Location: New E Colony
As expected, the holding facility was heavily patrolled. The group had been let back into the colony, the riots from earlier had died down. Before decided how to take down the facility Icmod suggested doing some rooftop reconnaissance. They found a building situated not far from the facility and were scouting out the fine details. The facility was gated with armed guards walking the perimeter. Several holding pens surrounded the main building. The building was presumably used for general purposes such as feeding and preparing the Raeldra for shipment.
After an initial overview Icmod turn towards his cohort. "Okay we'll need to plant explosives on those holding pens. But destroying those won't be enough. The pens can easily be rebuilt, it's the main building that needs to be eliminated. Zal do you have those explosives prepared?"
"Yep!" Zal happily hoisted a rucksack up. He'd stolen them from the colonists' supplies shortly before they'd arrived. "They were making these for mining or something but rigging them to blow should be pretty easy."
"One of us can get past the patrols and plant them. If we destroy the pens first, the ensuing chaos will give us a window to plant explosives on the main building. The remaining party members will be nearby to provide support to get the infiltrator out." Icmod was aware of the spottiness of the details, but time was short and dawn would be arriving soon. Once that happened it would be impossible to avoid the patrols.
"Sure thing boss!" Zal shrouded and began to walk off.
"I won't let you do that." The XO protested. "Your father would be displeased if anything happened to you. It would be much safer for you to provide cover. Your marksmanship skills are just as valuable."
"Hey, XO, uhh... Dunno if you saw me do that just now but uh, I'm the best one for the sneaking job," Zal replied, unshrouding next to Icmod.
"Not today Zal, I'd rather not have your father take my head off." Icmod put his hand out waiting for the young Jem'Hadar to place the bag in it. "Another time, I promise."
"Fine," Zal said disappointed, handing Icmod the bag of explosives. "Though your plan's gonna get you killed if you leave me here to snipe."
"How so?" The XO asked as as he set the bag down gently.
"I'm good, but my dad's way better and I still got a lot to learn about hitting stuff past 1 kilometer. Dad's gonna teach me that next month." Zal pointed towards the site. "That site's over 2 kilometers away and nothing but flat ground from here to there. If I camp out any closer, they can trace my shots and I've got no cover. You've also got twelve stationary and ten roving guards to deal with. Not sneakable if you can't shroud. You need a distraction."
The young Jem'Hadar brought up good points and Icmod couldn't deny that. He had to remind himself that Zal wasn't as helpless as he kept assuming. "I suppose you have something in mind."
"Well, I took these from the natives before we left," Zal picked up another hefty rucksack he'd been hauling around. It rattled with the sound of wooden balls and smelled faintly of sulfur and plant resin. "If I use a duranium tube like a plasma conduit and attach a pneumatic injection device like the kind they use for air flow injections into hovercraft engines at the end, I can launch these guys like mortar rounds. I don't need to be too accurate and it'll cover the distance easy. I'll just land a ton of these on the far side of the base and make it look like a Vegone attack. There's a mechanic shop not far. I can go grab the stuff now and get set up while you guys walk over to the facility."
"I like your thinking." Icmod nodded at the boy's ingenuity. "We'll start heading towards the facility. We won't risk a confrontation until we get your signal."
"YESSS!" Zal threw an excited fist into the air before disappearing in a blur of distorted light. In moments the youth was gone.
As the Jem'Hadar shrouded, the XO turned towards the rest of the group. They had quite the ragtag team and probably weren't prepared for an assault. Icmod had faith in them though, he had served with many of them and knew that when their minds were set on a goal, they would do whatever it took to achieve it. "We should get moving. Keep in the shadows if possible but don't do anything that could raise suspicion. When we're close to the compound wait until Zal's distraction before acting."
"You're quite the rebel leader, my love." Roquel teased, as she slid up beside him. She was in shadow as he was and she turned her head to face him, even though his features were were slightly obscured, even to her by the darkness. It was of little consequence, she knew them well. "What do we do then?"
"Once the mortars start going off we should try and act quickly." Icmod picked up the bag of explosives. "Everyone should take a couple charges. We'll need at least one per pen. Once the Raeldra get out the ensuing chaos should give us some advantage in planting the remaining explosives on the main building. Any questions?"
"The Akritirians will go nuts." Roquel replied. Concern, could be heard in her voice, but not seen on this near moonless night. "Do you think it's possible that they'll slaughter the Vegone, wholesale rather than pick up their shoes and go?"
"Many of the tribes have banded together in light of the recent events." Icmod decided to give the big reveal on the master plan. "We're merely to help spark the Vegone's reclaiming of territory."
Roquel's breath drew in sharply. "When did Sezha Drayka tell you this?! I hadn't heard a word!"
"We talked briefly before setting out. I apologize for the discrete nature but it was at his request." Icmod hoped that Roquel wouldn't take this as a breach of her trust. "He didn't want to put the other tribes at risk until he was certain we could get into the colony without being questioned."
"I had no idea that there was another clan anywhere nearby, and ready." It made sense. A group of Vegone further off would be less affected by the Raeldra's torment and with the remaining Raeldra stampeding (as it were) away from the Akritirian compound, there was little chance that they would be in immediate harm, and since they weren't in peril this other group could swoop in... "They'll have no choice but to flee rather than to fight.
"That's the plan. Now let's get to it." Icmod didn't want to waste too much time. There would be time enough for all the details once the fighting was done.
#
Pel yawned as he leaned against one the fence posts. The excitement from the arena's festivities had worn the Akritirian guard out. The last thing he wanted to do after all that crowd control was to patrol around the processing facility.
As a twig snapped behind him, Pel swung around and readied his rifle. A wave of relief fell over him as he saw his partner Lirin standing there.
"Woah there buddy, watch where you point that thing." The older Aktritirian shook his head. "I don't know why they give you kids those things, ya'll get so jumpy it's a wonder you don't hurt yourselves."
"Whatever old man." Pel reshouldered his rifle. "When those Vegones come around again you'll be thankful that we 'younguns' are armed."
Suddenly the night sky lit up with flashes. The peaceful evening was now returning to chaos. Lirin could feel it in his bones. "I guess they're up to it again, keep your eyes open. Oh and watch before you shoot."
"I assume after I help you with this my debt will be repaid" Jillido stated
Lirin jumped the Orion must've snuck up on them while they were talking. "Who the hell are you?! Doncha hear the battle sounds? You're crazy for being out here in the middle of the night."
"Clearly, no wonder you need our help," Jillido said
"And who decided to send you out here to this little piece of heaven?" Lirin asked. The sounds of battle were springing up all around now. The locals were getting quite rowdy from the sound of it. "The Aktritirian government have been very disappointed in your failings to quell the native up raising on this planet felt you needed some outside help," Jillido lied
"Well then you'd better be gettin' out to the front." The old Aktritirian suggested. "Pel here can show you the way if you've not gotten the grand tour."
"Thank you," Jillido said patting Pel on shoulder with his robotic hand zaping him with 40 volts of electricity.
As Pel fell to the ground Lirin let loose. "Now that ain't such a friendly thing to do. Guess it's a time to pull out the old skills."
As if having found the elixir of youth Lirin charged at the Orion. He hadn't engaged in combat in years but it was all coming back to him now.
Jillido began firing at the old Aktritirian cow poke with his robotic
As the first couple shots hit the Lirin, the adrenaline overcame the pain and kept him moving full force but it wasn't enough. Just as he reached the Orion, Lirin slumped to the ground unconscious. The revolution had begun.
Location: In a ditch around 2 km south of the Raeldra complex
Zal hopped down into the ditch with a dull thud. It had taken the young man about thirty minutes to pilfer the necessary parts, do some quick soldering work with a phaser, and sprint over to a suitable firing position.
The best thing about indirect fires is that no one needs to see the shot from your phaser rifle. You could be hiding in any old ditch lobbing rounds and unless someone was using sophisticated LADAR or military-grade sensors, there was no way to track pneumatically propelled projectiles. It was perfect for what Zal had in mind.
He lined up the barrel of his makeshift mortar as best he could and cranked up the power on the air blower in the rear of the tube and waited for the pressure to build. With trembling hands, Zal cracked the outer shell of the Vegone explosive and dropped it down the tube. Once the round seated at the bottom with a hollow thud, Zal cranked a knob that released the makeshift valve that led to the pressurized chamber of air in the rear of the tube and closed his eyes.
*THUNK* the noise barely registered in the still night air. Due to the power behind the air motor and the sheer tensile strength of the duranium tubing, there was enough air pressure to completely pulverize the dirt around the edges of the ditch, causing tiny avalanches all around the sunken firing position.
The grenade zoomed into the night sky before landing on the far side of the Raeldra complex's perimeter roughly 600 meters too far afield for Zal's liking. There was a brief *flash* followed by a very long and delayed *pop.* Animals all over the complex began screaming and moving about nervously as they sensed the sudden disturbance.
Zal hugged the tube and forced it down more to bury it deep into the loamy soil. He adjusted the angle again and made a makeshift marking with a stick to remember his place. He cracked another explosive, dropped it into the mortar tube, and cranked the knob again.
This time, the explosive landed right on target. A bush near the perimeter fence caught fire. Zal lobbed several dozen more rounds downrange and the night was soon filled with successive *pops* and the colonists were soon sprinting towards the perceived sight of the attack. A long wail pierced the silence as an alarm went off.
Not satisfied, Zal reached into his personal pack and produced several sonic concussion grenades that he'd kept around for just such an occasion. He set the timer, pulled the release pin, and chucked three of them down the tube. He crouched and cranked the knob again.
After about a twenty-second delay, the entire settlement was rocked by a thunderous BOOM as the grenades blew a massive hole in the perimeter fence and set off several fuel canisters that had been stored nearby. Dozens of colonists were knocked flat by the blast, and several others ran around frantically trying to put out the flames on their clothes. Others were rolling around in fetal positions clutching their ruptured eardrums.
Smiling, Zal returned to lobbing his smaller explosives, hoping the rest of the team had gotten his signal.
#
The Raeldra processing facility was a cacophony of noise and mayhem. Blazes raged, Raeldra ran...sometimes over the trampled bodies of the attending Akritirians. Zal was out there somewhere, and Icmod, and Drayka, the Vegone Sezha were doing there best to keep things 'lively'.
Pelira the Akritirian governor of the colony, had been awoken in the night to the sounds of destruction and the wild beasts in their throes of panic. The sounds of the colonies inhabitants startlement and confusion were soon to follow. Within 4 minutes he was down in the dusty streets. In the distance, he could see that things were already out of control. Many of his Akritirian, brethren struggled to contain fires and their own budding panic. "Daiken! Daiken!"
One of his subordinates ran up to the governor. "Sir..." He looked back towards the facility. "The Vegone have attacked us. I don't know how, but they're inside. It has to be a small party." He looked towards the center of chaos and back. "The guard are searching, but haven't seen even a single Vegone...YET." He stammered.
It was obvious the man's thoughts were in disarray. Pelira, gripped him strongly at the shoulders, and made him face him to make sure he had his full attention. "We need to secure the pens. Calm yourself and organize a bucket brigade to put out these fires." He searched Daiken's eyes for signs that he was understood. Seeing that it was so, he continued. "Have you seen our guests lately?"
"The Albatross crew?" Daken asked, uncertain where this was going. "No. Not for hours. I...I think several of them went back to their ship."
"They're behind this." Pelira said. "I dunno how yet, but they are. Look for them too. If they are here, I want them in the jail. They've gotta be questioned."
#
Roquel could feel the Raeldra's fear...but they knew. Somehow the great beasts knew that they were being delivered from a certain death and that knowledge soothed their minds enough for her to handle the sheer number of them, even in this close proximity. The Sezha was not so lucky. He teetered unto a corner, roughly. The Risian became worried. "Drayka, are you alright?"
The Sezha (healer) waved away her concern. "I'm fine. I'm trying to soothe them. I've told them that we are freeing them from their murderers."
Realization dawned. "Is that why you came?"
"Yes." Drayka sighed, showing true weariness.
"What can we do?" She asked him. But even as she did so, she looked at Icmod for his suggestions and support. She really was out of her depth. Subterfuge and sabotage were not a thing that she involved herself in.
"We should leave Sezha Drayka to his job. Let's work on sabotaging the rest of the facility." If time wasn't a factor Icmod would of loved to watch the Sezha do his work. Maybe once things weren't as dire.
The Sezha lost his footing and slipped in some loose hay. His head came down hard against the top of a post, and he immediately lost consciousness.
"Drayka!" Roquel cried out, but in a restrained voice. She started running toward him. But then the full force of the Raeldra's fear was released upon her. But it wasn't just released upon her not upon her, but also upon THEM, because having lost contact with Sezha Drayka the Raledra's fears soothing sensations, they began to stir more violently. In a fit of madness, of them rushed towards her, striking her hard. The Risian crumpled even more unceremoniously than Drayka had.
"Roquel!" Icmod's first reaction was to jump into the pit. He began running to her. The Raeldra turned for the XO and began to charge. Icmod dodged out of the way. The Raeldra barreled past and broke through the barrier holding it. Icmod scrambled on all fours to where Roquel lay. "Roquel!"
Icmod listened for a pulse. It was shallow. Roquel's heartbeat was rapid. He had to get her out of harm's way. The XO called out to whoever would answer. "I need some help over here."