Roy leaned in slowly...nothing gave away a position like rapid movements.  "We should see if we can move down that way...approach the rendezvous point from behind the Sanri.  Catching them from their blind side would give us a couple of extra seconds before they can react."  He looked around, trying to assess whether the tree line (or anything else) gave them a good set up for that kind of approach.

If not, their best bet was to be as close to the rendezvous as possible so they could close the distance before the Sanri got a chance to really prepare for them.  But as a sniper, he instinctively looked for the blind-side opportunity...

  Shadow took a  knee,  The Largs    laid  down, looking like  mossy Logs. well  the   tree-road  to the town is there, about , what 200 Yards  away. That's where  Mara and Flores   is going to be.

 he Points at the  head lghts  that were moving slowly, through the  trees. there was either a path there, or maybe trees had been logged out.

 if  we come in, behind them, they shouldn't even be  lookign, unless they are real pros.. if they are,  then the jig is up and the  Samri that  are meetign  Mara  and Flores  will be caught between us... They can;'t really run  out onto the   road, there  are too many witnesses.. i doubt if they are stupid  enough to  run into the field , with all those playful
 Largs there...

 Larry snorted.

  They would have to  go  further  south into the deeper  forest... they may ecape there, but thier  Buddies  with the   vehicles won't.

"They may run...but they won't escape."  He patted Larry's leg gently.  "That's part of why we brought you two along.  Even if they're real pros, I doubt they're expecting to tangle with a pair of largs.  It's one thing to do if you know they're there and coming for you..."  He'd been in that situation...it hadn't been pleasant, but it had been doable.

"It's another thing altogether if they just materialize out of the shadows at a dead run and you weren't equipped for that kind of encounter."  His encounter had also been with largs that hadn't been trained to work together by military personnel...they'd been running like individual guard animals, and that had given him an advantage that the Sanri wouldn't have.

  Shadow chuckle...But  why  Sanri..why couldn't  it have been, Malconted  Ouuci or..a group of Roussians ?

Shadow looks at Stee,,,they have  4  arms... that means  4 weapons ..right?

Stee looks up and thumps  her tail.

  the COMs  softly   buzz on vibrate, Shadow looks at it  and smiles,about 20 minutes ago..they still have   sun outside this forest... its like Being  in a leafy cave... as he showed  Roy ( not knowing that  Disna  sent him the pic )..

 Flores   here,  we have a  convertible  and we are  standing   on the far  side of it.. i have a Pulse rifle and  my bow with in easy reach... MAra is a bit nervous.

  there was the sound of   auto-whine, as  side  doors on the  2 Vans  Opened , Shadow looked and passed his  Bino to  Roy.

 about  120 yards or so away , the  vans sat with   just parking lights on,  the  side  doors and back   door  were open.. 6 Sandri, all looking a bit rough, compared to ESN  Sanri got out of the closest   Van.. 4 more  and 4  Occui  got out of a second... Two of the Sanri  started to walk to the   'tree tunnel' road that was  about 200 yards  from both Roy and his group  and the   Two Vans.

 Ok , Roy? I know what i wanna  do...but, as  the calmer head, what   do you think we should   do?
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:49, Tue 08 Nov 2022.

---->>>>>> From Bura sights and places

 The car stopped at the ranch outside of town and let the ladies off. Sam smiled and walked up to the desk to find out what they needed to do next.

 At  the Ranch the cars has to drop the People off  100 yards  away from th entrance,  so there  wasn't  any roller or hover vehicles too close to the ranch.
A Tall Nivarian, he was starting to  'tint green'.

 He saw the Ladies  and donned his Burian Cowboy  hat,   signed a  vidboard at the GAte  and went to meet them.

 welcome to  The Green Correl, we   have   several  kinds of  Mounts, for those of  all skills.... We have Steeles ,  a few earth Horses, we have 6  Sanri 'horses'..and we have some 'plains  runners" Theya re like  big..um... earth chickens? They are Fast, but the saddles  are designed to keep you in your seat.

 T Walking through the  trees, , the two lead Sanri flashed a light towards  mara and Flores.. the car was resting on the  side of the road, a few clumps of  people were  walking  to of from the airfield  towards the town and its  faire.

 Mara  flashed a  Light, but  neither woman stepped from  the other side of the Care.

 The lead Sanri said,You were told not to bring anyone...

 I am an ESN aviator, i don't talk orders from merc  troops who are to afraid  to  fight the  empire.
 There  are chuckled from  deep in the  Samri trooper's  chests.   Shadow  nudged   Roy as he put  his  ear piece in.. the  guards,  were in a  semi-circle  facing the direction   Mara was..

  showdown crouched,  he  steps  with  stealth, and used the trees  and shadows , This might not be  new york,,,but an alley fight, was  an alley fight, no matter what the alley was made of.., Stee and  larry  shuttled behind him

 Shadow whispered harshly...you serious  right now?... just wait..we're like..80 yards from those vans.. you  don't have to sneak..when  we call ,,you just fly over  and start  eating..

 the   Largs  flattened out..but a couple tail thumps  were tail present.

——> Bura Sites and Places

The car would leave the city and travel down one of the handful of roads on Bura giving Izzy a glimpse of the Burian countryside before pulling up in front of a pair of gates. Getting out of the car she would help Lizzy out of her seat and holding her hand walk over to meet the Nivarian cowboy at the gates with the others, suspecting that in her skirt and ankle boots that she looked the epitome of a clueless city girl. Knowing next to nothing about horses or the other animals that the cowboy mentioned Izzy would leave it to the others to make the arrangements as she meanwhile stood and shyly held Lizzy’s hand.

---->>>> From Bura Sights and Places

 Lizzy got out with Izzy's help and smiled at her, Lizzy could tell Izzy was a little nervous and gave her a reassuring smile as they headed for the Nivarian Cowboy. She didn't want to be the first to speak it wasnt her trip she was just along for the 'ride'. Lizzy giggled and she kept smiling at Izzy, holding her hand and walking with her.

From Bura Sites and Places

When Madison exited the car, she stepped out to look over the size of the ranch sprawled out in front of them. The main house dominated the view, but off to the left she could see the riding courses fenced in adjacent to the house. Horses and the six legged Burian counterparts were out on the grazing fields beyond. The stables must have been hidden somewhere behind the house. Madison turned to her friends with a big smile. She knew they were all nervous about this, so she went over and pulled them into a group hug.

"Guys, relax. This is going to be fun." She pointed to the fenced riding course. "See that. We'll be starting there. The horses will just follow the leader in that fenced area. We'll just be riding in a circle until you get the feel for it. Then, only if you want, we can go on a trail ride - assuming they do this like on Earth. The trail ride will be mostly the same. The horses following the leader but on a trail and not in a closed track. Only if your comfortable, in addition to the calm walking they may gallop in short bursts. Since this is your first time, they won't do more than that."

"I know you're going to love it." She hugged them again.

Following Madison’s hand as she pointed out across the fields, Izzy would look out at the paddocks as Madison explained how things were usually done, explaining that the horses would simply follow the leader at a steady pace ”That…doesn’t sound too bad” Izzy cautiously replied feeling reassured by Maddy’s explanation as she returned the hug before gesturing for Maddy to lead the way ”its a shame Nikki couldn’t join us…I think she would have loved this” Izzy would then add as they approached the cowboy with her gesturing for Maddy to make the arrangements with her having done this sort of thing before.

 when  they   reached the stables,  They saw the  creatures  being led about.

 The Nivaian said,now, you all have to sign this  Vidboards, so we know who you were  in case of the   the Horses  eat you..

 waiting a few beats for that to kick in , he laughs,It is  dude ranch  joke. We need to know what mounts you are on, in case the animals does not 'perform well'..then we check it to make sure it is  ok..or..if the animals doesn't like a certain species?

When the Nivaian came forward making the joke, Madison raised her eyebrows. Knowing how nervous Izzy was, she worried that it would be throwing fuel on the fire. Luckily, he didn't let the joke hang out there too long. When he laughed, Madison joined in, then signed his vidboard.

"These three ladies have never ridden before, and they're a little nervous. I grew up raising horses and I've competed in riding competitions my whole life. I just want my friends to have a great time. So, maybe a walk around the yard and a really low energy trail ride?"
This message was last edited by the player at 00:27, Sun 06 Nov 2022.

  The  two  Sanri Leader stood  at the tree  line, it didn't look like anything, overly  odd, Two women taking to , two Sanri troopers.

  Shadow was bending around the   rear of the Vans, roughtly  20 yards from the back. Larry and WStee  had thier heads  resting on a Long as they watched  and Waited. Roy saw the  back up  troops  move toward  the  road, by 10 or  so yards.

 Sam followed the ladies to meet the 'cowboy', Sam smiled and added," Yes Sir that would be great I have actually never ridden any animal and yesterday was the closet I have been to a animal like those. I really want to have fun and find a wonderful animal to ride with and get to know Sir."

 Lizzy was excited she walked with Izzy holding her hand, but she was excited about the fast ones. " Sir you said you had fast ones; I am a fighter pilot I have a need for speed." Lizzy giggled and was all smiles and looking to have a great time.

  The   Nivarian  chuckled,well? we'lll have to see  about that , Ma'am?  none of these   animals have a backrest or   seat belt, so? unless you are  versed in riding a fast animal? I  suggest a 'tour'  mount,  and you can always moveout., we're along  way from Med tech.

   turning on the Vidboards, he  shows the  different stables with animals, or points to the  ones, walking or  running  in the enclosure.

 Pic your beassts  and  we'll go meet them

There was a nervous laugh from Izzy in response to the joke, because although she was pretty sure horses didn’t eat people she wasn’t quite so confident about that when it came to the alien breeds. Thankfully however Maddy would quickly take control explaining that most of them were new to riding and nervous about it so they were looking for something gentle get them started. Not that it stopped Lizzy from asking for the fastest mount possible ”Babe, if you break your arm falling off a horse during shore leave it will be a race between Shadow and Stefi as to whether they kill you before Captain Morris gives you a disciplinary” Izzy said with a sigh. She loved Lizzy dearly…but talk jumping in with both feet!

With the cowboy then producing a vidboard showing the mounts they currently had available Izzy would look through the list before pointing to one of the Terran horses “Maybe Bluebell?” she said looking to Maddy for confirmation that she was making a good choice. With Bluebell; an older bay mare being described as being friendly and sedate.

"Give 'em enough rope to hang themselves...and then pull it tight," Roy answered, when asked about his choice of tactics.  After Shadow gave Larry and Stee a hard time, he leaned over.  "Sure, we're only eighty yards away...but if you can get within forty or fifty yards without being seen, it'll only take you half as long to get there..." he said in a hushed whisper, his voice barely audible from only a few feet away and covered by ambient noise from the range of the vans.

"If they see you, charge the leaders and protect our pilots, we'll take care of weapons..." he patted his machine pistol, then gestured for Larry to move up, using his hands to indicate the largs should stay low and move slow for now.

He looked over at Shadow.  "I'm headed that way," he said, in a barely audible murmur that would have been impossible to hear without the comms, and gestured toward the vans and the troops there.  "Flores, you or Mara, or both, keep you comms open, so we can kind of hear what they say."  He pulled out a machine pistol in his right hand, slowly and silenty racking the action to ready it, then grabbed the Verian hold-out pistol in his left as he side-slipped in a low crouch, staying at or outside the peripheral vision of the guards at the vans.

 Lizzy smiled and replied," Yeah I will go with 'Lady Red' she seems really sweet. Yes I should play it safe if I do well we can see right."  Lizzy smiled and handed the vidboard back after she picked 'Lady Red' come on she had too, she was listed and friendly, fun and feisty a very little. Lizzy then waited for the others to pick their rides.

 Sam smiled as Madison took control which was fine with Sam she knew very little about horses of any type. " I have no clue which one to pick by name, I like that sweet looking white one right there. I like that one she looks fine for me and a little smaller than the others."

 Sam smiled and walked towards the white mare to see how she likes Sam.

 Larry thumped his tail slightly, as he and Stee  did their 'crawl".

  Shadow  was moving  slowly,   slipping from tree to  tree, sating out of  and 'beams' of   the fading sunlight.. he was almost   20 yards away from the back of the Vans...

 The doors  are open.. the    van  furthest from us   have  two  bodies in with sacks over thier  head.. no one seems to  be worried  about   anyone   coming  from here...


............

 You know?  You guys are supposed to be our friends? Why would you  get into trafficking


The  lead Sanri  snorted,.....Our Leader, Admiral Roles, does not seem to think making Creds  is important  enough. so we need to subsidize our meager pay..

 Now? come  along?  the less damage we  do to you, the more you are worth.... we might have to hold you back for healing, other wise.

 I could shoot you right now.. and you would be  marked   for SEC to hunt  down.

 You could?  then we would have  to maim you, so you still could be used, , and it would cut down on your worth, but any creds we get, are more trhen we have now.

In reply to Isobel Sakura (msg # 394):
In reply to Lizzy O'conner (msg # 396):
In reply to Samantha Robertson (msg # 397):

Madison gave Izzy a nod at her choice. In truth, while some horses could get picky, these trail horses tended not to be. But the older mare wold probably work just fine for her. Once Lizzy and Sam selected theirs, Madison selected a younger Pinto stallion. They had some more spirit, and probably didn't get much time with a rider in a facility like this. She wanted to ride one of the alien horses, but her friends were expecting her to be the expert. It would be more comforting for everyone for there to be no surprises. If there was time after, she could try one of he six legged mounts.

"You guys all picked well. I'll go with this Pinto, Skywind. He looks energetic."

There was a relieved nod as Maddy confirmed that the mare would be a good choice for her, with Maddy going on to choose a spirited stallion by the name of Skywind to ride. With everyone having chosen a horse and signed the form, the cowboy would set about getting their chosen mounts saddled up and brought out of the stables to meet them ”so…um…how exactly do I get on?” Izzy asked as Maddy’s stallion was lead out first by one of the stable hands closely followed by Lady Wind ”…Also I think I…um…I’m going to need a box” she continued with horses being larger than she’d imagined them to be.

Yep. Izzy was too short to reach the stirrup. Step stools were a staple of these places, so Madison cast her gaze about until she saw one folded up against the barn wall.

"I got you, Izzy." Having retrieved it, she set it down for Izzy. "But before you jump on, let's meet Bluebell." Madison went over to stand by Bluebell's head. "Hi there, Bluebell. It's nice to meet you. I'm Madison." She pet the horse's cheek and mane, judging its reaction before petting its nose. Once she confirmed that Bluebell wasn't at all skittish, she waved Izzy over.

"Bluebell, this is Izzy. She's going be riding with you today. She's a sweetheart and you're really going to love her." Madison stepped out of the way, encouraging Izzy to make friends.