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Part Two: Retrieval Team

As Krystal walked into the nightclub, she wondered exactly who Hiigan had been talking about.  Although right now the nightclub was just a bar setting, without the lights and sounds of the nightclub.  But, as always, a wolfess was behind the bar.  Right now, the gray wolf was cleaning a few of the heavier glasses, but her ears perked up when she heard the footsteps as Krystal walked in.
"Hey Krystal." Mira said, setting the glass down.
"Mira, Did you know Chase went on a mission alone?" Krystal asked, knowing the fox talked to Mira about everything.
The wolf girl nodded, her golden eyes looking down, "I did know, but he asked me to keep it quiet."
Krystal sighed and took a seat on one of the bar stools, "Why would he keep it from me?  Chase knows I couldn't stand to lose him too…"
Mira smiled gently and poured a glass of water for the vixen, setting it down before her, "Trust me, he knows it all too well.  That's why he kept it quiet."
"What do you mean?" Krystal asked.
Mira smiled and patted the vixen's arm gently, "Chase was worried that you were still too sick to take on another mission.  So, rather than put you in danger, he went alone."
Krystal sighed, "I…I guess that makes sense."
The vixen took a sip of water; her eyes looking down at the glass as she set it back down.
"So it looks like someone new will be joining me for this mission.  Ronin-3, if you can believe it." Krystal said.
Mira smiled softly and nodded, "Krystal, what if I told you who your new number three was?"
The vixen's ears perked up at this, as she asked, "And how would you know that information, Mira?"
The wolf smiled and ducked down behind the bar for a minute before coming back up with a paper, setting it down before Krystal for the vixen to read.  Krystal picked it up and looked at it with a bit of shock.
"You're our new number three?" Krystal asked in shock.
The wolf smiled, her tail wagging a bit, "That's right.  I've always been foxie's caretaker, but I'm as much a mercenary as you or him.  I may not have as many missions under my belt, but I'm still considered active duty and I can pilot a Caliber class bomber."
Krystal smiled, never having expected that Mira would be on a mission with her.  But the vixen was not about to argue with orders, especially not when she knew Mira would greatly increase her chances of brining Chase back alive.
"I can't wait to fight along side you Mira." Krystal smiled.
Mira nodded, knowing that it wouldn't just be her and Krystal in this fight.  After the wolf has received her orders, she knew Hiigan would be recruiting two more to help out with the mission.  So far, Mira knew one of the other mercenaries, a squirrel named Kimmy who was a close quarters fighter, specializing in shotguns.
Krystal sighed and looked down at the glass of water before her, "Do…do you think Chase is alright?
"If anyone can take care of themselves while in enemy hands, it's Chase." Mira assured her, "I'm sure he's alright."
Krystal nodded, only hoping that Mira was right…
*           *          *
Chase had finally come up with a plan.  It was obvious they had to bring him back alive or these bounty hunters would have killed him on the spot.  More than likely, whoever had hired these bounty hunters wanted information, and getting another mercenary would be very difficult if Chase died or escaped.  So the odds of the fox actually being killed were relatively low.  But still, Chase had decided to do something he hated to do…wait for something to happen before making a move.
But once something did, Chase would use that as a diversion, making his move to take down a guard and free himself before grabbing a weapon and making his way to the bridge.  But until then, he was stuck, hoping his partner would not have to be involved with his mistake.
*           *          *
"You know, something tells me Chase is already planning an escape of his own." A gray wolf said, checking his rifle over, "I mean, that fox is anything if not resourceful."
Krystal glared at him, something else the vixen was not known for doing, "Look Delta, Chase may be planning something, but he's still my partner and best friend.  With or without you guys, I'm going to get him back."
Mira smiled, placing a hand on Krystal's shoulder, "Don't you worry, we're with you all the way."
Delta smirked, "Right.  Chase is my friend too and we are getting him back.  Just saying, I wouldn't be surprised to find that he's already taken over the situation by the time we get there."
Mira nodded in agreement, knowing that Chase could very well already have taken over.   But if they took the fox down, Mira doubted that his odds of taking control of the situation were as high as the others seemed to expect.  While she knew Chase was skilled and a bit stubborn when it came to staying in the fight, Mira also knew that Chase knew when he was beaten.
As the wolf picked up her weapon, she saw Krystal looking over with a bit of surprise.  Mira smiled, lifting a large weapon to her side that Krystal realized was the same type of weapon she had used years ago on Sauria during the second aparoid invasion.  The only difference was instead of a clip of ammunition, the minigun fired high-speed energy rounds similar to what the Sev`fel's Reaper units fired.
When Delta glanced over, the wolf did a quick double take, his ears perking in surprise, "Whoa Mira!  Think you've got enough firepower there?  We're against bounty hunters, not the entire Cornerian military!"
Mira smiled, checking the minigun quickly to be sure it was operational.  She spun up the weapons quad-barrel, all four barrels spinning quickly as the mechanical whirr of the gears sounded.  If it had been loaded, the weapon would have been firing fifty, armor piercing rounds every half-second, and tearing the wall she was aimed at apart!  Knowing this, Krystal cringed at the thought of what that weapon could do to a body.  Her mind flashed back to the mission on Sauria and back to how much damage this weapon could cause, ripping aparoid units to shreds in less than two seconds.  The vixen hoped that Mira would not have to use it against their foes.
"Still fits like a glove." Mira smiled, "And I know that Delta.  If we were, I'd bring a rocket launcher too."
Although Delta chuckled nervously, the thought did little to reassure Krystal.  Instead, the vixen quietly checked her rifle, loading in a specially made magazine of stun rounds.  Hiigan had ordered them to bring a few of the bounty hunters back alive for questioning.  Her guess was for their connection to the Sev`fel.  The vixen only hoped they could intercept the bounty hunters before they contacted the Sev`fel.
*           *          *
Chase had managed to get to his feet.  The back of his head still hurt, but it was bearable as long as he had to deal with it.  Now he had a better understanding of the layout of his cell.  It was small, only ten feet wide by ten feet long with a height of at least eleven feet, but still big enough for him to move around in.  The solid walls were made of a thick steel alloy, much like the rest of the ship was his guess.  The only thing keeping him inside the cell was the door, a thick iron thing with a slot for food to be passed inside.
"No way out unless I grab a guard when they come to get me." Chase thought, "But, if they're working for the Sev`fel, they'll be careful to keep me locked up until I'm needed.  With this sort of security, they must want a corporate merc pretty badly."
The fox looked down at his hands, still bound by the force-cuffs.  Unless he could either get a key or trick a guard into unlocking them, the fox would not get far.  But if they were working with the Sev`fel, neither of his options were likely to work for long.
Finally, the fox heard a knocking on the cell door, followed by, "Wake up sleeping beauty!  Captain wants to see you."
"Captain?" Chase though to himself, "Hmm…this could turn in my favor if I play my cards right."
*           *          *
"So, anyone have any idea what we're up against here?" Mira asked, cocking her pistol, "I mean, if it's just bounty hunters this should be too long of a fight."
Krystal shook her head sadly, "Hiigan only said to expect anything.  If we can't catch them before they are met by the Sev`fel, we go weapons free."
Everyone looked at her, not knowing what was going through the vixen's mind.  As worried as Mira was, she knew how close Krystal was to her partner.  This mission would have been good for the vixen to sit out, but the fire in her emerald eyes stated otherwise.  If Krystal had not been along, she would be worried as hell.  Instead, she had come simply for one reason.  To ensure the survival and safe extraction of her partner, Chase.
Mira checked the minigun at her side with a smile.  The wolf had decided to reserve its use until absolutely necessary, or until Krystal told her to.  Either way, Mira hoped it wouldn't come to a need for that amount of firepower.
Suddenly, Delta emerged from the cockpit, having been talking with the pilots about the course and boarding plan once they had intercepted the target craft where Chase's locator was coming from.
"Bad news guys." The wolf said, "Lock and load, we've got an unidentified vessel.  And they're on an intercept course with our target."
Krystal looked down, "How long until ETA with the target?"
Delta sighed, "For us, ten minutes.  For them…five."
"Then let's hope they have a good plan…because the Sev`fel will probably destroy them once they have what they want." Mira said.
Kimmy nodded, "Classic Sev`fel according to the intel I've been going over."
"But they have Chase." Krystal stated bluntly, "And Chase won't go out without a good fight.   Especially not to the Sev`fel."
Delta smirked and nodded, "Right.  No way in hell would Chase go with them without blowing up a lot of their bots and causing a serious problem."
Krystal smiled a little at that, just glad someone was not already condemning Chase to capture.
Mira nodded, "Right.  Besides, if they do anything to Chase, we'll make them pay."
*           *          *
Unaware of the threat, Chase found himself standing before a female raccoon.  Her long, black hair was over her shoulder as she paced before him.  Her piercing, blue eyes glanced over her crew, the others all at their posts to guide the small frigate on its course.  The raccoon looked at Chase, stopping and turning to face him, the top of her outfit open to reveal the top of her blood red bra hidden within.  Her combat vest had the same flaming wing insignia on the left side, but under it were two gold bars.  Chase knew from the way others looked a bit uneasy around her that this was their leader.
"So…this little fox is the one who took down my top lieutenant?" She asked in a sarcastic tone, "Remind me to get a better lieutenant, he hardly seems like a threat."
Chase didn't reply, his eyes glaring at her.  If the force-cuffs had been off his wrists, the fox have tried to take the raccoon down to assume command of the situation.  But instead the cuffs were on and he had three rifles pointed at his chest.  Plus, the raccoon had a blaster strapped to her hip, military grade.  One shot from that would send his nervous system into shutdown, effectively killing him.  At this point, Chase had no option but to let things run their course.  Still, that did not mean he could not infuse a little annoyance of his own to get this raccoon onto his side.
"No kidding right?   I took him down in, what, about three seconds?" Chase said with a smirk to the ocelot, "Way too easy."
The ocelot growled a bit as the raccoon smirked, "And a bit on the cocky side too?  I'm starting to like this guy."
Chase smirked as the ocelot growled louder, poking Chase in the back with the barrel of his rifle.
"I still don't see why we keep him alive." The ocelot said, pressing the barrel of the rifle into Chase's back, "The Sev`fel won't mind one more dead merc."
The raccoon walked over, pressing her blaster to his neck, "They won't pay if he's dead.  And if they don't pay, you will.  Understand?"
The ocelot removed his rifle from Chase's spine, "Understood ma'am."
Chase smirked to himself.  Now that he was sure they needed him alive, the fox's mind was formulating a plan.  But now it hinged on something different, the distrust between these bounty hunters and the Sev`fel.
"You really think the Sev`fel will just let you live for turning me over to them?" Chase asked.
The raccoon looked to him with a smirk, "I fully expect a betrayal by them at any time.  But so long as we have what they want and they have what I want, I feel we will both agree to the terms of our agreement."
Chase frowned and glared at her, "You have no idea who you're dealing with here, do you?  The Sev`fel will destroy you the second they have me!"
The raccoon looked to him, raising his head with her blaster, "They know better than to cross Minerva Black, leader of Phoenix Wing Inc."
At first, Chase thought he had failed.  But suddenly, the fox noticed something.  When Chase had told her that the Sev`fel would betray her and her company, most of the crew seemed to suddenly begins to have second thoughts.  If he couldn't work with her, the fox would at least put some fear into her crew.
"But if they do," Minerva continued, "They will suffer for it greatly."
Chase gave a soft growl, "If you say so.  After all, I'm sure you know what they do to their partners."
Minerva's ears perked a bit at that, "You think you can scare me?"
Chase smirked, "You?  I don't know.  But I do know the Sev`fel kill most all of their 'partners'.  I don't think anyone who did major business with them before has lived very long."
"K-killed most of them?" one of the crew asked nervously.
Chase nodded, "Yeah, killed."
Minerva glanced at the crewman that had spoken up, her fingers touching the handle of her blaster.  But as she did, the raccoon's eyes traveled to Chase, the fox smirking a bit, knowing he could affect her crew now.  To her, it was time to once more establish dominance over her crew's actions.  Quietly, Minerva walks behind her crew, her hand around the handle of her blaster pistol.
"Ok, for those of you cowards who want to turn around, raise your hand." Minerva said calmly, her eyes coldly glancing over her crew.
When one of them did raise their hands, Minerva's eyes narrowed.  Without hesitation, the raccoon drew her blaster and fired two shots, point blank, into the crewman's back!
The others recoiled a bit, hearing the shots, seeing the muzzle flash as the blaster discharged two shots of deadly energy into the crewman's spine as he slumped over and fell out of the chair.  Chase could only watch as Minerva looked up without emotion at the death of a crewman at her own hands.
"Anyone else want to turn around and quit?" Minerva asked, looking at the rest of her crew, "No?  I didn't think so.  We proceed as planned then.  Stay on course or I'll do the same to the rest of you."
With that threat over their heads, the crewman kept their heads down and continued the frigate on its course.  As they did, Minerva smirked and nodded to the ocelot still standing at attention, telling him to take Chase back to his cell for now.  With a nod, the ocelot did as he was told, his eyes not leaving the deadly weapon now replaced at Minerva's side.
"Ma'am, incoming hail from an unknown carrier." One of the crew noted.
Minerva nodded, "Put it through."
The crewman nodded and put it up on a view screen that dropped down behind Minerva.  But before it could activate, Chase felt a rifle being jammed into his back.  With that, the fox was lead out.
Minerva thought for a second before nodding, "Ok, put it through."
An image appeared before her, the reptilian creature's dark, pebbled skin and glowing red eyes stared at Minerva.  As a set of clear lenses swept across them, the creature gave a low growl.  There was no mistaking it, this creature was a Sev`fel.  Not only that, but from the look of the blood red blades growing from the creature's arms, it was a commander.
"Do you have the package?" The Sev`fel asked.
"Of course." Minerva said with a bit of annoyance in her voice, "But I have realized that this package is worth a bit more than your previous offer.  I would like to discuss a new deal in person.  Send a shuttle with a representative, and a few guards if you want.  We'll be opening the shuttle bay for your arrival."
The Sev`fel commander growled heavily, glaring angrily at Minerva before saying, "Fine…We will send several representative in a shuttle with one dozen of our robotic units to serve as guards.  All of our representatives will be armed in case you decide to betray our trust.  But if you make this deal unreasonable, we may have to take drastic measures against you to claim our package."
Minerva simply gave a smirk in reply, "I hope things do not come to that as well.  We here at Phoenix Wing Incorporated look forward to doing business with you."
*           *          *
"We've got activity from the Sev`fel carrier." The pilot stated back to the team, "They're launching a transport shuttle on a docking course with our target.  Looks like we have a window of insertion so get prepped and get in the shuttle."
Delta nodded, "Ok gang, lock and load!  Time to get our Ronin back."
Krystal nodded and loaded her rifle with the stun rounds before standing up and looking at the others she was going in with.
"Ok guys, we all know why we're doing this.  We're getting Chase back." Krystal explained, "We're not kill any of the bounty hunters, but if we see a Sev`fel unit we have clearance to use deadly force.  But we are to take their leader down with stun rounds and capture whoever they are."
Mira nodded, picking up the minigun, already having a blaster strapped to her side.  Delta smirked, loading similar rounds into his own rifle, the wolf's armor glowing as his shield powered up.  Kimmy was loading energy scattershot rounds into her shotgun after pulling it to her shoulder, aiming it towards the hull of the transport.  All of them knew what they had to do and who was at stake.
Krystal looked over them, knowing that they wouldn't let her down.  But to her, this mission wasn't over until Chase was back in their dorm, safe and sound.  Then, she would consider this retrieval a success.
"Ok…let's go get our friend back." Krystal finished, cocking her rifle, "And take down some bounty hunters."

Description
Part Two: Retrieval Team

As Krystal walked into the nightclub, she wondered exactly who Hiigan had been talking about.  Although right now the nightclub was just a bar setting, without the lights and sounds of the nightclub.  But, as always, a wolfess was behind the bar.  Right now, the gray wolf was cleaning a few of the heavier glasses, but her ears perked up when she heard the footsteps as Krystal walked in.
"Hey Krystal." Mira said, setting the glass down.
"Mira, Did you know Chase went on a mission alone?" Krystal asked, knowing the fox talked to Mira about everything.
The wolf girl nodded, her golden eyes looking down, "I did know, but he asked me to keep it quiet."
Krystal sighed and took a seat on one of the bar stools, "Why would he keep it from me?  Chase knows I couldn't stand to lose him too…"
Mira smiled gently and poured a glass of water for the vixen, setting it down before her, "Trust me, he knows it all too well.  That's why he kept it quiet."
"What do you mean?" Krystal asked.
Mira smiled and patted the vixen's arm gently, "Chase was worried that you were still too sick to take on another mission.  So, rather than put you in danger, he went alone."
Krystal sighed, "I…I guess that makes sense."
The vixen took a sip of water; her eyes looking down at the glass as she set it back down.
"So it looks like someone new will be joining me for this mission.  Ronin-3, if you can believe it." Krystal said.
Mira smiled softly and nodded, "Krystal, what if I told you who your new number three was?"
The vixen's ears perked up at this, as she asked, "And how would you know that information, Mira?"
The wolf smiled and ducked down behind the bar for a minute before coming back up with a paper, setting it down before Krystal for the vixen to read.  Krystal picked it up and looked at it with a bit of shock.
"You're our new number three?" Krystal asked in shock.
The wolf smiled, her tail wagging a bit, "That's right.  I've always been foxie's caretaker, but I'm as much a mercenary as you or him.  I may not have as many missions under my belt, but I'm still considered active duty and I can pilot a Caliber class bomber."
Krystal smiled, never having expected that Mira would be on a mission with her.  But the vixen was not about to argue with orders, especially not when she knew Mira would greatly increase her chances of brining Chase back alive.
"I can't wait to fight along side you Mira." Krystal smiled.
Mira nodded, knowing that it wouldn't just be her and Krystal in this fight.  After the wolf has received her orders, she knew Hiigan would be recruiting two more to help out with the mission.  So far, Mira knew one of the other mercenaries, a squirrel named Kimmy who was a close quarters fighter, specializing in shotguns.
Krystal sighed and looked down at the glass of water before her, "Do…do you think Chase is alright?
"If anyone can take care of themselves while in enemy hands, it's Chase." Mira assured her, "I'm sure he's alright."
Krystal nodded, only hoping that Mira was right…
*           *          *
Chase had finally come up with a plan.  It was obvious they had to bring him back alive or these bounty hunters would have killed him on the spot.  More than likely, whoever had hired these bounty hunters wanted information, and getting another mercenary would be very difficult if Chase died or escaped.  So the odds of the fox actually being killed were relatively low.  But still, Chase had decided to do something he hated to do…wait for something to happen before making a move.
But once something did, Chase would use that as a diversion, making his move to take down a guard and free himself before grabbing a weapon and making his way to the bridge.  But until then, he was stuck, hoping his partner would not have to be involved with his mistake.
*           *          *
"You know, something tells me Chase is already planning an escape of his own." A gray wolf said, checking his rifle over, "I mean, that fox is anything if not resourceful."
Krystal glared at him, something else the vixen was not known for doing, "Look Delta, Chase may be planning something, but he's still my partner and best friend.  With or without you guys, I'm going to get him back."
Mira smiled, placing a hand on Krystal's shoulder, "Don't you worry, we're with you all the way."
Delta smirked, "Right.  Chase is my friend too and we are getting him back.  Just saying, I wouldn't be surprised to find that he's already taken over the situation by the time we get there."
Mira nodded in agreement, knowing that Chase could very well already have taken over.   But if they took the fox down, Mira doubted that his odds of taking control of the situation were as high as the others seemed to expect.  While she knew Chase was skilled and a bit stubborn when it came to staying in the fight, Mira also knew that Chase knew when he was beaten.
As the wolf picked up her weapon, she saw Krystal looking over with a bit of surprise.  Mira smiled, lifting a large weapon to her side that Krystal realized was the same type of weapon she had used years ago on Sauria during the second aparoid invasion.  The only difference was instead of a clip of ammunition, the minigun fired high-speed energy rounds similar to what the Sev`fel's Reaper units fired.
When Delta glanced over, the wolf did a quick double take, his ears perking in surprise, "Whoa Mira!  Think you've got enough firepower there?  We're against bounty hunters, not the entire Cornerian military!"
Mira smiled, checking the minigun quickly to be sure it was operational.  She spun up the weapons quad-barrel, all four barrels spinning quickly as the mechanical whirr of the gears sounded.  If it had been loaded, the weapon would have been firing fifty, armor piercing rounds every half-second, and tearing the wall she was aimed at apart!  Knowing this, Krystal cringed at the thought of what that weapon could do to a body.  Her mind flashed back to the mission on Sauria and back to how much damage this weapon could cause, ripping aparoid units to shreds in less than two seconds.  The vixen hoped that Mira would not have to use it against their foes.
"Still fits like a glove." Mira smiled, "And I know that Delta.  If we were, I'd bring a rocket launcher too."
Although Delta chuckled nervously, the thought did little to reassure Krystal.  Instead, the vixen quietly checked her rifle, loading in a specially made magazine of stun rounds.  Hiigan had ordered them to bring a few of the bounty hunters back alive for questioning.  Her guess was for their connection to the Sev`fel.  The vixen only hoped they could intercept the bounty hunters before they contacted the Sev`fel.
*           *          *
Chase had managed to get to his feet.  The back of his head still hurt, but it was bearable as long as he had to deal with it.  Now he had a better understanding of the layout of his cell.  It was small, only ten feet wide by ten feet long with a height of at least eleven feet, but still big enough for him to move around in.  The solid walls were made of a thick steel alloy, much like the rest of the ship was his guess.  The only thing keeping him inside the cell was the door, a thick iron thing with a slot for food to be passed inside.
"No way out unless I grab a guard when they come to get me." Chase thought, "But, if they're working for the Sev`fel, they'll be careful to keep me locked up until I'm needed.  With this sort of security, they must want a corporate merc pretty badly."
The fox looked down at his hands, still bound by the force-cuffs.  Unless he could either get a key or trick a guard into unlocking them, the fox would not get far.  But if they were working with the Sev`fel, neither of his options were likely to work for long.
Finally, the fox heard a knocking on the cell door, followed by, "Wake up sleeping beauty!  Captain wants to see you."
"Captain?" Chase though to himself, "Hmm…this could turn in my favor if I play my cards right."
*           *          *
"So, anyone have any idea what we're up against here?" Mira asked, cocking her pistol, "I mean, if it's just bounty hunters this should be too long of a fight."
Krystal shook her head sadly, "Hiigan only said to expect anything.  If we can't catch them before they are met by the Sev`fel, we go weapons free."
Everyone looked at her, not knowing what was going through the vixen's mind.  As worried as Mira was, she knew how close Krystal was to her partner.  This mission would have been good for the vixen to sit out, but the fire in her emerald eyes stated otherwise.  If Krystal had not been along, she would be worried as hell.  Instead, she had come simply for one reason.  To ensure the survival and safe extraction of her partner, Chase.
Mira checked the minigun at her side with a smile.  The wolf had decided to reserve its use until absolutely necessary, or until Krystal told her to.  Either way, Mira hoped it wouldn't come to a need for that amount of firepower.
Suddenly, Delta emerged from the cockpit, having been talking with the pilots about the course and boarding plan once they had intercepted the target craft where Chase's locator was coming from.
"Bad news guys." The wolf said, "Lock and load, we've got an unidentified vessel.  And they're on an intercept course with our target."
Krystal looked down, "How long until ETA with the target?"
Delta sighed, "For us, ten minutes.  For them…five."
"Then let's hope they have a good plan…because the Sev`fel will probably destroy them once they have what they want." Mira said.
Kimmy nodded, "Classic Sev`fel according to the intel I've been going over."
"But they have Chase." Krystal stated bluntly, "And Chase won't go out without a good fight.   Especially not to the Sev`fel."
Delta smirked and nodded, "Right.  No way in hell would Chase go with them without blowing up a lot of their bots and causing a serious problem."
Krystal smiled a little at that, just glad someone was not already condemning Chase to capture.
Mira nodded, "Right.  Besides, if they do anything to Chase, we'll make them pay."
*           *          *
Unaware of the threat, Chase found himself standing before a female raccoon.  Her long, black hair was over her shoulder as she paced before him.  Her piercing, blue eyes glanced over her crew, the others all at their posts to guide the small frigate on its course.  The raccoon looked at Chase, stopping and turning to face him, the top of her outfit open to reveal the top of her blood red bra hidden within.  Her combat vest had the same flaming wing insignia on the left side, but under it were two gold bars.  Chase knew from the way others looked a bit uneasy around her that this was their leader.
"So…this little fox is the one who took down my top lieutenant?" She asked in a sarcastic tone, "Remind me to get a better lieutenant, he hardly seems like a threat."
Chase didn't reply, his eyes glaring at her.  If the force-cuffs had been off his wrists, the fox have tried to take the raccoon down to assume command of the situation.  But instead the cuffs were on and he had three rifles pointed at his chest.  Plus, the raccoon had a blaster strapped to her hip, military grade.  One shot from that would send his nervous system into shutdown, effectively killing him.  At this point, Chase had no option but to let things run their course.  Still, that did not mean he could not infuse a little annoyance of his own to get this raccoon onto his side.
"No kidding right?   I took him down in, what, about three seconds?" Chase said with a smirk to the ocelot, "Way too easy."
The ocelot growled a bit as the raccoon smirked, "And a bit on the cocky side too?  I'm starting to like this guy."
Chase smirked as the ocelot growled louder, poking Chase in the back with the barrel of his rifle.
"I still don't see why we keep him alive." The ocelot said, pressing the barrel of the rifle into Chase's back, "The Sev`fel won't mind one more dead merc."
The raccoon walked over, pressing her blaster to his neck, "They won't pay if he's dead.  And if they don't pay, you will.  Understand?"
The ocelot removed his rifle from Chase's spine, "Understood ma'am."
Chase smirked to himself.  Now that he was sure they needed him alive, the fox's mind was formulating a plan.  But now it hinged on something different, the distrust between these bounty hunters and the Sev`fel.
"You really think the Sev`fel will just let you live for turning me over to them?" Chase asked.
The raccoon looked to him with a smirk, "I fully expect a betrayal by them at any time.  But so long as we have what they want and they have what I want, I feel we will both agree to the terms of our agreement."
Chase frowned and glared at her, "You have no idea who you're dealing with here, do you?  The Sev`fel will destroy you the second they have me!"
The raccoon looked to him, raising his head with her blaster, "They know better than to cross Minerva Black, leader of Phoenix Wing Inc."
At first, Chase thought he had failed.  But suddenly, the fox noticed something.  When Chase had told her that the Sev`fel would betray her and her company, most of the crew seemed to suddenly begins to have second thoughts.  If he couldn't work with her, the fox would at least put some fear into her crew.
"But if they do," Minerva continued, "They will suffer for it greatly."
Chase gave a soft growl, "If you say so.  After all, I'm sure you know what they do to their partners."
Minerva's ears perked a bit at that, "You think you can scare me?"
Chase smirked, "You?  I don't know.  But I do know the Sev`fel kill most all of their 'partners'.  I don't think anyone who did major business with them before has lived very long."
"K-killed most of them?" one of the crew asked nervously.
Chase nodded, "Yeah, killed."
Minerva glanced at the crewman that had spoken up, her fingers touching the handle of her blaster.  But as she did, the raccoon's eyes traveled to Chase, the fox smirking a bit, knowing he could affect her crew now.  To her, it was time to once more establish dominance over her crew's actions.  Quietly, Minerva walks behind her crew, her hand around the handle of her blaster pistol.
"Ok, for those of you cowards who want to turn around, raise your hand." Minerva said calmly, her eyes coldly glancing over her crew.
When one of them did raise their hands, Minerva's eyes narrowed.  Without hesitation, the raccoon drew her blaster and fired two shots, point blank, into the crewman's back!
The others recoiled a bit, hearing the shots, seeing the muzzle flash as the blaster discharged two shots of deadly energy into the crewman's spine as he slumped over and fell out of the chair.  Chase could only watch as Minerva looked up without emotion at the death of a crewman at her own hands.
"Anyone else want to turn around and quit?" Minerva asked, looking at the rest of her crew, "No?  I didn't think so.  We proceed as planned then.  Stay on course or I'll do the same to the rest of you."
With that threat over their heads, the crewman kept their heads down and continued the frigate on its course.  As they did, Minerva smirked and nodded to the ocelot still standing at attention, telling him to take Chase back to his cell for now.  With a nod, the ocelot did as he was told, his eyes not leaving the deadly weapon now replaced at Minerva's side.
"Ma'am, incoming hail from an unknown carrier." One of the crew noted.
Minerva nodded, "Put it through."
The crewman nodded and put it up on a view screen that dropped down behind Minerva.  But before it could activate, Chase felt a rifle being jammed into his back.  With that, the fox was lead out.
Minerva thought for a second before nodding, "Ok, put it through."
An image appeared before her, the reptilian creature's dark, pebbled skin and glowing red eyes stared at Minerva.  As a set of clear lenses swept across them, the creature gave a low growl.  There was no mistaking it, this creature was a Sev`fel.  Not only that, but from the look of the blood red blades growing from the creature's arms, it was a commander.
"Do you have the package?" The Sev`fel asked.
"Of course." Minerva said with a bit of annoyance in her voice, "But I have realized that this package is worth a bit more than your previous offer.  I would like to discuss a new deal in person.  Send a shuttle with a representative, and a few guards if you want.  We'll be opening the shuttle bay for your arrival."
The Sev`fel commander growled heavily, glaring angrily at Minerva before saying, "Fine…We will send several representative in a shuttle with one dozen of our robotic units to serve as guards.  All of our representatives will be armed in case you decide to betray our trust.  But if you make this deal unreasonable, we may have to take drastic measures against you to claim our package."
Minerva simply gave a smirk in reply, "I hope things do not come to that as well.  We here at Phoenix Wing Incorporated look forward to doing business with you."
*           *          *
"We've got activity from the Sev`fel carrier." The pilot stated back to the team, "They're launching a transport shuttle on a docking course with our target.  Looks like we have a window of insertion so get prepped and get in the shuttle."
Delta nodded, "Ok gang, lock and load!  Time to get our Ronin back."
Krystal nodded and loaded her rifle with the stun rounds before standing up and looking at the others she was going in with.
"Ok guys, we all know why we're doing this.  We're getting Chase back." Krystal explained, "We're not kill any of the bounty hunters, but if we see a Sev`fel unit we have clearance to use deadly force.  But we are to take their leader down with stun rounds and capture whoever they are."
Mira nodded, picking up the minigun, already having a blaster strapped to her side.  Delta smirked, loading similar rounds into his own rifle, the wolf's armor glowing as his shield powered up.  Kimmy was loading energy scattershot rounds into her shotgun after pulling it to her shoulder, aiming it towards the hull of the transport.  All of them knew what they had to do and who was at stake.
Krystal looked over them, knowing that they wouldn't let her down.  But to her, this mission wasn't over until Chase was back in their dorm, safe and sound.  Then, she would consider this retrieval a success.
"Ok…let's go get our friend back." Krystal finished, cocking her rifle, "And take down some bounty hunters."