beside him as he began to wedge himself into the breach to widen it.
“No go,” Iden answered, with
Rio adding his own leverage and the both of them moving the big door more than
a foot when several blasts were heard overhead.
“My battlemap is down,” Rio noted.
“The front of the dropship is pancaked, including the
relay and emergency beacon. I’d guess that’s the fighter trying to finish us
off.”
“Stay or run?”
“Depends on how many trees,” Iden said, continuing to push and getting significant resistance from the door.
“I think I can slide through,” one of the other
commandos said, standing next to them.
“Try,” the Archon insisted, still applying pressure.
The slightly shorter commando passed by Rio and went
through feet first. He got caught at the waist but managed to wiggle his way
through, then a moment after he was out of view they all got a battlemap update
as his armor began to map out the surrounding area with low level sensor pings.
He also sent them a visual as he scanned the area, catching sight of the
Skarron fighter making a looping turn to come back for another pass.
“Back or go,” Iden told him
on the comm, with the commando taking off into the woods.
“Allow me,” the Knight said, stepping in between Rio
and Iden , inserting a leg into the gap then pushing
off with his other and shoulder to form a bigger wedge that moved the stubborn
panel further out on its hinge and enough to easily get the other commandos
through.
A waypoint flashed on Rio’s HUD and he dove through
the gap as the explosions peppered the upper hull and dissipated. Behind him a
cherry red spot appeared and disappeared on the port side…which was now the roof given how the dropship lay. Knowing that
wouldn’t hold long, Iden ducked out after three of
the commandos went through and got himself into open
air.
He looked around at the trees…tall, thick, crooked,
and not much in the way of leaves but there were enough branches to take some
of the plasma.
“Perimeter at 100 meters,” he ordered. “I need a
hideaway for the wounded.”
As he said that he moved around and got a view on the
Skarron fighter, wondering why it wasn’t just hovering over top and blasting
into them. Almost as soon as he made the thought the thing decelerated at range
and began creeping up on them…with him knowing that was exactly what it
intended to do next.
He opened a comm to the Knight. “I’m going for the
fighter. I think I can at least slow it down with my psionics if I get close.
Get everyone out and moving. I’ll catch up if and when I can. Don’t wait on
me.”
“Understood,” Victor said, keying his own comm and
coordinating with the commandos still inside the dropship to get everyone out
ASAP. As he did he saw the silver armor run off through the trees in the direction
the fighter was coming from, then eventually disappear as too many trunks and
branches got in the way of his vision.
He could still read him on battlemap, but he trusted
the Archon knew what he was doing…and as he said, would buy them a little time.
Victor came back under the opening where the ramp was
wedged against several trees and helped to pull out a very bloody woman and two
men, Chad included, and sent them along the line of unarmored people heading
off through the trees following a pair of commandos he’d just assigned to the
task. He poked his head back in for one last look, then seeing nothing but the
2 corpses he mentally abandoned the dropship and followed the perimeter
commandos out as they collapsed around the vulnerable personal in a flanking
escort, leaving the dropship and the Archon behind.
Everyone was running as best they could, but it was
much slower than Victor was capable of so he took a few moments to look back,
finally getting a good view of the damage to the dropship, who’s front section looked to be completely missing. He was surprised the pilot had
survived at all…then he suddenly saw and heard
“No go,” Iden answered, with
Rio adding his own leverage and the both of them moving the big door more than
a foot when several blasts were heard overhead.
“My battlemap is down,” Rio noted.
“The front of the dropship is pancaked, including the
relay and emergency beacon. I’d guess that’s the fighter trying to finish us
off.”
“Stay or run?”
“Depends on how many trees,” Iden said, continuing to push and getting significant resistance from the door.
“I think I can slide through,” one of the other
commandos said, standing next to them.
“Try,” the Archon insisted, still applying pressure.
The slightly shorter commando passed by Rio and went
through feet first. He got caught at the waist but managed to wiggle his way
through, then a moment after he was out of view they all got a battlemap update
as his armor began to map out the surrounding area with low level sensor pings.
He also sent them a visual as he scanned the area, catching sight of the
Skarron fighter making a looping turn to come back for another pass.
“Back or go,” Iden told him
on the comm, with the commando taking off into the woods.
“Allow me,” the Knight said, stepping in between Rio
and Iden , inserting a leg into the gap then pushing
off with his other and shoulder to form a bigger wedge that moved the stubborn
panel further out on its hinge and enough to easily get the other commandos
through.
A waypoint flashed on Rio’s HUD and he dove through
the gap as the explosions peppered the upper hull and dissipated. Behind him a
cherry red spot appeared and disappeared on the port side…which was now the roof given how the dropship lay. Knowing that
wouldn’t hold long, Iden ducked out after three of
the commandos went through and got himself into open
air.
He looked around at the trees…tall, thick, crooked,
and not much in the way of leaves but there were enough branches to take some
of the plasma.
“Perimeter at 100 meters,” he ordered. “I need a
hideaway for the wounded.”
As he said that he moved around and got a view on the
Skarron fighter, wondering why it wasn’t just hovering over top and blasting
into them. Almost as soon as he made the thought the thing decelerated at range
and began creeping up on them…with him knowing that was exactly what it
intended to do next.
He opened a comm to the Knight. “I’m going for the
fighter. I think I can at least slow it down with my psionics if I get close.
Get everyone out and moving. I’ll catch up if and when I can. Don’t wait on
me.”
“Understood,” Victor said, keying his own comm and
coordinating with the commandos still inside the dropship to get everyone out
ASAP. As he did he saw the silver armor run off through the trees in the direction
the fighter was coming from, then eventually disappear as too many trunks and
branches got in the way of his vision.
He could still read him on battlemap, but he trusted
the Archon knew what he was doing…and as he said, would buy them a little time.
Victor came back under the opening where the ramp was
wedged against several trees and helped to pull out a very bloody woman and two
men, Chad included, and sent them along the line of unarmored people heading
off through the trees following a pair of commandos he’d just assigned to the
task. He poked his head back in for one last look, then seeing nothing but the
2 corpses he mentally abandoned the dropship and followed the perimeter
commandos out as they collapsed around the vulnerable personal in a flanking
escort, leaving the dropship and the Archon behind.
Everyone was running as best they could, but it was
much slower than Victor was capable of so he took a few moments to look back,
finally getting a good view of the damage to the dropship, who’s front section looked to be completely missing. He was surprised the pilot had
survived at all…then he suddenly saw and heard
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