"'E's not a cat, but if you mean Poco... I'll look," Vos said, rising.  And then in a blur of motion and blast of wind, she dashed from the chamber.

OOC: Vosper will search for Eddy.

It doesn't take Vosper long to find Eddy; he is, indeed, in bed, asleep, purring away with a gentle smile.

This state of bliss and blessed zen (and any dream that might have been associated) come to an end when Vos has to wake Eddy.
As the bliss and zen are replaced with disappointment and frustration, Eddy looks up at Eloise with pleading eyes.

But, like his mom, Eloise isn't persuaded; and soon enough, Eddy is dragging his shaggy carcus out of his warm, comfortable bed.

He drags his feet as he heads, glacier slow, towards the Ready Room.

"Stop that dragging, you, or I'll tickle you until you can't breathe," Vos said with a smile.  "The price of doing good work is, having the paper-pushers micro-analyze you and tell you how you could have done better.  Tut tut!  I'm not sitting through it alone, or worse, with Muldoon.  Misery loves company!" She winked.

Eddy smirked at El.  He thought about running, then realised the futility of that.

"Why can't Egghead and Rubberbutt just tell Colonel Conniptions what happened.
Seriously, they were there ... ordering us all around.  They saw what happened", Eddy replied,  kinda resentfully.

"I mean, all we do is sit around here all the time, waiting to be thrown like a grenade at some red supers.  The. When we get back, it's paperwork and talk, talk, talk.
It's Saturday morning, Vos.  Before I was part of his gig, I'd have been nursing a hangover on Saturday morning".

Under all that fur and muscle, after all, was a teenage kid.  Not a soldier. Not a scientist. Not a Secret Service agent.

Vos stopped and turned to face Eddy, reaching out to put a hand on his shoulder.

"Feck all if I know, mate," she answered honestly.  "The truth is, I was born an' bred to this, in ways even Muldoon would never understand."

"I grew up in rural England, thinking I was the daughter of a carpenter, until I learned my 'father' was my stepfather, and my genetic father had been a World War Two super-soldier."

"When I hit about thirteen, I'd figured out I was fast.  Very bloody fast.  And that was when I learned MI-6 had had my family under observation since the war.  That my REAL father had been a British super named Swift.  And that I had an obligation, it seemed, to serve King and Country because the government had given my father his abilities... and that's what gave me mine."

"I'm not that much older than you," she said.  Eloise was only 21.  "And I've been trained to do this since I was a teen.  But this?  This is my first real assignment, other than a few trial missions.  And honestly, mate, I don't think I'm doing all that jolly with it."

Eddy looked at Vos a moment.   He sighed.

When the American government had offered him this gig, he thought it'd be all glamour and excitement; travelling the world, protecting and saving it from all manner of villain, earning girls and media attention.
Not living here, being bosses around by 'Rubberbum', and having to attend stupid and irrelevant meetings at what-the-hell o'clock in the morning.

"So ...", he said, as he started on again towards the Ready Room, "Why do you put up with it?
Why not tell them to bugger off?
Surely you don't feel THAT much obligation to this bunch, or your own.

We could be doing all this 'save the world' stuff on our own ..." said; the sentence drifting off along with his attention, as he considered the prospect.

Eloise's lips quirked into a rueful half-smile.  "Because I think it makes a difference," she said. "And because, at least in theory, we can get more done as part of something larger than we can as individuals running about on our own."

"And yah... I guess the 'God save the Queen' bit they gave me sunk in more than I'd've known," she finished.

"Doesn't mean we have to be blind tin soldiers," she countered.  "But let's give this a go and see how it whirls."  She nodded her head in the direction of the briefing room, encouragingly.

Eddy sighed, and nodded.  As they moved on, he said, "Its just going to be Egghead and Rubberbutt talk, talk, talking.  Just as if I wasn't there anyway.
Which is fine, I ain't got nothing to say that they won't say, anyway; and they'll say it with more enthusiasm".


As they entered the Ready Room, Eddy saluted the screen, and said, "Yes, Dad, I'm up" ... and headed for the fridge.

Muldoon sat saying nothing waiting for Barnes to start.

Commander Barnes nods as now everyone is in the room then starts to talk; "OK it looks like the mission was accomplished; the data was destroyed and buried in the collapsed facility. That should set any bioweapons research of that kind back quite a bit. So I would say again congratulations on a job done well. Of course, now I would like to hear a bit more detail about how things went. Anyone can feel free to pipe up with some information about the mission."

Eddy, over at the kitchenette, began making himself a double-decker roast beef, pickles, cheese and banana sandwich.

Nightmare nods at the Commander's opening, then speaks up. "It was very cold. If we hadn't been able to conclude the matter as fast as we did, that would have been as much of an enemy as the soviets. As it was, there appeared to be a team of soviet super soldiers on the premises. It wouldn't be too much of a stretch to believe the bio-weapons they were pursuing in the facility were, indeed, the powered people we faced."

"The Soviets were better informed about us than we were about them," Vosper ventures.  "They had support from well-trained soldiers who'd obviously trained to support the paranormals.  The coordinated extremely well.  I think I was about this close to death," she said, holding her finger and thumb about an inch apart.

"In retrospect, I wish I'd spent my time designing heated underwear.  It was truly that cold."

Kind of a surprise response from Oscillator (but remaining multi-syllabic).

"Frankly, we faced superpowered opposition, I was knocked senseless several times,
and I wouldn't be able to say what happened for most of the battle.

The doctors say I should have healed from any concussions, but I find it hard to tell.
I seem to have significantly less tolerance of all this military buffoonery."

As he says that last sentence, Oscillator looks directly at Commander Barnes.

Sunphoenix shrugs, "... when the team hit the facility, I was still in my observation post. I was not actually told what to expect though I'd figured a SEAL Team would be hitting the base...so I figured it would be a stealthy insertion that I would not likely even see, then a lot of explosions as their planted explosives blew the base."

"This is not a criticism of the Team's efforts... but a full on 'in-your-face' assault was not what I expected. When it was clear the team had decided on a 'loud and fast' strike I knew the base had gunship support perhaps 10 to 15 minutes out once the alarm was raised... so I figured it was best I help silence the defenders as well to give the team the largest window of Operation Time as possible... so I took out the power on the surface in hopes of ending any radio calls for help for a while."

"Honestly with the Meta's on the SMITE Team arrayed I figured the Base would fold a lot quicker than it did.  The Soviet Supers suddenly appearing... was a shock to me... cause I had been there watching that base for like three days and I had not seen any metahuman activity or I would have reported it!"

"Which is the thing I find most disturbing, the Russians either one~ have more meta-humans than we realize and can station superhuman support at even their most remote and secret bases, two~ they have some other form of long-ranged communication that does not involve technology as with my taking out the power and Master Sergeant Muldoon taking down their comm tower - radio transmission should NOT have been possible... or the worse case three~ they were expecting our attack somehow!"

"They clearly had a long-ranged teleporter. Which is kinda my fault she got away, I had her unconscious, but I choose NOT to just kill her out of hand... didn't 'feel' right... not something a hero should do.  Maybe we should allow tranquilizers to be requisitioned for field use for the incapacitating of downed Russian supers?  You got the right, Commander Barnes, to be angry she slipped away, but I DO NOT and WILL NOT regret not killing an unconscious enemy, we're supposed to be better then the Tyrannical Reds, that's all I got to say on that."

After letting a few of the others speak, Muldoon delivered a brief rundown of the mission "We arrived at the objective, determined that a fast strike targeting communications and the sentries would be the best course. We neutralized both but as Phoenix said a team of enemy supers arrived on scene. The comm tower was eliminated in seconds so either they knew we were coming or had a different way of detecting the attack."

"It was a difficult fight and we easily could have lost team members or possibly the entire team. Our team all performed well and despite his injuries completed the mission." Muldoon said simply.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:59, Wed 10 June 2015.

"If SunPhoenix hadn't have showed and bailed us out, we'd have gone down, no bloody doubt in my mind," Vos said firmly.

Nightmare regards Muldoon and Sunphoenix with a slight smile. "I can understand the difficulty you face. If you accept the fact that the biological weapons the soviets were researching included our opponents, you have to wonder about the accidental nature of your own acquisition of power."
"Of course, that wouldn't be Barnes's concern. It's doubtful the soviets are researching anything that we are not also investigating. Assuming that was the reason Ramesses pointed out the soviet facility to us, it stands to reason he will be doing the same to the soviets. What do you think, Commander?"

"I thought we were going to go in sneaky too, but things changed pretty fast out there.

We also had an impromptu election, let's not forget that."
Oscillator tips his imaginary hat at Muldoon.

"Seems like we need some prep in a few 'modalities', like a stealth configuration, a 'heavy hitter' arrangement, and so on
-- Muldoon probably knows more about strategic combat and so on.
But we should train in advance for this kinda stuff, so we don't get out in the field and get pounded like rookies.

I guess I can speak for just myself -- I got pounded like a rookie.
And I NEVER want that to happen again."

"Some the team have been training together, but others have had different priorities. I for one agree we need to work on team work especially with Sun Phoenix joining the team. Another benefit of training together is it gives us a chance to try out own abilities against other supers and  discover what works best in different types of foes. Finally a chance to see the others in action and learn their abilities." Muldoon replied.

With his double-decker roast beef, pickles, cheese and banana sandwich, and a two liter bottle of milk, Eddy sat down at the back of the room to eat and draw.

He had a sketchbook, and a packet of pencils, and seemed to be paying little attention to the debriefing; instead, avidly concentrating on his drawing.
This wasn't unusual for Eddy.  He could often be seen drawing, it was one of his ways to relax ... along with helping out in the vehicle pool, and playing ping-pong in the Rec Room.
Anyone who'd been into his room would have seen his drawing all over the walls.   Vosper, Rubberbutt, Yeti'mare ... even Egghead.   There was one particularly large pic of Onyx, resplendent and shooting laser beams, on the wall directly opposite the door.

Commander Barnes listens to all the information provided by the different team members. He deliberately ignores Poco's actions, satisfied that the cat-man is at least present. He thinks on each response then takes the time to address each person who spoke.

Commander Barnes looks over at Nightmare first and responds to his observations; "No, from the information Ramesses provided the Soviet supers were NOT the research. It was very specifically bioweapons research which I imagine Oscillator can confirm as he was involved in the demolitions below. As far as Ramesses providing information to the Soviets, I have no way of knowing and to my knowledge we are not researching anything as heinous as the bioweapon they were working on."

Looking over at Vosper next Commander Barnes continues; "I seriously doubt they had information about the team. It is more likely they were trained in concert with the soldiers on base defense tactics utilizing their abilities and those of their soldiers. It is not much different than what soldiers guarding facilities do already just adding in supers."

Commander Barnes listens intently to what Sunphoenix has to say before replying; "How the team decided to approach the facility aside it was a good plan to take out the power. In regards to your observations unless a super has an obvious physical appearance like Poco, there really isn't a way of differentiating them from a normal person unless they are in a particular costume. It would not suprise me that the Soviets have supers stationed at various facilities, we certainly have our share of them in sensitive locations.

As far as how they knew you were there when the comm tower was destroyed is pretty simple. I would imagine the soldiers in the towers had comm radios and they relayed down information once they knew they were under attack. It is certainly something I would do in their situation and something that we already do at our bases/facilities.

And to your last comment I would not have expected you to outright kill a helpless opponent. We do try to be better than that and you had no way of knowing she had awakened with combat going on all around you. I don't expect anyone on the team to kill, not unless there is absolutely NO other option."

Commander Barnes looks over at Muldoon, somewhat surprised at the brevity of his report but continues; "Well, like I said to Sunphoenix it is likely they had portable radios with which they could communicate with the facility below, a logical step considering the location. I have no concerns about the team's performance as the objective was accomplished and am pleased that everyone made it back in more-or-less one piece.

As far as training together and learning what each other brings to the table that is of course something I encourage. It is certainly what is done in the military so that everyone works together as efficiently as possible."

Turning at last to Oscillator Commander Barnes gives his comments some thought; "I think it is best to assume that any possible mission that comes up will have Soviet supers to face. As I said to Sunphoenix barring any obvious physical appearance it is difficult to assess if there are supers at a given location nevermind who they may be. Our database on Soviet supers is incomplete at best as is theirs on us I would imagine. So as we gain information from missions and encounters that can be updated.

As far as training and tactical options goes, like I stated to Muldoon I encourage it. Contrary to what people may think, while this is government-sponsored and overseen by the military this is NOT a military operation or organization. There are too many different elements to hold to a strictly military format. The individuals must be allowed to work together without having to hold to strict doctrine, allowing personal initiative as well as multiple viewpoints on dealing with objectives. That is one reason why while I expect Poco to be present at the debriefings, I am able to overlook his behaviors that in a solely military setting would be completely unacceptable and subject to disciplinary action."

Having finished addressing the individual comments, Commander Barnes scans the room and speaks; "So is there anything else people wish to report? Details about the Soviet supers encountered? Details about what was gleaned from the gathering and destruction of research materials? Anything else related to the mission or the team in general?"

"The thing is sir, they must have had the team of supers on site or within range of handhelds. I took the antenna down first. They would have had to had  a dedicated team of supers pulling security, that strikes me as odd. Either the Soviets are cranking out supers off an assembly line or that place was a very valuable target."

"As far as the opposition we came up against  The leader appeared to be Bear, a powerful Soviet shape shifter with the ability to transform into a 9 foot tall bear, Able to cause tremendous damage with his deadly claws. Another was Caress of Steel, who possessed the ability to manipulate magnetic energy. Shadow's Kiss, who demonstrated a skill in martial arts. Whisper, a flying Soviet super with sonic powers. Might have been another we could not see, kind of felt that way to me." Muldoon reported.

"The Master Sergeant is more clearly stating my point about the response time of the Soviet Supers... they were supposed to have no idea we were going to attack.. and yet.. they were right there, in a place that reasonably should have been expected to not be a target for American Commandos because of its remoteness.  Just seems too coincidental they had a power-house team of supers there ready and apparently waiting to engage us!"

"Urm... Shadow's Kiss, the pretty Russian girl, I believe was their team teleporter."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:39, Fri 12 June 2015.

Commander Barnes looks over at something off screen for a few moments when Muldoon gives the names of the Soviet supers. After a brief time he looks back and replies to Muldoon; "Well with the information you just provided you answered your own question. Caress of Steel, according to our database, is not a magnetic controller but a telekinetic and is also a telepath. What we do know of telepathy is that telepaths can detect thoughts in a broad area which may be how they got knowledge of the team's presence; more thoughts in the area that there should have been. They can also set-up a mental communication network which may well be how they coordinated tactics.

I think you keep minimizing the research of the facility. Yes it is a remote location but the isolation allowed them to do advanced bioweapons research on a non-traceable and highly lethal virus. So I would say it was indeed a very valuable location to the Soviets and worth having supers present to guard 'just in case'. I wouldn't say their presence was a coincidence at all and I hazard that Bear was one of the primary researchers as in addition to his bear shape he is highly intelligent. Maybe not to Oscillator's level but still far above even most with genius-level intellect.

The team has access to this database and can also add information to it as it becomes available. I am sure we don't have all the Soviet supers logged but a thorough perusal could help the team know what the they may face if they run into one or more of the supers that we *do* know about."