I Fought the Law and...

I hereby issue this challenge to Irina Vaax of Juno Squad and the Republic Army! Let's get those combative posting skills exercised before we get caught in a situation we aren't prepared for.

For the rules / conditions of this duel, I propose full lethality of all weapons, whatever armor your character typically wears, standard number of weapons brought to battle (unless you have the Strong Back perk), and the setting of a wartime battlefield with no Jedi or Sith present. Will you accept?

You are so on. What's the terrain though? Valley, mountains, forest, city? I would propose the forest on Alderaan that was in the Hope trailer since we both know what that was like and can look back at it easily.

Alright, I'll agree to that setting. For the sake of being even, let's say I was hired by the Empire so their soldiers are friendly to me. I don't rightly care who makes the first post so feel free to be number one if you'd like. Regardless of what you do, I won't be posting until tomorrow. ...eight hours of work will do that to you.

Irina checked the charge on her blaster rifle for the eighth time and pressed her body even tighter against the tree she hid behind. The disjointed clanking and stamping of the Imperial detachment just a few yards beneath and below her had her adrenaline pumping as she waited for the opportune moment. A slight rustling sound beside her made Irina turn her head to look at the soldier next to her. Impatience was obviously gnawing at her comrades, who were more than willing to pay back the invaders who had sacked their world with the business ends of their rifles. While Irina also felt this bitter anger towards the Imperial soldiers, she knew she had to stay rational if Juno Squad was to inflict maximum casualties.

With a slow nod to the trooper beside her, Irina shifter her gaze to the column of soldiers and battle droids. Just a few more seconds... Closing her eyes and drawing three deep breaths, Irina activated her helmet comm and spoke. "Drop 'em."

Immediately, Republic troopers entrenched in camouflaged holes in the forest floor threw a flurry of grenades into the middle of the column. Then came the defeaning explosions, each punctuated with the screams of Imperial soldiers as they were forcefully parted from their limbs and lives. Adrenaline surged through Irina as she rolled out from behind the tree and began firing upon the column just as so many of her comrades did the same. With a loud battle cry, many Republic soldiers leaped from the ledge to continue the battle in closer proximity. Irina crouched on the ledge, adding her voice to the fearsome yell as enemy after enemy fell to her well-placed laser bolts.

Kolban had just finished insulting a Sith trooper when he felt an old, familiar tingling in the back of his mind. He snapped his head to the left just in time to a small round rolling towards his feet. With a sudden rush of excitement, fear and anger, Kolban reacted instinctively to the incoming grenade. Lashing out quickly with his foot, Kolban kicked the grenade hard in the direction it came from while simultaneously screaming, "DOWN!" Before any of his allies could react, blinding flashes of light and fire accompanied by deafening booms blasted them apart. Kolban himself was thrown to the floor, hard. He let out a sharp gasp as the pressure wave washed over him forcing the air out of his compressed lungs.

He lay still yet gasping for air as the Republic soldiers swarmed around him. His lack of movement saved him from being an early target but Kolban knew that this wouldn't last long. He needed to get up and back to the Imperials before the front lines moved too far away. With a surge of effort, Kolban sprang to his feet directly in front of a charging trooper. Before the trooper could react Kolban lashed out, grabbing the man by the throat, lifting him clear off his feet and slamming him to the floor. "Better luck in the next life, stoopa," he spat and with one fluid motion he withdrew his blaster pistol from its holster and shot the trooper cleanly through his visor before snapping his arm up to take quick shots at the troopers closest to him.

Even as he finished the last one off, the troopers on the cliff began to shift their aim towards Kolban. Without pausing to fire back, he took off towards the Imperials who were just starting to get some resistance organized. Blaster bolts whizzed over Kolban's head and shoulders as he ran before he finally threw himself flat behind a log being used by the Imperials as cover. "Fierfek!" he yelled as he clambered back into position and began firing. "How in hell did those koochus up front miss those bright white meat cans?"

One soldier turned to look at Kolban as if to defend his comrades but a bolt from one of the troopers cut him short. Kolban pressed himself further into cover and looked carefully for the shooter. His eyes fell upon one of the troopers upon the cliffs, a woman he realized, who was taking potshots at the Imperials with rather impressive accuracy. With a scowl, Kolban grabbed his portable grenade launcher off his back and sighted at the cliffside just below the woman. "Don't be shy, peedunky. Join the party," he growled and fired.

Irina cried out in shock and pain as the ground beneath her exploded. She was lifted at least three feet into the air before slamming down upon the crumbling cliffside. She tumbled down the cliff before rolling to a stop on the forest floor. Her blaster had flown out of her hands and she looked about frantically as she rose to her knees. A blaster bolt came whizzing past her shoulder as she spotted the weapon laying a few meters away. As she scrambled to her feet she yanked her pistol from its holster and sent a few random shots in the direction of her assailant. While not intended to hit anyone, it did put some pressure on her opponent and forced him to take cover and cease firing. She dived for the rifle and grasped it tight, using the momentum from her dive to roll behind a thick tree. Irina quickly holstered her pistol and grasped the rifle tightly in both hands. A quick inspection told her the rifle was still in working condition and she breathed a small sight of relief. For her blaster's actuating module to have been jarred loose in the explosion would have made combat quite difficult and could easily get her killed in the heat of battle.

She peeked slowly around the corner but withdrew her head quickly as more blaster bolts impacted the tree. I've got you, Imperial scum. Hold still... she thought before whirling around the other side of the tree and squeezing off two shots. Each one caught the enemy in his chest and he toppled to the ground. Movement to the right of the now-dead enemy caused Irina to shift her aim to a group of Imperials hiding behind a fallen log. With a pang of surprise, she noticed that one of them was obviously a mercenary and was carrying a grenade launcher. "Alright you son of a murglak. Let's play," she said and opened up on the group, spraying blaster bolts as fast as her weapon would allow.

Kolban reacted on instinct to the sudden hail of blaster fire, throwing himself flat on his back and pressing himself as far into cover as he could. The unfortunate soldiers around him did not have similar luck and were cut down before they could even return fire. "Fierfek," he swore. Taking note of the trajectory of the lasers, Kolban grabbed one of the bodies that lay next to him and held it in front of himself as he climbed slowly to his feet. "Finally, I think I've found a use for you," he said derisively to the dead soldier. Blaster bolts spattered the lifeless corpse but none found their way to Kolban's flesh.

Still holding the body as a shield, he sprinted for new cover, closer to Irina. Using one hand, he whipped one of his blaster pistols from its holster and began firing back at his adversary. When he finally managed to get a tree in between himself and Irina, he discarded the body and yanked his second pistol from its holster. With his back to the tree, Kolban reached his arm around the tree and fired wildly at Irina. Catching sight of another soldier, Kolban raised he free hand and waved to get his attention. "Hey! You! Make yourself useful and flank this punk!"

The soldier complied and moved carefully past Kolban towards Irina's hiding spot, his blaster trained on the right side of the tree while Kolban's shots splashed the left side.