Chronicles of The Omniverse Archived The Badlands

[Saarai]

as written by Saarai

"This is nice." Stryfe said, eye's fixated on one of Hera Prime's three moons. It was beautiful. She couldn't remember the last time she was out experiencing things like this. Cool desert air, wide open spaces, quiet. Not a lot of cars or people, the smell of exhaust, cramped streets and offices. This was where she thrived in the world and on the battlefield.

The Badlands had seen their fair share of bloodshed, Stryfe could almost smell the metallic aroma of plasma caked into the reddish-orange sand.

"It is." Sonia agreed, both women dressed in desert garb as they made their journey. Their convoy was a light one, just them and a few Invictus soldiers. A few local mercenaries. And a guide they had found in one of the towns. Fortis, the policeman that had arrested Sonia not that long ago was helpful once things got sorted out. Told Stryfe to find a town called Siren.

Everyone passed through there, everyone knew everything there, and sometimes you died there. It didn't have a lawkeeper anymore. It was well-intentioned men and women trying to keep their town somewhat sane and safe.

"It's not far." The guide said, "We can find new vehicles or engineers there. THey can fix our cars." He told Stryfe, "That'll be good. Walking isn't much fun." Sonia said, "And it's dangerous. We need speed to avoid most of the raiders and outlaws." A mercenary said.

"Speed don't help much against the Sirens and their magic." Another added, "Magic? Misranans do magic, Sirens are just sharpshooters and good at ambushes. Nothing mystical." The first mercenary retorted.

Sonia leaned in to Stryfe, "I'm guessing the Sirens are very bad. I've been hearing whisper about them." She whispered, "You'll get your chance to prod one if they attack us, don't worry." Stryfe told her.

 

[Tiko]

as written by Calcos and Saarai

The Wings of Destiny landed a good few miles outside of the border of Siren, a town nestled into the Badlands of Hera Prime. Thalgan had yet to step foot on the surface of this desert planet, but he was long overdue for a visit. His destination was the town proper, as he was to meet a representative for the Jupiter Corporation there, to set up a meeting with Lochlyn and confirm the KIA status of John.

The loading ramp to the cargo bay lowered, and Thalgan, accompanied by a lone Jupiter merc, barreled down on a pair of speeders they had acquired, the low hums of the engines and anti-grav systems reverberating into their ears, the gusts of air that passed them as they sped along kicking up red sand that billowed away as the speed-generated winds settled.

---

The two mercenaries strode into town; the Mandalorian stuck out in his outlandish yet impressive armor, his very presence garnering the attention of many of the local populace, either as they lusted after his gear, or thought themselves fit enough to take him on in a fight. Either way, he was gaining notoriety fast, and he hadn't even drawn his blasters yet.

He had been told to wait at a local watering hole, that the representative would find him, which shouldn't have been too hard to do in that moment, considering. When the pair finally reached the dive, they took seats in the back corner, neither of the two mercenaries speaking to the other. Neither of them ordered drinks either.

Thalgan merely cast a sidelong glance at the patrons about the room, and waited.

____

The mercenaries wouldn't have to wait long to meet their contact. As a fight broke out between two criminals, a familiar blue-haired woman skirted around it to stride on towards Thalgan and the other merc. The woman, Andarta, wore bulky armor with a cloak draped over it and a scarf around her neck. The woman's eyes hidden by her signature visor.

She gave the two mercenaries a nod, taking a seat with them to get straight to business. "I knew I could count on you not to die." She said to Thalgan, "I'm Andarta, if you don't remember." She continued.

"How'd it go?" The woman asked, "Heavy resistance, I'm guessing? The TNG and the Invictus take stunts like we pull very seriously."

____

Thalgan regarded his employer's familiar face with something akin to genuine cheerfulness. He removed his helmet, allowing the woman to speak with him as she had before he took the job: face to face. "Nothing I couldn't handle," the Mandalorian said humorlessly, "Although..."

He paused, taking a moment to consider how he would go about spilling his next sentence. "John does seem to have lost his head." With that, he smirked, allowing Andarta to fill in the blanks that Thalgan's words were implying. "If you'd like, you can come with me to see the remains. Otherwise, we can take what's become of poor John to see your boss. Either way works for me, so long as I get what money I fought for."

____

"Have someone take the remains to Fort Provo, I'll make sure you get paid. Either then or when this next job is done. You don't even have to leave the planet." Andarta told Thalgan, "Someone has been asking too many questions about my organization, about my boss, about what we're doing. They need to be... silenced. We like revealing ourselves when we want to." She said.

"People snooping is bad for what we want. Everyone needs a safe place, you know?"

Andarta held her hand out, palm facing upwards. On her palm was a small device, it glowed blue and then displayed the holographic image of Fatin Alfarsi, leader of the Invictus. "This woman here, head of the Invictus. We need her taken care of. You can kill her, sell her, lock her up in a crate about to be delivered to Aschen space." Andarta told the mercs.

"We just need her further from finding us. Our people local are too known, everyone will know it was us. She's got protection, her own and local mercs, but they don't know we know they're looking for us. Should be easy to set them up."

____

The Mandalorian fell silent as he thought on Andarta's words, speculating on the best course of action to take in order to eliminate this new target. He studied the holographic image of Fatin Alfarsi, memorizing her physical features as he continued to speculate.

"We'll need to draw them out into the open, misinform them of something important. Spreading a rumor that would catch their interest. Telling them a Jupiter big shot is out in the open and up for grabs would be too obvious, though. It needs to be something plausible, and easy to tackle..."

He looked to Andarta, unsmiling. "We could have word reach them of an arms trade, between your corporation and some unknown party; an exchange ripe for disruption. The prospect of hindering your progress should be enough to bring them into the light, if they are as opposed to you as you say they are."

The plan he proposed was simple enough, and surely they could stage such an exchange if they needed to add some authenticity to the rumors. Thalgan finally smiled.

"Fish in a barrel," he said.

____

Andarta nodded, looking around the tavern for a moment. "Something like that might draw attention from some of the more... greedy locals." Andarta told Thalgan. "You could actually use that to your advantage. Mop the survivors, or use the locals to keep attention off of yourself." She said.

"The Rogues, the military police force here, shouldn't show up though. They usually show up to undermine terrorists who threaten their power. We haven't yet, so they don't care if our name is involved." The Jupiter Corp lieutenant told the mercenary.

"Should be easy as pie. I'll be at the fort soon if you need anything to get it done. Weapons, explosives, manpower, vehicles. Only the best for our trained killers."

____

Thalgan's mind raced through several possibilities, and he felt a spark of imagination ignite within his brain; he felt a plan start to come together. He smiled as he looked up at Andarta.

"I'm gonna need bodies," Thalgan started, "Enough to efficiently stage this little charade. Or to have a standoff, although with what I have in mind, hopefully it won't need to come to that. I'll need some of your best men for a special assignment, and we'll need to write a letter. Lastly, if there's any way to procure some Invictus uniforms, or whatever passes for that, that would be helpful."

His eyes gleamed with a mastermind's light as he looked to his employer.

____

"They've got people planetside. Should be easy to buy, or steal, some uniforms. Give me a few to have my guys get on it. I'll have the rest get in touch with you." Andarta told the mercenary, "Good guys. Great soldiers. I always keep them on standby for when I really need them."

Andarta stood up, "Like when my employer wants to kill the head of a prolific mercenary company. Shit with consequences, not for us, but for the people we can make money off of." Andarta said, showing the mercenary in her.

____

Thalgan acknowledged his employer's words, considering his own plans. "Just let me know when the preparations have been made, and we'll set this up." He stood, ready to return to the ship and get some rest before the next operation. As he headed for the door, he turned his upper body around, looking back at Andarta.

"Oh, and make sure your men are ready to dig a few shallow holes." He meant explain that part later.

____

"You got it. Should be about two hours. Gives us time to ready up, and time to have some uniforms in the right sizes." Andarta told Thalgan. She raised a hand to her ear, making her way to the exit as well.

"Hesh, I got something for you..."

____

Aboard the Wings of Destiny...

Thalgan kept to his quarters, conserving his energy as he traced through his plan over and over again; the entire operation hinged on their ability to deceive the Invictus, to orchestrate everything down to the last detail.

Ultimately, the Mandalorian's plan depended on whether or not Fatin would bite the bait they would be laying out. He was confident they would succeed either way, but he preferred things go down without a hitch. He didn't mind spending bullets on an entire army if need be, but if ending the match by taking out the queen was on the table, he'd take that option.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the hatch. "Come in," he said. Across the threshold, Arrora strode in, taking a seat in one of the chairs in the room. She looked at Thalgan, a smile splayed across her face. "So, takin' out an Invictus big-shot, huh?" she asked. Thalgan remained silent, merely casting a sideways glance at the tei'lek pilot.

She stood, sauntering around the comparatively barren room, her hands folded behind her back. "What's the plan gonna be?" With a sigh, Thalgan closed his eyes as he recounted the general outline for what he had in mind. "Take them by surprise; if we can cut down Fatin, or at least bend her to our will, the rest will follow suit." "You gonna take the Jedi?" Arrora asked.

Thalgan merely met her eyes with a hardened stare, causing her to hold her hands up in a defensive gesture. "Hey, just wondering," she replied, causing the Mandalorian to return his eyes to the ceiling. "I'm sure you don't need his help anyway," she said with a wink. After a brief moment of silence, Arrora made her way to the hatch, stopping short in the doorway and keeping her hand pressed against the frame. She turned her head.

"Just try to make it back in one piece. It's hard to find good-quality handsome these days," she said with a mischievous grin before slipping through the doorway and down the hall.

Thalgan simply smirked.

____

A single ICON-made APC approached the Wings of Destiny, it was slow in it's movements. The driver was being cautious. They had come in peace and wanted to show that to those aboard the ship. The APC came to a stop near Thalgan's ship, doors opening to allow it's passengers to climb out. Several men and women hopped out of the armored transport, they were all mercenary types. Yet all very professional. They were Andarta's guys.

One of the stepped forward, raising a hand to wave at those aboard the Wings of Destiny. The mercenary, a man named Hesh, donned old looking Coalition gear with a few custom armor pieces. He and his armor clearly saw a lot of combat. "We're ready." Hesh called out.

____

On the bridge of the Wings of Destiny, Thalgan stood with Arrora. The ship was being approached by an armored ground vehicle, which the captain noticed immediately, and summoned Thalgan to take a peek. It didn't seem to be barreling towards them in a manner that suggested hostility, but they could never be too careful. The Mandalorian looked at the twi'lek, almost as if asking permission. Arrora nodded, flicking a switch on her control panel.

Thalgan descended down the loading ramp, fully clad in his beskar armor and loaded up with his gear, the sand and wind billowing around him as he regarded the approaching ACP. It came to a halt just short of the ship's perimeter, and just as suddenly it began to pour out a team of men and women, all of whom looked battle-hardened.

One of them stepped forth, flagging the Mandalorian down. "We're ready," he said.

Thalgan nodded, sauntering through the sand and towards the armored vehicle before finding his place amongst the group of mercenaries. "Let's get this done," he said unceremoniously.

____

Hesh and his team climbed back into the APC, one of the mercenaries pointing towards the Invictus uniforms hanging from a rack near the back of the vehicle. "Jupiter's people came through." Hesh told Thalgan, "Not that it was hard to do. Money goes a long way when you're underpaid and on this shithole." A mercenary added.

"How do you think we got this thing? Coalition don't pay their people enough to get shot." A female mercenary said to Thalgan. "The plan? What did you have in mind?" Hesh asked the Mandalorian, gesturing towards the uniforms.

 

[Tiko]

as written by Calcos and Saarai

Thalgan found himself genuinely pleased by how well things had panned out. Riding along with this particular band of mercenaries in tow, having obtained all the provisions he'd need. "I hope that note I requested got written," he said before leaning forward.

"The plan goes like this..."

---

The Badlands, ten miles east of Siren...

A hefty weapons cache sat idly, encircled by men on their knees with hands behind their heads, with men in familiar-looking uniforms aiming rifles down at their prisoners. They had been instructed to tip off the Invictus to this particular event; what appeared to be an arms deal of some kind, orchestrated by the Jupiter Corporation. The imminent scouting party would find their men having successfully ambushed the enemy, ready to extract the weapons the men had been guarding.

Thalgan waited patiently, very close by. He had given instructions to one of the men impersonating an Invictus operative to deliver the hand-written note he had requested, made out to be from the Jupiter Corporation. The story that they were to give her was that these men had surrendered on sight of conflict, stating they were seeking to strike up a deal with the Invictus; a partnership of sorts between Jupiter and the Invictus.

His breathing was steady, calm, as he waited. He could hear the noises emanating from the scene from his location. He found his position rather claustrophobic, but dealt with the tension.

All that remained now was to await Fatin's arrival.

____

"Target en route. ETA estimated at three minutes. Maintaining overwatch." Hesh said into his comm, one of his disguised mercenaries nodding. It was almost time for the grand finale.

Stryfe and her people, some of them trusted local mercenaries, cautiously approached the arms deal's location in a pair of jeeps. The desert reminded Stryfe of her old home, the warring factions on the planet even more. Now all it needed were Soviets and the CIA.

"We're there." One of Stryfe's mercenaries told her, pulling the Jeep up near the prisoners and their captors. The group climbed out, weapons ready in the event that they weren't the only ones who knew about the deal. Stryfe, clad in her usual black jumpsuit, let her eyes scan the area.

She wasn't ready to go down easily if something were to happen. If she had known things were this bad on Hera Prime she would've brought a small army along.

"Alright. Let's do this." The Invictus leader said.

____

Thalgan braced himself for what was to come next, his breathing quieted and his muscles relaxed.

One of the Invictus-clad imposters nodded at Fatin, holding out a piece of paper from where he stood, watching her as she approached. "One of these mooks handed it to me. Said it was meant for you," he said nonchalantly. "Dunno what it says." He was nervous, sure, but he didn't let that show as he locked his gaze into hers, not betraying the fact that he wasn't who he was pretending to be for an instant.

On it, she would find only one brief sentence: "Break a leg?"

The Mandalorian listened, waiting for the opportune moment to strike, counting on the other five mercenaries he had stationed with him to act accordingly. It all came down to that moment. As soon as she read the note, he would initiate his attack.

____

Stryfe and one of her escorts approached, the woman grabbing the note as she was in range. She raised an eyebrow at the note as she read it. She didn't understand it, all she knew was that she didn't like it. "Break a leg?" She asked, "They're messing with us. We need to leave."

Her drivers got back into their vehicles, the engines were to be hot for a tactical retreat if shit was about to hit the fan or had already. The rest of the Invictus they brought to the planet, including Sonia, were still in Siren waiting for the others to get back.

They could be in danger if the Jupiter Corporation knew they were on Hera Prime.

____

With those words, the Mandalorian struck hard.

From beneath where Fatin stood, an armored hand erupted from the bone-white grains, grabbing at her ankle.

He aimed to snap it like a twig with his strength-augmented gauntlet. Should he succeed, he would catch her crippled frame in his strong embrace, vibro-knife at the ready to keep his new hostage in check.

Simultaneously, an additional five mercenaries, Andarta's promised elites, arose similarly from the ground, the sand rolling off their frames as they trained weapons on the other Invictus operatives. The imposters also raised their weapons, allowing their false captors the moment of surprise needed to unholster their sidearms and train them on the same targets.

The Jupiter mercs all smiled.

____

Stryfe buckled at the breaking of her ankle, she quickly drew her pistol from her hip. Before she could raise it she found herself in Thalgan's arms. Her own mercenaries raised their weapons at the attackers, keeping enough distance that they could find cover or prevent everyone from going down in a gunfight.

"Drop your weapons!" An Invictus mercenary shouted, keeping his eyes floating around from person to person. Things were tense, any movement could trigger a fight. No movement left them all exposed to the dangers of Hera Prime. Wildlife, people, the Sirens.

"Let's talk." Stryfe said, "Or at least give me some answers."

____

Beneath his helmet, Thalgan smiled, pressing the vibroknife against the Invictus leader's throat.

"Call them off."

The Jupiter mercs stared cold hatred into the opposition's collective frame. "You're in no position to bargain, I'm afraid," one of them said mockingly. Trigger fingers most assuredly itched on both sides, but the Jupiter mercs had their trump card.

...and the Mandalorian was growing impatient. "Now!" he growled.

____

"Sir?" An Invictus mercenary asked, weapon still trained on the imposters. Stryfe gave a subtle nod to her people, "Stand down." She ordered, her mercenaries backing away slowly. It wasn't until they were back at the jeeps that they began to lower their weapons even a little.

"Who sent you?" Stryfe asked, though she had a very good guess. It was clear that she was trying to buy some time to think, or for her own people to make a move. They were the at a disadvantage, they needed a plan before the odds were really stacked against them.

"We'll get help, sir." One of Stryfe's mercenaries assured her, glaring daggers at Thalgan.

____

Thalgan didn't take too kindly to the Invictus operatives' words. "I wouldn't, if I were you," he said, bracing the knife further against Fatin's neck. He stayed on the ground, making sure he had a secure hold on the Invictus leader, and thereby a leash with with to control her subordinates.

"If you so much as glance at a radio, I'll paint this sand in her blood. I want you all to drop your weapons and get on your knees." He looked them over, the knife in his hand held firm. He didn't look over at the Jupiter merc closest to him, but it was clear who he was addressing. "Send word that we've got our quarry. Alive."

The merc nodded, keeping his weapon trained on the Invictus until he could back away far enough to duck behind the crates for cover and radio Andarta.

Thalgan kept his focus on both Fatin and the other Invictus soldiers.

"Your move, gentlemen."

____

"We can't do that. We don't want this to end in death, but if it comes to tha-..." "Put them down, or leave." Stryfe interrupted, "We're not in the best position right now." She added. Her people were slow to comply, but one by one they reluctantly lowered their weapons.

Next came the handguns and other weapons carried before they got to their knees. They were far from happy with how things were going, but they understood how little choice they had right now.

They were outgunned.

____

With a nod, Thalgan signaled a group of the Jupiter mercs to swarm the surrendering Invictus, kicking the relinquished guns aside so none of them could make a quick grab for their firearms. From there, they lined up around them all, keeping their guns trained on the group.

"Now," Thalgan began, "You've got questions, but I'm afraid I'm not the one you need to ask. You'd need to talk to my employer; don't worry though, you'll meet them soon enough." He chuckled, picturing in his head the payday he would be receiving from this hunt. Were he some sort of beast, he most likely would have started salivating.

All that was left was to wait on Andarta, or whoever, to show up and extract the target.

____

Hesh watched the ambush from a distance through the scope of his rifle, his armored body pressed against the hot sand dune he was using for high ground. He rested the scope on Thalgan and Stryfe, finger moving towards his trigger. It was then that his finger flicked the safety on and the mercenary stood up.

"Discontinuing overwatch. On my way down." He said over the radio. Meanwhile, Andarta was in the air. Her gunship making it's way towards the ambush to pick up her prize. One mercenary leader on a silver platter.

"Let the mercenary know we're close." She ordered her men.

____

His eyes shot towards the horizon, the gunship coming into view as it darted along through the air. "That must be our ride," he said. With that, he began to stand, hoisting Fatin to her feet as he did. "Cover me. Shoot the bitch if she tries anything," he said to one of the nearby mercs. The man nodded in response, keeping his rifle at the ready.

Thalgan held onto his prisoner with a literal iron grip, ready to break more of her body if she gave him no other choice. He did what he could to make sure she could at least hobble on her good foot, keeping the vibroknife ready to strike as he made her move along.

He payed close attention to the woman's movements, all the while awaiting the gunship to make contact.

____

The gunship came down to land, it's shadow covering the men and women on the ground below. As it got close to the ground a door open, ramp extending downwards until it was fully down and the ship was on solid planet. In the doorway stood Andarta, the woman donning a white jumpsuit and blue armored vest. Her visor swept across all of the people present a few times before she beckoned Thalgan to the ship. "Kill the Invictus. The ones in Siren as well." She ordered.

As one of her mercenaries planted his rifle against the head of one of the kneeling Invictus soldiers there was a pause. The sand and rock on the ground began to blow away from the gunship and everyone else. And then with a sudden pop there stood a man near the group of mercenaries and soon-to-be-dead Invictus mercenaries.

The man, wearing a body obscuring black hooded cloak, was quick to raise a gloved hand at the nearest of Andarta's specialists.

"Who the fuck are yo-..." The mercenary's innards burst out through his armor and hit the sand, several of Andarta's people raising their weapons on the hostile newcomer. "Give her to me." He said, pointing towards Thalgan and Stryfe. "You can keep the rest." The Hooded Man told Andarta.

____

Thalgan stood where he was, a little unnerved by what he had just seen. The hooded man reminded him of a Sith, but, he got the feeling such wasn't the case. In any event, he couldn't simply hand Fatin over to the stranger. Smirking, he wrapped his foot around Fatin's good ankle, giving her a push in an attempt to trip her up and onto the ground, sheathing his knife in the process, only to produce both DE-10 blasters from his holsters.

One would be aimed at the grounded Fatin, whom Thalgan would place a hefty boot on in order to immobilize, while the other would be pointed in the Hooded Man's direction. "'fraid I can't do that," the mercenary said.

"She's got quite the bounty on her, and I'm here to collect on it." The tense air of a standoff permeated around them, each of the individuals present waiting for the first move.

____

"Hey! Let's all calm down and try to prevent a massacre here." Andarta called out, stepping out of the gunship with several of her mercenaries in tow. "He killed Jakar. We should just take this guy out." One of the mercs said, the others clearly in agreement. Andarta looked to Thalgan before focusing her unseen eyes onto The Hooded Man.

She shrugged, "You did kill one of my people. Seemingly to make a point. That's not very forgivable. The woman you want is also our payday, so there's that." Andarta made her way over to Thalgan, gesturing for him to remove his boot from Stryfe's body.

"You're obviously very powerful, but we're not run of the mill thugs or bloodthirsty mercenaries. We're professionals and sometimes we kill powerful people. You messed up."

A second later there was the sound of Hesh's rifle cutting the air with a single bullet. The bullet struck The Hooded Man and caused him to reel in pain, turning violently to face Hesh. The other professionals were distracted long enough for an Invictus soldier to tackle one to the ground.

A rifle went off as they struggled, buying enough time for some of the others to seize the opportunity to run or fight. Or die trying.

____

Thalgan did as instructed, removing his hefty foot from Fatin's back as Andarta began to take control of the situation. The air was tense as the Hooded Man stared them down, the smell of blood heavy on the air as the sun's inferno began to heat up the repulsive remains of the disemboweled Jupiter mercenary.

From there, however, it wasn't long until all hell broke loose...

The sound of a gunshot rang out, and a bullet ripped through the Hooded Man's person, though not enough to put him down it would seem, as he turned on his heel to face Hesh, his attacker. The Invictus were riled up, some of them brave enough to start an assault on the Jupiter mercs standing guard over them. With their own weapons having been kicked away from them, they'd have to either fight for a weapon, or be cut down in the ensuing chaos.

Thalgan furrowed his brow in fury, his gaze switching from the Invictus to the Hooded Man. Time seemed to slow down as the realization that he would need to act fast or lose control of the situation eclipsed him.

He didn't have much time.

Without turning to face Andarta, he shouted "Keep her secure!" referring to Fatin. He sprinted towards the Hooded Man, who he perceived to be the biggest threat at the moment, running headlong at the strange individual, blasters in hand. With the weapon in his left hand, he focused fire on the Hooded Man, whilst the one in his right sought to strike down the opposing Invictus soldiers.

As he neared closer to the Hooded Man, he would ultimately holster his blasters, aiming to tackle the sinister figure with his weighty frame, seeking to pin him to the ground and open him up to a flurry of punches, delivered courtesy of Thalgan's iron-clad fists.

____

Andarta grabbed Stryfe and pulled her up, wasting no time in dragging the Invictus leader to the gunship. "Back to base." Andarta told her people, one of her professionals grabbing Stryfe to help the injured woman up the ramp.

"You won't get away." Stryfe told Andarta, "Let me guess. Tracking devices in your armor or under the skin? It won't matter, as we speak some of Crowley's people are on their way to kill or capture the rest of your own." Andarta informed the Invictus leader. "You lost."

Her words seemed to ring true to Stryfe. She saw as one of her people was dropped to a knee by a well-placed knife to the side, then a few others sent falling into the sand by several shots from Thalgan's blasters.

The Hooded Man on the other hand stood his ground, turning to face Thalgan and raising his palms up at the incoming shots. He seemed to absorb them, or at least spread their energy in a way that made them harmless.

He didn't show any signs of wearing a shield generator, something else was at work. The Hooded Man himself, maybe.

As Thalgan came to tackle him The Hooded Man planted his feet, wrapping his arms around the mercenary's body. He showed impressive, superhuman, strength in his attempt to lift Thalgan and toss him into one of the parked jeeps.

____

The Mandalorian was stopped dead in his tracks as his onslaught was halted by the surprising fortitude of his opponent's frame. With astounding ease, he was sent hurling through the air, coming to a stop as he was rocketed into the side of a nearby jeep. Even with all the protection his armor offered, there was no denying the sensation that currently spread throughout his body: that had hurt.

He gradually shook off the disorientation, clambering to his feet as he looked over at the Hooded Man once more. His appearance was deceptive, and he was quite capable of terribly powerful feats. The mercenary would have to think carefully about his next move.

Blasters hadn't worked, and a head-on assault had proved just as fruitless, but he had to bring this foe down for the sake of the mission. Something in Thalgan's mind told him this man wouldn't stop his assault, even if Fatin were killed.

He'd have to try his best to overcome this troublesome adversary.

No words; just action as the Mandalorian charged again. Initially, it would appear he were going for another tackle. However, he waited for the Hooded Man to brace himself, before dodging to the side and activating the flamethrower on his wrist, seeking to encompass his person in a searing inferno.

At the same time, he produced a thermal detonator, dropping it near the Hooded Man's foot as he fell past where he stood, rolling along the ground as the flames stopped spewing, activating the thrusters on his boots to give him enough momentum to clear the imminent blast radius.

____

The Hooded Man was caught by surprise when Thalgan sidestepped him. As he reached for the Mandalorian he found himself being hosed with fire. His cloak wouldn't be in existence for much longer, parts of it burning away to reveal that underneath it was a muscular man wearing a black military bodysuit, partially visible was also a ballistic vest.

It didn't matter for much longer, The Hooded Man began to take a step until he felt the thermal detonator at his feet. He reached down to pick it up, ready to throw it at Thalgan.

He raised the explosive and just as he was about to throw it there came the crackling of another of Hesh's bullets. It hit the thermal and less than a second later it exploded, Hesh approaching slowly as the smoke and flame dissipated.

Where The Hooded Man once was there was only the tattered remains of his clock and his blood. It seemed to have coagulated quickly, leaving it somewhat syrup-like.

____

Thalgan came to a rest as his feet touched the sand, craning backward until he fell into a sitting position on the ground, his forearms overlapping his knees as he stared at the spot the Hooded Man was standing just moments before.

Hesh approached the scene, gradually making his way over to the killing floor. Thalgan looked up at the aged mercenary from his seat. "Hell of a shot," he said without humor, casting his gaze back to the bloodstain that was the Hooded Man.

Something didn't seem right about how the remains rested in the sand; the blood looked strange, eldritch, as if it were trying to reach out again from its murky shallows, to become more than just thick, gory paint against a bone-white canvas of grain. His opponent was dead now, but Thalgan couldn't shake the chill that crept up his spine. Finally, he stood, having caught his breath, not turning away from the grotesque scene before him as he spoke.

"I think we're done here."

____

"Yeah. I hope." Hesh said, turning to see a few of the Invictus running. He raised his rifle peering through the scope at their backs. Hesh seemed ready to take the shot, but instead he lowered the weapon again. "They won't get far. If the desert doesn't kill them, raiders will." Hesh said, turning to Thalgan.

"Come on. It's time we get to the Labyrinth. Collect our pay and lick wounds."

 

[Tiko]

as written by Saarai and Script

Night fell on the expansive desert, the only source of light coming from a fire inside a small cave dug into small mountain. It was an attractive light, beckoning every raider and criminal towards it with it's haunting dance.

One such raider found himself creeping up towards the fire, pistol in hand so that he could the jump on whomever was inside. He'd take their things and sell them Siren. Make some quick profit.

"Hands up!" He shouted at no one but a fire, "Huh?" He looked around to make sure he wasn't missing any valuables left behind since the cave seemed abandoned.

"Hands up." A woman said, pressing her own handgun to the back of the man's neck. She grabbed his gun as soon as he raised his hands, tossing it to the side before taking a step back.

"Turn around and then leave." She commanded. The would-be thief did as he was told, resting his eyes on a dark-skinned woman dressed in a poncho over a black jumpsuit.

"Now!" She yelled, firing a shot up into the cave ceiling. The shot and the woman's authoritative tone sent the criminal running out of the cave.

He left the two-wheeler he rode in on not far from the cave, he was too busy focusing on not being shot.

"Okay, we're clear." The woman said, making her way out of the cave to be greeted by the darkness. There was only a faint glow from one of Hera Prime's three moons.

As she planted her feet into the sand, several similarly dressed men and women climbed out of it. Rebreathers over their mouths and goggles over their eyes so they could deal with being submerged in the sand.

"Think he'll come back?" One of them asked, "Counting on it. Be ready." The woman said.

____

"This guy's creeping me out." Benedict said, his voice resonating through his team's comms. "Like, he hasn't moved, talked, and I don't think he's breathed once. It's weird." He continued, following behind Vanessa's bike.

"Deal with it, Benny. He'll be gone soon. Shouldn't take long to reach the outpost." Vanessa told him, "How are you, Alanna? Don't mind the heat?" Vanessa asked, pointing up to the lowering sun.

Despite it getting darker, it seemed like the heat wasn't going away any time soon. The planet's twin suns kept the planet, the Badlands especially, baked.

____

"I'm doing good," Alanna grinned, "but I guess am cheating." A small trail of vapour was left in her wake as she drove, as the baking heat of the Badlands met the faint aura of frost she was projecting around herself. It was like personal air conditioning. She'd produced a duster hat from her pack just before setting out, fixing it to her head to ward off the sun's rays as well as its heat.

The dust was the more annoying factor. She wasn't willing to waste the energy necessary it would be to keep it away from herself with magic, and so she simply pulled the neck of her duster coat tighter and tied a rag over her face to stop the worst of it. "I do look a little bit like a twat in a cowboy costume, but I guess that those are the sorts of sacrifices that you gotta make out here."

____

"You look more inconspicuous than we do. We'll get pegged as mercenaries instantly. Not that it seems to matter here." Vanessa said, "Blending in can wait. We've got at least another hour and a half before we reach our destination." She added.

"At least we'll be done soon. I'm still getting weird vibes from this du-..." Benedict was interrupted suddenly by his buggy violently flipping over. He and his passengers braced themselves as they went rolling through the sand.

The source of the crash was nothing nefarious, just an extremely large creature that immediately went tunneling underground. It was a local predator.

Vanessa brought her bike to a stop, the other buggy stopping as well.

"You guys okay?" A mercenary shouted, "Other than my grievous injuries? I'm fine." Benedict answered.

____

"So glad I didn't encounter any of the local wildlife last time I was here," Alanna remarked as she hit the brakes and her bike came to a halt. She looked around warily, keeping a close eye on the dirt for any signs of further movement in case the creature decided to come back for round two.

"How grievous is grievous? If you have time to be sarcastic, it can't be too bad, right? What about the others? How's tall, scarfed and silent doing?" Dismounting, she began to walk over to where the mercenaries and their passenger had been scattered.

____

"I'm actually okay." Benedict told the others, he and his passengers climbing out from beneath the buggy. Their mysterious and eerily quiet guest seemed unscathed, raising a hand to indicate that everyone should stop where they were.

The creature was near, the slight rumble beneath the sand was indication enough. Growing more and more intense the closer the creature got until it finally dug it's way back above ground.

There it was, slightly smaller than your average car and with dark leathery skin. A horn protruded from it's snout, it's eyes small and milky.

It was ready to make it's move, at least when others made their move. It was apparent that it's eyesight wasn't very good, it found it's prey a different way.

____

Alanna froze the moment she noticed the creature's eyes. It saw based on movement. Tremors in the earth, perhaps? It would make sense, if it was a burrower. Her hand slipped into one of the pouches in her belt, brushing against a smooth stone there.

In the next instant, a runic glyph appeared in the air before her and she slowly rose off of the ground, carried by some invisible force.

Moving slowly in case it still 'saw' her, she reached for the rifle strapped to her back.

____

"I think it's waiting for us." Vanessa said, "Probably injures it's prey and waits for it to scream out or writhe around." She continued, looking towards Alanna. "What are you doing?" Benedict asked, "Shannon, what is Alanna doing?" He then asked a mercenary.

"Don't do anything crazy." Benedict told Alanna, "But, save us from being gored by that thing. I've seen the running with the bulls enough to know I won't like it."

____

Whether the creature saw through sound or movement, Alanna was careful to produce as little as possible of both. She slowly took her rifle in hand and aimed it straight for the creature's head - careful to avoid the horn.

I just hope this thing isn't endangered, she mused, before she pulled the trigger.

The shot rang out loudly across the wasteland, and a second followed shortly after - just to be sure. Both were set to strike the creature in the head, provided it hadn't made a move before she fired.

____

The creature went down after the two shots, but it wasn't quite dead just yet. It was big, it was strong, and it attempted to power through it's wounds to stand back up and attack Alanna. Unfortunately for the animal it was too badly wounded to actually get back to it's feet with falling down again.

It groaned loudly, clearly in immense pain. Vanessa rushed towards the animal, placing his her gloved hands around it's nose and using her body to force it's mouth shut.

She was killing it. A mercy kill that wouldn't involve using up ammunition. You never knew when that extra bullet could come in handy. "We'll need to split up." Vanessa told the group, "Alanna, you, Benedict and some of the others will go straight to Siren." She told Alanna.

"The rest of will drop off the package. I want you all to wait for us in Siren. It'll take awhile, we'll continue on foot." Vanessa said, eyeing the creature until it went still. "The mission is first, if we don't get to Siren in six hours or less, move on and find Stryfe."

____

"Alright," Alanna slung her rifle back over her shoulder, looking regretfully at the dying beast. She'd hoped for a clean kill. But with a creature she didn't know the anatomy of... it'd been a risk.

"I'll see you there. Here, take this," she reached into one of her pouches and pulled out a smooth stone, a glyph inscribed upon it. She tossed it over to one of the mercenaries staying behind. "If you get into trouble, grab hold of that and focus really hard on it. If it's not doing anything, trace the symbol on it with a finger, yell 'activate', whatever it takes to get your mind focused on triggering it. It'll bring you some backup - an elemental."

She paused, "It'll also help if you run out of water, though I can't imagine it'll be pleased about it."

Alanna lowered herself back to the ground and walked back over to her bike, readying herself to leave with the others.

____

Vanessa quickly pointed out several of the mercenaries, that was her team for the delivery. They wished their friends good luck, the same being sent their way as they moved to join Vanessa.

"Mulan, you can't be serious?" Benedict asked, "Nina put me in charge, follow my orders. Find the boss, take her home." Vanessa told Benedict, "Alanna, there is a chance we will not meet again. But, I'm glad we met the first time." She told Alanna, glaring at Benedict until he made his way over to Vanessa's bike.

"Move out. Change your route towards... the southwest from here. Should bypass the outpost and send you straight to Siren."

____

"It's been good," Alanna replied, nodding her head respectfully, "I'm confident I'll see you again, though. You don't seem the type to get beaten by a crummy desert."

She smirked, "And remember that magic pebble. Could save your life."

____

Vanessa nodded, "Yeah, I can handle a desert." She told Alanna, "We'll see you soon." She added, turning to approach the mystery guest.

"We gotta move." A mercenary said to Benedict, climbing into one of the remaining buggies. "Yeah, I know. On me, guys." He said, revving his bike's engine before it went flying through the Badlands.

"Try to keep up, Alanna. Wouldn't want you getting lost."

____

"The concern's appreciated, but so long as we don't hit any more living landmines ... or actual landmines, for that matter ... then you don't have to worry about me," Alanna replied with a smirk as they shot off.

____

Nights were rare on Hera Prime, a planet with two suns where one was almost always in the sky at some point. The Badlands were devoid of both, allowing all manner of man and beast to come out and take advantage.

The small convoy of bounty hunters and mercenaries travelling through the desert was a deterrant to anyone with bad intentions on their mind, "Are we close?" Benedict asked, "Almost!" Responded the untrustworthy man that provided everyone with a payday.

"I don't like him." Benedict called out to Alanna, "Be ready for anything."

____

"I've lived in Westeria my whole life," Alanna replied, fixing Benedict with an amused stare. "It's pretty much drilled into my subconscious to be ready for anything, at any time. For any, or no reason."

She flicked her wrist, and a trio of runestones appeared between her fingers. With another flick, they were gone. "If this falls through, at least I can always fall back on being a street magician."

____

"I've always been partial to street magicians. They do card tricks and remind me that I could have been much worse off." Benedict said to Alanna, "Granted, getting shot at for a living isn't exactly what most men my age prefer."

"There!" The weaselly man shouted, pointing to a small mountain across the expanse. Light could be seen from a cave entrance. It could only be fire, protection from the cold and at the same time an open invitation for anyone criminally minded. The closer the convoy got, the more tense things seemed to become.

The local mercenaries were all about a payday, they couldn't be trusted. The man leading everyone to the payoff was an obvious liar, a scoundrel, one of Hera Prime's lower lifeforms.

"Nothing but bad vibes." Bryce muttered.

____

"I hear that," Alanna replied lowly, keeping her eyes on their 'companions'. "I have a feeling that these evil terrorists aren't going to be all they've been made out to be."

She paused. "Either that or they're in on it, and this is all a scam to kill us and take our stuff. One of the two," she murmured. "Want to take a bet?"

____

"I'll give you all of my Yu-Gi-Oh cards if we get robbed and murdered." Benedict joked, watching as the mercenaries ahead of them came to a stop near the cave. "I don't think they have Yu-Gi-Oh on Valore." Bryce informed Benedict, the two coming to a stop of their own to join the other members of their fellowship.

"Only one way in." One of the local mercs noted, "We're walking into a trap if we head in." He said, climbing out of his buggy. The sand beneath his armored boots was soft, somewhat like it had been tampered with.

____

"Yeah, whatever yoogey cards are, that reference went way over my head," Alanna answered, before her eyes noted the strangeness in the sand.

"Hold up," she called sharply. "The sand there," she pointed it out. "It's loose, like someone's been digging around. Watch we aren't walking into a minefield, or more of those burrowers."

____

"I'm allergic to mines." Benedict said, taking some time to think on the matter. Only one way inside, possible minefield, and some unsavory locals on a hostile planet in another galaxy that was foreign to him.

There weren't many options.

"Limited gear for this op, can't scan to see what we're dealing with." He said, taking a few careful steps forward. Benedict kneeled down, placing a palm down on the sand.

"Are you crazy?" One of the local mercenaries asked, "Shush." The Invictus soldier began to dig a finger into the sand. "It's too deep to be mines. I don't know what this is. I'm touching something."

____

"That's a pretty common one. Like seafood, or bullets," Alanna remarked offhandedly as she watched over Benedict's shoulder.

"Want me to prod around with my staff?" she asked, pulling a thin metallic tube from her belt. She hit a switch on it, and the rod extended to form a full-length quarterstaff.

____

"Be my gues-..."

Bendict didn't get to finish his sentence before a hand shot up out of the sand and gripped his throat. "Jesus Christ, someone please help!" He barely managed to scream as his attacker slowly rose from the sand.

They weren't alone, others began to rise and reveal themselves to the group. Men and women dressed in tattered robes with armor and jumpsuits underneath. They were heavily armed and clearly waiting for someone to arrive.

Everyone was right about a trap, but it didn't come from where they expected it to come from.

"No sudden moves." One of the women ordered, her accent very distinct and clearly not native to Hera Prime.

____

Alanna had reacted quickly, her boot coming down on the face of the attacker that had grabbed Benedict's throat. As more of them rose, however, she stepped back defensively. No sudden moves indeed. A pair of innocuous marked stones were held between her fingers on each hand, produced with a quick act of legerdemain upon the initial ambush, but she otherwise made no moves to arm herself or otherwise react rashly.

They were obviously outnumbered here.

"So, to who do we owe the pleasure?" she inquired, sweeping her eyes across the attackers to get a headcount and take note of their positions.

____

The first attacker easily let go of Benedict, moving to distance himself from Alanna and the others to avoid any more trauma to the face. "Fuck me." He muttered, a little blood trickling from his nose down his dirty face.

"You know who we are. If you didn't, you wouldn't be here." The woman with the strange accent said, raising a pistol towards Alanna. Her face was covered in grime and what appeared to be tribal face paint. The others in her band seemed to take the same tribal inspiration.

There were at least seven of them total, counting the leader.

"You're not Sirens, just trying to look like them." A mercenary said, "Crowley's got a bounty on you." The other told them, "Hefty price for some dead foreigners." The first continued, "Only dead." The second added.

"Everyone just calm down." Benedict said, getting to his feet. "Benny?" The woman asked, "Sonia?" Bryce asked her, "Holy shit, Alanna. These are our friends we were looking for." Benedict told Alanna.

"Sonia," Benedict said, stepping up to the armed woman. "We're taking you ho-..."

The sound of bullet cutting the air around it could be heard, said bullet dropping Benedict to the sand.

The mercenaries couldn't be trusted, to no one's surprise. They quickly turned their weapons, pistols, on Alanna. She was the next closest threat.

____

The moment the sound of the gun discharging had sounded, Alanna had acted. The first of her runestones was cast out, bursting in the air in a bright flash of arcane power. Seemingly from nowhere, an explosion of water burst outwards, splashing in every direction like a geyser.

The next stone burst into life moments after the first. Its light pulsed through the cascading water, instantly freezing the spray into a barrage of deadly ice shards. From there, Alanna took control.

Spears of ice shot towards the mercenaries with purpose, guided by the water mage to single out them and avoid her allies - including the 'ambushers' that Benedict had identified as friends, not foes. It was unlikely she'd take out all of the mercenaries in one shot, but the sudden burst of frozen death would hopefully at least give the others a window of opportunity to react and pick off the remainder of the merc group before they recovered enough from the surprise to return fire.

____

The mercenaries were lucky enough to be protected by their armor, it was their only real advantage in the fight. Numbers weren't on their side. One went down and the other charged Alanna, looking to tackle her and keep her from using her abilities again.

The first began to climb to his feet, being met with a barrage of gunfire that would eventually tear through his armor and destroy the body on the inside.

The sheepish guide made an attempt to run, Bryce moving quickly to intercept him with an arm hook. He wasn't about to get off easy, not today.

____

The charging man was met with a forceful swing of Alanna's staff to the side of the head, followed swiftly by a kick to shove him backwards. While he was reeling, she brought her right arm up, extending the blade sheathed upon the back of her forearm and jamming it into his chest. The enchantment on the blade allowed it to carve through his body armour like a hot knife through butter, sinking into the flesh beneath. Without hesitation, she wrenched her arm to the side, tearing the blade out through the man's torso with a splatter of red and leaving him to drop to the ground.

She turned her gaze on the third mercenary then, raising a questioning eyebrow as though to ask if they really wanted to stick with their current plan, now that their two 'buddies' were dead.

____

The charging mercenary fell hard to the sand, leaving the last to raise his hands and clearly surrender. He wasn't ready to die, not even for the kind of money Crowley was offering for these people.

"I guess I should make myself useful." He said, "The guy who placed the bounty, Crowley, has people that stay in towns like Siren and keep him appraised of what goes on. It's how bounty hunters get paid."

As the mercenary spoke, Sonia was kneeling down beside Benedict. Her hands pressed against the entry and exit wounds he had from the gunshot. Benedict himself was unmoving.

The lack of armored protection was probably a bad idea considering the fact that Hera Prime was an unknown entity. From the look on Sonia's face as she took her hands away from him, it cost him his life.

Bryce took notice, raising his rifle at the mercenary unbeknownst to him. He was just waiting for permission to take his head off of his shoulders.

"I'm sorry for your friend." The mercenary said, slowly removing their helmet to reveal their pale skin and lack of hair. A face covered in tattoos and cybernetics.

"You have to understand, a lot of money would come our way for doing this."

____

"No, you're not. You're sorry we turned out to be more than you could handle, that's about it. I know your type." Alanna's voice was steel, and she stepped over to the mercenary, her blade still dripping blood.

"How would someone go about meeting this Crowley? What are his points of contact, where do rumours say he's based? And I'd better like your answer."

____

"Go to town, Siren especially, spread word of your success with one of his bounties and his people find you." The mercenary told the group, "Some of his people make a home at an old military base not far from here." He continued, "Oh, Aether City, he took control. No one actually saw Crowley, but his inner circle is there."

Sonia gestured to Benedict's body, her people moving to lift and carry him into the cave. He didn't need to be exposed to night air and the creatures that would be showing up soon.

"Crowley's a name our intelligence back home brought up." The woman said, turning her gaze to Alanna and then Bryce. "I assume it wasn't just you three?" She asked.

"Mulan is taking care of spook stuff, the others are in Siren. Mulan's going to flip when we tell her about Ben." Bryce answered, hands shaking as he resisted the urge to kill the last mercenary.

"We should go. Make a choice about him." Sonia said to Alanna.

____

Alanna nodded. She kept the mercenary fixed in her gaze for several long moments, before shaking her head with a grimace and turning away from him to join the others.

"Name's Alanna, by the way," she said, nodding to Sonia. "I'm here to help point you guys in the direction of the prison, once Vanessa catches up."

____

"Sonia Hughes, Invictus. But, I'm assuming you didn't need to know my affiliation." The Englishwoman said to Alanna, "We should get back and see if she made it." Sonia continued, "Luckily, we have vehicles." The still bloodied Invictus agent said, wiping his nose clean.

"You hit hard." Another told Alanna.

Bryce forced the mercenary to his knees as the others spoke, still deciding what he wanted to do. Murder wasn't the modus operandi of the Invictus. But, a friend was killed and would likely be left on the alien planet.

The possibility of Benedict never really receiving a proper burial came when the other Invictus began to barricade the cave his body was in.

"Let's go." He finally said to the group, lowering his weapon. "We've got to save Stryfe and get back home."

____

"Sorry about that," Alanna nodded an acknowledgement to the man she'd kicked. She was silent as Benedict's body was interred. She hadn't known the man well, but he'd been good company on the trip so far. He'd seemed like a good man.

Men like Crowley inevitably built their empires with the coffins of good men as their building blocks.

She took a free spot in one of the vehicles, nodding her head. "The less time I have to spend back on this godsforsaken planet the better."

____

Bryce slammed his weapon into the mercenary's head as the others headed for the vehicles, taking as much pleasure as he could in knocking the man out. He secretly hoped he had brain damage.

"Okay, I'm ready." He said, jogging over to join Alanna just as Sonia was getting into the vehicle to drive. "We've got to move fast. It's been a long time here, who knows what they're putting Fatin through?" The Englishwoman asked, "Hope you know how to use a gun." Bryce said to her.

"Because we're the rescue team and we're already one down." Bryce told her. "I grew up in Brixton, I know how to use a gun." Sonia boasted. "No more deaths, agreed?" Sonia asked her passengers, starting up the buggy and starting off back towards Siren.

"I can dig it." Bryce answered.