Blackwaters of Blackhearts [Republic 102nd]

[Dallen Thayne]

[member="Agent Darkstar"] [member="Erran Lanith"] [member="Symara Tarriq"] [member="Nom Gunnar"] [member="Caelag Vass"]

The stars blurring past the viewport slowly faded away as the Republic Frigate gradually dropped from Hyperspace over a seemingly serene looking world. However, in reality the planet was a clever staging ground for a pirate operation. Their base built into a rocky landmass nestled in the middle of the world's expansive ocean. Built upon craiggs and buried beneath the surface to a degree it was a rather intimidating fortress and to justify such a monstrous sanctuary the pirates had been thorough in its construction.

Though it appeared as nothing more than a industrial complex rig to likely mine for resources, forward recon squads had determined that the location was indeed the home of the recent raiders of the hyperlanes. Believing themselves secure from retaliation by being beyond Republic space and thus thinking they were unable to be tracked. For the most part they had been right, tracking where a pirate battlegroup had fled to after ransacking transports was a difficult task. The operation had been in the works for some time now, infiltration agents and intelligence operatives had worked to determine active pirate organizations that operated out of systems near the lanes under frequent attack.

Once they had pinned several down the Republic military had reconnaissance teams sent out to get themselves into the pirates ranks. In time the Republic would work to eliminate the threats they had uncovered to civilians and commerce, but the largest and most dangerous would be the first to go. It was safe to call the group in question dangerous even to an entire battlegroup, considering they were utilizing over two dozen recorded starfighters, with another squadron being discovered by the recon team, along with a modified corvette more than capable of overwhelming legally outfitted cargo transports and passenger liners.

In addition the base itself held over a hundred droids and several hundred criminal residents ranging from the main pirate organization's crews and base personnel to affiliated criminals and underground faces. Not all of whom would be combatants, but likely many would fight to flee or resist rather than simply be caught. Which would be a chore to accomplish given that the base was armed with three turbolaser batteries and eight laser cannons to combat them.

Yet none of this mattered as the Hammerhead Cruiser, Testament, began powering its thrusters to enter atmosphere, undaunted by the challenge. "Helm bring us into low orbit above the coordinates for the pirate's stronghold. Lieutenant Ree ping the recon team. Let the Corporal in command down there know we're beginning operation. Open shipwide communications once we receive confirmation the teams below are in place" Republic Commander Dallen Thayne stood to look at the looming world ahead of the ship, silently taking the view in until the ping on the Recon Team's frequency was answered.

Once it was and the channel to the entire ship was opened, the officer pushed his glasses back up his face as he addressed the soldiers of the 102nd aboard the vessel. "Attention, this is Commander Thayne. All hands are to man their battlestations. Troopers are to climb aboard their assigned dropships now, all pilots prepare for launch once we're in position or the enemy deploys their squadrons. Our opposition today is a rather bold group of pirates. Once we are in position over their stronghold, Rocket Jumpers are to drop from the hangar bay and make their way to two of the enemy's twelve landing pads. Once they secure a foothold our dropships will deploy and bring the rest of the attack group to begin taking control of the base. Our fighters will be outnumbered three to one in this engagement and will primarily attempt to clear a path for those of you in the RAETs. The Testament will provide support by occupying the pirate's corvette and their fortress' assortment of turbolaser batteries. So it would be greatly appreciated if you fine men and women getting your boots dirty could make haste in eliminating your opposition and taking control of the stronghold's defenses for us flyboys up here once the flak gets going. Our recon teams on the inside will hopefully have given us better odds in this operation with any sabotage they've done ahead of time."

Turning to see Lieutenant Vanquo at the sensor station signal that the pirates were beginning to move, Dallen would nod to his bridge crew as he gave his final words to the operation's participants. "May the force be with you all. Rocket Jumpers make your jump now and fighter jockeys get your birds in the air and engage the enemy squadrons! Dropships follow out in fifteen seconds. Lieutenant Sella bring the main guns online and turn the cannons on the approaching corvette." The space around their location would soon be filled with fire and smoke as lasers arced through the air to meet their targets.

The only question was whose cannons would stop firing first as the wrecks fell toward the water below.

 

[Caelag Vass]

Always behind enemy lines, always with little to no support or safety nets to pull her from near certain death, only the troopers at your back and the blaster in your hands. Honestly, Caelag thrived on this thrill, stalking through hallways striving to avoid detection and elimination. The Miraluka did have an advantage, of course, being able to focus and pick out highly likely enemy targets through doors or walls if she tried hard enough, though it was just a bare signal if anything. Even so, her primary weapon was useless here, the massive X-52 had to resign to being strapped to her back just in case the opportunity arose to wield it. As it was, she was walking with the T-600 blaster pistol and combat knife, opting for rapid and near silent take downs rather than her more familiar weapon.

Besides, it actually helped her work. Several fighters had been rigged to fire their explosive warheads straight away upon being powered up, and her three privates were rigging explosives on the main hanger controls. The corpses of the previous employees were resting in their chairs as they worked, trying hard to get the room ready to blow after they reprogrammed the doors. To that end they had brought one of the techies from the Thayne's crew along with, who was of course typing furiously at the controls. Things were progressing slower than anticipated, however, and she got a ping from the cruiser.

Not exactly good. She ran a hand through her brown hair, and adjusted her gear. She of course wore Recon-varient armour, the plates covering her rather nicely with the addition of her hooded cloak for personal taste. The hood was down for now, as she brought her wrist up to her mouth and spoke. She had gotten a lot of flak for removing the com link from her helmet and replacing it in her wrist, minus the ear piece, but helmets obstructed her view.

"Recon team to Command, things aren't going quite as fast as we'd hope down here. We can keep the doors open for now but I can't promise they'll stay open once they discover the presents we left them. Depends on how good your tech junkie can figure their codes out. Worst case the doors close after the first few transports get in. Oh, and try not to blow the northeast turbolasers to oblivion just yet. Over." She turned it off so the mic wouldn't pick up more noise as she walked over to the door and placed her head on it. Focusing... focusing..

Safe for now, all life signs she could 'see' were moving away from them and towards the hanger. By her calculations the rigged starfighters would go off shortly before, or shortly after, the jump troopers landed. Hopefully they didn't get shot.

[member="Dallen Thayne"] <I'm bad with the 'member' thing, it never works. Pretty sure I do it wrong... so... here!>

 

[Erran Lanith]

Erran was waiting in the hangar bay of the Cruiser, double and then triple checking all of his gear. He had to make sure that his armor was sealed, and his shields were working. He checked over himself a few times, and then ran a diagnostic from his HUD to make sure that everything was good to go in his armor. At the same time he checked over his squad mates and they did the same to him. He ejected his vibroblade and made sure it was able to eject and retract properly. It did its job perfectly, and his weapons were all powered up and ready to go. His jetpack was fueled up and ready to go; they would burn most of the fuel on the initial decent from the hangar to the landing pads. Dropping from this height and then activating the jetpack would burn fuel like crazy trying to slow down his body enough to land.

Klaxons blared through the hangar bay and [member="Dallen Thayne"] came over the intercom and started giving out orders. Erran listened for his orders and once they came through he pulled up the tactical map on his HUD and gave the base another look over. Landing pads 3 and 5 were close to each other and they had minimal turbo-laser batteries in place. To make up for the lack of turrets they probably had more infantry in place but Erran was confident that his troopers could take care of enemy troops. His men had heavy armor and weapons, and the advantage of coming in from above. They could lay waste to formations and bunkers before they had even really engaged the enemy. He targeted the two landing pads on his HUD and then sent the information out on his platoons HUD's as well, giving them a heads up.

"Alright listen up men," Erran said over his comms as his troopers got the last of their equipment together, "We are going to drop in from above, with little cover following us in. Our objective is to take landing pads 3 and 5, they are close together and they don't have any heavy weapons emplacements. Once the objective is secure we will reinforce the landing pads and wait for the dropships to come in with the rest of the reinforcements. From there we will wait for further orders, any questions?"

His men looked to each other to see if anyone had questions, but it seemed like everyone knew what they were going to do, and no questions were forthcoming.

"Alright, guard each other's backs and keep yourselves safe. 1st Squad, don't forget that heavy turret, we'll need it," Erran said.

1st Squad gave him a thumbs up and they started strapping the different pieces of the gun to several different members. They would free fall with it and then set up shot once they landed.

"May the force be with you all. Rocket Jumpers make your jump now-" Dallen's voice came over the comm and Erran cut the rest off with a yell, "Jump jump jump! LET'S GO!"

His men jumped out of the hanger bay and began their free fall towards the pirate base below. Erran waited for the last man and slipped from the hangar bay's doors and into the atmosphere. The wind immediately whipped him in several different directions before he spread his arms and legs out and got control over his fall. Once he was balanced out he tucked his arms and legs and shot towards the earth like a bullet. He got in front of the rest of his men and opened up his arms and legs again, slowing his descent. He would be the first to touch down, and this way he could get a view of what was going on around them before they landed.

Laser fire was already streaking the sky as his men fell towards the earth. Flak rounds blew up around them and black smoke covered the skies as his troops streaked towards the base. A lucky round burst near a group of men and 3 names suddenly went KIA in his HUD.

"Spread out more, don't group up! Head for landing pads 3 and 5, then lay down cover fire and regroup once we hit planetside," Erran yelled into his comms.

He got acknowledgements on the comm and his troopers spread out over the sky, trying to minimize the risk of more than one being taken out by the enemy ground fire. Erran rolled over onto his back while he was falling and saw the Hammerhead engaged with an enemy Corvette. Turbolaser and ion cannons lanced across the sky from both ships, but the Hammerhead had the advantage, and would make short work of the enemy Corvette soon.

He flipped back over and saw his destination coming up fast. He angled more towards the landing pads and saw several enemy bunkers and weapons emplacements on his HUD. He marked as many of them as he could before he activated his jetpack in his steep dive. He leveled out with the jetpack and then once most of his momentum was gone he hit the dirt running and made for the nearest rocky outcrop he could for some cover.

"Target those enemy emplacements I marked on your HUD's. Push forward!" Erran said to his men as he broke from cover and poured fire towards the pirate base. His men were advancing around him and had set up several heavy turrets already and were putting fire at the enemy emplacements. The real fight had begun, and they needed to break through the pirate lines so the main army could land.


[member="Caelag Vass"] | [member="Agent Darkstar"] | [member="Symara Tarriq"] | [member="Nom Gunnar"]

 

[Ria Misrani]

The alarms blared from the cruiser's communication systems, the tones meant to assemble into the dropships while the jumpers did their thing. Adjusting her armor, Symara looked down and sighed. It's been awhile since she actually got into uniform and here she was sitting in Republic armor. A hand to her blast shield knocking on it for good measure, Symara activated the HUD and took a moment to adjust to it. Her boots clanked against the steel of the cruiser's hangar while she marched into the drop ship and took a seat. Strapping in, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, drop ships were never fun to ride in and honestly they weren't much different than rocket jumpers.

Although how in the feth one decided they were gonna jump down like that, she didn't know. Her stomach turned at the thought of it. Hands holding on to the straps that secured her in her seat. It was like a roller coaster, you knew you were going to go up and in this case, you started up, but you also knew you were going down, rapidly and while transports did a good enough job of maintaining a stable environment inside - it didn't exactly hide the fact that you were going to plunge down toward surface at a fast enough rate that you might regret eating prior to getting in.

Symara spoke a prayer of sorts in old Corellian, keeping her eyes closed as she felt her insides lurch forward the moment she felt the transport shift. She couldn't feel the speed of the transport and that might be a good thing. Symara dared not open her eyes as the ships broke through orbit and continued their speedy descent behind the rocket jumpers.


[member="Dallen Thayne"], [member="Erran Lanith"], [member="Caelag Vass"], [member="Nom Gunnar"], [member="Agent Darkstar"]

 

[Agent Darkstar]

"Agent Darkstar, you're new emplacement is the 102nd, you will answer to Commander Thayne only. He's only been briefed on what he needs to know about Project Specter."

"Understood."

Darkstar moved over to his drop pod and sighed. Everything programmed into his brain had him ready for this, the fear of heights was generated from an unknown vector, and Darkstar assumed it was from one of the donors that made him. Nothing was perfect he presumed, and entered the drop pod.

"[member="Dallen Thayne"] this is Agent Darkstar, HQ told me you already know what you need to know about me."

Darkstar strapped in. He wondered if the man even knew that the Agent was aboard his ship at the moment.

"Preparing to drop behind enemy lines. Mission goal: Capturing of gang leaders alive for interrogation, permission to proceed with mission."

Two blaster pistols, a sword, and a knife was all he had. He looked like a thug, because he was meant to look like a thug.

[member="Symara Tarriq"]
[member="Caelag Vass"]
[member="Erran Lanith"]
[member="Nom Gunnar"]

 

[Dallen Thayne]

[member="Agent Darkstar"] [member="Erran Lanith"] [member="Symara Tarriq"] [member="Nom Gunnar"] [member="Caelag Vass"]

The battle for the pirate's stronghold had begun in earnest. The thundering cannonade of the Republic Cruiser's main guns pounding away reverberated through the air, bursting into intense explosions in the sky as the warship's gunners tracked the rising figure of the enemy's own capital ship. While it was merely a corvette class compared to the Testament, proudly sitting in the heavier frigate line, it was still a threat to be respected as its own turbolasers and ion cannons returned the Hammerhead's fire. Nonetheless, as the Republic Commander stared out from the bridge he knew that they still held the advantage over the criminal elements. Even modified the corellian corvette couldn't pack the firepower that a full fledged military warship could, especially one of the best frigates in production for the time being.

The real concern for Dallen Thayne was pirates starfighter squadrons, which they had in greater abundance than the 102nd's onboard compliment. They would also be a danger for the Rocket Jumpers if they launched and engaged the free falling soldiers before they touched down on the pirate fortress's surface. To that end, the Squadron Leader of the Testament's onboard interceptor Squadron led the 102nd's fighter pilots ahead of the dropships, rushing to engage the enemy's starfighters before they even got close to the transports and Rocket Jumpers. Although it seemed as if some of their work was done for them as Dallen saw the smoke plumes rising from the corner of the viewport, visible through the exchange of red and green turbolaser fire. "Commander we're detecting detonations within several of the pirate stronghold's landing pads. There are fires in three of their hangar bays, assuming the destruction of their fighters in those locations sir."

It certainly seemed to energize the flight jockeys as one of them broke into the open channel to whoop in jubilation before the Aurek Strike Fighters opened fire, their twin heavy laser cannons lancing into the outdated starfighter models barreling upwards from the craigs of the pirate base. "This is Green Leader to our sleepy friends in the RAETs, we have them busy now so please take up their former parking spaces at your leisure. Over and out." The flight commander was likely grinning as he made that statement, trailing behind a pirate ugly as it tried to dip and weave above the ocean waves before a burst of green laser fire tore through its metal carriage, ripping the cobbled together spacecraft into a burning wreck that bounced over the top of the water like a stone before settling with an unsatisfying splash and vanishing with a pillar of smoke to mark its exit.

it was going well, leaving the Republic Officer confident in the ability to secure the airspace. Or rather mostly confident as the Testament shook beneath a barrage from the much heavier turbolaser batteries built into the pirate's base itself. An event that was quickly followed by a report from the recon team. "Well you heard recon people. Ree ping the Rocket Jumpers Lieutenant Lanith and tell him to be ready for the transport landing. Then let the troops aboard the dropships know they have a limited window to reach the target zone. Then if our lovely recon team is still able to hear us, let them know we'll try our best to avoid targeting the Northeast guns, so long as they hurry once they get backup. I don't want to see how long the shields and hull can last under continued heavy turbolaser fire."

Seeing the shields flash outside the viewport, Dallen grimaced as he remembered Vanquo rattling off the actual armaments of the pirate base before deploying. "Lieutenant Sella get our quad gunners on the starboard side returning fire on the enemy's base, anything but the Northeast batteries and where our comrades on the ground are landing." The transports would be entering the landing pads now as the fighters danced about the sky, spiraling and spitting colorful energy rays of death at one another as those above and below looked on. Though those on the bridge of the Republic Cruiser shouted out in excitement as an explosion erupted along the pirate corvette's stern as a turbolaser round slammed into its hull revealing that it's shields had fallen.

Just in time for the next communication to come through from the shady source the Republic Commander was still unsure of taking on. "Of course Agent Darkstar, Intel has given me full notice of your attachment to the unit. We're happy to give the pals back in bookkeeping the room for their operative to follow through on their data. I hope you find some good intel down there for the future. Link up with a squad from the transports or the Rocket Jumpers once you touch down for support. You're best bet is to make contact with the recon team and see if they've got any clues for you since their infiltration."

 

[Caelag Vass]

From the current safety of the hanger controls, Caelag, the slicer, and her small fireteam could hear the entire commotion from both sides. Through their com links they could hear the task force's energized battle cries and whoops of joy. Through the command console, the dreaded cries of pain from the pirates, and their plans as far as inside the base. Yet, most of what they heard was utterly useless, until someone called out for the hanger bay operators. At this point, she hurried over and shut the link down, glancing at the slicer. "Lock what doors you've sliced into open and get out of here, we're leaving." Dallen's slicer nodded and hurriedly locked open two of the doors, though neither of them were certain if they were the intended doors, or both of them anyways. One they knew would be what was intended, the other not so much certainty...

And then the four soldiers escorted the slicer out of the room, and set their little trap. Enough explosives to obliterate that section, with a trip wire laser designed to activate after a brief period of inactivity *after* being broken. Delayed enough that the team that investigated would be, well, rather surprised to say the least. From here the job was two fold, they were to first link up with the teams coming in, and then apprehend the pirate's captain. However, before then she had a bit of an idea to make the situation up topside a lot simpler. Seeing as the NE batteries of turbolasers were somewhat in the way towards the hangers, she figured a small detour would be acceptable.

Moving slowly, the T-600C blasters in hand of all four troopers, and the slicer having a small holdout blaster for emergencies, the fireteam began to clear out rooms as they approached the batteries. First room up was a rec room, no one inside and no reason *to* be inside, but worth looking regardless. Caelag was not focusing her sight at this point, relying on her team to help find and get the enemies along with her.

Most of the rooms were unimportant, though they would find every so often a pirate unawares and take them down silently. However the room outside the NE batteries was much more occupied. One of the base's security rooms, and one she had her soldiers wait up at. Calmly she pressed her forehead to the wall and focused, five pirates. Five, two of whom were next to one another. One near the door, and the other two on different sides of the room. She calmly nodded to herself, and through silent hand signs told her crew what was going on. Then she drew her knife, and quietly opened the door.

No one noticed, and there were lots of walls inside the room, banks of computers blocking view for several of them. Perfectly, she quickly covered the closest pirate's mouth and plunged the knife right in his temple, immediately cutting off all brain function. She gently rested him on the ground and moved to the next, again repeating the process. This time, as he was possibly in view of another, she coordinated it with her favorite private, ending both of their lives just as silently as the first. By this point however, the other two were turning to find and talk to the two that had just died, and would see soon enough. A problem, but one they were ready for. The two soldiers drew their pistols and, as the pirates walked together between the computers, fired at once into their bodies. They slumped against one another as they fell, resting in the middle of the room.

Perfect, silent, clean. Unlike how the turbo lasers would be, but it couldn't be helped.

Then they moved into the turbo lasers and quickly split up, Caelag taking only the slicer as backup. Within moments, the air began to stink of blood and fire, as pirates noticed and began to fire on her small fireteam. Though, granted, they weren't finding their marks, as the team took them down with relative ease. The main problem for her was her own objective, taking the main controls of the lasers. The room was filled with troops, and the team was basically moving to every entrance to take them out. Her own route had no pirates, but the hardest to defend doorway from the outside. If anyone was getting shot, it would be her. And she was already at the door, waiting.

"Private Fleming, in position."

"Private Nobel, in position."

"Private Babel, in position"

She nodded and swapped to her T-998C rifle, flicking it into full auto mode. "Confirmed. Weapons free." Immediately upon this order, all four doors opened and the team began to loose blaster shots at anyone inside the room. A number of the pirates weren't prepared and were torn apart by blaster fire, however a few had their wits and managed to find cover, loosing bolts of their own. The entire exchange lasted roughly a minute or two, however, before the smell of ozone filled the silent air. The team entered, noting the number of pirates cut down. Caelag sighed and brought the slicer over, who began work on one of teh consoles. However, it seemed a single member hadn't died yet, and got up enough to fire a blaster shot. Caelag noticed barely in time, and moved to intercept, the bolt clipping her shoulder and sending her sprawling back. She fired the 35th shot of her weapon, ending the man as the blaster pack auto-ejected.

Fleming immediately began to work on CAelag' treating her shoulder with his plethora of medical supplies, as Caelag instructed the Slicer what to do. Prep the turrets to fire on their new targets. First, the SE and SW turbolaser batteries, if possible, then open fire on the enemy corvettes in orbit. It was easy for the slicer, who set in the new orders and set it on auto pilot, before both him and the team began to slowly move away.

Babel activated his comm link as they moved towards the hangers. "Private Babel reporting to Commander Thayne, we've disabled two doors and the NE turbolasers are no longer an issue. Corporal Vass has been shot in the shoulder, however she insists on seeing the mission through."

[member="Dallen Thayne"] [member="Agent Darkstar"] [member="Symara Tarriq"] [member="Erran Lanith"]

 

[Erran Lanith]

Erran saw the intel rolling across his screen that the transports were enroute to reinforce him and his men. Which was a really good thing, as he had lost over a dozen troopers already trying to advance on the pirates. Blaster fire shot across his mens position, some so close his helmet automatically dimmed the visor to save his eyes from the brightness. Things were getting out of hand, and he heard and saw the heavy turbolasers streak across the sky towards the Hammerhead still dropping off men. If he couldn't get his men into position and quiet those guns, they may not have a ride out of here.

"We have to get those hangar bay doors open and get inside. Those Turbo's are going to tear us apart up there," Erran pointed towards the sky, "As well as down here. The pirates have us bogged down I know, but if we don't get inside that base and quiet those emplacements we aren't going to make it out of here. So buckle up sunshines, we are going in hard. Grenades and rockets on these positions, and smoke here, then we advance up. Understood?" Erran got thumbs up from those near him and mic clicks from those who weren't. He put several red arrows on targets that he wanted destroyed and sent them out to his mens HUDs.

Seconds later what heavy ordnance they had was sent screaming into those enemy positions. Then the smoke came next, as much as they could throw. Before his vision was obscured though Erran highlighted several positions that he thought might be key for his men to make it to the hangar doors and sent the target designations towards the Hammerhead up above him, "Commander, this is Lanith. I highlighted some positions on the ground that are danger close. If you can hit those spots with some heavy ordnance that won't blow my men to shreds, I would appreciate it."

"Up and advance!" Erran yelled and broke from cover and charged forward. His heavy armor made the climb somewhat more difficult as the rocky hillside slid out from under his boots, but he kept on. His blaster spat bolt after bolt into the enemy positions, some scoring hits, others just keeping the enemies under cover.

"Up and over, Up. And. Over." Erran yelled into his comms, "Line with me, advance with boots," he barked into his comms and used his arm to point from his body and out in a straight line from him his side telling his men to get on a line with him. Others that weren't in line of sight but heard his other command were already activating their rocket packs and launching up and over the enemy emplacements. The men that lined up with him advanced in a steady rhythm that was inherently dangerous if combined firepower and anyone with a brain stood up from cover and saw him walking forward. This tactic was shock and awe, the men on line poured fire towards the enemy, and kept the enemy undercover and then those who were rocketing up and over either dropped down directly into the enemy positions, or off to the side and not in their comrades line of fire, and opened up on the enemy from new and unknown positions. Few things were as mind boggling as dozens of men landing next to you so hard the ground shook, and then decimating your friends with either hand to hand combat and close in weapons that would be all but illegal anywhere but the battlefield. Armor that was tough enough to stop blasters at point blank and could turn aside everything but a direct lightsaber strike, they could wreak havoc anywhere on a battlefield.

If the Hammerhead's crews opened fire danger close, it would throw the enemy into even more confusion, and that would give Erran the opening he needed to push forward even farther.

[member="Caelag Vass"] [member="Dallen Thayne"] [member="Agent Darkstar"] [member="Symara Tarriq"]

 

[Dallen Thayne]

[member="Erran Lanith"] [member="Caelag Vass"]

Dallen watched as fire erupted along the Corvette's prow as another turbolaser round slammed into its hull, battering the modified corellian starship and veering its downward as it attempted to stabilize and maintain its own outgoing fire on the Testament. The Republic Commander could understand why the captain of the pirate vessel appeared to be determined to stick out the fight as the Hammerhead Cruiser shuddered, the vibrations felt on the bridge as returned turbolaser fire struck them as well. So long as the pirate base's main guns were operating the enemy had a chance, and though odd the one in charge aboard the corvette had a dedication or loyalty to the leader of the brigands that was admirable in the face of potential death. "Shields at twenty percent Commander, diverting power from the port side array with enemy fire focusing on the starboard and prow."

Watching the feeds from the fighters and the occasional rocket jumper on the screens, Dallen folded his hands behind his back as he took in the unfolding events. "Commander, Lieutenant Lanith is requesting some pinpoint fire near the Rocket Jumpers position. We are also receiving from Green Leader a few of the pirate uglies are breaking away from the dogfights and are on approach vectors for us." Turning to look out the bridge's viewport at rising shadows over the water so far below, Dallen simply nodded. It would be difficult to tackle both the fighters and provide support fire ample enough to meet the Rocket Jumpers needs. After all, he wasn't going to use turbolasers on the base near their own soldiers, but the Quad Guns along the starboard side would be busy with the fighters.

At least, that was the initial consideration before the Republic Cruiser stopped taking incoming fighter from the pirate base's turbolaser batteries on the northeast side, and the guns turned their fire instead on the pirate corvette, scoring several hits that made Dallen sigh in relief as he turned back to his crew. "Lieutenant Vanquo, divert power from the forward turbolaser cannons to the shields. Ree send the infiltration unit my thanks and inform Lieutenant Lanith he'll get his support fire. Lieutenant Sella, begin danger close and get the point defense emplacements running hot on those fighters." Unless the Rocket Jumpers were looking with microbinoculars they wouldn't see, but the Quad Laser Cannons set along the starboard hull of the Hammerhead swiveled around, angling downwards as they locked onto positions fed in from their reports before flaring away with fury, streaking energy slashing through the air to strike the pirate base in several positions.

"Gunnery Crews report weapons hot Commander, the main turbolasers were overheating they're thankful for the break." Dallen wasn't interested that they were since that wasn't his intention. He wanted turbos offline over the ion cannons since a capture of the damaged corvette could prove more valuable than its destruction. Regardless, he watched as the pirate uglies flew by the bridge, their weapons splashing against the shields as point defense armaments lanced back at them in their pass. The fight was still going for now, but it was more in their favor, especially as the Rocket Jumpers received their danger close request and the aid of their colleagues among the regulars as the transports landed and deposited reinforcements. The Republic soldiers exiting their dropships to pour out and trying to catch up from their daring comrades in the infiltration unit and Rocket Jumpers so far ahead of them.