Cat & Mouse: Planetside Edition

With a short nod, affirming agreement with V's daring plan, the Commander moved to join Arius. The pair of trooper's heavy footfalls echoed loud in the near emptiness of the stairwell, though when Arius peeled off and entered one of the floors in the middle of the building the ARC Trooper kept descending - most likely to coordinate the rest of the squad's movements.

On the crystalline street below, the sergeant began issuing orders, growling in frustration as the Troopers took more time than the grizzled squad leader felt appropriate.

---

"Commencing Operation "DROID DUMBSTER", I will now distract them from the roof."

Armed with his weapon V runs to the edge of the roof and kneels down, ready to shoot the first salve at the Dwarf spider droids. And here it goes, with a shout as lout as he can he looks above the edge down on the droids and shoots.

"YOU LITTLE DWARF SPIDER DROIDS DON'T STAND A CHANCE AGAINST A WHOLE CLONE COMMANDO JUST WAITING FOR YOU ON THIS ROOF, COME AND GET US YOU DUMB FUCKS."

After V shouted at the droids he ducks again and moves along the edge, just to shoot again from a different position.

"COULLDN'T AGREE MORE, YOU DON'T STAND A CHANCE YOU, IDIOTS!"

Not exactly taking the bait the droids train their heavy blasters on the roof top, easily within range of the powerful cannons, and opened fire.

The bright red bolts of plasma tore through the parapet of the building, showering V with bits of crystal and metal as the blast sent him flying back and feeling as if he got hit by a speeder truck, struggling for breath as the wind was knocked out of him.

Many floors below the building shook and groaned from the impact with large chunks of the crystalline structure falling past the window Arius had taken position behind. Through the bluish tempered glass he could see that the powerful shot had caused the droid to loose his footing slightly, the heavy cannon tilting towards the ground.

---

Looking over the edge V sees the incoming fire of the the spider droids, but he was to slow. With an impact as strong as that a part of the roof breaks off and V gets thrown back over a few meters. Spitting blood in his helmet after he landed, on big rock, that broke of the edge landed with a heavy impact on his chest crushing his chest. So thats, were the blood comes from. Pulling the rock of his chest, he crawls heavily injured to the roof entry, accessing his com while spitting more blood.

"This is V... Uaaaghh....Commander, they didn't went near the wall, looks like they won't climb up to me. To be honest, lungs injured and I can't breath well...Pulling in some Bacta Stims, but I need a few.... These canons are... heavy.... And by the looks of it, we won't get them by shooting from the windows... They have heavy weapons, so I suggest, we try to use sewers to get them from the back, or use smokes, to get around them. Using cover only ends in broken covers and broken bones....."

With his last sentence he rams the Stim in his opened chest and puts the armor back on.

"Ahhhhhhhh, bacta..."

"Need no assistance, I'll be back in a sec and join you on the lower floors. Sorry Vode, my plan failed, but I'll get them for this spilled clone blood..."

Heavily injured, V passes out.

"Take the stairs, V, and pick me up on the way down."

Arius suggests.

"We should move on together. Combined firepower."

He dodges off, keeping low, aiming for the stairwell.

"Orders, Commander? I could try closing for a grenade, cause a distraction, but which way are we headed?"


Arius tries to meet up with V unseen from the droids for the moment. Not having a clue where the squad is headed, and having insufficient firepower to deal with the enemy from this range, there is not much else he can do. He curses himself for having come so lightly armed, although his reasons for it had been sound enough.

Commander Colt hit the lobby floor at a sprint, his heavy armored boots echoing loud on the crystal tile floors as he headed for glass doors, upending a desk enroute and settling in behind as he began barking orders for the Sergeant for he and his men to dig in and provide defensive fire.

"My thoughts exactly Trooper," came the grizzled ARC Trooper's response to Arius sensible plan, "though we'll use the grenades for effect not distraction."

Over the comms Arius could hear the Commander frustrated shouts as the rest of the squad seemed to be having trouble forming up.

The air vibrated with the droid's heavy cannon as they continued their barrage of V's position, who at the moment was safely in the stairwell, vainly attempting to shake the shell shock from his head.

---

Arius wondered for a moment what Colt thought he'd intended with his grenade. Throwing it into empty space? Shaking his head and realizing that V is not coming so soon, he decides to make a move immediately...

"Arius attacking from the rear, then closing."

Comes over the comms unit.

"V, support from the building if you can. Wait for explosion. Out."

With that, Arius finishes his descent to the ground floor, scoots across to the rear wall and, as quietly as he can, fabricates a new exit to the building....Ummm...are those rolls right?

"When did I sign up for this... Gimme a break..."

Sitting on the highest level of the building V knows exactly, that the way down will be goddamn pain. He ruffles himself and starts moving to the stairs going down. He contacts the Squad.

"Moving downstairs in my own pace. Don't wait for me and continue, if I don't reach rendezvous in time."

Having a tinnitus V overheard the call from Colt concerning the grenates. He just focuses on getting on the ground level to look for the others. Looking at the elevator in the penthouse, idea of taking it comes up to his mind, but fades away after picturing himself being shot down in the elevator by some of the spiders and falling all the way down into a crashing fireball.

"Then the stairs..."

Reaching the stairwell V looks all the way down. Feeling his injured chest and knowing fully well that breathing works like shit, the only thing that comes up his mind is... fuck...

"Thank god I'm not in the 501st, I've heard, that they had to climb a mountain for over 100 feet. Compared to that, the stairs are a joke, but still... the pain stays. Alright... there goes nothing...."

And so V walked down the stairs in steady tempo, with the omnipresent thought, that the only thing, that will make this mess even will be the biggest party in the 70's. God, a drink would be fantastic...