In reply to Captain Ly Cong Kim (msg # 471):

"I don't know, those guys did know how to cook, I'll grant them that.

"Tell your friends to come in. Michael and the kids will be back soon."

She stepped out to peer at the grey ocean. The sun was getting close to the dark band of Vancouver Island across the horizon.

"Couver still has that Red Chinese trading post, last I heard. Haven't been there in a while. I think that's the direction these horse-people came from."

In reply to Kellie Monroe (msg # 472):

Capt'n Kim smiles and slaps his thigh about the Trading Post still there.


"Sounds like the horse people are clearing the evil they perceive between here and there. For sure your son will be back."


Kim looks to Jimmy

"Hungry? "

Capt'n Kim ponders if his fuel supply could spare the extra 30 liters or so to go to the trading post in Couver.  His fishing just west of here on Orcas and Shaw Islands has always done well.Thinking of the Islands and the fishing camp at Smugglers Cove (according to the signs in the area) the Project might want to know  of the pretty clear airstrip. Oh.. he'll bring it up at dinner.

In reply to Captain Ly Cong Kim (msg # 473):

Tim went back to the vehicles and informs the others that they had been invited for a meal. We will keep a couple of people on watch and then they can change out and get something to eat as well. Volunteers for the first watch ?"

-

"Feels like I haven't had a proper meal for a century."

Capt'n Kim smiles at Mrs. Monroe then responds to Jim's comment

"That's because Puget Sound hasn't had any great cooks until now"

In reply to Tim Charles White (msg # 474):

"I'm all right for the first watch," volunteered Tina.

In reply to Tim Charles White (msg # 474):

Over the radio, Daniel allowed that they could have something to eat. "Just don't take more than an hour, we're going to be travelling after dark as it is. Oh, and I got word from Maryville. They're sending a detachment up here to provide extra firepower."

Back at Maryville, north of Seattle, Andy and Elliot were getting their marching orders.

Both knew each other as their teams (MARS and SCIENCE) had worked together before, and the Project base in Tukwila was not a big place. Since activation (wakeup) a couple months back in November there hadn't been a lot of time for relaxation but they had run into each other at the New Year;s Day party over a month ago. Both Project members had been busy with reconstruction duties, training new personnel and now with conducting evacuation due to the expected round of new eruptions at Mt. Rainier.

The evacuation south of the city had been going well as the signs got worse and worse. Over a hundred people living on the mountain and in the projected path of the lahrs had been located and convinced to move from the danger zone. Some had not, but that was their right and they were left to take their chances. These people were the "low-hanging fruit" that could be most easily located, now it was getting tougher to find people.

This was why getting pulled from the search effort and sent in the opposite direction, north, seemed odd. They'd been dropped off a half hour earlier by a boat that pulled in to the wharf at the mouth of the Snohomish River to the small Amerind ville of Maryville (prewar Narysville in Snohomish County). From the riverside they'd made their way to the "Open Road" (I-5) and an old truck stop/trading post turned into a Morrow Company outpost. The truck stop had been a postwar trading post for Truckers, Bikers, Amerinds and whoever else used the Open Road. It was a walled double-compound (trading post in one compound, Morrow House in another) with guard towers on the perimeter.

It had been a rainy day, but by late afternoon the rain had slackened off to a drizzle.

An XR311 Combat Support Vehicle was parked nearby. There were only a few other Morrow Project vehicles parked there, a V-150 Armoured Recovery Vehicle, a Ranger and another XR311. Most other assets were down south assisting with the evacuation.

In reply to Project Director (msg # 479):

The Assistant Group Leader, Weaver, was wearing a beret with Project combats (BDUs) and a parka to keep out the chill of the cold rain. His weapon was a MAC-10 slung over his shoulder. The lot was paved, water stood in large puddles.

"Good of you to join us, gentlemen.

"To the north of us, near the Canadian border, is the city of Bellingham. A Regional Recon Team, RECON KR-P44, was activated this morning. We sent a detachment up to bring them in. They hit a snag. P44's bolt-hole was in the forest several kilometres east of Beillingham and the Open Road so it will be a chore getting to them.

"The detachment we sent is having to trailblaze several kilomtres into the forest. We feel there's no need for you to wait, you can RV with them near Bellingham and assist as necessary.

"You can decide among you who's driving and who's running the fifty. As it is, the detachment reported no hostiles on the Open Road north. It's 90 klicks, that should take about 4 hours if you don't push it. All operating frequencies and encryption has been set, here's a hard-copy including authentication codes.

"Get to Bellingham, find both the team and detachment, and help escort them back here tonight if possible. You can even run after dark, we think it'll be safe. Any questions?"

He indicated the XR311 that was ready to go. It had the folding soft doors and roof Resistweave panels attached (via Velcro) to keep out the rain. Weaver also handed over a notebook containing the CEOIs (radio codes).

As Elliot Pendergrass walks with his new partner up the Open Road toward the compound he comments, "Now that is a proper base," he says, pointing at the towers and the double wall. "Reminds me of the old forts made of logs the settlers built in the 1800's as they moved west. At least, it reminds me of the forts I saw in the movies." He is not a tall man and he moves his backpack about on his shoulders; his athletic frame bears the weight easily. Everywhere his brown hair sticks out from under his cap it is wet and curled from the drizzle and rain. There is a spring in El's step, as he is eager to discover why they had been pulled from evacuation duty. Although he looks like everyone's favorite college professor his M10 Ingram hangs by his side, under control and ready for use in a hurry.

When they meet with Assistant Group Leader Weaver, the man with the SCIENCE patch on his shoulder listens carefully during their briefing. "Yes, sir. Rendezvous and escort. And I've never seen a MARS guy who preferred to drive over being gunner." He shared a smile with the other Morrow Project members.

His face becomes more serious as he follows up with real questions. "If you don't mind, sir, what are the seismic indicators like? Have we seen an increase in volcanic activity? And, how is the evac going?" he asked. "We were surprised to be assigned further from the active zone."

Andy chuckles at El's 'gunner' comment. "I'll take that one."  His smile is genuine, and he keeps the smile as he continues. "90 clicks, open road, no hostiles."  Slapping El lightly on the shoulder, "Just a walk in the park, Pendergrass."

Andy takes the radio codes, adjusting the bag on his shoulder along with the pack.  "Thank you sir.  The 311 have a full gear loadout?  We may be able to get there today but we may end up sleeping under the stars for a night or two.  Also sir, Do we have any ordinance in addition to the duece?  Not expecting any trouble, but every mile is a new adventure up here!  El and I could use a case of 9 mil as well as some 7.56 for the long arm and something to keep the .50 cal happy."

The young man's gaze moved around the area, always returning to Weaver's face as they conversed.

Daryl nodded to Pendergrass. "Seismic indicators predict a 90% chance of eruption in the next 5-30 days. That's the best estimate, but our instruments and data is a lot more extensive than before the war. If it's not over soon, then people are going to want to move back. It'll be like Mt. Saint Helens all over again. There's a dome building under the snow cap, if that goes we expect slush and steam lahrs (snow and mud) to reach all the way to Puget Sound."

Indicating the XR311 he said, "it's fully bombed-up, as the Brits would say. There's a case each of 9-mil, 7.62 NATO. Standard load for the Ma-Deuce: one belt in the gun and two cases spare ammo (2 ammo cans per case, 1 belt per can: 4 spare belts). Nothing extra. You get into more serious trouble, there's a QRF stationed here." He indicated the MPVs parked in front of Morrow House. "There's also a V-150 mortar vehicle in a revetment at the mortar pits located behind this building.

"No camp kit. The units you are going to RV with already have that. If you camp out draw from their supplies and gear. Forecast calls for light snow some time in the next few days. Anything else?"

OOC You each have a Basic Issue and Personal Load. As well, a Cold Weather kit.

The XR311 parked in front of Morrow House is a "convoy escort" version with pintle-mounted M60 and XM1743 grenade launcher.



There is a second Ranger parked there, a HQ/Command post version. The armed Ranger mounts a Ma-Deuce behind a gunshield.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:22, Tue 28 Mar 2017.

Noting the XM1743, El nods to the Assistant Group Leader. "We will get those team members back as soon as we can. Hopefully, with the same ammo loadout that we left with." He smiles. "But if we have to mix it up, we'll be just fine."

If there are no further instructions, Pendergrass stows his gear in the back of the 311 and slides into the driver's seat, checking the autonav as he does.

Andy glances at the QRF vehicles.  "No problem.  If we need help, you guys will bring Bambi and Thumper."

"Do we need to take along any lumbering gear to help dig them out of the woods?"

Carefully stowing his gear, Andy stretches one last time before climbing into the passenger seat, then adjusting himself and the .50 cal above his head.

Looking up from the passenger seat he addresses the ATL, "Weaver, do they know we're coming?  When was their last check in?  And, last but not least, can we raise them on the radio thru relay with this post?"

This message was deleted by the player at 16:28, Mon 03 Apr 2017.

In reply to Andy Maxwell Flasch (msg # 486):

Weaver nodded in agreement to Elliot, then turned to Andy. "Roger, we will send the QRF if you get into trouble. "Our Project Liaison, Daniel Blackfeather, escorted the team and he has a chainsaw on his vehicle. But I'm ahead of you, there's another chainsaw, this one electric, on your vehicle's cargo bed.

"They last checked in an hour ago. We hadn't yet decided to send you at that point so they don't know you're coming. We will update them on their next check-in in an hour."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:22, Wed 29 Mar 2017.

Once he had finished up his meal having eaten rather sparingly Tim thank their host before returning to the vehicles and taking over on watch so others can get something as well. He reminded everyone as to the time frame they were working with and to be ready to go in an hour.

He then gives Daniel and update over the radio.

"Sounds good.  Thanks.  We'll keep an eye out for the snow."

Turning his head to Elliot, "You ready to roll?"
This message was last edited by the player at 20:02, Thu 30 Mar 2017.

Elliot looks up from the Autonav screen. "Route to Bellingham is in. ATL Weaver, we'll see you back here soon."

He drives the XR311 out of the compound and onto the Open Road. El keeps his eyes moving, taking in the features of the roadside. His team was awakened just a couple of weeks ago; El has not passed through this way before.

The Autonav's inertial location system booted up, and the route appeared on the display. This was an older Autonav unit, with an analogue display amd the information stored on microfiche(!). Waypoints, reoutes, caches and other information markers could be put up on the display by glowing markers as long as it was interfaced with the vehicle's onboard computer.

Newer post-1987 Project-wide update Autonav units were much more computerised with a CRT display and GPS backup (which were all seemingly useless due to a lack of GPS satellites).

Their radio check with the outpost's radio shack came back Lima Charlie. The outpost would be able to communicate with them for 40-50km max on the voice bands (UHF and VHF). Past that they could still receive but would probably need to stop and deploy the long-range dipole antenna and transmit using CCW (Morse Code).

They were waved through the gate by a Stoner-armed local Amerind sentry wearing a rain poncho. Surprisingly, the short connecting road was newly paved and patched. The Open Road itself used as much of the old Interstate system as possible, in this case I-5 North. While showing its age much of it remained intact with overgrown areas cleared and damaged sections repaired, at least close to the settlements around Seattle4.

The die-off during and after the war due to radiation, starvation and disease had been compounded by the ravages of a biowar agent (since gone) known only as "the Plague". This, plus the multiple eruptions of Mt. Rainier and subsequent ash-fall had ensured the local population started from a lower point even compared to other hard-hit areas of North America, and population growth and in-migration was minimal. If there was a plus side there was a lot of salvage remaining and intact in the ash-covered ruins.

In reply to Tim Charles White (msg # 474):
"Go ahead. I'm not that hungry.  I'll hang out with Tina.", Lina replied.

In reply to Tim Charles White (msg # 489):

Jenna was happy for a local, home cooked meal.  The tastes of the Project people didn't always match those of someone who grew up eating what they would consider "local, seasonal food." The MREs might be edible but they always seemed oddly sweet to her.

Candy was downright disgusting, with the exception of dark chocolate and lemon drops.  Coffee was another thing she couldn't get used to, but the packs from MREs were great to trade with the sleepers for other stuff.

After she ate, something was bugging her.  "Hey, TL, you think these folks are safe?" she said to Daniel. "Her boy went with them and they know where they are.  Our trail wouldn't be too hard to follow here.  These guys are vicious and intolerant of the old ways. They seem Hell bent on destroying anything from the world that was."
This message was last edited by the player at 16:48, Mon 03 Apr 2017.

As Elliot and Andy take off, Andy keeps his eyes peeled, looking for signs of ambush, game trails or any other items of interest.  If the speed and road quality allows, Andy will spend some lookout time up in the .50 when the trees get close and vision is obscured.

He uses the binoculars to scan around them at each pause in their travel, being careful to not get motion sickness from using them on rough ground.

As they move northward, Andy pulls his hood up to keep out the chilling wind.  "How much longer?"  He wines, with a smart-aleck grin.

El grins a little at Andy's joke. "We will lose radio contact halfway through the trip to Bellingham, about 2 hours out; when we get close to the targets we should hear some radio chatter. There are two teams, the fresh meat and the rig they dispatched to escort them. Those vehicles should be talking to each other."

The man driving looks at the man gunning and says, "When you hear voices on the radio, that's when we will be 'almost there'." Elliot turns his attention back to the road.

"And if we get close to Bellingham and there is no radio chatter, that will be something we talk about, too," he mutters, his hand reflexively dropping to rest on the butt of his HP-35.
This message was lightly edited by the GM at 00:57, Tue 04 Apr 2017.