Scene #4015: Imperial Raids

Owner	Pose
Nima Kairn	The dawn of another day on war-torn Balmorra. As the sun crests over some mountains, the Balmorran rebel outpost, known as Checkpoint Omega in the Imperial intelligence reports, is thrown into sharp light. There are some automated turbolaser turrets that cover the perimeter facing the Imperial lines, with patrols dispersed liberally between them. Despite the fact that the battle on Balmorra was currently cold, nobody was taking any chances. The Imperial plan was simple, and relayed by Nima as she and the rest of the Confederate forces rode aboard the Breaker of Delusion. The former Imperial scientist, Iannos Tyrek, was usually found in a small outbuilding, just apart from the main outpost camp. They were to smash a hole in their defenses so that a team of Imperial soldiers followed after them. Once they found the scientist, the soldiers would take him aboard a transport while the Elites retreated down a different path. Once Nima's sure everyone knows the plan, she smiles thinly to each of them. "Yesterday, rebels attacked my posting with massed Elites and spilled Imperial blood, destroying a shipyard. I hope you will help me repay them in kind." The Elites were let off a klick or so away from the operation area, to walk up themselves. Once they got close, Nima pulls out her holocommunicator, bringing up 2V-R8, who was piloting the ship. "Initiate the attack." From overhead, the Breaker of Delusion zooms over the mountains and starts laying down a line of turbolaser fire, turning some of the turrets and soldiers into fine pink mist. Once that's done, it breaks away quickly, back to port. Nima ignites her saberstaff and whirls the pulsating purple blades around her. "Now, forward! While we have the element of surprise!" So began the charge.
Comrade Crush	No doubt, Nima will remember COMRADE CRUSH as an eight-food man in light armor, the crimson plates of metal seemingly serving to add bulk to his form. His presence without said armor, however, both serves as a point of curiosity, and demonstrates that the armor didn't add as much bulk as it might have seemed to. He really is built like a brick wall. It's a good look for him, with just the pants and armored boots. He's quite content to wait like that aboard the Breaker of Delusion with arms crossed over his barrel chest, the ghost of a grin on his face the entire time. The big guy loves a big fight, what can he say. "Do not worry. Am normally not a believer in capitalism, but this is one debt for which I am gladly making exception." The walk isn't a bother in the least, either. If anything, it seems to invigorate the guy. But not nearly as much as the sight of the Balmorran defenses being shredded open. "Da, comrade. DA! WAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" He starts off at a full-speed charge, and as he does so, swings his arms around to slam his fists together in front of himself. Where they impact, rocky protrusions begin to grow, covering his arms, shoulders, and then torso in a hardened stone armor.
Kyra Hyral	Unfortunately for Nima and the Imperials, a troublesome presence was on Balmorra today. Following the hit on the shipyard, Kyra Hyral had retreated in the heavily modified Rafflesia and come here for refuge after splitting off from Blackout and her Rogue Shadow. Standard evasive manuvers, if anything, and thanks to it, she had successfully shaken any sort of TIE fighter pursuit that had amounted following their strike and infiltration. All the better that she landed here. Kyra had heard about the former Imperial scientist and had been hoping to recruit the rebel into her cause much like Juno Eclipse had joined in to Ground Zero completely. Most unfortunately for her, just as Rabbit was to make her approach to Iannos, turbolaser fire had rocked the perimeter of Checkpoint Omega, nearly making Kyra lose her poise as the mysterious 'Rabbit' and stumble to her feet. Swearing and with nobody else to immediately call on, she drew her generic blaster out of the disguised Matter Manipulator on the back of her left hand, moving quickly to look for the scientist, not because she knows it's him in danger specifically, but because she knows that getting him out of danger would make him grateful. A grateful man would be more willing to join up with Ground Zero.
Taro	Never underestimate the importance of a good opening salvo. Since Nima is one who planned and is leading this operation, Taro is more than happy to let the sith to also lead the charge. Though he's a bit smaller and slighter than her (and definitely no match for Crush), he can still keep pace with them without breaking a sweat, just far enough behind and to the side to be out of the arc of her weapon. Any of the rebels still standing by the time they reach the perimeter are shot at with his hand-held plasma buster as discouragement against engaging them. His expression is all business, not even breathing hard from the run. But then it's not as if he needs to breathe.
Karian Icefang	Not one to let a distress signal go ignored, and sinse they were in the area checking up on a report of warp activity, the might Space Wolves deploy in their usual fanfare. Drop pods crash behind the rebel lines, and after a quick bit of accidental fire, the space marines set up and get ready. They didn't know what was occuring, but they swore this was some copy of the Imperial world of Kreig. Rising near the front, and gripping his adamantium-based sword, Karian watched and waited.
Staren	A ship briefly FTL jumps into orbit, and then starts flying away. A beam of light coalesces into the transhuman mercenary. Who is this mercenary? Why, he could be /anyone/. The body armor is dark-colored, black and grey, with a face-concealing helmet -- though advanced lifesign scanners would indicate it is a robot, not a human. Who or whatever it is is loaded for bear, with two kinds of what look like rifles, a pistol, grenades, and a high-tech, compact /bazooka/. The Transhuman Mercenary sticks something in the ground, looks like a small antenna, and then forms up with the Space Wolves. <<I am a friend. A mercenary hired by the rebels. We must stop the Sith from crushing this rebellion.>> his synthetic, obviously masked voice intones. And as soon as he comes in sight of the Confederate forces, he realizes that he is going to have /one chance/ to have anything resembling an upper hand, so he'd better exploit it while he can because he's going to be at a disadvantage once he's forced into a close fight like last time. He starts firing missiles into the air. The one from the one-shot launcher explodes in a 40-meter wide blast of heat and shockwave, while the ones from the smaller, rifle-style launcher become 20-meter wide balls of superheated plasma. Both are much weaker closer to the edge, and the latter is like a bigger version of that grenade he used last time. Which is why he may as well use them now, because all the big explosives will just fry /him/ too in close quarters!
Nima Kairn	Though these men were hardened rebels, the sudden shock of a strafing run followed by three figures charging out from the wilderness - with a Sith, to boot - has the rebels initially scrambling for their lives for better cover, away from the assault. This allows the Confederates to push deeply through the lane that had been made available to them, barring the occaisonal snapshot from a panicked rebel or a more focused assault from another turret. Quick blasts of lightning from Nima's hands and shots from Taro widen the gap while Crush holds off fire from others, until they were finally breaching the perimeter, bringing the rest of the outpost into view. It's really not much, just a couple small pre-fab buidlings, tents and lean-tos, and campfires. Iannos' quarters were on the far side, across the way from two newcomers: the Anonymous Space Mercenary(TM) and giant, armored blue men. Staren's opening salvo causes Nima to have to think quickly... Instead of charging through the maelstrom, she pulls away to the side, away from the carnage, having her hopping nimbly from turret to turret as the rebels scurried beneath her. She'll have to leave dealing with the vistors to her own guests. Once she's cleared the perimeter, Nima manages to spot someone running... for the scientist's quarters. "For shame, that you'd leave your dance partner behind at such a crucial time," Nima singsongs at the retreating Rabbit. Electricity runs along both of her hands while her eyes slowly turn sickly yellow. The Sith reaches with both palms out and sends several seconds of leaping Force Lightning towards the retreating mercenary's back.
Comrade Crush	With most of his skin lithified, Crush lumbers right on ahead like a charging rhino, his gaze sweeping back and forth across the battlefield, until it settls on something interesting. Very, very interesting. Those men are as tall as he is. Maybe even taller. That's a pretty rare sight indeed. Still running, the colossal commie goes through a quick flex, then brings his hands up to his mouth and thunders, "HELLO, GIANT ARMORED MEN! I THINK PERHAPS YOU ARE LANDING ON WRONG ROCK! MAYBE I AM HELPING YOU FIND RIGHT ONE, DA?" Then he swings up his fist, before driving it down. Where it lands, the ground shudders and ripples. Flows, and shifts. He starts to sloooowly pull his arm upward again... and brings with it a massive hunk of stone. Immense. The size of a small building. He lifts it high over his head, supporting for a moment with both arms; how he can lift something that should crush him into a fine paste is anyone's guess, but he not only lifts it- With a step, and a heave of all his superhuman might and muscular magic, he THROWS it, straight towards the Space Wolf lines. "IS THIS RIGHT ONE?! WAAAAHAHAHAHA!"
Karian Icefang	Karian watches as he see's comrade crush come right for his lines. His men naturally begin to fire on the deamonically powered man, at least until the building-sized rock comes flying at them. They quickly scatter, though a few are hit. While one would survive with a few broken bones, another was crushed. Karian points his blade right for Crush, adamantium gleaming in the light. "Your path ends here, deamonspawn!" He shouts. He then runs straight at the commie, blade flashing in the direction of his midsection.
Taro	Taro grunts quietly as the drop pods land - who invited them? - and initially he steps up his loping run into a sprint as they reach the breached perimeter. A lucky glance cast behind him alerts him to the incoming barrage, something that can't possibly be outrun. And so the android disappears in the dark flash of a teleport as the air around him blazes, and the ground that had been under his feet chars into a crater. He reappears a few seconds later, hair and armor decidedly singed, fifty or so meters to the east, and about ten meters up. His armor's wings snap out to catch him before he can fall too far, the wind blowing his hair enough out of his face to make his irritated expression plain. From this vantage point, there are plenty o targets. He starts with the one that looks least like a Space Wolf, firing multiple volleys of plasma in rapid succession, though he won't be picky enough to complain if any of Karian's finest manages to get in the way of his line of fire.
Comrade Crush	Bolter rounds glance off rocky skin; a few explode close enough to scorch the stone, but none manage to hit at an angle straight-on enough to pierce it. It helps that it's magically created, and so magically reinforced. It might as well be high-tech armor. But unlike his skin, Crush's pride is a tad more vulnerable. "Demonspawn? DEMONSPAWN?!" Crush roars. The adamantium blade comes sailing in, only to stop short - against Crush's forearm. He has raised his arm to block a blade sharp enough to cleave an ordinary person apart. The stoneflesh even gives way a bit, blood beginning to flow from the wound, but that's as far in as it gets. He's /tough/. "Comrade, you are sorely mistaken. Religion is tool of deceit. I am needing no demons, nor gods, nor anything but PRIDE IN RUSSIAN BLOOD and MYSTICAL MIGHT OF MUSCLE!" With sheer brute force, Crush pushes out of the weapon lock. He takes a hop back, flexis his arm experimentally... and then flexes it in what almost looks like some sort of bodybuilder's pose. Curled close to his body, the muscles almost seem to thrum with magical might. And then he brings his other hand around, and a plume of flame explodes out of it, aimed to catch not just Karian, but his troops as well. "HOW ABOUT I AM TEACHING YOU BURNING PASSION OF SOCIALISM?!"
Kyra Hyral	There is little warning for Kyra that the Sith is rolling up behind her or that she too is after the scientist, though clearly for more nefarious purposes. Not Force sensitive, she can't even tell that Nima is there, while her back is turned, until she is being struck by Force Lightning from behind, which shoots the disguised white mage forward, smashing into the door to the small building. Fortunately, the matte black suit she does wear has significant insulation against lightning built into it. Kyra does hail from Ramuh, the city of Storms, and has aligned herself against Souji Murasame who is pretty infamously lightning-aspected in most of his attacks. Such a precaution made sense for the rebel leader and fortunately, it pays off in this case. She's not completely splattered by the Sith's attack as a normal grunt would. She flips herself around so she has her back pressed against the door to face the Sith. Nima gets no sense of face, just the smooth helmet with no reflection. She might recognize the look as Rabbit, a mysterious figure that has set itself in opposition to the Murasame Zaibatsu. "Are we dancing?" she unloads the blaster and squeezes off a significant amount of blaster fire at the Sith. Of course, she knows how this goes and fully expects her to use her lightsaber to deflect the bolts, but it buys her time to duck into the building.
Karian Icefang	Karian rolls away as he watches another pair of his men get caught by the flames. "Shut up, deamon! All you are is an offront to the Allfather! By His Divine power, I shall send you back to the warp in pieces!" He roars. Again the blade flashes out, but this time it's companion was drawn. As it leaves it's sheath, the power field comes to life. He swings at Crush with merciless fury, bent on seeing this monster put down.
Staren	The 'Mercenary' is directing missiles in some tactical view when he notices Crush coming their way. He switches back to normal vision and-- "OH FUCK!" -- runs to the side as A FREAKING BUILDING-SIZED ROCK is thrown at him and the space wolves! There's no expression on that blank faceplate, but the word choice indicates /some/ level of surprise and distress. Plasma fire comes in from the side. Staren glances at his tacnet. The other enemy contact is missing and /is that Taro with wings/?! <<They have a teleporter!>> he warns his allies. He only had time to get a couple of missiles off, so he's still holding the rifle-style minimissile launcher. He turns to the side and fires a homing plasma minimissile* at Taro before he realizes that Taro will probably just teleport out of the way. He mentally curses and swaps weapons to an assault-rifle-styled railgun with an underbarrel micromissile* launcher, and tries to draw a bead on wherever Taro ends up... *Due to different worlds' standards, these 'minimissiles' are about the size of magic markers, what Staren usually calls 'micromissiles'. Their overall power isn't as reduced from RIFTS plasma minimissiles as you'd expect from the size difference alone, but it's less concentrated and more spread out.
Comrade Crush	This time, Crush is smart enough not to try and block the blade, instead reinforcing the stone on his left arm and attempting to smack it aside with the least contact he can possibly manage. That power field is almost certainly nasty. And he regrets it; that forearm comes away scorched and half-melted from the disintegrated energy. "I am neither knowing nor caring about this 'greatfather' you are blathering on about! But if you are killing me in his name, then I am countering-" The deflection has given Crush an opening. His right fist is curled already, and he takes a swing straight for Karian's chest. And here's where it gets nasty - despite being a tad smaller than the average Space Marine, his strength is several times greater. It's like being hit by a speeding semi. "-WITH MIGHT OF WORKING MAN!"
Karian Icefang	Karian is sent flying back by the punch, and nearly into the lines of the rebels. His armor also has a nice, new fist shaped decal. To say that pissed Karian off was an understatement. But the space wolves were stubborn as hell, and he ran at crush again. The blade fly once more, but in a flurry of strikes. If the man was able to armor his body, Karian thought, he has to only be able to do it in certain area's at a time.
Taro	Teleporting is draining to his sytems, not that Taro is going to tip his hand on that, and he's only just now completely reoriented himself to his current position. Which means that rather than simply vanishing again, the android is forced to empty his e-clip in the direction of the minimissile to bring it down. The missile explodes before it finds its target, but it's an uncomfortably close call. He's still in the air, his armored gauntlets and chestplate crazed from the heat, and the only part of his face not sooty is where he drew up his free hand to shield it. Having no desire to be a stationary target, Taro swoops and jigs to make it harder for his opponent to draw a bead on him while he ejects one energy cells and jams in another, and then on his next arc fires back at the mercenary.
Nima Kairn	As Kyra takes precious moments to stand up after getting blasted into a way, Nima leans into her run as she rushes forward. Rabbit had a head start on the Sith, tis true, but such was the wonder of the Force that she managed to squeeze surprising speed from her body that almost puts her into melee range. She has to stop short so she can parry the incoming blaster shots, however, which gives Kyra enough of a pause to dive into the small outbuilding. Inside, she'd see a terrified yet resolutely-standing human male with bright red hair and a full beard, as well as piercing blue eyes. There's a terminal and a small lab setup here, too. He's also holding up an empty glass beaker that he throws on instinct at the first person's face who came in. Namely, Kyra. "I will not be taken back to the Empire!" He says stoutly. From the looks of things, though, he's not going to have much of a choice. There's no other exits here. Nima, meanwhile, grunts and raises her hand again, seizing the Force to try and forcefully Pull Kyra from inside the building before the automatic door shuts. If she succeeds, she intends to block the damn door with her body. "What does the mysterious Rabbit want with a traitor, I wonder? He is not your prize to take," Nima says coldly.
Comrade Crush	Unfortunately, Karian turns out to be wrong about that. While he's only adding extra armor here and there to keep bulk down, Crush appears to have lithified his flesh in a basic way everywhere from the neck down; his entire exposed torso is stoneskinned, and when the blade clips the communist caster's left thigh, the hole in his pants left behind reveals granite-covered skin as well. But even a glancing blow from a power blade like that is quite enough to harm him, judging from the wounded look of that stony skin. But Crush is also not a dumb brute. He knows he can't just go toe-to-toe with that weapon. So he keeps weaving, keeps avoiding, keeps backing up - until Karian goes for a stab. Then he suddenly leaps upward over it, and when gravity starts to bring him downward, he... stops. In mid-air. Arcs of electricity dance around his arms, a charge building up while he thrusts both fists downward, unleashing a torrent of magical lightning at Karian. He doesn't stop there, though. The spray of lightning is swept over the ranks of the Space Wolves present as well. He doesn't just want to bring down Karian, but diminish the ranks of the Space Wolves to make the Empire's job here easier.
Karian Icefang	Lighting is unpleasent to feel shocking you. Moreso when your suit runs on a form of the stuff. Karian's zapped, as are his men. Many fall from the backlash of their armor's backpack generator's bursting. But still, somehow, Karian keeps going. "That....will...not stop...me!" He barks to Crush. He stabs his adamantium sword into the ground, hoping to disperse or draw the lightning enough for him to pull his pistol and fire right for Crush's chest. The shells were BIG, .75 calbre, and explosive tipped. He was sure that had to do something.
Staren	Hmm. Taro /didn't/ teleport, but he has other ways of dealing with missiles. Staren tries to keep Taro in his sights while firing the railrifle full-auto for a moment -- but then Taro's reloaded and is firing back. Staren takes evasive action himself, running for cover (since there is that handy building-size boulder...) while trying to get a three-round burst off on Taro. A few of Taro's shots hit is armor, burning and scorching away at it, but neither android is going to fall so quickly. Staren suddenly begins to wonder why this place hasn't been bombed into oblivion yet if the Empire knows where it is. Maybe that means the bombs are /coming/. But probably not while the Feds are still here. Staren considers engaging in banter, but... he doesn't want to reveal his identity, and what would he say, anyway? There isn't anything to sass the Empire about, the rebels are breaking the rules here and the Union can't even officially be part of this. Will it just be silent killer fighting silent killer today?
Comrade Crush	The bad news is that even those massive shells don't quite manage to pierce Crush's skin well enough to get inside and rearrange his innards. The good news is that when they explode on the surface, it causes significant damage anyway. The wound left on the big man's chest begins to bleed almost immediately, where the small explosion hasn't cauterized it, and the disruption to his concentration is enough that he tumbles out of the air and to the ground. But even with scorch marks, gashes and cuts everywhere, the big Bolshevik is able to stand up straight again. "Congratulations, space dog. You are grounding me. I think perhaps..." He swings himself around at the waist, curling one arm in such a way that his entire physique is on display, even under all that stone (and blood). When he does this, the ground under him - and Karian - begins to rumble. "I AM RETURNING THE FAVOR!" From that flashy, flexy posture, he swings back around and down to smash a fist into the ground. And all around him, stone spikes erupt. Small, large, sharp, blunt, dozens upon dozens of granite spires explode up from below, ensuring that Karian and his men are going to have a difficult time avoiding them indeed.
Kyra Hyral	Kyra stumbles in to see the scientist, taking the beaker breaking against her suit with odd stoicness. The glass shatters and crumbles off of her suit. She doesn't blame him-she could easily be mistaken for a Sith in her own get-up. "Then /run/. Run directly to-" Kyra gives instructions to a location where her ship is hidden. Her left hand lifts, flips over, and points to a far wall of the complex, way beyond the scientist. There is a beeping noise and an explosive is fired from the Matter Manipulator at high speed, with the intention of Kyra creating a hole in the wall for the scientist to escape through. Then Rabbit is yanked right out of the building and past Nima. She squirms and writhes in the forceful grasp of the Sith. "Those who rebel should stick together, of course." She says, sounding oddly calm due to her computerized voice.
Karian Icefang	The spikes were indeed hard to dodge. Some marines were skewered through vital organs, others through the leg or back. Those who were still able to...kept on firing. Even Karian himself was impaled a few times, but he still kept going. "Pain...is an illusion of the senses..." He said. He then ran for crush, and took not of his poses and how he armored himself. He began to pick up on the idea that the body was somehow able to conjure up this armor, but perhaps not the head. Karian fired his pistol at crush's chest, and swung his sword for the soviet star's head.
Taro	Perhaps silence is better than the two of them snarling at each other over events long past. Taro for his part has assumed that Staren is some person either working for the rebels or the Space Wolves, and which specific group isn't particularly important at this moment. His true identity is safe for now. The android finds his last few volleys blocked by the heavy stone that Staren's taken cover behind. All he can use to avoid the return fire is his speed and agility, and he moves to twist out of the way of the incoming volley. It nearly succeeds. But nearly is not completely, and while he manages to avoid the first round, the second grazes his shoulder and the third clips his side. Additional insults to injury, but he's not down yet. Taking the calculated risk that his opponent switching over to the rifle means his missiles have been exhausted, Taro again swerves, but this time to bring him closer to the boulder. He fires a few more volleys on his approach to see if he can flush the mercenary out, but then he's reaching for another weapon at his belt...
Staren	And the Confederates having no idea who he is is /exactly/ what Staren wants. Taro wants him to keep his head down, and he does. A fly-sized drone flies around the other side of the boulder to try and keep an eye on Taro. If Taro sees it and shoots it down, Staren waits, planning to try and fill Taro full of slugs when he comes around the corner. If Taro /doesn't/ shoot it down, then when Taro comes around the boulder, Staren's already moved around the side, but that's okay, he left a present! The grenade blows up exactly like the minimissiles did!
Comrade Crush	Combat experience is an interesting thing. Sometimes it will tell you that the safest, best response to a situation is 'the opposite of common sense'. For example, when someone pulls a gun on you, the natural response is to duck or lunge out of the way. But sometimes, the best thing you can do is move forward, towards the person taking aim. That's what Crush does. He moves in, steps in such a way that the pistol's barrel is /past/ him when it fires. Unfortunately, this leads to a nasty burn that even his stone skin can't save him from. Fortunately, it saves the Soviet supersoldier from being shot. As for the swing at his head? Crush has a plan for that too. Stepping in close also allows him to reach up with a hand and grab Karian's wrist as it comes down, stopping the slash cold. He wears a big, vicious grin... because he still has a hand free, which he can swing up at Karian's elbow with full strength and a magical lightning burst besides.
Taro	The only small flaw in Staren's plan is that he expected Taro to come around one side of the boulder or the other. However, the android's been in the air, which means there is no reason to move around the side when he can simply fly over it. No doubt the spydrone will report his flight plan just before he swoops over the Crush-placed rock. Of course, there's nothing stopping from Staren from moving, either... There's a snap-hiss of energy as he activates his beam sabre, and he makes a quick slash made at one corner of the stone in an attempt to drop some of that on his opponent. Just in time to either have gotten a chestplate full of heavy metal slugs or of grenade schapnel. Either way, the armor is all but useless after that.
Nima Kairn	It's kind of hard for Nima not to hear a durasteel and ferrocrete wall just suddenly vanish when she's right outside the door. Nima's mouth twists in distaste as she feels the fearful presence of the scientist hoisting himself through it and out. That is why there were contingency plans in place. ee Namely, a small pair of Imperial soldiers wearing rebel rags that had started creeping through the outpost when the fight had gotten intense. Seemingly unhindered by anyone who might check their identity, they move to 'help' steer the scientist along his path. Nima rolls her eyes for the Rabbit's response. "Do you even know why I'm here? It has nothing to do with you or these fool rebels. This is for me, and my master only. Kindly... shove off." In a strange move, Nima actually deactivates her saber and Pushes Rabbit away. Not raelly hard enough to break bones or anything, just have her sliding and rolling along the ground for a few feet. Once she's received a confirmation beep from her soldiers, the Sith looks over at Rabbit with an annoyed sigh. "Cease this resistance immediately and return to whatever place you came from. In return, my allies and I will retreat, and I will release the scientist once I am well and finished with him. You have my word. Whether or not you're willing to accept it is up to you. I could just as easily order a Confederate fleet to warp to this planet and end this rebellion that way."
Karian Icefang	Combat experience works both ways at that. Karian knew when his wrist was grabbed to expect a counter attack, and brought his ungrabbed arm down to punch the first away. He looked crush right in the face, and went to headbutt him. Something he wouldn't have known was that Space Wolves excel and thrive on being in close-quarters combat. The Wolf lord would follow that up with a knee towards the burn mark, and then another headbutt. If he was able to, he would then try to grab crush, and slam him to the floor.
Staren	Staren sees Taro coming from above, and is ready to fill him full of metal, or his armor anyway. What he's /not/ ready for is the chunk of rock. He starts to move out of the way but it slams into him. The wind would be knocked out of Staren, but he doesn't need to breathe, so instead he hits the ground, and almost immediately starts trying to push the rock off or slide out from under it. If he were fragile flesh and bone and in pain, it might well be impossible, but with tireless steel and circuits that don't feel pain, he'll probably be able to get free eventually.
Kyra Hyral	"I do not know why you are here." Rabbit states as she wiggles, "But once again we seem to be pursuing the same man." 'Once again?' Interesting. Kyra kicks herself for that small slip afterwards but there's no way Nima could piece that together, right? It was so long ago and Nima herself hadn't been involved in the incident that she was indirectly referencing. Outwardly, she rolls along the ground, kicking up bits of dirt for a few feet before she comes to a stop and jumps upward back onto her feet. Nima will see that, sometime during the process, she seems to have procured a pair of light pistols in both of her hands. "Release the scientist?" somehow she even manages to convey scorn with her text to speech voice, "Maybe you will release his remains. Or maybe release his cosmotose or brainwashed body. A Sith, from what I understand, can get inside a person's head, can they not?" She can't seen the scientist herself but makes no move, trusting that he'll be following her directions to her hidden ship, unaware of the not-rebels leading him away. "I will not allow you to take him." she states with finality, lifting both guns to fire upon Nima, even though she knows it's a little useless against a Sith. Even though by now, she's apparently already lost the scientist.
Comrade Crush	Crush's fist is batted aside. That's the first surprise. The second is the headbutt. By the time the knee comes, he's braced, and the second headbutt? He /meets/ that, directly, with his own forehead. It is probably not pleasant for either of them. But when Karian tries to slam Crush, he's in for a particularly nasty surprise. Hands meet hands, and Crush turns it into a grapple. He knows he's stronger. He's more than willing to turn it into strength against strength, because that's where he's at his best. Marxist muscles bulge, Leninist legs strain, and Crush begins to push back against Karian. One step forward. Two. He's giving the Space Wolf a particularly nasty grin... and say, why is the air getting hotter? Probably because flames are starting to dance around his arms. Without warning, Crush suddenly gives. He shifts his weight, drops his resistance, and rolls - turning so as to try and hurl Karian right into his own troops. Shortly thereafter, Crush tosses in a present as well. A very, very hot one. An exploding one. It's a fireball. Crush tosses a fireball. Regardless of whether the throw worked, or Karian is still right there in front of him. He's a little crazy like that.
Taro	Taro drops and with considerably less grace than he'd have liked to have display in front of the person he doesn't realize is Staren. The disguise must be fooling him, as there's not a hint of recognition from the android. While his the energy blade is still active and thrumming, he stays his hand and does not strike. Instead he stands there, wings half-folded behind him, his brow furrowed as he looks down at Staren's featureless helmet. "I would suggest you reconsider the company you keep." Then he steps away, though he doesn't turn his back on the man, pinned or no. Then, he winces, pauses, and pulls a jagged bit of schrapnel out of his ruined chestplate. "I'll admit I'm impressed with your aim, however."
Karian Icefang	Karian is indeed hurled, and then comes the fireball. It explodes with all the fury it should, and space wolves scatter. Some with singed armor and hair. Somehow, with smoke emerging, that damn marine is still alive. Albeit it's down on his knee. "I will not kneel, deamon. I will not falter or fail! I AM THE EMPEROR'S WILL MADE MANIFEST!" HE roars. He then breaks into a full sprint for crush, aiming his shoulder. The man was strong, yes. Perhaps the strongest that Karian had ever fought, but that didn't impress him nor make him waiver. He was a Space Marine, and he knew not the idea of giving up. He would fight until he could find no more, and would find the strength to fight again. He could even feel the beast inside clawing, begging to be set free. But he needed a clear mind for this. As he came closer, the wolf lord unleashed a hellish uppercut for crush's head, hoping to send him flying.
Staren	The Transhuman Mercenary's attempt to push the rock off is fleeting, reflexive, as Staren remembers he's in the middle of a fight. He prepares to jump out of this body to the computer he dropped earlier, and reaches for the pistol at his side... But when he realizes Taro's not attacking, he doesn't draw it. The faceplate is expressionless as Staren considers what to say. The synthetic voice sounds like a human using a voice-masking device. Deep and male-ish with a hint of staticy warbly distortion: "...Why aren't you finishing me?"
Nima Kairn	Well, that was about what she expected. Inwardly, Nima heaves another annoyed sigh. That said, she /did/ offer a bit of interesting dialogue to her. What exactly did she mean by 'once again'? This was the first time that she'd actually faced off against the Rabbit, so far as she knew... It's something to file away for further study. The Sith tsks aloud, keeping her thoughts to herself. "We can... But I actually need the man functional, not a slavering wreck. As I said, whether you believe me isn't my concern. Your allies stand defeated - and we are done here." The feeling of threat and aggression from Kyra makes Nima ignite her saberstaff again as she dances to the side. The staff is spun, making the weapon into a purple circular shield that she uses to deflect the pistol shots while she moves back towards their insertion point. When Kyra finally stops, the Sith smirks and bows formally before using again using her Force enhanced speed to move away from the combat theatre. Poor Tyrek, on the other hand, soon laerns that his benefactors aren't rebels. In a flash, they have him manacled and pushing in the opposite way along a valley, where an Imperial transport waits to pick them up and bring them all back to Sobrik.
Taro	"I suppose I could. I am, after all, a monster." Another snap-hiss, and the energy blade dissipates. "But I suspect you are no more ready to die for this than I have reason to kill you for it." There's a slight grinding of ceramilaminate on ceramilaminate as Taro extends his wings fully, and with a hop back, he takes off to the sky again. The objective has been achieved. Killing him would be inefficient.
Kyra Hyral	"..." Kyra makes a frustrated noise that isn't picked up by the text to speech module embedded in her suit as her opponent flees. She instead darts off away from the fleeing Sith, circling around the building to where the hole was, glancing to it briefly, checking the inside of the building to make sure that the scientist is gone. From there, she goes to backtrack the instructions she gave him to get to her ship, hoping to see that the scientist had followed her instructions. But there is no luck. She quickly finds no sign of him along the way and immediately assumes that he'd been intercepted. Through her own initiative, she backtracks again, desperately searching for the point where he was lead away. It was like Sophia all over again with Kay's world! The worst part was here, Kyra couldn't confide her dismay in failing to defend people to anyone. Maybe Yuri Stinson later.
Comrade Crush	What Karian says causes Crush to stop short in whatever he had planned next; there's confusion on his face, flowing into consternation. But before he can open his mouth, the Space Marine starts charging. Winds up a mighty, stampeding uppercut. It's telegraphed to the point where, with Crush's reaction times, he might have avoided it. But no, this is a simple, man-to-man attack. It's the sort of thing the commie himself thrives on. So part of him decides, with a simple and irrefutable logic: 'Why not?' The punch connects. It does not send him flying, but oh it connects, straight to the jaw. Comrade Crush goes stumbling back several steps, staggered, and dazed enough that it takes him a second or two to shake the daze off. And when he does, he lifts his fist, points it right at Karian, and... ...extends his index finger? Yes. He's pointing at Karian. "You... you are not listening to word I am saying, are you? Is problem with your hearing? I am not getting it." He shrugs. "I am telling you already. I am not knowing this 'daemon'. I do not even believe in gods or devils! Is all crazy talk to me. You... you /are/ knowing Multiverse, da? You are knowing rules of your world are not applying to all worlds, da? I am just man. Man with extraordinary power and immense strength, is true, but just man. Are you... are you being insane perhaps? Have I been beating on madman whole time? I am going to feel little bit bad if so," he admits. "But when you are fighting man to man, is courtesy to listen to what he is saying."
Staren	When Taro says the Mercenary isn't ready to die, he gets a 'Hmh'. Is it a chuckle? An agreement? Just an aknowledgement? Hard to say. Still, Staren's not going to shoot him in the back after that as long as he stays out of the fight. A few seconds of concentrated struggling, without the threat of Taro about to kill him, gets Staren out from under the rock. He has no idea what Nima's doing, so he asks for a status update over the radio, while peering out around the boulder and aiming his rifle at Crush. Again he doesn't fire though, since Crush is... talking? Is everybody talky now? What's going /on/?
Karian Icefang	KArian looks over, and narrows his good eye at Crush. "A mutant, then. At least by Imperium standards." He then points at Crush. "I've heard every word you've said...even if you are harder to understand then a drunken clansmen. But know that I have seen your kind before." He then extends his arms to the multiverse. "You are but a pre-cursor...but then I would go off on a tangent and likely come off as a zealot. So, I'll be brief. I have seen men like you who have sold their very being to deamons, and seem mutants like you hunted. At least you have the sense to enjoy a good fight." He admits. Either he took too many blows to the head, or he actually...grew to like crush. "I may not follow your agenda, but your good for a fight. Maybe next time we can meet without fighting...or at least make it an even playing field. Do you have any idea what my Iron Priests are going to say about this dent?" He asks. He doesn't even seem to notice the spikes in his legs and feet, or has extremely high pain tolerance.
Comrade Crush	"Well, comrade, I am not those men," Crush replies, folding his arms over his chest. The stone on his skin finally melts away into regular, ordinary flesh... leaving behind all the cuts, gashes and burns. A normal man would not even be standing with those injuries. "I am selling soul to no one. I am gaining this body through power of science, and learning this art of Muscle Wizardry through careful study and hard training! I am serving nothing but ideal of Socialist state, and if god or demon appears to offer me power? I punch him in the face." Hmph! He finally turns to go, but stops to look over his shoulder. "I am making no promises as to 'next time', comrade. But..." A faint shrug. "If we are meeting in bar rather than battlefields, I am certainly not complaining." And then up he goes into the air, hurtling off towards the drop-off point.
Staren	Well, that's that then. Staren shoulders his weapon and goes to retrieve the computer, then goes to see if he can help Karian get the downed Space Wolves out of their armor or something.