But before Kal could ask for new orders, blaster fire started again and the fireteam threw themselves to the ground, just in time as a fury of bolts cut through the corrugated steel which enclosed the potager, passing uncomfortably close to them.
"Sarge, contact!" Kal shouted in his radio. "Can't see who, coming from another building!"
"Can't see anything either, but gropos are exchanging fire with some little shit that's dug in."
"Sithspit! We're toast if we stay here!" Deku shouted, as another volley cut through the enclosure, throwing sparks and incandescent fragments of the fence over the prone troopers.
"Can it, Deku! Instead check if you can see anything!" ordered Kal, before switching back to his radio "Sarge, tell the Army a-holes to watch their fire!"
"You think they'll listen? Stay fucking down!"
Meanwhile, swearing all along, Deku had obeyed, crawling in the dirt and among the scanty rows of desiccated tubers, until he reached the building they had just left, hiding behind to check what was happening. "Can't see shit!" He shouted before hitting the floor again.
"Fuck that! Stay down!" Answered Kal, before switching to his radio "Sarge, get the Army proles to…" But he was cut by a succession of grenade blasts, which covered the sound of blasters and blanketed the area in a cloud of greasy dust.
"Stay down!" Kal ordered, his voice barely audible to him from his ringing ears, but knowing that the risk of getting shot by gropos with itchy triggers or just from blind fire in the smoke cloud was very real. As the dust slowly settled, the result of the blast became apparent, the building next to the one Kal's team had swept had been fully wrecked, throwing debris everywhere, including what looked like a few body parts. Closer to them Deku lain, holding his head, clearly in pain from the concussive blast.
"You okay? Kudis, Deku? Five-Seven?"
"Drekking mess, that was too close. Five-Seven and I seem okay, Deku's groggy." Kal sighed in his commlink, still on the ground.
From the settling dust came a pair of soldiers, looking down at the still dazed stormtroopers. "Taking a fucking nap and letting the real soldiers finish the job? Don't let me interrupt you, stormies."
"You nearly fragged us, dipshit!" Kal shouted back at the soldier, struggling back to his feet.
"Not my problem if you just stroll in our field of fire, ladies. This ain't a picnic, but I'm not sure you're intelligent enough to realize that."
"Next time wash the shit out of your eyeballs. Maybe that'd help you hit your targets."
Whatever retort the trooper was about to fire back, it was silenced by his commlink, which he listened to while glaring at the stormtroopers. Kal took the opportunity to join Five-Seven, who was helping Deku to stand on shaky legs.
"Kudis, get back to the APCs with your prisoners. The rest of the sweep's done."