When Caspians Attack: Part 1

'''New Republic Embassy - Plaxton City'''

The foyer of the New Republic Embassy is a grand room with a high vaulted ceiling. Flowing, the banners of New Republic member worlds adorn the off-white walls. Tastefully upholstered couches arranged within the space provide for the comfort of visitors. Tall transparisteel windows are evenly spaced around the room, dressed with sheer creamy curtains. In front of each window is a low platform, enclosed by a wrought-iron fence crafted in the same vine pattern as the doors. The platforms, reachable by stairs on either side, host decorative statues and plants. Sunlight pouring in from the windows makes the whole lobby glow.

On either side of the foyer is an arched doorway that leads further into a wing of the Embassy. Each set of double doors is carved, and attended by a pair of New Republic guards. On the wall opposite the main doors, half of a round elevator shaft sticks out into the room. The semicircular wall of the shaft is a soft tan-gray color, and is embossed with the same vine motif as the rest of the building.

All who enter from the plaza must pass through a weapons detector, where guards are on duty.

'''Ambassador Aderanne's Quarters'''

Once you clear past the security doors, a warm, comfortable atmosphere surrounds you. Recorded sounds of rain and nature play faintly in the background from an unseen source. The floor is a slick, marble tile, decorated here and there with thick, earth-toned rugs woven from ropes of some sort of animal hair. The walls are bordered with deep, clay red, off-setting the pale, soothing walls. A few potted plants are scatterd around the living area that lies ahead of you, filling the air with a subtle, floral note. In the leftmost corner is a small kitchenette, containing the basic cold storage, washing and cooking units, and a little counter space on which to work.

Directly ahead, a few sleek, wooden chairs continue the Caspian, natural theme of the room, positioned across a rather plush, buff-colored couch for easy conversation. To your right is a small hallway that leads to a modest bath/bedroom combo with decor matching the living space, with more efficiently designed furniture - molded from the walls, aside from the low bed with pale, blue sheets. In the bedroom there is also a small fountain with stone lining and a few fish.

One of the bedroom walls houses a secretive door, beside the fresher mirror. Inside is a smaller room that's without a doubt serving as a child's residence. Gunmetal gray walls, painted to resemble bulkheads are outfitted with bits and pieces of scrapped (but polished and prettied up) fighter-unit consoles and nav systems. Some monitor displays actually light up and one has been modified to function as a holoterm. A small bed is nestled in one corner inside a halved, pod-like encasement. Shelves are built into the other half, storing toys and clothes. Various Republic spaceship models hang from the ceiling.

Peeps: Ambrosia Delgard, Leo, Drogyn

Puppet Peeps:

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This adolescent human might be 10 years old, give or take a year, from the looks of things. She stands about 1.35 meters in height and possesses some fiercely green eyes. Her ruddy complexion suggests much time spent playing out of doors, and light, brunette curls highlighted by the sun tumble messily to her shoulders when not tied back in a ponytail. Her pert little nose is centered between dimpled cheeks, and mouth often occupied with shy smiles or mischievous grins. =====

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She's currently dressed in a matching, navy blue sleep set of mildly oversized, sleeved shirt and billowy pants. A pair of slate-colored slippers cover her feet. =====

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It began with peace.

Not just this balmy evening, but her whole assignment on Caspar. Sure, there were a few rough patches, but it all worked out. Hurt feelings soothed, treaties signed, happy arrangements all around.

Just not this time.

Staring numbly into the half-shielded face of the marine who all but banged down her door, Ambrosia weakens her grip on the bed sheet clutched so tightly over her startled heart. His fast-moving mouth almost keeps beat with its pounding, his stern voice too quiet to be heard over the ringing in her ears. But she gets the general idea---emergency.

At last, her brain kicks into higher gear, on level with the other vertebrates. "Okay." Kicking free of the rest of the sheet, she scrambles aside to grab any semblance of clothing within reach to replace her sleepwear, never-minding present company.

Shortly after the guard enters and alerts the ambassador to the possible situation, another man comes in dressed very differently than the military individuals. Leo, wearing simple brown robes, looks around the room before turning his gaze to the woman. "Ambassador, you must be ready to move as soon as possible."

The protestors had been gathering over the course of a few days, native Sarians unhappy with outside powers interfering in their daily lives. So far the protests had been mostly peaceful, especially during the day. However at night, the wolves come out. At first it is a bit of broken property in the park and more insistent chants for the Republic to leave.

Tonight is different, the numbers have swollen. There is alcohol involved and anger is boiling over into rage. The first volleys are rocks tossed angrily at the gates of the Embassy compound and chants of "Foreigners Leave!" The Plaxton City guard are keeping their distance and doing their best to contain the protesters to the park.

Sitting on a nearby rooftop, a dozen soldiers clad in matte black armor with no markings on it wait. One of their number crouches, cradling a long rifle in one arm and scanning the embassy rooftops and walls with a pair of macro-binoculars in the other, into the comm system in his helmet he whispers, "Prepare to initiate phase two on my mark."

"How bad is it?" is the muffled response to Leo's warning. Struggling to navigate the inside of her tunic, but at least wearing pants, the ambassador scurries to the wall adjacent to the fresher and slaps blindly with the heel of her hand until the wall separates, revealing the entrance into another, smaller room.

The marine takes a small, measured breath and eyes the arrived Jedi with tense silence, allowing her 'specially' appointed guard to answer that question, and possibly relieved to have someone else to look at for a moment longer until his 'boss' is decent.

Inside the rest of the building, the building fury beyond the walls is barely audible. Lights remain out, embassy staff either at home or fallen asleep atop their notes in a conference room. The corridors slowly creep to life, however, the military defenders forming up positions according to protocol, activating their weapons...and waiting.

Taking a moment's breath in and out, the Jedi appears to cock his head as if listening to something before answering the ambassador. "I cannot answer that question. All I know is that someone seems amiss and you are in grave danger." Reaching to his side, Leo unclips the long cylinder that was hanging at his side. "Does this embassy contain a safe-room where you can be taken?"

Commander Drogyn peers down at his wrist watching the simple chrono flash 0:00. He reaches down and touches it causing the counter to start ticking. He switches his comms again to talk to his teams, "Execute." With that he drops himself into a crouch and activates the camoline properties of his armor, causing his form to blur as he all but disappears. He draws the sniper rifle up and starts scanning the perimeter once more. He continues to wait as the operation unfolds.

Among the protesters a near human with a rock tosses it at one of the marines, hitting him in the helmet. Other protestors start throwing rocks as well, aiming now at the Marines at the gate as the chant grows louder and louder.

"In here," Ambrosia keeps her voice low as she ducks into the room, illuminated by soft, blinking lights and console screens mounted intermittently to the walls. "But the last time this embassy was under attack, those that locked themselves away were...well. I was later told that most of their smoldering remains *were* found."

The 'safe' room's original occupant is already awake, sitting upright with a puzzled expression upon her face. "Why is there so much noise?" she inquires, studying the wildness of her mother's eyes, the strange man behind her.

"Baby, you remember the drill we practiced?" Ambrosia crouches down and ushers Gabi forth from her bed to fix the buttons of her pajamas. "Well, it's happening, and I need you to go with this nice man," she indicates Leo, then digs inside a cabinet to retrieve a small bag.

*OOF* As the pelted marines fight to fend off rocks and the urge to retaliate, one of them activates a loud speaker system and 'encourages' the protestors to cease their violence immediately, while the others tighten up formation and slowly back a few paces from the gates, towards the buidling.

Squatting down, Leo places himself eye-level with the girl. "Ok Gabi, you will need to follow exactly what I tell you," he says in a calm voice before righting himself. "We need to make our way to the landing pad and get you out of this facility," says Leo to Ambrosia. Looking around with unseeing eyes, "I sense a great deal of anger and fear....too much for the embassy to remain a safe place to live."

Another rock is thrown, this one targeting the same marine. But more than rocks are thrown, several protestors draw blasters. Large groups move towards the gates, another fusilade of rocks are thrown and then the first shot is fired, a blaster pistol goes off in the crowd sending a blaster bolt towards one of the Marines.

On top of the building Drogyn looks back towards his team, "Get the grapels ready, once the perimeter is breached." He shifts his blaster rifle back towards the building and takes aim at the gate, watching, and waiting for his moment.

Gabi stares long and hard at Leo, a deeper sense of understanding in her child-sized brain than most kids her age. "They're coming, aren't they?" she queries, chin quivering. "I heard mom talking in her sleep." Turning her head to watch her mother frantically stuff a change of clothes and some less than vital objects in the sack, she abandons Leo momentarily to fetch something off her desk. It's a spherical, desktop-projector, the kind used to display still images. "I want to bring daddy."

Ambrosia bites the inside of her cheeks, hard, squeezing her eyes shut and willing her ears closed against her daughter's words. Not that the last task was hard to do...old-suffered hearing loss and all. "I know it's not, but before I follow you up there, there's something I need to do. If we're gone, I still want a set of eyes and ears and voice here to broadcast what's happening. I'm sick of their blindness." Whirling around, she snatches the globe from Gabi's hands and - more gently - adds it to the bag's contents. "Here, my sweet. Do as Leo says, and I'll catch up to you soon." Glaring at the Jedi from over the top of the girl's head - currently pressed into her breast, she curls a lip. "You get her out of here. If the Starshine is too risky, you run. Without her, the Empire has no leverage against me." then mouths silently "she's the real prize."

Hit in the shoulder, the NR marine scowls, and it isn't long before they are firing back, retreating all the while further from the gates towards the second line of defense - indoors.

Keeping his sapphire eyes on the woman and understanding her meaning, Leo reaches out for the girl's hand. "Ok my dear, it is time for us to leave. Your mom will be right behind us," Leo comments as he begins to plan the retreat. Nodding to himself as if in response to an unspoken debate, the man proceeds down the hallway toward the landing pad.

Marines firing into the crowd is all it took. Calyx sets the reticle in his scope on one of the protestors and pulls the trigger, an invisible laser beam lancing out and dropping the Sarian to the ground. He raises his rifle back up and targets one of the Marines guarding the roof, another squeeze of the trigger and he is dropped, "Squad Bravo, Execute."

The Anti-Republic Protesters start to storm the gates, crawling up the fences and firing blasters back at the marines, one hangs an Olumi Osahn Banner from the gate another raising as Casparian Vertex Eagle flag hanging upside down.

On the other side of the park an Anti-Imperial protest group is drawn into the conflict moving on the protesters outside of the Republic Embassy and opening fire on them, intent on trying to save the Embassy staff. The Plaxton City Guard begins to move on the protestors, readying stun weapons and grenades to try and settle it down.

Gabi takes Leo's lead hesitantly, throwing her mother a pensive look over her shoulder. Adults are terrible liars, she mentally sighs. But if I don't do what Mom says, she'll get mad and ... better listen. The child nods, holding fast to the Jedi and taking new note of the iconic cylinder grasped in his other hand. "Are you a real Jedi, or just pretending, to scare them away?" are the last words audible to the residence suite as she abandons the wing with her new guardian.

Mom's already mad. Rising shakily to her feet, Ambrosia claws the tears from her cheeks and walks with a corpse-like grace, back into her room. The marine who woke her is stationed at the door to the apartment, listening to something on his com.

"Gates are breached, madame Ambassador. We need to get to that landing pad *now*."

"Not yet!" she barks back, grabbing a self-injection unit off her sink and stabbing it into the ports on either knee. "I've got work to do. Buy me time." Shoving past the arm that he's come to place on her shoulder, she takes a seat at her desk and activates the holo terminal, punching in codes. "The CDU needs to see the real monsters they've let lurk in the shadows too long."

The exterior guard continues to fire retreating shots, clambering up the embassy steps. Inside those massive, double doors, the building is coming to life. A small drone hums through the air, pacing the halls for a live story to scan and transmit. Holoterms throughout the building glow to life, set for one hell of a conference call...and ready to broadcast. "Test...any of you bastards read me?" A pint-sized Ambassador growls from five different locations.

Leo gives a small smile back to the little girl as he responds, "No pretending here. Have you ever met any other Jedi before?" Even though his words are calm, the chaos outside creates a muffled din in the hallway. Continuing to scan the various offshoots from the corridor they are following, the Jedi slows down slightly as if expecting danger any moment.

Calyx Drogyn takes aim at another of the Marines on the rooftop as they begin to scramble to fighting positions and fires his rifle, this time knocking him off the roof. The Storm Commandos move to the edge of the roof, raising their grapple launchers and dire them at the rooftop of the embassy, connecting the two buildings. They start to attach ascenders to the line that will quickly shoot them across the gap, their camoline armor blending and blurring with the background rendering them almost invisible.

Amid the Chaos in the crowd a homemade explosive device is tossed at the embassy doors, elements of the protesters organizing themselves with military procession. The protestors on the walls taking aim at the City Guard, firing on them as well. The OO banner snapping in the wind around them as the protest moves to full on riot.

Anti-Imperial protestors are firing on the Anti-Republic and city guard in equal measure. Stun grenades and blaster rounds being tossed back and forth.

Gabi says, "No, but I know about Luke Skywalker and how the Republic began! I've know that since I was six," she boasts, picking the topic of school to distract herself and focus, as per mom's teaching. Still, she flicks the occasional glance down the hallways whenever he slows. As the sound of her mother's voice resonates from a nearby room, she freezes firmly in her tracks.

And then part of the explodes. A charred portion of somebody's leg is sent tumbling into the lobby by the force of the blast. Any remnants of calm in the woman-child are now gone. Her shrill scream could break windows, or at least pierce ear drums."

"Cut the lines!" The remaining rooftop marines scream, some dashing in attempts to peek their heads over the edge to locate the hooks while others fire off lines of chatter on the comlink, barking orders to interior defense and would somebody *please* notify the Navy commander!?

On the ground, one marine is dead, another badly wounded by the blast. The other four climb to their feet, take a last look at the chaos, then start dragging their still-breathing comrade inside.

Indoors, the dozen marines are rescrambling, and the one currently guarding Ambrosia peels himself off the floor - and her - after the post-blast announcement barks into his helmet. "The landing pad is NOT secure!" he shouts, darting for the doorway while pushing more orders through the channel. "Be on lookout for Jedi and girl. Direct them away from landing pad! 5 of you, accompany the Jedi and use emergency escape proceedure B to get them OUT." As such, one of the marines rises from her crouch in the hall within sight of the robed man and sprints towards Leo.

The Protestors force their way into the lobby of the Embassy, blasters and rocks their primary offensive weapons. They fire on any targets of opportunity, wrecking furniture and terminals along the way.

Out in the park the melee turns out of control, protestors and guardsmen fighting each other, one of the riot control vehicles gets overturned and the guardsmen fearing for their lives switch from stun weapons to full weapons, firing indiscriminately into the civil population, killing several protestors on both side.

Drogyn takes aim and fires at one of the Marines closest to the grapnel heads to keep the rest of the marines away long enough for his team to get to the other side. The Commandos use their ascenders to cross the gap, establishing a foothold on the NR Embassy roof. Calyx slings his sniper rifle and follows the team across the expanse, using his own ascender to cross. "We have to get in the building and keep them from escaping." He orders over his comlink.

Leo comes to a halt both at the screaming of the girl and as the marine approaches him with information regarding the lack of a usable landing pad. His eyes then go to the roof and disappointment plays across his visage as he gains insight into what is going on above him. Turning to the marine, he says, "We need to make for the forest. Can you create enough of a distraction to buy us the time to make a run for it?" He then leans down to Gabi and explains, "I need you to get on my back and hold as tightly as possible." Once the girl is secure, he begins his escape.

"You fools!" one flickering effigy of the Ambassador berates the jerk who lifts his personal sidearm and takes aim on the machine in conference room #1. "Don't you se-" And its broadcast, currently running live to any terminal she was able to link to, city-wide and Navy-wide (hopefully recording footage of offenders as well), is silenced. But four of her selves remain. And one of them is starting to sweat.

"I'm not getting out of here. But she will." Moving around her desk, stepping in and out of the live feed, Ambrosia fishes a few 'friends' out of hidden drawers. The DD6 stays in her hand while the palm blaster slips into her waistband. A little pen knife gets slid up her spine, tucking beneath her brassiere band. "You can join me, or leave me. I don't give a sarlacc's lick."

Gabi continues to sob, pitch not quite as high now that her throat is growing hoarse. Her limbs do robotically operate enough to get a grip on her Jedi friend's back and she buries her face into his shoulder, body quaking uncontrollably.

"Yeah, go that way," the marine directs over Leo's shoulder to the corridor leading to public washroom facilities. "Window's are big enough. But you'd better shut her up and hustle," she nods pointedly to the panicked child, then salutes briefly before trotting towards the growing mess in the lobby and links up with the battling marines. Unclipping a stun grenade from her belt, she shouts a warning into her helmet, then tosses it towards the bodies pouring in through the front door, intending to cut the head off this invading serpent.

Commander Drogyn and the Storm Commandos of Alpha squad draw their rifles and move towards the rooftop entrance, the shadows on the roof and their own armor turning them into wraiths. Calyx flicks his rifle to stun,

"Primary targets are still on the premises, get to the hijacked crew members if possible, but do not let the primaries get away." As the team reaches the turbolifts, they stick a data spike into a service port, causing the lift to go into maintenance mode, shutting itself down for several hours.

On the ground floor a dozen protestors are stunned but more make their way over the fallen bodies and continue to swarm, filling the ground floor as they go room by room and begin to clog stair ways, looting and destroying along the way.

Out in the park, the Plaxton City Guard sound a retreat, falling back and abandoning their vehicles, a general mayday goes over Military and Civilian frequencies.

As he is moving toward the washroom, Leo calmly brushes his hand over the girls arm as he speaks in a quiet voice, "Easy there Gabi. Think of this as a game of hide and seek. If we want to hide, we need to make sure they cannot hear us." While speaking, the Force around them carries a peaceful aura. Once in the room, he locks the door and makes his way to the window.

"Set to kill!" The marines form up to block the two corridors from the lobby, back-to-back to fire kill shots upon those having already engaged in pillaging the rooms inside, and those who are trying to join them. Not a longterm solution, but one that will at least buy Leo the time he needs to disappear.

"Pleasure serving with you all," one of the marines announces over the helmet link. He gets a response of morbid laughter from a comrade. "You bet."

Meanwhile...the security door leading to Delgard's quarters opens, much to the chagrin of the lone guard hovering behind her. "This ends now." The holo transmission sees her figure shrinking before disappearing out the door. One by one, the others are also silenced by destructive hands, but not before exposing their traitorous faces to the galaxy. "Let me through." Stepping casually over the bodies of some wayward civilians, Ambrosia treks the hallway moment after Leo and her daughter vanish from it, waving a dismissing hand to the marines facing her in the blockade.

"Let me through NOW." She brings her own weapon to bear and they cease firing, enabling her to slip through to the lobby. "HEY!" She screams, lifting the blaster towards the ceiling and firing off a round. "It's LONG past visiting hours!"

The child quiets into a fit of labored breathing, trying very hard to do as she's told.

The Imperial Commandos attach a limpet charge to the turbolift door, setting the small mine to detonate if the doors are opened, they then head towards the staircase, silently moving into position to breach the building. The door is forced open and then the team enters, blasters raised and optics switching to infra-red, scanning for hidden traps, security cameras or Republic Marines as they make their way towards the Residential area.

Protesters continue to make their way up from the ground floor, as they are fired on by Republic Marines, the protestors return fire trading lives for ground as they rush the Republic positions.

Out in the park, the melee continues the overturned Guard vehicles are set on fire, one exploding with a loud boom followed by several smaller explosions as riot control rounds cook off in the vehicle.

Ambrosia stares in disbelief. A round whizzes by her shoulder and her lips crook wryly. "They don't recognize me," she mutters, taking a gander at her own state of deplorable dress. "Fall back." She directs into the ear of one of the marines clogging her hallway before ebbing back through them and into the quiet residential corridor. She trots on bare feet towards her apartment, passing the staircase entrance.

Looking out the window, Leo sees the chaos playing out among the citizens of the planet. Taking a deep breath he climbs out the window and lands with an unnatural ease. Eyeing the forest beyond, the Force flows through the Jedi and gives him a burst of speed to reach the safety beyond.

Gabi is...more or less out at this point. At least emotionally. Her fingers remain locked in death grip on Leo's robe collar, the "bug-out" bag flopping just as lifelessly against her own back.

...............................To be cont'd......................................