Sgt. Renner, Havoc Squad, Commanding

[Darth_Scelestus]

Hey, folks! Me again!

 

I'm taking a short break from my other thread to do some stories with my new Trooper, Rylarn Renner. As you'll notice in the first post, there are both spoilers for the Trooper class story, and some alterations from said storyline.

 

This first part takes place on Taris . . . but Rylarn didn't end up there the same way other Troopers did.

 

------------Taris at Night, Pt. 1

 

 

A muddy field full of rakghouls, Taris; the early hours of the night

“Engage.”

 

Sergeant Rylarn Renner pressed gently on the trigger of his rifle, keeping his sight set on the burliest of the ravenous rakghouls spread out before him. A bolt of red-white energy spat from the gun’s barrel and took the rakghoul in the chest, dropping it instantly.

 

Another three ‘ghouls were blown off their feet as a grenade detonated in their midst. To Rylarn’s left, Sergeant Aric Jorgan, a stern Cathar and an excellent soldier, was crouched in the tall grass, cradling his assault cannon. A steady stream of bolts flew from the cannon, decimating the swarm of ‘ghouls.

 

The other three members of the newly-reforged Havoc Squad opened fire on the rakghouls’ flank. In disarray, the ‘ghouls sprinted in multiple directions. Twenty of them were cut down before they made it twenty feet. The rest died just as fast.

 

“All right, form up,” Rylarn commanded. He did a quick head count – everyone was still moving, no one seemed hurt. “That’s gotta be the eighth batch we’ve slaughtered tonight. We’re getting close.” He surveyed the field, looking for signs of danger. “See that hill? We’ll make camp there. Laurek, take Toner and do a quick sweep of the area, then join us.”

 

The pair saluted, then quickly vanished into the tall grass. Their green-painted battle armor blended nicely with the field.

 

The rest of Havoc squelched their way across the low-lying field and up the hill. It was windy and wet, and the moon was hidden behind a cloud, but they had a good view over their surroundings. Rylarn glanced to the west, looking in vain for the lights of vessels landing at Olaris.

 

They settled in, pulling the tough and tasteless ration bars that passed for their meals from their packs. Without the night-vision optics in their helmets, however, they were nearly blind; they didn’t risk a light for fear of attracting unwanted attention.

 

“I still think we should be out there looking for Tavus,” Jorgan said quietly, gesturing at the sky. He was leaning back against one of the many small boulders that littered the hilltop, tearing viscously at his ration bar. “Let the grunts clear away the rakghouls.”

 

“I said the exact same thing to Garza,” Rylarn grumbled. “She insists that we’re better off here, hunting ‘ghouls, and that she’ll contact us if she finds anything.”

 

Jorgan snorted. “She’ll contact us if she finds anything she wants us to know about.”

 

He had a point, Rylarn knew. After the debacle on Ord Mantell, he and Jorgan were being treated with a fair amount of distrust. Ever since their arrival on Coruscant three weeks before for debrief, Rylarn had suspected that they were being watched.

 

“I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s an SIS team following us,” Rylarn muttered.

 

Jorgan paused. “I hope for their sakes they don’t try tracking us out here,” he said.

 

“Even they wouldn’t be that stupid. There must be four hundred ‘ghouls in this marsh.”

 

Across from them, likewise propped against a boulder, Corporal Keller was doing his best to pretend he wasn’t listening in. Rylarn glanced at the young man, fighting back a smile.

 

“Keller, get some sleep,” Rylarn commanded. “Jorgan here will take first watch.”

 

Jorgan shot Rylarn a dirty look, but Rylarn ignored it. The truth was, Keller reminded Rylarn of his son. Or at least, of the man his son would have become if he hadn’t been killed in the midst of an Imperial bombardment.

 

So he took it easy on the kid. Keller’s own father, a Republic naval officer, had died during the Great War. Sometimes, Rylarn wondered if he had ever met the man.

 

It would be another two hours, Rylarn guessed, before Laurek and Toner returned from their patrol. He eased his way down his boulder, stretching out on the ground, using his pack as a pillow. His hands unconsciously checked the positions of his weapons, his helmet – then he was drifting to sleep.

 

 

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[Darth_Scelestus]

---------------Taris at Night, pt. 2

 

 

In sleep, his mind wandered.

 

Flashback, Konnar Ket, 8 BTC

Sergeant Rylarn Renner of Decker Squad, Commanding

 

Decker Squad was, for once, not in the lead that day. That’s what saved our lives.

 

Seven squads had been deployed on a standard search and destroy. Intelligence had assured us that the convoy, despite its significance to the Republic-backed militia, was only lightly guarded. We weren’t predisposed to believe them, but someone’s CO did, and we weren’t prepared for what awaited us.

 

We were loaded into ATIV-II’s, two squads per craft. Nomad Squad, odd-man-out as usual, was sharing their craft with a load of detonite we were planning to use on the route’s main bridge. I sure as hell didn’t envy them their position.

 

We were approaching the convoy’s location. The plan was simple: shoot everything that moved, destroy the cargo, blow up the bridge to prevent further supply shipment along the route. Nice and quick, before their fighter squadrons could scramble and shoot us down.

 

They saw us coming.

 

The lead ATIV-II caught a pair of GTA missiles as we crested the last hill. The fireball was so bright we were blinded for a few seconds.

 

Decker Squad’s ATIV-II took evasive action. We got hit, but our pilot was a pro. He crashed us into a hillside, which was better than landing in the river, and drowning or being picked off by marksmen on the bridge above.

 

My headset was filled with dying men’s screams and the shouted, conflicting orders of confused officers. The mission CO, Lieutenant Wobec, had been on the first craft. His second, Lieutenant Kerris, was trying to rally us as the fight began.

 

I was climbing out of the downed ATIV-II when I saw Lt. Kerris, leaping out of his craft as it came close to the ground, catch a couple rounds to the chest. He stopped giving orders after that.

 

About half of Decker Squad was injured, but everyone seemed capable of walking and shooting, so I ordered them out of the ATIV-II. One missile into the crashed craft would have wiped us out, and they knew it, so they started moving.

 

I fired as I exited the vehicle, dropping someone wearing the battered armor of the militia. Then I was diving into cover and trying to give my men some relief as they followed me out.

 

Ganner got hit in the leg, nearly losing everything below his left knee. The kid didn’t scream or anything, just sorta slumped over in shock. I ran over to him, heedless of enemy fire, and grabbed him by the forearms. I was dragging him back to my spot behind a large, blaster-scarred grey boulder when he got shot in the face.

 

Corporal Trent, my second, yanked me away from Ganner’s corpse and into cover. I surveyed Decker: seven men still firing, which meant only Ganner was down. Then I surveyed the rest of our assault group: maybe thirty guys still moving, and outnumbered 3:1 by the militia. The road, which ran between two hills before crossing the nearby river, was littered with the debris of battle. The convoy had halted while its escorts moved to finish us off. They had a tank, an MAA/AT, too.

 

Sergeant “Smiley” Smilloc of Nomad crashed to the ground beside me, almost earning himself a bolt through the head. For a moment, I thought he was dead. Then he pulled me close and started yelling in my ear. Something about a case of detonite, and sliding it under the MAA/AT.

 

Nomad Squad, I saw, had extracted the explosives from their insertion craft. They were dodging from cover to cover, working their way towards the assault tank. I ordered Decker to give them covering fire.

 

Smiley fell as he was darting towards the tank, picked off by a sniper. Another Nomad got hit in the foot, but he lobbed his case of explosives at the tank anyways. When it went off, I nearly fell over.

 

The MAA/AT was reduced to rubble. The blast had even knocked over one of the convoy trucks, a big-wheeled thing that was largely unarmored. One of our ATIV-II’s lifted off, using its dual lasers for some anti-infantry. We had air support.

 

The rest of the mission was just wrap-up, then. We hurried to finish the job before enemy reinforcements could show. The last overloaded ATIV-II was taking off just as scanners picked up incoming vessels, and we somehow got away.

 

The thing I remember most is the silence. After the battle’s done, the silence just comes rushing in. Your ears are still ringing from the detonations and the thump-thump-thump¬ of heavy weapons, and everything just seems so quiet. Your heartbeat slows as you catch your breath, and everything seems . . . slower. It’s like you die and they forget to tell you.

 

I used to think I preferred the silence. The energy of combat, the purpose, it’s addicting. It’s dark, and terrifying, and you hate yourself for loving it. You say to yourself, “I’m better than this,” and you put it behind you when you leave.

 

But honestly, there are things a lot worse than killing. There are times when I’d give anything to have never come home.

 

Now I miss the noise.

 

 

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[Darth_Scelestus]

---------------Taris at Night, pt. 3

 

 

A hilltop, Taris; the middle of the night

 

Rylarn shook off the memories of another life as he woke, instantly alert. His holocomm was vibrating insistently. He could feel his stomach knotting as he reached for it, knowing that something had gone wrong. It couldn’t have been more than an hour since he had dozed of; Laurek and Toner weren’t back yet.

 

No image appeared on the reception pad – it was voice only, per unit protocol.

 

“Sir!” It was Toner, and he sounded distressed. “We’ve got a situation here.” Blasterfire sounded in the background.

 

“Keep talking, Corporal!” Rylarn rolled to his knees, reaching for his gear. “Where are you?”

 

“There’s a cave system about a half-kilometer from your position. We heard shots and went in to investigate, but we’re trapped by ‘ghouls and can’t get out.”

 

“We’re on our way towards you.” Rylarn stood quickly, yanking on his helmet and transferring the holocomm’s signal through the helmet’s internal speakers. “Jorgan, Keller, on your feet! We’re moving fast.”

 

They went down the hillside at a steady trot, trying their best not to lose their footing. Toner cut the transmission – again, as per unit protocol. There were pirates and scavengers on Taris that, while unable to decrypt the comm transmissions, would use them to home in on unwary or exposed prey. Rylarn had a feeling that they had enough trouble on their hands already.

 

Through the high-res night-vision optics in his helmet, Rylarn could soon enough make out the cave they were headed towards, as well as the horde of ‘ghouls loping towards it.

 

Keller cursed softly. “That . . . that’s a lot, sir.”

 

They stopped. Rylarn surveyed the area. “Right. Jorgan, set the last of the grenades here on a remote trigger. Then cut left and circle towards the cave. Keller and I will go right. When we’re within a hundred meters of the cave, set off the explosives. The blast should draw the ‘ghouls away.” He paused. “Oh, and stay low. I wouldn’t want the ‘ghouls to see you and eat you, ‘cause then I’d have to kill them all.”

 

“Noted, sir.”

 

Rylarn and Keller crouched low and moved as fast as they could. Jorgan set to work, pulling five thermal detonators from their places on his bandoleer. Working fast, he sacrificed his personal holocomm for parts. The result of a minute-and-a-half’s work was a crudely rigged bomb. He leaned back on his haunches to admire it. Then he, too, disappeared into the tall grass.

 

*************************************************************************************

 

The rakghouls swarmed around the cave’s entrance. Inside, they knew, was food. It was fighting, but it would be overwhelmed. The voice urged them on. Kill.

 

Then the sky-noise boomed behind them and flames reached for the clouds. They turned, the fire reflecting in their dull, hungry eyes.

 

The voice inside their heads whispered, Ignore it. It is not food.

 

But rakghouls are simple beasts. The bright flames drew them away from the cave like moths, and they did not see the three shadows that flitted away into the darkness behind them.

 

 

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[Darth_Scelestus]

---------------Taris at Night, pt. 4

 

 

A cave system, Taris; the middle of the night

 

Jorgan’s explosive had drawn off the majority of the rakghouls, but over a dozen were still in the mouth of the cave when Rylarn sprinted in. He shot the closest twice in the chest, then smashed the butt of his rifle down on a second ‘ghoul’s neck. A third, running their way, was picked off by Keller.

 

The fourth weaved in close and leaped on Rylarn’s chest, forcing him to the ground. Its teeth and claws scrabbled for purchase on Rylarn’s hardened body armor. Failing that, it grabbed his helmeted head in its huge hands and began slamming him repeatedly back into the rocky ground.

 

Dazed, Rylarn could do nothing. Then the ‘ghoul jerked and went limp, and collapsed on top of Rylarn. Jorgan withdrew his favorite knife – a piece of sharped durasteel nearly a foot long – from the back of the ‘ghoul’s throat, and rolled the dead beast of his CO’s chest. Beside them, Keller swept his rifle side-to-side, felling rakghouls left and right.

 

By the time Rylarn had his bearings, the fighting had stopped. Jorgan pulled him to his feet and Keller pressed his fallen rifle into his hands.

 

“Good work,” Rylarn coughed. He pressed one of the inlaid keys on his right gauntlet, activating his comm system. “Toner, we’re in the cave. What’s your status?”

 

The reply was so long in coming, Rylarn began to fear they’d come too late. Then, “Laurek’s down, she’s got a broken leg. I’m alright.”

 

“Keep this signal open. We’ll use it to home in on you. Do you know where you are? I see three passages ahead of me.”

 

“We took the left fork, I think,” Toner said. The uncertainty in his voice was distressing.

 

Then Laurek cut in. “No, we took the right passage the first time. After that, I . . . I think we stayed in the main tunnel.”

 

“Hold your position, we’re on our way.” Rylarn pointed to Jorgan. “Bring up the rear; those ‘ghouls outside will be coming back pretty soon.” To Keller, he said, “You’re responsible for making sure we don’t get lost in here. Who knows how many branches this system has?”

 

They moved at a near-run, weapons raised. A dozen times, rakghouls descended on them from the many side passages they came across. Once, one accidently activated a flashbang hung on Jorgan’s bandoleer. Both the ‘ghoul and Jorgan were knocked off their feet, and the ‘ghouls around them were stunned. The commandos, protected by their helmets, were only deafened.

 

Finally, they swung around a corner and nearly ran into a pile of ‘ghoul bodies four feet high. Rylarn found himself looking into the barrels of Toner’s and Laurek’s weapons.

 

“Thank the Force!” Toner moaned, lowering his rifle. “We’re almost out of ammo in here, Sarge.”

 

Rylarn tossed both Toner and Laurek a power cell from his (rapidly diminishing) supply. “We’ve got to keep moving; there are another hundred ‘ghouls out there, and my guess is they’re headed here in a hurry.”

 

Keller, Havoc’s designated medic, crouched to examine Laurek’s leg. She had already applied a basic splint; Keller made a few adjustments, strengthened it with some adhesive from his kit, and pronounced Laurek ready for transport.

 

They began to make their way out of the caves, Rylarn and Toner on point, Jorgan in the rear, with Keller supporting Laurek. They had barely gone twenty meters when a roar echoed down the passage.

 

They halted, and Rylarn and Toner exchanged glances. “Did that sound like a . . . reek, to you?” Toner asked apprehensively.

 

“It definitely sounded big.” Rylarn gestured to one of the numerous, smaller side passages. “We’ll go this way, try to avoid whatever that thing is.”

 

It soon became apparent that the beast was following them. “Well, it can’t be too big if it can fit in here,” Keller observed, patting the passage’s low ceiling, which was almost level with the top of his helmet.

 

The tunnel shook slightly in the wake of another roar. “On second thought, let’s go faster.”

 

Rylarn and Toner emerged into a large cavern. Bones littered the floor, and at least fifty rakghouls nestled among the piles.

 

Toner cursed. “This is a nest! “

 

Rylarn glanced back down the passage behind them. One mystery monster, or fifty sleeping ‘ghouls?

 

---------------

[Darth_Scelestus]

---------------Taris at Night, pt. 5

 

 

A cave system, Taris; the middle of the night

 

“Right,” Rylarn breathed. “Right, see that opening up there?” He pointed towards the ceiling of the cavern, where a person-sized crack showed a small patch of the cloudy night sky. “We make for that. Grapple up there and get to safety, Laurek first.”

 

The rakghouls around them were stirring. Nearby, one woke and sniffed the air. Rylarn aimed, then fired a shot through its skull. “Go!” he ordered.

 

They charged through the disoriented nest, blasting those ‘ghouls that were near their path. When they neared the spot directly beneath the opening, Havoc Squad formed a circle and lay down heavy fire as Laurek hauled herself up to safety on a grapple line.

 

Toner went up next, then Keller. Rylarn waved to Jorgan during a brief pause in the fighting. “Go!”

 

“You first, Renner!” Jorgan shouted back. “I’ll cover you.”

 

“Go! That’s an order, Jorgan!”

 

Reluctantly, Jorgan strapped his heavy assault cannon to his back. He fired off a line, rising quickly. Below, the rakghouls closed in on Rylarn.

 

Something big raced forward, moving with a speed that should have been beyond such a large creature. It was a ‘ghoul bigger than any Rylarn had ever seen before, easily ten feet tall. It bore down on him, its thick hide absorbing every shot he put into its chest.

 

Rylarn switched targets, hitting the bull ‘ghoul twice in the face before it was on him. It bounced him off the ground, cracking his battle armor and, judging by the explosion of pain in his chest, several of his ribs. Then, left hand pressing down on his chest, it reached out with its right hand and yanked off his helmet.

 

Rylarn looked the bull ‘ghoul in the eye. Its mouth twisted and it spoke.

 

“Kill!” the beast growled. Its right hand closed around Rylarn’s throat.

 

Barely able to breathe, Rylarn squeezed the trigger on his rifle. No good – the weapon was crushed between his body and the bull ‘ghoul’s, the barrel pointing away from them and sending shots harmlessly into the far cavern wall. He abandoned his hold on the rifle, instead seeking his pistol. Then he saw the pistol lying on the floor, five feet away.

 

As all sound seemed to stop, he looked towards the ceiling. Jorgan was descending rapidly, his knife poised in his hand. Taking careful aim, he threw.

 

The blade thudded home, harmlessly, in the bull ‘ghoul’s left shoulder blade. Rylarn reached up, yanked it free, and drove it into the ‘ghoul’s throat.

 

The pressure vanished as the bull ‘ghoul rolled away, gurgling. Rylarn struggled to his feet, only to get bowled over again by a smaller ‘ghoul. It clawed at his face as he struggled to hold it at bay.

 

Then an explosion blew a new hole in the ceiling, just ten meters from the hole Havoc had escaped through. Through it descended a dozen Republic soldiers. They halted their descent five meters from the cavern floor, firing into the swarm of ‘ghouls below. Then another group of soldiers fell past them, these armed with flamethrowers and pulse cannons, which they turned on the rakghouls with devastating effect.

 

Jorgan knelt at Rylarn’s shoulder, his assault cannon readied, but the few ‘ghouls still alive were backing out of sight into the plethora of passages that opened onto the cavern.

 

One of the new arrivals, a sergeant, jogged over. She knelt next to Jorgan and pulled a medkit from her belt. “Sergeant Dorne, sir, Search & Rescue. Just lay still.”

 

Rylarn tried to sit up and was immediately forced back down. Sergeant Dorne jabbed a needle of something into his neck, and suddenly, he was sleeping.

 

 

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[taxidermis]

Love it so far

[Magdalane]

Agreed, please continue.