Sorv was on his feet, Mantis in hand, sprinting down the embankment and reloading the rifle. His breath came heavy and rhythmic, his suit dumping oxygen into the atmosphere channels. He watched the roof of the compound. The gunships fired, but the automated barriers were up, and the mercenaries on the roof were well armed. Contrails from the rockets crossed the sky as the nimble gunships out stepped the fire, keeping close to the transport they were guarding. The gunship pitched and turned to avoid two rockets as the slaver guards coordinated fire. As it veered, dodging the rockets, its shield flashed, the Mako below leveling a shot from its cannon into it. It turned, but another volley hit it hard, blasting through the thruster casing of its right wing. It pitched and fell, slamming into the compound before exploding as it hit the paddock, launching pieces of of the ship through the air, peppering the Batarian transport's kinetic barriers. One of the slavers put a rocket into its starboard engine, rupturing it.<br/><br/>Sorv was below the roof a moment later, skidding and hitting the door into the base with his shoulder. He opened it and joined Darion inside where the Human had taken up cover against the wall. Sorv sprinted past him, across the corridor leading into the base to the nook opposite Darion, taking up a like position against the wall and shouldering his Mantis. He pulled his tempest, kneeled, leaned out, and fired.<br/><br/><br/>***<br/><br/><br/>It was almost as if he couldn't hear. It wouldn't have been much of a difference if he couldn't. Firas raged as he held the trigger of the Revenant down, fighting to keep its nose down. He didn't need to aim. He just needed to keep it in the Batarian's direction. It was all reaction, it had happened so fast that he hadn't a moment to process anything. desmond and the Batarian were talking, and he was standing aside, quietly, patiently, biding his time. And then there had been the call over the radio,<i>double cross</i>.<br/><br/>And then it happened, a second later and the little bullshit match between the groups became a shit-storm of violence and blood.  Desmond had fired first. He was fast,<i>damn fast</i>. The pistol at his hip hit the emissary, cut down his shields and then replaced his face with several gaping holes all before anyone else could react. What followed was what inevitably did when a group of unarmored, vulnerable civilians got caught in a crossfire. Many of the slaves were the first casualties. The slavers dove behind them. They were the only thing that provided any buffer between them and the Batarians in the open space. Before Firas could even get his Revenant off his back his shields were gone. He dove east, toward the room with no windows, towards the hall leading north, towards the closest thing that could get him clear.<br/><br/>Hadn't mattered much.<br/><br/>Being shot was a peculiar sensation. The flood of endorphins and adrenaline created a unique cocktail of oblivious pain dampening. The rounds that hit his armor and deflected felt like he had been punch half-heartedly, the two that went through were more like little stinging pricks. Like some insect had bitten him. He flattened himself against the wall the moment he was down the north hall. He cursed himself for wearing the old dented armor to look the part. The compromised chest plate had given under the strikes immediately. He was having a hard time lifting his left arm, and the stinging below his shoulder in the left edge of his chest were the answer to why. The second puncture was in his right leg. He could still stand on it, so he couldn't check it now, couldn't waste his time. He had to fire back.<br/><br/>The slavers were armed, but the Batarians were trained. The Kishock's effect was unrivaled. Kinetic barriers weren't particularly effective against a rod of steel. One of the slavers was hit square in the chest, the rod punching straight through his armor and erupting out his back. The Asari slaver who had been all bullshit and badass not carrying a gun was next. Her biotics didn't mean a lot to the Batarian who charged her, apparently deciding she was a primary threat to eliminate. She had tried to use throw, but the Batarian just casually grabbed a slave and shoved them in its path  without so much as taking a moment to pause, he was on her, the enforcement gauntlet answering her missed throw. It was quick.<br/><br/><span style="color: blue">Move damnit!</span>Firas yelled at those few slaves still alive. He didn't want to hit them, didn't want to shoot through them to hit the Batarians, but their bodies were piling up fast.<br/><br/>The slavers fell back in the same direction as Firas, heading for the northeast room on the ground floor. They got the doors open and quickly retreated inside, using the doorways as cover and returning fire. One of the slaves had been shot in the leg and fallen near Firas. He grabbed her arm and pulled her into the room, shoving her aside as he took up position next to the slavers. He ducked back just in time as a Kishock rod occupied the space where he had just been crouched.<br/><br/>The Batarians weren't bothering with cover. They were mobile, quickly ascending to the second floor to engage the slavers up there, to remove their advantage. Darion and Sorv's position put them in a corner without anywhere much to go, so they began using the dead as shields to return fire.<br/><br/><span style="color: red">Fucking god damn Batarian mother fuckers!</span>Desmond yelled from cover near Firas.<span style="color: red">Backstabbing pieces of shit! Blue team, red team, we have to get through the god damn airlock, flanking positions, cover me!</span><br/><br/>The slavers quickly set up, running out from the room to take up positions on either side of the hall around the airlock as Desmond hurried behind them to get it open and clear the access to section C. He input the code, and the system rejected it, Milenya having locked it down. Two of the slavers went down under the Batarian fire. Desmond cursed and pulled a key from his armor, inserting it into a small slot on the blast door. The key set off the system's manual override. the doors began opening, and Firas and the Slavers started retreating toward it, but as Desmond crossed the threshold, he turned around and closed the blast door before anyone else could follow.<br/><br/>For a moment the slavers seemed in disbelief. It wasn't until one of the took a Kishock spike through his visor that it finally set in. Desmond left them there, left them to fight alone. Left them to buy him time. Firas cursed him, squeezing the trigger on his Revenant.<br/><br/><br/>***<br/><br/><br/>Sorv adjusted, aiming at the exposed flank of the Batarian special forces. Their shields were powerful, and their formation was right. Worse, their response to Sorv and Darion's fire was immediate. Sorv ducked behind the wall just as a spike embedded itself near him. He leaned out again, but retracted instantly as burst cut right past him. Darion fared no better, neither of them could take aim. They were suppressed and efficiently.<br/><br/>Sorv looked at his companion on the other side of the hall.<span style="color: darkorange">Darion! Have any grena - Keela!</span>He was cut off as suddenly a large figure dove past him from the hall. The Batarian half rolled and tucked, aiming his right arm. Sorv tried to take aim but the Submission Net was faster than he was. His shield sizzled as the net disabled them. He fought against the cocoon, trying to free himself.<br/><br/>The Batarian spun, and with a quick strike of his forearm hit Darion's rifle, knocking the muzzle from its aim on the Batarian. He took a quick step in, right arm drawn, the violent, cruel spikes of his Enforcement gauntlet directed as he punched for Darion's head. Darion had only a tiny instant in which to dodge the blow.<br/><br/><br/>***<br/><br/><br/>Demond walked down the white clean passage leaving bloody footprints. He held his Mattock in one hand, the key in the other. He sneered, furious as he walked down the hall with purpose. He reached the second blast door and stuck the key in. It opened, he stepped through into facility C, and closed it behind him. but, rather than heading out onto the landing paddock to make an escape, he started for the security checkpoint instead.<br/><br/><br/>***<br/><br/><br/>In the access way things had gone bad. When the gunship had gone down and crashed, it damage the base's atmosphere recyclers, causing a breach that was now flooding the base with the planet's non-hospitable atmosphere. The omni-tool Kala had apprehended was already spewing alerts about the cardon-dioxide content.<br/><br/><span style="color: darkorchid">We've got the get the hell out of here!</span>Ashana yelled futilely covering her face as the green particulates from outside began to fill the room and her lungs began to burn.<br/><br/>Shra'Va hit the corridor access, and the door opened. She jumped back and flattened against the wall almost immediately as the near deafening sound of gunfire hit them. Ashana coughed and put her hand on Shira's back.<span style="color: darkorchid">We have to go! We can't wait!</span><br/><br/>Shira cursed loudly and took a series of rapid short breathes, then peeked around the corner. The crossfire she witnessed made her body tense, unwilling to move. She yelled angrily and then charged out of the access across the hall toward the fitting room they had only just escaped from. Ashana shoved Kala out next yelling<span style="color: blue">Go go go!</span>Ashana followed close behind.<br/><br/>Shira dove through the door, scrambling to get behind the wall. shots ricocheted off the floor next to her. The moment Kala appeared in the door, the Quarian grabbed her and yanked her to the side into the room. Ashana followed, diving and rolling in some hope of not being caught. She skidded across the floor as she landed, rolled and got against the wall next to Shira, who blind fired several shots out the door.<br/><br/>They jerked and pulled away from the door as a flurry of bullets came back through, skipping off the floor.<span style="color: navy">"This is bad."</span>Shira announced, then stuck the barrel of her weapon around the corner and fired again. She pulled the trigger, but the thermal clip was spent. She drew the slide and ejected the clip.<span style="color: navy">"Shit... Kala, the bodies! Get their weapons, the clips, all of it! Now!"</span><br/><br/>Shira sneered and leaned on the wall, waiting for Kala.<span style="color: navy">"Any bright ideas sugar tits?"</span>She looked at Ashana. The Asari opened and closed her hand, trying to get a response from her biotics, but the inhibitor drug was still suppressing her clusters.<br/><br/><span style="color: darkorchid">Nope.</span>Was all she could muster. Her entire infiltration plan was feeling rather stupid now.<br/><br/>When Kala had retrieved what she could Shira reloaded her Scimitar, and Ashana picked up one of the Avenger assault rifles. Shira nodded to the other side of the door frame.<span style="color: navy">"Ready?"</span><br/><br/><span style="color: darkorchid">Ready!</span><br/><br/>Shira leaned out of her cover and fired at anything that was looking in their direction, and as she did, Ashana quickly crossed the door opening, taking up a mirrored position to Shira'Va. Ashana leaned out and pulled the trigger. The Avenger kicked and the Asari jumped, trying to maintain control of the rifle. Her shots went wild. Ashana got back behind the doorframe as a volley of return fire blasted through.<br/><br/>Shira'Va stared at her in bewilderment.<span style="color: navy">"Have you ever used one of those before?!"</span><br/><br/><span style="color: darkorchid">Once.</span>Ashana replied, somewhat embarrassed.<br/><br/>Shira muttered then looked at Kala.<span style="color: navy">"Do you know how to use one of those?!"</span><br/><br/><br/>***<br/><br/><br/><span style="color: cyan">Holy shit... Captain, the mission has been compromised!</span>Mickey yelled watching the Monitors.<br/><br/>Cantenelli watched the main display.<br/><br/><span style="color: darkgreen">Captain, Batarian weapons are coming online, vessel 1 through 4 are engaging their engines and setting an attack pattern on the objective!</span>One of the crewmen shouted.<br/><br/>Cantenelli looked at Falkris. He understood what opening fire on an official diplomatic ship of the Batarian hegemony was tantamount to.<span style="color: blue">Falkris. I am asking your permission to open fire on a registered diplomatic vessel.</span>He stared intently at the Turian, staying his hand.<br/><br/>The Turian gazed at the display for a moment, thinking.<span style="color: red">Captain Cantenelli... under sections 35 and 36 of sub-category C under Citadel interstellar law, this vessel is in direct violation of registered non-operational space. in accordance with citadel law, this vessel, upon any action of aggression or illegal trade, including that of slavery, is  in violation of 4 treaties. Their diplomatic status is void.</span><br/><br/>Cantenelli smirked.<span style="color: blue">Good. All crew to battle stations.</span><div class="messageTextEndMarker"> </div>