Britton and his partner and best friend Kelko Wald, a Rodian with a knack for tracking, were following the tracks of a group of smugglers on their Kothlis Militia-issued Aratech 74-Z speeder bikes.  Their task was to find the smugglers' base of operations, arrest as many of the smugglers as possible and recover any stolen or illegal items.

The track had been easy so far, even at the speed the speeder bikes were moving, because most of the planet was a beach.  The soft sand lent easily to leaving footprints.  But now the pair were getting more inland towards a small jungle forest.

"<Hold up!>" Kelko called out in Rodian as he slowed down his speeder bike.  Kelko often communicated in Rodian on missions, so others would not be able to know what they were talking about.    "<I've lost the trail.  They might have figured out we were following them.  We'll have to continue on foot.>" He said, unstraddling his speeder bike.

Britton swore.

<How'd they cover their tracks in this stuff?>

"<Less sand up here in the jungle,>" Kelko replied slowly.  "<Just give me a second,>" he said as he studied the ground.  After a few seconds of searching, he added, "<Okay, give me 2 minutes.>"  He gave a frustrated Rodian sigh, as he really got down and looked around.  Finally, Kelko picked up the trail again and started heading off into the jungle.

"<It's funny,"> Kelko said.  "<Once I found the trail it was relatively easy to follow.>"  You entered a small clearing with 3 fallen trees bracketing it, and Kelko stopped.  <"Well that's odd,"> Kelko said, standing up.  "<I've lost the trail again.>"

Britton scouted out the ground himself, hoping to find the trail.

You sense the three smugglers you're tracking, surrounding you, each behind one of the fallen trees (see Game Map).  They have their guns drawn, and Kelko will not have time to react to any warning you give him.  (Though you could tackle him.)

"It's a trap!" Britton called, tackling Kelko to the ground.

The three smugglers fired at once, their laser blasts criss-crossing in the air where Britton's and Kelko's hearts had been.  In fact, with Britton and Kelko on the ground, two of the smugglers (S1 and S3) almost hit each other, the first one even hitting the third one's cover, almost burning a hole through the log.

"You idiots!" the other one called out.  "Why would you get in each other's crossfire?"  Then this smuggler, who seemed to be the leader, called out "Give it up.  We've got you surrounded."

Britton looked over at Kelko to see what he wanted to do.

"All right," Kelko said in Basic.  "We're surrendering.  I'm going to take out my blaster and put it on the ground."  Kelko took his blaster pistol carefully out of his holster and moved it slowly above his head while still staying on the ground.  He tossed the blaster a little away from himself...and just within Britton's reach.
This message was last edited by the GM at 06:29, Wed 14 May 2014.

Britton dove for the blaster.

Before Britton could reach the blaster, the smuggler leader (S2 on the map) fired at Britton, burning his hand and the grass around it.    "Don't even think about it," the smuggler leader said.

Suddenly, Kelko flicked his wrist and one of the other smugglers screamed out in pain before firing back at Kelko in retribution.  But Kelko just dodged the shot.

Thinking that Britton was down and out, the other smuggler also fired at Kelko, clipping his shoulder from the back.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:39, Tue 13 May 2014.

Grateful he was ambidextrous, Britton grabbed the blaster with his other hand and fired at the smuggler who shot him.

Britton's shot went through the smuggler leader's shoulder joint, leaving a gaping wound and causing the leader to gasp.  He promptly fired back, but the shot went well over Britton's head.

Kelko got up and headed towards cover, catching a metal blur that flew back towards him as he made it to some bushes.

The smuggler that Kelko had hurt fired at him again, but apparently he thought Kelko was going to stand still because he fired where he was before he ran for cover.

The third smuggler fired at Britton who was still out in the open, but the shot went wide.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:34, Thu 15 May 2014.

Britton decided it might be best to head for cover so he attempted to roll for it.

Britton rolled to his feet and ran next to Kelko.

The smuggler leader seemed to catch a second wind and fired at Britton and Kelko again, but the shot didn't even hit their cover.

Kelko, slipping back into Rodese, said "<Man, I love this thing,>" as he held up the Rodian throwing razor his uncle had given him.  He took careful aim and slung it at the smuggler he had already injured with it.  The razor whizzed over the smuggler's head, not doing any damage, but keeping him on his toes, before it returned to Kelko's hand.  "<They are tricky to use though,>" Kelko admitted.

That smuggler moved slightly closer, making sure to return to cover before firing.  But his shot completely missed.  The last smuggler followed suit, moving closer, but still missing his target.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:08, Thu 15 May 2014.

Britton took careful aim (using an aim action which I don't remember how it works since I'm at work) at the captain who he'd already severely injured and fired.

Britton's shot glanced off the smuggler leader's torso, but didn't do much damage.  The smuggler leader recovered a bit, then fired right back, but woefully missed. 

Kelko aimed again at the closest smuggler, throwing his razor, but the blade slipped out of his hand and landed in the ground.  Fortunately it still hovered back when called.

The smuggler Kelko was trying to hit took the opportunity to shoot back, and he hit Kelko in his upper thigh, leaving a large flesh wound.  Kelko gripped at his leg, but otherwise remained calm.

The last smuggler moved closer again, firing at Britton after making it behind a bush.  But his shot on the move missed again.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:23, Mon 19 May 2014.

Britton aimed  at the smuggler behind the bushes.

Britton's shot punctured the smuggler's torso, eliciting a scream from him.

The smuggler leader took careful aim before firing at Britton, the shot nearly gutting Britton. 

Kelko caught a second wind and took another throw of his razor at the smuggler nearest him.  The razor sliced close to the smuggler's cover, but missed again.

The smuggler fired back, but missed Kelko entirely.

The smuggler that Britton had fired at returned fire, but instead hit his cover, taking a good chunk of wood out of the tree.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:22, Mon 19 May 2014.