Kelsey finishes prepping the jeep for their temporary inhabitance, cinching her rifle in a good mount for quick retrieval and looking over the vehicle's spots for putting it someplace for ready to fire.  She will fold the windshield down on the hood, and with a smirk she pulls off her glengary in favor of her kevlar pot, and will check the cinches on her body armor, the radio mounting, and with a little look around, where everyone else is, eyes lingering on her friend Rachel with a slight smile.

"Roger then, Echo 1, ready.  Radio check."

Without hesitation, the fully kitted Combat Engineer located the backpack at his feet, tapped the shoulder of Kelsey and motioned forward. While close together, the convoy was able to conduct the radio check and most of the drivers were exchanging thumbs up and even some smiles. The unconventional radio style of the burly ukrainian start rumbling over the speakers:

Attention...this is Echo One-One...We will move directly from here to our rally point. When we arrive everybody will remain in the vehicles until further notice...Over!

Slowly the mixed fleet picked up some speed over the straight length of Broadway. In about ten minutes they will arrive to the established Rally Point (RP). From there, the HAZMAT van equipped with the radio location equipment escorted by a Police cruiser as they were doing for the last days, will be probing the airwaves while driving their designated loop.

The convoy will wait for them to come back. If necessary they'll be ready to respond in force to a possible ambush or attack. If not, they will proceed after gaining first hand INTEL on how the feint worked.

Taras knew that the wait at the Rally Point will only last a few minutes. Right after stopping he dismounted and went to talk to each and every designated vehicle commander in the column. In his previous experience he had to deal with numerous vehicle breakdowns and tasked with retrieving them around Bella Coola. He didn't want to have to go over this type of situation again.

We'll be moving soon. Get one of your crew to inspect the exterior of vehicle for any leak and stand-by.Usually he finished his instructions with a couple of fast, light tapping over the hood.

It would be certainly a faster task to communicate his intentions over the radio but Taras was well aware of OPSEC over the comms. He was also a Commander himself and wanted to reassure the troops looking them in the eye. As to get the feelings and the emotion build-up.

Taras V. Shevchenko
Team Leader. Echo One-One
AKS-74U (45/45) +4 mags
S&W 5946 (15/15) +2 mags
6 RGO hand grenades
Demo charge (250 gr. TNT)

The vehicles idled at the RP, engines rumbling and echoing of the nearest buildings.

All the elements checked their radios as they waited, and checked their other gear as well.

Cool night air seeped in the windows, and the stars were coming out. The moon wouldn't rise until 0425, and it would be a little more than half-full, plenty of light to work with. Right now it was just shy of 2100 hours, plenty of time.

The HAZMAT van and police escort completed it's circuit, with no incident. Immediately, the signals unit notified Kelsey they had a fix on signals originating from on of the high buildings on the downtown side of False Creek, overlooking the Burrard and Granville bridges. There was a few seconds of outgoing signals, mostly code words on an open unscrambled channel. Whoever was doing this, or at least organising this, had some form of military training. There was a short return signal detected, presumably a response/acknowledgement originating from the downtown area somewhere around Brandie's, although not the club itself.

Excited but bored, Mac sat in the back of the Jeep that Andy was driving, checking the near buildings out.

"Andy, er, "Master McRae", do you think it's okay to use my goggles? I can't see anything. I know we're going to need them for later, but the batteries are fully charged, eh?"


Chris "Mac" MacDonald
FN C1A1 (20/20) 6 spare magazines, Hi-Power (13/13) 2 spare mags
4 C13 grenades, 2 HC Smoke, 1 CS, bear spray, Medical kit
Waiting in rear of Jeep, Aiming in Overwatch
This message was last edited by the player at 08:20, Fri 23 Oct 2009.

Near the front of the convoy at the LAV-III, Rachel waited with Taras as they conferred with Kelsey on the new intelligence. Her shotgun was back in the SUV.

"Well, Taras, looks like your gambit worked. Doesn't sound like they are where we're planning on being. We should plan to keep an eye out on all sectors tonight, in case someone comes looking, just in case."


Rachel Lee
Remington 870 (5 rubber bullets loaded) + 40 00 Buck, S&W 5960 (15/15) 2 spare magazines
2 Flash-Bang, 2 Tear Gas grenades, pepper spay
By the LAV-III, talking
This message was last edited by the player at 08:24, Fri 23 Oct 2009.

Very well, very well. There was an initial relief and then a sense of satisfaction in Taras voice.

Seems like everybody is watching everybody. For tonight, we hold the upper card. Now is time to move!

Shevchenko re-arranged the order of the convoy. He didn't like the idea of leading the column in an open top jeep. He motioned the SUV to be ahead and then he found himself a nice spot right before the armoured dinosaur. He didn't feel like inhaling after a caterpillar 3126 diesel engine developing 350 horsepower. It was the turn of the paramedics to suck it up: What an irony! he thought with a chuckle.

With an unorthodox honking of claxon the cavalcade resumed its journey to the heart of downtown. He conversed with Kelsey:

The signals that we intercepted tonight are sending us a clear message. Somebody is watching us. This is not good or bad as long as we are aware of it and we can deceive them at our will. Rachel was right, we will have to be extra alert for any suspicious movement. Also consider that tonight was the last mission for the HAZMAT van. Is too obvious now. We will have to come up with something different. I consider you as being my Intelligence Officer and I hope that we'll figure out something...

The trip will take some time. The landscape at night was daunting. The convoy did have to maintain a reduced speed due to the presence of large numbers of wild life. From coyotes to racoons; from squirrels to feral dogs, the exodus from the burstling life of a metropolis transformed the city into an unhospitable jungle.

East Vancouver in full decadence.  The checkered board of window panes filled and unfulfilled brought the memory of Mikhail Moiseyevich Botvinnik or "Iron Mike" Soviet International Grandmaster and three-time World Chess Champion. The 1940s was his decade: 7 first prizes in seven tournaments and Botvinnik held the world title from 1948 through 1957. The Soviet Union regarded chess as a symbol of Communist superiority, and hence the Soviet chess world was extremely politicized. As Botvinnik was the first world-class player produced by the Soviet Union, everything around him had political repercussions. But that didn't matter much to Taras or "The Black King of Odessa" as was known in the little circle of chess players of the 62nd Motor Rifle Division. "Iron Mike" loved iron logic. His goal was to elaborate entire playing systems from the opening to the endgame, typically displaying a blocked centre leading to a complicated struggle with plenty of flank maneouvring. But the entire game against the Stickmen wasn't entirely his. Alain Belanger was betting on a quick surrender after the loss of their main figure. He preferred a less open ended strategy. He was no fan of "Give piece a chance".

Lost into this thoughts while the gaze was wandering along the road scanning for any lurking danger the convoy was about to arrive...

Taras V. Shevchenko
Team Leader. Echo One-One
AKS-74U (45/45) +4 mags
S&W 5946 (15/15) +2 mags
6 RGO hand grenades
Demo charge (250 gr. TNT)
This message was last edited by the player at 07:06, Wed 21 Oct 2009.

Andy replied to Mac, "If you think they'll last, use em now. There's no point saving it for later if we get bounced on the way there."

Kelsey shrugs slightly, then smirks, radioing her people back (scrambled!) "Get ready to squelch that signal the moment they try to transmit again."  She winks at Taras and talks to him "I am assuming killing transmission is preferred to raiding the transmitters?  Who do you think it is?  His people?"

I wouldn't jam the signal for now. Seems like is just a rudimentary means of surveillance but we don't know who's behind. If we step in too quick we may set their alarm bells. They have military background as per the discipline they display and they would notice our hand. Maybe they are Undergrounders or maybe not. I don't know of any other well organised groups that could be behind. The Hell's Angel's wouldn't allow much competition in their turf and we already have a large segment of the population supporting our cause. Remember the Chinatown incident.

Options were flashing across Taras mind. It took a few seconds of ear pulling and chin scratching:

I'd like to mount a counter-surveillance operation. If we can point out the origin of the transmission it shouldn't be too difficult to get them. After learning the lesson from Bulat in the North Shore we might as well detect them using the thermal camera at night from some distance in our side of the bridge and insert a sniper team in the area. See who they are, what's their looks, weapons, etc. If we compromise our EW capacity now we may not be able to take advantage in the future.

Bulat's troops were previously able to detect and track the movements of a recce force (sniper + observer) using the thermal unit usually associated to the 9K111 Fagot or AT-4 "Spigot" in NATO parlance. The same way that dominating the air waves with a dedicated Electronic Warfare suite operated by skillful troops like Kelsey was giving an edge, mastering of the thermal spectrum would bring another element to weigh against the intricated problem of MOUT (Military Operations in Urban Terrain) or FIBUA (Fighting in Built-Up Areas), or sometimes FISH (Fighting In Someone's House), or FISH and CHIPS (Fighting In Someone's House and Causing Havoc In People's Streets).
This message was last edited by the player at 09:05, Thu 22 Oct 2009.

In reply to Taras Vladimirovich Shevchenko (msg #84):

"Commander, I think we are on too short a timetable to launch such an investigation, and I have a close triangulation of them already.  I am more worried about them spotting our group and having the time to launch a trap against us.  I proposed the jamming on next transmission, not now, regardless.

While they waited, Fox used the LAV's Thermal sights to scan the area, looking for threats.

He popped his head out the gunner's hatch and informed Taras and the others by his jeep,

"Checking 360 degrees, no targets on thermal."

When they mounted up and got going again, he resumed checking their line of advance.


SGT Fox
C7A1 (30/30) + 6 magazines, Hi-Power (13/13) + 6 magazines
4 C13 Grenades, 1 Smoke, 1 WP grenade.
In LAV-III
Aiming on Overwatch.
This message was last edited by the player at 08:23, Fri 23 Oct 2009.

As they waited, they switched up the vehicle order, and sent back the extra Jeep that had been towing the ATVs. The ATVs were deployed, following the ambulance.

The Order of March was as follows:

SUV (2 Militia)

UAZ-469 (Taras, Andy, Mac, Kelsey)

LAV-III (Fox, Lee, 1 Militia, 2 RCMP)

Ambulance (2 Paramedics)

2 ATVs (Tyler, 1 RCMP)

Back on the move, they trundled up Main street and through Chinatown, entering the downtown proper.

After they got moving again, Lee climbed up into the turret and sat in the vehicle commander's seat.

She got on the commander's independent thermal sight and also helped check out the rear and sides for unexpected targts or threats.


Rachel Lee
Remington 870 (5 rubber bullets loaded) + 40 00 Buck, S&W 5946 (15/15) 2 spare magazines
2 Flash-Bang, 2 Tear Gas grenades, pepper spay
In the LAV-III's commander seat
Observing rear and sides using thermal sights.
This message was last edited by the player at 08:30, Fri 23 Oct 2009.

In reply to Kelsey Sarah Champlain (msg #85):

To do so we will have to call back the HAZMAT van. Our operation is a snatch and we depend on speed. Even if we get detected, and our column is not too difficult to miss after all, the enemy is not going to have the ability and time to set up an ambush, we are almost there already. Once we are on our site we will have overwatch in all avenues and an impressive firepower to respond if necessary.

Taras realized that he did miss something in his planning:

Next time I will make sure that Electronic Warfare will be more integral part of the plan. Tonight the HAZMAT van was supposed to be used only as a decoy to cover our approach to downtown.

Taras V. Shevchenko
Team Leader. Echo One-One
AKS-74U (45/45) +4 mags
S&W 5946 (15/15) +2 mags
6 RGO hand grenades
Demo charge (250 gr. TNT)
Talking with Kelsey

Now on one of the ATVs at the end of the column, Tyler followed the ambulance. The Mountie he was paired with rode his own ATV on his right. The darkness glowed an eerie green through the NVGs. His carbine was in the basket in front of the handlbars, and he wore the taser instead.

"Man, this is fun!"


Tyler Hope
Taser, 3 spare cartridges
CAR-15 (30/30) 6 spare magazines, M1911 (8/80 2 spare magazines
4 M67 Grenades, 1 CS grenade, 1 smoke grenade, 1 Flash-Bang
Pulling drag at end of column.

In reply to Taras Vladimirovich Shevchenko (msg #89):

Kelsey coughs a little "You know I deployed a retrans site in that tall tower we cleared yesterday?  And my gear is at the Uni.  Besides, we could just step on their freq with something like.. music."  She grins impishly

Andy kept his eyes on the road and made sure that he kept a safe interval between the Soviet jeep and the vehicle in front.

He listened to the conversation and said, "Music would be an obvious interruption, could you hit them with a buzz of static that made it sound like they're kit was on the fritz? When we were in Europe our bloody radios didn't work as often as not, it might seem more natural than a burst of music," he smiled evilly, "though at some point we might want a pirate radio station that just happens to broadcast on certain frequencies, we could look into that, make a ho-hah of chasng the "punks" down when all the time they just happen to swith to frequencies our watchers are using. For now though, I'd suggest we make it sound like static, this engagement will be intense enough without us trying to get cute."
This message was last edited by the player at 17:19, Fri 23 Oct 2009.

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #92):

"Static was my original suggestion, just a simple open key type jam to step on their transmission"

If it can be done I'd prefer to have some static. Also, in the future I will like to have this electronic warfare thing better addressed. In the Red Army I was a Combat Engineer, just one of the folks of combat support with lots of work. I went to military school but I never got to plan operations other than breaching, setting up defenses and recovery of vehicles. I'd really appreciate some input from people with more experience in this field but it's important to do that in advance, in the planning phase.

Taras was getting comfortable again talking with the troops. The little command element encapsulated in the jeep appeared to be getting, regardless of the obvious differences and backgrounds, in the same frequency.

Taras V. Shevchenko
Team Leader. Echo One-One
AKS-74U (45/45) +4 mags
S&W 5946 (15/15) +2 mags
6 RGO hand grenades
Demo charge (250 gr. TNT)
Shooting the breeze

In reply to Taras Vladimirovich Shevchenko (msg #94):

"Roger that, I'll contact my team to have them jam the freq they used, and the usual ones for that style radio with simulated solar flare static."

She grins, then transmits.  "Echo one seven, this is echo one, execute lima charlie.  Repeat execute lima charlie"  Figuring that some base codes for radio operations are set, they will be transmitting static.. loud and clear.. on civilian bandwidths for that scenario.  "Confirm, over"

In reply to Kelsey Sarah Champlain (msg #95):

The radio crackled in response:

"Echo One, roger, we have good copy. Confirming Lima Charlie. Say again, executing Lima Charlie. Out."

As they travelled, the militia in the lead vehicle took them off the main throughfares and down cross-streets or even alleys, although through the downtown core there wasn't much avenue for creative maneuvering. They didn't see anyone in the darkened buildings or deserted streets. As the different routes had been thoroughly surveyed and the local personnel knew the city, there was little chance of getting lost even in the darkness.

However, little chance didn't mean no chance. Turning down a street they thought was W. Pender, it took a moment to realise that they were actually on the wrong street, one that was blocked on all four lanes by wrecked and stalled vehicles that had yet to be cleared. Nervously, the little convoy came to a halt at an intersection, unable to easily pass the blockage and move forward. Recognising the restored buildings on either side as Waterfront Station on the right and Sinclair Centre on the left.

Sure enough, a check of the street signs revealed they had gone one block past Pender and were on W. Cordova and Howe. They were not in "Indian Country", the Harbour Centre listening post was only a block or so behind them. After the short detour they were on their way, and safely arrived at the "ambush" site in a few more minutes.

The convoy finally arrived to the desired site. The five-way intersection was previously analized and selected as having potential to establish the ambush. It forms a nice bottleneck and at the same time offers an excellent view of West Pender or the main avenue of approach for the targets:

http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=...&ved=0CBIQ8gEwAA

Once arrived the team did not waste time and started to take positions as previously briefed:

"We'll have a lookout element of 2 at Bute and Pender, 2 more to "backstop" at the NW corner of Jervis and Pender. Taras, at the SW corner of the intersection where he has a good view of the area, and the LAV out of sight a short way away at the corner of West Hastings with 2 crew and a 3-person snatch team armed with Tasers, CS gas and stun grenades. Additional transport will be 2 SUVs in a parkade in the block between Hastings and Pender."

Once Taras selected a covered position with ample view of the lane and enough protection to protect him from the initial explosion he started to prepare the charge. Formed into explosive sticks of various sizes for particular purposes, dynamite is safe to handle. Of course caution is always called for when handling explosives and they should never be handled by anyone without proper training. The Red Army Engineer School gave him that skill.  Dynamite is set off by the shock of a smaller explosion. This typically comes from a blasting cap, a small explosive charge that's inserted into the stick. When the blasting cap explodes, the shock is enough to then set off the explosive stick. Otherwise is fairly difficult to activate.  It does not ignite and explode in fire for example. While movies often show a burning fuse attached to dynamite, the fuse is to set off the blasting cap, not the dynamite itself. Without a blasting cap, dynamite can actually be burned. In fact, bomb disposal squads often burn old dynamite in place rather than risk moving it.

Taras placed the charge composed of 250 grs. by the curb hidden in a heap of trash so commonly found in the,  for several years now, unkept streets of Vancouver. The lenght of wire wisely running along the curbside and finally connected to the blasting machine. Once the set up was finished the Lieutenant produced a couple of handgrenades from his lifchik as well as an extra magazine of ammo. During the previous rehearsals Taras already found out that the extra length of the mags needed an extra pull and so he preferred to have at least one of them at hand.

Once everybody was in place Shevchenko radioed HQ communicating the readiness of the "Screwdriver". By then, the embryonic RCMP and militia force will become extra vigilant and especially those selected as a contingency in downtown.

Hurry up and wait.

Trying not to make too much noise. The Lt. accomodated himself for the mission. Without the weight of the backpack and with the trusty AKS-74U ready nearby, he was able to scan the surroundings with the help of the NVG with their little magnification. Everything was quiet so far...


Taras V. Shevchenko
Team Leader. Echo One-One
AKS-74U (45/45) +4 mags
S&W 5946 (15/15) +2 mags
6 RGO hand grenades
Demo charge (250 gr. TNT)
Installing explosive charge/Overwatch
This message was last edited by the player at 07:48, Sun 01 Nov 2009.

Andy made sure that the SUV was parked well out of sight and under guard. He looked over at Mac and the pair of them went to the position they'd planned to use as an OP. Carefully and quietly they checked teh building just in case any surprises had moved in since it had last been checked.

In reply to Andrew Montgomery McRae (msg #98):

After entering the office building, they cleared it to make sure no one was waiting for them. It looked like no one had entered the building since they were there earlier. Andy and Chris had arranged a few items so that if they were disturbed, there would be some sign.
This message was last edited by the GM at 10:32, Tue 03 Nov 2009.

"Looks good, Chief."

Mac got set for a long night. Like everyone else he had napped during the evening so he wasn't afraid of dozing off. But it would be boring. He set up his night-vision laser range-finding binoculars on the balcony of the abandoned office building, checked it for function. They remained well-hidden from all except those who might be above them.

"Good to go. Don't worry, I'll be checking all around, not just the route. No good being over-focuses, and those bozos are going to be hard to miss anyways, eh?"


Chris "Mac" MacDonald
FN C1A1 (20/20) 6 spare magazines, Hi-Power (13/13) 2 spare mags
4 C13 grenades, 2 HC Smoke, 1 CS, bear spray, Medical kit
On overwatch of the target's route
This message was last edited by the player at 06:32, Tue 03 Nov 2009.