What had begun as a simple fight soon took a turn for the worst when something behind materialized from the darkness, a fizzing hiss sounding from the red lightsaber being activated. A black suited figure stands there with their legs angled slightly to hold them in place and ready to brace themselves from any attack. The suit covers the entire being from view, head to toe. A green crystal glows in the center of their chest. From the silhouette they make, they are humanoid. Piecing all those facts together in his mind, Kyle whirls his full body around quickly to face them head on with his E-11 blaster.

For this is a Shadow Trooper. A Reborn, but with a little more experience than a normal one and lightsaber-resistant armor made up of cortosis weaving. Even though they did not have the same training skill as a trained Jedi, they still present a threat with their cloaking capabilities and saber. Combining these two with cortosis armor and the skill of the Force, the Shadow Trooper is one of the perfect assassins for the Empire Reborn forces. From what Katarn could remember, all Reborn are human. As is this one before him.

The red blaster bolt from Kyle's blaster rifle had been deflected with ease from the saber into the roof, only to rebound then hit a trooper square in the chest. Lucky hit on Kyle's part, and unlucky on the trooper's. Seeing that the blaster rifle had no effect just like he expected he tossed the useless weapon aside hard enough to make a slight dent in the metal floor beneath their feet. A metal cylinder object flew to his hand from his utility belt which he then twirled in his hand to find a steady grip. Already Katarn could feel his stormtrooper armor restricting any movements mildly. After he had the weapon adjusted he activated it, lighting his face up with a blue light emanating from the blade of pure energy.

"Jedi" a hiss arises from behind the Shadow Trooper's mask when he said that word. Kyle lets out a huff, shaking his head. They could wish he is a Jedi if they want to. Cause being a Jedi means holding back and not pulling dirty tricks.

"Not exactly. But that doesn't matter, because this fight will go down the same way even if I was one. Only quicker." Kyle quickdraws his Bryar blaster, then fires a yellow blaster bolt at their feet. The Reborn reaches down with their lightsaber to the ground, effectively deflecting the shot. But that is part of Kyle's plan as he leaps into the air, bringing his own saber down with the weapon in both hands. That trooper is certainly not ready for the attack, and when their saber is brought up to deflect they fail, stumbling back into the dark corner they had appeared from.

In the middle of the room Connor is using his E-11 blaster in one hand to continue the firefight that has ensued. Three troopers remain, one of them bearing a nasty shoulder wound. The officer had taken cover behind the jammer console when the fighting started, occasionally shooting over with his blaster pistol. Connor chose to use one of his personal items he always keeps on hand. A wrist-mounted shield, large enough to cover his top half. The gauntlet shield has to be clamped over any armor worn by him, so the clamp is capable of extending. Too bad that is his only personal gear he could have with him without breaking character of being a Stormtrooper. Although now is the perfect excuse to whip out his blaster, shield and gun-handling skills.

"And you are suppose to be the best! Ha!" Connor mocks with spite. Obviously that affects one of the troopers, no matter how tough it is for the merc to speak through the helmet. For one of them charges out while firing wildly. Connor ducks down with eyes filled with surprise and rolled out of the laser's way. Each blast reflected off the shield. By the time he landed to his feet he turned his head to his attacker's with an amused smile.

"Can't let a little shiel' stop ya, now can ya?!" Another leaps over their cover into the fray, firing in any direction around Connor's feet. Too bad for them that he continues kneeling, the blue shield taking every shot. The plasma shield may be strong, but the dull redness slowly replacing the blue is enough to show that it can't hold out for long against a continuous barrage. And even though it's recharge time is quick there is still plenty of time for him to get hit by a couple of blasts.

"Come on now, just one more" he murmurs quietly to himself. As if his quiet wish had been heard, the last stormtrooper comes out from their cover. "Finally." He stands with a sudden rush or adrenaline, holding his rifle over the top of the reddening plasma shield then fires a volley. All three troopers fall within seconds. Standing tall Connor looks at his handiwork.

Of course, what he did left himself in the open for the officer to take a hit. And that they did, aiming straight for Connor's stomach. Their shot goes astray from the weapon's recoil, hitting Connor in his right shoulder and piercing right through the shoulder pauldron. He cries out in surprise, clenching his teeth to keep anymore sounds of pain from coming out.

"In the name of the Empire, stand down or be-"

"Oh, shut up" Connor seethes in anger after blasting the officer's mouth full of laser. There is a spike of pain from lifting his right shoulder after having fired the shot. Not the kind of pain to make one scream in agony, but instead the kind that makes the captain just grunt repeatedly. He whips his head around to face the saber duel near him, then raises the E-11 blaster to fire. Only for the sliding door to hiss open, three troopers waiting on the other side armed to the teeth. One of them wielding FC-1 Flechette launcher.

This launcher is capable of firing multiple flechette rounds that were razor sharp from it's four canister tubes, capable of tearing through entire squads. Like many other weapons, there is a secondary fire. This weapon's secondary firing capability is more devastating than most. It could fire two explosive globes of flechettes, capable of exploding on contact to release these flechettes or detonating shortly after hitting the ground to hit nearby targets. Capable of taking out speeders and making holes in tanks on contact. It's down side is a slow fire rate as well as a short range with it's primary function. Although from where Connor stands at the time of them revealing themselves, he could be torn across both his chest and limbs.

"Come on!"

As Connor runs back to find some cover where the last guards once stood, Kyle continues his own fight. His stormtrooper armor he wears was making his fight harder than necessary, being tight around his joints and therefore restricting Katarn's limb movement. The Shadow Trooper uses this to their advantage, swinging to their opponent's sides because of this slow movement.

Kyle deflects another hit to his side, suffering from some effort, then spins the saber around till it is upright once more and brings the saber down from over his shoulder. The Reborn is buffeted from the attack, the force of the attack forcing them back a step. Yet they quickly recover and remains steadfast.

"This guy is getting on my nerves. There has to be a way to take him down" he thought back in his mind, trying to think up a way to win this fight. If he didn't have this Stormtrooper suit of armor on then this fight would be over already. As he deflects more and more strikes he watches the attacks closely while slowly deteriorating from the fatigue by the blasts. Soon, he figures out a way.

All he has to do is wait. Just as he had hoped would happen the Shadow Trooper goes to slash at Kyle's side, only to curve up and feign the original attack. This is Kyle's chance one chance. He moves his weapon up to deflect the strike with one hand. His other hand Katarn uses to draw his Bryar pistol and give it a quick charge. All it had taken was one charged shot in the stomach to knock them down.

Only the blaster's attack didn't happen in time, as the red saber sizzles against the point between Kyle's shoulder and torso. To finish the fight Katarn drives his blue saber into their chest, seizing their life. It is for the best, since becoming a Reborn would have involved much pain from experimentation. Glancing to Connor's fight, Kyle throws his blue saber right at the unaware Stormtroopers. That brings the entire battle to a quick stop with all three heads falling.

"Could ya take any longer?" The mercenary captain draws in a deep breath, letting it out in a long sigh filled with a mix of pain and relief. His hands rest against his knees like the Mandalorian is ready to double over, holding a relieved expression accompanied by an amusing smirk. That fight had been too close for comfort, for both of them. They were both lucky to leave the fight standing with only a wounded shoulder each.

"Just get to work already or you don't get paid. I'll see to it" Kyle grumbles, holding a hand to his injured shoulder while gritting his teeth in pain. Lucky that red saber hadn't gone any further or otherwise he would only be keeping one arm at this time.

"Fine, I'll get it done. Don' ya ge' all impatien' with me." Connor whips out a small datapad then starts pushing holographic buttons along his pad. After some time, it's screen flashes and a face appears in the top right corner. "Your turn, pal."

The Rodian at the other end nods, and then sets to work. His expression twisting in concentration, his tongue sticking out of the corner of his wide mouth in extreme focus. Connor glances over his shoulder at Katarn in his white armor, holding a white stormtrooper helmet in his hands. His stormtrooper helmet. Connor recognizes the look on the Republic mercenaries face is all too familiar to him. A look of what one has when remembering. And mixed in it is something mournful.

"I'll never understand why you couldn't just get a droid." The Rodians voice startles the Mandalorian into looking at the screen.

"Ya know I will never do tha'. Tol' ya countless times, I trus' them less than how far I can throw 'em." Connor turns his gaze back around to the other man in the room.

"Go. Go get your lady" Connor pipes up through his trooper helmet. Katarn opens his mouth to protest, only for the mercenary captain to wave his uninjured arm with a blaster in hand. "I can take care of myself." Kyle shows off a smile of gratitude, then takes off. Connor hears a distinct chuckle and scowls at the face of the Rodian.

"You always did enjoy doing things yourself."

"Oh, shut up...Besides, he would only ge' in the way."

In her cell, she waits. If there is one thing she hates, it's being a damsel-in-distress. Ever since the first time being captured, she hated the feeling of no hope. That feeling had taken hold of her hours ago. Memories of her time in captivity on The Doomgiver and being held hostage by Jerec resurfaced, changing this woman from her usual brave and composed self into someone that belonged in a mental ward. Jan Ors, a commander in the New Republic has now fallen so far. Made to look so weak. Any reliance on being saved has all but left her. Back on The Doomgiver, she at least had hope. Though this time, something is different. On that ship, they had used interrogation droids and serums. Here they used something else. A form of torture using the force itself. Her interrogator, a Shistavanen Dark Jedi, was ruthless, using both the force and physical trauma, leaving scratches along her limbs. She never believed that the Force could make one have blood noses and head trauma.

The dull buzzing of the shield door never seemed to faze her before. However, when combined with all the torture she had endured, she feels as if she may break. His words replay in her head; "No help will come. But if some does, I will make you watch them die!" This room had once been used as a closet, no doubt. The shield doors looked like a new addition. Still some equipment remains, like a broom against the wall across from her and a bucket sitting next to it. She has nothing for a bed nor a pillow. Only her clothes she wears now. A jacket, a white undershirt, cargo pants and boots. And her goggles in one of her hands.

Every detail she has memorised on the ceiling. Every scratch, every crew, every line. She has been staring at it for so long and now she is beginning to feel as if this ceiling will be the last thing she sees. Her face appears blank, dried tears on her cheeks. Never has she felt so helpless. Against Jerec, she felt that she would be saved. And after being captured by Tavion and Desann, she felt worse than that, but still managed to hold herself in comfort and feel as if she would be saved. But this time, it feels different. That Dark Jedi did this to her. Yet she holds no anger, only sadness and hopelessness. Jan is even so oblivious to what happens outside that she misses the flashes of red and yellow.

A moment later, a Stormtrooper falls, a smoldering hole in their white chestplate. Kyle comes into view on the other side of the shield then finds her. Lying there on the cold metal floor. To him, she appears dead.

"Jan!" The white-armor clad man begins tampering with the wall-mounted pad on the other side. The red shield disappears, and Kyle rushes in to her side, holding her head as he kneels beside her after removing his helmet. A sigh of relief leaves him when he feels a pulse. Then a sense of panic when he feels the darkness in her mind. So much pain and suffering.

Closing his eyes, he covers her forehead with a hand and takes a deep breath. A short time after, Jan lets out a loud gasp, breathing heavily as if she had just come back from near death. For a moment she seems confused, seeing him in the white armor. If she had a weapon at the time, she could have blasted him away. She even puts a hand back to reach for her blaster that isn't there any longer. Then she remembers that he got it back just before she had been captured, and calms upon seeing his face. Her eyes move up to meet his, then a smile follows.

"Kyle...Took you..long enough" she says exasperated.

"Sorry, but I had to fight through a bunch of troopers and sabre-wielding lackeys" he explains, obviously exaggerating. Of course, she doesn't know how much he faced so she believes that. And rolls her eyes. "Come on. We need to get moving-" he starts, pulling her up. Only to be cut short by a pained gasp from her attempting to stand. Kyle turns his head down the hall, then back to the woman in pain. She can see the hurt on his face at just seeing her on the ground. She may be stubborn, but she knows when to not assure someone one is okay, especially when it's obvious they aren't. From his face, Kyle has a plan. He reaches down a hand and picks her up, pulling one arm over his shoulder. In the other hand he holds his Bryar pistol.

"Can you still shoot?" She nods, taking the blaster pistol in hand and then readied it. Her hand feels numb, though not enough to make use of the weapon impossible. Jan weighs the weapon in her hand. The numbness in her hand makes the weapon feel heavier than the pistol should. It put strain on her arm, but for their sake she has to try her best to hold it up, in case any surprise attacks came.

Kyle begins to pull her forward. She tests out both legs, and luckily for her it is her outer leg that works the best out of the two, having only a couple of sprains which is not as bad as a possible broken bone. Kyle holds her up, and slowly they push on.

It had taken a few cautious steps, but she soon came out with Kyle's aid. Down the hall lay several Stormtroopers, smoldering marks and holes in their chests and visors on the helmet. Not a single one has a helmet off, leaving their expressions to imagination. Jan ignores them, looking away from the white-armored bodies. She knows how far Kyle would go to save her, so the body count isn't too surprising. Or at least, it wouldn't be it she hadn't been feeling so delirious at the time. Her vision went swimming after the last torture session on her. From time to time she wobbles on her legs.

Jan's injuries turned out to effect their escape more than they could hope when a couple of troopers come by and take aim. Kyle flips out his saber to deflect several blasts before Jan finally lifts her pistol to fire. She fires. It misses. Again. Sizzles across the top of the shoulder. She sighs quietly, and fires again. This time, a direct hit. Most would have been proud to get a hit, but she is beyond disappointed in herself. A well-aimed deflect from Kyle's saber ends the other. If their journey to find the Raven Claw was going to be like this, they both know it will take a while.

Behind him, the disguised Mandalorian could hear the heavy footsteps behind him. He turns, just in time to roll out of the way of a green energy bolt. The green bolt bounces around the corner, and Connor can hear it continue to do so all down a hallway around the corner.

"Ya misse'!" he shouts back, only to roll again as another bolt comes flying over head. Stormtroopers are one thing. Easy to take care of, and one reason why he came without too much worry of death. Large bipedal droids with two guns and heavy armor? That's on the opposite end of Connor's 'what to deal with' spectrum. Since he lost his weapon upon meeting the machine of death, he has only a shield that one of it's concussion grenades from its launcher could easily take out.

Turning the corner, he finds multiple scorch marks. So much damage from just one bolt. It brings to the imagination what that one bolt could do if it hits Connor, and he does not like what he can imagine. Several halls back, he came across this droid. He had dangled himself like a worm on a line, trying to draw the large droid away from his crew, who he had found in some holding cells. He had expected to run into those two Republic agents, but no such luck there for him. Hopefully, his crew were to arrive first. Or the Mandalorian would find himself deep in trouble.

It's metallic stomps echo around him, growing louder as it closes in on it's target. Without giving a second glance back to see how close, he sprints. And wishes that Stormtrooper's had lighter armor. Halfway down, a volley of rapid-fired yellow bolts sizzle by, barely missing him. One connects with injured shoulder, sending pain shooting in all directions from the wound. Connor seethes through clenched teeth, putting his left hand against his wound.

He takes another turn, and lets out a sigh of relief at what he sees. A YT-1250 Freighter. Everything about it is the same towards other models, except that the thing that sticks out of the opposite side of the cockpit has been removed and replaced by a heavy cannon and two proton torpedoes have been added just underneath the back of the long nose of the ship. And the fact that the entire hull is black, yellow streaks running along the bottom and top of the elongated nose of the ship to the middle to meet up with more streaks going along the top and bottom of the cockpit. On one side, the ramp was down which meant one of two things; Either his ship is being searched still, or his crew have made it. And for the sake of those on board, he hopes it is the latter.

Across from his ship is a ship that looks like it has a hook for a nose, and barely any weapons. Just seeing a ship lacking in weapons confuses him. But that would have to be worried about later.

Connor starts waving his good arm madly, metallic thumps echoing behind him. If it is indeed the latter, then a crew member should see him. If not, then he is making one of his worst mistakes. With his uninjured arm, he takes and throws off off the helmet, revealing himself to not be just another Stormtrooper to shoot. As well as making his voice clearer.

"Don' shoot! Don' shoot!" There must have been someone on board, as a small cannon lowered from it's hold to give Connor quite a scare, since he had been right in front of where it popped out. It turns to face him. For a second his heart skips a beat. What a way to go. By your own ship. "Don'...shoot." Behind him, he hears a metal clang against the steel floor. Turning around, he sees the droid standing there.

If the droid ever had a face, Connor is sure he would have one of absolute fear. The robot seems to flinch, now seeing a new hazard. Connor grins. Until it raises one of it's cannons to aim at him once more.

"Shoot! Shoot!" The cannon turns at the new target, and a stream of red lasers shoots out, connecting with the armor plating of the droid and turning the machine into scrap. "HA!" he jeers at the droid, pointing with a hand, only to flinch and clutch his injured arm from the sudden movement while muttering 'ow's at his own stupidity. Quickly he steps onto the ramp, being greeted right away by one of his crew.

"Captain! We thought you would never-"

"I always make it, no matter the odds agains' me!" He storms by, still clutching his shoulder, and into his ship's cockpit. Connor falls into the left chair, then scans his eyes over the console. "Darn it! Who touched the controls?!" The Mandalorian goes about flipping switches and pressing various buttons until a faint hum is heard. "This is why I keep Teevo as my only co-pilot." He takes a quick glance at a camera, finding no one in the doorway. "Where is he?" If Kyle didn't get back soon, the merc captain would have to leave.

Kyle couldn't help but feel worried for his partner. As soon as she awoke, he knew there was something wrong with her. And nothing has changed since then. She isn't in her usually chatty mood, always dropping some remark. She couldn't even aim straight. What had they done to her? Back when he rescued her from the Doomgiver, she had seemed like her normal self...Well, close enough to it. But this? This is different. It makes Kyle so angry at them.

His fingers tense around the saber. He can feel a familiar strength course through him. The power that had been responsible for him turning away from the Force in the first place. To relieve himself from the unwanted power, he takes up some conversation with his partner, hoping to calm both of their nerves.

"Jan?" he waits for a response. None comes. "What happened to you?" He glances to her, and sees her tilt her head up wearily. From the blood drain on her face, his worry gets worse. "Jan?!" The woman stumbles before almost falling, only just being caught by her partner. Looking forward, Kyle spots a smoldering wreckage of something that once was there. Some kind of metal structure. Kyle balances Jan on his shoulder, holding her up as they stroll past the smoldering wreck. He can barely make out a cannon and some pieces of armor.

Slowly, they go into the hangar, where the Raven Claw waits in perfect condition. But no other ship. Which meant that the annoying merc was gone already. Just as Kyle suspected he would. The two partners continue on, the woman almost completely unconscious.

"Stay with me, Jan." Just as they reach their ship, a single red blast caught the man off guard. Turning, he spots several troopers. Two of them readying a cannon. He takes the E-11 rifle he had then begins to fire back, ducking and moving Jan along with him. He moves her to the other side of the ship's landing gear, taking cover near one of the others. The fighting must have brought Jan to her senses, as she to began to take aim sluggishly. But looking at their numbers, this may be a fight they would not escape.

That thought changes when a dull roar grows louder and louder outside the hangar's opening. The wind swirls around, taking everyone by surprise. Followed by a black shape filling some of the opening. Cannons lower from it's hull underneath and open fire in streams of laser while a big bolt flies in to turn the Stormtrooper cannon and it's handlers into nothing.

Kyle takes his chance by firing as well, hitting a target square in the chest. Then, he picks up Jan over his shoulder and calls the ladder down before climbing it with her over him. Red lasers fly back and forth over the ship. Quickly he begins the activation sequence for the Raven's Claw. Landing gear go up and the lower set of wings fold out from the larger pair. Finally the ship lifts up. The freighter blocking the way moves to the side, then flies off. Kyle pushes the throttle into high, and streams of fire come out of the rear engines. That is the last the Stormtroopers see of the ships as they take off, leaving a few injured and highly upset troopers.

Greetings readers. So one reason this chapter took so long it because i went back to edit the past chapters after finding out that they were past tense, and not present. It annoyed the heck out of me, so I went back to fix it. With this, I have a favor to ask. If you see any past tense, can you please notify me?