Bounty The Eternal Game

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

QEMD-15 Echo (and it's crew)

Orellon II.

After the Eclipse Rebels, the Kentra and others had their run-in with Ingrid L'lerim and the Eternal Empire, the next phase of the Orellon's plan was enacted. That was to get the civilians and children off the planet. A bigger strike force from the Eternal Empire was sure to be brought forth, so it was necessary for them to save who they could.

That was what brought Lori back. She told the Kentra that she would be there to help. Like the Ewoks, the Kentra lived not in the towns or cities, but in tree-top villages. They were a warrior people and most knew her already from her first visit when she had shown them images of the Eternal Empire's slaughter on Bakura. They all vowed that such atrocities would never happen on their world. Lori just hoped that they were right.

The Jaster's Sparrow sat on the landing pad of a nearby town. It was one of a few out there. Humans, Kentra and others were hurrying about, all of them gathering supplies and preparing to leave.

Lori and Arla were doing the same, each dressed in the Rebel armour, both of them co-ordinating efforts of the near panicked people. "It's no good packing some of the ships too full with supplies. Try to make it equal. And you'll need room for passengers."

"Captain, the Kentra will need their supplies packed too."

"I know, Arla. We'll save some of that for our ship. More Rebel ships will be coming. Even if we can only get this first wave out, it'll be better than none at all."

 

[QEMD-15 Echo]

Loreena Arenais-Valhoun Avolich Erasare Ar'tal Ktruok

Further away from Loreena and her companion Arla, a group of Rebels were walking through the woods, keeping an eye out for any hostiles, and to help direct any people wanting to leave to where they needed to go. It was a straightforward job. There were at least four of them, a small fireteam, as that was thought to be enough.

"Gamma Team, sound off." One of the rebels said through their commlink.

"Gamma Two, reporting. All clear here."

"Gamma Three, reporting. Nothing on my end, over.

"Gamma Four, checking in. I see nothing here."

"Roger that. All teams, report back to me." The team leader said to them.

30 seconds later, Gamma Two and Three came up to Gamma One. "Where's Gamma Four?" Two asked.

"He's a little bit further off, so it might take him a little longer to get back." One replied.

Two and Three nodded to one. They were surrounded by tall trees, and various shrubs, bushes, and hedges were growing all around them. The canopy was dense, but plenty of light still filtered through. The vegetation was heavy here.

"Why are we out here? Shouldn't we be helping the evacuation?" Three asked.

"Because, Jorden, we need to keep an eye out for anyone sent by the Eternal Empire to stop us. And we need to make sure that anyone trying to evacuate can find their way to the town." One replied sharply, showing that this wasn't the first time Three had asked this question, and One was getting tired of answering it. Three put his hands up apologetically in defeat. "Alright, alright. Sorry for asking." He said, then went quiet.

They looked around. Two and Three sat down, while One lay against a nearby tree. Four still hadn't shown up. One raised his commlink. "Four, come in, where are you?" One asked. No answer, just static. Both Two and Three looked at One, and he looked right back. The same look was on all of their faces: apprehension.

"Four, come in." One repeated. Still static. "Four, are you there, over?" Still nothing. "Four, repeat! Come in, now!" One said more forcefully, obvious panic creeping in.

Then, a loud, horrible scream broke through the natural noises of the jungle. "AAAAUUUGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!"

The three looked at each other in pure terror. Then, they ran through the woods, quickly, towards where the scream came, trying to find Four. Eventually, the came to where the scream seemed to come from, but found nothing there. They looked around, trying to see if they could find anything.

"Do you see him?"

"No! I don't see anything!"

"I can't find him!"

"Keep looking!"

The continued to search the area, trying to find Four. Then, something dripped onto Two's right shoulder. He raised his left hand, and touched the liquid. He looked at it in his hand. Blood. He looked up, and yelped. The other two heard his yelp and ran over. They saw where he was looking and looked up themselves, and were instantly horrified.

There, in the tree, Four was impaled on a branch, right through his chest. He was horribly mangled, with blood dripping down his body. His right arm was nearly torn off, and it looked as though part of his skull was caved him. His head hung down, his mouth open. Blood was coming from out of his mouth, and his eyes were still wide open, in shock and in fear.

"Oh kark, holy chit." Three exclaimed quietly.

"I think I'm going to be sick." Two said, horrified from the gory body of Four.

One had no words. He just looked up into the tree, his mouth and eyes wide open in shock. This was no animal that did this, something intelligent had done this, something big.

"Do you know of any kind of vehicle or machine that can do this? This was no accident, no animal can so quickly and efficiently kill someone like that, at least not native to this planet, and no person could make those kinds of wounds. We know it's not the Kentra, they're on our side. So what the hell killed him?" One asked.

Two and Three were just as baffled as he was. They had no idea either what had killed Four. Then, suddenly, the scream sounded out again.

"AAAAUUUGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!"

Instantly, the three were looking around, blasters ready. Trying to figure out where that sound had come from. It hadn't come from Four, he was long dead.

"What the hell are we dealing with here?" One growled, looking around.

Then, Two yelped. "I-I saw something moving back there! Something big..." He said, terrified.

They kept on looking around, trying to find it. "Dammit, we've lost him." One said quietly.

Then, all hell broke lose. One of the trees next to them started moving. But, wait, trees couldn't move. Wait, it was just blending into the trees! It was so big that it looked like a tree, and it blended into the dense vegetation. "Open fire!" One yelled, and they all started firing their blasters. They all fired at the large thing, but it was hard to tell where it was because of the dense thicket of branches and leaves.

Then, it lunged at them from the trees. It was large, but it was also quick. It grabbed the nearest person, Three and picked him up. It smashed against a tree multiple times, all in quick consecutive movements. A large blood stain was on the tree, and blood was dripping off of Three and the thing's hand. It threw Three to the ground, his body crumpling up. He was dead, his body horribly disfigured.

The two remaining kept on shooting at it. It quickly moved after them. It pounced onto One, and grabbed him. Then, it grabbed him with both hands and ripped him in two, at the torso. Blood and guts went flying everywhere. Two then decided to try and run, but the thing was already after him. It grabbed him, and picked him up, bringing it up to its head.

Its head was odd. It looked like a strange speaker system. It looked at Two, examining him. "No no no no no no. Please! Let me go!" He cried desperately.

The creature tilted its head, then replied, in Two's voice, "No no no no no no. Please! Let me go!"

Two was shocked. Did this thing just repeat what he had said? But he wasn't able to think for long. Suddenly. The thing threw him at a tree. Two hit it, and felt many of his bones breaking, and could feel his internal organs rupturing. He fell to the ground, bleeding out. The last thing he saw was the creature standing over him, looking down at him.

As the last one's vital signs dropped, the thing looked around. Echo was certain that was all of them. He couldn't have anybody spotting him before he got to his target, and these organics were the unlucky ones to have seen him or seen evidence of him being there. So, Echo left no witnesses, killing them all. He had to be efficient, he wouldn't let any witnesses alert his target before he could get to her.

The hunt, was on.

 

[Avolich Erasare]

Loreena Arenais-Valhoun QEMD-15 Echo Ar'tal Ktruok

Fifteen kilometers away from the estimated target location Avolich brings his ship in for a landing in a rare open clearing. “Seems every part of this job is going to be a hassle” he grunts as he feels a tree scrap the side of his ship. “And a new fraking paint job to add to the list of mission expenses.” Stepping out of the cockpit Avolich lovingly touches his gear as he puts it on piece by piece on. Sheathing his massive club on his back he exits the ship evening out and lightening his steps as he walks as his steps slowly decreasing in volume to nearly nothing even as he picks up his pace.

Taking off in a light jog he heads toward the his best guess, based on planetary activity, to where his bounty would be set up. Keeping an eye for activity soon he breaks out into a more intense run. Fifteen kilometers hmm as top speed that's a forty five minute run. His mind a races blur of activity as he races forward only stopping as he stumbles across the tracks of a hornbeak and the likelihood of a patrol in the distance. “Now that's an idea” turning in the direction of the tracks he begins to lightly jog in the direction of the creature.

As he spots it in the distance he does a quick bit of mental math. “Five klicks to the target city three and a half a klicks to the patrol...easy.” A wicked smile spreads across his face as he enacts his plan be in his most brilliant or stupidest he'd leave that up to luck. Racing up to the creature he pulls his five foot club jumps and slams it into the side of the hornbeak feeling the crunch of bone. “Chit time to run” Taking off into a run he darts in a serpentine fashion between trees and under roots. Sufficiently antagonized the creature whips around quickly catching Avolich's scent with an echoing roar it proceeds to give chase. Gritting his teeth he allows his mind to focus on the important sounds around him till the sounds of his feet slamming against the ground and the great beast own running were all he could hear. Any other sounds would warn him of threats.

Every step of the way the beast was on his tail, soon the sounds of talking reached his ears warning him of his arrival near expected the six man patrol half running up the side of a tree as he bounds up into the canopy and over the patrol before jumping and rolling across on the other side hearing the chaos of the patrol as the most certainly enraged creature distracted itself with them. Getting some distance he climbs up into a tree about a klick from the town/city whatever it was he didn't care much. All that mattered was he catch his breath let his skin return to normal, his hand steady and find his target the number of people that would die was up to how their luck held out and how the placed themselves in his warpath.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori helped carry a crate into a neighbouring vessel. Civilians passed her by; the young and the old, each getting sorted into the various ships that they'd find passage on for their escape from the Eternal Empire.

"Where are we going to go, gramma?"

"Some place safe. It's only for a little while, young one. I promise"

A little while. Lori hoped that that was true. Some occupations were long, while others were short. That all depended on who the Rebels could get to join their cause. The Eternal Empire was far superior in military might. But so were other Empires of the past and they had crumbled. With enough effort and resistance, the same could happen here too. All that it took was the right moment.

Lori felt the pit of her stomach drop all of a sudden. She stepped back from the ships, furrowing her brows as she looked around. Something was up, yet she couldn't tell what. Her eyes then went to the skies as she looked for the arrival of enemy fleets, but she didn't see anything.

"Captain, one of the patrols isn't responding." Arla stepped forward to join her charge.

"And the other?"

"It seems they are dealing with local wildlife."

"Okay. Let's hurry up then, before that wildlife gets over here." The civilians here would be easy to attack, so Lori felt it best to hurry them along. "Everyone inside. Once these last crates are in, the first wave will be heading out." And hopefully there'd be little to stop them.

QEMD-15 Echo Avolich Erasare

 

[QEMD-15 Echo]

Loreena Arenais-Valhoun Avolich Erasare

Echo looked around. He was still deep in the forest, but he knew that his target was 0.87 kilometers to the North. It would only be a short trip to reach the area where the target was located. He knew that the coworker that he brought along for this mission was somewhere nearby. Echoe raised his comms. "Can you hear me?" Echo asked through his commlink. His voice shifting and altering. When he spoke, he used recordings, speech patterns, languages, and memories of people speaking that he either met or that he heard. Each word was a different person. It went from male to female, from old to young, from species to a different species. Even the tone of voice changed with each different voice. It was one of his weird quirks, he didn't actually have his own voice, he had to use the voices of others, hence why he was able to copy the pleas of that Rebel, he could bring up any archive of someone speaking in an instant.

"I am only .87 kilometres away from the target. I am going to move in closer. I will keep you updated." Echo told him, then started walking North towards the area where the target was.

Echo looked at the jungle as he walked through it. He might be a killer droid, but he could still appreciate the value of nature. It was all so beautiful to Echo, all this dense nature. A bird landed on his head, probably thinking he was a moving tree or something. Echo didn't mind it, it wasn't doing any harm, so he let it stay there for the time being.

After a short time, Echo came up close to the clearing where the village was. Echo stopped, standing just within the tree line, camouflaged by the large branches and overgrowth that concealed him from sight, as when standing still, hidden within the branches and leaves of the trees, he looked like part of the forest.

His bird friend flew off, in search of food, no doubt. Echo was slightly sad, but he still had a job to do, and his programming made his job more important than being sad. He activated his bioscanners. He could detect many organics in the village, plenty had the vital signs of humans, some had the life signs of the native population, and some were miscellaneous. He scanned the village. Through his thermal scan, he could see the cool hulls of ships on the landing platform. By his heart-beat sensor, he could spot multiple people near the ships. Plenty were just normal people, but Echo knew one of them was his target.

To figure out which one was his target, he decided to begin the more extensive scans. He activated by his X-Ray scanner. Through extensive digging through illegal sources and techniques, he was able to find Loreena's medical information. He scanned the people, searching for Loreena. He narrowed it down to a couple of people.

://Dental Records: Pending...
:Status=True

He unlocked Loreena's dental records, being able to identify which one was her just based on her teeth. And... bingo. There she was, standing to next to another woman. Echo raised his comms once again, contacted his coworker. "Target Identified: await next move." Echo told him quietly before returning to the situation at hand. He decided to let his presence be known. He was far too large to sneak up to them in broad daylight, and he didn't want to wait until night time, for the target may have left by then.

Then, everyone in the town and in the surrounding area would hear a loud siren coming from the woods. Echo was making the noise, releasing the loud, ominous sound from the forest. And since he was so well hidden, people would only hear where it was coming from, not what was making it. The siren continued, already very loud. The people in the village stopped what they were doing, and turned to look at where the sound was coming from. While keeping the siren going, Echo spoke.

"Loreena Arenais, a well-known criminal, is wanted for terrorism and disrupting the peace against the Eternal Empire. Bounty hunters and Empire forces alike will hunt her down. She is considered armed and highly dangerous, so take caution if you see her or her Rebels." Echo said, speaking in the voice of a newscaster that had spoken on the holonet only a few hours ago.

"Loreena Arenais, turn yourself in. If you resist, I will have no choice but to engage. If that happens, innocent blood will be spilled. Their deaths will be on your hands." Echo said, his voice echoing through the town, jungle, and the surrounding area, his voice at max projection volume, with the siren noise not as loud, but still very loud.

 

[Avolich Erasare]

Loreena Arenais-Valhoun QEMD-15 Echo

Digging through his gear Avolich sighs a look of displeasure on his face as pops if open “Real food after this mission.” Chugging the contents his hand snaps down to his commlink as it comes to life “Aye I can hear you loud and clear.” His voice loud enough to be heard but soft enough not to carry far. Climbing his way down he listens to the gentle sounds of the jungle knowing full well the dangers it hides he rather liked it here beautiful but deadly as many things should be. Reaching the ground he starts into a slow jog going from cover to cover as does Stopping after a while to answer his comm “Good to know I'm roughly a kilometre from the target making my way towards them.”


Checking his gear he picks up the pace being careful to never step out of tree cover. His mind fully focused on the task at hand he could feel his senses sharpen, his nerves firing ever so much faster this was his first legit job out of cryo and he'd walk through as many people as he had to innocent and otherwise for the job. Reaching visible range of the entrance he stops grabbing his comm “At town edge.” Edging closer he could place two guards at what he guessed was the edge of town. Slipping two throwing knives into his hand he waited, out of sight, as his coworker requested his grip on them tightening as the massive droid did his thing. It's voices echo blasting into the clearing. Avolich was sure that the activity he saw would either stop from panic or speed up. His coworker's psychological warfare brought up somewhat fond memories of his times before his injuries.


Steadying himself from the rush of memories he focuses on the bloodshed that was bound to happen. His normal smirk spreading into a full demented smile. Soon he would be back to doing what he did best, what he was trained for no need for the annoyance of social situations their banal nature to dull him. Time was coming and his malice was rising.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

The sound of the sirens in the trees made by QEMD-15 Echo caused everyone to freeze in place. It was loud. Too loud. The look on the civilians faces gave Lori and Arla every indication that this wasn't a defensive tactic of their own, nor a warning system.

And then came the broadcast. Lori listened with widened eyes as her breathing had stopped. If she was watching the broadcast during her travels, she'd of laughed at it. The broadcast itself was propaganda and lies, full of twisted facts meant to showcase her in an unfavourable light. It had revealed some new information to her as well. There'd be bounty hunters on her tail. Whether or not that extended outside of Eternal Empire's territory remained to be seen. That is if she was able to escape.

The call to turn herself in came soon after. Lori clenched her jaw as one hand reached to take hold of her blaster in it's holster, while her eyes were trained on the forest where the sounds were coming from.

"The Empire's here, Captain. We need to move now!"

"I know! And I can't believe that they'll blame me for what THEY choose to do! There's no guarantee of anyone's safety, regardless of what I do! What they did on Bakura proves that!"

"You need to get in Jaster's Spar--"

"No, Arla! You do it. Fire her up, get on those guns and blast whoever's out there when the other ships are up! I didn't see any dropships, so they must be on foot! Keep the bay door open for me!" Her plan seemed simple and straightforward in her mind. However there was an equal amount of room for improvisation and adjustments.

Lori turned to the civilians as Arla followed her orders. "Get in the ships and go! Leave the rest of the crates! Just hurry!" Panic ensued, most especially as the sirens kept wailing. Everyone headed inside of the awaiting vessels while Lori turned her attention to the trees. She couldn't see Avolich Erasare , yet she knew that there had to be more than what clearly seemed to be a couple of assassin droids.

It was hard to know whether or not her plan could be categorized as resisting, especially as she held her ground. But regardless she knew that it would show her just who the Empire had sent after her.

They truly weren't pulling any punches this time.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

The sound of the sirens in the trees made by QEMD-15 Echo caused everyone to freeze in place. It was loud. Too loud. The look on the civilians faces gave Lori and Arla every indication that this wasn't a defensive tactic of their own, nor a warning system.

And then came the broadcast. Lori listened with widened eyes as her breathing had stopped. If she was watching the broadcast during her travels, she'd of laughed at it. The broadcast itself was propaganda and lies, full of twisted facts meant to showcase her in an unfavourable light. It had revealed some new information to her as well. There'd be bounty hunters on her tail. Whether or not that extended outside of Eternal Empire's territory remained to be seen. That is if she was able to escape.

The call to turn herself in came soon after. Lori clenched her jaw as one hand reached to take hold of her blaster in it's holster, while her eyes were trained on the forest where the sounds were coming from.

"The Empire's here, Captain. We need to move now!"

"I know! And I can't believe that they'll blame me for what THEY choose to do! There's no guarantee of anyone's safety, regardless of what I do! What they did on Bakura proves that!"

"You need to get in Jaster's Spar--"

"No, Arla! You do it. Fire her up, get on those guns and blast whoever's out there when the other ships are up! I didn't see any dropships, so they must be on foot! Keep the bay door open for me!" Her plan seemed simple and straightforward in her mind. However there was an equal amount of room for improvisation and adjustments.

Lori turned to the civilians as Arla followed her orders. "Get in the ships and go! Leave the rest of the crates! Just hurry!" Panic ensued, most especially as the sirens kept wailing. Everyone headed inside of the awaiting vessels while Lori turned her attention to the trees. She couldn't see Avolich Erasare , yet she knew that there had to be more than what clearly seemed to be a couple of assassin droids.

It was hard to know whether or not her plan could be categorized as resisting, especially as she held her ground. But regardless she knew that it would show her just who the Empire had sent after her.

They truly weren't pulling any punches this time.

 

[QEMD-15 Echo]

Loreena Arenais-Valhoun Avolich Erasare

Loreena Arenais seemed to be refusing to give herself up, even convincing the others to hurry to their ship. Echo continued the sirens, as he knew that the loud sirens had a major psychological effect on his opponents. The civilians rushed to the ships, trying to hurry and take off. They were in defiance of the Eternal Empire, where he had a more permanent job as one of their specialized units. They would pay for their treachery, all of them would.

Echo stepped out into the clearing, just standing barely outside of the tree line. The sirens continued. Echo let Loreena get a look at him, showing her at she was up against. Another good tactic was his massive size, which usually daunted enemies. "Very well, Loreena Arenais. Just remember you choose this way." He told her over the sirens.

Then, the sirens stopped, and all was quiet. Echo sent a message to his coworker.

NOW

That was Avolich's signal to attack, and so, Echo started his. He then let out an earth-shattering roar, the birds in the trees flying out in massive hordes, startled by the loud noise. All the wildlife within a 2 kilometer radius would be running, startled by the extremely loud noise. At the epicenter, it was the worst. The roar was enough to drown out any other noise, even the shouts and screams of the people. All they would hear when they opened their mouths to speak would still be the roar, unable to hear even their own voices.

Then, Echo ripped a tree out of the ground, and threw it like a javelin. The tree flew at the speed of a missile, and struck the hull of one of the ships, full of civilians. The tree had enough mass, speed, and force behind the throw to pierce clean through the hull. The ship exploded, flames going everywhere, and all of the people inside dead, vaporized to a crisp.

Echo then gave out another massive roar, and then rushed forward, with surprising speed and agility, at Loreena, intent on grabbing her. Whoever got in the way, would be killed. No matter who had to suffer, Echo would make sure he got his target.

Whatever it took.

 

[Avolich Erasare]

Loreena Arenais-Valhoun QEMD-15 Echo

Through the noise Avolich watched and waited planning his route through the chaos. His eyes locking on a figure in the distance that showed true resolve. That had to be her their target. His jaw clenched cementing the wicked smile on his place into an insane one. As Echo stepped into sight Avolich and spoke his voice or voices sending a shiver up Avolich's spine the unnaturalness of it was as best he could describe as amusing and interesting. Receiving the message his eyes darted as he took a step out of cover flinging the pair of knives with such strength that they flew like bullets impaling the guards between their eyes.


Darting forward his right hand resting on his club and his left arm pulling out his blaster pistol. Numb as it was the he had taught himself to be a sure shot with the arm. As he ran resistance started popping up three of them all in his way focused on Echo. Not even slowing he pulls the trigger three times watching the blaster bolts burn their way into the heads of the enemies. Running in a serpentine fashion he darted by one of the ships filled with people his right hand darting to his grenade belt pulling one and tossing it into the open hatch not stopping long enough to see the panic or hear the explosion as the contents were killed. The more collateral damage the better, meant less people to go against his employers.


Seeing Echo take out one of the ships completely was truly a impressive sight the smell of fire and death taking to the air. Slowing as Echo dashed forward he grabbed his club with his right hand drawing it knowing based on his companion's charge that he picked the right target. For a moment his senses scream and he ducks jumping backward swinging the five foot club like a baseball bat around behind him into the head of another potential threat the weight and force of the blow taking the individuals head off their shoulders as the went to shoot him in the back at close quarters. Setting back off into a dash he holsters his blaster as his skin starts turning a dark shade of red. “PLEASE DO RESIST!” His voice holding a frenzied note as he gets closer to the woman.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

She chose....oh no.

Lori caught sight of QEMD-15 Echo as it stepped out of the treeline. At least now she could see what was making all that noise.

And then there was silence. Those that were trying to evac all stared at the tall droid with the weird shaped head, both in awe and fear as to what could happen next.

The sudden roar caused everyone to cover their ears, Lori included. She watched in horror as the ship next to hears was spearheaded and exploded. Her screams were swallowed up by the noise as she came to realize just whose lives were lost; innocent children and the elderly. They only wanted freedom. It shouldn't be at the cost of their own lives. They weren't soldiers.

Arla was already in action. She had their Mantis-class vessel's weapons armed and ready, opening fire on Echo. His massive size made him an easy target and she fully let lose on him while lifting the Jaster's Sparrow off the ground. It put her out of reach of her charge for the moment, but it gave her a safer range of opening fire.

Lori couldn't hear Avolich Erasare 's words over Echo's roar. She just saw his skin changing to red as a maniacle grin was plastered on his face. He was clearly enjoying the bloodbath, while she was horrified at the lengths that the Empire would go.

It was like Bakura.

With the Jaster's Sparrow out of reach, Lori didn't have a lot of options available. And the noise wasn't helping matters either. So she turned and ran, her legs pumping as hard as they could towards the nearest building. She needed to hide and quickly. It wasn't going to end well for her either way.

 

[QEMD-15 Echo]

Loreena Arenais-Valhoun Avolich Erasare

As Echo quickly rushed forward towards Loreena, Echo saw her ship take off, being piloted by that woman she was always with. The ship fired at Echo. Despite being so big, he was still exceptionally quick. Plus, his armor platings and droid chassis were very resistant to quite a lot of weaponry, especially blasters, EMPs, and ION weapons. The only weapon he wasn't that well equipped against was sonic weaponry, but people rarely ever had that.

Echo took a couple of hits, but none of them caused much damage. He was forced to disengage for the moments from the target. He maneuvered to the left in order to avoid the incoming fire. He gave another tremendous roar, directed towards the ship. Then, he started the loud sirens back up. The constant loud and terrifying noises would impact the target, the civilians, and the Rebels greatly. This roar seemed louder than the last. He would provide a distraction to get the ship off of him, if only for a moment. The civilians were running around, screaming and running for their lives. One of them, a middle-aged man, was unfortunate enough to have accidentally gotten too close to Echo. Perfect.

He picked up the civilian in his right hand off of the ground. The man struggled and yelled and screamed and tried to escape, but it was no use, Echo already had him, and his pleas of help wouldn't be heard over the sirens. Echo looked at him, then, threw him with all of his strength, which was quite a lot, at the ship. The man, surely, would not survive any sort of landing. This was meant to provide a distraction, as surely anybody would be distracted when a middle-aged human hit their cockpit viewport and turned into mashed jelly.

Nearby, a young girl was crying. Echo presumed that the man was her father, whom he just threw, and surely was dead. Echo had an idea. He sent another message to his coworker, Avolich.

I have a plan. I will deal with Loreena Arenais' only chances for escape, and you start slaughtering the civilians. Once she realizes that we will not stop killing the innocent, and that any escape for her was hopeless, she might surrender, as she is known in the past to save civilians. You may execute as many civilians as you wish in any form you wish, just be prepared to stop once the target surrenders.

It was a good plan. Sure, it meant the massacre of many innocent people, but Echo had given Loreena the chance to turn herself in. The innocent blood that would be spilled would be on her hands.

Echo looked back up at the ship. He calculated the best way to deal with it. Bingo. He found it.

He crouched down into a jumping position, then he gave a huge leap into the air, towards the ship. The force of his jump was strong, and his massive frame moved through the air quickly. He reached out and... He managed to grab a hold of the ship with his right hand, hanging on. Now it was time to see if Loreena's ship could support the 675 pound (or 306 Kilograms) droid as he grabbed hold with both hands, and attempted to pull himself up.

 

[Avolich Erasare]

Loreena Arenais-Valhoun QEMD-15 Echo

Seeing his prey in a state of horror was an event that Avolich had long since developed a taste for it was like a fine wine to him. As his targets ship opened up on his coworker he started to doing a cost to risk assessment. Distracting him the vital few seconds that let his target escape into a nearby building fine enough he could do this all day.


Seeing Echo paste a civilian had him smiling and giggling with glee, and his surprise as his companion leapt and caught the ship was truly indescribable this droid was something else. As he received the message he found himself catching a case of the giggles AFFIMATIVE was all he had to send back before he bolted into the nearest ship his left arm drawing his vibroknife, it would be more efficient in such an enclosed space. Like a living blender he cut and ripped and teared his way through the civilians a steam of blood leaking out the ships hatch being his calling card. Reaching the pilot he grabbed the mans head as he rose to meet him and with a snap twisted it a full 180. As the man crumpled back out of Avolich's way he grabbed the controls of the ship making it lift off a few feet from the ground as he aimed hitting the throttle, running and diving out the back he barely escapes, as the ship flies into the target of his malice. A fully loaded civilian ship that had begun taking off. The inferno that resulted was impressive not his best but definitely a top hundred.


Seeing another ship starting to launch he hops from his prone position on the ground up his vibroknife swapped for a grenade. “Too far to throw but maybe...” Tossing the grenade up he draws his club and like a home-run king bats the grenade into one of the ships engines as they fire the heat detonation the explosive and destroying the engine sending the ship spiraling deeper into the town before crashing and exploding.


Flipping his comm to all nearby channels he grins and sends a message Come out come out wherever you are cause just to let you know I can do this all day.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Arla's expression didn't change as the body smacked against the transparasteel window of the cockpit. Despite the matrix of her body, she wasn't alive. So there was no sorrow or revulsion to what she had seen.

Instead she felt the Jaster's Sparrow lurch as QEMD-15 Echo caught hold of it, causing her to increase the energy output of the thrusters. As the massive droid started to climb, Arla pushed on the yoke, forcing the ship into a series of barrel rolls. Her eyes maintained full contact of the horizon, keeping the Mantis-class vessel on a dizzying course into the forest in a bid to use the trees to knock it off.

Meanwhile Lori waited to be followed by Avolich Erasare or the enormous droid that had called her out. But all that she heard was the deafening sirens, followed by explosions. Were there screams too? She had hoped that getting away would lead the Empire's forces away from the civilians. She had hoped that holding her ground wouldn't be regarded as resisting and that the civilians could leave.

But they weren't allowed to leave. No matter what she chose to do, she felt as though they'd of suffered the same fate.

Lori got to the more quieter part of the building that she could, one where she could at least hear herself. She pulled out her commlink and accessed the private channel that she shared with her twin brother, Caedyn Arenais to send him a message. ~Snotface!! I hope you can hear me! I'm on Orellon II! The Empire are here slaughtering civilians! I don't know if I can make it out!! Find me! And watch out for you know what!!~ And by that she had meant the shapeshifter Kessia Miran .

Just as she was ending her recorded message, Avolich's own came through, being recorded as well. Lori cut it off at the end and threw her commlink hard against the wall, watching it break apart. A myriad of emotions flooded through her as her mind raced on the ever decreasing options available to her.

The odds just weren't in her favour today.

She exited the building, angry, upset and horrified at the carnage that she saw. This was not her fault! It was the fault of the Empire and their hired guns! And she was sure that she'd make everyone understand that till her dying breath was taken.

"AND YOU CALL ME THE TERRORIST!!! I DIDN'T LET OUT A SINGLE SHOT!!! THIS WAS ALL YOU!! YOU SLAUGHTER INNOCENT CHILDREN AND GRANDPARENTS THAT CAN'T FIGHT BACK!!!

There was no one to record her this time. Even Arla was doing what she could to keep Lori safe from capture. Everyone else was either hiding or dead. Surely the Eternal Empire wouldn't go to all this trouble without a reason. She was going to be made an example of in some way. And if she couldn't escape her captors, she was going to at least be sure to hold onto the Rebel's cause.

Hopefully Caedyn got her message....

 

[QEMD-15 Echo]

Loreena Arenais-Valhoun Avolich Erasare

Echo felt the ship speed up as the pilot sent more energy to the thrusters, then he felt the ship move into a series of barrel rolls, trying to throw him off. He gripped the ship, and held on as the pilot tried to throw him off. She tried to use the forest to knock him off. Luckily, Echo's grip was strong enough to hold on. Echo then started banging on the ship, still holding on, trying to break through the hull. He also attempted to pull off panels and pull out wiring and other stuff from the ship, in an attempt to ground it.

Echo saw that Loreena emerged from her building, shouting at them, but most likely mostly at Avolich. She had realized what they were doing, and seemed angry at them. Echo had another idea. Sending Avolich another message, he said:

Halt your rampage, for the time being. Don't kill anymore civilians, and do not make a move for the target. Let her speak. I have an idea to use this carnage against her.

Then, Echo turned his attention back to the ship. He started to attempt to rip out panels and pieces of the engines, in order to ground the ship. He could not let Loreena get away. If she refused, Echo would make sure that she knew just how far they would go to bring her in. He would make sure that Loreena would remember this day for the rest of her life.

 

[Avolich Erasare]

Loreena Arenais-Valhoun QEMD-15 Echo

Avolich steadied himself his as his target came out of her hiding spot. “Looks like the big guy was right.” his voice nearly inaudible he shudders a breath as he receives the message. Affirmative Standing Down lowering his club so the tip touches the ground, digging in some he leans on it some in an effort to take some of the weight off. His eyes visible as his sunglasses had long since fallen off revealing the damage to his face further the milky white of his left eye reflecting his target like a mirror. As he calms himself the red fades from his skin, his shoulders slump some as the gravity of yet another rampage hits him, his left eye unfocused and refocused several times till his breathing evens completely. Even in an exhausted state the adrenal rush having worn off he was confident that his target was not going to get away.


Glancing at the carnage around him he gives a low whistle assessing the damage and repressing his feelings toward his own actions. Killing was fun yes but only when the prey had fight in it, this this was excessive even by his standards.


Focusing once again on his prey he gives her a dramatic motion for her to go on as surely she would have more to say. The longer she talked the more he would recover his stamina. He also hits a button on his datapad setting it to record audio. Hopefully she was louder than the screams and moans of the dying.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Arla narrowed her eyes as QEMD-15 Echo hung on. Despite the big branches of the trees and the occassional trunk, the blasted giant of a droid stuck to the Jaster's Sparrow like glue. What was worse was the alarm bells going off. Arla glanced over at the system controls, being notified that the hull was being breached. At least that helped her to see just where the droid was hanging on. She brought the Jaster's Sparrow towards a clearing and brought her in for a hard landing in a parallel to the ground, bringing her into a skidding halt. The alarm bells continued, sparks flew as some of the ship's systems shorted out.

Without a second to spare, she unbuckled her straps and left the cockpit, sliding down the railing and making her way to the cargohold. She grabbed a blaster rifle from the armoury cabinet, as well as a few detonators and slammed the butt of her rifle on the button to activate the bay door.

Arla had a score to settle with this one....

Meanwhile Lori couldn't quite believe it that Avolich Erasare just stopped in his tracks and seemed to give pause to everything. His skin changed colour as his whole body seemed to relax which was really quite odd given what was going on around them.

And then he seemed to invite her to speak more. What was more was him pressing onto a datapad. Was he recording her? What he should be recording was all of the death and destruction all around them.

Lori took that moment to survey it all; the burning ships, the bodies and the cries of those lucky enough to have survived. It brought tears to her eyes as she relived the slaughter of Bakura where the Empire surrounded one of the cities, pooled the population into one square and opened fire upon them.

"How DARE you blame this all on me!! How DARE the Eternal Empire choose to slaughter innocents that only wanted the CHOICE and FREEDOM to live somewhere else BEFORE the Empire comes to occupy!! The whole Galaxy will learn of this and the Empire's days will be numbered!! And YOU will pay for what you've done here!!"

 

[QEMD-15 Echo]

Loreena Arenais-Valhoun Avolich Erasare

Echo saw that Avolich turned on his recorder, and he tapped into it. He started broadcasting the recording to the holonet. This way, people everywhere would hear what was happening, and that Echo would be able to alter and remove bits and pieces of the words they were saying in order to turn it against Loreena. Propaganda was a viable weapon, if not a bit cheap and dirty. Then again, Echo didn't care, and why should he? He was just a droid, sent to capture a target. Still, he might be a droid, but he still had his own thoughts, being such a complex droid.

The ship lurched down, and Echo felt it come in for a hard landing against the ground. Echo let it slide for a bit, then jumped off. He pulled into a roll once he touched the ground, then came up standing. He watched as the pilot open the bay doors once the ship stopped. Echo gave a loud roar, loud enough to be heard back at the village. Then, he stood still, at the other end of the clearing, just watching her. He wanted to see what she would do. The sirens stopped, momentarily, and it was back to the natural sounds and silence of the jungle.

Echo could hear Loreena talking over the recording. His plan was working perfectly. His plan wasn't to exactly blame her, though she would receive plenty of blame. His plan wasn't to turn the galaxy against Loreena, oh no. His plan was to turn her allies against her, as many as he could. And maybe to turn the galaxy against Loreena, if he could.

Respond to her in these exact words: "We will pay? What about you? What about all of the death and destruction you and your Rebels have caused? You led these people here. You knew that you were being hunted, and yet you surrounded yourself with innocents, to both stop us and to blame their deaths on. You always find a scapegoat, someone else to blame. Perhaps you should take responsibility, for once. You were given a chance to surrender, to give yourself up and let the innocents walk away, but no, you refused to surrender, and forced the innocents to be your shield. We were forced to try and reach you, but you put bodies in our way, and they died in the crossfire, dying when they did not need to die. We did cause this destruction, but only because you pushed them into our line of fire. We are taking our part in our responsibility. When have the Rebels ever taken responsibility for their actions? When have they ever showed the maturity they act like they have? Never; what can you expect from a bunch of over-idealistic narcissist who believe that only their way is right, and will fight anyone who doesn't agree? Still, what can you expect from people who work for a child?

Echo sent the message to Avolich, then continued to watch the pilot exit the ship, awaiting her move.

 

[Avolich Erasare]

Loreena Arenais-Valhoun QEMD-15 Echo

Schooling his features into a slightly mirth filled look he flourishes his club placing it in front of him and leaning on it slightly to listen to her his stamina recovered enough to fight if need be as he listens to her. Receiving Echo's message Avolich clears his throat and makes sure his voice comes across loud and clear ”We will pay? What about you? What about all of the death and destruction you and your Rebels have caused?” He stretches slightly adding the appropriate look of confusion to his features “You led these people here. You knew that you were being hunted, and yet you surrounded yourself with innocents, to both stop us and to blame their deaths on.” pointing his finger at her he harshens his voice putting punctuation on his words “You always find a scapegoat, someone else to blame. Perhaps you should take responsibility, for once. You were given a chance to surrender, to give yourself up and let the innocents walk away, but no, you refused to surrender, and forced the innocents to be your shield.” Standing up straight he motions to himself then Echo in the distance “We were forced to try and reach you, but you put bodies in our way, and they died in the crossfire, dying when they did not need to die. We did cause this destruction, but only because you pushed them into our line of fire. We are taking our part in our responsibility.” Leaning in his right eye cold as ice and his voice hissing “When have the Rebels ever taken responsibility for their actions? When have they ever showed the maturity they act like they have? Never; what can you expect from a bunch of over-idealistic narcissist who believe that only their way is right, and will fight anyone who doesn't agree? Still, what can you expect from people who work for a child?”



Motioning to her he smirks satisfied with his own acting. “Well” no hint of the emotions he was feeling in his voice as he motions for her to talk. Echo's words were cold and efficient and to the point his smirk slightly returning. Her response would be most interesting. Stretching he holsters his great club on his back.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Arla didn't move as QEMD-15 Echo roard. She didn't even flinch. The noice didn't bother her as as soon as the roar began, she had turned off her hearing receptors. Once the vibrations caused by the noise had stopped, she turned them back on.


For a while the two just stood there, not saying anything. Arla raised her blaster rifle at him, her finger resting on the trigger. "Well? Are you going to pay for your little joyride?" She needed to kerp him distracted for as long as possible.

Meanwhile Lori couldn't believe what Avolich Erasare was saying. Not only was he lying, but he was twisting the facts. Her disbelief was clearly written on her face and yet the man in front of her was clearly enjoying every moment of it.

"What?! That's not what happened! You're lying! I was helping these people leave BEFORE you had arrived. You didn't let them leave. I stood there as they were going onto different ships and you shot them down! I stood there as even my own ship left me and you claim that I was refusing?? All that you did was prove that you were going to kill them no matter what!! I ran here to where there are no innocents, to draw you away from them and you still killed those that tried to escape! Don't you dare pin this on me! You didn't have to use any weapons at all! That was YOUR choice! You don't know ANYTHING about the Rebels! You're just some hired goon!"

Lori did a quick glance around. She couldn't see her ship, yet she could see the huge droid's head poking through the trees.

"You just don't want any witnesses! That's what this is about. You don't want people to know the truth of what happened. The same with Bakura!" The Eternal Empire spread false propaganda about that event too. Yet she had been able to share the truth about it all. And she'd do so here too. That is if she could escape.