13:36, Today: Lena Vogt rolled 7,3 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 7,3.  Am I Smart.

Not bad.

((Well, smarter than a squad of Nazis at least!
16:40, Today: Warmaster, on behalf of SS-Infantry, rolled 4 using 1d6, rerolling max ((4)).))

Lena throws as far as she can and the stones clatter across the wall and floor. The Germans stop and somebody yells some question, but Komzina's bullet takes him in the chest and he flops down, just as Yelena takes out the one next to him.

Nikonov starts spraying the tunnel with bullets from his PPSH, but they're mostly harmless at this range. Still, they make a lot of noise and make the Germans duck back into cover.

Zholdin slides up next to you four.

"Kemmel got away! We're following in the trucks! There is another tunnel leading away! Go now, go!"

---

Further back, you can hear the shots fired.
Time to move on.

One of the sergeants salutes Konnikov [Language unknown: "Ivethuthe Ivethuive, nte dilibe houoveate u ss o notresshe thwiar, no reahi aiomckutck. Presheugh nonticut ch peen entousthu ti tio evhas ekfi ess witit, voraveenc n nttisa e nc p tr menortugh u yinavesom!"]

((Alright - you got two trucks. With Shapovalov staying here with the wounded who can't walk, those who were killed in the assault and the two squads at the Metro, you got 55 men and women (including yourself) in the company, plus the 20 OSI-Soldiers and Lena, so a total of 76 people.
Each of the trucks can easily hold 20 troops in the back, 30 if you're cramming them in, a driver, and two passengers. So that takes care of 64 of them. You can leave more people here or have them follow on foot behind the trucks.))
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:55, Sun 30 Jan 2022.

Kapitan Konnikov will have his Leytenant's detail squads below half capacity (starting with the weakest squads) and moving up, until they've got the company* to about fifty strong, to Starshina Shapovalov to hold this position, the remaining "stronger" squads will load up and move out in pursuit!



(( OOC:  * Konnikov will briefly attempt to convince Captain Jackson (through Politruk Yevgenievich) to leave a squad or at least a fireteam of OSI to guard the wounded.  But Konnikov will not fight over it or spend more than a cursory moment, if the Capitalists want to bring everyone they have... well we'll just have to deal with that bridge when we push them off of it. ;)  ))

"Where's a grenade when you need one!?"  Lena pulled out her peashooter.  She didn't imagine she was going to effect casualties with it, but in this tunnel, well it was a gun and it would make noise.  She opted to pull back, and figured that was the best thing her clumsy butt could do; just not gum up the works.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:11, Tue 01 Feb 2022.

23:44, Today: Julius Sykes rolled 18 using 2d6, rerolling max with rolls of (6+5)11,(6+1)7.  Notice.

With an 11, I hope I notice whatever I was hoping to spot!

Major Lewis discusses this briefly with Captain Jackson, then orders two of his men - Jensen and Riley - to stay behind with the Soviet Rearguard.
You have hoped for more than just a token group, but Lewis looks at you cooly, making it clear that he's not going to fully miss out on the chance to even out the odds between the Western and Eastern Allies.

Konnikov gives more orders and 2nd Platoon grimly takes up position, Starshiy Lieutenant Lyubimtsev now taking command of the Rearguard.

Zholdin pulls the men and women from the tunnel entrance, not before the haven't fired off a few more shots and the little group runs to the side and then back towards the two trucks.

The Soviets pull their wounded back behind the row of sand bag and re-position the dead SS soldiers in front of the bags, a grisly addition to their fortification. The MG42s are set up again and re-loaded.

The trucks are cleared of their cargo, the crates - some heavy, some quite light kicked, pulled, and shoved from them as quickly as possible.

Most of them remain intact, but two of them break open. One contains boxes of rifle ammunition, the other one books. Or just one book, after a quick examination. The second crate is filled with freshly printed copies of 'Mein Kampf', apparently.

Then you all file into the trucks. Konnikov and Lewis take their seats upfront with the driver of the first truck, Shagidzyanov and Jackson go into the cabin of the 2nd truck. The rest of the troops file in as they find seats
((Yelena, Lena, Arthur & Julius - you can pick which truck you want to go in.

Giving you all a chance to chime in, then I'll continue.

))

((Alright, moving along))
14:02, Today: Warmaster, on behalf of Arthur Randel, rolled 10,4 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of (6+4)10,4.  Notice.


The trucks' engines roar into action, just as the MG42s open fire on the German squad who's coming out of the tunnel. The drivers line up one behind the other and head away from the tunnel entrance further back into the darkness, the only illumination coming from the truck's lights.

It's astonishing how big this cavern is, how much time the Nazis must have spent excavating it, the purpose completely hidden. It may have been an underground factory, but there are no machines or anything giving a hint for what it has been used.
Then there's another tunnel leading out of the cavern - clearly the path that Kemmel must have taken.

As the vehicles roll into the tunnel, both Julius and Arthur spot a concrete column in front of the tunnel, wheels tracks winding around it as if this was placed there to split the traffic into two lanes - one for entering the tunnel, the other for leaving.
Both of your trucks go to the right of that column, a move that feels oddly wrong to the British troopers, but perfectly logical for the Americans.

As the second truck enters the tunnel, the sound of gunfire grows quieter. Blue light emanates from the top of the column at the tunnel entrance, illuminating the tunnel walls, but quickly fading out of view.


The tunnel grows pitch black. Soon, not even the lights of the truck illuminate anything. For Konnikov and Lewis in the front truck, it's as if they're driving into a black hole and the driver starts to get slower until he's urged on by Konnikov.

It's unclear how long you are in the dark, but it couldn't be more than a couple of minutes. Finally, there's greyish light in front of you!

The truck lurches forward, as if suddenly having found more purchase on the ground and builds up speed - then you crash into a wall of rain as you leave the tunnel behind you onto a dimly lighted concrete slab that is out in the open.
There's another column like the one you saw at the entrance of the tunnel, blue light emanating from its top. The driver curses and throws the steering wheel to the side, but the truck skids over the wet ground, crashing into the column, toppling it.

The second truck doesn't fare much better, the driver slamming down on the brake, but it skids across the wet concrete and plows into the side of the first truck!

((Everybody: Agility roll please to avoid bumps and bruises!))

Julius fixated on the blue light as best he could as the truck drove past it.

Being in the second truck, Julius gets knocked around as they crash into the first truck.

Stumbling out, Julius looks around. Concerned that something 'unusual' may be going on, and caused the trucks to crash and the wall of rain.

With one hand outstretched before him, his palm facing the same way as him, and two fingers on his temple from his other hand, he began speaking.

"[Language unknown: At Heouom ent, theintlin u saprne antithres siilto. Ic be us Ssrile Elckme.]"

23:43, Today: Julius Sykes rolled 2,2 using 1d4,1d6, rerolling max, unique dice with rolls of 2,2.  Agility - Bumps & Bruises.
Well, I got bumped and bruised!

23:45, Today: Julius Sykes rolled 2,4 using 1d10,1d6, rerolling max, unique dice with rolls of 2,4.  Spellcasting.
Casting Detect Arcana

Also, I forgot to ask about the one book mentioned in a crate, Due to Julius's quirk, he'd be interested in it, especially if there is anything interesting or unusual about it.

EDIT: Realise that due to bumps and bruises, the spell would have failed with a 3. Upside, I can try again at no real loss, just 1PP for a failed roll.
This message was last edited by the player at 11:24, Tue 08 Feb 2022.

Seeing the column at the last moment, Konnikov draws a leg up, braces it on the dash, and throws an arm to the side trying to brace Captain Lewis...

... as the rain pours down, Konnikov takes stock of himself and the other two men in the cab of the first truck as he tries to untangle himself from them.


(( 20:42, Today: Semyon Yegorovich Konnikov rolled 11,4 using 1d8,1d6, rerolling max (((8+3)11,4)).
Unless Konnikov needs the Raise to avoid being further injured, I'll spend it to aid one of the other two in bracing.  If I can.))
This message was last edited by the player at 01:54, Tue 08 Feb 2022.

Lena had jumped in and hunkered in, trying to make herself as small as possible and she wasn't that big to begin with.  Putting herself in a tight spot helped her and kept her from being shook as bad as she could have been.

20:04, Today: Lena Vogt rolled 7,5 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 7,5.  Agility.

"Himmiherrgotzaggramentzefixallelujamilextamarschscheissglumpfaregtz!!!"  She didn't mean to be that foul, but this was a day.  She collected herself a bit.  "[Language unknown: Som, p wiplsaee erstinive limosa?]"

Yelena had positioned herself in the middle of the second truck, keeping Lena close. When the truck came to a sudden stop, the close quarters with the others served them all well, though there was a bit of chaos for a few moments.

At Lena's question, Yelena looked around. [Language unknown: "Th nc n. Hi hoad esfosa tidi ess, viril thaesters uranntho thathuresder re paere ainntiere."]

((OOC: 12:21, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 7,4 using d10,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 7,4.  Agility.))

Max braced himself a moment before the crash occurred, and was immediately thankful for his quick reflexes. "The hell?"

He looked around for an answer to his question.

((OOC:
12:21, Today: Max Lewis rolled 6,2 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 6,2.  Agility.))

There are a few bumps and bruises amongst the troops, but luckily, there are no further casualties, and Arthur is able to treat the two men who've suffered from some cuts on their faces.

The first truck is wedged in between the remains of the concrete column (now no longer emanating light) and the second truck and seems to be in bad shape.

The rain is pouring down hard and it's cold, the daylight dimmed by the dark clouds in the sky.

As you look around, you notice that the tunnel seems to have exited into a natural cave that leads into a mountain valley. the ground before the cave has been leveled and stabilized with concrete, forming a roughly oval shape large enough for two, maybe three trucks to maneuver around it.
There's a sloped road on the left-hand side (when standing with the cave behind you) that leads away from the plateau here. Above the cave and to your left and right, you see a mountain range, in front of you tall trees as far as you can see (which, granted isn't that far).

Clearly, you're not in Berlin anymore.

Julius has difficulty focusing on the world around him, his head still spinning, trying to make sense of the situation.

As Max looks around to make more sense of the situation, he notices a healthy amount of explosives at the base of the column, soaking wet. Looks like the Nazis wanted to blow it up, but couldn't.
There still might be some around, and close.

But right now you're in unknown territory, and out in the rain.

Max had already seen his fair share of oddities since joining the OSI, so he didn't stand around and gawk. Rather he sprung into action, moving to check on the condition of the soldiers in the trucks and encouraging them to leave. While he was able to point away from the truck, he didn't speak much in the way of languages besides English (typical American) but he did understand a tiny bit of German. "Schnell! Schnell!"

The sniper took a moment to gather her wits, but as it seemed the truck wasn't moving anymore and there was some yelling about moving quickly, she stood and helped Lena to do the same. [Language unknown: "P
 adhini ec ettra p neno has, Wernceicaicaher."] Everyone wanted the American spy to remain safe, so Yelena made certain to keep her close as they exited the truck.

Konnikov hops out of the cab and immediately begins whipping BPO Company into action, [Language unknown: "Honcos ntev urewaseve, st u loss romwa en nc ta wilas atiiveect lescom-iouain, u aste osurle silo wilvirastles.  Shagidzyanov!  Strelnikov!  Sall'omee peurng ithonerat onfowh, con elad whnde ant undma.  I ugh al ect dinterand saro ess ove, t anyca adwhi eraier n, ss p sta seusun.  Cail'ropa llday asthounde u heulee n ionureountic son tewer witpl ave oshiou ceati nirom u il ain!"]

He than stands around in the rain giving anyone not moving with a purpose a stern glare and only marches into the cave entrance himself once BPO Company has carried out these orders.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 23:24, Wed 09 Feb 2022.

Lena obeyed and stepped out into the strangeness, not quite grasping what she was seeing, or how it existed here.

Those freaking Nazis had to have gone somewhere, rain be damned, they must have left some clue surely?

The first truck has a broken axle and won't be going anywhere anytime soon. The second one is serviceable enough, though, so you have one vehicle that could be used. About half of you will have to walk, wherever you're going.

Everybody After everyone headed back into the cave, there's no trace of the tunnel you got out of. A distinctive sense of unease can be felt, and the soldiers talk quietly amongst themselves.


Once people are settled in, at least away from the rain if not warm, the officers of both east and west huddle together, inviting Lena and Julius over as well.

Captain Jackson wrings out his scarf and puts it back around his neck. "That is quite unexpected. Do we have any idea where we are? Do you have an idea, maybe, Miss?"

Yelena stood tall as orders were handed out. She was hoping to be part of the group that scouted the road, but at her rank that wouldn't be the sniper's decision. While waiting for orders, she did take a moment to speak with the American spy.

[Language unknown: "Comeresetwitort, Ck ofdiut shelatshe areek heiene hawhicec ioneennte, en, encintallstrout hingerieur plprce kor estss utdievenes?"]

It was a long shot, but talk was cheap. When Lena was invited over with the officers, Yelena gave her a quick wave, then found whichever group to which she was assigned and headed out.

The aches and pains caused Julius to not be able to focus correctly when he tried to cast his spell. Deciding not to push himself too fast, he gave himself a few moments, trying to adjust to the situation.

When Captain Jackson asked where they are, Julius shook his head. "No sir. However, whilst I couldn't get a good look as we were driving, however the blue lights were more than lights. If I were to provide a theory about what happened, I would say it relates to my field of speciality." Julius was intentionally vague, as he wasn't certain who knew the exact details of his assignment, or what his true area of speciality was.

"Excuse me a moment, sir." He says, giving the Captain a salute, before going over to the pillar, and looking at it, whilst invoking Thoth once again, hoping to find an answer, or at the very least, a hint, as to what happened.


21:21, Today: Julius Sykes rolled 6,2 using d10-1,d6-1, rerolling max, unique dice with rolls of 7,3.  Spellcasting (trying again!).
That's better!

2PP spent, 17/20 remaining

Shagidzyanov orders his two squads to explore the immediate vicinity, and Strelnikov sends Gusarov's squad, including Yelena, to follow the road and report back.

The squad has three snipers (including Yelena), and the scrawny, scarred Jewish partisan, Anna. Somebody has pulled the tarp from the first truck and cut it up, turning it into rough and makeshift rain-coats for the scouting party. Good enough for a while, but definitely not standard gear.

((Alright, give me a Stealth roll for Yelena and the squad. I think we lost Anna's player, but we can just ghost her. Also Notice, please.))

---

This time, now that he hasn't to deal with the aftermath of a bloody traffic accident, Julius is able to focus more. The world shimmers in front of his eyes and takes on a slightly different hue. The rain disappears and is replaced by something that looks as if one of the movies in the theater at home was mis-aligned in the projector. Weird distortions and disruptions, but less detrimental to his vision. The forest in front of him appears in stark, almost pulsating greens. These trees here are old and have been barely touched by civilization it seems.
Julius almost has to force himself to look away from them and studies the remains of the pillar.
Runes are etched into the surface, most prominently ᚦ, which features quite heavily.

The magic itself was disrupted by the crash, but there are lingering remnants of it, hovering in the air above. This spell must have been going for a long time to leave such a lasting imprint, even though you can see it slowly melt away.
The top of the pillar projected something like an inverted funnel onto the cave, the narrow end at the pillar, widening towards the cave, going further back into it.

Julius follows the lines in the air, twice almost stumbling across something in his path, goes deeper into the cave, until he is at the back. The wall in front of him is surprisingly smooth and he can see more of the runes carved into the surface, covering a rough circle wide enough to engulf a large truck.

Yelena was glad to have at least a makeshift poncho, though the weather had definitely been worse (and better) since she'd joined the Red Army. Shortly after they moved out, the sniper pulled out her binoculars to help see things in the distance, though she also occasionally scanned around her without the visual aid, particularly since she had to occasionally wipe the lenses to dry them off.

While the BPO was made of sterner stuff than the standard Soviet soldier, Yelena thought a little levity might help those that were spooked by the sudden change of venue. [Language unknown: "She sannd naica hesiar, o ririsstr?"]

((OOC: 7 stealth, 5 notice
16:22, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 4,5 using d6+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 2,3.  Notice.

16:21, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 7,3 using d10,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 7,3.  Stealth.))

A good question, did I hear about strange transportation methods?

In a huddle with* Major Lewis, Captain Jackson, his two Lieutenants, and Politruk Yevgenievich to translate, Kapitan Konnikov lays out what he suspects, [Translated from Russion] "We need to be careful what Germans we kill now.  We do not know which one has the knowledge to open this tunnel, or where we are.  So I strongly recommend German officers be taken alive from here out."



((  OOC:  With Zholdin translating, I don't see a point in using the language lines.
*  And anyone else standing around not on a glorious scouting mission, so Arthur, Lewis, Lena...))

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