Don't Tread on Me [Carida]

[Laira Darkhold]

With the Republic having inexplicably cut ties with ArmaTech Combat Systems, I became worried about my assets on their planets. Taanab had nothing of real value. The Research and Development Center was on Jabiim, and it was being quietly moved to Concordia. Only my factory and manufacturing complex on Carida had anything of worth. The data detailing how to create the Anvilskin Composite-Ceramic was located there, and, being unaware of what was happening I needed to secure my claim to fame. A small unmarked corvette was the first ship to arrive in system. And the only ship of mine that was needed. Powerful for its size it would be more than capable to do what needed to be done, and as of yet I was not barred from Republic Worlds or wanted for any crimes. And they were my facilities in the first place. Hopefully there wouldn’t be any issues getting to the ground. After all who would expect a transport corvette to be up to nefarious acts.

The twenty Arbiter armored soldiers with me gathered around me as the ship continued towards the atmosphere. They carried ACS-202 rifles and wore Icon-class Shields as well as Sky-Strike Miniature Jump Packs. This was their first combat mission, and it was of vital importance. My new allies with the Sabia Group were more understanding. They would arrive to cover my escape.

[member="Darell Irani"]

 

[Hira Mitsae]

[member="Draco Vereen"]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]The Techno Union didn’t really have any relationships of note with the Republic, that is… until the rumors started to spread that a certain Prime Minister held ties with the Rebel Alliance- a nation that certainly did have a relationship with the Techno Union. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Of course, there wasn’t really any substantial proof right now, at least not anything that Irani had personally reviewed and acknowledged. But the fact that the Republic was becoming so anti-company? Right when Genevieve had taken over?[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]That would raise questions.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]But those questions weren’t why they were here right now.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]The reason they were here right now was to help a new associate of theirs, Draco Vereen and his company, to secure the assets from Republic Space and help him move to the Techno Union. One of the few real safe havens of capitalism.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Sekairo-class Stealth Transports filled with Saiba Security Solutions personnel, cloaked and impossible to detect, would follow Draco’s own ship. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Saiba didn’t mess around and had enough toys to make this a very bad day for anyone trying to feth with them.[/SIZE]

 

[Laira Darkhold]

The ship slowly descended into the atmosphere, its hull heating up during re-entry of the atmosphere. Gliding gracefully through the clouds cooling the hull. Inside the ship, the twenty commandos and I were heating up. Our adrenaline pumping. Three Jobs needed to be completed before we could leave. The Data needed to be dumped onto a data spike, the computer systems needed to be wiped, and the emergency evacuation protocol needed to be enacted. Once those were complete we could leave and our allies would glass the facility, leaving nothing but burning wreckage behind.

Behind us, just entering space the Sabia Groups stealth ships slowly advanced on the factory. This attack, if it could be called that would be as bloodless as possible. The enemy didn’t know we were coming and the guards were my own, and I had always kept security light on Republic Worlds in the first place.

The ship touched down, and the ramps hissed opened. We didn’t know if the Republic would respond violently or if it would respond at all. At the end of the day it didn’t matter, only that we accomplished our goals. I couldn’t tell what they were up to in the first place, how could I judge what they would do. “This is Alpha, touch down and go for the Objectives.” I called over the encrypted comm-channel to my soldiers and my allies.

[member="Darell Irani"]

 

[Hira Mitsae]

[member="Draco Vereen"]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]There were three objectives with a fourth one coming in through the transmission, secure the data, wipe the systems, enact evacuation and make sure the reactors go boom at the end of all of this. Saiba Security personnel couldn’t really help with the evacuation, because pure technically? [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]They weren’t even here. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Stealth ships were unmarked, painted black with no signs, even if someone would see and recognize the design? The trail would lead back to a crumbling nation. Their armor was black and unmarked too, opaque visors making it impossible to disconcern their faces and IDs.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]So Saiba Security landed all around the factories and filed out of their transports, the security of the factory was ordered to stand down by Draco’s own command line. This made it all that much easier, no point in spilling blood when you were dealing with your own people.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]They would make sure that the data was secured, the computers wiped. [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Draco would have to handle the evacuation himself though.[/SIZE]

 

[Laira Darkhold]

We hustled down the ramp, closing on the facilities entrance, the commandos were here as guards really. Not as soldiers to go killing people. At least not mine. I couldn’t be one hundred percent about the Sabia Group, but they were here by my request. Comms buzzed telling me about a change of plans. Apparently we hadn’t been able to swing the fire power to burn the facility from orbit. We would have to do it through overloading the primary reactors. Not too bad of a change, but still an extra job. “Alright Group Two see to that. Group One will handle data and Evac.” I replied.

We pushed into the facility that housed the main computer, where the data would be held on a secure server, with no resistance so far. Good. It was quiet and very early in the morning, so the day shift hadn’t even made it in. With security alerted to begin quietly barring the exits, so that no one could enter, and having key personnel taken to the ship for planetary evacuation, this could go smoothly. For once a combat action might go according to plan. But just in case it didn’t, I had Mandalorian trained face-wreckers following me into this shin dig. I knew it would probably kill my chances of rejoining the Republic, but obviously they weren’t interested.

[member="Darell Irani"]

 

[Hira Mitsae]

[member="Draco Vereen"]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Most of the Saiba Commandos were equipped with Saiba [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Incapacitators[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6666666666667px], those things were nasty when fighting in close quarters and look? They were currently in a close quarters situation, Irani hadn’t really assumed that there would be a lot of trouble here, all the guards were hired by Draco himself, they were loyal to him and only him.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Which meant that there shouldn’t be any resistance, but if there was? Then at least they wouldn’t have to murder them, seeing as those weapons had a good ol’ stun option that would probably wreck anyone’s day for a few hours at the very least.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]The commandos split themselves up, some of ‘em going for the data, starting to download it through secure feeds and others were spreading out towards the reactors and computer systems. They would load EMP charges on the systems itself, waiting to discharge them only after the download was complete.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Reactors would be prepped for a meltdown situation.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Yeah, Saiba Security knew their shet. [/SIZE]

 

[Laira Darkhold]

We hit the mainframe room, seconds later the Sabia commandos, pushed in through the opposite door, securing the room while I made for the terminal. I would wipe everything just as soon as all the sensitive information was copied. I had the original from the first template, but it had evolved since being implemented, and I learned the lesson to keep better records the hard way. Entering in the fifty one digit code took a moment, but I had engrained it into my memory, and more importantly, it scrolled through on my HUD.

“One seven three four six seven, three two one, four seven six, Charlie, three two seven eight, nine seven seven seven, six four three, tango, seven three two, victor, seven three one one, seven eight eight eight, seven seven three two, four seven six seven, eight nine seven six, three seven six. Lock.” I said into the computer, its voice identification system and stupidly complex password was someone else’s idea.

The data dump started. Five Minutes until completion. Good. The other splice had a nasty virus that would be loaded on immediately following. That would take five minutes but would corrupt everything just in case the wipe missed anything. The EMP bombs would shatter the mainframe, and then the Sabia Group would be free to overload the Reactor while I saw to the Evacutaion.

[member="Darell Irani"]

 

[Hira Mitsae]

[member="Draco Vereen"]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Five minutes turned into four turned into three, two, one and the download was complete. All the sensitive and valuable data of ArmaTech was copied, secured, wiped and then the spike with the virus would do the very last bits of damage.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Which after Saiba would initiate the EMP charges just to wreck the computers even more.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Never accept half-measures, that was one thing that Irani had learned early on and imparted on the commandos that were currently doing their job. They set the EMP charges to two minutes and then left the mainframe, moving towards the reactor rooms to start their procedures there.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Would be a big bang.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]“Operator, would be a good idea to start those evac parameters, we are almost done here.”[/SIZE]

 

[Laira Darkhold]

“On it now, Two.” I called over the encrypted comms. The destruction of the Rankligde shipyards had been messy, had been intended to hurt the Republic. This was just grabbing my toys and making off with them. Evac protocols went live with a few clicks of the datapad. Sirens sounded and security started ushering people out. The evac was officially sounded my engineer Cole Brown, who noticed a reactor leak and sounded it. He would “die” in the explosion that would follow, while in truth he was one of the few engineers that would be coming with ArmaTech to our new headquarters.

We thought about trying to blame this on someone, but that seemed tacky and overdone. No this would look like a horrific accident, with only forty fatalities, that wouldn’t actually happen. A faulty reactor, heroic engineers and scientists attempting to shut it down, and then the terrible explosion that would take their lives. ArmaTech would pay severance packages to the workers and would pay out the engineers life insurance policies to the families, and then months later we would relocate them to Concordia where the engineers were heading.

The Evac was going well, only a few minutes left. According to security everyone had been taken to their designated exit paths. All that was left was to set the reactor to blow and leave ourselves.

[member="Darell Irani"]

 

[Hira Mitsae]

[member="Draco Vereen"]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]The commandos did what they were supposed to do, set the charges, make sure some of those regulations were broken and then get the hell outta there. The last thing they wanted was to stick around and watch the go full blown meltdown, because the whole factory would be blown to bits by then.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]Timer was set to 30 minutes.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px][ 29:59:31 ][/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]It would take a while to blow, but it would also take a while to get out of the blast radius and that was all that mattered really at this point. One of the lieutenants got in touch with Draco’s forces and send out the all-clear sign.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]“Mission accomplished, operator. We are filing out, charge time is 30 minutes and counting.”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6666666666667px]With that Saiba would start to retreat out of the facilities and load themselves back into their cloaked ships, ready to get out of there.[/SIZE]

 

[Laira Darkhold]

The last of the employees were evacuated from the massive complex, and with about fifteen minutes to spare. Part of me wanted to hang around, but as there were no security footage of what happened, any investigations would make it appear as an accident, and there would only be forty fake fatalities, I figured it best if my ship followed Evacuation Protocols and moved out of the area, taking its cargo towards Jabiim. It would look just like it sounded, a tragic accident, with so few casualties most people wouldn’t think to look into it. Of course there would always be conspiracy theorists, but sure, they can have taanab. It had nothing of worth there. If they absolutely had to have the ACS-001 Arbiter Armor they could. The Olympian was better and more easily acquired anyway.

“Pull us out of here, and let’s get moving.” I said over the encrypted comm. “Group two make for out system, we are done.” I said. About ten minutes later the city sized factory went up in smoke, the main reactor causing melt downs throughout the complex. Poor Engineer Cole Brown and his colleges “died” that day, sitting safe and sound aboard my ship. So long, I thought. I had friends in the Republic that I would continue to aid, but I wasn’t going to risk my innovative technology just in case. If a minor supply deal was all it took to make entry barred forever, I couldn’t have remained for long anyway.

El Fin