Nathaniel and Naida turned the prisoners over, glad to be rid of the extra burden, while the supplementary members of the fireteam formed up. The guide lead them onward at a cautious pace, though there was little in the way of surprises to be found. This deep into the mine, there was more evidence of habitation - the tunnels back here seemed to be used more heavily by the bandits. Bedrolls, camp cots and other flotsam of living were tucked into nooks and crannies. Weapon racks and tools crowded other spaces, and the smells of people, cooking and machinery coiled together with dry rock. 
The area was dimly lit, and Jed slowed down as a brighter light hinted at the tunnel opening up.
"The main cavern is ahead," he declared, turning back to look at all of them. 
Nathaniel and Naida exchanged glances and looked up to Mike. 

IFF tags pulsing 'friendly' were reading strong from ahead, issuing from the GEARs of the other Roughriders, and as Mike and the others came into range, their tags popped up on the screens of Silverwinds' C3I suite, as well as the others' systems.
"Afternoon," drawled the vulpine, deadpan, as they moved into the main area. "Situation is as I said: Six potential hostiles in the enclosed office space. Got them on thermal, along with four non-moving personnel which might be the hostages, or more bandits. 
Nathaniel, Naida and the security team reacted smoothly. Taking the feed from Blades' IR scan, they plotted a breach-and-clear through the visors on their combat helmets and their PADDS, before stacking up on the door. At a 'go' from Nathaniel, they lobbed flashbangs from the security team through the door, and swept in with force and awe. The automatic gunfire and booms of shotguns resounded through the cavern for a few moments, along with loudly yelling voices as the Roughrider fireteam took down the opposition. 
Silverwind streamed the action to the others' monitors. For his own part, he remained silent but kept glued to the screen in case of anything missed by the team, or any moment he could offer assistance in any way. But they were clearly the professionals in this matter; all of the tangoes went down with little fuss. Moments later, Nathaniels voice confirmed it:
"All targets down, no prisoners this time. Hostages are secured; looks like we've got good intel here too. No signs of any other bad guys either".
With a whooshing sigh Blade toggled the comms. "Roger that, excellent work in there. All units, all targets are secured. No other hostiles in the area, stand down".

Blade switched the monitor back to regular light, and popped the hatch on the [i]Harlock[/i] stepping it back and lowering the gun at last. Shortly, they'd have a chance to return to the relative comfort of the Landcruiser, though there'd be debriefings and other post-mission dissections of action to carry out. At least they wouldn't be under gun barrels, and no-one was liable to die or be wounded. 
This hadn't been an easy mission, and in part, that was due to the many things about it that raise questions with no clear answers. Where did the bandits get all of their hi-tech gear? Who were the others that showed up and fought outside the mine? Where did the artillery barrage come from? 
He grimaced and his ears flattened. Hopefully, either the intel or the prisoners would provide some answers. 

"Good job everyone," he said after a few moments, his voice proud, but tired. "Y'all really came through when it counted. Especially with us men down. Security team is movin' in ta take care of the prisoners. As soon as they're here, we'll RTB. Take a couple of hours to shower, eat, and wind down. We'll debrief in our crew lounge; we have all we need there for it".

As he spoke, a utility vehicle rolled up an debussed a half-dozen more security team members; normally the people who were cooks, clerks and other low-ranking bodies aboard the ship, but strapped on weapons and armour when needed. They secured the hostages and began to police up the weapons, ammo and other equipment left lying around, or to process the prisoners left behind. Blade turned the GEAR around, and lead the way back to the Landcruiser, and past the mine entrance.
"[I]Claw[/i], this is Blade. We're returning to ship. Notify the other members of the Roughriders we're coming in, and to prepare for a debrefiing - if they're able - in a couple of hours, over".
"Roger, Blade. The captain says good work, and she'll speak to you later regarding the mission. Control, out".
The tired vulpine marched the GEAR down the hillside, and into the open maw of the [I]Claw's[/i] bay. People and machines swarmed everywhere, salvaging parts from the enemy GEARs, cataloguing equipment, detailing prisoners into work-parties and otherwise making things look busy. 
Parking his GEAR in a stall, Blade shut the machine down and climbed out, wincing at the aches he felt. It had only been a few hours, but it felt like weeks or even months since he'd climbed into the cockpit.
He waved to Irry, Mike and Adrian as they climbed out of their machines, before he rode the elevator to the floor, and headed for the stairwell to the upper floors and their squadrons' rooms.

[quote]I am sure we are fine. Can you hold your landcrawler for a minute? I'll get back to you shortly."[/quote]
"Roger", replied the same voice again. "We're fixed on this course, and will drop our speed to slow. Is there a problem, LDF? Over".

[quote]"Air to tower uhh.. The landcrawler is heading southbound to Martsenstown. Seems like a northern guy or something was on the radio, and I am not sure if I relayed that SAM warning the system popped up briefly... Possibly a glitch but I'm going ahead and attempting a thermals sweep. Will return once the sweep is complete."[/quote]
On the bridge of the [i]Claw,[/i] Captain Garrett leaned up from behind the comms officer, an annoyed look on her face. Things were not going well today. 
"We can't detain them without any reason," she mused out loud to the comms officer. "And there's too much underway here to just pick up and relocate to the landcruiser anyway." She gave a huff of annoyance at the situation. "Tell him to RTB for now - we have their name and destination. We can always follow it up after the squadron have debriefed and we've sifted through the intel we've got".
"Yes m'am." She leaned forward once again and spoke into the headset, calling Ken back.
"Maxwell, this is CIC. [I]Claw[/i] boss recommends you RTB for the current time. We have nothing to hold them on for now. The rest of the squadron are RTB too. Head on home, we'll be waiting. CIC, out".