"Flash traffic roger, tree break confirm, good luck, lima oscar victor echo ruby1, out.



OOC:  Yes, Tree, not Three.  and she said 'L-O-V-E Ruby1 element' cause she is Kelsey

Kelsey cranks up the big boy, script at hand, the crumbs of a damn tasty quesadilla just a bit from that, a slightly crumpled cigarette dangling from her knuckle.  She gives Taras a thumbs up, then she que's the mike, taking a deep breath she speaks:


"Horseshoe Bay, Horseshoe Bay, good morning.  This is Kelsey Champlain representing civil forces of the University of Brittish Columbia reconstruction team.  We wish to chat, chat only.  We understand that Mr Bulat Ismailovitch Shailin is there with you, and our own Mr Taras Vladimirovich Shevchenko wishes to speak with him, please reply.  Message repeat two times.

*Kelsey repeats the message as promised two times, then with a nervous look to the room, she takes a long shuddering drag from her twisted cigarette.*
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:33, Mon 28 Apr 2008.

When Kelsey looked up, a woman she hadn't seen come in gave her a thumbs-up.  The woman was wearing rank marks of a Lt Cmdr. The LC didn't say anything, however, just crossed her arms and settled back into the chair she'd been sitting in, near Belanger.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:34, Mon 28 Apr 2008.

Whether that registered or not with the last hour of so's tension, is hard to tell.  Actually, no, it was easy.. all Kelsey really saw was a thumb, not the rank.  Maybe that is part of her charm, when she looks at someone, she looks at their eyes, not their shoulders (unless they have a nice set of boobies, then it might drop farther!)

I don't know, some 40-ish women have very nice boobies.  In fatigues, might be hard to tell.  Anyway, the woman had a warm, open expression.  She seemed to simply be sitting back and watching what was going on.

Well, looks like we have a visitor here!

The attention of the room turned towards the new arrival. It was believed that an Intelligence Officer was in the way to help with the mission. Certainly a very good idea concocted by the Council and military HQ. Taras was surprised initially that the officer in question was a woman, and a very good looking one by the way. On a second thought, he realized that the hand of Ms Kwan was heavier than he though and bringing some gender balance was another hat trick of the brilliant Professor.

Good Morning, Officer. My name is Taras Vladimirovich Shevchenko. Welcome to Vancouver!

The woman stood up from her chair, walked over and offered her hand.  "Good morning to you, Taras.  I'm Lt. Cmd. Andrea Clarke-Sullivan, Intellegence.  Most people call me 'Clarke'.  I got used to going by my maiden name when I was enlisted, and just never changed when I got married."

Please to meet you, Clarke. Here is part of the team that will be working with you. 

Shevchenko looked around wating for the rest of the team to introduce themshelves.

*The Blonde at the radio looks back and smirks at the new arrival*

"Kelsey, sorry to hear about your condition"

*She winks, then frowns at the static in her headset, holding one side closer to her ear as she concentrates*

Clarke raises an eyebrow.  "Condition?"

*Kelsey frowns a moment, listening to the radio, then registers the comment and grins*

"Heterosexuality"

*Taras felt embarrased and furious at the same time. Since the arrival of the troops from the Island in the GB "Church" nothing appeared to resemble discipline, respect and cohesion. The behaviour of the radio operator was disrespectul towards to the superior officer and distasteful in any case. He couldn't avoid a frozen expression on his face. A motley crew was not the right place to work. He was hoping for a strong response from the Naval Officer.*

"To each her own, Private," Clarke answered.  "Respect for each other's differences is a hallmark of our democracy, wouldn't you say?" She held our her hand.  "To whom do I have the pleasure?"

Clarke saw the look of shock on Taras' face, while Kelsey wasn't watching that closely.  She gave him an "I'll take care of this" wink.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:03, Mon 28 Apr 2008.

*Kelsey turns back slowly, apparently impressed by her poise, then grins, her hands a little busy holding a headset to her head.  Private.. well, she didn't wear rank.. hell, right now she is just wearing a sweater and fatigue pants, she guesses she already knows who she is.  You know how it is in a field op.. no one wears a proper uniform, and privates don't have any rank to wear anyway.*

"I am betting you already know, ma'm, you gave it away."

The radio crackled, and the response was "Ah, this is Horseshoe Bay, we read you! Great to hear from you. Please stand by."

After a moment, they continued.

"Mr. Shailin says he remembers his friend "Taras Vladimirovich" and would love to speak to him. Also, the Mayor of West Vancouver would like to speak to you when convenient."

*Kelsey slams her hand on the desk and whoops out loudly, standing and holding the mic*

"Roger that, Horseshoe Bay!" *She couldn't keep the excitement out of her voice*  "Lt Taras!"

Clarke smiled warmly.  "I suppose I just did, Kelsey.  I've heard good things about you."  Clarke's voice was soft and melodious, but even at low volume her diction was so perfect every word could be understood.  It was a voice that didn't need to shout or threaten to exude command.

She stepped back.  It looked like the other woman was pretty busy.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:20, Mon 28 Apr 2008.

Clarke beamed at the excited Comms.  "Very good, Pvt. Champlain," she said.  She went back to her chair and sat down, leaving "center stage" to Taras and Kelsey.

What do we have, Champlain?

For once he felt that something good could be achieved at last. The expresion in the face of the radio operator while listening through the headset was positive.

Maybe this woman is a good omen after all... The thought lingered for a while and then dissapeared.

Taras moved quickly towards the radio set. He quickly produced a pen and notebook from his pocket.

Ready for action!

Horseshoe Bay el-tee!

She turns over the mic, putting the communications on loudspeaker for everyone

Key it here. She says softly, showing him how to use the external base mic.

In the predawn, the recce element ("Ruby-1") redeployed to an overwatch position above the town for when radio contact was established. If nothing else, it would improve their radio contact with the Marina, "Topaz".

When the broadcast was made, they were in position to monitor the town and the approaches to Whiskey Cove, although from their current position they would be too far to effectively intervene and would have to relocate to provide direct cover to the proposed landing site.

Lee and Fox greeted the LT. CDR as she made their aquaintance, as did Belanger and the leader of the UBC reaction team that was  there to provide them support.

Seeing Champlain's somewhat cheeky comment to the ranking officer hadn't set her off, Fox still felt he had to comment. "Yes, let's recall that we are not to discriminate against anyone based on race, creed or sexual orientation. I for one as a conservative heterosexual male have often felt the lash of prejudice, and I deeply feel the pain felt by others."

There were chuckles, as there was a grain of truth about his comment in predominantly socially liberal Canada. Thankfully, of the social and ideological cultural wars that raged to the south in the USA was largely (but not completely) absent.

Horseshoe Bay indicated they were standing by for Sr. LT Shevchenko's transmission.
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:18, Tue 29 Apr 2008.

Andy and Chris humped across country yet again. The got into position to keep an eye on the occupants of Horseshoe bay and waited for the rdaio boffins to make contact.

"Well, her heart's in the right place, even if her mouth is out of line," Clarke said.  "There have been some moral issues lately.  I'm here to change that."

This message was last edited by the player at 14:32, Mon 28 Apr 2008.

Lt. Shevchenko quickly grabbed the mic.

"Greetings North Shore! This is Taras Vladimirovich speaking...transmitting from the provisional seat of the Government in the University...We are willing to contact you and invite you to be part of the plan to return the city to normal life..."

The unscripted message was unfolding with enthusiasm.

"If you are willing to cooperate we can offer you medical, education, security support...We have full support of the miltary forces and the capital..."

Before going any further Taras needed to hear some response. He released the button and look over the shoulder to the faces of the rest of team in expectation.

Clarke glanced at Belanger.  This was his baby, but so far so good as far as she could tell.