There Are A Lot Of Troopers In The Guard With Training The Guard Aren't Supposed To Have, ARCs For Sure,

Saying Goodbye

*On the corrie landing pad, seconds after touchdown*

Bite: Dank farrik, I do not remember larty landings being this rough...

Hssiss: Aw, vod'ika, the landing wasn't any rougher than to be expected. You're just feeling them more. You could have strapped in, you know?

Bite: Not a chance, I haven't needed to strap in for a landing since that drop where a seppie EMP took out our systems, and Switch nearly sent us into a mountain.

Switch, from the pilots seat: Hey! We agreed that the mountain wasn't my fault! And anyway, my landing was perfect.

Hssiss: Sure, vod, perfect.

Switch: Bastard...

Manda, Bite was going to miss his vode. The brass wouldn't let the rest of his squad escort him to the surface, so only Hssiss as his corporal and Switch as pilot were given clearance to say goodbye to him. He knew from experience that his squad rarely ever got shore leave, so it would most likely be a long time before he saw them again. As the LAAT/s door started to lower, the finality of it all hit Bite like a speeder.

Bite: You're going to visit me, right? You will still have my comm code too, and I know that you di'kut'e can use a comm and-

Hssiss: Bite, vod'ika, breathe. Yes, we will visit you. Yes, we will comm. We couldn't stop Atin if we tried, you know that. You are going to be ok, Bite, Commander Blackout said, so remember.

Bite: Yeah, I remember.

Switch: It will be ok, Ori'vod! You'll see!

Oh, how Bite hopes Switch is right.

Tumbler, vod, calm it. I'm freaking out just as much as you, but I refuse to scare off this kid. Also, I've seen him around before on stealth missions. I'm pretty sure he tried to shoot me once. He has almost the same biology as us, just smaller. He eats the same.

If he can get between outer rim planets for beroya jobs, he can get to Coruscant. And well, I kind of assumed if anyone knew how he got in here, it would be you.

@corrie-bite @corrie-guard-tumbler @cc1010fox

My apologies for interrupting, sirs, but it would appear that a feral Boba Fett (@youngfett) has stumbled across the barracks, and he's wounded. I understand that I need to learn to take initiative, but I figured that it's different for Boba, you know? I mean... He's Prime's kid. After the fiasco with Aurra Sing, I want to make sure that he's got people in his corner, and who better for that than the vod'e?

"You've been here too long! Do you understand how it sounds to everyone else when you declare a brother a lost cause?! You are so used to all this pain and death that you have just given up! You call me frontie like my service record is something to be ashamed of, but just maybe if you put aside your raging bias for 10 minutes you'd realise the fact I'm not originally Coruscant Guard is exactly why I know this time will be different!"

Bite could feel the solid durasteel table, unrelenting under the tough material of his barely broken in gloves, the thick fibres the only thing insulating his adrenaline flushed skin from the icy metal under his palms. He took a deep, shaking breath before continuing.

"I have real blood on my hands from missions you don't have the clearance to even think about, I have faced droids, natborns, and everything in between. I swore to my squad I would try my best to fit in with the Guard but if being a Guard means accepting the death of your vod'e because you are too wounded by this planet to even try save them anymore, you can take back your welcome and send me to be decommissioned. Kamino can have me if this is my future, and if I'm going to die anyway then why shouldn't I try to save Tumbler, a vod who has welcomed me and stood by me and wanted to protect me since I arrived before I go."

Bite's voice grew colder the longer spoke, the need to lash out at the man telling him to just give up who stood before him, a man who has been so utterly destroyed by the planet he was made to protect. Later, Bite might try to explain to Nickel what he was thinking during this fight, but now, the only thing he wanted was to tear this mans comforting, stagnant hell to shreds, and make him see what he is doing by giving in to the weight of his nightmares.

*BZZZZZZT*

If anyone is getting this, I need back-up! This is CT-3996, I am on level 105, I am being chased by unknow-KARK!

*There's a thud and grunt, then a quick scramble of action. As if the speaker had fallen and quickly gotten back up and ran afterwards. There's some voices in the background, muffled and inaudible*

I don't know who the suspects are or if they are gang affiliated, they are wearing concealing face-wear and no verbal confirmation of Separatist allegiance!

*There's a brief lapse of silence as Tumbler seems to be ducking around obstacles, huffing as runs from the assailants. They are getting closer and a blaster sounds off, earning a panicked curse from the Guard*

OSIK! VODE, THEY'RE AN INSIDE JOB! THEY ARE DIRECTING ME AWAY FROM MY KNOWN ESCAPE ROUTES, THEY ISOLATED ME FROM OTHER PATROLS! THEY-

*A another round of blasters before Tumbler is seemingly hit, hitting the ground with a heavy thud. His bucket records his unsteady breathing until footsteps are heard approaching*

Time to come home to our Lady, pet.

*The last recording before Tumbler's signal vanishes ends*

At that, Bite punches '41 lightly in the arm.

"Quit it. No one is going to die. You are Coruscant Guard, best of the best, have some damn faith in yourself."

Bite steps closer to the table to start properly examining the map of the area the complaints are from. It's one of the lowest levels, with few speeder lanes and even fewer cameras. He'll have to do a proper casing of the building itself once it has been identified, but Bite is already putting together how to get to and from the level without alerting the wrong people.

"The lack of cameras on the level will make avoiding detection easier, but with how few citizens on those levels own speeders, we are going to need a different way down if we want to remain discreet. The elevators don't offer a quick enough escape if things go wrong, so... suggestions? I haven't been planet side as long as some of you so you many know of something I don't."

*INCOMING COMM*

This is a private frequency I’ve sent out across the guards comms. I think I know where to find CT-3996, Tumbler, I’m asking all guards who can to help, I’m asking all Vode who know anything to help.

I’ve left cords on where to find me, now let’s find Tumbler!

Crane put down the comm, all there was left to do was wait. Was crane nervous? Obviously, none of the Corrie’s really knew him yet and he’s asking for their help to find a vod who most think is dead.

He does truly hope help will come, but if not, Crane is fully prepared to go it alone. No matter what Forge says, what he doesn’t know won’t kill him…. Probably.

"I'll make you a list."

Bite snaps before shaking himself. This is Tumbler, his vod. He has seen for himself how protective the trooper gets over the rest of the corries, but he guesses he kind of forgot that he was technically included in that group now.

"Sorry, I didn't - anyway, the fresh stuffs a 'thank you for playing' from the red guard. Apparently, they checked my files after someone told one of them about me and decided I'd make a fun punching bag, seeing as they haven't managed to get their hands on a trooper with my training before."

Bite would never admit it, but it was nice to be recognised as a skilled fighter again, the corries only really knew him as a medic, but he didn't make it through multiple simultaneous training tracks at Kamino and make up part of one of the GARs most accomplished stealth squads for people to forget he used to be more. The red guard beat the crap out of him, given they were fully armoured and he was one clone fighting in only his blacks, but after he got in some good hits, they at least considered him enough of a threat to switch on thier weapons.

"And the braces? Kaminoan intervention, only way to keep me useful, pushed for by my old commander who almost tried getting a jedi involded to get them to no decomm me. Mission gone wrong."

There was no way Bite was elaborating further than that right now. He hissed in pain as he tied off the bandage he'd wrapped around the burn he'd gotten from one of the shabuir's force pikes.

"....You're not meant to look like that." || Bleeding Prompt!||

(@corrie-guard-tumbler)

"Not meant to look like what, Tumbler?"

Bite was in the barracks, just trying to fix up anything in urgent need of his attention after the latest round of Specialist Trooper VS Red Guard, a 'fun' game the chancellor's pets liked to pull any guard with additional training into.

It was only because of the injuries that the skanah aran had left him with that Bite was out of the majority of his blacks in the barracks for the first time since he arrived. He'd had absolutely no intention of showing anyone other than the other medics the complex pieces of metal that held together his right knee or left shoulder if he didn't have to. And now he has remembered why.

"If you've got an issue with the braces, take it up with the Kaminoans."

"I hope I have not inconvenienced you ma'am, although I can reasure you I am perfectly capable of completing any assignment you give me."

Bites tense, he'd obviously spotted the screaming discomfort coming of his vod and hadn't really planned what he'd do next. He'd done enough missions on the fly he knew he'd think of something, but now he was in unknown territory with none of his old squad watching his back.

"CT-3996, you have been requested in the kennels immediately. Please report to the on duty trooper for your assignment."

As split second plans go, sending the vod not nessasarily a fan of masstifs to the kennels probably wasn't his best but as long as he could get Tumbler out of the senate, it was better than nothing. Bite shot a quick ping to the ARF trooper down there to put in the request for real, just in case the senator tried to check later.

"Shame, I guess you shall have to do CT-..."

"8024, ma'am."

"Yes, well, you'll do."

[DECEIVE] The sender tells a lie in order to protect the receiver || Bite was hoping for a quiet shift, though a shift as the on call medic for the senate is never quiet. As soon as Bite saw a senator getting a bit too close to his vod, he sped up to intervene. "Sir, I see that you seem to be asking this trooper for some assistance. I regret to inform you that it is unable to complete any alternative taskings at this time. I can assist you with anything you need to the best of my ability."

"Oooh? CT-3996, why didn't you tell me you were occupied? Were you hoping someone would tattle on lil ol' me?"

Tumbler would appear unaffected at first glance, settled in perfect parade rest but Bite would see how Tumbler is digging his fingers hard into his forearms, hidden behind and out of sight of the Senator, hiding his building fear and discomfort as the Senator trails her hand under where his chin would be, safe beneath his bucket.

"I was unaware, Senator Vyrim. Forgive this Trooper, it's holocomm may be inoperable and missed a situation that requires their attention."

He hopes, prays even, to whatever damned deity or greater being or even the sith-damned Force that the Senator drops the matter. Senator Vyrim was too alike Sly Moore for Tumbler to truly dismiss and disassociate from, the Rattataki Senator sharing the same pale tone and eye colour, with her tattoos and bejeweled skin the only difference from the Umbaran female.

The door to the med bay opens with its usual hisssssss

He clears his throat.

“Uh excuse me,—”

(@guard-crane :D yay forge time)

Bite looks up from where he sat at the small desk shoved into the corner of the medbay, filling out medical reports to add to a few troopers' files when someone walked in. He can see no visible injuries in the clone in the doorway, so he stays sitting but puts down his stylus and gives the trooper his full attention.

"That's me. What can I do for you, vod?"

Love the enthusiasm, but I'll have to sit this one out. Still on shift, remember. There won't be many brothers still awake that aren't on the clock right now vod'ika, so you might have to aim smaller. You can take my things off my bunk if you want to as long as they go back. And give me a comm if you or Fett'ika need me. I'll keep an eye on Tumbler and send him your way ASAP, that di'kut forgot that as a medic, I have the authority to make sure he gets some sleep after he has dealt with Ringerbeep.

@corrie-bite @corrie-guard-tumbler @cc1010fox

My apologies for interrupting, sirs, but it would appear that a feral Boba Fett (@youngfett) has stumbled across the barracks, and he's wounded. I understand that I need to learn to take initiative, but I figured that it's different for Boba, you know? I mean... He's Prime's kid. After the fiasco with Aurra Sing, I want to make sure that he's got people in his corner, and who better for that than the vod'e?

"I know vod'ika, but we sent out an ARF trooper the second we got the news and they found nothing, right now we need you here incase we finally get a lock on the location. Your ARF status will be essential in a complex situation like this one. If you need to do something, tell the tech boys what you found and have them search Vyrims account transactions for anything similar to or related to what you found. The second we can go get Tumbler, I will tell you, but that isn't possible if you are 20 klicks from base chasing a cold trail."

Bite wants nothing more than to send Mouse to the streets with his mastiff in an attempt to find Tumbler quicker, but with the real chance that there will be no trail and no results when they tried before, it isn't worth loosing Mouse as a potential asset when the time comes.

Mouse approaches Bite with a folder. "I was snooping around and found a couple things-- well really only one thing, just a note, everything else in the folder is my own ramblings and attempts to find connections-- but the note's something about a really impressively large sum of money and some sort of large pet. But-- I just want you to have this, so it doesn't get lost while I'm out on my ill-advised rampage"

Bite takes the folder from Mouse's hands, already trying to figure out how this information could help him locate Tumbler.

"And where do you intend to go on your 'ill-advised rampage' vod? Because we don't have a location for Tumbler or Senator Vyrim right now and if you run off to cause havoc not only will you not be permitted to join the extraction team, you may also get yourself killed."

He knows his words are harsh, his kih'vod usually someone he tries to keep a nicer tone with, but right now Tumbler takes priority and Bite can not afford to get distracted with trying to keep an eye on his obviously distressed vod as well as providing specialist insight on extraction plans and tactics to the command staff and working with the tech boys on information gathering and processing.

"I know you are angry, kark. I'm furious, but right now, Tumbler needs you as level-headed as you can manage. Can you control yourself until we have a plan, trooper?"

@citadel-survivor

"ulllo bite"

Echo, how have you been? I haven't seen you since my old squad operated out of the Resolute for a couple of weeks, which was a while ago now.