[indent][h3]N E D[/h3][/indent] [hr] "Stop the elevator please, Private Dasiv," NED ordered camly. She had already done so by the time he finished his sentence. "So, what are you doing again?" A young man asked skeptically. "If we open the elevator doors to a firing squad, we are all going to be killed very badly, Private Klosu. I am taking preventative measures." Not quite convinced, Klosu leaned back. Nodding at Private Dasiv, NED jumped out through the whole he had created in the roof of the elevator. Pulling himself up, the ceiling now his floor, the closed elevator doors were before him. Getting out his scanner, he detected there was no one directly on the other side. Not particularly helpful, though. They could be standing farther back, or even behind particularly heavy cover that the scanning rays can't get through. It would be best to go through with breaching procedures. Thus, NED procured a breaching charge from his large satchel and attached it to the doors. Landing in the elevator with a thud, his metallic head swivelled left and right at the 9 people in the elevators with him. "Cover your ears, Scarlet Moons." Some of them did, and he detonated the satchel charge. Not a moment later he activated a thermal grenade and threw it through the hole, bouncing it off the elevator shaft behind them and sending it ricocheting into the room above them. It detonated. Silence. "There's no one there," Klosu observed. NED shushed the private with a raised finger. There wasn't anyone there. Instead, the sing song sounds of a chirping bird could be heard. NED grabbed onto the hole in the ceiling and raised only his head. It was true- no Imperial fighting squad was waiting for them on the otherside. Instead, there seemed to be some kind of arboretum. Vibrant greens, pinks and blues filled the incredibly large room before them. It was a greenhouse of grand proportions, made even more impressive by the station being in space. Pulling himself up, he stepped inside, glancing around with his scanner. No one. "Bring up the elevator, Private Dasiv," He beckoned his squad mates up. The elevator rose, the doors slid open, and nine Scarlet Moons spilled quickly into the arboretum. Most of them glanced around, awestruck. "Stars! What the Hell is this place?" "Some kinda garden?" "Sure does smell nice." "Which way to the bridge?" Private Dasiv asked, stepping up next to NED. NED paused a moment, considering. "That way," He pointed. The large domed ceiling had support structures and rafters. There were four main support beams along the dome that vanished into the ground. NED was pointing to the northern one. They acted as a sort of compass. "Stay together, Scarlet Moons," NED said, slowly making his way foward. "There may yet be an ambush lying in weight." His life form scanners would be useless here. Birds, insects, even large plants, would create a blip on the short ranged radar. So he hooked the device on his belt and held his DLT-19 in both hands, leading the way. His squad nodded and formed up. Unfortunately, their path options were limited. There was no outside circular path, the thick plants and trees blocked line of sight. There was even an artificial hill in the distance, and atop sat another greenhouse structure. Redundant, NED thought. There were a few moments of tense quiet. Birds chirping. Insects buzzing. Anxious breathing and muffled footsteps. Private Kluso held up his dark red hand. "You guys hear that?" He whipsered harshly. They all paused. No one else did. "Sounded like...somethin' moving. On our three o'clock." He gestured his blaster towards a wall of thick branches. They all backed away and pointed their guns where Kluso had indicated the noise. Everyone froze as the sound of something large moving through the shrubbery made itself apparent. Kluso's yellow eyes widened as he caught sight of a large creature. As long as five men at least, low to the ground and with four stubby legs. Overshadowed. In the distance, barely visible. "...Mother of Moons..." He exclaimed quietly in disbelief. "What do you see, Private Kluso?" NED had stalked up beside the observant soldier. "Th-there's somethin' huge back there, Lieutenant," He reported nervously. "How large?" "Ten, fifteen meters long? Low to the ground. Some kinda predator," He shout-whispered. The other soldiers exchanged worried looks. "How many legs?" NED inquired. "I dunno. Four, I guess." "Did it have a long tail?" "Maybe?" Rustle, rustle. Everyone went quiet. The distant sound of crackling could be heard. More steps back. [color=fff200][b]ZAP![/b][/color] A spark of electricity ignited. One of the soldiers was almost hit by a stray bolt of what looked like lightning. It scarred the ground black and the soldier danced away. Everyone began to fire blindly into the shrubbery. Red lasers lit up the trees and then went dark as they collided against the dirt, a tree, or a rock. "What in the blazes was that!?" Someone called out. "One of the apex predators on Ord Thorden. A Swamp Dragon, villagers call it. It generates electricity out of it's mouth and then attempts to direct it toward its prey, incapacitating them and making for an easy kill. We warded it off with a hail of blaster fire. For now. It will most likely strike again now that it nows our appoximate strength and numbers." NED reported factually. "Why the hell are they keeping a monster onboard this damn ship?" Dasiv shouted. "...I don't know," NED replied. "Well, how do we stop it!?" "Everyone, please remain calm. Stay close together. If you see it, shoot it many times. If it grabs one of you, everyone else chase after it. If I do not return in three minutes, continue onto the bridge without me. While I am gone, Private Dasiv is in charge." NED turned and stalked off into the artificial jungle. "What in the blazes?" Dasiv exclaimed. "Yeah!" Said Kluso. "I should be the one in charge." "Not that, laserbrain. I'm talkin' about why the hell the Lieutenant is going to wrestle that damn thing by himself!" "We should just leave while he's gone." "No way," Dasiv shook her head. "If you do, I'll shoot you myself. Besides, three minutes isn't that long. Just cool it. I'm sure NED knows what he's doing." "Cheep, cheep, cheep, cheep, cheep," NED cooed, walking into the jungle. "Cheep, cheep, cheep, cheep, cheep," Rustle, rustle. NED paused, his head rotating behind him. "Cheep, cheep-" CRUNCH! The thing wrapped it's powerful jaws around his leg and began to drag him to the ground. NED held firm, digging his heavy heels into the dirt. NED was most likely far heavier and far more steady than it anticipated. It readjusted his grip and tried to drag him down. It succeeded, and NED fell onto his back with a thud. "Cheep, cheep, cheep," He continued, unphased. The thing realised it wasn't tasting any blood. It pulled. Nothing. NED was not panicking or flailing, or screaming. Or bleeding! NED smelled like rust and oil. After a moment it detatched, beginning to charge up it's electricity again. NED knew that the Swamp Dragon could only discharge electricity so often. When it realised that it's prey wasn't of flesh and blood, it would give up for a while. The taste of metal was capable of killing one's appetite. "Cheep, cheep, cheep," NED cooed, pulling himself up to one knee. He pat the creature on it's snout. It growled, disappointed. NED had done this a few times before. It was something Nathaniel had taught him to do. This method was easier than fulling the thing full of holes. Rarely did a Swamp Dragon ever venture out of it's territory, and the stringy humanoids in the Scarlet Moons or in a village weren't nearly enough to fill it's high voltage belly. Plus, humanoids had a tendency to shoot lasers everywhere when bitten. NED ran his mettalic fingers under the jaw of the creature and began to scratch it. "Cheep, cheep, cheep," NED said. "I am sorry the imperials have trapped you on this station," NED apologised. Then, he bopped the thing hard on the nose. It growled and bit at him. This time, NED jumped away, the jaws snapping at thin air. It hissed, following him slowly as he backed away. "Cheep, cheep," NED taunted. Soon, he was out of the jungle and back onto the pavement. "Cheep cheep," The beast snapped at him again, and NED leaped further back. The creature was intent on chasing the invader away. This was a contest of pride, now, not one of hunger. NED was walking backwards up the artificial hill, his feet moving with precision up a staircase as he kept his eyes on the beast infront of him. He rounded a corner of the staircase. His back was against a sliding glass panel, now. They were unlocked, but he spotted a panel that could potentially lock them. He slid the door open and stepped cautiously inside. The beast followed, jaws crackling with energy. He took a few steps inside, and then, much to the beasts surprise, leaped! Leaping over Swamp Dragon, he dashed out of the door. The Swamp Dragon, being large, low, and with short stubby legs, began to turn after him. It hit its nose on the side of the greenhouse. Opportunity seized, he pressed the button to lock the greenhouse door from the outside. It could not be unlocked without the proper passcode. Some high ranking gardener must have left the greenhouse unlocked before leaving in a hurry. Having spotted another door on the opposite end of the greenhouse, NED quickly rushed over to that side and checked to see if the door was locked. It was, fortuntately. The Swamp Dragon was now trapped inside. With no arms or legs, the only way to generate enough force to even begin to crack the glass was to ram it's snout full speed into the window. Have you ever tried to headbutt your way through a wall? NED hasn't either, but it can be assumed to be quite the unpleasant experience. Satisfied with his work, NED tromped his way through the jungle and reunited with the rest of the Scarlet Moons. "So?" Dasiv asked. "The Swamp Dragon has been isolated within the greenhouse." NED reported cheerily. Dasiv blinked, and one recruit handed fifty credits to another. With that, the way to the bridge was clear. "Why didn't you just shoot the damn thing?" Kluso asked as they ascended the brief steps up to the final hallway before their destination. "Swamp Dragons have a tendency to violently explode when they are killed with plasma fire." NED responded. Kluso barked out a laugh. "Oh, great. Cool. And that thing is just in the glass box, now?" He asked. NED paused and turned around, making sure the door behind them was relocked after Dasiv spliced it open. "Potentially." Now, it was time to take the bridge itself. The going was about to get tough.