy Wonder here says the program will do its thing in ten minutes, but we're packing up now."

Edited September 27, 2007 by Drake

[Drake 53]

"Good. Leave through the exact opposite gate you went in." He hoped that Layla would understand that to mean the northwest gate.

Since his team made it back to the hotel room, they've been monitoring the Imperial comm frequencies and Holonet transmissions. It looked as though the south, southwest and southeastern gates were now heavily fortified in light of the recent attack. However, the other gates were still relatively lightly guarded. The transmissions from the Imperials revealed nothing about the new type of wardroid the Revenants encountered, meaning this new menace was being kept a secret for now.

"Before you go, I want Six to search the classifieds for a new kind of wardroid in production. Have him get anything he can on them. We had to leave because a few dropped in on our party. They brought the house down, if you catch my drift. Over."

[Rogue 4]

Northwest gate then? "I copy. I'll have him do that." Layla replied, walking over to Aston. "We'll rendevous with you soon. Three out."

"Kenzie, can you check the systems for any unusual new kinds of droids in production? It'd be highly guarded and secretive."

"My kind of fun," Aston replied, slicing through the files once more. "Just give me a second, let me see if I can--found it!"

Layla leaned over his shoulder, looking at the screen. She whistled. "Those things look...lethal. Dumb and bulky, but lethal. Okay, download it to my datapad." She turned, looking to the group's other woman over her shoulder. "Kilee, you almost done making contact over there?"

[Ayingel 24]

"Just one more minute," Szen was just finishing the message she was sending to the rest of the Revenants above the planet.

"Done." And with that she sent the message to Captain Tunon. "And sent."

[Chickenman 9]

"Eltakan! There's a missile bearing down on you. Break starboard!"

It was too late. The missile connected, Eltakan's fighter burst into flame.

Sithspawn!

Aeric was jolted out of his nap by a constant beeping noise. The dreams were getting worse. Groggily, Aeric played the message from Szen. Satisfied, he commed the rest of the squadron.

"Okay Revenants, lets form up. Group One has cleared the path for us. Input the coordinates I'm sending you, and lets get to it."

[Princess 35]

Nima glanced at Arlan one last time. "Revenant eight here lead, ready to rumble."

[Rogue 4]

Nat transfered the coordinates straight to his navicomputer once he'd recieved them. "Five here, course plotted. We don't know how long this window is going to be, so let's hurry."

---

"Great. Come on, time to get out of here." Layla said, taking her datapad from Aston and heading towards the door.

[Ayingel 24]

Szen glanced quickly back at the men they had tied up on the floor. Giving a little kick to the leg of the closest one, she gave a satisfied smile.

"They should be out for awhile." Then she continued on out the door with Layla and Aston.

[Drake 53]

Takeshi was back out in the main room with the other three members of his team. He had kept them up-to-date on the situation with Layla's team and was now monitoring the encrypted frequency to be used to contact the spacebound Revenants.

When the message finally went through, he put away the comm and adressed the rest of the team. "The others were successful. Our birds in the air have received the go-ahead and will be making planetfall shortly. We need to pack up and be out of here before Layla's team returns. We'll meet them outside then make our way back to the ship. Make sure you get everything from this suite. Jya, I want you to pack up Layla's gear. Brier for Szen. Jaim for Aston. Get to it."

While the others went off to their rooms to pack, Tak did the same for his own gear. All the while he thought, Make it out of there alive, Legs...

[Vergere 1]

Brier nodded and got up to pack everything up. Working quickly, she got all of Szen's things stashed into the other girl's bag before working on her own. Checking the bandage on her face from the cut earlier in a mirror before leaving, she then grabbed both bags of stuff and met back up with Tak. With no smile on her features, she kept all emotion out of her expressions and postures. However, it was noticible that with a lack of emotion and without the smile she almost always wore, she was either keeping something to herself and did not wish to share, or was distracted by some thought or another running through her head. Thank you, Intel, for teaching me how to get emotions out of my features. Now, if you could only have taught me how to turn off feelings and thoughts as well.

[Rogue 4]

"Now so long as they don't get discovered we're good." Layla whispered to her as they rejoined the crowd. She looked around, familiarizing herself with the corridors. "We have a new patrol route assigned to us. This way."

She headed off towards the Northwest, stopping them at the nearest turbolift to the exit. They rode it down to the ground level and strode out of the building as if nothing happened.

After all according to their computers nothing had. It would be a while before they realized the bug Aston placed in their system. And by the time they did they would be long gone, and the rest of the team would be on Ithyari. She slowed down as she walked across the front property of the building, the strange sensation she felt earlier at the cantina washing over her. It was cold, sending a chill down her body that seemed to echo to her soul. She grew a shade paler, walking with the rest of the team out of the station. "We're probably in the clear but let's circle the block once, just in case, then head back."

[Drake 53]

One of the newly created wardroids, part of the HAX or Heavy-Artillery-Experimental line, circled the edge of the building on its programmed circuit around the relay building. Nicknamed 'Boomers' by some of the Stormtroopers, the HAX-series wardroids were build to withstand a pounding while dishing out mass amounts of damage in return. This model, HAX-005, calculated that the most probably course of reasoning behind the name 'Boomer' was due to the high auditory explosion created from the HAX droid's primary heavy weapon.

005's mechanical musings were cut short in the fraction of a second it took to spot the three humanoids walking towards the northwest gate at a brisk pace. The wardroid stepped up its speed. When it got to within effective human auditory range, it shouted to them. "Halt! Identify yourselves imediately or surrender for questioning! Failure to comply will result in termination!" HAX-005 began charging its primary cannon but kept it on standby, just in case.

[Rogue 4]

Emperor's black bones... Layla cursed to herself as she turned around to address the mechanical voice. Her eyes took in the bulky and durable metal torso and array of weaponry. One of those new models. Where's Arlan when you need him?

Maybe if I start some trouble I can at least get Aston out with that information on these mynocks.

Layla tried to keep the surprise and dismay from her face. Instead she halted, and turned to Szen. "Typical. You know, if we weren't both women we wouldn't have been halted from our duties for no reason. And now they're programing the droids to be sexist." She turned to the droid. "What's the matter buddy? I can't be a loyal, patriotic Imperial unless I've got a little something hanging around between my legs? Is that it?" Please focus on me and Szen...or preferably only on me. It'll be easier if I only have to get myself out of this mess.

[Drake 53]

The machine fixed them with a red-photoreceptor stare that didn't deviate. It's voice remained neutral and ignorant of the humanoid woman's attempted insults.

"Identify yourselves immediately or surrender for questioning," 005 repeated. "Failure to comply will result in termination."

The droid watched evenly as the young male of the trio began to back up towards the gate.

"I said halt." The wardroid lifted its weapon arm several degrees. It didn't aim it at the humanoids yet, but the gesture was intended to threaten, nonetheless. "This is your final warning."

Edited September 24, 2007 by Drake

[Rogue 4]

Layla sighed, rolling her eyes. She was trying on the annoyed, disgruntled guise. It wasn't too hard. All she really had to do was imagine how she felt every time she saw her paycheck. Insert drum roll here. "Fine," She reached into her pocket removing the ID Tak had given her earlier and praying to any dieties out there that this would work. "Here is my Identification. Both of these officers are associates of mine. They are unimportant of course."

[Drake 53]

Without answering or moving to grab the ID, the wardroid simply scanned the badge with its optical sensors. After running a quick security check on the ID, 005 said, "Zan Forrano of Imperial Intelligence."

The woman tried not to smile but the droid read the slight muscular tightening at the corners of her mouth. "Yes, that's me. Now release us so that I may go about my business."

"Upon cursory scan, I would concur. However, the HAX model droid is programmed to run more thorough background scans of Imperial personnel. You don't look like a male to me." The droid paused as part of a subroutine that allowed the stated information given to 'sink in' to the captives. It continued. "I am still running a search on your identity. However, your unimportant companions have been visually matched with two known members of the New Republic Defense Force." HAX-005 raised its weapon arm so that it was pointing at the trio. "You will surrender, now."

A few tense seconds ticked by when the information finally registered. "Bounty on Corellia...."

HAX-005 was suddenly cut off when a series of blaster bolts impacted its back armour plating. The droid pivoted around to locate the attacker and found another HAX-series droid, marching up from behind 005's position, firing its secondary repeater blaster.

"HAX-003, you are malfunctioning. Shut down, initiate diagnostic scan and await repair."

The other wardroid made a curious noise that sounded akin to humanoid laughter. "I don't think so! You Boomers are so clumsy but you certainly pack a punch." The droid that was, but wasn't HAX-003 looked to the three captive humanoids. "You better run back to the Lieutenant now. I'll hold this guy off."

HAX-005 was still calculating the probability of an intruder hyjacking one of its models when 003's primary weapon fired. The plasma cannon blast blossomed against 005's chest armour, melting through the majority of it. It had the right state of programming to send off an alarm to the rest of the Imperial forces in the area before 003's repeater punched through the melted armour and tore apart its internal circuitry.

***

Having destroyed the HAX wardroid, Teroch turned his own clumsy vessel toward the relay building itself and began firing as many cannon blasts into the structure as he could before the droid began to run low on energy. Having decided he gave the three Revenants plenty of time to retreat to safety, Teroch programmed HAX-003 to march into the oncoming squad of Stormtroopers and pair of Boomers, heading his way, and self-destruct once there.

The little droid set the dumb droid off on its mission, detached from the base of its head, then scurried off into the night.

Edited September 24, 2007 by Drake

[Rogue 4]

"Run, now!' Layla ordered them once the new droid spoke to them. She followed words with action, taking off towards the hotel as fast as her long legs could carry her. Things hadn't gone exactly as planned afterall, and she didn't understand how--

Teroch! That had to be that kriffing arachnid droid! And that stupid HAX droid...I hope nobody paid attention to what he said about the bounty. Maybe they were too afraid to notice. Blaster bolts I hope that's the case...

[Ayingel 24]

Szen tried her best to keep up with Layla. "What was he talking about?"

In stead of answering, Layla just pushed harder running to ignore her question.

She looked back at Aston and asked, "Do you know what he was talking about?"

But it didn't seem like he heard her either. Szen shrugged it off for the time being and continued running behind Layla.

[Andy 60]

"Huh?" Aston muttered to Szen, "all I got was the impression it wanted to kill us!"

Szen shrugged as they ran. And Aston made a mental note to do some homework when they were back at the base...

[Rogue 4]

When they were clear, Layla spun on Szen. "It was nothing. False data. His scan obviously didn't come out right. It's not even worth talking about."

Sighing she turned back around, continuing towards towards the hotel. She was surprised to see everyone waiting for them outside. She breathed out a sigh of relief upon seeing them, and realizing that they were all okay save a couple of cuts and scrapes. "Time to switch locations?" She asked, catching her breath from their run.

[Vergere 1]

Brier had put her goggles back on over her eyes, just in case they had another firefight on the way out. She nodded as Layla spoke. "Most definately. Things have been a little hot around here."