How had he ended up here?

The question was rhetorical of course.  The chain of events leading Lieutenant Arin Branden, the young TIE pilot to be standing in twenty kilos of stormtrooper armour, leading a squad of troops who didn't want him there in a raid that he was having trouble justifying, were clear.  It had been a wake-up call in the anti-alien bias in the New Order.

The raid had seemed so innocent in the briefing.  A group of terrorists had been located in a small warehouse in one of the manufacturing districts of the city.  The squad's duty was to go in and neutralise the threat.

Despite sounding so simple, Arin had got his first inkling of suspicion when he'd asked questions in the briefing.  Questions like what were the rules of engagement, and why they weren't being supplied with a transport to ferry prisoners back to base.  Questions about the terrorists' supposed crimes also failed to elicit a response and in the end, most of the briefing was given to Sergeant Tarrin, squad commander of Stormtrooper Squad P1-6547.  That suited the Sergeant just fine.  It had been clear from the start he resented having the Lieutenant along, a flyboy at that.

Arin had felt positively worthless most of the trip.  He'd watched the troopers quickly and efficiently don their armour and weapons while he clumsily got into his.  He stood silently as the Sergeant quickly issued orders to his men, deigning to mention that the Lieutenant had 'command'.  There was no snickering or any other sign of the derision the stormtroopers must have felt, stormtroopers were far too well trained for that.   But he knew it was there.

On the way over, the Lieutenant felt a little put out that the Sergeant and his Corporal planned the raid without him, only submitting the plan to him afterwards for his 'approval' which was undoubtedly just a courtesy.  Still, he had to admit their plan was sound.  The squad would break into three, three-man elements.  Element 1 led by the Sergeant would assault the main entrance. Element 2, led by the Corporal would breach the side door.  Element 3 would be under the Lieutenant's command and would provide perimeter security.  Given there was only one exit through the fence, this was more formality.

Arin also had tactical overview, he'd been given a tactical datapad that recorded the movements of the troopers in real-time.  It allowed him to redeploy forces if it became necessary during the battle.  Part of him wondered if the troopers would obey his commands, but he remembered that despite their clear disdain for non-troopers they were loyal soldiers.

Things seemed to run like clockwork initially.  The command vehicle pulled up and the troops unloaded.  Arin worked to study a datapad through his stormtrooper helmet.  By the time he'd got use to the various data feeding through his helmet visor, the outer gate had been breached and the three elements were moving to breach positions.  Feeling a little sheepish, Arin moved to his position with Element Three.

"Explosives set.  Breach on my mark. . .Mark!"

Two small explosions went off simultaneously but were so quiet Arin didn't hear them.  On his tactical map he saw Element 2 had entered the building but Element 1 was slightly delayed by the huge double doors which were old and rusty.

Then everything went bad. . .

"Contact right!  Incoming fire.  Six is hit!  Got one, moving forward!  Four is down!"

The commlink built into Arin's helmet was awash with reports.  There was not a hint of panic in the stormtrooper's voices, just grim professionalism as they engaged an enemy.  Arin had to admire them for that.  He was barely managing to keep track of things on his datapad.  Already he noticed that only two of the stormtroopers seemed to be moving.

"Lead this is six."  Arin jumped slightly.  He'd been given the callsign 'Lead' for this mission.  Up until now it had been said with a context that he needed to be led around, now there was nothing but crisp professionalism.

"Ambush at main door.  One trooper down, ambushers dead.  More hostiles inside, being dealt with." the sounds of screams and panic over the comm suggested to Arin these new 'hostiles' were anything but.  The comm cut out for a second as a grenade went off and the Sergeants audio dampers kicked in.  "Hostiles attempting to escape through tunnel.  Heading 257 degrees.  Request support from Element 1.  Leave one trooper on sentry."



OOC:  For this mission you would have been outfitted with standard stormtrooper officer gear (i.e. stormtrooper armour, e-11 blaster rifle, 2 frag grenades, 2 stun, grappling hook, integrated helmet commlink and a tactical datapad).

Currently you and Element 3 consisting of 3 troopers and yourself are at the entrance to the warehouse property which is surrounded by a 2 metre chainlink fence topped by barbed wire.  There is only one entrance through the fence and your speeder is parked out front of it.

The sergeant is requesting support from 3 men, leaving one to guard the entrance.  I'd suggest you be one of the three who goes in.
This message was last edited by the GM at 11:12, Mon 09 July 2012.

Arin listened to the things unfold through his tactical comm interface and could not help but be awestruck once again by the ruthless professionalism, the stormtroopers handled their operations. The efficiency was one thing, but he also felt the constantly growing unease about the everchanging doctrines. In less than two years, he had noted a steep change in the treatment of the civilians of the Galactic Empire, supported by what could by most part be considered propaganda.

"Six, this is Command. Affirmative. Support enroute." Arin turned slightly to face the three stormtroopers. "TI-9782, you stand guard here and keep me posted. The rest of us are going in."

Arin slid the datapad in to a holster on the belt and drew his blaster carbine. He felt the pre-combat rush tingling in his veins - he had received the full tactical training and been deployed on a couple of operations before not to mention all the flying he had done, shooting down pirates while patrolling a system on the fringe. Still, while he knew partially what was to be expected but he also knew, the stormtroopers had been ambushed and there was the possibility, there would still be plenty of the so-called terrorists inside. It did still make him wonder, if the reports of terrorist activity would be true after all.

He made his way through the yard over to the main doors in a fast pace with the two stormtroopers in tow. "Six, this is lead. We're coming in."

By the time Arin and his team rush the doors, the shooting has largely died down.  Rushing inside, the young Lieutenant is greeted by a sea of dead.  A single stormtrooper lay dead.  Around him were three aliens of various species armed with hand blasters, and a couple of pipes.

The main room was awash with death.  At least 15 aliens lay around.  All had been shot down, many in the back.  Arin did not see a single weapon among them.  Most had been clutching bags or belongings, which were now sprawled across the floor and soaked in their blood.

The two troopers were kicking the body of a deal alien as they approached.  Arin didn't recognise the species.  It looked like an overgrown frog and it sported a huge hole in it's chest where it had sustained multiple blaster hits.  Interestingly in it's hands was a stormtrooper standard issue E-11 blaster rifle.

The Sergeant, hearing Arin approach, turned and saluted.  "Threats neutralised sir.  Four troopers dead, one wounded.  Rest are believed to be escaping through the tunnel.  I'm sending two troopers through the tunnel to follow and two to cut them off in the speeder when we know their exit point.  We leave one man here and call in a clean up crew."

"More hostiles." called a trooper from Element three.  Arin and the others turned.  Sure enough, in a concealed niche, huddled behind a table were six aliens.  Arin could see no weapons among them.

Sergeant Tarrin wasted no time.  "Five, Nine, into the tunnel.  Eight, lets finish those terrorists."

The two troopers assigned immediately rush to the tunnel entrance and begin to climb down.  The sergeant and his remaining trooper begin to flank the table, rifles at the ready.

One of the aliens screams and cowers.  One alien, a female Arin guessed, stands, her hands held high.  Her skin was a dark orange with white pigmentations around her eyes and greyish lips.  She had two long head tails, similar to that of a Twi'lek but she also had two horns protruding upwards.  The horns and head-tails were adorned with white stripes.

"I am in charge here.  We are unarmed and offer no resistance.  Please spare their lives."  the alien said simply in accented basic.

"Prepare to fire." Tarrin said on the comm, ignoring the alien.
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:18, Sun 24 June 2012.

Arin studied the aliens over quickly. Unarmed and looking relatively harmless, they posed no real threat. He was not going to allow killing innocent and unarmed civilians. Turning on the external speaker he said, "Sergeant, you will stand down. These people are unarmed. They will not be harmed." He trusted the sergeant to listen - Arin was the ranking officer, after all.

Arin looked at the dead aliens. They had fought well to take down so many stormtroopers with such armament. He could not but wonder, how that one alien could have gotten its hands on the standard issue blaster of the Imperial forces, but there was probably some kind of an explanation.

He decided to make sure, there'd be no more casualties. "All units, this is lead. Rules of engagement change. You will fire only if fired upon. If you encounter the terrorists, you will take them alive."

The pair who were dropping into the tunnel had already disappeared from sight.  The pair flanking the aliens continued to do so, showing no obvious acknowledgement of the Lieutenant's order.  However, even once in position, neither trooper fired.

Sergeant Tarrin broke the silence, speaking over his comm.  "With respect sir, our orders were clear.  Neutralise all terrorists.  Four of my men are dead, they planned an ambush.  We have no means to detain or transport prisoners."

Neither trooper has fired, clearly not about to disobey an order from an officer.  Not yet anyway.

"Sergeant, you leave worrying about the transportation for the prisoners to me. You and your men are to stand down and secure the ones alive as prisoners. We don't shoot unarmed civilians." Arin kept using the external speaker on his helmet instead of using the comlink, just to keep the aliens informed of the potential turn of events and the higher echelon out of the loop, should they be listening to the transmissions.

The feel of uneasiness was constantly growing within. If the sergeant chose to disregard a direct order, Arin would have a problem. He was currently outnumbered by the stormtroopers two to one and there was one on the outside of the compound as well as two more in the tunnel.

There was barely a two second pause, but that was like a lifetime when it was a stormtrooper responding to orders.  Normally there was absolutely no hesitation, no question.

"Understood sir.  All units use non-lethal methods unless fired upon."

Four single comm clicks indicated the other troopers had heard and were complying.  Less than ten seconds later, a trooper came on the comm.

"Nine reporting.  Tunnel ends approximately fifty metres ahead, bearing three-one-four.  Six terrorists spotted, two on stretchers.  They are trying to lift their wounded up a shaft, but it's difficult for them.  We haven't been spotted yet."

Tarrin contacts Arin on a private comm channel.  "You can triangulate the exit point on your tacmap sir.  Then we can cut them off before they flee.  What are your orders?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:43, Sun 24 June 2012.

Arin picked up his tactical datapad from its holster on the utility belt and activated the screen. He traced the map with the armored finger of his gauntlet, looking for the most probable exit for the tunnel. There, it had to be around there. Now he'd just have to get the stormtroopers in to position.

"Sergeant", he said, this time on the comlink, "you both head there and cut them off. I believe, I can keep these civilians covered. I want prisoners alive." He pointed out the location to the sergeant on the map.

The stormtrooper 'nine' comes on the comm.  "We've been spotted.  Single target, appears to be armed.  Range too long for stun settings.  Permission to engage."

The sergeant's voice comes back.  "Lead, we haven't found their position yet."

On his tactical map, Arin can see that Sergeant Tarrin is about a block from the estimated exit point.  Problem is there are several buildings that could hold the exit point and it may take time to find the right one.

Before him the captured aliens sit quietly on the floor.  Most of the aliens look down, dejected in their capture, overcome with grief for the deaths of their friends and family.  Only the one who had identified herself as in charge looked directly at him.  Her gaze was even, not challenging, but neither afraid.  Finally she spoke.

"What are you planning to do with us. . .Sergeant?" she guessed, not knowing his rank or designation.

"Nine, this is Lead. Close in. Lethal setting is authorized only if fired upon. I want live prisoners", Arin said on the comms. Of course, he would not know, if the stormtroopers had been fired upon, so he'd have to take their word for it. "Keep on their tracks and capture them when they get back on to the top."

Arin turned to the alien, switching to external speakers. "I need you to answer some questions. Why are you here? Why were my troopers fired upon?" It would be hard for the alien to tell anything about Arin's mood as the external speakers didn't exactly convey emotions too well. However, Arin lowered his weapon a bit in a non-threatening way.

The alien looks at him incredulously.  "We were here because we live here.  Some of our people volunteered to sacrifice their lives holding off your men so others could escape.  It's not like your squad of thugs came here for tea and cookies."

Arin's comm suddenly blurted to life.  "Contact!  Under fire.  Engaging." came Nine's voice.  The sound of blaster fire could be heard over the open comm.

"Still pinpointing the location.  Keep them contained.  Only engage hostiles as per the Lead's instructions." came Sergeant Tarrin's voice.


OOC: Certainly seems that while the Sergeant doesn't agree with your RoE changes, he plans to obey them.  Not really surprising with stormtroopers.
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:38, Sun 24 June 2012.

"This is Lead. Close in under cover and capture if possible", Arin said through the comlink. Then he switched back to the external speaker. "Firing upon the troopers has made things relatively difficult. Had you not done that, I might have been able to help you get away. Now, however, things are different. Much depends on your friends - whether they get away or not."

Arin glanced at the tactical display, worried. The mission, even if he had had worries about the agenda in the beginning, it had taken a turn to much worse.

The alien continued to look shocked at the stormtrooper's comments.

"So what you are telling me is you came here with a full squad of stormtroopers, blew the doors open and came in blasters firing. . .and you were only here to let us go?  You must excuse me if I find it difficult to believe you."
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:59, Tue 26 June 2012.

"If I saw nothing that is in violation of the law, yes. The problem is, your people chose to ambush us and that leaves me with my hands tied. The best thing that can happen for you is that your companions get away, but I can not help with that. There is nothing to implicate you with the ambush and I advice you to keep it that way."

The alien glared at him.  "I am not a fool trooper so please don't treat me as one.  You had extermination orders when you came here.  It's not the first one I've survived.  You say you want to help, but you don't call off your hounds and let them escape?  You words are as empty as your soul Imperial."

Arin sighed inside his white armored carapace. "I believe, we have a problem", he said through the speaker, "I received no orders to exterminate anyone, though I suspect, the sergeant has received orders I have not. I was simply told, there were terrorists in this building, but I had my suspicions about the whole thing to begin with. I already altered the rules of engagement to keep you alive. Now there's only the problem, I can not guarantee that will be enough afterwards."

Looking down to his tactical display, Arin tried to figure where the tunnel would lead. If he could divert the sergeant away from the other end, he could help the ones atill on the run to escape, but to what price? He was an officer, under oath to protect the interests of the Empire and its citizens. Who were these people, after all?

"You speak of having survived extermination orders before. We don't have much time, but I need you to tell me about it. I am not sure, if I can get you out, regardless, but if there's an opening..."

The alien eyed him curiously then began to speak of previous Imperial encounters.  Her words were simple, clearly not intended to elicit sympathy or anger.  She spoke as if Arin wasn't even there.  Her words were simple and rang with the truth.  She spoke of the stormtrooper raid that killed her parents, random shootings of her friends and family by the Imperials.

Arin was distracted as his commlink flared to life.  "Nine is hit, nine is hit.  Advancing, under fire, requesting arrrrgh. . ." his commlink went silent post a gasp that Arin had heard before in the cockpit.  The sound of someone in the last second of life before their TIE had exploded around them.  It seemed the two troops he had sent into the tunnel were dead.

Sergeant Tarrin clearly thought so too.  His voice came over the comm.  "We think we have their position Lead.  Will be there in under a minute.  Watch yourself, they may try to double back."

Unaware and uncaring that Arin was not listening to her, she continued to speak of Imperial atrocities.
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:21, Mon 02 July 2012.

"This is lead. Advance with caution."

Arin switched back to external speaker. "I hate to interupt, but if you have a way contacting your friends in the tunnel, tell them to fall back here. There's two more stormtroopers closing in from the other end of the tunnel. And tell them not to shoot at me."

"I have no means to communicate with them." the prisoner responded flatly.  "My people ran with the clothes on their backs nothing more.  Even if I could call them, do you honestly expect me to call them back here, back into the jaws of your trap?"