The unit at Brandy's was put on alert, and the extra patrol unit brought into the area.

In a few minutes drive from the police station, the vehicles converged from north and south. The team sorted themselves into two stacks, each taking a stairwell up. It took some time and necessitated picking the locks on a few doors and breaking down some others, but everyone made it to the top in one piece.

Then, the ERT conducted a room-by-room search, floor-by-floor from top on down, clearing the structure. The "saucer" shaped structure on top of the office building's lowest  an observation deck, then a lever with a revolving restaurant (now stilled) and then some mechanical spaces on top.

Over a period of a half-hour, the teams cleared the entire building, leaving them in possession of one of the best views in the city.

Except for some broken windows facing west in the direction of the nuclear strikes, damage at the top floors was light. Few people wanted to hike dozens of floors just for a really nice view and the chance to hurl dishes from the restaurant out a smashed window (although judging from the debris left below, some did). Birds had entered in through the smashed windows in western sector of the lookout level, and that area was littered with feathers and bird droppings on the linoleum floors, and the sound of nesting animals in the false ceilings.

Andy looked around and whistled lowly, "Damn, if this view isn't worth hauling my ass up all those stairs, nothing is."

He looked out and said, "Hey, Taras, I can see your house from here."

Suddenly he remembered the backpack and asked, "Hey, Kel, where do you want this widget?"

Rob takes a look around and starts judging distances. Trying to draw an imagined circle of 1000 yards around the structure.

"Well this isn't of much use to the Stanley park fight beyond long range recon but it does give a commanding view of the area.  It's easily defended unless someone wants to bring the whole building down or lose a hell of a lot of folks taking it. A few folks stationed up here with good optics can give some real time intel on what is going on in the area and warn those on the ground of possible dangers. I would  highly recommend it. "

Exactly, Mr. Robert. That is the whole point. The old Police Station on Main St. wouldn't give us neither the room nor the strategic location. I will request a small team of militia for overnight watch as soon as we get out of here.

Tomorrow we are going to mobilize a large group of people to take effective charge over the train, skytrain and ferry stations. I will make contact with Bulat and we will work together to re-establish a maritime connexion with the North Shore. This will serve the purpose of diminishing the power of the stickmen. The Lions Gate bridge no longer will be the only place to cross over.

The uneventful operation "CROWSNEST" was the first step concocted in a large scheme of things to facilitate the movement of people and goods throughout the Lower Mainland. Once the communications hub will be restored, the next moves will be restoring a ferry line with the North Shore and activate the railroad system to communicate with the troops stationed in the interior from a military point of view and facilitate the restoration of heavy transport for commercial purposes.

This low key, non confrontational approach was paying off more than the previous combat patrols. While the core of this operations was focused on the strategic value, Taras also realized that the bulk of the work, once the facilities were secured will be resting in the hands of the civilian reconstructions teams. While the current joint operations ensemble created upon an eclectic mix of Canadian Forces active personnel, police and militia was a flexible and highly operative team the lack of a defined structure for the civilian reconstruction task forces prompted some ideas to deliver to the provisional Government and the military HQ.

Now was the time to leave the promises. Taras made some personal notes and remembered Andy about the extra mile: to pay a visit to "Brandi's" or the Hell's Angels nest and feed some disinformation.

"There should be a utility closet attached to the roof antenna, probably on the roof at the base, or near the roofline.  The cables should match up connectors.  I can guide you through it over the radio and test from here."

Mmmm, an additional booster and relay here would help some, maybe a lot with longer range needs.  On battery for now, but hopefully at some point a power grid can go up.

"OK, Kel," Andy replied, "I'm on it now."

He looked for the way on to the roof and tried to decide how to get up and find the utility station.

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #6):

Shining his flashlight up into the darkness, it looked like the fire stairs continued up to the top maintenance floor. There was probably a service elevator that accessed the maintenance space, but it was long-marooned on the ground floor.

It was up to Andy if he wanted to continue up alone, or pick a few companions to form a "stack" to accompany him from the rest of the team and the (somewhat fagged-looking) militia.

Meanwhile, the rest of the group gazed out the eastern glass-less picture windows towards Chinatown. The windows were blown in on both the restaurant and observation deck floors. There wasn't anything more dramatic than shards and drifts of pebbled safety glass, shattered by the Mach wave. There were no "blast shadows" on the opposite walls, and although there was some scorching there was little evidence of fire other than some charred brochures scattered around the floor.

Outside the windows was a different story.

North Burnaby, from the base of Burnaby Mountain and several kilometres south, was the scene of unimaginable devastation. At the northwestern base of Burnaby Mountain on the waterline of Burrard Inlet, was a clearly-identifiable blast crater at least a hundred metres across, gouged out of the bedrock and filled with water. The western face of Burnaby Mountain was charred black, burned and ravaged by fire and the blast. North Burnaby south to at least Lougheed highway was one huge tangled field of fire-scarred rubble and partially collapsed houses and buildings. The wreckage extended in places to the Freeway and beyond, where quirks of geography funneled the Mach wave in unpredictable ways and fires raged unchecked through the green spaces and suburban housing.

Andy picked several militia troopers and got them to cover him as he accessed the utility shed. It was unlikely that any threat would be encountered, but it was always better to take precautions that weren't needed than to be hung out on a limb for not being careful enough.

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #8):

Above the restaurant was an entire fairly maze-like maintenance floor. There were boilers and air conditioner units and elevator rooms. These were in addition to those on the top floor of the skyscraper the rotating restaurant/observation level was sitting on. There were quite a few electronics cabinets and telephone closets.

Finally, they found a door to the roof of the top levels. Andy opened it and looked out, but he couldn't see an actual shed or unit adjoining the base of the radio mast.

However, the view was spectacular. They could see the north shore mountains, the mountains over on the Island, the Gulf Islands, even far off Mt. Baker in the United States, across the border in Washington.

Andy paused for a long moment drinking in the breathtaking beauty of the view. Then he used the radio, once he'd made contact and verified his identity he said, "Am unable to find what you described. I suggest you come up to take a look. The view, heck, I can't describe it, you really gotta see it."

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #10):

"Right, as soon as I am allowed.  At least for the view."

In reply to Kelsey Sarah Champlain (msg #11):

Smiling, Lee listened to the radio.

"Yeah, go up and have a look. Go on!"

She went back to looking out the window at the blast area on the west side of Burnaby Mountain.

In a few minutes, Kelsey was upstairs in the maintenance level. She met up with Andy and his stack, and quickly found the large room under the mast where she could hook it into one of the radio antennas. There were TV and microwave transmitters up there, radio transmitters, ever cell transmitters. Their connections all came through the one room.

The superb panoramic view of the downtown peninsula in a clear sky brought the attention of the ex-Lt. The sun was quietly dipping towards the calm waters on the English Bay with the mountain range of the Vancouver Island in the distant horizon. Alerting Rachel's radio call sign, Taras was following strick chain of command protocol,reminded her about the impending mission to infiltrate the nest of the Hell's Angels in downtown in a discreet manner.

..and we will need to clear the area soon as well...

There was still a healthy downstairs fitness quest to the parking lot.

"Thanks Rachel!"

Kelsey wastes no time climbing up the steps, arriving winded and sweating a little, she pauses in the window room to take a look, waving.. soon distractedly.. to Rachel, that is until her eyes catch the view and she is drawn to it.
"Wow... it's been a long..."  Her eyes catch the swath of destruction and she frowns a little and heads farther up, turning away.  "Be right back"
She finishes the climb and starts checking out all the connections up there, taking her pack from Andy with thanks, and hooking it into the best gain antenna it can handle, then she starts looking over the rest.  "We need some power up here, if half of this is intact I can have us up and running for the area for all kinds of things, contacting the government, radio and television transmission, you name it."  She hopes as she follows the power back to the boxes that there is a standby... either a generator, solar or wind  "Some juice is all I need."

Once the radio equipment was deployed, Rachel got everyone to RV on the observation deck to begin the long trek down the stairs.

Unfortunately, the battery pack would have to last for now, it would take a day or so to bring in a portable generator and another few days to repair the building's generator.

The emergency "genny" was in the lower floor on the Burrard Inlet side and was mostly intact. Some parts had been removed and scavenged but mostly it needed to be refueled. The head of UBC maintenance, the Ukrainian emigre Oleksyn, would be coming by in the morning with a team of technicians to get on it. Unlike the stripped police station, Harbour Centre's mostly underground mall and lower levels had been somewhat looted but the upper floors remained mostly intact.

Once they were all on the ground floor, Andy's expedition to Brandie's would be ready to begin. The UBC ERT was in position across the street.

Once the building was clear for takeover Taras decided to consult with Clarke and call it a day. It was a long and productive day but things were far from over. The team needed to return to base, secure weapons, vehicles and get their well derserve rest after a quick After Action Report. The day will be not over until the "Brandi's" element was home.

Taras emphasized with Clarke and the rest of the team that the technical aspects of the reconstruction would be better handled by the University crews and the joint task will focus in the active deployment and operations ahead. He had a few words with Andy before departure:

Andy, I'm a little bit worried about the danger of your mission infiltrating the Hell's Angels. "Brandi's" is a dangerous place and it is unlikely that we can provide you with a solid back-up if we are going low profile. I know you are a good soldier but don't take unnecessary risks. Let them know that we are not pursuing any confrontation.

Then sgt. Shevchenko told Kelsey:

Kelsey: Tonight Andy will go to the Hell's cave and deliver the message that one of their members was shot in the back by some desertors and we saved his life. I expect some reaction, of course. We will have to conduct a radio watch in their frequencies.

Clarke was next:

I will alert the RCMP patrols for tonight to keep an extra eyes on bridges and principal roads to look for any outbound biker from downtown. We will have the physical and radio-electronic spectrum covered. In this case we want to make sure that they get the message.

"I keep my civ team on twenty-four wrap around watches regardless.  I will stay close to call for them and advise them of the situation as far as they need to know, and to bring anything to my attention immediately."

Most excellent, Kelsey!

Taras couldn't help but reveal a smile. The professionalism of the memebers of the team was the best asset for the Government forces.

Thank you everybody for the good job today. Maybe we should prepare a barbaque one of these days...

"Don't worry, Sir." Andy replied to Taras, "I'll do my best not to get rumbled and then raped, tortured and killed, in that order if I'm unlucky. I'll visit the prisoner and see how the land lies before I go."

"Ahhhhh...."  A blush raised by the praise and her eyes wander a moment, a slow grin forming  "Ah, I just already had that going on is all, but hey.. I will double check it.  The Angels don't seem to use the radio much, preferring courriers, so you might want to watch for that."

1600 hours

The team and various units headed back to base at UBC after a very successful mission. There was a generally very positive mood among the people there, matching the improving and warming weather.

Andy heard the Angel was conscious but uncommunicative, so he left for the hospital to see what he could glean from him.

Meanwhile, some important signals intelligence was intercepted. A series of confused communiques were being passed between the different "enemy" stations they were monitoring. There was a certain amount of panic among the four identified HA chapters (Vancouver, Coquitlam, Surrey/White Rock, the Valley) and so Angels were planning on having "Church" they next evening (Tuesday). Until then, no offensive action was to be taken by any HAs against the pigs under what was clearly a threat of death.

Kelsey hussles that information on to Clarke/Taras/Rachel as it develops, actually rather excited to get some use out of her surveilance for once.

"This is interesting, the Hotel Alphas are really freaking out.. it's clear they are told not to act against us under threat of death.. here.. look here at this transcript"
She flips to another page of hand transcribed radio notes, with times, stations, relative angle, and any other info that could be gleaned from each transmission.
"Now might be a very good time for another push of some sort, before this church of theirs, they are apparently badly off balance.  Or maybe right as this Church is happening tomorrow night.  Take out the Stickmen, maybe?  Think our main target might come out for us?"

Andy reached the hospital and went up to the guard posted on the HA's door. He spoke calmly and said, "I'm master Sniper Montgomery, I have been asked to speak with the prisoner."

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #24):

"Provost Belanger said someone'd be by. Good to see you."

The young RCMP officer (dressed in normal patrol uniform) nodded and smiled, but he still checked Andy's military ID, noting the time in his notebook.

"Okay, you're cleared to go on in. Call if you need help, if you know what I mean. The bastard isn't talking."

He opened the door, and Andy could see the prisoner, Thomas "Roadkill" Ryan, lying in bed, watching a rerun on TV. There were IV drips snaking to his arm. He ignored the door as it opened.
This message was last edited by the GM at 07:31, Sun 14 June 2009.

Andy entered the hospital room and was amazed at the pristine, antiseptic cleanliness of the place. Even around campus, the buildings and rooms had that edge of decay, a lack of paint or a dustiness associated with no vaccuum cleaners.

The rest of the world he'd seen was even worst, at best there was a layer of grime everywhere and the worst...well, best not think about that. He looked at the HA lying in the bed scowling at him. The guy must have been a good assassin, if Andy'd been of a nervous disposition, the look alone would probably have killed him.

He kept his face pleasant and walked up to the man's bedside and sat down beside him. He placed a pack of cigarettes and a lighter on the HA's bedside cabinet and saw the man's lip curl.

"Please, don't start with the fuck you pig, routine." Andy said, "I know you aren't going to fall for the "good cop" routine so there's no need to get all agressive."

He watched the man pause for a moment, "I know there's a no smoking sign there, but if you want to smoke, feel free. To be honest, the amount of stuff they've got on you, smoking in a hospital just ain't going to make a difference. Anyway, my name's Andy Montgomery, I run the sniper team for this outfit and I've got a friend who can't "Bear" to think about you being hurt and locked up."

The man barked a harsh laugh at this, "Fuck you and your games man, any pig with half a brain knows that Bear runs the chapter here. That shit ain't going to fly."

"No, I know that," Andy replied, "and I don't expect you to trust me at the moment, you don't know me from Adam, by the way, Adam's the cop guarding you, nice guy but don't play poker with him, he was a big time player befor the war. But what I have to tell you is true. Later I'll prove myself but I wanted you to know that someone in the inside was looking out for you."

"Yeah," the man picked up the cigarettes and lighter and lit one up, inhaling deeply he continued, "and pigs might fly. What you promising man? You gonna get me out of here?"

"Not yet," Andy said, "and I'll tell you, I'm really pissed off that you're here. Man, you were away, on your hog and just me to beat. Normally, you'd have been dead meat, I don't miss much, but last night, well, I needed to prove myself to a certain ursine sobriquet (Andy was proud of that, he'd looked it up in the library) and letting you go was my path to pussy heaven. Then one of your boys yells something about you running off and shoots you! Man, that really put a downer on my plans, though, I guess not as much as it did on yours. Anyway, the back-shooting bastard is dead, sorry, I guess I should have left him for you, and your laid up here. The good news is that you'll live and make a full recovery. The bad news is they want to try you for charges from gun offences to murder to rape to screwing the regimental goat. Basically, they want you hale and hearty for your execution."

"Fuck that, man," the HA replied, "you can't scare me. Bear'll have me out before you can find a lawyer that'll prosecute me."

"I don't doubt that," Andy said, "and I aim to profit from that. OK, you don't trust me and I don't blame you. I'm certainly not expecting you to let me into your bed and tell me all about the HA while we make sweet, sweet love."

He laughed at the man's facial expression, half disgust and half amusement, "So what do you want?"

"I want you to hang tight," Andy replied, "I'll work on getting you out but don't go doing anything stupid in the meantime like trying to bust your way out or taking hostages or something, or even," he pulled a face himself, "cutting a deal. I'm going to see our mutual friend tonight and I'll start getting the plans together to bust you out. Is there anything you'd like me to ask him for?"

"I can do those things, but I'll only wait for so long," The HA said, "tell him I want some good tequila and a few lines of top quality snow, also ask him to remind me who my favourite bitch was."

"OK," Andy replied, "I can do that. Who do I say I'm asking about?"

"Bear'll know who I am," the HA replied, "ask him."

"Will do," Andy concluded, "I'll see you in the morning. Now, a word to the wise, one of my pals works for the surveillance team, I arranged for a technical fault during our conversation. I won't be able to do that too often, the others'll get suspicious. If I come in with things in my left hand, it's OK to talk, my right, go back to the fuck you pig routine. See you."

As Andy headed for the door, the HA called out, "Hey!"

Andy turned and saw the one fingered salute, "Fuck you pig!"

Andy chuckled and opened the door, he closed it behind him, nodded to Adam and headed out of the hospital.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:16, Mon 15 June 2009.

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #26):

Kelsey smirks a little and taps her recorder, shaking her head.  Fault.. right.
Andy did have a friend on the surveillance team, certainly.  A cold smile, plays across her normally pleasant features as she talks softly under her breath.  Crippled isn't enough for you scum, but turning you into a traitor before your death.. maybe.  She shakes her head and tries to shake that cold feeling, reliving that alley again, the smell.. the rain, the blood, the shattered bodies.  She shakes herself and shivers, taking a moment to hug her arms about herself as if to warm up a bit.
"Funny... he thinks we aren't on military law.. lawyers..."  she chuckles a little, holding onto herself a while longer.  "I hope you get to dance on the end of a rope.  Soon."  This man's crimes against women.  It lit a cold little hate inside the comms tech, she knew she shouldn't have listened in on this... these feelings made her a little ashamed of herself.

Interview with the Biker complete, Andy was ready for the next phase, the spreading of disinformation to the at-large Bikers manning Brandie's.

Belanger met with the team and said, "this is going to be simple, no masses of police and milita but backup will be available. We send Andy in, he does his thing, and we're the immediate backup. I suggest Rob and Tyler be positioned in the building across the street from the club to cover the front, and the rest of the unit plus the LAV nearby on standby at Harbour Centre, a few minutes away."

He pointed out the relative positions on the map.

"There is a ground foyer with main elevators, a security room in the rear behind the foyer with a heavy door. There is a freight entrance in the rear alley, as well as a fire stairs exit. There's probably a garage back there."

"Second floor is the club."

"Third floor is the brothel."

"Fourth floor is the girl's quarters, offices and rooftop veranda. Probably that's where their main armoury is."

"If we have to go in and up, we think there are two ways. In the ground floor behind the security door is one internal stairwell up, and the freight elevator. From the earlier recce we think that's where their at least part of the 6-person armed security team is located (the rest being upstairs). That's aside from 2 bouncers downstairs, and 4 bouncers/bartenders upstairs. We could lever our way into the rear fire door or into the loading bay, and enter the ground floor security room though the rear access corridors. Or, we could go up the next door building, which would allow us easy access to the roof."

"There is the main elevator from the ground foyer but that's obviously out."

He pointed out different features on several photgraphs.

"There is the MG position on the roof and a bank armoured car parked out front."

Andy listened to the Boss's assessments and nodded.

"Sir," he said solemnly, "I appreciate your planning but have to say I hope you don't have to use it when I'm in the thick of things. However, if there is an issue and you have to use force, I fully intend to make my last stand in the brothel, it seems like the Army way to go, Sir."

In reply to Alain Belanger (msg #28):

"Whoa.. we are so not prepared to take all that on.  Big operation."  She mumbles something further, from the few intelligible words she isn't very thrilled about the cathouse existing at all, let alone there.

In reply to Kelsey Sarah Champlain (msg #30):

"In a sense, I agree that we could do a lot more in the way of preparation."

"On the other..." he sighed and shrugged helplessly, "...the Bikers could do something unpredictable, like kidnap someone, bring in a load of weapons, or otherwise act to force our hand before we're "ready". For that matter, Andy could get into trouble and we need to act immediately."

"While Andy goes in the front, we'll recce the building next door and put a team into position. Going over the roof seems the best course, if we need to effect a rescue. Anyone have a better idea?"

Belanger looked around for comment.

"Oh yes, Taras, before I forget, your friend from up North is in West Van. He's safe, and wants to meet up with you as soon as you like."

"Having backup would be good," Andy said, "although I'd rather people didn''t do a recon of adjoining buildings when I'm conducting an undercover operation. If the HAs are as keen on booby traps as the last place we encountered, it could be really dangerous. Added to that, if the HAs rumble the search teams, my life expectancy isn't going to be very long."

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #32):

"We monitored it before, we will again.  This time, bring a thumper, and maybe that ma deuce we recovered"
She smiles at Bellinger
"Right chief.. I am just worried that it can get out of hand fast.  We better be ready to radio up the line if shit breaks loose.  Ah.. right, I will be"  She laughs nervously.

Taras was looking at the exchange of options and keeping a reserved position. The good news about the arrival of his old friend brought him back to life:

Ah! Most excellent! Good to hear that the Captain arrived in good shape! Since we are too busy over here with the preparations for our operations I guess it will be wiser to meet him in the North Shore and make sure that Bulat can offer some accomodation for the time being. Lets hope the best for tonight's move and tomorrow I shall go with the zodiac. I will bring the situation up to speed with our allies for the impending Stanley Park clean up...

Once he grabbed the attention he also added:

I'm very confident with Andy's ability to infiltrate the Hell's Angels and I don't have many concerns about tonight. We will have a reaction team ready but I wouldn't like to nose around too much and create suspicion. The flares in the alley was a good indicator of the amount of caution that we need...

Sgt. Shevchenko was tired and felt that a late cup of tea would help to boost the stamina to finish the long day. The memories of Chinatown, the steep climbing of the Harbour Lookout and even the recent news about the arrival of Bezhov were building up fast in the system. He decided to break the intimidating silence of the hall with some classic music.

Salvaged from some basement of the Unicersity came up a record of Tschaikovsky. One of Shevchenko's all time favourite: the piano concerto no.1 It was certainly a most daunting task to keep a balanced state of mind while dealing with lunatics in a park, rampant Hell's Angels, befriend americans that used to kill you...It was like trying to play the very piano concerto whilst escaping from a sack, three padlocks and a pair of handcuffs...

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...JdE&feature=fvst

Andy said, "OK, if there's nothing else to discuss, I'll excuse myself and get ready to go to Brandies."

He waited to see if anyone wanted to say anything before he left.

This message was deleted by the player at 01:12, Wed 24 June 2009.

"Okay, we'll not probe too deeply next door. If that's all, let's get going."

"To reiterate, Andy is going to tell them we got a call about trouble in Chinatown. But that the Americans shot their HA friend, not us. And their friend is safe. Finally, our operations are directed primarily against deserters and not against them. Sorry if you all knew that, I was just making sure I had it straight."

He paused. "Any questions? No? Let's get going."

It got later on in the evening, towards sunset. OPs DREAMCATCHER and CROWSNEST were completed, this little side mission of spreading disinformation would hopefully be the cherry on the top of a very successful and productive day.

This time there wasn't much more than a few vehicles and the LAV, the team plus a half-dozen armed militia. There were more police and militia units in the area for backup. They hid the LAV a few blocks away so that suspicions were not raised.

They waited at a slightly closer concealed position for Andy to get ready to go in.
This message was last edited by the GM at 12:05, Thu 25 June 2009.

In reply to helbent4 (msg #38):

Kelsey sits on the communications personally, and ready for a reaction force.
In particular she pays attention to any "breaks" of the channels, thinking it possible someone may be trying to do simple communication through subtle means, but more likely she thinks the HA's are using the couriers mostly.
She wanted to be on top of surveilance and communications.

"Can I get you to carry a simple transmitter, bud?  Or you think that is too risky?"
She offers her smallest.. smaller than a cigarette lighter, and concealed as a butane model in her spare time.. it even sparks off the wheel still.  A Bic

Andy looked at the lighter Kelsey was showing him and he said, "Cool. That looks fantastic. For now, I'd rather just go in without it. They'll search me and I don't want anything to hot me up. Later, if they start trusting me, we can try something fancy."

He got himself ready for the visit to the HAs. He changed into his civvies, but kept his carbine and a few magazines as well as his pistol at his hip. He commandeered an SUV to take him to Brandies and put his gear into it.

Once he was ready, he informed everyone of his intention to commence his mission and then headed off.

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #40):

"How about a shoe phone?  Kidding!"

"Aw!," Andy chuckled, "you were getting my hopes up then!"

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #42):

After a bit of friendly banter, Andy hopped in the Jeep and drove over to the club. There was a few cars, a van, a bank car and a half-dozen motorcycles parked outside.

Having monitored the local radio channels for traffic, Kelsey knew the people at the club were nervous. The door bouncers were on the lookout for cops, but were under orders not to start any trouble.

The two security outside sized Andy as he drove up. They were not visibly armed now (as opposed to earlier). The larger one ("Tweedle-Dee") looked Andy in the eye. "Hey man, no guns. Also, I gotta pat you down."

He moved forward to take Andy's weapons and to establish his physical dominance over the other.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:45, Sun 28 June 2009.

"No, problem, man," Andy replied, handing over his weapons and assuming a stance that made him easy to search, "the weapons were to make sure I got here, I won't need them inside. And the search, hey, everyone's got to be careful. Is Bear in tonight? I have news for him."

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #44):

Preofessionally, the bouncer patted him down starting from top to bottom, doing a thorough job. He lingered in the abdomen and small of the back, obviously checking for a wire, then checked Andy's crotch and so on down the legs.

"Bear? Uh, yeah, I think so. Check upstairs.

He finished, handing Andy a coat-check chit for his weapons. "You're good to go. Have a pleasant evening at Brandi's."

The elevator grounded and Andy entered. A minute later he was stepping out into the bar. The music was the same (taped 80's and 90's hits for the ladies to dance to) but the clientele was almost non-existent. The bartender wasn't a biker and Andy didn't recognise him from before.

Andy walked over to the bar, his feet tapping to the beat of faintly remembered music, he looked at the barman and said, "Hi, the name's Andy Montgomery, and I'm looking for Bear. Do you have any idea where he is? While I'm waiting, I'll have a Jack Daniels and Coke and whatever you're drinking."

He lay a handful of silver jewellry next to the scales on the bar, "Take what you need out of that, I'm not sure of the prices, but there's a couple of hundred grams there so it should cover it, let me know if it doesn't"

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #46):

His nervous face lightening a little, the bartender took the jewelry and poured the drinks. "Thanks, man. I'll let Bear know you're here."

After talking on the bar phone he said, "five minutes, I'll let you know when you can go up."

The bartender moved off, obviously not wanting to make small talk. After fifteen minutes the bartender answered the phone, looking at Andy. He nodded at something he heard, then hung up. "Okay, you can go up, you know the way?"

Andy finished his drink and said, "Yeah, I know the way up, thanks for your help."

He got up and made his way up to Bear's den.

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #48):

The man himself looked worried but tried to hide it.

Bear, dressed in a vaguely-paramilitary looking black fatigues, offered Andy something to drink. He asked how Andy was doing, not really listening to the response. Then he asked the real question on his mind, "what the fuck is going on, man? Is the army moving downtown? What about the cops? Not that we're doing anything "wrong" here, but you understand, we don't want there to be... misunderstandings with the law."

"After all, we don't mind if Army boys come here to party or have some women. The cops, they, uh might not understand."

He offered Andy a rail of coke, then snorted one himself.

"It's complicated," Andy replied, "the army forces here are minimal and have been subordinated to the Civil Authorities. Today was a security sweep, there'll be more but I'm not sure where."

"If you have any specific questions you need to know, ask them and I'll try to find out," he continued, "On another issue, there was an incident last night. A night security patrol ran in to a gang of American deserters beating and raping some women. I was part of the response team, they guys were caught llike rats but they still fought back. That's when I realised that one of your guys was with them. He made a run for it and I was feeling really pleased with myself because I was in a position to let him go. Then one of those punk deserters nailed him. I got the little bastard but your guy's hurt bad. He'll live, but he won't be up and about for a while. Given the weapons he was carrying, he's going to attract a lot of cop interest. I've spoken with him and let him know I'm looking out for him."

Andy continued by describing the man and the goods he'd asked for from Bear, "He also asked me to ask you his name and the name of his favourite bitch. He seems a solid kind of guy I warned him not to talk. Now the issue is, how do you want me to deal with him. Getting him out may be possible but it'll take time, he won't be able to be moved for a while. If you trust him, that's fine, I'll work on an escape, if you don't, making sure he doesn't talk will be easier, but it'll cost you the same either way."

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #50):

Bear's face had a definite "oh Jesus" look to it, as he tried to marshal his thoughts. After sipping his whiskey (and offering some to Andy) he replied, "Christ, what an asshole. Well, ah, we didn't know nothin' 'bout what he was up to. He got himself into shit, he can get himself out. He's responsible, you know? Any deal you got with him is something I don't want to know about."

This was not unexpected. As far as criminals went the bikers preserved compartmentalisation by granting a large amount of leeway and independence, and never admitted anything to any outsider that could hint of "conspiracy to commit" and compromise "plausible deniability". If a biker acting independently got into trouble, he could well be on his own to preserve the larger group, at least officially.

"As for us in the Angels, sure, we want to know if there's anything we can do for him, you know, legally, maybe smuggle in a few, ah, luxuries. Keep abreast of his condition. Other than that, tough shit, he's a big boy. If you know, where's he being held? Is he under heavy guard, or what? Has he copped to anything or ratted us out? Are they going to bring him up on any charges?" This was asked in a way that seemed unconcerned but curious, but Andy was sure his unconcern was feigned and not genuine. Bear was obviously trying to play his cards close to his chest while pumping him for information.

Bear pumped him for further information: "overall, we just want to know if there's going to be a crackdown by the cops or the military. Are they going to raid us here? Any of our clubhouses? Do they have us under surveillance? Are the cops going to be pricks and bust folks here in the downtown? Elsewhere? We got clients and friends and it would be a shame if they were subjected to fascist bullshit because the pigs were coming down on us. It happens all the time when the cops are scared or try to act tough! How many cops are there? Military? What kind of weapons and so on?"

"Ok," Andy said, "I'll speak with him and see what I can do for him. He certainly hasn't said anything to the cops yet. If it looks like he will, I'll use my uh, initiative to try to protect your interests."

Andy told Bear what luxuries the man wanted and then moved on to Bear's questions about the UBC forces, "I'm not sure exactly how many troops and cops there are, the place appears to be crawling with cops, militia and soldiers. I've got some techie friends on the force and I'll see if they can get hold of some logistic reports for you. The forces are well equipped, you've probably worked that out from the fact that they keep risking armoured fighting vehicles in urban environments. I asked several questons about you, they don't trust the HA's particularly, but they are more than happy to leave you alone. The only reason the guy in hospital was pinched was because he was involed in torture, rape and armed inssurection, as well as having an arsenal of weapons that suggested he'd been doing wet work."

"The whole organisation is run by civilians and they're thinking like cops, not soldiers. The guys at the top are well-meaning fools who still play by the book. You know the book too, keep your heads down and don't interfere with the cops when they take out the paramilitary style gangs in the area and you'll be fine." Andy continued, "I'll be frank with you, they've underestimated you and as long as you appear involved in legitimate work and nobody gets into anything extreme, you'll be able to rub along with the white hats at the top. There are some firebrands below, so I'd put the word out that if there are any freelance operators out there that are thinking that whacking the top brass would make things easier that it would be a mistake. The guys calling the shots now are well meaning, predictable chumps. If they get whacked, the guys that replace them are much more likely to be happier to break eggs to get the job done." Andy paused for breath.

"I'll try to find out what they're charging your associate with, my guess is everything from murder, treason and rape down to screwing the company pooch and driving at night without headlights." Andy concluded, "Is there anything else you'd like me to find out or anywhere we might be searching over the next few weeks that you'd like me to try to get people to avoid, or at least get you warning of where we're going?"

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #52):

Bear looked thoughtful, trying to process what Andy was telling him. Alternating between freaked out and hopeful.

"So... you're an Army guy, and you don't know how many cops and militia there are? Come on." He looked a little doubtful, like that was a little hard to credit. Then he kind of shrugged. "Oh well, take a wild guess. Just for curiosity's sake, if you can do a head count, that would be good. Armoured vehicles. Heavy weapons. Artillery. Nothing top secret, of course. Just so us "concerned citizens" are up to date on what our government is up to. They're out at UBC, right? That's what I hear."

"A lot of the Undergrounders are our friends and customers. We don't want them to take heat on our account, or any reason. We do security for the Free Market on Annacis Island. I'm sure people would want advance information on any kind of raids in those areas."

This was all basically known by Andy and the DRI team, although Bear seemed to say the HA didn't control the Free Market but were in a more security role. Andy was a little surprised that protecting the Stickmen didn't seem to be too high on the HAs' priority list.

"With regards to our friend... we will be more than happy for any assistance you can provide. I'll see what I can do to get what he wants together. Nothing too bad, some booze, weed. Ahhhh.... I guess point taken on whacking the government leadership. Anything happens to them, the gloves would come off. If the current brass is going to go slow, fumble around, it's good if hard chargers or psychos don't replace them. Upset the rowboat."

Bear looked at his watch.

"Sorry to cut this short, I got a lot of shit to do. So, you know, we just want to know numbers and stuff, some advance warning on raids and stuff. Our friend, we'll play it by ear. Can you make it back here to let us know what's going down? Or some place else?"

"The problem with estimating the numbers of combatant is that they're not all mustered at once." Andy said, "If you want an accurate guess, I can get it within a few days. A ballpark figure would be dodgy, I haven't met everyone or seen them mustered yet. I've been taught never to make a guess that other people might have to die for if you get it wrong. I'll get you accurate numbers soon, but I'll need some payment for the info as I'll probably have to bribe someone. What I suggest is I bring you the info and you pay me what you think it's worth in coke and hash, I've got no use for it, but I can spread it around and build more influence."

"As for advanced knowledge of raids," he said, "I'll get back here to let you know. If I can't come," he pulled out his regimental cap badge, "anyone that comes here carrying this will be speaking for me."

"I'll do what I can for your friend," Andy said, "unless I have something juicy for you I'll see you in a few days, if you aren't here, I'll tell whoever you want about the troop numbers."

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #54):

"Oh, I guess I see. Well find out what you can about numbers okay? I'll make it worth your while."

Bear looked impressed with the cap badge.

"Airborne... you're a commando, eh? Good outfit, kicked the hell outta the commies in Europe. Hear they're all back now, and it's time to take care of the fuckin' Frogs!" He laughed.

Andy had heard rumours that most of the regiment was back home now in the east, and involved in training insurgents (both Anglos, Natives and even Francophones) and conducting commando operations against Quebec Francophone separatists and their French advisors. A few months back he'd heard the Separatists and French Army were now finding it hard to move anywhere outside the towns and most cities. Montreal, with it's majority Anglo-Italian-Jewish population, had never "gotten with the program" in the first place and was either a hard-fought urban battleground or a Federalist no-go area for the Separatists, depending on who you asked.

He'd often been to the Canadian Forces Base in Valcartier for training with the "Van-Doos" Francophone contingent of the Airborne, and been to Montreal many times. The built-up areas city (Canada's third largest) was mainly on a large island in the St. Lawrence seaway. Although there were extensive suburbs on the north bank of the river, the southern bank had many Native reserves stretching all the way to the US border. The natives universally despised the Francophones and were staunch supporters of the federal government. If the densest part of the island city was resisting separatist rule and being supplied through the Native reserves, then he figured it could stay independent and pro-federal a long time, if not indefinitely.

Bear continued, addressing the issue of information transfer. "Sure. I'll be around and if I'm not, I'll let the head bartender Paul know you got information for me. He'll tell you where you can meet me or leave the informarion with him, and you can run a tab. We'll get together and then see what's what."

"That's cool, I'll see you in a few days," Andy said, "now, I know you're busy at the moment so unless you want to ask more questions, I'll get out of your way, that sound like a plan?"

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #56):

Bear lit a cigarette, offered the pack to Andy, and replied, "yeah, good to go. Hang out, drinks are on the house. I got other shit to do, so don't mind me."

He got up to show Andy to the door. Clearly, the meeting was over.

Andy spent an hour or so drinking quietly and making small talk if he was approached or liatsning casually if not. Then he finished his last drink, said goodbye to the barman and headed downstairs.

There he waited for his guns to be returned and then headed out for home.

Brandie's was dead. The strippers moved around half-heartedly to the thumping bass-heavy beat, distracted and bored. A few customers drifted in and out, but this was a a Monday, after all.

Finally, Andy left. It was still relatively early, around 2200 hours, but darkness had fallen. The bouncers turned over his weapons with hardly a comment other than a grunted 'night. The cool night air streamed in his face from the open Jeep YJ as he drove to where the rest of the team waited. From there it was a short hop home.

On the radio, Kelsey was struck how dead it was, as even the normal local network  were quiet.

As they returned home, Andy briefed the rest of the team about what had occured. He was also keen to have a discussion about what his next intelligence breifing with Bear would include.

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #60):

"I don't know Andy, but it almost seems as if the whole city is holding it's breath to see what happens next.  The radio waves are almost completely dead.  It's spooky.  I wonder if this means there is a lot of talking going on off the radio?"

"Well," Andy replied, "let's hope we give them something big to talk about when we take the Stickmen down."

Alain commented, "outstanding job, Andy. Thanks for the intel, we'll discuss where to go next."

"I also think people are waiting for someone to make a move. If we take the Stickmen down cleanly, that will prompt a lot of people to re-examine their loyalties and allegiances."

"For now, let's try and get some rest. Brandie's is under surveillance, we have someone listening on the radio, too."

He looked tired, although generally satisfied with the day's events. "Commander, let's talk a little about some of the ideas Sergeant Shevchenko has about reorganising a reconstruction force, and an intelligence unit."

Taras joined a briefing that moved into a conversation that lasted for a long time over tea and light snacks. The lay out of the reconstruction brigade proposed by the ukrainian was exposed briefly and followed by further questions and answers. Shevchenko exposed his plan based mostly in his experience as a military Engineer. As an enlighted member of the nomenklatura of the Red Army Corps of Officers, Taras also commented over his previous times back in the Soviet Union when his unit was hastily assembled and packed in large transports planes. Most of the military hardware was dispatched from several different military depots using the extensive railways and finally made the journey to the Far East region ready to make the jump to Alaska and Canada.

As a concientious Officer, Shevchenko had try to gather as much as he could reading material about the area of deployment. Mostly travelling accounts and history books spanning from the earlier times of Peter the Great and Vitus Bering all the way to Great Patriotic War and the clash between the North Pacific Forces of US and Canada against the empire of Japan in the inhospitable chain of the Aleutian Islands.

There were amazing feats of engineering achieved in that obscured chapter of the second worldwide conflict.The Alaska Highway, 2237 km long, was completed in seven months during 1942:


In the same year, the US forces were able to build up in Adak Island, in the heart of the Aleutians an airfield to start operations against the japanese out of a barren land and ended up with 6,000 troops as veterans of such an incredible war effort. Adak Naval Air Station continued to be a military base during the Cold War but was designated a Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) site in 1995 and closed in March 1997. Weeks later it would be occupied by foreign troops.The airport was the farthest west for the entire United States at 176.64W and represented an strategic outpost as Adak's airport is one of the largest and most sophisticated airports in the Aleutian Islands. Built by the U.S. Navy for Naval air transport, the airport represented a world-class facility consisting of a 7,800-foot (2,400 m) runway and a 7,600-foot (2,300 m) runway, equipped with an Instrument Landing System and glideslope which facilitate Instrument Flight Rules landings. Adak had scheduled jet service provided by Alaska Airlines. A reduced fleet of B-737 was promptly impounded by "Aeroflot" as well as a solitary B-727 from "Reeve Aleutian Airways". Most of the P3C Orion were destroyed during the combined Spetsnaz and Morskoy spetsnazovets assault.





Taras made some comments about his brief stay in the Aleutians and how his unit was part of an ambitious operation of overtaking the Trans-Alaska Pipeline: 800.302 miles (1,287.961 km) of 48-inch (122 cm) pipe that convey oil from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, to Valdez, Alaska when the 62nd MRD was re assigned to the occupation of the Queen Charlotte Islands as a springboard for setting foot in the canadian mainland.



That ended up much of the travelling story behind the man. The trek from Continents was certainly being exposed under the perspective of what humankind is able to achieve in engineering terms under extreme weather and circumstances. War economy certainly yielded a good deal of future in the economy of remote lands and the bening surroundings of the Lower Mainland paired with the lack of full frontal conventional enemies shouldn't be a major problem to land a Brigade size unit.

The evening became night...

Alain smiled as he sipped his tea,

"I guess you haven't heard the news then, eh?"

"The Russians in Alaska surrendered. They are either dead, or allied with the US military. The war is over there, now."

He chuckled. "So, the Soviet invasion was quite the feat. Many people said it couldn't be done. Amazing, considering you were fighting in Iran, Europe, and China. The "jump" across the Bering took everyone by surprise. Just another example of the incompetence of the US military, I figured."

"If you didn't know, I can see why the truth was kept from the "loyal" 62nd Motor Rifle Division, lest they also get the idea to "go over" to the Americans, or us."

Clarke knew this was true, there had been verified reports from Alaska that Russian units were surrendering on favourable terms. Some individuals were disarmed and a few tried for war crimes, but most units were left intact.

Ah! the infamous "News from Juneau" strike again!

Taras smiled with a broad grin a made himself confortable in the armchair. It was going to be an interesting piece of conversation. He took a cigarette out of his pocket and stroke it against the sphere of his watch for a tight compression of the contents. A flaming Zippo happened to run out of gas but the faithfull matches came to the rescue.

Mr. Belanger, you must understand that much of the Soviet Army doctrine was based on lessons from the textbooks of the Great Patriotic War. Nothing really different with the Alaska case! The "Thousand Mile War" as you call it in your books was certainly dusted off and put into consideration.Not that Alain would be unaware of, but the ukrainian wanted to reflect the value of the operation and its origins.

The invasion of Alaska was very important for the Stavka. They knew that will open a secondary front that will spear into the American continent forcing to commit numerous troops to stop this advance. That was back in 1997. He gestured with his arms as throwing a harpoon to an imaginary whale across the room.

Then there was the strategic targets in the Aleutians like Adak. Anchorage and other facilities that operated anti-ballistic missiles and deployed long range bombers were put out of commission. Taras probably misunderstood the fact that the F-15 were above all air defence combat jets or it was just simply the after effect of soviet propaganda. Ellendorf AB never got the chance to field B-52s or any other bomber for that matter.

That was back then when Anchorage was taken and the First and Second US arctic Brigades had to retreat to Fort Greely. This push made possible to land the 113th and 147th Motorized Rifle Divisions and march over Fairbanks and mopping up the outposts of the 47th Infantry Division by Spetznaz troops. Bloody fighting I heared... Being the door left wide open, Soviet 14th, 41st and 114th Motorized Rifle Divisions landed in the Alexander Archipelago and captured Juneau. Legend says that General Karpinsky was carrying a seven million rubles check in his pocket for the Alaska Governor! This pretty much forced the Canadians to bring back from Europe their 1st Infantry Brigade. In reality, the stabilisation of the front in Norway that year was what really brought the 1st Infantry Brigade back home.62nd and 120th Motorized Rifle Divisions were landed on the coast of British Columbia, including me. So far so good but...

Shevchenko was able to remember all of this information as the sweep over the North Pacific became a great morale booster for the NorPac Command. The move went truly surprising and effective as it was practized with maximum surprise and speed.

The problem is that Stavka never took seriously the Alaskan front. It was to become a diversionary front after all. The forces committed over such an stretched front were difficult to replenish and quickly lost combat capability as well as stomach for fighting that far away from home. Most of them were 2nd category with a 3/4 of personnel only. Something very, very similar to the case of the japanese troops in the Aleutians during WW2 after naval blockade was imposed.

This caused the Red Army serious problems. During the spring of 1998, Anchorage was surrounded by 10th Infantry Division (Mountain) and 2nd Infantry Brigade (Arctic Recon) (Alaska National Guard). The 147th Motor Rifle Division was driven out. Soon after the US arctic troops were moving West to cut the lines across the Bering Straight. This brought the mobilization of the 122nd Guards Motorized Rifle Division that was in Germany! In June the US troops were moved back from the Bering. Taras gesticulated again like in a tai-chi exercise to note how the archipelago forces were pushed towards the East.

By the end of the year, it was Christmas, the fighting around Juneau was terrible. Soviet 14th and 41st Motorized Rifle Division took heavy losses but the 2nd Brigade, even though were supported by locals, didn't have enough power to retake the city against two Divisions. It was a bloody stalemate. That's went the commanders, during the truce for the Holidays, decided to stop fighting. The soviet troops put their weapons down as they just wanted peace. They knew that reinforcements or evacuation will never arrive from the Rodina as the air and naval forces were already decimated. It was a strange result but Juneau became a well known no-man-land where the american were running the show but leaving alone our troops. For such reason, neither the US forces will move out of the capital or the Red Army will try to invade the city. Those were the "infamous news from Juneau". Everybody was able to leave if they wanted. Some loyals escaped to Northern BC to join the 62nd but most of them they preferred to stay in Juneau and wait for the war to end. The russian presence through History in all of Alaska could be felt everywhere. In Juneau there was even a russian store selling Matrioshkas and even samovars. They were happy to be there without fighting the americans.

The reality of war was most of the time stranger than fiction. The sheer isolation and demanding climate conditions made the North Pacific an unconventional front.

Everybody knows that the situation in Alaska is quite difficult for the Soviets but they still holding over much territory only to be used as a bargain for the future. Stalin was able to stay out of the war for most of the time only to jump in at the very last moment and get a landgrab with the Kuriles. In the Kremlin they know that they cannot afford to bring the war too close to home and that's why there are so many troops stationed in a wide arc from the Aleutians all the way to British Columbia. The idea behind the invasion of the Queen Charlotte Islands was to made an "aircraft carrier" out of them and be able to launch attacks over the mainland and Vancouver Island and worked well. As you can see our leaders don't give a damn about the value of the life of our soldiers. But they really know how to get a good bargaining chip while invading the North Pacific. Eventually, everything will be sacrificed. The war will come to an end and the Soviet Union will return the land occupied as a token for something, like the seven million dollars that Alexander II got for its personal pleasure, while our people..

In reply to Taras Vladimirovich Shevchenko (msg #66):

"... get jack shit. Except for May Day parades in the Kremlin and statues commemorating the second Great Patriotic War." Belanger finished for him.

"If the reports from Alaska are correct, then this complicates things, considerably. Maybe even a rebirth of the "White Russians". If more forces can be enticed to defect to the US and Canada."

"That is something to think about, how Alaska was once settled by Russia, and could be considered territory to be "liberated". Except of course the real value was as a bargaining chip. Not just, say, parts of Germany for Alaska, the Yukon and BC, but concessions due to the oilfields, refineries and pipelines. Not to mention fishing grounds, if what we're hearing about drought on the prairies and the US Midwest are true."

He yawned. "Well, it's been a busy day, I think I'm going to finish my tea and turn in."

Lee responded with a yawn of her own.

"I'm bushed, too. Time to hit the hay, eh?"

She got up, started gathering her stuff.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:39, Wed 29 July 2009.

"I'd offer to escort you back to quarters, Rachel, but we're all staying in this same building."

He grinned, stood up and then stretched.

"See you all in the morning. Good work, today. Especially you, Andy."

Kelsey stifles a yawn of her own, eyeing Sgt Fox a moment, then winking at Racheal.

"Chivalry is truly dead."  She stands "I'll walk you home, Racheal"

In reply to Kelsey Sarah Champlain (msg #70):

Rachel stopped for a moment, picked up her hat, then met Kelsey's eyes.

"Sure, I'd like that."

In a reflexive mood, the ex-Lieutenant left the building. It was dark and the short walk towards his room lasted for only a few minutes. The campus was obviously deserted but a stench of skunk seemd to permeate the atmosphere. Closing the door carefully Taras threw himself in bed in a pensative stare towards the immaculate ceiling. Like in a projection screen, many memories triggered by the previous conversation with Alain Belanger started dancing before his eyes.

Well, well...Seems like sleeping will not be easy tonight... He went over this drill many times before: After combat, during long travels, upon bad news from friends, etc.

At the feet of the bed frame was a hastily assembled TV and VCR set. A charcoal "Toshiba" recorder was rigged with standard cable to an elderly "Emerson". A double pile of VHS tapes resting against the starboard side. Late '80s and early '90s flicks were predominant but there was also a half collection of classics that Sgt. Shevchenko probably rescued from some looted backyard. Thieves were not very fond of "classics" films or recordings and the grateful ukrainian was able to enjoy his spare time with some oddities.

Back home there were numerous action movies that highlighted the heroics of the Great Patriotic War, all time favourites of yesterday. One thing that awoke the curiosity in Taras was the chance to see lesser known films from the West. Other than "The Battle of Britain" for instance.

While the occupation of Alaska was taking place, on the other side of the World, a country: Poland, and a city: Warsaw, was taking the worst punishment ever known to man. News were few and far in between. In every soul seemed to permeate the fate of the capital of a country serving as a dual buffer zone. The heroism of the Polish people always paid the highest price. To pay a personal homage and conciliate himself, Shevchenko picked up a black and white carboard copy...

"Dangerous Moonlight" was the original British title for the wartime drama Suicide Squadron. Anton Walbrook plays a famed Polish composer who refuses to leave his homeland when the Nazis march in. His friends literally have to hoodwink him into leaving so that he will avoid extermination. Still anxious to avenge his countrymen, Walbrook joins a Polish air squadron headquartered in England...

That night, the sleepless Taras soothed his senses with the beauty of the music of "The Warsaw Concerto" and the glamour of Sally Gray upon the ruins of the city over the Vistula.


 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...&feature=related

Kelsey meets the gaze and nods, smiles, rises, taking a moment to  stretch. Soon walking Rachel slowly back to her room while talking, small talk, intent on her and little else.  She pauses though partway, asking if she wants a cup of tea or something, a little more conversation.

Andy walked back to his barracks with the others and spent some time on personal maintainence and hygene matters. Then, another day's work done, he went to bed.

Morning came fast. Springtime in Vancouver could be a blessing. The proximity of the Pacific Ocean could be felt in the fresh salty breeze. After the daily routine of toiletry and breakfast, the briefing was religiously followed. Chaired by the Lt. Cmdr. Clarke and Sgt. Shevchenko it was straight to the point:

Morning, Ladies and Gentlemen! Without much ado about yesterday operations will follow on with todays task: Our main concern for now is to increase our intelligence on our more direct targets: The Stickmen and the Hell's Angels. We need updated information from our mole about the current status of the people in Stanley Park. Kelsey? I believe you still handling the contact. We need also to get in touch with the survivalists for a closer look. We might as well connect with the Undergrounders to feel their pulse. I don't see a need to keep much pressure around Brandie's but I would like to keep Andy around. Yesterdays performance was fantastic! Congratulations!

The Sgt. threw a broad smile and a light clapping towards the infiltrated man. The nerves of steel needed to conduct such feat was remarkable.

I'm going to review RCMP patrol reports and also Block Watch programs to see the level of activity registrered throughout the city and shift men and vehicles wherever may needed most. A good watch of the radio spectrum must be kept at all times. I will suggest to Command to increase the level of personnel and means to that task if possible.

The eyes were on Kelsey. The eavesdropping program was giving tremendous leverage to the team. The potential increase would transform the trainees in a full fledge support unit and promotion would not be far away.

In other news, we have to keep on working on our contacts. Captain Bezhov arrived yesterday to North Vancouver with a vehicle and reduced crew from Bella Coola. He is willing to work with us. I'll be meeting him and together with Bulat we will increase our chances to have a positive impact in New Westminster with that stranded nuclear sub.

Taras was airing pretty much tasks for the team members without much detail. So far the layout for the day seemed to be focus on intel gathering and continuing the lines of duty previously set.

Training of the militia will continue as usual. Maintenance of vehicles and weaponry is a must. The current success of our operations is a great oportunity to report to HQ in the Island about any implement that we may need. I recommend to take a look at what's stored in the trailer of the LAV III. For future references we are looking at the possibility of an attack from the Stickmen and Emergency Response calls fron high risk targets as we got before. 

Taras sat on the edge of the table presiding the meeting room. He covered his eyes with his hand and swept his orange crop of hair backwards:

<Red>I didn't slept very well last night...anyways. I will consult with Ms. Kwan about the possibility to activate a climate report team to forecast the weather. Together with the information that we get from the biologist working along the Fraser river we should wide the scope of our intel. I'm trying to create, or better said, transform our job in a more especialize intel unit. It is time to start giving more field responsabilities to the new force and take for us a more dedicated scope rather than the crime fighting at street level. Our skills will still needed but in a more surgical way. Feel free to comment.<Red>