Under Cover of Night, Alliance Mission, attn; Twist

Twist and Wes moved through empty halls as they followed their floor plans in relative safety for the moment. Their progression was quick and silent, the carpeted halls gradually being exchanged for industrial duracrete, the sounds of janitorial services overwhelmed by the unmistakable sound of industrial machinery at work. Though they were alone for the moment there was an energy and activity in the area ahead that warned they wouldn’t be so lucky for long. As Wes moved forward to scout the Assembly ahead Twist moved to check that they were still clear in the rear before setting into a crouch as they went over their options.

“I wouldn’t advise…suited up like they are.” Twist had little desire to get all dressed up and even if they did the ruse would only last until he began rigging the bomb, at which point escape would become near impossible. At best they’d wind up blowing themselves up with the base, at worst they’d die for nothing. A lot of the work the men and women in there were doing was towards the goal of keeping the engines from exploding and just about all the safety parameters worked towards that goal. Twist might’ve used the same tools as them but he did his job by undoing there’s, any professional would see the danger in his work in a matter of seconds.

Twist definitely preferred the hitting the alarm and starting the final sprint. They were going to be on a time limit once he rigged the bomb anyway and he worked well under pressure. Ion engines only ever used three different power sources, ships as small as the Defender only ever used two of those. Only capital ships and cruisers bothered with onboard generators, their massive ships requiring an exorbitant amount of energy to power their way through space. Fighters like the Tie Defender would rely on a fuel cell or liquid reactants. Fuel cells were just bombs waiting for an igniter and timer and Twist was just as good with chemicals as he was with bombs. They provided energy through their reactions, by necessity they’d be volatile reactants and it was easy enough grow the reaction into 10 o’clock news material.

Twist sheathed his blade and turned his masked gaze to Wes. Wes was his superior and a master of infiltration but for the explosion was Twist’s area of expertise and in this the decision was his. “Hit the alarm.” As usual the three raspy words were all he uttered. As soon as the alarm was hit he was headed for assembly room. The hardest part of IEDs was the timer, making something blow up was easy. Making it blow up when you wanted it to was another matter entirely. The goal Wes had left unspoken was to blow the building while it was empty, it meant a little more work for Twist but he didn’t mind too much. He didn’t share Wes’ respect for life but he wasn’t a murderer. Hopefully the emergency exits were on the other side of the Assembly room, he didn’t remember passing any Exit signs, to be safe Twist sought the nearest dark corner.

((Do the workers evacuate when the alarm is hit?))

(( Yes they do because they all believe it to be the real thing, since they don't have frequent training drills. ))

“Hit the alarm.”

Wes gave a nod before moving off, a slight gesture with his hands telling Twist to stay there as he found a fire alarm and triggered it. There was one just down the hall they’d first come down and with a cautious glance around, Wes punched out the glass protecting it from accidental activation and triggered the alarm. The alarm went off without any problems, but it wouldn’t be up to that if their plan worked. The workers had to leave, but as the two weren’t aware of their usual methods when it came to this anything could happen.

He crept back to Twist and they stood still as they heard the wailing of the alarm, anything else was drowned out, but he was able to see that a steady stream of workers were leaving the assembly area. Luckily they’d come in through the back door and less inhabited area of the building, so it was unlikely anyone would pass them on their way out, but there was a change, which was why Wes kept an eye on both the assembly area ahead and the hall they’d come from. The noise of the alarm however ruled out the ability to hear if anyone was coming.

After a few minutes, Wes emerged from their shadowed hiding spot to throw a more thorough glance over the area below the walkway the hall opened up to. It was empty, and most machinery was powered down. He gave the clear signal to Twist, taking point himself and finding the nearest metal staircase down to the ground floor. Twist knew what he had to do, which was why Wes didn’t say anything as they both went about their business. Twist would set up the explosives to take care of the factory, while Wes would act as lookout. While he knew how to handle demolitions, he felt such delicate things were better in Twist’s hands for now. He’d settle for keeping his blaster at the ready for now.

His gaze wandered through the large assembly area, seeing the different stages of construction of the TIE Defenders that were being built. To the far right, just in front a solid hangar door he could see the forms of a few Defenders that looked complete, from the outside at least. The hangar doors there were their closest exit, which Wes made a note of. Getting quickly out would be the ideal thing and there didn’t seem to be any other exit apart from that one unless they decided to double back to their original entrance point.

((Does Twist set up the explosives properly? Does anyone come over them as Twist works?))

(( After some tense few minutes Twist is successful in wiring the bomb. Unfortunately the fire crews are beginning to arrive and could be on the pair in moments, their yells and calls echoing through the corridors around them. ))

Twist and Wes stood silently amidst the blaring alarms, waiting for the factory ahead to clear out. The mind-numbing sirens made speech impossible but it was unlikely the Ubese would have said anything regardless. He remained standing in the darkened corner as Wes rose to check on the evacuations progress, only moving after Wes’ slight nod. From their vantage point above the assembly room he got a clear view of what he had to work with as well as glance at what they were about to destroy, several finished Tie Defenders settled in the adjoining hangar.

As fine a sight as the finished fighters were, Twist made his way to the pile of Power Cells stacked three high next to a motionless robotic arm along the assembly line. Within a few moments he had recognized the basic build of the cells, they looked a lot like some of the bombs he’d worked with. Both required fusion reactions, the only real difference was the size of the desired reaction. Setting to work on the closest cell, he removed a few core safety features, cut through valve limiting the reactants and then set a crude timer with an energy torch as the igniter. Once the improvised bomb was complete he did a quick double check of his handy work, started the timer and then moved to meet up with Wes.

With the sirens finally silenced they could hear the Fire Crews as they made their sweep through the buildings, their voices growing closer as the cleared the halls leading into the assembly room. It kept them from returning the way they had come but they wouldn’t be able to stop the bomb, from a distance it looked no different than any of the other power cells and it’s timer wasn’t long. They were far more likely to wind up victims than saviors, once the first cell exploded every single one of those cells was going to go off, it would be the most impressive display of fireworks Taris had ever seen.

Following Wes’ gaze towards the closed Hangar ahead he nodded and followed the man towards what appeared to be the completed Fighters. Twist moved to find the controls to open the door while Wes climbed onto the nearest Defender, seeing if it was flight-worthy. Behind them the progress of the Fire Crews had slowed, it made sense. They were past the offices and administration and it would take longer to clear the machine shops and storage rooms that led up to the Assembly room.

(Are the Tie Defenders spaceworthy? Does Twist find a means of opening the hanger doors?)

(( Several of the TIE fighters are fully capable of space travel, with others only needed the last few finishing touches before they're ready to be shipped out to the Confederation fleet. As is protocol during a possible fire, the hangar doors have locked shut. It will take a lot of time to hack the controls and open them, as it's going against emergency procedures. The fire crew will have the code, should the pair wish to wait for their arrival. ))

Wes waited for Twist to get done with his business, mindful that the sirens were shut off, which meant that the fire crew was making their way through the building, checking for the fire. It was too bad they wouldn’t find a fire they had the capabilities of fighting against, they’d be dead before they knew what hit them in all reality unless they got out of the building fast. Well, there was nothing he could do about it, it was their job to go against this sort of thing, they’d just picked the wrong fire to fight. It wouldn’t do to ignore them, however, as they might prove as an obstacle in their mission, or even an aid under the right circumstances. Thankfully the sirens had been silenced, so Wes could hear himself think clearly again.

When Twist approached him, signalling that the bomb was set up and they were ready to go, he jerked his head towards the hangar door and started running towards it. It wasn’t exactly time to slow down and the run was more refreshing than anything. When they got close enough, he gestured towards Twist and motioned towards the hangar doors, and then vaguely at the TIE Defenders that stood there. Twist would know what he was getting at. As Twist went to get the door, Wes hauled himself up to the nearest TIE Defender hatch, investigating and knowing that a few vital innards were still missing, giving it a pass, he hurried towards the end of the line, to the starfighters closest to the hangar doors, and investigated them.

He found two operational and functional, if his quick startup of the systems told him anything. These could be used for escape, as he was sure there was quite a crowd out there looking at the factory. It wouldn’t be easy to get clear of the area if they went on foot. Climbing out of the TIE Defender he’d checked, he jumped down to the floor level and ran towards Twist, knowing that if the doors weren’t open yet he was having problems. He arrived and quickly took in the situation.

“Emergency protocols, it needs to be hacked,” he said briefly, replacing Twist in front of the controls and starting to tap on the keys after pulling out the Gyrda keypad. He glanced around, spotting a few greasy coveralls that most likely belonged to whoever had worked there before they’d left. He gestured towards them. “If this doesn’t work, we need the fire crew’s codes; we can trick them easily enough.”

((Does Wes manage to get the hangar doors open?))

((The Gydra keypad does its magic and the hangar doors creep open.))

Twist found the hangar door control quickly and realized it was beyond his abilities just as quickly. He was competent with computers but nothing of the sort that would allow him to get around the building lockdown their alarm had caused. Leaving it alone he moved to find Wes already headed his way. Switching roles with him he allowed Wes to begin his work on the door while he prepared their departure. Dropping his gear in one of the two ships Wes had chosen he began moving to the others. Any that were fully operational he began gutting, insuring no one could follow them. He doubted anyone in the rescue crew could fly but it wasn’t worth the risk.

Twist was exiting the last of the once-spaceworthy defenders when the doors began creeping open. Moving with Wes to the two Defenders they’d chosen he settled into the one bearing his arms and gear and began completing flight preparations. As the cockpit closed he could hear the Fire Crew drawing close but he wasn’t too worried. IED’s were almost impossible to stop, Twist couldn’t have if he wanted to and he’d built the thing. At best they could contain the blast, minimize the damage but he didn’t expect they had the equipment. The Defenders themselves were capable fighters and Fire Rescue crews weren’t anti-armor units. In all likelihood the crew could do no more than put out a non-existent fire, that and go up in flames when the bomb went off.

Flipping the ship’s comm. system Twist spoke in his hoarse whisper with Wes in the ship next to him. “6-jump run around, meet back on Corellia?” It made sense they split up upon departure to maximize their chances of success in the event of a chase and it was common Alliance policy not to jump directly anywhere. The Defender had 10-jump capability but 6 would be more than enough to lose a trail in oft-traveled space lanes.

(Does Twist sabotage the other Defenders? Do they manage to lift off without incident? does anyone witness their departure or attempt to follow them? Is the bomb still ticking down smoothly, unnoticed?)

((Twist manages to sabotage a few other Defenders before leaving. Both escape the facility without incident. However, once they hit atmosphere, hails for identification and purpose scream across the airwaves. A half-squadron of alert fighters enter sensor range in anticipation. And yes, the present the two Alliance associates left for their Confederate counterparts has yet to be discovered and continues to tick away the precious seconds.))

Wes focused his attention for a few minutes work, attempting to break the lock on the hangar doors with the tools he currently had. When the display confirms that the proper codes have been entered, he looked up to see the hangar doors slowly opening as the machinery worked to process the commands Wes had given it. He gave a satisfied nod at the work he had completed and turned his head to check Twist’s location. The Ubese was getting himself comfortable with the vessels Wes had picked out. Packing up the keypad, he sprinted towards the ships as well, knowing that now that the doors were open, someone would be coming to check the anomaly out at some point. With the fire they’d prioritise other things, thankfully.

Climbing up to the cockpit of the other Defender next to Twist’s, he dropped in and immediately put his helmet back on, strapping himself in properly as he eyed the doors opening slowly through the viewport. He checked the engines again, seeing that they were operating at the same capacity that they had the first time he’d checked. He saw the comm. channel light up and knowing it was Twist was quick to open it up.

“6-jump run around, meet back on Corellia?”

“Affirmative. Don’t stick around to take care of the alert fighters,” he warned. It would be a waste of time to try to pick a fight, even in the high tech fighters they now controlled. It would be best if they left Taris with minimal damage so the Alliance engineers and technicians could have a look at the completed version of the blueprints they’d stolen. These two would go a long way in improving the Alliance’s methods of fighting the starfighters of the Confederation as well as opening a chance in improving their own technology.

Wes was first out of the hangar doors, the engines of the Defender shrieking as Wes banked steeply to the left to avoid the side of a building. Weaving through the spires and towers of Taris, Wes made his way upwards, keeping eyes and ears open for any visual threats or suspicious transmissions. He broke out of the jungle of concrete just as the alert fighters showed up on his sensors. They couldn’t make a run for it just yet; they had to make sure the bomb went off.

He opened up a comm. channel with Twist’s Defender with a flick of his finger. “Make a run for it. I’ll evade pursuit and stick around to make sure the job gets finished.” Wes dived again in between the buildings of the worldwide city of Taris, counting on the crowded nature of the airspace to either discourage the alert fighters from pursuit or lower their efficiency in hunting him.

((How many fighters continue after Twist? How many go for Wes? Does the bomb go off?))

((The alert fighters split evenly, three follow Wes into the stacks of Taris, while three hound Twist. A low level Confederate comes across the inconspicuous package. The half-smile quickly drops with realisation. He screams out, but his voice is lost, along with his body, in the series of explosions that ripped through the facility.))

Twist ripped through the guts of the other completed Defenders before leaving the others and climbing into the cockpit as Wes finished his work and the large hangar doors ground open. By the time the doors opened both fighters were systems’ green and the two headed off with a roar that was sure to startle the men behind them. It probably helped distract them from the bomb too, which was a plus. The plan was simple, split up, take the scenic route, and don’t engage. Twist didn’t bother to respond to Wes’ comment, it was a solid plan he wasn’t one for unnecessary words.

As frantic demands for authorization codes and flight plans began to scream over the two Defenders’ channels Wes broke in once more. “Make a run for it…the job gets finished.” Twist made to follow suit and get out of there, leaving the comm. system empty in case of anyone listening in. He had barely cleared the highest spires of Taris upper city when he caught sight of the massive explosion he’d rigged. It was a good feeling watching the building collapse inward on its fiery end. Twist’s people were broken and scattered, the Alliance an excuse to fight more than any heartfelt ideology. What really kept the Ubese going was his skill, he was great at what he did and doing it was what kept him going. He understood and agreed with the thoroughness of Wes in staying behind to make sure but it’d would have hurt him had the bomb failed for any reason.

Satisfied with the exceptional results of their mission, the plans, the explosion and two working Tie Defenders, he shot out of the atmosphere ready to get out of there. There was no need to confront the fighters that pursued, few carried hyperdrives and fewer still computers capable of a 6 jump sequence. As soon as Twist cleared the atmosphere he made to head for Hutt space, loop around to a few different systems and then head back to Corellia. If the fighters managed to follow him through hyperspace he’d extend the jump sequence until they couldn’t continue. He’d deal with anything else as it came.

(Does Twist manage to enter hyperspace unscathed? Are the fighters able to follow? If they are the Twist manage to lose them in the jumps afterwards?)

(( A few shots collide with the shields, but they hold out against the minor onslaught long enough for Twist to disappear into hyperspace, leaving his pursuers helpless; they're obviously not confident enough in the ships they're in. Twist's hyperspace sequence goes according to plan too, making sure any chance of following has truly gone. ))

Wes weaved around the tall buildings to avoid the alert fighters that had split up to go after him; his sensors couldn’t tell him much, the buildings and civilian vehicles wrecking havoc on its efficiency. Considering he’d seen six fighters, he decided that three and followed him while the other three went for Twist. Hopefully his friend would be able to avoid the fighters long enough to get out of the system. He wasn’t sure which level of piloting skill Twist had, but he was sure the Ubese could hold his own even in a fight.

He heard more than saw the loud rumble of the explosion going off, but when he did poke his head out of the thick of the buildings he could see the column of smoke and the destruction wrought on the factory. He did a flyby, checking to see if everything was done. He saw clear signs that the factory had been hit hard, but didn’t stick around to have a closer look. The bomb had gone off, they had delivered damage, now was the time to escape. The Defender had torpedoes to take care of any eventual remainder of the factory, but Wes saw it as prudent to keep them in case he ran into trouble with the alert fighters. No doubt if Twist had gotten away, the three other fighters would be coming for him.

With the mission done to the best of their ability, Wes banked sharply to the right and then shot upwards towards the sky and the atmosphere of the planet. He put over all the power he could into the engines, ignoring the weapons. If he was forced to use them his escape would be botched anyway. He deliberately went on a course that deviated away from Twist’s, knowing that the alert fighters that had been pursuing him was most likely coming for him now, and he didn’t want to make their job easier.

With his sudden acceleration out of from between the buildings of the planetwide city, he was out into the lesser crowded space above it. There were still some spires around him, but not spaced as closely as deeper down. This would make it easier for the pursuing fighters, but there was no other path for him to take.

((Was the factory completely destroyed or was some of the structure still standing? Does Wes manage to evade the fighters long enough to get out of orbit? Can he jump safely to hyperspace and do the series of jumps safely home?))