On the way back, the team plus Rod, Sheila (the Mayor) and Bulat.

Passing by the bridge, Rod pointed out the half-dozen small fishing boats to the east of the bridge. "Those fishing craft... we see them coming from Stanley Park. Stickmen, we think."

Arriving back at the Marina, the team and the VIPs transferred to a convoy of SUVs for the short trip to UBC's main checkpoint.

As promised, the LAV was positioned to cover the approaching vehicle traffic. They'd not bothered trying to fake a "revetment" (as Bulat could possibly tell) and instead parked it behind the bunkers, back in the trees, under camouflage netting.

Fox was in the turret, and he waved at them as the passed. Someone pretending to be a driver stuck his head out the front hatch. Bulat was allowed to keep his sidearm, Sheila and Rod were unarmed.

Tricia happily videotaped the proceedings.

The VIPs were accompanied by Clarke and Taras, who escorted them to the conference centre to meet with the civilian government's leadership.

Team headed back to their billet and was eventually met at their billet by UBC's Provost (Belanger) for debriefing. Jagelis had decided to return to Vancouver Island that day, but the 2 comms techs were there and welcomed them back.

Checking with HQ before heading back to the meeting, Clarke was given a "job well done" by HQ and they informed her that she was to make sure they got MacArthur's cooperation if at all possible. "...After all, those are the last working steam engines we know of... maybe in all of Canada or even North America."

They confirmed that coal was relatively plentiful on the Island, and not only could supplies be guaranteed for the train but for communities as well.  It was a shame the rail bridge was down, because the North Shore and Burrard Inlet was so rugged that there was no direct rail line east from there either into the city or the rest of the province. It might be possible to either run the trains north up and around through Lillooet, or even salvage a rail barge that was docked at Ladysmith over on the Island.

Belanger was interested in their quick rundown of the north shore and what little they'd gleaned about the Stickmen. "See you at the meeting. I will see if I can get a little more out of Bulat, MacArthur and the Mayor."

"Hey skipper!"

Mac smiled at Clarke before she left the billet. It wouldn't seem right to skip this chore, under the circumstances.

"If we're not needed at the reception, can we take the evening off? I want to take Master Corporal McRae here for a beer!"

Andy smiled at that, "A beer sure would be nice, Ma'am and me, well I ain't really cut out for this diplomatic function ho-ha. I can be nice to people in the field, but when you need manners? I think you'd be better off without me."

Clarke laughed.  "Sure, guys, enjoy a night off.  I think you've earned it.  Consider yourselves relieved of duty for the rest of the day.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:21, Mon 12 May 2008.

Kelsey was excited about the comms equipment that was being installed by the 2 new techs. Aside from a more powerful "base" set, there were a few special pieces of equipment.

Broadcast Monitoring Equipment: This kit, combined with an electronics repair kit, permits characters with Electronics skill to listen in on cellular phones, radios and other broadcast signals, provided that the operating frequency of the broadcast source is known. Wt: 1 kg; Price $400 (C/R)

Radio Direction Finder: A specialized radio receiver designed to determine the specific direction a particular radio broadcast is coming from. These are useful for a variety of tasks. Getting a directional fix using one of these is a task (Easy: Electronics) and requires one minute (provided that the signal stays on the air that long). The result is a compass bearing, not a distance. Two or three such RDF units, spaced far apart, can get two or more bearings for triangulation of broadcast source. Wt 2 kg; Price. $1500 (C/C).

RF Scanner/Filter: The RF scanner is an incredibly useful device for SIGINT (SIGnals INTelligence) spooks. This device is capable of picking up RF emissions across a wide band and passing them along to other devices for processing. To operate the scanner/filter properly is AVG: Electronics. What can be done with this device is nothing short of amazing.

For example, the device could detect RF emissions of computer monitors, allowing other monitors following signal processing, DIF: Electronics to reproduce what is displayed on the eavesdropped monitor. The same can be done with computer microprocessors. Or cordless and cellular telephones. Or radio transmissions. The scanner/filter can pick up transmissions within the range of the transmit. For low-power emissions, such as monitors and microprocessors, this is limited to 200 meters. For cordless/cellular telephones, this is one kilometer. For all others, range is indefinite and depends on transmitter strength. Also, Such devices can be used as direction-finding gear to locate RF emissions. This is DIF: Electronics.

Current Tech: This device is a small, hand-held unit with an LCD display showing the current frequency and signal strength. An attached speaker/headphone jack can be fed into processing equipment. This device is available to any civilian in Western nations. Wt 2 kg; Cost: $750. (S/R)

Mac grinned.

"Awright! Don't worry Ma'am, we'll stay on-campus."

"Kelsey, you in?"

Beer and darts?  Hell yeah, I'm in

Clarke grinned at Kelsey.  "Don't overdue the brewskies.  You don't want to check out the new comms equipment with a hangover, do you?"

*She winks and gives her a thumbs up, darting her gaze to where the new gear was going in, hopefully in something like an RaTT rig.*

"No worries Clarke, I just want the relaxing.. and the darts.   Want to come along?"

Clarke was aware that Officers, especially senior ones, didn't usually hang out with enlisted personnel.  Still, things seemed a lot more laid back here than at HQ.  This was a small group and team-building might be more important than strict military protcol.  Clarke checked her watch.  Shit, it was later than she thought. After all the brown-nosing with the VIPs, a beer sounded great.  "Yeah, count me in.  Probably just one, I've got a mess of paperwork that was dumped on me."

She bought the first round, shot a few darts and had a burger.  Once she'd had something to eat, she bid her farewells to the others and headed back to her quarters.  She needed to get aquainted with her "new" laptop and the mountain of information Taras wanted her to review.  It had to be gone over before the morning wrap-up and farewell with the VIPs.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:38, Thu 15 May 2008.

As she relaxed, Clarke reflected on how the day had gone.

The early meeting had gone off very well indeed, then the transport to UBC. The VIPs were given lunch, then the tour of the community. They were very impressed with the facilities and organisation.

There was an agreement of cooperation between West Vancouver and the civil government. Not just mutual protection, but Clarke was able to promise MacArthur that in time he would have a supply of coal from the Island where it was ample. Enough to run his train, or one day soon provide heat and electrical power.

Also, the government on the Island could supply considerable amounts of small arms and ammunition, which could be made in simple basement shops. Unfortunately, electronics and complicated weapons simply weren't possible.

Meanwhile, her team had done a few housekeeping tasks like cleaning weapons and so on, then some had caught up on a little sleep.

In the evening it started raining, and the VIPs decided to stay the night.

Clarke had a beer with her people, but cut it short as this conflicted with the CF's formerly ironclad tradition of social separation between the officers and "other ranks" (enlisted). As this wasn't too big a breach of protocol, it was forgivable, and she did have important work to do.

She was to meet with Belanger, Taras and Bulat. Taras' idea for an intelligence gathering unit (as yet unnamed) had gotten a lot of interest. Tomorrow they would start sending the word for volunteers from not only UBC and West Van, but the Musqueam. Also, the next day the RCMP would start fanning out through the neighborhood of Kitsilano and Kerrisdale, taking a census.

Of course, the discussion turned to the Stickmen.

Rumour was there was up to a hundred of them, but no firm numbers. Their origins were uncertain. They used a low-tech organisation that nonetheless showed a high degree of sophistication and discipline. Somehow, they had quantities of liquid fuel, enough to use as petrol bombs.

Not only were they able to detect and react to incursions on their territory, they were capable of planning and launching a retaliatory strike far from their own territory.

One possible angle was that, big as the park was, they possibly couldn't get all they needed to survive from it. The fishing boats they'd seen on Burrard Inlet could have belonged to them, and it was possible they also traded with people either in the West End, the urban neighborhood that was in between the downtown and the park.

Back at the bar, Andy, Mac and Kelsey hung out and flirted with some of the locals. They were former UBC students, teachers, staff and refugees from elsewhere in the city. Although many of the younger ones seemed a little on the hippie side, no one seemed to hold the fact they were soldiers were against them. Sam, the reporter, came in and sat with them, chatting but not talking business.

It was only around 2100 hours or so, but this was a working agricultural community, and it was clear that the party wasn't going to go very late, if at all.

After checking on the status of her new toys, Kelsey showers and changes into civvies, standing out some due to her muscles and tattoos, but gregarious and friendly. (unless they have to wear uniforms all the time!)
Likely, weather permitting, she is wearing short, sandles, and some kind of sleeveless top to show off her tattoos.  She does not tend to wear much of anything feminine though, and likely all the clothing is from the mens department.
She is friendly, but a bit careful of Clarke in public, even buying her beer.  Glad to see her there.  The boys she hit on the civvie girls with, probably leaving some wondering if she is for real... but she goes for a bit softer touch for the reporter that caught her eye, playing friendly, but interested, with her, glad not to talk work, but letting conversation wander to other things.

Clarke fetched herself a cup of coffee, settled back and got comfortable in an overstuffed chair.  She had showered and changed from her more formal attire to a set of comfortable fatiques for the meeting.

She sighed and souched into the chair, letting herself sort of melt into it.  "Were it up to me, my goal would be to gather information about us.  Their look-outs no doubt saw the boats crossing back and forth from West Van to here.  They will be wondering what's up.  We were looking at bridges going back and forth.  The Lion's Gate is the only reasonable land access between UBC and West Van.  We will have to gain access unless we want all traffic to go either by boat or a very long land route.

She sat up a little straighter, arms on the sides of the chair, looking from one face to another for their reactions.  "They may try a few raids, to gauge our strength or even weaken our position."  Her eyes narrowed.  "We certainly can't afford to underestimate the niculturni, can we?

Clarke suddenly had a thought. The Stickmen were getting fuel from somewhere.  That meant outside contacts and trading partners.  They had shown a good amount of organization and strategy. It seemed logical their next move would be intellegence or a strike against UBC - or her team.  There had been refugees at the club, people new to the community of unknown origins, or people from the surrounding areas.

"Belanger, several of my people are at the club.  Mmm, perhaps someone who knows the locals should be riding herd.  When I left, they were hitting on anything with a skirt.  It would be an easy way to get one of them alone.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:13, Sat 17 May 2008.

Belanger lifted and eyebrow.

"Given that you can see the Marina from Stanley Park, and it was all lit up that night, what are the odds they might try a reprisal here or at the Yacht Club? It's not in the UBC perimeter, but that makes it more vulnerable. I'll alert Khandola about this."

"Do you think they are planning a strike here?" He asked rhetorically, as there was no way to know.

---

The personnel at the SUB (Student Union Building) pub were having a good time. The beer was cold and excellently brewed; a band was playing cover tunes and not mangling them too bad. They finished a set, then began with Tom Petty's "Breakdown".

Cpl. Lee walked in, saw the team with various local females, enjoying their company. They were very well-behaved, knowing that they were guests and starting fights or seducing someone's innocent daughter would likely have serious repercussions.

In fact, there was a crowd of young folk around them, asking them for information about the outside world, and to hear war stories.

Kelsey was gratified for the attention Sam was paying her, but was aware there wasn't many sparks happening and Sam hadn't made a move. On the plus side, Sam wasn't pumping her for information, either.

Lee went over to the table, and after being granted some privacy explained the situation and the possible danger. "Not to panic or anything. just, you know, keep an eye out. We're going to be here for a while, so no need to rush anything with anyone tonight, if you know what I mean."
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:19, Sun 18 May 2008.

Andy heard Lee's suggestion and nodded his agreement. He sipped the beer and relished the flavour. He finished his drink and said, "Understood, Lee, and thanks for the heads up. I wasn't expecting to get lucky tonight but if I had, I wouldn't have expected any Mata Haris."

Mac smirked. "Speak for yourself! I fully intended on scoring. Well, maybe not."

"I guess we don't want anyone getting us alone and clubbing us over the head for some nefarious purpose."

She shrugged and looked to their new ally.  "What's your opinion, Bulat?  You know the Stickmen better than we do.

*Kelsey glances towards Sam and then shrugs, grinning a little, slightly flushed from drinking or embarrassment, she leans in and whispers as well*

"Actually, had my eye on the reporter, but I don't think she sees me that way.  Locals.. well I used to live here, but even someone I used to know I wouldn't try to take home tonight"

Lee smiled.

"Good good. Keep an eye on them McRae."

"Speaking personally, I'm going to keep a clear head. We may be acting as a reaction force sooner than we thought."

"I'm going back to billet, watch some TV! See you there in a while?"

She shrugged and looked to their new ally.  "What's your opinion, Bulat?  You know the Stickmen better than we do.
</quote>

Bulat shrugged, sipping his tea.

"Know little of Stick Man, myself. Was hired after attack, to protect community. Would think yes, is matter of honour, of... save their face. Would be watching us, looking for weakness."

Now-Inspector Khandola arrived, nodded at being told of the possibility. "I will alert the perimeter security and the reaction team there may be trouble.

Belanger grimaced. "Bear in mind that the Militia here is not full time. The RCMP usually mans the perimeter; for political reasons we can't have the Militia called-up full-time unless we make some kind of permanent arrangement."

"Well, let's concentrate on security here-and-now."

Taras added, "perhaps a Provost company of RCMP auxiliaries would be the way to go for the future. I shall think on this more."

"Thank you for answering my concerns.  I still have much to learn about the local organizations.  There is also working out how things with function with new personnel thrown in.

"It is never easy!" replied Khandola.

They talked a little while longer, mostly about different strategies regarding the Stickmen. Taras was of the opinion they were now in a good position to pacify the park area, now that the northern approach was secure. Elements could therefore approach from either direction.

Belanger added, "after all this, people are still sensitive about Stanley Park. It's a real symbol of the city, an icon. Whatever we do, we need to make sure minimal damage is caused. Look what happened at Waco. The fire might have been an accident, might even have been unavoidable, but look at the fallout!"

"Still, we can use that to our advantage. After all, these hooligans have claimed for themselves what really belongs to everyone."

There was more conversation with Bulat about his future and the offer Taras had made to join the federal forces. Really, he didn't have much of an option otherwise. If he didn't accept the offer of an amnesty, he and his people would be disarmed and treated as criminals, try to establish himself as a warlord or even flee northward. Neither of the latter options seemed appealing.

He made it clear that the mayor called the shots, but that also the town was finding it hard to justify paying for a miltiary unit for protection, especially when providing security was really the federal government's job. In the past when it came up hypothetically, they had agreed that Bulat's platoon (section, really) would transferred to federal command.

It amused him he might end up working for the Miliciya, the Russian/Soviet term for police (a somewhat more paramilitary style of policing than in the west).

Of course, the government, although really UBC, would end up picking up the tab for his unit's services from West Van. This was "win-win" in that Bulat remained free, West Van was off the hook for his contract and could offere something of value to the government, and the military gained the use of a trained unit, albeit former enemy combatants.

Belanger agreed. "Okay, as Provost, I can authorise this transfer of contract, although it will be fairly expensive to pay Bulat and his men. Still, they can do more good there than cooped up on the North Shore. Once we either clear the Park, or find a way to ship the BMP across Burrard Inlet."
This message was last edited by the GM at 12:02, Tue 20 May 2008.

At the SUB, the rest of the evening passed without incident. No one was dragged off, or got laid, for that matter!

The personnel there got the opinion people wanted to help out. That living behind a fence struck people as paying a high price for safety. Like living in a prison, or just as bad, like they were the jailors.

If some kind of volunteer force was formed for operations in the city itself, they were sure that they would get  more than a few volunteers.

After the last pints were quaffed, they headed back to the billet. Andy and Chris got a little action and were hopeful of future prospects for romance. Kelsey also was flirted with by some of the girls and a few clueless guys.

"Yes, Stanley Park should be for everyone.  Besides, it's time we did something about those terrorist,eh?"

For the rest of the conversation, Clarke listened and tried to absorb.  She was sure if she objected it would be noted.  She didn't.  Having extra forces was a good idea, especially when it meant finding a use for men who would otherwise be a problem.

Sunday Morning, April 6, 2001.

The day dawned, mostly cloudy. Sunday church services were held by the UBC Chaplain at the University Hill Congregation church. It was a United Church of Canada congregation, and was typically laid-back and welcoming to everyone. (The United Church is the 2nd-largest Christian church in Canada, behind the Catholic Church and ahead of the Anglicans. They were formed from the Methodists, Congregationalists and Presbyterians and had become a very liberal left-leaning church, the first in Canada to ordain female priests and perform gay marriages.)

Rod, Sheila and Bulat stayed for breakfast and mass (even Bulat). After, they were shuttled back to West Van.

Mid-morning, the RCMP detachment and volunteers fanned out into the neighborhoods around UBC, armed with clipboards and questionnaires. The team was mobilised as a reaction force in support.

By mid-afternoon, something interesting was reported.

Khandola reported it to Lee, who related it to the team.

"Uh, the Mounties are reporting there's a family that lives in Point Grey, by the Yacht Club. They say their kid saw a stranger, a "wild man" living in an abandoned house nearby, brought him some food this morninig. He wasn't there a couple days ago, so they figure he showed up last night. Seems to be watching the Marina Could be a Stickman spy? They're leaving him alone, see if we want to detain him. Could be a homeless guy."

Kelsey attends church, part for the normalcy, part for the spiritual renewal, and part to check out the single girls, UCC being a favorite of lesbians, after all.



In standard combat gear, glengary on at a cocky angle, loosely professional, rifle slung, no round chambered.  Not sure if we keep even magazine in at this threat level.




"Regardless a human being.  Should we bring an aide pack to him and have a chat?"

*She smiles, like most of them I am sure, she had seen plenty of combat and death, but like some others she is not mentioning, she wants to see peace all around, much more for reconciling with even the Stickmen, then trying to kill anyone.*

Clarke attended church as well, thinking she might join the chior at some point.
Clarke nodded. "A soft approach first, yes.  Whoever he is, he might have information we need.  He'll be more willing to talk over dinner than a rifle butt."

*She winks and grins*

"Catch more flies with sugar instead of vinegar"

Clarke grinned back.  "You ever consiser intellegence work?  Of course, for the next little bit, we'll all be doing at least some intellegence gathering."

*Kelsey shrugs and cops a fake southern US drawl*

"No Clarke I ain't, but mama always said It's nice to be important, but it's more important to be nice."

Chris grinned.

"Don't be modest! Kelsey and I, we've been doing the DRI thing since they started the unit here, couple of months ago. It's kind of a little of both, intelligence and soldiering. We're not veterans, but we were sent along to help give this here unit a little experience."

He shrugged to show how that turned out, then looked more serious.

"Can we have it both ways? Those Stickmen killed 20 people in the park, burned down a town, killed half-a-dozen more. No statute of limitations on murder."

"Yes, not all the people in the park are criminals."

"There's no statute of limitations on murder and arson. Someone killed those people on the bridge, and set the fires that killed more up in West Van. Someone attacked us, too, probably the same ones."

Lee nodded in agreement with the idea of making a deal to neutralise the Stickmen.

"I agree, the Crown will probably be willing to make a plea bargains in order to get convictions. To separate the innocent from the guilty, we'll need help from the people in the park; not all might be Stickmen. Justice must be served, it's the Canadian way."

She changed her expression, looking expectantly towards Clarke.

"Well, what's the plan?"

Clarke could agree with Lee's acessment that there needed to be some answer to the death and destruction wrought by the Stick Men.  Before that, however, they had one person who might be just as much a victim as enemy to deal with.

"Let's start by getting out own eyes on this situation.  We don't know anything except this is an unkempt adult male.  We don't know his age or other information.  My best guess without other information is to have someone approach, taking the aid package with them.  The others cover the house.  He may break and try to run for it."

She thought about the different strengths of the team.  "Kelsey, you make contact and offer the package.  Lee and I will cover you.  Chris, cover the back of the house in case he tries to make a break for it.  Sound like a plan?"

"Sounds good.  The stickmen may have a lot to answer for, but Lee.. remember, unless you can prove someone is a stickman, then they are innocent of that, right?  Clarke, make sure the people covering do it from range, ok?  Don't spook him"



"Sure.. I like people.  I can be gruff and all, or indelicate, but I like folks, and he will probably respond better to a girl, right?"

"All good points, Kelsey.  We'll use them.  Let's go.

Lee agreed, seeing they were on the same wavelength, more-or-less.

"Absolutely! Justice is meaningless if it's indiscriminate. It could be most of the people there aren't any more guilty than anyone else in the city of doing what they had to survive. If that's the case, maybe those people will step forward to highlight the really guilty parties if we can act with restraint and tact."

She listened to Clarke's plan.

"We'll also cordon off the area as best we can, but keep our distance."

Mac indicated Andy.

"Almost, I take it the Master Corporal will be with me, eh?"

"Also, I guess we should stay out of occupied dwellings unless in hot pursuit."

*Kelsey gives Zhang a thumbs up and a grin*

"How about us non-threatening girls approach in one vehicle, I unload his aid pack and take it to him, you boys take the other and stay out of sight?  Let's not appear to be too aggressive and spook him off"

The plan needed to be detailed out for execution. "Let's give our bright shiny new militia something to do." She coordinated with Fox to have the militia set up a cordon of the neighborhood in case there was more trouble than they anticipated.  "OK, we'll observe the man for an hour or two while Fox sets up the cordon.  If everything looks good, we'll proceed as Kelsey suggested.

She looked to the people she had with her.  "Andy, Chris, you'll take one of the SUV's and approach from the rear.  Lee, Kelsey and I will move use the other SUV.  We'll observe a while as I said.  If everyting looks good, Lee and I will cover Kelsey as she makes her approach with the aid package.  Chris and Andy will cover the rear.  Fox will have the area cordoned off by the militia.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:24, Sun 25 May 2008.

Taking the Rover, Chris and Andy drove to the southern rear side of the block, away from the address they had been given. They parked out of sight, then got into position to observe.

At the same time, Fox coordinated the militia cordon and Taras coordinated with the RCMP. They set up a command post in an abandoned condo complex two blocks away to the east. They pulled the Suburban, the mountie SUV and Taras UAZ into the covered parking area.

The rest of the team chilled out at the field HQ. Clarke looked in one of the rooms, saw it was a nursery. Luckily, the place had been abandoned and cleared. Some places still had corpses of those unluckly enough to not survive the first, dreadful winter after the bombs hit. The door had the standard "search" X beside the door, marking the date it was searched, by whom, any victims (none, in this case) and any health or structural hazards (none except for cleaning materials). The mark was a couple years old at this point, so it was probably a little out of date.

The day continued to be cloudy, and there was a brief shower around noon. Every hour, the observation team reported in.

Around 1300 hours, Andy reported something interesting. There appeared to be 2 individuals, both young males present, approximately 17-21 YOA. They were taking turns watching the front of the Yacht Club/marina complex from the house on the SE corner of Point Grey Road and Highbury St. From there, they had a clear look at the front of the club buildings across from them, less than 100m away.

"Interesting.  Maybe we should give them something to see and watch what they do."   She got on the radio and checked in with Fox.  "They seem to be watching the Yacht club.  Perhaps we should have a couple of ringers in spare fatigues go over to the building, just to see how they react."

To Kelsey, "Given they seem to have the Yacht Club staked out, maybe the friendly lady soldier wouldn't be such a good idea after all.  Let's watch what they do when they see someone in uniform enter the building, shall we?"
This message was last edited by the player at 06:24, Sun 25 May 2008.

Andy followed Chris' directions and noted the location of the pair of kids. He moved his rifle to cover them and spoke softly over the radio, "Sniper team has the unidentified observers under surveillence. If they do anything out of turn we can take them down."

Clarke swore when she heard McRae.  "Jesus, McRae, jumping the gun, aren't we?" she thought to herslelf."  Then she got on the radio.  "First priority is capture, not elimination.  Capture if they attempt to flee.  Amber Actual out."
This message was last edited by the player at 12:41, Sun 25 May 2008.

Fair enough, Andy thought, and hunkered down.

Deciding that it would be best to see how they reacted under different circumstances, Fox first sent 2 militia in a Ford F150 up to the yacht club.

After moving to where they could see the front of the house, the two observers were positioned on a rooftop under some tree branches. From there Andy and Mac had an excellent view  across Highbury St. at the house on the corner. They got ready to intervene if the watchers made any threatening moves.

The militia parked and got out, trying not to look across the street or look like they wanted to run for cover immediately.

The one punk in the window brought up a pair of binoculars and said something to the other, which Andy couldn't catch because his lips were obscured. Andy watched the guy peering through the binos, while making some notes on a pad. He was unshaved with greasy long hair pulled back into a pony tail, a beat-up leather jacket, cut-off camouflaged shorts and running shoes wrapped in duct-tape.

Although they were ready to put a bullet in him if necessary, nothing overtly threatening occurred. There were no weapons in evidence they could see.

The militia went in and eventually came out, and again they were watched as they got in the truck and left. The second punk came out and they could see it was a man about the same age, with a green mohawk, stublled cheeks, wearing a surplus Bundeswehr jacket, jeans and boots. He was smoking a cigarette and again it was impossible to read his lips from this angle when they spoke.

Soon after, Taras sent in a couple of Mounties, and the same process repeated itself. It was clear they were there to observe, take notes, and presumably report back on the comings-and-goings across the way at the Yacht Club.

"Those aren't homeless guys, those are spies.  We need to flush them and let Chris and Andy pick them up."  Lee was in her duty uniform, not fatigues.  The Mounties and civilian volunteers had been running the census.  If someone knocked on the door, their guys might decide to duck out the back.

"Lee, Kelsey, some thoughts.  I think we should call in a couple more Mounties.  Have two go in quietly to support Chris and Andy.  Lee, you and one other person go to the door and act like census takers.  Kelsey and I will cover you.  With any luck, it will spook those two.  They'll scoot out the back and into the arms of our boys out back."

"Yeah.. glad we did it your way instead of mine"

*Kelsey looks a little serious, nodding to her*
"Right, certainly are.  Though are you sure it wouldn't just be better to simply assualt the position, drop a flash grenade and bust in?"

Clarke nodded. "Green 6 to Red 11.  Request additional RCMP personnel to our location, break.  Two to backup Green 23, two for Green 1, break.  Green 6 Out."

She turned to the rest of the team to update them on the plan.  "OK, folks, when the RCMP get here, two of them will join Chris and Mac unobserved.  Lee, you and another RCMP will take clipboards and play census takers, go to the front door.  The rest of us will cover you at a distance.  Plan as previously stated - hopefully we flush the rabbits right to Chris and Mac."  She also called to the Little Hawk and McDonald by radio and updated them as well.

The arrangements went quickly, with additional units arriving. They were lucky in that as the targets were oriented north with all of the city at their backs, there was plenty of covered routes of approach.

Andy and Mac exfiltrated their position (to north at the front of the house) and relocated on foot to the rear alley, and were joined by a pair of uniformed Mounties, also on foot. An RCMP marksman team (Green-34) replaced them at their hide and was placed under Clarke's tactical control. The rest of the team waited in SUVs a block away to the south, on West 1st. If needed, they could put together an ad hoc RCMP entry team, although at some point Lee hoped to actually train a real (if part-time) ERT.

Lee and another Mountie approached the front of the house along West 1st avenue from the direction of the Marina. The marksman team (Green-34) kept the house under surveillance, reporting that as they approached the door, the pair inside split up and moved away from the window.

They knocked, waited, knocked again. "Hello! Is anyone home? We're here doing a survey for the city."

Over the radio Green-34 reported "...ah, be advised we have one individual exiting the rear of the house, he's now out of sight..."

Knowing that there could be at least one other person inside (or more) Lee knocked again, louder. She looked at her partner and they both placed their hands on their sidearms. "This is the police, we'd like to talk, please open up!" Both Mounties moved so that they were not in the line of fire of someone opening the door. Their Kevlar patrol vests were good against pistol, subgun and shotgun fire, but much less so against rifles. Knowing the Stickmen's fondness for crossbows, both were wearing the optional Lexan "stab-plates".

To the rear, Andy could hear someone going over the fence, probably to the next house to the right (as this was a corner house, Highbury St. was to their "left" and Pt. Grey Rd. at the "front"). He looked at Mac and the pair of Mounties, who got ready to move.

http://tinyurl.com/48bah6

[OOC: not that this is a big deal, but Mac and Andy were observing the house from across the park to the front, as you can't observe the front of a structure to the rear.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:01, Tue 27 May 2008.

Knowing that a foot pursuit wasn't unlikely, Chris had ditched his heavy rifle, webbing, helmet and body armour behind a plastic trash car in an overgrown bush a couple houses down the back alley. He was just wearing his fatigues, boonie hat, and pistol belt (with holstered Hi-Power). Like Andy, he also had been given a small canister of pepper-spray and some Zap-Straps to use as flex-cuffs.

When the sound of someone climbing the fence reached him, he got ready to move.

Andy saw Mac readying himself for action. He whispered to the two Mounties, "Stay here in case the other guy breaks cover."

He looked at Mac and nodded to him and the two of them moved toward the guy climbing the fence. They would find him and capture him for interrogation.

Clarke heard the report from Green-34 that one of the men had exited the house.  "Green-6 to Green-23.  One Tango has exited rear of building.  Do you have visual contact?  You are clear to apprehend.  Green-6 out."
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:03, Tue 27 May 2008.

The Mounties nodded understanding. Andy in the lead, the pair ran down the alley.

They couldn't see the man going into the next yard over from the alley, but could easily hear him.

Entering the next yard, they could see the guy was jumping down onto the overgrown backyard grass, stumbling, then taking off and heading for the next fence.

Andy intercepted him from the side, easily tripping him with a foot-sweep. The guy sprawled flat and Mac was on him, pinning his arms. "Where you going, huh? Where you gonna go now? Stop struggling man, you're under arrest!"

"Fuck you!" The man struggled to pull out a wicked knife but the pair easily disarmed and subdued him.

At the front of the house, Lee talked to the man inside. He refused to come out so the RCMP backup was deployed with entry tools. Although they hadn't received formal ERT training, these were experienced police and could be expected to handle themselves in an armed entry situation. Still, they had a real ERT member who had experience in negotiations. After about 10 minutes of talking, Lee got him to come out peacefully where he was cuffed and arrested.

The prisoners were returned to the temporary command post for the decision on what to do with them.

Clarke was pleased things had gone smoothly.  None of her people had been hurt and both suspects were apprehended.  She was concerned by Chris' decision to ditch his body armor, but decided that was a "training issue" that could be covered later.

"Good job, all.  I'm really pleased by the teamwork you all displayed."

*Kelsey sighs a big sigh of relief once it is all over*

"I tell you.. this police stuff is hard on the nerves, I am so glad everyone is all right.  Think there is a chance they will actually...."

*She stops midsentence*

"I wonder if anyone was observing them for capture, did they have a radio, how were they to report.. maybe we should put some people in the house disguised as them.. with a watch on the house with radio, and see what more we can net us?"

*She wonders aloud*

Not a bad idea.  I was wondering myself if maybe we should have observed longer before moving in.

They brought the prisoners back to the temporary HQ. The militia lifted the cordon, heading back to the Uni. These were part-timers; keeping them called-out would mean other tasks would go uncompleted back home.

A detailed search of the house found (aside from some water bottles, dirty dishes, canned food, sleeping bags rancid with body odor and a water pipe with a baggie of pot and a lighter) the notepad and binoculars. Everything else seemed like it belonged to the former owners, and was left as-is. It was uncertain how they traveled there or how they communicated; no vehicles or comms were found.

For weapons they seemed to only have their sheath knives.
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:39, Fri 30 May 2008.

Lee washed up in the kitchen sink.

Like most places, the condo the HQ was set up in still had running water, although it took about a minute for it to come on clean and rust-free. It seemed most places had running water, abandoned or not.

She dried her hands. "So Clarke, what's our next move with these clowns? Want me to question them here? Take 'em back to the detachment?"

"Take them back to the detachment.  This may take a while.  You may need to contain them when they're not being questioned.  It would be good to have a place with some added security.

The prisoners were shuttled to the RCMP detachment via closed RCMP van, to avoid giving them any idea of where they were or any other details.

The guy with the Mowhawk snarled and spat through decaying teeth at the Constables manhandling him. "Fucking fascists! Fuck you! Get your hands off me! Motherfuckers! You can't hold me, I wasn't doing anything!" The other one looked a lot more scared and was silent, but still tried to keep up a brave front.

Resisting the urge to inform him that as it was a time of war, they didn't need a reason to hold him indefinitely, Clarke did think that charges of trespassing and looting could be made to stick if needed, not to mention narcotics offences.

Out of curiosity, Lee sniffed at the baggie they found and wrinkled her nose. "Smells like "skunkweed". Dripping with THC. Kicks the ass of any Yank Sinsimila or Mexican Red Hair, but also kicks your ass at the same time to."

Kelsey (and Mac) knew that locally-grown Skunk also had a nasty rank smell like a skunk's spray when smoked. It was the lower-class and ubiquitous brother of world-famous "BC Bud", a strain that had had all the worse effects bred out of it, but possessed even more THC.

Lee continued. "Those shitty tatts, those teeth. Not to mention the hygiene. At one time those boys were skin-poppin' smack or "jib" (crystal meth). Still would be, if they could get it, I bet."

"Well chief, you want to have a crack at either one or both of these bozos?"

Clarke waited until both prisoners had been "processed."  That is, they had been photographed and/or fingerprinted, whatever was used to keep track of people these days, given any necessary run-down on their rights, and allowed to cool off in separate cells for a little while.  She gave orders that they be in cells far enough apart that they couldn't communicate with each other.

I think we should have a spot of lunch and relax.  Give them a bit to think about where they are and what they've got themselves into.  Then we start with the one that looks a little more shaky, shall we?  Given time to let his imagination work, he may start babbling like an idiot the moment we start asking questions, just out of fear.

She thought for a moment.  "While we let them cool their heels, let's take a look at the notebooks they were keeping.  Get an idea of how long they've been watching us, what kinds of observations they made, and what purpose it seems to be for."

She thought it best to check in with McRae, McDonald and Champlain as well.  "Green-1 this is Green-6. Request status and location, break.  If you wish you may continue to provide security to the census takers or return to the Marina at your discretion, break.  Green-6 Over."
This message was last edited by the player at 03:29, Sun 01 June 2008.

"Green 6 this is Green 1, I think I'll join the six element for a bit, besides, I have an idea... Green 6, out"

Champlain makes her way to Clarke with a bit of a smile

"I was remembering some of those old TV shows.  Think if we keep them far enough apart that they cannot talk that will grow the paranoia, and maybe if we get a few lucky guesses, we can tell them stuff like.. your buddy said this.. and it'll go better for you with this, we are offering him this deal because he is co-operating, and stuff?"

Andy called in to let the Bosslady know he'd stay as security for the census takers. He attached himself to one of the groups and started to observe how they worked and to get to know one or two of the local officials.

Clarke acknowledged Andy's call in.  She was glad he stayed on station for some face time with the locals.

Clarke grinned and offered Kelsey a cup.  That, my dear Watson, is the basic idea.  Lee and I were about to take a look at their jornals.  From his body language, one of the two seemed more aprehensive.  We're giving them both a little cool-down time and then we'll start with him.  Does this sound like a good way to proceed to you, Lee?"

She paused for a moment for Lee's response.  "Of course, this isn't some TV drama.  We do have to be careful about what we say to these guys, and I think lying would be a bad idea.  We are living in a time of war and civil crisis, and spies would be dealt with harsly.  That is certainly something we could use in our favor."
This message was last edited by the player at 12:19, Sun 01 June 2008.