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@Sep @Queen Arya @apollosarcher

Sable


Considering it was supposed to be a public holiday, it was certainly busier than Sable had been expecting it to be when he walked in. He still had no idea about the Tusken fiddling with the Speeder bike in the back but figured that his Master wouldn't let him?… she?... it, yeah ,it, that was good enough until Sable learned otherwise. Master wouldn't let it do work in the shop if she wasn't at least somewhat clued in on what it wanted.

The Togruta actually seemed familiar to the droid, apart from being accompanied by his Master's most persistent suitor, and a quick run of facial recognition showed him why. If his database was right, which it usually was, she was some sort of famous PopStar. Not that Sable had heard any of her music and given the flustered expression on his Master's face she was more focused on Artaks flirting than on whatever the Togrutas problem was.

Sable turned to Rorwoorr and gestured for the Wookie to follow him deeper into the shop. Mostly to get away from the dumb IG droid and its stupid comments, yeah Sable would prove he was the better droid by not starting a fight in the shop again. Master would certainly reward him for that ”Statement: B-1s you say, Hmmmm. Sable pondered for a moment. On one hand their parts were cheap and readily available across the galaxy. On the other hand he knew how much Master hated working on them.

He lifted the reservations book out from under the counter he was behind and flipped to a page with a few spaces on it. ”Information: Parts notwithstanding, you'd normally be looking at roughly 250 credits per droid for labour. But since you're a repeat customer we can do it at 200 per droid instead. As for the cost of any parts that may need replacing, we would go over any additional charges when you came to collect. Though you would be notified about the parts and their costs before any work actually took place. If my Master has kept the book up to date then you can bring the units down today, but it would be roughly a week or so before they would be ready to collect.”

Sable looked up from the reservation book at the Wookie before him to gauge if he had taken in all the information that Sable was throwing at him. ”Query: Any questions?”

Alanna


Alanna finished approaching Artak and the Togruta with a gentle smile on her face. She wasn't completely deaf and had definitely heard the Togruta say that Artak wanted to take her to dinner. Which wasn't a surprise since he was nothing if not persistent in his attempts. ”Thank you Artak, you're always such a charmer.” she shoots him a flirty wink before turning her attention back to the Togruta.

The comment made by the IG droid didn't go completely over her head, it was of course referring to Sable who seemed to have disappeared deeper into the shop with Rorwoorr. If Alanna was anyone else she'd have taken offence to the idea that Sable was antiqued. She'd spent most of her life keeping him in good condition and he could certainly scrap this poor imitation at what Sable excelled at. But still, these were customers and she'd always do her best to maintain her professionalism.

Could she fix him? Pah. Was a Hutt fat and slimy?

”Hmmm, wrist actuator you say? Well these IG models can get all sorts of little gremlins sometimes. Alanna holds out her hand and the IG unit places its arm into her grasp. Its arm hung loosely as she moved it around to inspect the wrist section and after a few seconds a little rattle caught her attention. ”Think I've figured out the problem.” Alanna reached for her tool belt and pulled out a small screwdriver and opened the casing of the IGs arm as easily as one would open a drinks can. ”Here's the issue.” she pulls a fuse out of the IGs arm which looks quite badly battered. ”Cheap parts like this just break too easily under the littlest amounts of force. Hold-over from Holowan making droids for the Separatists. Everything is as cheap and mass-produced as possible. But luckily I have a few spares somewhere, one moment.”

Alanna disappears behind a droid rack for a minute or so before coming back with a replacement fuse and then carefully places it into the empty socket inside of the IGs arm. ”There we go, if you try it now your arm shouldn't have any issues now. She turns from the IG to Artak and his guest. ”Should be good to go now and that new fuse should stand up to punishment a bit longer than the cheap original one did. And if Artak brings me some nice flowers I won't even charge you for it.” she gives him another wink and a smile.

As she finished with the IG unit another new person entered the store. On a supposed public holiday it was genuinely busier than it had been in the last week. She turned to face the new customer who said something she hadn't quite heard but she was happily surprised to see a familiar set of bandages staring back at her. ”Airus!” she practically squealed before running at her friend and wrapping him in a big hug. ”I've missed you so much, what are you doing here?”
@Sep @Queen Arya

Sable


Sable watched on in disappointment as Alanna walked out the door to go to work. She could be damned Stubborn sometimes when she wanted too. Of course Sable knew why she was doing it, she was lonely but wouldn't admit it. And when Sable or anyone else would point it out she'd deflect with sarcasm. ”Oh well.” Sable said to no one in particular as he rose from his seat at the island, it was Sable's job to protect his Master, not to be her therapist. No, she already spent a stupid amount of money on one of those already.

Attached to the spacious kitchen was Sables “room” if you could call it that. It was little more than a glorified broom cupboard containing his charge point and storage for his various stuff mostly weapons but also a few spare parts and the occasional trophy. Though most of his good stuff was locked away in his own personal vault. Sable entered the room and grabbed what he'd need for the day; Credit stick for the buying of things he wanted, a bag for the holding of the things he wanted and lastly, his blaster pistol, because some people thought it was smart to try and rob an HK droid without a restraining bolt on.

Stepping out of the apartment he made sure to lock the door behind him before exiting the high-rise building onto the busy streets. Even so early in the morning the place was busy, Founding Days usually were but with today being a special one everything seemed to just be more compared to the last few years. Pulling out the small to-do list that Alanna had left him, Sable headed off into the city.

First on his list was to go and see Vik at the Scruffy Nerf Herder. It wasn't a far walk from Alanna's apartment but with streets being closed off and others too packed to pass through it took Sable over 40 minutes to get to the Port District. Even after a decade it was still amusing to Sable when he saw people's reactions to him walking the streets unrestricted, no restraining bolt or owner in sight. Of course many of the locals were used to him by now but the way visitors and tourists, especially the more upper-class ones, reacted to a droid just wandering around always bought him some small amount of joy.

As Sable approached the door to the bar he could see it was already busy inside with spacers and locals gathered around the entrance, some drinking while others complained about having to work on Founding Day. Before he could push the button the door opened and a man came flying out, landing with a thud on the concrete next to the droid. Sable looked up and saw Vik standing in the entrance barking some rather strong language in Mando'a that Sable would definitely not be repeating. Viks eyes shot up and met Sable's optics and he visibly relaxed a little. “Sable… this is a surprise. Is Alanna not with you?” He says looking around, almost disappointed she wasn't present. ”Greeting: Hello Vik, no, Master is not here. She has decided she will be working today.”

Vik shook his head and chuckled. “That girl I swear. Oh well, to what do I owe the pleasure Sable?” He said, gesturing Sable to follow him back into the bar as he did so. Inside it wasn't as busy as Sable thought it would be, every booth and barstool was occupied but no one was just standing around drinking like they normally did, instead they had spilled out onto the streets to enjoy the festival. ”Statement: Master sent me here to work, I believe I dented your floor a few weeks ago.” Vik turned to him with a shocked look on his face. “Lanna sent you to… work? For that? Is she mad.” The last part was more of a statement than a question but Sable would let it slide this once. ”Correction: Master is not mad. Master is feeling guilty over the incident.” Vik shook his head and sighed. “So she is mad then. She honestly thinks I'd expect her to pay the bill for that? Nonsense, I got the guy you put on a ventilator to pay for it, it's his fault after all. People should be able to enjoy their time here without being harassed, Lanna especially. So you can tell your Master she doesn't owe me a single credit.” The tone of Viks voice was very matter of fact with his final statement. ”Query: So no work then?” The barkeep let out a single amused huff from his nose and shook his head slightly. “No Sable, no work.” Before he could properly finish his sentence the droid interrupted him ”Jubilation: Excellent news, I'll be off then.” before the Mandalorian had a chance to return Sable retreated a faint “Yeah sure, thanks for coming… I guess.” Could be heard as he did so.

Back out on the streets Sable headed off to his next task. “Bring coffee to Master” wasn't technically on his list but he knew she'd never turn it down. A short walk from the bar was Nanna's cafe which by mid-morning was overflowing with tourists and locals alike. Much like outside Sable got more strange looks upon entering but the one who didn't look at him strange was Nanna, she instead looked positively delighted to see the droid enter her shop. “SABLE!” The elderly woman exclaimed in a jovial yet gravely tone, hopping off of the stool she was on she hobbled over to where Sable stood in the queue. By now Nanna was an elderly woman through and through, Stubborn and cantankerous to a fault, her mechanical leg was well overdue for maintenance but she refused to get it looked at which caused her to walk with a noticeable limp on her left side. “You better be looking after that Master of yours.” She exclaimed, whacking him on the back of the leg with her walking stick as she got to him.

Sable buckled his leg at the whack of the stick and dropped to his knee allowing the woman to wrap him in an welcoming hug. ‘Affection’ in a traditional sense was not something Sable was familiar with but Nanna had been kind to his Master despite how much of an ass Sable could be, not even children were safe from him,he was more than willing to put up with her displays. ”Confirmation: Yes I am still looking after Master Alanna, she is working today and I believe a fresh coffee would do her good.” Nanna sighed and shook her head. “That girl I swear, she needs a hobby or some friends or… Never mind.” She cuts herself off and hobbles away and behind the counter for a minute or so before reappearing with a cup and a paper bag. “Here, on the house.” She says while letting Sable take the items. “She's doing work for me anyway and she's not charging me a credit so consider it part of a thank you.” Sable took the items and nodded politely. ”Acceptance: Thank you, I shall get these to her straight away. Have a wonderful day.” The old lady smiled at Sable and then hugged him around the waist. “You look after her Sable you hear, I've told you before and I'll tell you again. She's like the daughter I never had.” ”Reassurance: Relax, there is no higher priority in my programming.” He reciprocated the hug with the arm holding the bag before turning to leave the shop.

Alanna


So far the morning had gone by more eventfully than Alanna had predicted, the Tusken had certainly interrupted the little world she liked to envelop herself in when she worked but to his credit he was just quietly toiling away in the corner on the speeder bike not bothering her. It was just her, the B1s that Nanna had ordered and whatever music was playing over the radio.

Her peace and quiet was short lived however, another being entered her store, she saw the large figure out the corner of her eye but carried on her work inside the B1s chest cavity. The figure approached the counter and stood for several moments in silence before what can only be described as a series of growls came from its direction. She finally turned her head to see a… Wookie. ”Wonderful, just… wonderful. First a Tusken, now a Wookie. Great day to tell Sable to go have fun Alanna, real smart move that.” she muttered to herself, wiping her stained hands on her overalls before approaching the counter.

How would she approach this? Hand gestures? Did he even understand basic? Or did he just hope that… Alanna's thoughts were cut off upon seeing the stick the Wookie carried with an emitter at the top of it. It was him, the Jedi she'd done work for a while ago. Couldn't remember his name for the life of her but at least she knew he'd be friendly. ”Hi uhhh… I'm really sorry I… can't remember your name.” she admitted, embarrassed with herself as she said it. ”Umm. Sable isn't here at the minute so I have no idea what you just said. Sooooo.

Her sentence was interrupted by yet more people entering her shop though at least this time she recognised one of them who announced himself by very openly flirting with her, something about still being pretty while covered in droid oil, whatever it was it made her cheeks flush a light purple colour which wasn't the most professional thing when having customers in front of her. ”Artak, how nice to see you again.” she peered around the Jedi and saw a Togruta and an IG unit stood behind him in the queue. And if Artak had brought them here at least there wouldn't be any translation issues with the next customer.

”Greeting: Salutations Master I come bearing gifts, oh? Quite the party in here isn't it. She still won't go on that date Artak, you know that right?” Sable. Thank goodness. For once his appearance could actually be a blessing. ”Observation: A wookie, a Tusken and an inferior droid. I feel like there are jokes that I could make but.” He looked toward Alanna. ”With your elevated heart rate I suppose you require my assistance?” Alanna nodded and gently gestured towards the Jedi before her. ”Self-satisfaction: I do so enjoy it when I'm right. Rorwoorr, it's been quite a while, what can we do for you?” Sable turned to the Jedi while placing the coffee and the pastry bag on the counter while Alanna took the opportunity to round the counter and approach Artak and his guests. ”Hey Artak, how can I help?” Her gaze shifts between the Clone, the Togruta and the IG and then back to Artak in sequence.

@Chev

Try this one buddy

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Alanna


The smell of smoke wiggled its way into her nose. The Twi'Lek shot upright with a jolt, sweating and panicked. She looked around her bedroom and saw… nothing, just her empty room. She let out a sigh of relief and wiped her forehead with the blanket before flopping her head back down onto the pillows. "Just a dream, Alanna, just a dream. she muttered to herself, wiping the sleep from her eyes as she did so. She sighed again and glanced to her right to check her alarm, 07:15, half an hour before her alarm was meant to go off anyway. Alanna sighed again and swung her legs round off the bed, freeing herself from the blanket as she did so. These dreams of hers were becoming far too common an occurrence to be normal, but that was a problem for later. She stood from bed and turned her clock off so the alarm wouldn't ring out into her empty room later on.

Standing beside her bed she surveyed her room, everything was bathed in a deep purple glow as the sun shone in through the curtains. Alanna's bedroom was open and spacious with the purple curtains covering a wall of glazed windows which opened onto a balcony overlooking the River District. Everything in her bedroom was large and spacious as well; from the en-suite, to the walk in wardrobe, the (too)many cupboards and cabinets which lined the wall connecting to the windows and then her bed itself which, if she was honest, could probably fit three or four of herself on it comfortably. Her therapist called it "compensating for her having to sleep rough for most of her formative years." Technically he used fancier words than that but that was the message Alanna got from it.

Taking a few steps forwards, Alanna drew back the curtains and let the early morning sun bathe her room in light. In truth it was all too big for just her, but she didn't use her money in any other way; didn't wear the fanciest clothes, have the fastest or shiniest speeder or really mix with wealthy society at all. She just lived comfortably, never wanted for anything and wasn't afraid to close the workshop for a few days when she wanted a break. Stepping out onto the balcony Alanna took a few moments to look out over the city. She could tell it was going to be a busy day, below her people moved in a hurry, stalls being set up and performers going over the last few details of their routines. "Ah… Founding day, I'd almost forgotten about this." Alanna thought to herself. Never had a single day been able to make her feel so… alone. It had been over a decade since her meeting with the Paladin, and just under that since 'Nanna' had offered her the room above her restaurant. Yet she had never quite managed to fit in, not so much an outsider anymore but still an arms length away from the locals at most times.

A knock on her door took her thoughts away from her loneliness and she turned to see Sable enter the room holding a tray with a fresh mug of tea on it. "Greeting: Good morning Master, my sensors indicated you had awoken so I believed a hot beverage would get you ready for the day." Alanna smiled slightly and re-entered the bedroom, closing the balcony door behind her as she did so. "Thank you Sable, that's very kind. Just leave it on the dresser and I'll get it when I've showered." Sable nodded, placing the mug onto the dresser and departing from the room. "Statement: Breakfast shall be ready for when you come downstairs Master, enjoy your Tea." He said before closing the door behind him.

Half an hour later Alanna emerged into the kitchen fresh and ready for the day. Hot toast and a fresh Tea awaited her on the island as she sat herself on the stool. "Thank you for this Sable. It was very kind of you." "Statement: I do the same thing for you almost every morning Master, your thanks is not necessary." Alanna rolled her eyes and took a bite of toast. Sable was still a strange sight to most; Protocol droids, R-units and even recommissioned Battle Droids were something most people around the galaxy were used too, but to see a real life Assassin droid walking around so freely without a restraining bolt or anything did put some people on edge. Yes he could be a pain, a menace to society and was the cause of most of Alanna's headaches but seeing an HK droid standing in front of a sink with a Pinny on washing dishes from the night before, was something you truly had to see to believe.

Sable turned from the sink and removed the Pinny, carefully and precisely folding it into a square before storing it away in a drawer. "Query: So what are our plans for today Master. Shall we go and enjoy the travelling acts or browse the stall for souvenirs?" He asked while taking his own seat on the island, his voice almost sounded hopeful behind the robotic overtone of his speech. "No Sable, unfortunately that is not the plan. We have work to do, still have to finish up the repair on the 3PO unit for… what's his name… the Weequay… Horne, something Horne, I think… Anyway, we're behind on his order and Nanna dropped off a few of those old repaired B1s yesterday, the ones she uses as dishwashers. She thinks their motivator unit needs work, I think her Grandson just blew them up too much and she'd actually save money by melting them down instead. Not that I'd actually charge her for the work mind, but I did promise her it'd be done by next week. Sable let out a robotic sigh and placed his head into his palms "Statement: If I had eyes to roll they would have fallen from their sockets by now Master. You did the same thing last year Master and the year before that and so on and so on. You are still so young Master, the spitting image of your mother, surely there is someone you can go and spend the day with instead, a friend or even a date perhaps? Let Vex and Vax run the shop for the day, it's what you pay them for isn't it?

Alanna glared at Sable over the rim of her mug as she took a sip. "Oh yeah great idea, I'll just give one of those many friends of mine a call. And as for dates? You scare them all away by opening the door with a blaster in your hand like you're an overprotective dad or something. So those options are out the window. And as for Vex and Vax, I've given them the day off. They're young and actually have families to go and celebrate the day with. I have you Sable… and that's it." She sighed softly and finished her toast. "So no, I think I'll be spending the day elbow deep in Droid guts as usual. If you want to go out and enjoy the festival go ahead. You have your own money and we can always take a trip to Hoth soon to deposit anything you buy. Just please don't cause trouble ok? The Deathwatch will be out there I can guarantee it and you know damn well after what happened in the bar last month they'll be watching you.



"protest: Master the only reason that fight happened was because that man put his hands on you. He made you uncomfortable. I am programmed to step in and ensure you are unharmed. And no amount of Beskar and testosterone is going to stop me doing that.” Alanna chuckled slightly at the Memory of Sable using the mans’ own helmet to beat him into the floor. "Yes and I appreciate it, Sable. But not everyone sees it that way. That guy's going to be eating out of a straw for the foreseeable future, it doesn't matter if he grabbed my Lekku or not. So I can guarantee you, you or me or even both of us are being watched." Alanna placed her now empty mug down on the counter and rose from her seat. "I have a business to run so if you're saying you'll be too bored to spend the day helping me then you have my permission to go off and enjoy yourself. Be sure to check in regularly and be back by four. Or you could head to Viks and work off what you owe him for cracking his floor and getting blood on his furniture? Either of those work. Good. She turned from the island and proceeded back up the stairs to get her work overalls before heading out the door. "Obvious statement: You know you are rather depressing sometimes Master." Sable got one final quip in before she shut the door behind her.

The shutters to The Magic Mechanic opened on time at 08:29, Alanna was nothing if not punctual with her timings. Her shop stood in complete contrast to the street outside, outside there was an abundance of people of all different cultures going back and forth to stalls and stands of all shapes and sizes, inside her shop was… empty, apart from her anyway. It was just droid racks and an oil pit for the occasional speeder inspection. It was just how she liked it, she could focus on her work with no distractions. Fulfilled orders meant happy customers, happy customers meant repeat customers and word of mouth advertising, which meant more money, which meant happiness and fulfilment…right? Right? She thought to herself, peering out from the guts of a 3PO unit towards the crowd of happy families passing by her enjoying their day.

Right?








Jack


This was it. No more training, no more simulations… no more time. Do or die, literally. On the other end of his sights were the enemy, an actual living, breathing enemy and not just a static target on a range. And they were about to learn the Divine's wrath. "Come on, come on… gimme tone, gimme tone." Jack gritted out while staring at his fire control. Though the Cardinal was as advanced as they came with its systems the weather was still playing havoc on its targeting software. And without the drone to give an independent lase actually picking out a target was proving difficult.

He and his sister held their ground on Rimau's order, careful not to get too close to their target as the others called in their contacts. Finally after a few more moments a solid beeping noise came from the fire control and only a second or two later Black Hounds authorisation came through. "Copy commander. Cardinal One engaging."

"Blessed be the Lord my strength." he muttered to himself as he flipped the trigger guard up on the controls by his right hand and. "Who teaches my hands to war." his finger squeezed the bright red button and the Mechs left shoulder recoiled. "And my fingers to fight." The woosh of an engine igniting filled the air as the Missile jumped from its tube, its engine igniting after a few feet sending it soaring into the sky, a trail of smoke followed behind it as it flew higher and higher.

Only seconds later the missile reached its peak altitude and began to plummet back to the earth at high speed. Its target, a lone Widowmaker at the edge of the Ruzi line. The poor walker had no idea it was even being targeted before the Paladin struck home, slamming into the top of its hull with a vicious explosion. The walker appeared to shudder after the impact for a few seconds, then it went still. Another second passed before jets of flame erupted from its access hatches, the flames burned intensely and were followed swiftly by a second explosion from inside the walker which lited its turret from the hull, hurling it several feet through the air before the entire frame crumpled to the floor, black smoke still pouring from its hatches.

Before the missile had even struck Jack had sprung into action, the smoke trail was like a big tracer and he wanted to be nowhere near it when the Ruzi's looked his way. "Two, break for that treeline. Hammer the bunker, I've got the Mechs."

Cass


Cass watched as her brother opened fire on the defenders before breaking to the left and away from the missile trail. She followed her brother's orders to the letters, stepping on the gas as hard as she could and dragged Cardinal Two's frame towards the trees, by now the missile her brother fired had hit its target, the explosion of what was the Widowmaker ripped through the stormy sky, alerting the defenders that they were no longer safe. Cass said a silent prayer to herself for the souls of those who wouldn't see the sunrise tomorrow as her Mech went into a full sprint.

The treeline sat a few hundred metres away, slightly behind the Ruzi lines it would give Cass the perfect firing line down onto the bunker itself. Just as she made it to the treeline an alert warning flashed across her HUD from the LWS causing Cass to slam the brakes on, Cardinal two's feet digging into the floor in an attempt to stop quickly. She stopped just in time for a large calibre shell to whizz across her front and explode several feet to her right, ripping a tree apart as it did so and showering her Mech in wood splinters and shrapnel. No idea what fired that at her, though by the composition listed by that AI of Edwards it was probably another Widowmaker. The patter of small arms fire impacting both the ground and Cardinal Two came shortly after as Infantry and Machine Gun emplacements engaged her.

"One…" She began with a slight panic in her voice. "I've been engaged… Three new signals popped on her IFF cutting her off mid-sentence, a trio of missiles launched from Cardinal One towards the Ruzi positions. Three more explosions followed shortly after followed by the distant glow of muzzle flash from Cardinal One's Rifle. "I'm on it Two, just Hammer that damn Bunker. The quicker we're done here the quicker we can jump that second patrol." as Jack finished the gunfire in her direction stopped, the enemy's attention was not on her anymore.

Shouldering her Rifle she fired a few AP rounds at the Bunker, each punching a hole through the deteriorated metal plating the lights from inside the bunker spilling out into the darkness. This gave Cass an idea, she remembered back to what she yelled at the crane operator about Thermobaric's and airtight boxes, the bunker was anything but airtight anymore but the principal still apllied. With a flick of her right thumb the missile control changed from Fire and Forget over to Beam Riding, she lined up her sights and squeezed the trigger, the missile flew from the tube leaving a smoke trail in its wake. The Missile tore through the few hundred metres between Cardinal Two and the Bunker in less than a second, ripping a hole through the plating before detonating inside the structure.

Even from so far away and with the storm raging Cass could hear other, smaller explosions going off through the gaping hole she'd left in the side of the structure. Then came a deafening silence for a few seconds followed by the very ground itself beginning it shake. "What the… Again she was cut off as the largest explosion she had ever seen ripped out of the ground from beneath the Bunkers superstructure. Several tonnes of dirt and metal were flung hundreds of feet in all directions as the ammunition for its main gun detonated in their stowage racks, the roof of the Bunker itself was seemingly thrown like a child would a Frisbee. The fireball which reached high into the night sky could probably be seen for miles around. "By the Divine Two… I said Hammer the bunker… not crater the place…" sigh "This is Cardinal One to all Phantoms, the Southern Bunker is uhhh… "Gone" Cass interjected. "Yeah, gone. Support elements probably know we're here now, permission to hunt and engage QRF, Commander?"
Cass


Cass physically cringed in her seat as Commander Kaas threatened her and her brother with push ups. It was a stupid mistake, one which the pair of them shouldn’t have been making. They knew procedure, they knew protocol. They had been living and breathing it for almost over twelve years, the threat of physical punishment didn't exactly scare her as the orphanage had never shied away from it when she and Jack were growing up. But embarrassing themselves in front of their new teammates when they were already being judged for being inexperienced? Now that terrified her. "Apologies Commander, it won't happen again." she put on a brave face but the smallness in her tone was obvious to all who were listening.

Despite the several feet of distance and armour plate between them she could practically hear Jack chuckle at her embarrassment. But he had always been better at putting on a brave face, Cass wore her heart on her sleeve but her brother… Well he didn't. Switching to their joint comm quickly she gave Jack a quick lecture. "Stop laughing Jack, we're not exactly making a good impression on these guys with stupid mistakes like that."

Jack


"How did you… never mind, Cass you gotta relax a bit. I don't even think any of us have actually spoken to each other yet, at least not more than a; Hi how are you? My name's Jack, what's yours?" He sighed gently at his sister's worry. "Just Breathe Cass. It's what comes next that counts, not a callsign. Besides you remember what Sister Agnes was like with the Cane, push ups are nothing." That earned him a brief chuckle from his sister. But before he could continue Commander Kaas beginning his briefing cut their conversation short.

The mission seemed simple enough for the most part, storm the beach, destroy the bunker and garrison and await further orders. The data flashing across Jack's screens along with the targeting information kindly provided by the HomeGuard painted a bleak picture for the defenders; exposed positions, open trenches, old Mechs and crumbling infrastructure. The actual bunker housing the gun seemed the only thing which had been cared for but even then "cared for" seemed a bit of a stretch. From the pictures, if it wasn't for the few feet of dirt atop it then the roof might collapse from a stiff breeze.

Bad weather, zero visibility, an enemy that can't target anything beyond visually thanks to poor maintenance. If Jack played his cards right this could be easy. Could… that part was important to remember, this wasn't training and it wasn't just his life on the line, a quick glance to his left reminded him of just that. Jack steeled himself and reached above his head to the comm panel and dialled in Rimau's frequency. "Ramshackle, this is Cardinal One, sorry you're stuck babysitting. We'll try not to disappoint."

Water flooded the compartment and the rest of the Brigade made their way out. As their turn came the twins stepped forward in sync. "No please, age before beauty, old man." Jack rolled his eyes and he knew his sister was giggling to herself in her seat. The weather outside was even worse than it looked through the windows. Were it not for the Cardinal's extensive sensor suites he and Cass could have been wandering off into the unknown. The IFF signal was strong which was good and kept them on Blackhounds path until they hit the sand.

The group split, with Jack and Cass heading in a southerly direction, always checking to make sure Rimau was keeping up with them. It was an instruments only trip which made it more perilous and the thought of physically bumping into an enemy Mech before seeing it made Jack sweat enough to turn up the AC in the cockpit. For all its advanced systems the only one Jack actually wanted to use, the autonomous recon drone, couldn't actually take-off in weather this bad sonic was thermal sights and the motion tracker all the way. At 500m the motion tracker returned a ping and Jack stopped in his tracks, Cass only a stride later. "Ramshackle, multiple contacts, 500m, Southwest, Mechs and Infantry. Doesn't Look like they know we're here yet. What's the play?"


Jack


"Breakfast doesn't taste so good a second time round." Jack thought to himself as he lifted his head out of the toilet bowl, never in his entire life had he experienced weather like this, Thelème was a landlocked country so he'd never even seen the sea before but it was fair to say he wasn't a fan. Cass was handling the situation a lot better than he was, or she was putting on a brave face to help him stop worrying, he couldn't tell which. After cleaning himself and the toilet up he headed back into his room and made note of his belongings and their placement. A person's belongings weren't sacred at the orphanage and this little routine had stuck with him throughout his life. Jack nodded to himself confidently as Captain Karstens orders came over the intercom, "The Divine protects." Jack thought to himself as he took one last look at himself in the mirror. Nodding at his reflection solemnly he picked up his helmet from the bed and exited the room. Stumbling out of the door and into the wall opposite as another wave hit the Crawler.

It was much the same all the way from his quarters to the hangar; Wave hit the ship, Jack stumbled, banged his head off of something metal. Rinse repeat. He passed several crew members on the way, all rushing around with boxes of supplies, securing them in almost any free room they could find. By the time Jack reached the Hangar he was about ready to see more of his breakfast again but quickly pushed that feeling down when he saw the Commander standing on the gantry in front of him, Jack gave him a nod and followed him as he descended the stairs, turning away at the bottom to head towards his Mech.

Cardinal One, he hadn't even had a chance to think of a callsign yet, sat in its bay next to both its and his sister. Cardinal Two and Cass. She had barely left her Mech since they boarded the Crawler, spending the last few days personalising her Mech to her liking. At present she stood atop a lifter helping a crane load the last Paladin into its Launcher. With the missile in its tube she lowered the lifter and hopped off, and finally noticed him standing beneath her Mech.

Cass


Cass had hardly been able to sleep the night before, the almost crippling realisation that this was no longer just a big adventure to meet and help new people had hit her like a backhand from Sister Bertha at the Orphanage. This was real, she would have to actually fight, most definitely kill and she could be killed, Jack could be killed. She had pushed his buttons to make him agree to come, she knew mentioning Sister Francine was a touchy subject for Jack but what she said back in Serene hadn't been a lie. Cass looked at herself in the bathroom mirror and splashed cold water onto her face and shook the thoughts away.

It was late at night when she exited her quarters and made her way to the hangar; it was empty, dark and eerily quiet considering it was full of giant metal monsters. Making her way over to her Mech she flicked on some flood lights and began doing what she'd always wanted too, adding some personality to it. Behind her seat in the cockpit hung a Thelème flag but she wanted more.

By the time others began to enter the hangar hours had passed and a storm had hit. Like Jack she had never even seen the ocean before but luckily her stomach was empty apart from the water she'd been drinking through the night. She had been a busy Bee overnight, putting her artistic skills to use and had quite effectively tattooed each of her Mechs arms. The Divine Protects. was drawn eloquently down the right arm and she was putting the finishing touches to My faith is my shield on the left arm.

By the time the Captain's orders came over the intercom she was already well underway on readying her Mech for its trial by fire, but when she looked over at Jack's Mech she saw he was still absent despite the ten minute call. CLANG! Her attention snapped to the missile pod above her and the missile which the crane operator had just wacked against the Mechs shoulder. Cass shot daggered eyes at the mechanic. "By the Divine!, I thought I said be careful with these things. Do you know what happens when a Thermobaric goes off inside an airtight box? It'll be a lot worse than some paperwork and a headache. Let me guide it, just lower it into my hands."

With the last missile loaded she lowered herself back down to the floor and turned to see Jack had finally arrived. She closed the distance quickly and wrapped her arms around her brother, who even under his helmet looked rough. "You OK Jack? Look like you've been gut punched. You haven't fought one of the Vinland boys already have you?" she said, adding a slight tease to her tone at the second question. Jack rolled his eyes, sighed and returned the embrace. "No I haven't been punched and haven't had a fight. It's the damned storm, I swear Cass when we get home I'll take the Vows if it means I never have to see the Ocean again in my life. I've seen my breakfast twice and looked far less appetising the second time around if that's even possible." Cass giggled and released her brother from the hug and glanced up at his Mech. "You've got like… five ish minutes you know that rig…" Jack cut her off with a finger pressed over her lips. "What do you take me for Sister? I had that done before I went to bed last night. Just turn it on and it's good to go." Cass nodded along, impressed at her brother's diligence.

"Are you OK? Jack asked, clearly it was visible she hadn't slept much. Cass nodded at his question and watched as he searched her eyes for any shred of doubt but he would find none. He nodded back once. "The Divine Protects, Cass. We're here for a reason. We've trained on these for months, we know them inside and out, we know each other inside and out. We'll be fine. Just remember your training and have faith." Cass tilted her head to the side. "Were you saying that to me or to yourself?" Jack chuckled once. "Yes. Now mount up, systems check time." he pulled Cass into a bear hug before departing for his own Mech.

Parking herself into the rather comfy chair in the cockpit she flicked a switch and the hatch sealed behind her, ending with the hiss of the pressure seal. A few more switches, breakers and one button later and the Mech roared into life. Panels and screens lit up in front of her and the cockpit light came on, bathing her in a gentle yellow hue. Slipping her helmet on she checked over the HUD, her and her Mechs vitals were displayed so she knew she'd done the start up right. "You there Squirt? Jack's voice was loud in her ear. Hastily turning down the volume of the Comms before she replied. "Yes I'm here, damn near blew out my eardrum but I'm here. Also… you're not still calling me Squirt are you?" Jack laughed deeply into his Mic. "Don't blame me, Brody gave you the callsign." Cass's eyes almost rolled out of her head. "Yeah and Brody was almost 7ft tall. He called everyone Squirt." That was a bare faced lie. Brody was Cass's boyfriend when she had transferred to Jack's unit, one of the few Jack had tolerated until he left anyway. Jack just laughed again. "Whatever you say, Squirt. My systems are all green, you?" "Mine too." She changed from their private comm channel. "Cardinal's One and Two reporting all systems green Sir. Awaiting your orders." she said looking over her monitor to where the Commander was by his Mech.







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