Impact

[Asmus Janes]

Asmus walked up and down the inside of his shuttle. It had been brought up from deck E to be loaded up for their flight. In one hand he had a datapad with an inventory and he checked off everything against it. He tried to keep this from reminding himself about the hangar bay on the Quintessence.


A speeder bike was secured against one wall, whilst the other had seating for four. Two of the chairs had restraints. If the defector had any second thoughts they might have to bring him back against his will.


The last few days have fallen into a fairly regular routine. The day was as it had been for the pilot for months, but with the fact that Kaile had been increasingly intermingled with the crew. It turned out that she gave as good as she got when it came to their Zeltron Ghost. Asmus hadn't seen his skin go that shade in the mess before. Her, Vo and Odennus had even gone for drinks in the mess one evening to cover some old ground. It was a reality that had seemed utterly implausible at first, but was one he was increasingly coming to accept. But the nights… she belonged to him alone. The internal struggle was still there. He'd even heard her whisper 'just once more’ one night, but that battle ended up falling on his side time and again.


A CC13 rifle was strapped above the bike. A spotting scope and some smoke grenades and flares. Two survival kits were mounted below it. Each contained food rations that could, with some water, feed an individual for weeks. There was basic medication, comm equipment and a shelter that folded down to the size of a hand but could keep two people comfortable in a freezing storm. The thermal insulation also made it impossible to spot at night with infrared sensors.


There was a long range comm-link in case the worst came to the worst. If they needed to be any more discreet they could leave a coded message on a particular holonet blog. Asmus hadn't come across that technique before, but apparently long range transmission or using heavy encryption left a signature that could be traced. A regular holonet message that appeared to be plain text however would go unnoticed.


Everything checked out. She was fuelled and all systems reported green. Just one agent to arrive and they were good to go.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

A simple insertion, drop off, pick up, then extraction. Four steps in total but so much could go change in those four steps. One last briefing from Vo and then they we are off. We. Even saying that in her mind filled Kaile with such a strange sense of surrealness. The fact that Asmus and she were going to be working together for the extraction of an asset.

The past few years had been focused on avoiding the scoundrel, on ensuring that their paths did not cross only to amount to a chance path where their crossroads met. That extraction from the First Order facility had been the last place in the 'Verse Kaile ever thought she'd see Asmus again. Having him as her pilot of all things had completely thrown the foundation from under her feet. The week that had followed had been such a rollercoaster of emotions. It still felt like it.

At first she had made the attempt to keep herself away. To limit her contact with Asmus. She should have realized that on such a small ship it was foolish to believe she could completely hide herself from him. Especially with him being so persistent. It wasn't long before the confirmation of just how volatile they were together, how much of a magnetic force seemed to draw them together. To his law of gravity.

Just once more. That was the lie Kaile had been telling herself over and over again. A voice that had faded into a whisper amidst days working alongside him and melding fantasy into reality during the nights.

Now that voice increased in volume again as the Lorrdian espion crossed into the hanger bay, those large chocolate brown eyes falling at the man that stood within the shuttle through the open ramp. Kaile shifted her satchel along her back in a nervous twitch.

With a deep breath, she braced herself for what was to come.

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Asmus shot her a disarming grin as she approached. He didn't have a baseline of comparison, didn't know what Kaile was like before a mission. Perhaps she always looked a tad nervous, but he had a suspicion it was for him. This week he had, in his own mind, compared now to back then. Did she see the nervous young man she'd been exposed to back then?

It didn't really matter. They would get it done. This was his either extraction flight into hostile territory. Admittedly two of those had been simple affairs under civilian credentials to low security locations.

He turned to give the opposite wall a last survey. With a positive nod of the head he turned to Kaile and then waved her towards the cockpit.

"Got everything? I'm good to go."

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

If there is anything that Asmus would find out about Kaile the espion compared to the Kaile he knew, it would be that she packed impersonal and packed light for missions. Nothing but weapons, portable medpacs, and signal boosters. Toss in whatever else Vo distinguished to be important, and she was ready.

"Aye," Kaile replied, following up the path of the ramp into the shuttle inside. Once there she unslung her satchel at the head of the shuttle. A hand went through her hair, pushing back straight bangs and tucking in stray wisps. It was reign in somewhat in a neat bun, but rebellious tendencies abounded with strands here and there.

"Cleared for flight?" She inquired, moving to shut the door behind her. If I just kept things brisk and professional, the easier it would be, she decided.

Over a hundred times, the Lorrdian had crossed the threshold of innumerable amounts of shuttles and craft to some remote system that would be her target. Each flight had been successful in some ways. Failures in others. Most insertions were just lone assignments. Others involving more than one agent. Kaile had to consider this no more diverging from the familiar path than the rest.

Catching Asmus' gold-flecked green eyes and boyish friendly smile made it difficult to remember that.

 

[Asmus Janes]

Asmus settled himself down into the pilot's chair. A low whine changed pitch several times as he powered up key systems.


“Flight Command, this is Wraith One requesting clearance for launch?”


His first response was a low rumble that reverberated through the ship. The prow bay doors ahead of them slowly slid back. Against the inky black night the field was visible faintly shimmering. Lights on the deck floor came to life to guide them out.


“Wraith One this is Flight Command you are clear for launch and hyperspace,” came Odennus’ voice. “We're going to linger at these coordinates until further notice. Kaile, Asmus. Go get him. May the Force be with you.”


“Thanks Max. See you again soon.”


Asmus gently took them up off the landing pad with barely a vibration. Landing struts tucked away as the wings folded down. The maw of the ship fell away and left them alone. Coordinates were already done and his hand reached for the hyperdrive leaver above.


“He's a good friend,” Asmus idly reflected as they were bathed in blue. His lips quirked. “Bless him, you came up the other day and he confessed he'd been a little worried it would cause some tension.” He shook his head fondly at the memory. Max looked up to Janes. There was no need for Asmus to state it wouldn't, because if it really had it would have made him a very different person. But the pilots all knew she wasn't just anyone, she was whiskey girl. Asmus’ own confession to Kaile had been to admit, in an embarrassed tone, that he wished they hadn't told her that story quite so soon.


“Fifteen minutes and I'm bringing us out right on top of the moon and drifting around it.” A thousand miles wide chunk of rock was good at absorbing cronau radiation, allowing them to slip into the rest of the intra system traffic.

---

Talk of Agent Vera had Max shifting uncomfortably in his seat. Asmus eyed the flight control room and realised they were temporarily alone. Ah here it came.
"So, look..." Max started. "There are a lot of Kailes out there. I never would have realised whiskey girl was..."
"It's alright..." Asmus started to interrupt. But Odennus wasn't having it. He brought up one hand insistently.

"I always used to hear the pain, real pain when you told that story. It kind of made you less like a Rogue One and more like a regular person."

Asmus sat dumbfounded at the sudden admission. He could appreciate candidacy, liked to be open and honest but he was blindsided by this.

"I had a brief thing with Kaile a few years back, I know you've worked that one out. I just didn't want it as something between us at all. What we had never felt like it was going anywhere, we both knew that. I just wanted you to..."

"Oh come here," Asmus, heedless of the clear panes between themselves and the flight deck grasped Odennus and pulled him into a hug. "You daft bastard of course it won't." He slapped Max on the back firmly. He couldn't begrudge either of them. Truthfully if Odennus went that way Asmus probably would have sought him out as a distraction himself.

Max's face was flushed when they parted. But he was smiling. Asmus had never thought they'd needed to clear the air, but obviously their very junior flight deck commander thought otherwise.

"For what it's worth I can see how she ended up as your whiskey girl and I hope things can work out for you.”

"Thank you," Asmus replied earnestly. He hadn't thought it would, but those words meant quite a bit to him. "You can always talk to me you know, but maybe somewhere... Not here...Next time?"

Out of the corner of his eye he could see a small deck crew watching them curiously.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

[SIZE=13.3333px]“I know.” came Kaile’s reply in response to Max being a good friend. It was odd for Kaile to consider ‘friends.’ They came few and far in between. Often times more acquaintances really. Her only true friend she’d made during her time was Kurt. Bobo, well, Bobo was unique all to himself. A thought of the tiny, green lizard brought a pang to her chest. How was he doing? Was he doing well? This last trip had taken a good chunk of time and it had not been feasible to bring him along with her. She could only hope he could forgive the extended amount of time away. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=13.3333px]Sitting alongside Asmus, Kaile ruminated over the pilot mentioning about how Max had approached him the other day. Oh it was easy to see that the Flight Commander held Asmus in high regard, and he put two and two together on things said in the past to the here and now. It had been a bit awkward, still was to a degree, but Kaile had done her best to try and simply not dwell on the situation. Her past was her past and there wasn’t much that she could change about it. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=13.3333px]Checking a few sensors she followed along with the pilot, taking a bit to familiarize herself with the controls. Still the thought of Max bringing up Kaile in conversation with Asmus was a bit unnerving.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=13.3333px]“Looking clear.” she replied, reading off the sensors. They’ll cross the sea of rock and towards the moon. [/SIZE][SIZE=13.3333px] Professional. That’s all I have to focus on. Just keep it professional. [/SIZE]

 

[Asmus Janes]

For Asmus that line had always been a little fuzzy. It had caused him problems in the academy and made him unpopular with certain people, such as the Subversion’s CO. Perhaps it was his smuggling background were shipping was life and life was shipping.


“Alright,” he replied. There was just a touch of nerves in his expression. Not that his hands would tremble at all. In a battle it always came at that first red blip of an enemy TIE, the sound of s-foils extending. It had faded with each battle, each mission, but it would never go away. Just a little bit was good, sharpened the senses, focussed the mind.


He swivelled his seat around and stood. His hand rested on her shoulder a moment as he went behind. He unsecured the 'highly dangerous’ ordnance of smoke grenades and flares and put them within easy reach in case things went south.


“Honestly, why these can't come out of the case when the ship's engines put out a hundred times the energy taking off…” He worked quickly and returned to the cockpit. They'd be there in no time at all.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[SIZE=13.3333px]“Huh?” his off hand comment as he crawled back into the cockpit drew Kaile’s attention. Their eyes locked for a moment and she blinked a few times. [/SIZE][SIZE=13.3333px]What about the grenades[/SIZE][SIZE=13.3333px]? It took her a moment beyond thinking about how the line of scruff along his jaw had left little red patchwork marks along the line of her ---[/SIZE]

[SIZE=13.3333px]“Not sure.” she added, swinging her gaze fixed forward again. [/SIZE][SIZE=13.3333px]Professional.[/SIZE][SIZE=13.3333px] In hindsight she wondered how she ever managed to work with others and still keep her mind focused. Asmus had not been the first eye candy she’d shamelessly ogled before. Goodness, she was rather [/SIZE][SIZE=13.3333px]terrible [/SIZE][SIZE=13.3333px]at time. Those who knew her would say she just simply knew what she wanted and made all efforts to close the deal. Terribly different and strange when she was trying to [/SIZE][SIZE=13.3333px]not[/SIZE][SIZE=13.3333px] focus on the way the dark forelocks of Asmus’ hair fell over his brow or how the muscles of his arms and biceps flexed as he settled into his seat. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=13.3333px]“We just run the gauntlet and hope for the best I reckon.” a quick bend at the waist and she slid out her datapad. [/SIZE][SIZE=13.3333px]Alright, once we were down there I’ll have to slip into the facility and change over. [/SIZE]
It was after all, a secretary that she’d be taking the alias over.

 

[Asmus Janes]

A flashing light drew his attention to one of the scopes. A smooth, spherically symmetric mass shadow ahead. As they closed it resolved into a more complex map of the system's bodies. Everything in the expected alignment. No rogue asteroids or parked death stars.


She was reviewing something. Asmus tried not to stare as she wasn't looking. The most he'd had to offer on her end of the work was to go read some blogs on local fashion and suggest some tweaks to her clothing to fit in. Typical.


If I pace circles until there's a hole in the floor whilst she's gone we won't be space worthy, he told himself. The waiting would be the hardest part.


“Alright then.” He pulled back on the hyperspace lever but nothing happened. This precise and the computer had to pick the moment of reversion.


A bleak moon filled the viewscreen as they came out. A gracefully roll and gentle tug on controls set them coming around it.


Another light went off as they cleared the moon. “Someone took a look, but they lost interest.”

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

Kaile gave her datapad a small tap and shut it off. Sliding it back into place her shoulders rose as she took a deep breath.

“They rarely ever simply just lose interest.” the espion added under her breath. However, she couldn’t keep the slight expression of pride at just how well Asmus had managed that reversion. There he was again, filling her thoughts. Unable to help herself, her eyes move to her periphery and picked up on the subtle nuances flowing over his face. There were hints of insight there. He was worried. He did a good job hiding it, but it was still there.

“I’ll keep a watch out.” now it was just a matter of following exactly how they planned this out; and hope for as little surprises as possible. For now, the agent comforted herself in the knowledge that all Asmus had to do was drop her off and pick her and the asset up.

“Any last minute questions?” the question came in the wake of realizing that once they were in, there would be little time to go over anything once she was gone.

 

[Asmus Janes]

Janes took a few moments to reply. His attention was split between several displays and controls at the same time. Once he was locked into course he gave a curt nod and turned back to face her.


His smile, of course, picked up again as he did so. “Not a great deal no. That little garrison shouldn't have anything that can bother a shuttle much so if it really goes bad I'll probably come in airborne. Hopefully a little less hot than last time.”


He spared another glance for the viewscreen. “Nothing much out there. A transport and a couple of fighter escorts in orbit and an armed space station. Should be quiet.


“Anything you want to ask me?” He added as he turned back towards his console. The planet was coming up fast but the nose levelled itself out, reverse thrusters firing.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

What could I ask? Several questions and commentaries came to her mind. How she’d preferred it if he’d remained on the Subversion. How she was worried for his safety. How she wondered if he thought this was a bad idea? The mission. SIS. Us?

“No.” came her reply, followed by a shake of her head. The warmth left her expression despite the smile that Asmus had given her. The agent had returned.
“Take us low. Hopefully nothing has changed much since the last flyby.” that was the issue wasn’t it? Dated scans and aerial surveys. They went over and planned and considered back up plans and back up plans to the back up plans. With time being a factor, there had been no time to risk another probe gathering updated material.

 

[Asmus Janes]

“Understood,” he replied simply. His hands took the controls as the ground rushed up to meet them. He let the wings take some of the force, keeping the inertial dampeners high. Better that than a flare of energy that could be picked up.


He took them down into the valley, concentration etched on his face. Any wrong move would... well it wouldn't kill them. The computers would come to life and avoid a collision. But still, the computer has no complaints to make.


Beep.


“That's a ping,” Asmus stated in confusion. “Check the scanners, I'm taking us lower.”

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

A ping.

Turning in her chair, the agent went leaning forward. Hands went curling around the console as she checked the sensor array for what may have caused the ping. Concern ignited in her eyes but she couldn’t let that take root.

“Nothing coming from the ground.” Kaile was forced to rely on their scanners as Asmus descended through the valley. The vibrant canopies of green almost close enough to touch. Asmus continued their downward angle, the computer giving another ping as he nearly clipped a large tree. Computer adjusted, but no large ships seemed to come on their radar.

Didn’t help with the slight tightening of her belly in growing dread. Of course, once the tiny hairs at the nape of her neck rose, Kaile knew she had a very bad feeling about this.

 

[Asmus Janes]

“This might be a bust,” Asmus groaned. He kept his flight low and quiet but they were still being tracked. “If they signal us to turn back I can have a go at finding another course in, but we might have to break. No ships at least.”


If fighters had dropped on them he would have suspected betrayal from within. A red light flashed. Warning alarm. A holodisplay projected the three dimensional view of the ship and gave a vector. The vector of the incoming object.


“No, no, no,” Asmus groaned. This contravened any convention. Not even a warning, just a friggin missile? “I'm broadcasting civilian response and challenge, but we're being jammed.”


His hands danced across the console. “Don't worry, I can lose this.”


He brought up an image of the spectral readout of the tracking signature. He blanched. “I can't lose this,” he whispered. The missile was still kilometers out but the C13 had a very specific signature when locking on. It was also beyond the maneuverability of this craft in atmosphere and it's flares to shake it. To a spaceship the atmosphere was a constant barrier to acceleration. Like taking a car and trying to drive it through water.


His mouth ran with his mind. “Craft coming in beyond the horizon. Atmospheric gunship. We set down they might call of the missile, but we're picked up.” A slight tremble. The thought of being captured could still bring back echoes of that Technique Union cruiser. “We fly on, we're blown. We parachute drop and they'll have our position to a few hundred metres.”


They were only kilometres from the city. The canopy of trees was so close below. He'd have to bring up up to jump safely. But even if he could get them within…


“Kaile, get behind and get the speeder bike down. Strap everything you can to it.”


He swung the shuttle to the right, taking a narrower ravine. More direct towards the city to close the distance. His breathing was tight but that nervous frenzy never once affected his hands.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Everything was going so fast. While Asmus was going across the particulars of what he was and was not able to do, Kaile listened quietly to everything the Wraith said. From the severity of their position, to the options they had, and finally the acknowledgement that they could either be captured or end up being one with the Force.


She appeared to take everything in stride save for the blanching of her skin and the line of sweat that grew over her brow. However, a distinct chill had run down her spine, spreading across her being and threatening to dig in the icy claws of fear. Not fear for herself. She’d made peace with the fact that she could die in any mission and at any point in time. That was the risk. After all she’d done and after year after year that she’d close comrades die in action, there was no hiding the fact that what she did was extraordinarily dangerous.


No instead that fear was for Asmus.


Her mind had already been going towards various simulations and options that would allow the pilot the best possible opportunity for survival. Kaile could face off interrogators. Asmus couldn’t. If there was a way to set down and make a distraction for him to escape, then perhaps that could give him enough time to comm back or his own extraction.


“No.” she added finally, already making her decision. Her face had no sign of humor, of warmth, just the calculated expression of an agent. Nothing but an intense, somber stare.


“I’ll take over. I can drop you off. You can get to the tree line and I can set down to provide you enough cover for you to escape.” If anyone was getting captured it would be me. Asmus wouldn’t be able to handle it. He was already showing signs of dread, in the hitch of his voice.

 

[Asmus Janes]

Asmus brought a visual timer up to missile impact. It wasn't long. He skimmed the numbers in his head. She'd hear him uttering numbers. Another holographic display was rounded. Distance to possible landing sites with the thick forest. Distance to several rivers, good for throwing off pursuit. He gave a sharp shake of his head.


“If we surrender they'll keep us in the air and divert us to another location. There isn't time to set down and take off again before the missile hits. If there's a chance for the mission it's not me on my own on the ground.”


He'd been through the training. The very painful training where Alliance special forces had chased him around the countryside for weeks on end. Given a good chance he could evade capture and make his way to the city. But she would die.


“Please trust me.” Time was running low. “I can get us both on the ground and make a distraction to give us some room”


Or he'd have them torn to shreds in the canopy. Probably only marginally more painful than torpedo. But times were few and far between when Asmus didn't trust his reflexes and wits to keep him alive.

 

[Kaile Vera]

This was the part where Kalie didn’t want to admit he was right. A review of the holoscreens and all the variables confirmed it. A muscle on her jaw gave a twitch. Her brown eyes drew up, locking on the jade of Asmus’ eyes, seeing the desperation for her to please trust on what he was able to do.

Her lips pursed. Another glance at the clock. Scenarios seared through her head and all of them were not high on their survival. A voice in the back of her mind said she made a mistake. This was my mistake.
I should have requested Chad.

She should have left Asmus back on the Subversion. Not because she doubted his abilities, but because he was a distraction. She was too invested in his welfare. In his wellbeing. Not that she wouldn’t also for Chad or any other S.I.S. agent, but because she was personally invested. Because she didn’t want him to get hurt.

Another second to tick. Kaile shut her eyes and took a deep breath. Focus. Out here there was precious little to trust. What did she trust in?

You’ll be brilliant.

In Asmus’ abilities.

Snapping her eyes open, Kaile finally gave a curt nod. Her face was pale, her expression set, but at least it was a decision. Hopefully it would save their skins.

“Alright.”

“What are we going to do?”

 

[Asmus Janes]

Asmus very nearly started the reply with 'I've seen it done in a holovid.’ but realised that wasn't going to help matter in the slightest. He turned up the inertial dampeners to the maximum to give Kaile a bump-free ride to work.

“Bike down, strap the gear on. Then get on. I'll explain.” He put the ship on autopilot for a moment and pulled a data disk out of the drawer behind him. He was about to start the system purge of sensitive SIS information, but that included the pre-defined evasive maneuvers. The computer was going to need one of those so he copied it to disk.

“We're well below the ceiling a bike can fly at. I launch flares, we drop. On the bike. Ship makes a maneuver and takes one for the team.” The maneuvers moved onto the disk in a flash, but every moment was a delay. The long range missile was on the horizon. He already had a datapad with maps loaded onto it.

“We can get some distance in the trees and drop the bike in a river before that gunship gets here. It's too hot.” The bike could get them a few kilometers before the gunship got too close. And in a separate vector to the shuttle. That widened the search area they would have to sweep monumentally.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Kaile saw him start the copy. He was fast. She would be faster.

“I can do this.” if it wasn’t about piloting then he could very well take all the gear onto the speeder. If it was about purging the systems then Kaile already knew how to do that. A simple maneuver program? Cakewalk.

Honestly, she didn’t even wait for his reply. Instead she set her left hand on top of the console. She had the cybernetics and stims that could make slicing easy. Couldn’t risk the seconds. She took the disk that popped out and held it on her right.

“GO!”

The Force went surging down her arm and through her palm with warmth. Immediately instruments reacted as if manipulated by invisible hands. Likely not the best way for Asmus to realize that yet again, there was more to Kaile than met the eye, but they had no time. Eyes snapped shut and Kaile poured that energy into wiping nav records and information.

Her right hand curled a bit tighter on the disk. Circuits, programming, schematics, energy. Ah, so that’s what he wanted to do. Electronics were as familiar to her as the physiology of a patient to a medic. Code reprogramed, scrubbed, maneuvers would be implemented, everything else scrubbed.