[h1][color=92278f]Umbral[/color][/h1]

It had been a trap all along, the enemy were waiting for them in a makeshift fortified location in a rathole.  Several gunmen had taken position on two opposite sides of the room, behind cover.  It was a deathtrap, one that was sure to have been a slaughter for the imperial forces.  But lucky enough for them, Commander Abzhul was there to put the odds in their favour. 

[color=92278f]"PRIVATES ARC, SURGE, AND FLASH; PRONE, SET BLASTERS TO AUTO AND LAY COVER FIRE AT THE WEST FLANK. CORPORAL SMOKE AND NOIR, LAY DOWN SMOKES AND FOLLOW MY LEAD." [/color] Death Troopers weren't trained to think, they were trained to act.  The squad moved in a blur, taking their positions and laying down blaster fire.   Smoke began to fill parts of the room once the cannisters hit the ground, Alena and her squad sprinting through the cover, rushing the enemy down with their sidearms. Beskar was capable of resisting heavy blaster fire, especially their thick breast plates.  What they weren't proficient in, however, were resisting high caliber slugs at close range.  Which is why Alena had personally ordered the unique hand cannons for her squad during the beginning of the Mandalorian uprising. 

The sound of a cannon rips through the room, the blast displacing some of the smoke around it revealing a large revolver aimed almost point blank at a mandalorian soldier, sending the poor man or woman flying against the wall. Several more shots ring out, the eastern flank of the room being cleared out of enemy threats in mere moments. With cover secured, the small group took part in a good old fashion blaster fight with the remaining Mandalorians, the fight ending shortly afterword. 

"I want the dead piled and I want the wounded tended to and put on the shuttle. They were protecting something here and I want to know what." Commander Abzhul orders her men, her eyes taking stock of the damage. "Commander, i'm reading a large number of life signs in a room to the back." Corporal Noir reports, his eyes glued to a holo-tablet.  "I want teams to enter a breaching position on that door, we'll enter on 5." 

BOOM. The door is blown right off the hinges, the death trooper flooding in to find... "HOLD YOUR FIRE." The commander says immediately, her eyes adjusting to the dark room, only to find civilians huddled together shaking in fear. "It looks like the heat signatures were non-combatants. Everyone at ease and prepare for evac while I call into command." She quickly informs her squad, walking out of the room.

[color=92278f]"Sir, I can report mission success.  All Mandalorian combatants have been neutralized, with a party of non-combatants being guarded.  Permission to evac?"[/color] She spoke into her commlink, her answer coming not long after. "Permission granted, Squad leader.  Once you finish up the rest, return the base.  I have another mission for you."  That...That made her pause for a moment. [color=92278f] "Sir, i'm not quite sure I understo-"[/color] "Get rid of the remaining terrorists, Commander Abzhul.  They are too dangerous to be kept alive." Her hands began to shake, he couldn't be serious could he?  [color=92278f]"Sir, these are unarmed non-combatants, surely they could be sent to some sort of re-education facility?"[/color] She was frantic, she joined the corps to protect the empire from terrorists, not kill civvies, this was wrong beyond all belief. "There are no non-combatants on Mandalore, Commander Abzhul. These are the relatives of terrorists and they will be treated as such. Do I make myself clear, Commander?" The Moff's tone was precise and short, completely sure of himself. As he waited for an answer, Alena's shaking has become uncontrollable now, her teeth lightly chattering under her helmet.  A number of scenarios were running through her head, anything that would let her avoid what was about to happen. "Commander?" And yet she understood that they were fruitless. [color=92278f]"Crystal, sir."[/color] She replies, shutting off her commlink.  Turning toward the open door frame, she grips her blaster in her hand, her shaking gone as she steels herself.  

[color=92278f]"For the Empire."[/color]


Alena woke up screaming, sweat covering her body, pouring off her face.  It... was just a dream, she slowly begins to realize, quickly curling herself up in a ball to cope with the flood of emotions and thoughts that began swirling into her mind. [color=0072bc]"Did I catch you at a bad time?" [/color] Kina, her mechanic, stands at the doorway with a tablet in her hand. [color=92278f]"No, I uh... I'm fine, what is it?"[/color] She quickly replies, getting up from the bed.  [color=0072bc]"Well, i've been tracking splicing reports, like you said and i've been finding patterns.  What used to be locations from all over the galaxy is now being reduced to a small sphere of the galaxy."[/color]  [color=92278f]"And that is?"[/color]  [color=0072bc]"Hutt Space." [/color]That made sense, Alena quickly thought heading to her dresser for a change of clothes. [color=92278f]"Fly to hutt space and start tightening your search, we're getting closer and soon this girl is going to make a mistake.  And when she does, we'll be there."[/color]