Cedric's morning came early, Killer awoke beside him this time. Unlike previous mornings, he was up much earlier thanks to setting an alarm on a free holopad he secured on his way back to his cabin the night before. He was fiddling with the small tablet-sized holopad while Killer awoke - though it did not take her long.
"Do you want your coffee again this morning, Darling?" She asked, donning her comfortable light clothes and wreathing herself in her membrane cloak.
"Please." He said, almost unconsciously.
"Only because you asked so nicely." She cooed, kissing him on the cheek before leaving him to his literal devices. Killer had become more openly affectionate since his last encounter with Grey. Being honest with himself, he felt that Killer's affections were more impactful than Grey's. Perhaps he was actually in love with Killer, unlike he thought with Grey. He blamed the Phage, and did not show the same affection she did. She didn't seem to mind, but he did feel mildly bad about it.
While Killer left to grab their morning coffees, Cedric spent his extra wake time studying and messing about with the laptop device on his desk, as well as the holopad now in his possession. How did they transfer credits? He wondered. He doubted pirates had proper accounts. He would ask Killer when she returned.
Messing about with the programs uploaded her and there, he realized that most of them were simple to use applications, but in order to acquire more you had to physically link the devices with some kind of internet like hub via a hardline secured in the devices. Perhaps they had lost all semblance with wireless technology this day and age. That being said, he noticed that the devices did not appear to have any power requirements. There was no way to charge the devices, making him wonder why Faring was so enthusiastic about the interface pad changing in the sunlight, when what felt like so long ago. Most were idle games and applications for taking notes, as well as an informational catalogue that refused to run without its latest software update - because of course it did.
Cedric set down the devices and sighed, rubbing his forehead just as Killer returned. He accepted his mug gratefully.
"How do I use this to transfer credits?" He asked, showing Killer the holopad.
Since Cedric was sitting at the tiny desk, Killer got comfortable on the bed.
"Ah, you'll need to make an account request with Frattman. They're a free trade league, and are more than happy to accept our extra cargo. The magitechs can set that up for you, Darling."
"Frattman huh? Like a banking clan. Good to know they don't mind illicit cargo purchases."
Killer nodded, "We have time to do that now, before you meet Prez in the meeting room."
Cedric nodded his affirmation. "Good idea."
They engaged in small talk, but only barely. Before long, their coffees were finished and Cedric made pit stops around the Ravager. More bacco sticks, hygiene items and the like - before finding himself in engineering thanks to Killer's direction. A lone male canis familiaris was tending to to whatever magitech systems were being used, none if the devices were identifiable to him. The magineer was more than happy to fulfill his request, and plugged his holopad into a nearby console thay seemed to be directly connected to the ship. Before long, his apparently outdated holopad was updated and his account with 'Frattman' created. It only took a few minutes. According to the magineer, the holopad he selected in storage was an older model, more sturdy but not as responsive as newer ones. Cedric had simply selected it because it appeared to be for his size.
Turns out, the older models were just much larger. The magineer also showed him how to fold his holopad for storage. Had he not pointed it out, he never would have noticed it could do such a thing - thanks to his seamlessness. Nodding in thanks, Cedric and Killer traveled through the familiar first deck corridor and arrived at the meeting hall. He grabbed another coffee on the way, right before the mess hall closed. Killer stole a few sips from his mug as she joined him in the room.
He booted up the holotable, and found a comfortable spot in one of the chairs as he awaited Prez's arrival. Killer joined him, sentry-like behind him and messaging his shoulders (now that they were in reach).
Cedric flitted through the intranet of his holopad, praising its ability to apparently contain enough information as such fast speeds that it felt as though he had the entire internet in his pocket - without the need for a connection. There was not in the much of color, mostly greens and blacks. Somehow, he had technology that was simultaneously better and worse than what he was used to. At least it was touchscreen, and the stylus helped immensely.
He desperately looked up information related to the ancients, mostly mythical stories or theories about their existence.
"K-Vid. Interesting." He mused to himself.
"K-Vid?" Killer prompted, "Ah, that features video from independent producers. Many are young Anima, mostly for entertainment."
"I see." A concept Cedric was familiar with. "What do you know of the ancients, Killer?"
"Darling?" She confirmed, her large ears perking up.
"The ancients, what do you know about them?"
"Not much." She admitted, "They're nothing but fairytales, the only thing I know is that they left technology behind when they mysteriously disappeared. Everything about how they looked, acted, and did are all theories."
"I'm familiar with the fact that they left behind technology. I know very little about the Phage, all I've found are variations of what Lady Franchaise told me. The most common piece of information that seems consistent is that it's a mysterious disease, but everything else is so varied I have take it all with a grain of salt."
"Grain of salt?" She asked.
Cedric chuckled, right. "A small amount of doubt."
"I see." She replied flatly.
Cedric relaxed in the chair as Killer dug into his shoulders with her clawed paws, he was seriously considering taking short nap - however, Prez's entrance denied such a respite. She appeared mildly disgruntled.
"I didn't even have time to finish my breakfast!" She breathed, rapidly approaching the table.
"Perhaps you should have eaten sooner. This morning, I managed to get extra supplies and set up my holopad. On my way here, I grabbed a coffee before breakfast closed at the mess hall. I did not see you there."
"Whatever!" She dismissed his notation with a wave of her paw, still brushing out bits of her red foxy fur.
"Let's get this over with, I wanted to take today off."
"Take today off?" Cedric asked, folding his holopad and placing it down gently on the table. "You don't even do anything."
"Watch your mouth!" She snapped, "I have to keep track and direct all of the other officers' works. Especially now that we have an opportunity to redeem ourselves."
"Right..." He replied dryly, "Let's get this over with."
"Who taught you have to turn on the holotable?" Prez demanded.
"You did."
"Ugh, whatever. Fine, the plans are-"
Cedric was already opening the 3D program, and opened the latest entry. Sure enough, a familiar plan projected itself onto the table. Four imperial vessels, a frigate escorted by three corvettes.
"I certainly didn't teach you how to mess with my programs." She said, a hint of venom in her voice.
"Self-Taught." He said quickly.
"Fine." She said, defeatedly.
"Where are the others?" He asked.
"They won't be here this time. This is just the first draft. A couple of days beforehand we'll go over it again, but with everyone present."
"Seems fine." Keller opened his holopad again, selecting the note taking application and preparing his stylus for use.
"Good. This is an unusual case. Like before, they have a tender to the back of the main squad. This corvette here." Prez pointed to the rearmost corvette. He pressed it with his finger, and its informational detail appeared on the small console in front of him, attached to the table itself. He had mistaken it for another escort - he kept that information in mind. The blips only displayed the size and appearance, not the type.
"I see." Cedric pressed his finger on the floating frigate, intrigued by what the informational block now read.
"A science ship?"
"Yes." Prez nodded. "I've never seen one out this far before."
"What's a science ship doing with two military escorts?"
Cedric pressed the other two corvettes - they were armed with laser cannons.
"Laser cannons? I thought they used laser repeaters?" He asked.
Prez ran her hand through her long hair, styled nicely and off to the side - matching her fur.
"They do. These have a bigger punch."
"You were concerned about the hesh rounds and reinforcements arriving with laser cannons during the last plan, and now you want to take on something even more dangerous?" He asked incredulously.
"We need everything from that tender, there won't be a third chance." She said quickly.
Cedric sighed, "If we keep going on raids out of neccessity, and not opportunity - we'll doom ourselves."
"You think I don't know that?" Prez snapped, "Last time was a mistake, that's it."
"Because of that mistake, we're now going to be running headlong into laser cannon fire." He said dryly.
"Can your 'squads' do it, or not?" She barked quickly.
"Setting us up with a suicidal plan to try and get rid of us, if we suceed you get credit for the operation. I suppose that's one way to do things." He said, narrowing his eyes at Prez.
She stood back from the table, crossing her arms and leaning forward as she replied. "I'm not trying to send you on a suicidal plan for such a nefarious reason idiot, I'm doing this because... I think you might be able to - alright?" Prez's tail slowly swished back and forth behind her, momentarily mesmerizing him.
"Oh?" Cedric raised a brow. She was being quite convincing.
"Don't chastise me! I'm not an idiot. You've somehow, maybe by the blessing of the Goddess, managed to scrape together the strangest, weirdest team of anima that you could have possibly picked. Weirdo though, really?"
"Paws." Cedric stated.
"Excuse me?"
"His name is Paws, not Weirdo."
"Fine, whatever - my point is - is that if you can do that, then maybe you can do this too. Alright?"
"If that's how you feel." He said cautiously, "I make no promises."
He was already running a million scenarios through his mind, what would be the most successful way to do this? Then, he had an idea.
"We can make it happen, but it won't work unless you tell me everything you know about the operation - and I any needs I require must be met. We can hit the science vessel and the tender. I shouldn't need to remind you that the last time you ignored me, you failed - exactly how I figured you would."
Cedric could swear that Prez's fur was adopting a furious red hue, even beyond her fur color. She stared daggers deep into his unwavering orbs, before finally intaking a deep breath and remaining silent for a few moments. She leaned on the holotable with her hand paws, clearly pensive. Cedric waited patiently for her response.
With a slap of her paw causing the table to fizz slightly, she replied, jerking her head up and nodding irritaedly in his direction.
"Fine."
"Good, I will mention that I'm not just demanding this to make a statement, I genuinely need to know everything."
Prez eyed him cautiously, "That's odd for you."
"It's not. I give a shit about my team's safety, within reason of course. I'm not going to send them into a death trap."
"Fine then. This is a science vessel from imperial space, they don't normally travel out here because it's explored space. The uparmored corvette escorts means that whatever they have, it's extremely valuable. If you see the escort pattern, they are prioritizing the main vessel. I pray that the IDC aren't crewing it."
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
"The IDC?"
"Imperialis Dissidence Control. Elites, special operations, black side droppers - you name it."
"You're not giving me a lot of confidence. The young Korellei in Grey's team are getting a week of training, there's no way they can handle elites."
"They may not be able to." Prez admitted, "But you might. There's a lot of crew, but word still goes around - and of course Killer there is attached to you like glue. How you tamed her I'll never understand."
"Tamed?" Killer asked with a growl, her ears flicking with insult.
"Leave it... For now." Cedric commanded.
"Of course, Darling." Killer replied, immediately relaxing - but still carefully eyeing Prez more than she had done so before.
"I assume that's not all. What else?"
"Goddess willing they didn't dispatch IDC to protect the interior, my guess is that they have regular crew. No one is desperate enough to deal with laser cannons."
"Except us..." Cedric replied with concern.
"It's either this or we starve." Prez said quickly.
"You shouldn't have gotten to the point where this was necessary in the first place." Cedric growled, low and with clear reprimand.
"Whatever, we're doing this. The tender is far enough back, we're actually lucky. We can use the Skullcrusher, the Gnasher, and the Smilodon* - last two are harpoon corvettes. As I'm sure you've noticed, we keep them spread out to avoid directing attention to the Ravager."
"The Smilodon?" Cedric asked. That was a prehistoric creature, but he couldn't remember the period.
"Mythological creature. Stop getting distracted!"
Cedric remained silent.
"Anyways, those two should be able to harpoon the tender and disable it. The problem is the laser cannons, we can use the tender to shield them from the fire - but we need some way to remove attention from them until then. I proposed the Skullcrusher, it's a corvette that's captained by Thickhide. He's always insisted on adding as much armor as possible on it. It's not the fastest, but it should be able to take the brunt of the laser fire when used as a shield."
"Hmm..." Cedric thought carefully to himself. That was less than ideal - they'd be slaughtered! Probably.
"Give me a moment to look through the the manifest."
"What? Why?" Prez demanded.
"You'll find out why. Give me a few seconds."
The next several minutes felt agonizingly slow, but Cedric was able to navigate to the manifest application and locate their available craft. Twelve corvettes, all divided around the Ravager at varying distances. On in particular caught his attention. This corvette was tiny, even compared to the others - however, Cedric saw its strength - one that could be used to great effectiveness.
"How about this one instead of the Skullcrusher?" Cedric tapped the screen.
Impatiently, Prez marched to his side and bent down close beside him, he could practically feel her fur brushing against his cheeks. It was quite soft.
"The Midnight Wind? They'll be obliterated!"
"Will they though?" Cedric pressed.
"Get to the point." Prez commanded impatiently. Cedric waited a few moments, just to spite her.
"How fast can their guns turn?" Cedric asked.
"What?" Prez asked, not quite comprehending.
"How fast can the guns turn? What's their maximum speed? I'll simplify - how long would it take for one of their turrets to make a full three hundred and sixty degree circle?"
Prez thought for a moment, "About fifteen seconds or so?"
Cedric nodded, "Then we use the Midnight Wind."
"Why are you sending the smallest corvette we have? They'll be obliterated in just a couple shots from those laser cannons."
"Tracking." Cedric said simply.
"Wait..." Cedric observed with satisfaction as Prez began to realize his plan.
"That's... Genius..." She said, clearly reluctantly - but her surprise outweighed her irritation.
"Yes, that is if the Midnight Wind can move as fast as these charts say. It has smaller autocannons on it - autocannons that can turn much faster than the laser cannons can. So, if the Midnight Wind can keep up her speed while in a stable orbit pattern around the frigate, their laser cannons won't be able to turn fast enough to actually land a hit on it. The concern would be they'd simply refocus fire on the harpoon ships - however, if they do that - the Midnight Wind will disable their weapon systems. There's no way they can last being constantly pelted by autocannon fire."
"You're suggesting targeting their weapon systems the entire time it's orbiting. They won't realize what you're up to until it's too late, and the harpoon vessels are using the tender as a shield. What are you going to do about the second corvette?" Prez asked. She was so intrigued by his plan, she had completely forgotten her anger towards him.
"Same thing. We orbit the main vessel. Once we lock in, we can close the gap and orbit even closer - ideally, we'll get under their guns."
"Under their guns?" Prez asked.
"The farther away we are from the target, the easier it is for the guns to strike us. If we close the distance, we can be constantly under their angular limit. Our transversal velocity will be so high that they just have to sit there and take it. Whether they ignore us or focus us, they are constantly being harassed."
"Okay, but it can't be that easy. Nothing ever is." Prez noted.
"If they pre aim the guns where we are going to be, and not where we are - we may be fucked. Lasers have no projectile velocity - well, their projectile velocity is the speed of light - obviously, we can't out run that."
"So what do you suggest?" Prez pressed.
"Lots of speed." Cedric answered, somewhat matter-of-factly. "We can try and turn upwards or downwards relevant to our position during the orbit, it'll need to be random and unpredictable. Not only will the cannons be struggling to follow us, but they will struggle to aim right or left as well. If they were using anything besides lasers, this would be much easier. It's still a more reliable plan than just eating the damage."
"Okay. This plan better work! I'll inform them. The Midnight Wind is captained by Sharpeye. Piloted is more accurate, it's barely not a fighter. I'll-"
"That's not all I plan to do." Cedric interupted.
"The plan is good enough to get what we need, what else could you possibly want to do?" Prez asked, irritation once more finding its way to her voice.
"I want to board the science vessel." He finished, a grin forming yet hidden from view.
Prez's ears flicked in disbelief, a few moments of silence passed as she gathered her thoughts.
"The plan is good, you don't need to prove anything idiot."
Cedric shook his head, "This is for me, not you. That ship may contain data relevant to the Phage, think about the timing. If I wanted to transport valuable information about a growing problem, or transport something to take advantage of it - I'd ensure it was safe as well."
"How do you plan on boarding the science vessel, exactly?" Prez asked.
"We'll just dock with it. What are they going to do, shoot us down? If we get a window to land in the first place, then clearly our plan was a success. Ideally, most of its crew won't be wanting a fight."
"Okay - anything else? I'll start communicating with the others. We'll reconvene two days prior - that should be more than enough time."
Cedric nodded, "Sounds fine to me. I'll be there."
"Good, so we're done. I'm going back to my cabin to catch up on sleep, no thanks to you." She said finally, before quickly taking her leave. Cedric swished the empty mug he had been sipping on during the entire meeting, thinking carefully about his next steps. Should he join Grey in training their recruits? He decided against it, not only was he confident in her abilities to train- but he also wanted yo avoid the awkward energy that he felt now spawned between them, even if it seemed like she was fine with it.
Cedric simply could not shake the feeling that she was hit hard by their fleeting relationship. His intuition screamed that much more was afoot than what was being lead on. He figured then that if she wanted to talk about it, she would. She was anything but subtle in her views and opinions.
The following days went by in a flash, occasionally Cedric would check on the boys and Shy, all were coming along well. Basic self defense, how to aim and fire a weapon, how to move from cover to cover and how to protect their fellow squadmates. Their week of training only afforded very basic directions, but so long as they followed orders then Cedeic was confident enough in their abilities, even if rudimentary. Grey trained then long and hard, sixteen hour days while only taking breaks to eat or regain strength. Shy and Tool struggled with the training, physically and mentally.
Paws made constant mistakes, yet his energy never seemed to waver. Stripes, Blue, and of course Quickclaw had a much easier time of things - though he rarely communicated outside of acknowledging orders.
Before long, he was once again face to face with the officers of the Ravager, and annoyingly also without a chair. Killer was by his side as always, Prez protested her entry- but mentioning that she was present for the first draft several days ago eased her concern. The table was live and animated as the meeting began, with Cedric thoughtfully enjoying sips of his coffee.
"We've opted out of the Skullcrusher entirely." Prez began, zooming in on the Midnight Wind.
"A small craft with minimal armor, interesting." Mentioned Smarts, pushing up his spectacles and observing the map closely enough to reflect its contents from his lenses.
"I take it you have already figured it out." Cedric noted. Smarts nodded.
"Using the speed of the Midnight Wind to outrun the rotational velocity of their enery based weaponry is an excellent strategy."
"Assuming it works." Cedric chided.
Prez waited for a few minutes before continuing, allowing the others to register what their plan was.
"As Scourge said, we're going to attempt to get under their guns. The Midnight Wind can draw fire while the Gnasher and Smilodon harpoon the tender, located here - to the rear. Once the it has been speared, they will move to the rear of the vessel and use it as a shield to cover while they reel it in and prepare to board. Meanwhile, Scourge will be..." Prez stopped for a moment to catch her breath, and emphasize the next statement.
"Attempting to use the Midnight Wind to board the science frigate."
Cedric observed carefully as the officers looked back and forth to each other - at first, in confusion - then understanding.
"Maybe it's not my place but... Are you mad?" Chill asked. Cedric simply sipped his coffee smugly.
"I think it's a good plan! Take their supplies, and whatever fancy things they got in that frigate of theirs too." Cleaver slapped a furled fist into an open paw. Cedric nodded and twisted his head to the side just a bit, contorting his face - his eyelids open and brow raised with an amused frown forming on his face.
Not bad he thought.
"It does indeed seem like a dangerous move, but if the Midnight Wind is capable of avoiding the laser cannon fire, then perhaps taking advantage of the surprise would be, well, advantageous to procure something valuable." Smarts was leaned somewhat back in his chair, carefully running ideas through his head.
"Wouldn't be bad for the books." Books chuckled at his own joke. No one else did, save for Cedric - though barely audible. Books seemed to notice and appreciate his reaction.
"Then we agree to this?" Prez prompted. Three paws rose; Smarts, Cleaver, and Books.
"That's a majority vote. This convoy is passing through the same asteroid field as the last one, it's safe to assume that they will be taking a similar route."
Cedrix eyed the holotable cautiously, it did seem awfully convenient.
"You know..." Cedric began, garnering attention quickly unlike before. This pleased him.
"This could be a trap."
Chill sighed audibly, "I was afraid of that as well - but we have no choice."
Cedric continued to inquisitively sip from his mug.
'You think that maybe the last raid was a trap too?"
"You're only presenting that now?" Prez snapped.
"Yes. I didn't think about it before, but seeing the flight pattern of this convoy... It's identical. Something doesn't sit right."
"I've considered that possibility as well." Smarts chimed in.
"I've concluded that perhaps they are not traps, when you next have an opportunity - look at our patrol path. We haven't touched this route in quite a long while, I hypothesize that the imperials have once again considered this lane safe for travel."
"Hypothosesis means it hasn't been tested, and I doubt you have a control group." Cedric noted.
"Technically true, but as has been previously stated already - we have no other option. At least with this consideration, we can hope."
"Desperation breeds stupidity." Cedric mused to himself, proud of his quote. He probably wasn't the first to come up with it, but it felt good either way.
"Enough." Prez cut through their conversation. "We'll use the cover same as before. If they open fire immediately, then we'll know if it was intentional or not. I agree with Smarts, I think they consider thay route safe. It's only been a couple weeks since we hit the last convoy moving through there."
"And failed." Cedric added, and said the next half part before he could be interrupted. "This may be a good thing, they'll be more confident they can handle whatever pirates are out here with their armament. In fact, they may have sent a lesser experienced crew because of that reason as well. Less chance of running into the Imperialis."
"Sure, if we're lucky." Prez replied dryly.
"I suppose there is only one way to find out now, isn't there?" Cedric stated.
The rest of the meeting adjourned an hour later, running over movement details and boarding party designations. Much to Cedric's delight, Prez decided to implement his cart idea this time - and after the meeting promptly began work on their 'grocery list'.
Cedric stopped by Grey's training area afterwards, running over the plan with her in detail as the tired recruits enjoyed some rare rest during wake time. They seemed to be getting along well, for now. Grey questioned a few details of the plan, which Cedric was able to answer. They planned to bring their squads together before boarding the Midnight Wind.
The day of the raid was nigh, and according to their intel, the science convoy was still moving along the same course. Cedric awoke that day with a strange giddiness, this was finally it - his first taste of combat. He couldn't let the others know that, of course. Not only that, but he was leading his own squad of misfits. It was like a dream. With a satisfied proudness, he enjoyed his coffee while going over the battle plans now on his laptop to ensure he would remember every detail. They had no information on the interior of the frigate, hopefully they had signs - he mused. Killer was dutifully behind him, messaging his shoulders. She could feel his excitement.
"Darling..." She asked cautiously.
"Yes?" He replied, turning around quickly in his chair and closing his laptop.
"Have you not fought in such a manner yet?"
He waited a few moments before replying. Part of him worried she would leave him if he said no, but he could hardly say yes and botch the operation.
"I haven't, no..."
She deepened her message, causing him to tingle ever so slightly.
"You are excited as a newborn pup, you've even cleaned yourself up. You look so handsome." She cooed, placing a kiss on his cheek.
Cedric rubbed his chin, groomed into a fine medium length beard, no longer long and scraggly. He had cut his hair evenly as well, reducing it from waist length to just below his jaw, and pinned into a sturdy bun.
"I've been trained in marksmanship and hand to hand, but I've only ever used my strength to fight at close range. If I was to go up against someone like Cleaver, I'd be slaughtered. Strength doesn't help with firing a weapon. It's a good a thing I earned my master marksman badge in basic." He said calmly, lifting himself from his chair and straightening his clothing.
"You have my full faith, Darling." Killer said, wreathing herself in her comfortable membrane cloak.
Cedric smiled as he opened his door, proceeding to the hangar deck with a beaming fervor. He held his back straight, and allowed his gait to swagger.
"I hope your confidence is well-founded. I've had plenty of training, but I'm not so foolish as to think an actual conflict would be as they are described in training. I'll do my best, that's all I can offer."
They stepped into the familiar elevator, going down instead of up. There were three primary decks on the Ravager, the hangar deck generally lacked traffic. The last time had walked through its corridors was when he first boarded the Ravager in Captain Garerra's shadow. He looked on them once more as the elevator dinged, it hadn't changed one bit. Cedric staggered to the very end of the corridor, his squad already at the ready inside the interior hangar. Ships such as the Midnight Wind and others were docked externally, as well as a couple of boarding pods. The hangar he approached now somewhat reminded him of the Gruss, small single seater shuttles resting silently towards the wall - waiting to be used.
Entering the hangar, Cedric intently studied what was before him. Grey's squad was on his right, already armed with Stigman-88s and their rudimentary body armor. While all of the armors the crew wore looked different, they all afforded adequate protection. He noticed that the ferret boys had marked their with various paints, claiming the gear as their own. Their salutes, including Grey's, filled him with an undescribable satisfaction.
To his left was his own squad. Gunner, Tesla, Chem, Paws, and of course Killer - all present and wearing their own personalized gear. Cedric whistled in Gunner's direction, two large weapons he could not identify were strapped to a dual mount on his back - and another, perhaps a shotgun of sorts, resting easy in his large ursine paws. Tesla was wearing skintight black bodysuit, with a large pack on her back and a pistol fit snuggly into an underarm holster. Chem's outfit had not changed at all, and Paws was wearing what Cedric could only describe as stereotypical grunt gear, and his helmet was a bit too big on him. He approached his team, and before he could say anything Gunner motioned him over.
"Fusìl-L1, reliable and accurate. " He growled, handing Cedeic a somewhat boxy looking yet sleek rifle.
"This fits quite easily in my hands. Korellei use this normally?" He asked, fiddling with the meticulously cared-for mechanics.
"It's a crew serve weapon." He replied simply.
Cedric nodded, "Makes sense."
"And this, already loaded with Fusìl battery packs. Kipper made it."
Gunner then handed him a hardshell armor that reminded Cedric somewhat of plate mail. It slipped over his head easily, and clipped comfortably in place - slightly forward heavy thanks to the battery packs.
"Ceramatine Plating. Too heavy for normal use, perfectly fine for you. Nothing less than a Lance will pierce it entirely."
Cedric pat the hardshell cuirass, he didn't feel a thing.
"Well made." He said, Gunner replied with a nod.
Cedric rested his weapon within his hands. It was much too bulky for his taste, but there was a certain charm in single-handedly using a crew served weapon.
He gazed up and to the right where the shuttle lie, ready to take them to the Midnight Wind. He narrowed his eyes.
"I'm ready."