((Collaborative post, written by myself and Letter Bee, paragraph by paragraph.)) [i][b]The Mojave Desert[/i][/b] Seargeant Tibbs looked out upon the old desert they had set foot in about ten minutes before. "Well, it's not exacty an Atomic Oven, is it?" He asked. This was rhetorical, of course. Onone responded. They all knew what the Oven was like. Much hotter, but water was available at every turn. Here it was cooler, and the soldiers had been used to traversing the heat. The lack of water, however, was different. Several of the soldiers and all three of the missionaries were panting from the lack of water. They'd need to find water soon... Luckily, and ironically, the faction founded on the backs of ex-Legionaries found themselves at Cottonwood Cove. The place, much like the camp back in Salt Lake City, was craters and remnants of Legion banners and tents. The place was bombed or shelled, on of the Sergaent's Privates concluded. Everyone else shot this idea down, however. No one had bombers and artillery guns anymore. _____________________________________________ After wetting their their throats and filling teir canteens, the party made their way north by following the river. They expected to find civilization- and they did. Sergeant Tibbs scanned over the intact Legion camp expecting to find it abandoned once again. To Sergeant Tibbs's surprise, he saw something entirely different. He slowly lowered his binoculars and stared off into the distance. "Holy sh**..." He mumbled. "W-what is it sir?" One of his Recruits inquired. Tibbs slowly turned to his men and told of what he saw. "Boys... We got Legion." The Centurion had one of the Healers, a Female, inspect Azuma's now-naked body, causing no small amount of embarrassment for the 20-year old. As he stood straight as his nude body was being poked and prodded, he wished that he could die, just now. Finally, however, the Healer spoke to the Centurion: "Healthy, well-built and well-fed, with strong muscles used to a lifetime of work," yeah, farm stuff did that. "Dumb as a pile of rocks, too; not a trained fighter. Should be good for a couple of months." This was met by a nod from the Centurion, who directed Azuma to the right side of the field, before saying: "Next!" forcing one of the other slaves, a woman who clearly had seen better years, to approach the Centurion, who then ordered her to strip as well. After another insepction, she was herded towards where Azuma was, just as another slave, a man this time, was brought for inspection. This humiliating business would continue till five slaves had been humiliated... Denetrius Edarius looked down at the camp. They were closer now, and they were running people through some form of inspection. "Um... Mister Sergeant, sir?... Uh, they have slaves. Lots of them. Tibbs frowned and nodded. "Yes... Perhaps if we free them, maybe one or two would have the kindness in their heart to give us the run down of the area." He said. "Maybe we'll even find out how to get to Helios, and who is in control of it, if anyone." He dropped the cigarrette he had been smoking and stomped it out. "Then it's decided. Garth, head on over to the other side of the overlook and start picking them off when you are ready. When your gunshots queue us, we'll make our charge from the other end of the overlook. Got it? Good. Let's roll, people." Tibbs handed Edarius his 9mm on his way out. You stay up here and protect yourself and your pals. You're a major part of the mission, and I don't want any of you three getting killed in the crossfire." Edarius nodded, and Tibbs led his squadron over to the other end of the ridge as Garth headed with one trooper as an escort and spotter to the other end. About fifteen minutes after all were in place, Garth fired the first shot. After the second, the troopers made their way quickly down the hill. Luckily, blaze orange was excellent camo on a desert day, and the Legionaries would undoubtedly be focusing their attention to the sniper fire on the other side of the ridge. Demetrius Edarius looked down at the camp. They were closer now, and they were running people through some form of inspection. "Um... Mister Sergeant, sir?... Uh, they have slaves. Lots of them. Tibbs frowned and nodded. "Yes... Perhaps if we free them, maybe one or two would have the kindness in their heart to give us the run down of the area." He said. "Maybe we'll even find out how to get to Helios, and who is in control of it, if anyone." He dropped the cigarrette he had been smoking and stomped it out. "Then it's decided. Garth, head on over to the other side of the overlook and start picking them off when you are ready. When your gunshots queue us, we'll make our charge from the other end of the overlook. Got it? Good. Let's roll, people." Tibbs handed Edarius his 9mm on his way out. You stay up here and protect yourself and your pals. You're a major part of the mission, and I don't want any of you three getting killed in the crossfire." Edarius nodded, and Tibbs led his squadron over to the other end of the ridge as Garth headed with one trooper as an escort and spotter to the other end. About fifteen minutes after all were in place, Garth fired the first shot. After the second, the troopers made their way quickly down the hill. Luckily, blaze orange was excellent camo on a desert day, and the Legionaries would undoubtedly be focusing their attention to the sniper fire on the other side of the ridge. Azuma visibly smiled at the thought of rescue, before ducking down, hands over head, and shouting at the other slaves to do so as well. In the meantime, the Centurion was barking orders, sending out the remains of his Hastati to flush out the snipers, and leaving a reserve regiment behind just in case the attack was a diversion...which it seemed to be, as the sounds of fighting were heard just below the hill, causing the reserve regiment, made up of the heavier troops, to rush in that direction. The Centurion and a few bodyguards, as well as the raiders who had just been about to leave, watched over the slaves to watch for any attempt to escape. Kyle Garth easily picked off a sizeable portion of the troops sent to flush him out before he reloaded. "There'll be several more coming up after us, and I can't see them anymore. Be ready for them to come up the ridge." He informed his escort. He turned his attention to the heavy regiment of soldiers the Legion had sent after the attack force. "Oh no you don't..." He mumbled as he began to pick off the assaulters. He got four of them before running out of ammo. "Sonofa..." He said as he drew his 9mm and prepared for the Legion to reach them on the overlook. Tibbs, meanwhile, led his assault team to the camp and opened fire on the incoming Legionaries. It felt kinda odd to be killing soldiers of the nation that birthed his own... But he shrugged this feeling off as he shot two charging warriors with machetes. He looked over and watched one of his own Recruits get shot in the head by what sounded like a lever action rifle. "Oh, this is fantastic... Regroup and press on! He shouted as he rounded a tent and nailed the Legionary wielding a trail carbine. His own soldiers slowly made their way back to him as they attempted to press on further into the camp. The Hastati collided with Garth's escort as they reached the overlook, drawing out their machetes and throwing spears, with the last few drawing out some aged guns and expending a few bursts of ammo, which quickly ran out. Nevertheless, they were numerous and fanatical, although also a bit surprised by the attack. This meant that the battle for the outlook was undecided, as of yet. In the camp, the Principes, or Prime Legionaries, were being pressed back, their ammo running out, and having to resort to crude melee combat. Nevertheless, they outnumbered the assault team two to one, meaning that the battle would be decided by Tibbs' weapons. Nevertheless, the Legion was confused by the insignia of the attackers, while the Centurion, after barking more orders to his guards, prepared to join in the battle... It was almost as though the Legionaries focused on the man with the bigger gun, much to Kyle's fortune. He had the time to line up his shots and conserve his ammo, making sure each shot connected with its target. Hee succeeded in hitting something... A majority of the time. But his escort was not so lucky. He had been hit by one of the spears in the ankle, which momentarily threw off his aim. He quickly refocused, however, remembering his pain tolerance training and sprayed his assault carbine in the direction of the attackers. He easily took out the machete wielders, and it seemed as though Garth was keeping the ranged guys surpressed. The escort, PFC Zachary Windberg, pulled the pin on his grenade and beamed it at the attackers, trying to hit get them all out of the way. After Tibbs and his men pressed even further into the camp, he reloaded his 12.7mm submachine gun and surveyed the battlefield. Nine of his soldiers left, but seeing as the Legion didn't have a terribly massive numbers advantage, his squadron was taking down the Legion attackers at a rate that would get them the victory. And maybe Tibbs could hinder his sides casualties if he found the man in charge... He found just the man he was looking for. A Legion Centurion yelling this way and that. He was definitely in charge. He trained weaves through the maze of tents and found himself in front of the centurion. He trained his rifle on the leader figure and prepared to fire. The Hastati were destroyed, and, poetically, it was at the same time that the Centurion was killed. The raiders/slave merchants, who had been watching Azuma and the others, spoke among themselves, before the lead thug said: "Screw this, we're outta here," before turning to leave, with Azuma's gun and bulletproof vest, as well as money, in tow. But it was too late, as Tibbs' team, taking advantage of the Centurion's death, now managed to break through. "Cut them off." Was Tibbs's final command of the battle. The soldiers made a dash for the raiders ad merchants and surrounded them, guns trained on them and especially keeping an eye on them in case they tried to make a move. One soldier frisked them while the others made sure those waiting didn't make a move. Three soldiers and Tibbs himself got to returning the clothes to their respectful owners, and he asked Azuma personally, "These guys take anything that belongs to you?" Garth helped the escort down the mountain and immediately aided him in finding medical attention with the squad's doctor, the third of the missionaries named Tyler Vass. The battle was won, but the Sergeant was upset that it costed him a quarter of his men. "An assault rifle and a bulletproof vest," spoke Azuma as he put on his underwear and pants. "Anyway, thanks for your help," he continued as he put on his socks, shoes, and shirt. "My name's Azuma Asakura, and I'm from Klamath in the NCR, and, well, I'm in your debt." "I see..." Replied Tibbs, looking over at a man who happened to have a bulletproof vest and an AR in tow. "Fitch! Get this guy next." He demanded, pointing. "Everything on his person goes to this man right here." He turned back to Azuma. "Well, if you wish to pay off at least a small portion of that debt, you can do me a quick favor and give me a rundown of locations in the area. Specifically HELIOS One, and who is in control of it." The soldier called Fitch dropped everything that that particular criminal had on him in front of Azuma. "All yours." "Thanks!" spoke Azuma, "as for HELIOS One, you're in luck; it belongs, or rather, used to belong to my faction, the NCR, before the Second Battle of Hoover Dam. Now, according to both what books and newspapers I've read about the Mojave, as well as what the Caravan I was on has told me, it's a been abandoned, and also a solar power station - quite fitting for your emblem." Sergeant Tibbs listened intently, and gave his signature gruff chuckle at Azuma's last statement. "Oh, it's for a lot more than just the picture on this armor. It's for the people it represents. Thank you for the info, friend. And if you ever happen to tell the NCR about the "Sun people", or whatever you decide to call us, you let them know that we harbor no ill will towards them." He smiled, saluted Azuma, and wished him well. "Well boys, our day just got a whole lot better." He paused, then turned back to Azuma. "Oh, hold up a sec. You never mentioned how to get there from here." "Oh," the Japanese man spoke, before giving them detailed directions to the station. Tibbs thanked Azuma and turned and went back to his business. "Alright, five of you tie up the detainees, two of you go fetch the monks, and the rest of you search bodies. We're going to deliver these criminals to the NCR ourselves." Today would have been a good day, but he had gotten three more men killed. Tibbs pushed this to the back of his mind and began searching bodies for ammo, and searching tents for any supplies they could get. They would find much less ammo than expected, but there was apparently enough food to sustain the camp, and the slaves they already had, for at least a few months. Same for supplies of water. They would also find a stash of denarii, some gold, some silver, but most copper. In the centurion's quarters, they would also find additional maps, as well as more gold ornaments. As for melee weapons, those would be abundant. Upon completion of the search, Tibbs was satisfied with what they got. Everyone, even the monks, found a blade for self defense. And they knew where HELIOS was, which made their jobs much, much easier. As for Azuma, he thought that he would lead the former slaves back to the Mojave; he had memorized the path. Of course, he could run the idea by them, first, which was what he did, asking simply: "So, would you guys want me to take you all back to the Mojave?" Faced with no other choice, the other civilians all agreed. And with that, Azuma, after leading the former slaves in taking what weapons and supplies the Solarians had not appropriated already, began the long trek back to NCR territory. Hopefully, this would lighten NCR-Mojave relations...