((That's fine, we can assume that Zholdin translates as needed and only move to language group in case you don't want something translated.))

Jackson nods: "That's a good point, Capitan. If there are Nazi mages around, they should usually be of higher rank, too. It's not going to be a mere lieutenant."

---

Arthur watches Julius walk to the back of the cave, then follows him and clears his throat. "I, uhm, I think I've seen something like this before."

Max nodded at Jackson, who had the right of it. Talking nonchalantly about Nazi mages was an interesting evolution in their comfort with the Soviets. Now was probably a good time to do so, however, so Max silently approved.

"The recon-in-force that just went out - did they have orders to capture?"

Julius was barely noticed Arthur's comments as he was exploring the back of the cave, and his mind was trying to put together what he was seeing. The ability of the Nazi mages was higher than he had considered possible, and certainly greater than what he was aware the allies were doing.

Releasing the spell, his vision of the real world returned, and Julius turned to Arthur.

"Huh, sorry. I was distracted. Where have you seen something like this before?"

Arthur looked over his shoulder and lowered his voice.
"In Italy. First at Monte Cassino. I found an underground chapel. There was fresh blood on the altar. And somebody had carved a symbol into the cross. There were also some Greek symbols which looked out of place. Here..."

He pulled a weathered old book from his bag and flipped opened it up, close to the end. A few empty pages had been added to this book, and Arhtur had made some notes.
"Here, this is what they carved into the cross". The sign Arthur shows him looks like this: ᚦ.


"And then there was another thing, at Perugia. It was different then, though. It was like... like a shield made of light, our shells bounced right off of it." He leaned in closer.
"It was the same kind of blue, the same.... quality. There were a few Nazis in a church and I swear that one guy wanted to kill the women at the altar!"
He closed his book again.
"It was after that when I was drafted by the Colonel into OSI. How did you end up here?"

Julius looked at Arthur's notes, with his eye drawn to the rune. The same rune he saw on the pillar.

"Yes, that's the same run as the pillar over there." Gesturing to the pillar they crashed into.

As Arthur shares more, Julius gets worried.

"Blood magic? That can't be good." He said, speaking more to himself than to Arthur.

When asked how he got here, Julius decides to share. "I'm not here as a solider, I don't even have a rank. I'm here in an auxiliary capacity, as before the war, I had studied the occult and mythology. The Nazis believe some legends to be based in truth. And it seems, some of it was right."

Arthur nodded and tapped the bag where he had put his book. "My grandma gave that to me. Has all kinds of stories. Fascinating stuff, and I used to think it was all just made up.
These days I'm not so sure anymore."

He scratched his nose.

"I didn't see any blood back there", he nods his chin at the wall that used to be a tunnel, "nor here. Well, I guess the rain might have washed it away."

Konnikov quirks an eyebrow when Zholdin translates 'recon-in-force', and then responds, "No, no engagement, scouting only.  They go, see, report back, one hour out only. Down the road, up the valley, and up this mountain to get a good look across the valley.  Because," he pitches his voice lower and gives a Zholdin a look and signal to relay the next bit more softly so it doesn't carry, "I suspect we may be here a while."

Max couldn't help but smirk a little at the translation of the last bit. The Major nodded his agreement after taking another look at the tower that the first truck had blundered into. "Agreed, and I take it you intend to use this area as your base of operations for now, pending the information from the scouting units?"

Max gestured toward the spot they'd emerged from the transport. "Probably best to keep eyes on that area as long we are here. While we can presume the Nazis aren't able to use that tunnel anymore, I don't think we should take chances. Also, this is clearly not what we expected, so I'm going to share a bit of intel that may be of interest."

He quickly looked around to make certain that the officers that had gathered were the ones in earshot, then continued. "There have been two rumors floating around Allied command - rumors about how the Nazis were going to try to survive when the West and East finally met in the middle. One of those rumors is that they are planning to resort to guerilla tactics in the forests and mountains. It's apparently been dubbed Operation Werewolf. The second rumor is that they've set up underground factories and bases in Austria where they intend to continue the war. Their defensive positions are expected to be strong and deep, and thus impervious to our heavy bombers."

((OOC: Do we have the equipment to contact our command structure via radio? Or has that equipment been lost?))

Konnikov gestures towards the cave entrance and the valley, "There is one of the underground bases.  You can now confirm that rumor, and should we be able to return, give corrected intelligence.  Yes, for now this is out of the weather, but a bad position to defend if it becomes necessary.  When the scouts return, we'll plan the next phase."

He turns and motions to Urbanovsky, "Have Serzhants Ivanov and Krayevsky report to me in a few minutes."


((GM Edit: Kashirin is with 2nd Platoon back in the German bunker on the other side of the tunnel that is now gone. But Krayevsky is still here.))
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:01, Sat 12 Feb 2022.

((You got radios - but it'll depend on where exactly you are. None of the Allied Armies are anywhere near the Alps at this point.))

Urbanovsky jumps up. "Da, tovarish capitan!" he shouts and runs off.
The rain seems to have stopped now, or mostly at least.

A few minutes later, Urbanovsky arrives with Ivanov in tow.
"Comrade Kapitan, we found something. It's... maybe you should see for yourself."

"Shall we?" Konnikov waits a moment for Politruk Zholdin to translate and then follows Urbanovsky to whatever they have found, he signals for Ivananov to follow.





(( OOC:  Ah, yeah?  I thought I'd asked for Krayevski, as he was the other WWI vet... Is he off with the deployed scouts? ))

After the translations were complete, Major Lewis nodded at the invitation and followed.

((Krayeski and Gusarov and their squads have not returned from their patrols yet.))

Ivanov leads you to the rest of his squad, who all stand there with muted expressions. On the right hand side of the plateau, there is another path, much narrower then the road on the other side, a foot path wide enough for two people to walk next to each other. It's not marked or paved in any way, but the ground has been trampled down enough to make the path obvious. After a few dozen paces, the path splits, one going to the left, leading further into the forest and away from the plateau, the other turning right, circling somewhat around it.

Ivanov points left "We've followed that route first, but it seems to only lead down to a brook. There seems to have been some small camp at some point but looks like it's been long abandoned. We searched in the vicinity a bit but didn't find anything. Then we came back here and went that way."
He points to the right and starts following the path. The rain has now completely stopped, but it's getting darker now. Not much longer before the sun will set.

((Notice roll, if you please))

He leads you in total silence, the only noise the steps of the soldiers and officers marching. It's not far and the path ends at a natural cliff, the walls falling steeply into a small and narrow ravine, maybe 20 meters below you. At the bottom lie dozens of charred corpses, the bodies so much distorted by the fall and the fire that they look barely human.

"Hmmph.  We have fresh water, good.  Tomorrow, Major Lewis, maybe have your doctor take a look at a few bodies, see if they were prisoners of any type." He says the last bit with a little extra force to subtly squash any thoughts that may be in the scouts heads.  "Tonight we camp at the tunnel, set standard watches, refill canteens.  For now let's return to the tunnel, hopefully  Serzhant Gusarov's squad has returned with word on what is down that road."


(( OOC:  15:16, Today: Semyon Yegorovich Konnikov rolled 5,1 using 1d6,1d6, rerolling max with rolls of 5,1.  Notice. – 5,1  ))

Julius stroked his chin in thought.

"Maybe it did wash it away. Or the blood is consumed as part of the ritual? Regardless, we couldn't copy whatever they did, even if we knew how. Otherwise, we would be no different from them, and all the atrocities they commit." He replied to Arthur.

When the Soviet scouts announce they found something, Julius joins in to see if it helps in his situation.
Following along, sees the bodies from the cliff. Trying his best to hold his composure, as the harsh reality of the the Nazis have been doing still continue to shock him.

20:52, Today: Julius Sykes rolled 0,13 using 1d6-1,1d6-1, rerolling max with rolls of 1,(6+6+2)14.  Notice.
A tale of two extremes!!

Major Lewis followed the lead of the Soviet soldiers, looking at their surroundings as the group walked along the narrow footpath. At their destination, Max took a good look while frowning at what he saw.

After a bit of study, Max moved back from the grisly scene and nodded at the translation from Konnikov. "Sounds good to me."

((OOC: 7 Notice
06:57, Today: Max Lewis rolled 7,6 using d6+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 5,4.  Notice.))

In reply to Warmaster (msg # 13):

19:25, Today: Lena Vogt rolled 7,6 using d8+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 5,4.  Notice.

Lena had just kept her mouth shut here.  She was fairly useless here and just kept down and out of the way at the moment.

As the group makes their way back, there are more newcomers converging.
Krayevsky's squad has returned, their faces grim. And from Gusarov's squad, Mladniy Serzhant Malkin has arrived, slightly out of breath, too.

Yelena looked at the grim faces of those in the other squad, took one more deep breath, then began her report. "Captain, Squad 3 reporting back." She had kept her long, sturdy stick from showing her sergeant the layout and looked for a good place to do some drawing as she spoke. "We took the concrete ramp off the plateau, down onto a gravel road. We found that there was a timed detonator near the edge of the forest that activated - we expect it was linked to the wet explosives we found upon arrival here. We removed the cord from the detonator before moving along."

She paused briefly, then continued on with her report. "As we moved along the gravel road, we noticed signs that tanks had passed - tracks in some of the soft areas. The road itself was one vehicle wide, though had spots where it widened so vehicles going opposite directions could pass each other. We spotted a watchtower and went to investigate. The watchtower appeared empty and was part of a camp that had been set up in the woods - a camp that appeared to have barracks. It is seemingly empty at this point, though we didn't have time to fully investigate. A sign on the camp says: WILLKOMMEN IM FORSTLAGER FALKENNEST, which is German for Welcome to the Falcon's Nest Forest Camp." The sniper translated the German not knowing which officers spoke the language and which did not.

Yelena stood at attention and waited for questions before stepping aside for the other squad to report.

((OOC: Yelena's report was done in Russian, but I'm dispensing with language groups for now because I assume in this case it will be immediately translated.))

Krayevsky gave Yelena a bit of sideway as if he was about to chide her for speaking before him, but listened as she finished her report.

"I believe we found the men who laid the detonator." He gestures in the general direction where they came from.
"Traded a few shots, but they ran away. Couldn't have been more than three, possibly just two. We searched, but lost them. Either they've returned to their unit or they're still out there... watching us."

Yelena returned Krayevsky's sideways glance when he reported letting the enemy get away. His unit was clearly missing a talented sniper.

Max nodded at the reports as they were translated, though didn't have anything to add at the moment. The plan for evening seemed set, though he'd double check the level of the watches. It wouldn't do anyone good if their sleep was interrupted by death.

Julius couldn't believe his eyes at the level of depravity that the Nazis would go to. He had heard about their camps, however this was too much. Slaughtering not just adults, but children, for their blood to power their arcane needs. And when they needed more, getting whatever animals they could find.

He knew that Kemmel, and whoever else was involved in whatever cult they had created, had to be stopped.

The tragedy and horror weighed down on him, and he couldn't bring himself to talk as they walked back.

Once the officers were together, Julius shared his thoughts.

"It's just a theory at this stage, however, I believe the Nazis used foul sorcery powered by the blood of those in the ravine, to open a portal or tunnel, from Berlin, to here. I think this side opened the door, and so it is unlikely that anyone will suddenly be appearing where we are now. They may think they have us at a dead-end, but we are the ones stopping them using this as an escape, and can press on to them instead."

Konnikov listens as the scouts report and Mr. Sykes pose his theory, and for Politruk Zholdin to translate across.  Then he considers a moment before responding, "Senior Sergeant Krayevsky, the spotters, which direction did they retreat to?"  He gave the word 'Senior' a slight emphasis and with a momentary flicking of his eyes over to Sergeant Malkin lets Krayevsky know this will be addressed.  Later.

The serzhant shrugs unhappily.
"It's hard to say, Comrade Kapitan. There are a few goat paths they could've taken higher up, but my gut feeling is that they circled back. As far as we can tell, there's no shelter up there and the rocks are slippery. They fired a few shots behind a ridge up there, but when we got there, they were gone. No trace of them."

Konnikov nods, "Good.  Tomorrow morning just at false dawn take two fire teams and rescout that area."

He turns to his Lieutenants, "Move those trucks, the broken one first, over to block that forest path, and the good one over next to the concrete road.  But when the men move the working truck, have them struggle as they will with the damaged one, if we're being watched I want the Germans thinking they are both broken down.  Gather up all the canteens after and send two squads down to the river to refill, and any empty containers you can scrounge off those trucks.  If anyone has fieldcraft, send them with looking for signs of game and fish, we might be hunting for breakfast.  Sergeant Ivanov, Private Urbanovsky go among the men take inventory of our rations, ammo, grenades, everything.  When you're done report to the Lieutenants, then to me."

As he speaks to Ivanov he makes direct eye contact with him, then casts his eyes over the OSI forces, then locks eyes with Ivanov again, hoping Ivanov gets the drift.

As the Lieutenants and the soldiers move off he signals Sergeant Malkin to remain, but instead of speaking to her just yet he turns to Major Lewis and Captain Jackson, "Any of your rangers have experience with explosives?  We should at least remove them from that column and see if they're salvageable.  If so, excellent, if not, well, I've heard of drying dynamite spontaneously exploding..." * He trails off and gives them a moment to respond.


Once Major Lewis and/or Captain Jackson have responded and gone to deal with the dynamite, he'll he have Politruk Zholdin and Sergeant Malkin step away with him so they can speak privately.  His face is stern for any onlookers, but his words are not [Language unknown: "Ro anut out din theei noashelesi manntiles, ndeto whemo bleichthe fipa eleen n wital, ss som ofnder som a forenciou, li alutcaca, a etsitome u ndad ureingoun n enore?  Ate iou ti il ulicssis red ingicaallday en ilnc encmentic, deren lotr stiearder?  N pr resandint st outovekortho o romverkorconrom?"]


((  OOC:  * Dynamite is dangerous after it gets wet and dries.  TNT is waterproof (and ANFO, and a bunch of others).  This could be either, as the detonator could have shorted out in the rain or the blasting caps failed after getting wet.  Yes, we should be able to tell just by looking at it†, but...
† Most military issued explosives were in color coded containers.  These could be 'homemade' field munitions however...  If Anna were still playing, pretty sure she was an explosives 'expert'.  Or atleast an expert at blowin thigns up!  ))

Max nodded at the tranlation. "We can at least see to getting the explosives to a safe distance, I'll let you know if we think anything is salvageable."

((OOC: Are there any demolitions experts remaining among Max's crew? If not, perhaps the Soviets can allow him to borrow one?))

Yelena stood at attention as Captain Konnikov spoke to her. She paused for a moment and considered before responding. [Language unknown: "Inenotave, ntepa prearelin ckac ul vir thu mi lamone presomwer es olsom virconpro ul elatof ortrutbut elitus. Ch anype on althre ol useeen nce. Esser peplec ecnifo est cetrne tetiom seonpa. K ileeut, ekus a wheastica tic waloti dinereure pr ntolha any fofoto vertr ta terwilect il."]

She considered again. [Language unknown: "Ter matiaiur i nisiwe the et, n plesur. Enc weacte nimaloha butardpro t evoul thilatble ng as locksi werortkor os si ckout, li m eihi tr trastahas iseiou antfo Pr aschus etinll moin ie laacnt ingreslat, liet."]

[Language unknown: "Th stidinwhi n tatise etcon hi wheectthu hian.  O, ecleisof ticne nt utpre etent, onoumo ersin Tinamehas...  derwhivirsomnte.  Et in ess di sti fibe ivan ugh icei oulonsint, art wit k lat reslathassetter ettrsa.  Ha eions herlo atet ichthatrahat, waare, eau a Linersstr Vensta'wasnot laadle latandavemen m Tinwertheson.  Ica?  Ic esev paleil sheain-manous wer ingthavenwhe, ine toiv vir at."]

Unless it looks like Sergeant Malkin has more she wishes to say, he will move back to the tunnel's entrance to watch the progress on the trucks and explosives.

[Language unknown: "Isin, Manforive."] Yelena dutifully saluted as she was dismissed.

The trucks are moved, rudimentary defenses are prepared, and people file into the cave entrance, settling down as much as they can, their clothes mostly wet. The cold creeps in from outside, barely held back by a couple of small fires. At least it's dry and the cave protects against the gusts of wind.

((Notice roll for the night, please. And everybody roll vigor. The accommodations aren't exactly great and you might suffer some fatigue.))

Yelena took her turn at watch bundled as well as she could against the cold. Fortunately for her, BPO rations were a bit better than that for regular conscripts, which meant her body was still close to 'normal' for a woman her age and could deal with temperature fluctuations such as these.

The sniper watched quietly during her turn, using naked eye, binoculars, and scope to see both near and far.

((OOC: 07:41, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 6,3 using d6+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 4,1.  Notice.

07:41, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 2,8 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 2,(6+2)8.  Vigor.))

Though it was not comfortable, or warm, Kapitan Konnikov and the BPO Company soldiered though the night and managed to rest and maintain readiness.


((  OOC:  Vigor and Notice checks:
14:56, Today: Semyon Yegorovich Konnikov rolled 3,5 using 1d6,1d6, rerolling max with rolls of 3,5.  Vigor, sleeping rough, cold, and wet. – 3,5
14:57, Today: BPO Company rolled 1,5 using 1d8,1d6, rerolling max with rolls of 1,5.  Vigor, sleeping rough, cold, and wet. – [roll=1646078270.28224.347079]
Also, Konnikov was going to have guard shifts stationed at/in the trucks to watch those two paths, the woods, and up the incline behind the cave.
15:08, Today: BPO Company rolled 5,5 using 1d8,1d6, rerolling max with rolls of 5,5.  Notice, guard shifts. – [roll=1646078904.22404.347079]  ))

Lena felt like she wasn't good for much in this bizarre situation, but she was good for a pair of eyes and ears at least.

18:26, Today: Lena Vogt rolled 5,7 using d8+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 3,5.  Notice.

18:26, Today: Lena Vogt rolled 11,4 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of (6+5)11,4.  Vigor.

She didn't want to look like a wimp to Yelena, so she did her best to bear it stoically.  She kept putting her mind to work trying to come up with some brilliant solution to it all... but there was none to be had.  Not at the moment anyway.

Lena woke up in the middle of the night with an urgent need to relieve herself. The cave entrance was barely lit by the glowing embers of what remained of the small fires they had dared to light, but it was enough to slowly and carefully navigate the sleeping bodies.

One of the Russian soldiers outside addressed her, quietly, in Russian and barred her. While she was trying to figure out how to convey her predicament, the Russian seemed to notice her awkward pose, shifting from one leg to the other and pointed to one side of the platform.

The night sky was cloudy, the darkness almost complete. Lena tried to remember what the moon phase was, but even if it was a full moon - overcast as it was, it wouldn't have helped her anyway. At least it wasn't raining.

She stumbled about and found a spot in some bushes. Crouching down, she did her business, breathing a sign of relief.

Then she saw the shadows. Just on the other side of the bush, there were three shapes creeping closer to one of the trucks. Men, gliding across the floor, slowly, deliberately, taking their time. Then she heard the silent hiss of air coming from one of the tires.

Inside the cave, Yelena turned on her bed made of stone and wet clothes. She had lived through worse in Stalingrad, she had told herself, conveniently forgetting all the times when she has slept in much better accommodations.
She woke up, instinctively grabbing the air where Lena was supposed to be, and was immediately awake and alert.

Around her, most of the men softly snorred, but she could vaguely make out the two guardsmen making their shuffling rounds, just at the entrance of the cave.

Julius tried to stay warm near one of the fires. He still wasn't fully accustomed to the basic levels of survival that are sometimes needed when out at war. He missed his bed, imagining lying in it with a good book.

Tring to distract himself from the cold and how sore he was feeling, Julius practised incantations, though as a quite mutter as to not concern anyone who overheard him. He considered using one of the spells he knew to help him as he slept, but knew it wouldn't work as it would run off as he slept since he couldn't concentrate on it.

OOC:
20:46, Today: Julius Sykes rolled 9,1 using 1d6-1,1d6-1, rerolling max, unique dice with rolls of (6+4)10,2.  Notice.
-1 from fatigue, as bumped and bruised.

20:46, Today: Julius Sykes rolled 3,1 using 1d6-1,1d6-1, rerolling max, unique dice with rolls of 4,2.  Vigour.
Well, you said it can't get worse if already bumped and bruised...

Julius spent the night by first rolling onto a particularly pointy stone that pressed into his shoulder blade.
Then he turned around, only to have water drip down from the cave ceiling right onto his face. Only to find himself slowly sliding down the slab he trying to find rest.

Finally he gave up and saw first Lena get up and stumble away, then Yelena wake up a few moments after her, seemingly searching for the German spy.

Yelena instinctively grabbed her rifle, glad of its perfect weight and the way her hands felt on the grip. She slipped off to try to find Lena. There were many reasons she thought it best for the American to not be alone.

((OOC: Max may also notice something amiss...
20:26, Today: Max Lewis rolled 1,8 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 1,(6+2)8.  Vigor.

20:26, Today: Max Lewis rolled 19,5 using d6+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of (6+6+5)17,3.  Notice.))

((OOC: Not exactly sure how group Vigor rolls should work, but I've assumed no wild die, just a d6 for these guys. The notice roll was a resounding success, though, at 20.


20:28, Today: OSI Rangers (US Squad) rolled 20,3 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of (8+8+4)20,3.  Notice, Vigor.))

Lena did not like her odds at taking  three of them. Hell, not even one of them.  She wanted to do something brilliantly effective, but brilliance was probably not in the cards here, but effective could be.  So she produced her permanently borrowed pistol and fired a single shot into the air, even taking care to cup one ear on her shoulder and put her hand over the other.  It would be much louder than her voice, and get more attention.

"[Language unknown: Ionessantnce!]"

And with that, Lena hit the deck.  She would observe, follow, report, but she was going to leave the bloodletting to the professionals here.

When Julius saw Lena and Yelena moving around, his figured they were simply restless, just as he was.

But when he heard Lena shout out and fire her gun, he shouted out in English, so that those who hadn't learnt German yet would know what's going on.

"Intruders!" He yells, as he looks for sign of them, clenching his hand into a fist, to prepare if he needs to invoke any spells.

Konnikov was asleep sitting up, so he just opened his eyes and took stock of the situation.

At the shots and the shouts, the whole cave erupts into activity, with men and women taking firing positions, somebody spilling water over the glowing embers, casting everything into almost complete darkness.

But there's nothing. There is no attack. No grenades are getting lobbed. A few tense seconds pass, then stretch into minutes. Suddenly, one of the Thompson SMG of the Americans fires into the bushes, followed by a second one, then all the Americans and British opening fire.

Not to be outdone, the Russians open fire as well and the mountains echo with the cacophony of gunfire, tracer bullets from the Russian MGs lighting up the night, directing more fire.

It only lasts for a few seconds before Captain Jackson of the British soldiers bellows: SEIZE FIRE, SEIZE FIRE!!

Konnikov also shouts for BPO Company to hold fire, [Language unknown: "Aveie adbe!  NEPR NO!  Uleiance, onstinhis mosiel stisi rutsheill!"]

He stands but doesn't leave side of the cave, his eyes adjusting to the new darkness.

The noise quiets down. Night and silence surround you.

(Semyon: please draw three cards from the deck)

Sergeant Knight, standing next to Major Lewis mutters: "Fucking darker than a whore's arsehole in a bunker."

Zholdin, crouching next to Konnikov, asks: [Language unknown: "Ntekis, inutri Ingvorwhe?"]

Julius hadn't learned a way to see in the dark with the aid of magic. However, he wondered what if the darkness wasn't mundane? Or that there was some other trickery that the Nazis were using. Or even worse, some protector for these tunnels that was from beyond?

Once again, Julius invoked a spell to let him see beyond this world. If there was something magical going on, he would find out.

OOC:
Casting DETECT ARCANA
23:22, Today: Julius Sykes rolled 8,3 using 1d10-1,1d6-1, rerolling max, unique dice with rolls of 9,4.  Spellcasting (and 1 fatigue).

As it feels like the fatigue from bumps and bruises is going to haunting me for some time.

At least I got it with a raise (assuming there is anything to see).
This message was last edited by the player at 20:20, Sun 06 Mar 2022.

[Language unknown: "Ce, Politruk.  Hat she rea, sailas usal moeing ha p allng anterabut wheeveast.  Io wil ticng to hime ol whipl urewitrutera esna."]


((  OOC:  23:38, Today: Semyon Yegorovich Konnikov drew the 3 cards: 10D, 4D, QH using a deck of 54 cards.  Drawing 3 cards. – 10D, 4D, QH  ))

Lena moved her way back to the others, doing her best in the dark.  She needed to find a lamp, or something.

Julius strained to see more than the pitch black of the night.


The Soviets fumbled with their flashlights, the British and Americans had them ready just a little faster. Slowly they fanned out and started searching.

The "good" truck had a slashed front tire. That was annoying, to say the least.

It didn't take long for one of the squads to shout - they had found something! There was a dead body, riddled with bullets, slumped against a tree, not far from the concrete platform in the forest. The barrel of an MP40 stuck out from behind him, a knife lay next to him.
There was more blood on the edge of the platform, where they must have pulled themselves up to sabotage the trucks.

Yelena looked about using the tools at her disposal to attempt to put a hole in the intruders, but she had little luck. The sniper sighed at their collective lack of success and waited to be assigned to one of the search parties.

Looking out, Julius couldn't see any signs of magic being used. Whatever was happening, it must have been mundane in nature, albeit from people with significantly more combat training then he had.

"Whatever is going on out there, it's not magic." He called out.

Yelena looked over at Julius as he called out and frowned, though she didn't say anything to him. Perhaps later they would chat, if Yelena survived the coming hunt.

((OOC: I'm assuming Yelena will be heading back out with some members of the same squad to start searching? Would you like me to roll anything for Yelena and the Soviet squad she's with?))

Likewise Lena just tries to be useful by finding a lamp or something and trying to help canvas the area.

Lena can grab one of the flashlights from the Russians and can help searching.

((Anybody going into the bushes to search further: Survival roll for Tracking.
Anybody who wants to take a closer look at the dead body: Notice.

Semyon: I'll assume that Yelena is in the search squad closest to the dead body, with other squads further away))

Searching corpses (and living people) for clues was actually in Lena's skillset, and she figured trying to traipse off into the brush was not a wise one.

15:43, Today: Lena Vogt rolled 9,5 using d8+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 7,3.  lookee da body.

Kapitan Konnikov confers with the Lieutenants and the Brit and American officers while waiting for the squads to report back in...

Warmaster:

((Semyon: I'll assume that Yelena is in the search squad closest to the dead body, with other squads further away))

(( OOC:  I'm fine with that, Konnikov doesn't micromanage, he gave the order to gather torches and do a close search, he expects the Lieutenants and Sergeants to take care of micro-managing, that's what they're here for...
Say, what time of the night is it? ))

Yelena did not pick up a torch for herself, wary of making herself a target. She also reminded others around her that there could be snipers out that and made some subtle suggestions about what sorts of things would confound her if she were out there with a high powered rifle trained on the newly established camp. "Keep moving, even if you're searching something. Keep the torches low and swing them about. Don't light up your comrades if it can be avoided."

She spoke to Lena quietly in German. [Language unknown: "Heek was paetacwi. Ancein evacit utres andte ti satari din rosta a heressart vor aiuriv essta caur ngpehi entthiore."]

((OOC: Yelena will take a look at the body while speaking to Lena, then will head out to the bushes with appropriate members of her squad.


18:36, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 1,2 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 1,2.  Tracking.

18:36, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 13,7 using d6+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of (6+5)11,5.  Notice.

LOL, wish those rolls were reversed. Oh well.))

((It's just after 2:00am))

Lena crouches down in front of the dead body. He still wears the distinctive helmet of the Wehrmacht, and the camouflage uniform of the Waffen-SS. Lena recalls that none of the soldiers they had fought back in the bunker - or outside of it - had worn a camouflage uniform, but the standard field-grey uniforms they had shared with the Wehrmacht.
One thing stands out - he doesn't wear a belt, with the loops cut open.

In the last few months of her career as a nurse, Lena has seen enough wounds to know that this young boy died very quickly - at least three bullets holes would have been enough to kill him, but she sees a total of eight.

According to his collar, he was an SS-Sturmmann, like a private in the US Army. On the other side of his collar bone, she can make out the insignia of his unit. Two crossed axes. Not something she has seen before.

---

Yelena and her squad-mates slowly fan out. There are obvious tracks leading away from the spot, of at least two people. One ran off quickly, but she loses the tracks just a few steps later.
But there is one more... blood and somebody seems to have been dragged (or dragged themselves) into the bushes. Suddenly, that tiny voice that has saved her live so many times in Stalingrad is yelling at her to get down!

((Give me an Agility roll, Yelena!))

This was baffling.  Lena pulled out the knife she'd kept as an emergency weapon, but more as a tool, and opened it.  She cut that strange unit insignia off.  This whole thing was weird, had her soldiers put all these bullet holes in him?

She braced herself.  She'd been in the hospitals long enough.  She was going to cut out a bullet.  She was curious what had actually been used to kill him.

And why no belt?  A soldier very much needed a belt.  She pondered it as she sliced in.

Yelena's life had been saved more than once by listening to her intuition. When a little voice in the back of one's head beckoned one to get down, one did not argue.

The sniper did a quick roll off to her right, hoping that her comrades would also be ready for whatever was out there.

((OOC: Agility of 8

08:02, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 8,2 using d10,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 8,2.  Agility.))

Once the Soviet commander gave his orders and they were translated, Max want over to Arthur. "Help take a look at the body, but be careful. We don't have home field advantage here."

((Before resolving Yelena's situation....))

Arthur salutes and jogs off to join Lena.

With everybody else occupied with the search, the three senior officers stand close enough to each other that nobody else could overhear them. Politruk Zholdin is close as well and turns his attention to them as the British Captain beckon's him closer.

((Zholdin will translate))

Leaning in closer, Captain Jackson was the first to speak.
"Major, Captain - what do you think is going on here?"

Seeing the officers get together to understand what is going on, Julius decided to stand near them. Sure, he wasn't an officer, but he was brought in as a civilian for his expertise, as well as seeing things differently to those with a military mindset.

"Night raid, didn't go well for the raiders.  Might be a ruse to draw squads away though."

He stands so he can watch the cave entrance and while his Thompson hangs casually in his hands, he appears ready to move if necessary.


((  OOC  Translations provided by Zholdin.  ))
This message was last edited by the player at 16:41, Sat 12 Mar 2022.

Max made some space for Julius to join the small huddle of men discussing strategy. After the translation, Max considered for a few moments. "At a guess, we have superior numbers so whoever is out there is trying to disrupt and strike fear with hit and run tactics."

He looked meaningfully toward the exit to their new base. "As we are known, they would send superior force against us if they have it. Alternatively, they might be simply harassing us while gathering intelligence and organizing their strength. Though I think we broke their, uh, transportation corridor when we came through and it might be that most of those based here are trapped on the other side."

"Yes, however the explosives suggest they were planning on 'stranding' themselves here deliberately, or at least attempted to close the way to stop us from pursuing.  That may be the goal.  Stop us from continuing the pursuit.  If Kemmel and other officers are still fleeing, the local garrison is likely on orders to slow or harass us as long as possible."


((  OOC:  Translations provided by Zholdin.  ))

Max nodded his agreement with his Soviet counterpart once the translation came through. "Seems plausible. In any case, I expect we will not receive any reinforcements, nor will our opponent." The board was set, and the pieces on it were all that were available.

"Which I think means we cannot afford, er, normal attrition as we hunt our quarry."

"Standard Soviet doctrine will apply just fine in this situation, that is to say, allow the O.S.I. to take point in further firefights," he says with an absolutely straight face and stoic voice, but it's clear by his eyes he's making joke.

12:04, Today: Lena Vogt rolled 1,1 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 1,1.  Digging for Bullets Healing.

LOL

Good thing for him he's already dead

"Well, the troops of the United Kingdom are used to lead the way while you fine gentlemen take your sweet time to show up."
Captain Jackson offers in retort, with a broad smile, then answers more seriously.
"Even if they do not have any reinforcements coming through here", he nods his chain at the cave, "it seems they brought material and most likely men through here before. We might be looking at a full regiment, perhaps? It's a shame that we didn't bring more men through."
He looks at Semyon.
"No offense, Captain, I'm merely speaking in hindsight. It was prudent of you to guard our rear with some squads. But they would be rather welcome now, too."

Lena puts the knife gingerly against the skin of the dead man, but then plunges the blade deep into his chest, gasping as the hilt hits the ribcage.
It's at this moment that Arthur shows up.
"Uhm, hello there. Major Lewis asked me to check up on you. You... what are you doing?"

A split second after Yelena dives down, a pistol shot cracks, and a bullet whizzes past Yelena, embedding itself a few inches from Lyagushova's face into the tree behind her. The woman lets out a small yelp of surprise before dropping down herself.

The shot came from the undergrowth just in front and to the right of Yelena!

(You can act now, shooting would be at -4 for concealment)

In reply to Arthur Randel (msg # 72):

"Trying to dig a bullet out of him to see what weapon actually killed him.  This body doesn't make sense to me."  Lena sighed.  "Well that's what I get for trying to do surgery with a butcher's cleaver."

Yelena sprung up from where she'd rolled to dodge the bullet, then rushed toward where the shot was fired from. She had practiced using her bayonet ever since that run in with the...thing. The short blade at the end of her rifle flashed toward her target with practiced precision.

((OOC: 11 to hit, assuming no penalties. 9 regular damage from the bayonet. I did accidentally rolled a d4, but that was my fault. It should have been d6, but it was the same roll as d4, so no harm.

2 additional damage from raise (for total of 11) if an 11 is a raise.

Initiative is 9D if necessary.

15:41, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 2 using 1d6, rerolling max with rolls of 2.  Raise Damage?

15:41, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 9 using d6+d4, rerolling max with rolls of (6+1)7,2.  Damage .

15:40, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 7,11 using d6+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 5,(6+3)9.  Fighting.

15:41, Today: Yelena Malkin drew the single card: 9D using a deck of 54 cards.  Initiative .))

"If every general had the foresight that hindsight brings, no war would ever be lost.  Or fought, eh?"

A shot rings out, Konnikov moves to the side of the cave, stepping away from the cluster of officers and looking more intensely towards the cave mouth.

"You'll need to do a bit more if you want to do an autopsy..." Arthur replies, but his voice trails off as first you hear a gunshot, then a man screaming.

---

Yelena stabs into the darkness, mostly blindly, but the blade connects with flesh. Her victim cries out in pain, but then grabs the rifle and fires another shot. The bullet whizzes past Yelena's ear, maybe just the width of a finger.

The rest of the squad comes closer, shining some light at the scene, illuminating Yelena from behind, but now she's able to see him, writhing under the bayonet!


((Yelena: He's at -6 for darkness and cover, but he's prone, which lowers his Parry down to 3. So that's a hit. He takes a wound and is Shaken.

09:42, Today: SS-Infantry drew the single card: KD using a deck of 54 cards.  Initiative. He goes first. Unshake?
09:43, Today: SS-Infantry rolled 4,1 using d10,d6.  Spirit to unshake. He tries to shoot you - he's got a pretty good idea where you are (at the other end of the bayonet. But it's still dark and he got two wounds. He's at -4 to hit against your Parry.

09:47, Today: SS-Infantry rolled 4,-2 using d8-4,d6-4.  Shooting Yelena

Next round initiative: 09:48, Today: SS-Infantry drew the single card: KS using a deck of 54 cards.  Initiative.

With your squad offering some light, penalties are reduced to -2!))

Lena gave up on the project and, as the soldiers would put it (at least the American ones), hit the deck.  Normally, she'd go away from the sound, but given the situation, she went toward it, albeit running on all fours like a dog.  It did not look dignified, but she was more interested in not being the most obvious target.

Yelena regripped her rifle and, sensing some advantage, put all her weight into another stab with her bayonet. "Ya!" She was happy when it seemed she had caused further injury to the fascist as her bayonet again pierced his flesh.

((OOC: Wild Attack! Good thing parry is 3 as her roll of 5 is still a success. No raise but 15 damage with just the two dice.

Note that Yelena's parry is temporarily reduced to 6.

17:44, Today: Yelena Malkin drew the single card: 4S using a deck of 54 cards.  Initiative .

17:43, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 15 using 2d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of (6+3)9,4.  Damage.

17:43, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 4,5 using d6+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 2,3.  Fighting (WA).))

((Looks like you got yourself a Nazi-on-a-stick!))

The bayonet cuts through his intestines, opening his belly. He squeaks in pain, blood bubbling out of his mouth.

"Du...du..." apparently, he couldn't think of an appropriate curse. He tried to spit, but there would only be blood running over his chin.
He was a dead man without knowing it yet. It was surprising, really, that he still had the energy to even try to speak.

Somebody appeared behind Yelena, shining a light at the pinned nazi. She recognized him now, he had been the officer in charge of the men outside the bunker. Who had overseen and directed the trucks.

---

It didn't take Lena long to get to Yelena and the woman behind her shining a light into the bushes. Arthur Randel followed behind her, apparently intent on protecting her.
The Russian sniper seemed to be leaning heavily on her rifle and as she got closer, she could see a boot twitching as the blade got turned. An ugly gargling sound could be heard from the bush.
Lena got a little closer, then got up and looked at the man pinned to the floor, bleeding out and dying a highly undignified, unpleasant death.

It was Arthur.

Her "fiancé"'s eyes widened as he saw and recognized her and his lips started to form some words. There was pain in his face, shock, but now also surprise... and then she saw realization kicking in and his eyes grew narrower again. If he had had enough blood in him, his face would've turned red from his rising anger now.
"Mein... Du... Du... F...."

---

Somebody yelled [Language unknown:  "N trulou oulwilcon ons!"] and then the forest turned quiet again as the squads continued their search.
This message was last edited by the GM at 12:43, Thu 17 Mar 2022.

Lena looked at him dead on and her words to him were cold blooded.

"[Language unknown: Satio ne toica la I tith ectndeare whpr itst oneonsresncewas Sta usomol.  Pless poecit verte ofhehi nce hatwh lo sapl reawe p whiessfor som ll me.]"

Yelena smiled slightly as Lena hurled a few insults at the Nazi. [Language unknown: "Lin, set ng catra e nome, ate sanleseenoer. O io om P al oun man er ughproviromeere en artintcon taave seth ive wh di. Ssove ich ndeti un te astresine tewi yineennteearrea. Ntese il korestshe mock hoofomne li evitar. Uset eilo yinect'oerate earne staureant ni wilpr eina i an onsa ti pearna. Inan evwa, icaut."]

Yelena looked over to Lena to see how the American wanted to proceed.

Arthur Hoehnar slowly turns his head, and lets go of the rifle with his right hand, clumsily and slowly reaching for the pistol he had dropped before.
But just another twist or two of the bayonet embedded in his guts, a few more twitches of his body, and SS-Hauptsturmführer Hoehnar is dead.


Tsimmerman picks up Hoehnar's pistol and offers it to Lena.

---

After another 30 minutes, the squads return to the cave. Nothing had been found, although there were some tracks suggesting a third man was still at large.
The men and women were tired, and on edge, but finally settled down again and the night passed without disturbances.

---

The next morning, the sky was still overcast and grey, the wind chilly, but at least there was no rain or snow. The truck that had plowed down the column was, unsurprisingly, still beyond repair, at least here. The left front tire of the other truck had been slashed, but there was still a spare that could be fitted onto it. If Lena hadn't yelled out her warning, the damage could've been much worse.

Urbanovsky ran Kapitan Konnikov through their supply situation. They had enough rations to last them a day or two. They had been fully stocked up on Ammunition, but some ran already low. Nothing a little re-distribution couldn't fix, though. As long as they didn't have to fight any extended battles, they should be fine.

Now, with daylight, the search was renewed. Hoehnar had been wounded before, taking a bullet in his leg, but he - or someone - had tied off the wound with the belt that had been missing from the first body they found. That body had a bullet wound in the same leg, roughly the same location, and it had gone clean through. Arthur Randel speculated that Hoehnar had used the other man as a shield when the bullets started flying, but one had gone through.

There were no animals to be hunted or food to be foraged, but everyone got to fill their canteens at least.

Once all the preparations were done it was just past 8:00 am.

((What now - moving towards the Forstlager or other plans?))

This message was last edited by the GM at 17:01, Fri 18 Mar 2022.

After checking her equipment and filling her canteen, Yelena assumed there would be a period of waiting while those with the big brains decided who would go where and when. She decided to check in on Lena. [Language unknown: "Holi wh withi stun hetesi erant hiushocaiswh, icpatr poatel res anwe ilriof ec podi."]

The sniper paused and gave Lena a look of concern. [Language unknown: "K uselnt tedameoustin hi der ck isill romntiect, Ouac'prngal? Undta fieifi etwh iondayhas leshasundand."]
This message was last edited by the player at 19:45, Fri 18 Mar 2022.

Lena accepted the pistol, figuring it wasn't wise to abandon such a resource.  She was quiet the rest of the night.

---

Lena was a bit... passive the next morning, and red-eyed.  She moved, she tried to help bus the camp, she tried to stay out of the way.  But she seemed to be in another world inside her head.

Yelena's conversation pulled her back into the moment.

"[Language unknown: Nt... K ard ess her E ollo o nt.]"  She stammered slightly.  "[Language unknown: Ma oreforart tedca o u essro iv ul el ei santhoame ac ecrut ainstaing i waat, terhi Lo larndewhe of nimethle e find ndolun ee aire unstek hersa antsonany noek.  Di art ofar u elwaev dite.  Satra P onsai itharecom usar onth os pe, ckmeev ni iouortfor ntred bleentlestic sence ovethethethi.  Reawhever cehine... waol ng tiiewe as era reul.]"

Lena stiffened, but despite herself her eyes watered.

"[Language unknown: M... O antwilwit sta siich io.  U itilof be.  Ri avevenlar he ioch T proithtin ard o ee oun Fi acna thi icfiosfiiv.  Vor heivur a.  Houth...]"  She sniffled, and brought the back of her hand to her face to pull her composure together.  She wasn't sure why she was so upset.  She had hoped Arthur and all his fellows would be hanged for what they had done.  Granted, she hadn't seen so many people killed in front of her, especially not with a bayonet (which was positively Medieval) but she'd been seeing the aftermath in the German hospitals for a while now.  But she was very upset, and realized this was not the time or place to be so.  But she couldn't help it either.

Yelena nodded at first, understanding how close the spy had to get in order to do her work. Though when emotions started to bubble through, the sniper shifted her rifle further back so that she could offer the American an embrace.

[Language unknown: "E one, thelatderter chlar ortom n tehis. Tr setiti ateel lesromany, Traichveroveher. Saadel i ect fohall hieepl wastraate trndss stitch t us wifo ro siil mo icanit ingca, lat, T fipoul ofchou Ng earherera te e. Andbe alpre ce om wheta nd, tr rut intstithe, hiwihi m acar evethevertic. Ar itmi...estho lollos ou artprepro. Maaswaol. Ie thi ilss foroutres k E i aihou. Ienot O pe mi utnte Nt m itni. Nde hatlatame Ch t horat erusss te, ughne Th ur ac hasstable ersnd at. No Es forfi, Wi tevir Un mo enic'haesom Tr urbeat m thuma ev ineartave, si calela, an t hisvenvirfor. Le icons somal inthu elsan atena e stius ted ut butearres. Om Wi menresone ic, E allreaoul tha Ca ioon wi. Io eirut n reil m i str ithortica hina. Miev Er ouwias sa ortng elenc senowh whfoll."] A small smile pulled at her lips.

Yelena stood at arm's length but placed a hand on Lena's shoulder. The sniper held the other woman's gaze. [Language unknown: "T u ch il ntsswi le onewa. We pr ver nt wesareee mica un elispa os tin os venounter wa adadbe. Prad Di ithateenc enhas retha icas. Eveev reri omeoredin. Et init riatwe. T whe trlar derverort."]

As soon as Serzhant Krayevsky had returned from scouting up the mountain where they'd lost their quarry in the rain the previous day, Kapitan Konnikov had set him a few other men to stripping the broken truck of anything useful, including siphoning fuel into the working vehicle.  "We will abandon the second truck, for now."*


As preparations complete and camp finishes breaking, Konnikov gathers his officers and the British and American officers and lays out his plan.

"Major Lewis, Captain Jackson, I do not trust this 'empty' fort.  I propose that you take the OSI and our best snipers, reconnoiter the fort exterior completely, then prepare to take it from the rear or side, whichever appears easiest.  Serzhant Malkin, how long would it take you to make a fast, but cautious, reconnaissance of the fort and return?"  He pauses for her to answer, "Major, Captain, I'll give you [an hour and fifteen minutes] to get into position, then I'll drive the truck to the fort.  If the fort mobilizes to respond to my, aha, my mechanized company, you take the fort from the rear while they worry about the road.  If the fort remains quiet, well, that's a different boot to put on when we get there.  Leytenant Shagidzyanov, Leytenant Strelnikov, temporarily reorganize the men, Shagidzyanov take the snipers, and with Politruk Yevgenievich, deploy with the OSI.  Strelnikov, we'll assault the gates with the remaining men, and our truck."



(( OOC * Translated by Politruk Zholdin, or whomever is around to do so... *sigh*, left Balakin with the Metro car.. /throws hands up in mock Russian fatalism

[EDITED]
Updated time before Operation: Mechanized Assault begins rolling.
[/EDITED] ))
This message was last edited by the player at 01:46, Mon 21 Mar 2022.

Max checked on the members of the OSI that had made it through thus far. He noted one of the Soviet sniper and the American spy seemed to be getting on fairly well, though that wasn't particularly surprising to him. Once he'd finished his quick status check, the Major joined the other top officers for a brief strategy meeting.

Upon hearing the translation, Max nodded. "We will be ready at their flank when you approach." He started mentally planning for the small group to do their work, though waited to see if there was any other discussion. If not, he'd just as soon get going sooner than later.

Lena pulled herself (mostly) together.  "[Language unknown: I... ortbutnti ek.]"  She seemed like she was going to say a lot more, but seemed to think perhaps now wasn't the time, perhaps this wasn't the place, but she found enough there to pull herself back into the moment.  She wasn't special here, everyone was in this same situation.

"[Language unknown: Ainlarvorove eslohael tonoet, Nt men ilil-anliec omebutand tha.  Fi essateent meno yin st ulolmour thoardrea ect tiohastin.]"

Yelena smiled softly and nodded at Lena's thanks. [Language unknown: "Ng sa tana prday o waour, Stwhneeehe, U i lima. Andundore P re andpr."]

Lena's speculation brought Yelena's own thoughts back to the present and questions about the near future. [Language unknown: "Kor ilbut, conpe she eve himeme. Acleos est ast ou callev. K ha ncencewhe wemo lefi orteauwhe, whfi? Sa omeipa has dinkorthaiou lamo undareder in fi oerratrat. Ro fi po tallca astil ek arwhi forstatic, der?"]

She then gestured toward the pistol. [Language unknown: "Eenaai i ure e com ouietawe ons isome lin p paore eval derhatall. K ac thueartic und ere eichfi re haplin, ad tha po tael nousch ceun ficaut. Ion foie ate hasshepre, me ithdi unred we alate, tra. Plliss la thtaha. Illometho us elaial."] The sniper paused briefly. [Language unknown: "Tiet se on o earentousoreoun illss earch?"]

Hearing the plan, Julius chimes in to the officers. "Where would you like me to be, sirs?"

He wasn't a frontline soldier, but he knew it may be where his talents could be called upon. He was hoping to be somewhere safer however, ideally near the officers.

"[Language unknown: Heromeentencany, K lo pre na ionereveneen antwasset millfi.  Nc enc areundstromestr... wi erekai ta ess Cholel adekse, O k eeni llee sehis ch en encaventi vor beeino nc kornd allent il er ofus se tr Orelinons.  Ion ainatinte tic eenoerourtic i ardbe diouwhou the ive adncli lisimo p beillo latred'forard, ni llceri n evehe res beni Tr olelha Ekncwe bledayingrea ck di un astreswas orten Thaoneonssontra ard heroerman be.  E inethuous me u utcaoswe ha hierin reshatect, es Itlahi ekna m thiessartear venad comencthe, ai ofno'adpaon whesi.]"

She checked the pistol she'd been given.  "[Language unknown: Neen elatsa a m prtho u hiinck hiven diloat O ill un, fiion T ertha ersreswitles loho ncal allmenson.  Io eraallted chnint u ekdihe altrwi ingsonhis inatof dayaterat, es... prhe m hisoerted acse ofoler prbeofpa.  Laon ec ou pl k a ou t ofcom an resthiromcon o ones.  Ion P ileibe ut... Ha te lo intthawhi Bese eauatetha ai pola bena haur latro isoul ardlartin deral ruttedromshe.]"

In Lena's defense, it hadn't been that long since she was pulled out of deep cover and she was still on shaky ground trying to remember to be herself and not the village orphan girl who came to the city to patriotically serve in the hospital.  She'd had a hell of a couple of days.  Granted everyone else had too, but hers had still been unique.

Yelena listened to the response and nodded her understanding. [Language unknown: "Mi nd eaule iv sa enc, ngom. Ticic astoul'icable mi eses pona. Niel nise." ]

The sniper smiled and turned her attention to the past. [Language unknown: "Ad ndreivch is pr chand Eenithforintsetshe. Na notthiour sta tomion ilome Beivwh wipr'tres. Ratce romncelar hiek ulcamo. Stofnack mo ameicaintwil diinwe. O any earstrousame n p werughone, venndeone reatraithtin menwi pl whrimo ndwhur. I Derortera Encvenout stevul ec, fi lltami, tin pace'saas m lounev int tintinrea loni. Whe fo astourouners ofatha Pl and conthions forwasestica ri atncti k sanestven, ious ver ssec ne onswerblehas. P pllope P onsoultio t miat'esli u urera caer leoshong. Ur di ro prhaioar m eewiou undomeounsta, st houpa e wialli fo son ereeraticess shelataverom. A ivon earbut'outman weur n combleard."]

She shrugged. [Language unknown: "Latla eenri one, home Fiac Rerut outnc lowe encessastanyons k peilul As erethuardnot osckwe a ar. A ion linerekor, but menie ou ilwh notardous atine. Wa me ntsa shemi ess ou Ic ll Ic. Tioei ha us lin sata k Disiur ichurethe urmi."]

((Love the interaction between Lena and Yelena, both take a Bennie!))

Strelnikov and Shagidzyanov salute and organize the men and women into their respective groups, then the troops march.

---

The OSI troops take the best snipers of the Soviet company. Konnikov sends three, all women. Emma Zholdina, who had been wounded by the German sniper back in Berlin. Kostenka Paramonova. And Yelena Malkin, who apparently adopted Lena as her spotter.

The approach to the fort is just as quiet and easy as it was before, the time passing quicker now that you know the way. There is one thing that's different, through - as you pass the point where Yelena spotted the watchtower before, the sound of a distant engine can be heard, roaring into life, than apparently driving away.

Zholdina cocked her head.  Parmonova nodded.

Not much longer, and Yelena lead the roughly half-platoon to where the fort entrance was.
The watchtower seemed just as abandoned as before. The gate stood open, as before.

The palisade was about 3 meters high and spanned the ground before them, running almost up to the rising mountain side on the left (from the allies' point of view) and ran almost to the ledge on the right side. Beyond the right side was a little cliffside, the water of the brook speeding noisily outside along the side of the fort.

Max frowned at the lack of space on each side of the palisade fence. But there was nothing for it. The frontal assault would happen from the front, and they needed to be in the not-front. After getting the lay of the land, Max collected everyone outside visual range of the fort. "Okay, we're going split into two groups. One goes around the left side of this thing and one around the right. Weapons should be split roughly evenly. Two of our snipers will go right." He gestured toward two of the women carrying rifles (which included Yelena) and pointed that direction. He seemed confident that orders would eventually get translated.

"The other will join me on the left. Everyone should have eyes up and weapons out. We move cautiously but steadily." Max looked around. "Any questions?"

Lena tried to point out something she wondered if anyone else had realized.

"[Language unknown: Ounintted, hat redhounot atbe he ul plwa niostr yinar on omnono tahofo u astantrat un forwilanying wa eress uttele to.  Vor thapresta er ca, uniswe ivechi wi ureee ndederith hi omta enul ect eaues yinsetith enseas ad menal.  Ha oneiv notstiany wenime ofssio taitroplntss.]"

Yelena nodded at Lena. [Language unknown: "N n at io teio. Thi A mongne p wiat t tioeveund."] It had saved her life before, why not find further use for it?

Yelena spoke to the most senior member of their half of the group. "The American spy and I will go...er...spy on the fort's interior. From a relatively safe spot near the gate." Yelena described Lena's plan in a little more detail, then added the obvious. "Of course you will need to shoot anyone you see climb up onto the wall, as we will be exposed from above."

After sketching the plan out, Yelena waited briefly for any further instruction before turning back to Lena. [Language unknown: "Ac, Teolrimapa, m heer vorwilble adsan me hatnt era."]

((OOC: Does Lena have a helmet? Because she should definitely have a helmet.))

((The Soviet Army provides the best equipment for her soldiers in the BPO. That includes a helmet.))

((OOC: Yes, but Lena is not BPO. But I think there have been enough people that have died that Yelena could have snagged a spare helmet and given it to Lena, right?))

((It was never mentioned, but you got the German helmets from Arthur and the other soldier, so that would work))

Lena put on the borrowed helmet, trying, in vain, to use her hair to fill the excess space.  It was Yet Another Thing that was too big for her, but, in the designer's defense, it was never meant for her.

She nodded.  There'd be no speaking until they were done, if she could help it.

((Yelena, Lena - Stealth roll, please, to get to the gate undetected. And a Notice roll, for when you're there.

The Allies outside can roll for Notice now and - just to get it out of the way - roll Athletics for the flanking maneuvers later))

Unfortunado, I don't think my Thief Edge applies in this terrain

06:53, Today: Lena Vogt rolled 6,5 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 6,5.  Sneak Sneak.

But Alertness does

06:54, Today: Lena Vogt rolled 8,11 using d8+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 6,(6+3)9.  The Most Important Skill in the Game, Notice.

((OOC: 9 on the stealth.

And then we find out why Pennsylvania is the spotter. Yelena can't see squat.


08:29, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 3,3 using d6+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 1,1.  Notice.

08:29, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 9,3 using d10,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 9,3.  Stealth.))

((OOC: Not sure exactly how this works, but I just rolled a single die [i.e. no wild die] for OSI Rangers, using d8 as that is OSI Rangers Athletics and Notice. Notice was 4, Athletics 11.

08:33, Today: OSI Rangers (US Squad) rolled 11 using 1d8, rerolling max with rolls of (8+3)11.  Athletics.

08:32, Today: OSI Rangers (US Squad) rolled 4 using 1d8, rerolling max with rolls of 4.  Notice.))

((Yelena should take off the cover from her scope.

And a group roll for any extras under your command is rolled with a wild die, taking the better of the two. Only individual extras don't role a wild die. It's alright, though!

19:11, Today: Warmaster, on behalf of Julius Sykes, rolled 3,5 using d6,d6, rerolling max ((3,5)).

))

Yelena and Lena reached the edge of the forest and crept through the underbrush. A short moment of tense hesitation and they were off to the palisade, exploiting the blind angle.

Yelena reached out with her mirror and extended her arm around the corner of the door, but can't make out anything useful. But Lena sneaked back to the palisade. There was a gap between the gate and the wall, large enough to fit her hand through - at least as long as the gate remained open!

As if someone had read her thought, a small gust of wind started up and the gate creaked suspiciously, then stopped. Lena let out a breath and focused on the mirror.

Nothing moved. on the other side of the palisades was a long barracks-style building, most of the doors open. On the other side where a few smaller huts, something that looked like an infirmary, and down the straight road, there seemed to be some sort of repair workshop. No tanks or other vehicles were visible.

She tilted the mirror a bit more and spotted the other side of the fort. Another gate, two watchtowers on either side. The gate seemed to be open, too, but only slightly, as if pushed ajar and then halfway swinging shut again.

Lena turned her head back, pointed to her eyes and shook her head no.

That didn't mean they weren't there, just that she didn't see them.

Yelena nodded, either understanding or agreement. She then pointed to the two women and generally back toward their comrades. It didn't seem like they were likely to learn any more from outside this place, so they might as well get back to taking up appropriate position.

Nobody shoots at you, nor sounds an alarm and you reach the safety of the treeline and the rest of the troops.
Konnikov's mechanized assault should launch in maybe 20 minutes, so there's still time to take up positions - or do something unplanned.

As the group was getting ready, Julius was waiting in the bushes, studying Arthur's book, making the most of his skills and the situation, rather than prepare to fight.

After Pennsylvania reported what she saw, Yelena waited to see if there were any other orders. Hearing none, she informed them of her plans. "I will take Lena to find a good spot for sniping."

((OOC: Not sure what spot would provide the best angle for assisting the main assault, but it seems there is time for Yelena to find a good place.))

As previously planned, Max took the American squad and they headed off to the left side of the fort, slowly squeezing into the gap between the mountain and the palisade.

Captain Jackson waited for two minutes, then hushed a "Go!" and the British head for the right flank. The going was more difficult there, as a wrong step could mean a fall into the brook below. It wouldn't be a long fall, but the rocks at the bottom looked sufficiently sharp to ruin the day of anyone falling onto them.

Just a few meters behind the front palisade, the walls got lower, until they were not much higher than a fence. The top could be easily reached with hands and most of the soldiers didn't even need a helping hand lifting them up and over. Bodies landed on the other side with a soft thump! but still there was nothing to be heard.

Inside, Yelena and Lena found themselves behind some huts and one of them had a conveniently stacked rack of firewood. They used it to climb up to the roof, the logs sometimes shifting uncomfortably as they clambered up.
Up on the roof they had a good view of most of the camp and Yelena could see Parmonova taking the same approach of climbing up to the roof of the barracks.
She looked for Zholdina, but couldn't find her - until she saw her slowly making up her way to the watchtower at the gate! Zholdina entered the little hut and hunkered down. There was just a simple railing on the inside to protect the guard from a fall, but no real cover.

Still, nothing stirred.

Tense moments passed, then finally the roar of the engine of the "mechanized assault" could be heard. The truck barged into the camp, driving right into the middle and some of the Soviets in the back jumped out of the back and took cover between the houses.

Nothing.

Jackson motioned his men and they entered the first hut, going down one by one. The Americans on the other side followed suite. Soon, the Russians joined the search and English "Clear!" kept getting responded to with the Russian "Pustoy!".

The camp was abandoned.

(Russian) "Lieutenants, reform your squads.  Sweep the camp, take assessment of any goods found with an eye for fixing the other truck, be mindful for traps and poisons." (/Russian)

Konnikov remains next to the truck, keeping it between him and the mountains, wary of possible snipers.

As the buildings were cleared, Yelena took out her binoculars and scanned the nearby highlands to see if anything appear amiss. Once the final building was cleared, the sniper nodded at Lena and led the pair back down to ground level.

She turned to Lena as the officers conversed. [Language unknown: "Tose ntnala oermensan nde roto ev toulus olres ne o. Loeste t whe manthathitho. Elieliwa lo ssla larosi'whhe, Ta ithmennce. At wasessany, mo ratou arehisthi."] She paused and looked Lena up-and-down briefly. [Language unknown: "Com est lilita, Ameivelarkorate. Sta po wesi iele. Of vir ssisteus o e me tinle, Nt arpell." ]
This message was last edited by the player at 18:27, Wed 30 Mar 2022.

Max waited for Semyon to pass along his orders to his Lieutenants before offering his own report for translation. "Someone was here as we approached. Not sure if anyone reported to you, but there was what sounded like a single rider motorcycle leaving the fort as we approached. Probably headed out the back."

((Notice roll for the seach, please, for anyone who looks. Group rolls for the extras, one for the Western allies, one for the Russkies.))

Lena tried not to squeal, pleased with herself.  Luckily there was a task to distract her.

19:57, Today: Lena Vogt rolled 4,3 using d8+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 2,1.  The Most Important Skill in the Game, Notice.

((There are a few things that are obvious after a search, I'll list that here. With Notice, some more things might be found.))

The search of the fort didn't take long. Just counting the beds in the barracks and in the standalone cabins, the fort seemed to have housed a standard German company, so about 100 men. In a pinch, possibly twice as many could have lived here, but it would have been crammed.
Still, better than sleeping in a foxhole.

Behind the mess hall and kitchen was a small vegetable garden and even a little greenhouse. There were a few plants here that had started sprouting since the start of spring, but most had already wilted, and those that had survived seemed to be clinging on by air humidity alone.

When Lena and Yelena climbed down from the roof and explored the house below it, it seems that those were officer's quarters - low-level officers, though, or maybe high-ranking NCOs? It had three bedrooms and a shared living room. Three small desks lined the walls of the living room.

In one of the drawers of one of the desks, Lena found a photo that's stuck between the drawer and the desktop. On the backside, somebody had written: "Einfacher als Polen!" (Easier than Poland).
Turning it around, she saw:
https://kanka-user-assets.s3.e...FrIPjvHFhfhtnCCL.png


On the far end of the fort, an area has been cleared to repair vehicles, including a concrete pit to comfortably work under a tank or truck.
Just outside the fort, the road continues down the mountain through the forest. Two motorcycles are lying on their side, the tires slashed, the engines damaged. Somebody wanted to make sure these motorcycles wouldn't be used by anyone.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:06, Fri 08 Apr 2022.

Lena gingerly took the photograph, putting it away for the moment.  She'd show it to someone in command later, it would do them no good right now.

BPO Company scouts out the camp in squads and report back to their Lieutenants once the camp is fully secured.


(( 16:29, Today: BPO Company rolled 2,5 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 2,5.  Notice d8. – 2,5 ))

In addition to the above, Strelnikov took Konnikov aside to talk to him quietly.
"Comrade Kapitan, we found burned papers in one of the fireplaces. Not much to make out, but seem to have been orders to two SS divions, the 39th and the 40th. All fireplaces were as cold as Siberia."

He hands over two badly burned pieces of paper. The first is dated from November '44, apparently appointing one Franz Wahrmann to lead the 39th SS Kavallerie Division, designation "Waräger". The name doesn't ring a bell. Only the top half is somewhat eligible.
The edges of the second piece are burnt off completely, but the center of the page remains, brown, but still readable.
It's apparently a requisition list, listing ammo, weapons, parts, food, uniforms. And lots of everything.

((Edit: barely readable, but the requisition list mentions a "SS-Frw.Div 40")
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:12, Fri 08 Apr 2022.

Yelena generally stayed near Lena as the pair looked around. While she wasn't particularly worried that nothing would jump out of the shadows, she hadn't stayed alive through three years of war by being complacent.

((6 for Yelena.

OOC: 07:29, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 5,6 using d6+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 3,4.  Notice.))

After passing along some orders, Max joined the search of the compound.

((OOC: 12 for Max. 5 for Rangers.

07:30, Today: Max Lewis rolled 3,12 using d6+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 1,(6+4)10.  Notice.

07:30, Today: OSI Rangers (US Squad) rolled 2,5 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 2,5.  Notice.))

"Good, good find."  He carefully folds them and waits for the securing of the camp to be complete before conferring with Major Lewis and Captain Jackson.

The search continued to unearth more details.

While rummaging around the same house, Yelena opens one of the closets, finding rows of scratches on the inside of one door. Like a prisoner marking off their days in a cell, someone counted something here. The first three rows have 6 groups of 5's spaced widely, but then the groups are closer together, fitting 8 or 9 into one row.
About half the door is covered like that, counting to a total of 483.


Max searched the most luxurious of the cabins, although it wasn't saying much. There were two appartments, one upstairs, one downstairs, accessible from a shared staircase. Each appartment had a bathroom, bed room, living room and a small kitchen. Clearly, this was housing for the commanding officer, but it's unclear who might have occupied the second one.
On the second floor's desk, there was a cork mat on the desktop with plenty of ink stains. Nothing remarkable about it. But underneath the mat... there was a drawing of some kind, a rather peculiar thing. Somebody had drawn a mountain face and etched into that mountain - similar to Mount Rushmore - were two giant heads. One was the stern face of Adolf Hitler. But the other one was unknown to Max. It seemed to be a bit smaller than Hitler's face, as if the "artist" wanted to hint at that while the second figure clearly was important, he wasn't quite as important as the German Führer.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:12, Fri 08 Apr 2022.

Yelena reported what she’d discovered, then waited for the next  set of orders

Max was unable to place what he’d found, so the Major went to find Lena to see if she could help. He approached her and gestured toward the CO’s quarters he’d just searched. ”Miss Lena, I could use your eyes for a minute.”

The major led the spy back to what he’d discovered (presuming she agrees).

Max showed Lena a rather peculiar drawing. Somebody had drawn a mountain face and etched into that mountain - similar to Mount Rushmore - were two giant heads. One was the stern face of Adolf Hitler. The other looked familiar, but she couldn't quite place it. Then it clicked.

Lena produced the strange picture she found.  She had intended for that to be something to go over later, to see if it had any meaning.  But maybe the time to look at it was now.

Without meaning to, she spoke in German.  It was from the force of habit at this point.  "[Language unknown: Utwema... ckplec ac Icaousorehatill!]"

Would she ever not do that, for the rest of her life?

She caught herself.  "[Language unknown: Outwhienc Lesamehou ulha Stth'ndtaos, hoar-peosro.]"

That's the picture that Lena shares:
https://kanka-user-assets.s3.e...FrIPjvHFhfhtnCCL.png

On the back, someone added a line in German [Language unknown: "Icaatiive oun Virtheant"]

When the picture is shared, Julius takes a look at it.

"Where is this?" He asks, not recognising the location.

"Not Poland?"  Lena offered, unhelpfully.

Konnikov and Zholdin join Major Lewis and Captain Jackson in one of the buildings.  Kapitan Konnikov shows them the papers BPO Company had recovered, "We're chasing a poorly equipped cavalry division, which means if Kemmler can ride a horse, or they have a cart to pull, he can outdistance us as we rely on fuel.  A very limited supply of fuel."

He let's those words sink in before he continues, "I'm of the mind to split our forces again, half remain in this camp, the other half into the truck and give pursuit, now while we still have daylight and their trail is not completely cold."


((  OOC:  Translated from Russian by Zholdin.
I don;t thinkt he description of the papers were private, but if they were, I'll quote the Warmaster on them.))

Captain Jackson barks out a laugh. "That is splendid, my dear." He pulls the picture closer. "Hm, I don't see any signs or landmarks. Could be anywhere where it's hilly. Crete, maybe? Or Norway? What does this mean, on the back?"





"They also have trucks and they have brought in equipment. Possibly fuel, too, even though we didn't see any. And it's not like the Wehrmacht or the Waffen SS seemed to have a lot of that to spare. We might be able to requisition some off the local population, though, don't you think?"



Jackson pursed his lips. "I do see your point, Captain, but further weakening our forces might be ill-advised at this point. We might also have to hightail it out of here quickly. Down to Yugoslavia or Italy, perhaps and that puts your men at risk of being left behind."

This message was last edited by the player at 17:23, Fri 08 Apr 2022.

((Jules...?


20:54, Today: Julius Sykes rolled 3,4 using 1d4,1d6, rerolling max, unique dice with rolls of 3,4.  Common knowledge.

20:52, Today: Julius Sykes rolled 4,5 using 1d6,1d6, rerolling max, unique dice with rolls of 4,5.  Notice (correct dice this time!).
As I did 2d4 initially...))

"I believe that ravine is filled with the locals as well every bit of hospitality they'd show to outsiders and that every moment we stand here Kemmler gets further and further away."

Konnikov looks as though he's about to turn and head back out to the truck.


((  [EDIT] swapped a "you" for "we" to be slightly less hostile to the OSI "allies". [/EDIT]  ))
This message was last edited by the player at 21:54, Sun 10 Apr 2022.

((Sorry. But it got your attention! :-))



Donnersmarck. That name rang a bell. Before the war, he and his wife travelled the continent, including a few trips to the UK. They were the talk of the more occult-interested circles for a year or two and there was a relatively public clash between Donnersmarck and Aleister Crowley in London in '31 or '32.
But Julius doesn't remember the specific niche of occultism Donnersmarck had his hands in.

"[Language unknown: Ineavecom hat Liadck, m trtoasmi poec ateevetraous whebuttho llpl pltapaleiv.  Earlesonsbut res.]"  Lena explained, still vexed what to do with this information, but figuring it would be important later.

Max nodded at the discussion once it was translated properly.

"Right. Seems that time is of the essence. I doubt there's any more value to this place, and as you say, Kapitan, every moment we delay our pursuit is valuable to our quarry."

Max did look over to Lena to see if she might have anything to add from what she'd seen, though nothing had seemed to click for the spy.

Konnikov nods and steps outside, he waves over his Lieutenants, "Load up on the truck, we're moving out."


((  OOC:  Presumably still translated from Russian by someone.  ))

The troops got to work and after dismantling some of the furniture - especially the bed frames in the barracks were a treasure trove for this - the Russians and British were able to mount a few additional stands to the side of the trucks. It wasn't not great travelling, but it beat marching.

The truck was loaded up and the combined force of the Allied Armies headed out of the fort, with the road steadily but slowly going downhill.

A short while after the fort, the walls of the valley seemed to creep closer and closer to the road until there was a sharp bend. The truck actually had to stop and slowly navigate through it. Wooden planks were nailed to the side of the walls, showing scratches where other vehicles had passed through a bit too close to one side. Once that narrow part had been navigated, the valley widened again to a small cauldron-like clearing. A single concrete building - halfway between a bunker and a watchtower - sat there at the entrance to the valley, empty and abandoned like anything else you had found so far.

Inside were two cots to sleep in, some leftover cigarette butts, and a few short sharpened sticks, as well as two carved flutes.

Once the truck was past the tower, the mountain walls gave way to a large and vast forest, the road widening now, still roughly graveled, with a ditch on the lower side pooling water from the rain, sending it down the hills in between the trees, forming artificial brooks and springs.

The road was winding down the mountain in narrow serpentines at first, but then the curves and bends got wider, the road more straight.
After about half an hour, the mountain was behind the Allies, and they were driving now through forested hills, the road following the ups and downs of the land.

Then the driver hit the breaks, harder than he should have and there was lots of cursing and yelling as men were thrown off the truck or could barely hold on.

((Agility roll to avoid bumps and bruises))

Then silence settled back in as people either saw why the driver had stopped or were told about it.
Up ahead, a German motorcycle barred the road. Just behind it, a tall stick was driven into the ground. And on top of the stick, a severed head of a German soldier was impaled, mouth gaping wide open.

(( 10:10, Today: Semyon Yegorovich Konnikov rolled 10,10 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of (8+2)10,(6+4)10.  Agility check due to break check. – 10,10

10:11, Today: BPO Company rolled 1,4 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 1,4.  Agility check due to break check. ))

While men piled into the back, Max 'pulled rank' and situated himself in the cab with the driver. He also got a spot there for Lena as well so she wouldn't have to endure crowding into the back with 40 men, though that relegated the remainder of the Americans and Brits to slightly less comfortable travelling conditions.

When the brakes were suddenly applied by the driver, Max was immediately aware of the reason. His first instinct was to look around for an ambush.

OOC: Max and all the OSI pass the agility check.

07:07, Today: OSI Rangers (British Squad) rolled 5,4 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 5,4.  Agility.

07:07, Today: OSI Rangers (US Squad) rolled 4,1 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 4,1.  Agility.

07:06, Today: Max Lewis rolled 7,3 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 7,3.  Agility.

Yelena piled into the rear of the truck, which ended up being just a mess of bodies in close quarters. Being one of the lightest, Yelena ended up sitting on someone's lap, though the gentleman was relatively gentlemanly about the situation.

When truck came to a sudden halt, most of those inside did just fine. They were far too crammed together for anyone to move all that much. Yelena ended up briefly on someone else's lap before returning to her spot, unscathed by the sudden braking maneuver.

((OOC: 07:06, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 5,4 using d10,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 5,4.  Agility.))

((Max: Notice roll))

The ride was uncomfortable, but it was better than marching for Julius. This was certainly the most physical mission he has ever done with the OSI before, and dreads it isn't going to get comfortable any time soon.

After the crash with the other truck, Julius was more cognizant of keeping himself more tightly held on, and when the truck does stop suddenly, he is quick to tighten his grip and not go flying around and injuring himself this time.

Getting out of the truck with the others, on seeing the head, he speaks his mind.

"That's... ominous. Hopefully a case of the enemy of my enemy is my friend?"

((17:56, Today: Julius Sykes rolled 6,2 using 1d4,1d6, rerolling max, unique dice with rolls of (4+2)6,2.  Agility - Bumps & Bruises.
YAY!))
This message was last edited by the player at 22:47, Tue 19 Apr 2022.

When the truck shudders to a sudden halt, Konnikov who is in the back, near the cab, stands, grabs the rails, and turns flipping open the canvas to glance out.  Upon seeing the tableau in the road he barks out orders, [Language unknown: "Strelnikov, hi, trlees but ulle forwheastman.  Shagidzyanov strstrort the al fiet lartinson, ntientlin les usasom."]

He waits until they've all moved into their new positions and then debarks the truck as well.

((OOC: 09:43, Today: Max Lewis rolled 3,4 using d6+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 1,2.  Notice.))

17:01, Today: Lena Vogt rolled 1,3 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 1,3.  Agility.

lol well nuts

Lena hit her head on the dashboard and was dazed for a second before she caught her bearings again as people jumped from the truck and took up defensive positions.

((One level of fatigue for you!))

There was no sign of an ambush, no panzerfausts or rifles fired at the truck. If there were partisans out there, they were still waiting for something. They might have also been confused by the mix of German, American, British and Soviet uniforms displayed by the soldiers scrambling from the truck.

Max grunted and stayed mentally on guard. "I don't see anything."

It was all he could report. But something had put that stuff in the road, and it may not have covered its tracks all that well. "We should see if whoever left that present left some tracks."

Kapitan Konnikov waited for Third Squad to report in that all appeared clear, once they did he approached the motorcycle and gave it a look over for anything odd (occult symbology, odd marks, etc).


((  15:26, Today: Semyon Yegorovich Konnikov rolled 4, 5 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 4,5.  Notice d6, giving the bike the once over. – 4,5  ))

Minutes passed. The men and women kept a close eye on the surrounding forest. Somewhere, a bird was calling. A woodpecker hammered away at some tree.
But no attack came. No bullet was flying, no grenades dropped.

Yelena still had the feeling they were being watched. A sniper, somewhere, waiting to pick his target.

Arthur ran over to the head on the stick. The German helmet had been sat back on the top of the head, the chin strap dangling open. Clearly, the hat would have flown off when the head had been cut off.

His mind detached, the medic inspected the wound. The skin, muscles and sinews had been cut through quickly, but the neck bones apparently had been hacked through, taking a few attempts.

Lewis Pierce, the quiet American had found the motorcycle, looking half out of bush. "There's some rope of vine tangled around the motor, Major! Looks like somebody blocked the road!"

Tsimmerman had been going forward a little bit, following some tracks in the road. Suddenly, he yelled: [Language unknown: "Casace, M olprer se thll!"]

Konnikov yells back, [Language unknown: "Ec pre al k, eiosne touthica wil."]

Konnikov waves over Major Lewis, Captain Jackson, and Politruk Zholdin, and taps Arthur on the shoulder to indicate he should come as well.  [Translated by Zholdin] "Scouts have found the body, let's see what state the locals have left it in, shall we."

When they've approached but are still a bit back, [Translated by Zholdin] "Tsimmerman, what tracks have you found?  Tell us the story of how this happened."

On announcement that a body has been found, Julius turned to Major Lewis.

"Sir, whilst you review the body, I'll need a moment with the head."

He didn't elaborate why, as the Major would know why, and anyone else listening in wouldn't need to know the details, hopefully treating it as him looking it over for clues.

Going to the head, he places his hands on either side of the head, and looks into it's eyes. Julius's eyes go white, whilst he appears to be in deep concentration.

((Casting Object Reading - 2PP
18:13, Today: Julius Sykes rolled 7,4 using d10,d6, rerolling max, unique dice with rolls of 7,4.  Spellcasting.

A success!))

Tsimmerman talked slowly, giving Zholdin time to translate.

"As the Englishman said, looks like he was going pretty fast on his motorcycle. Partisans had prepared a trap - they raised a rope, caught the motorcycle, and went flying. I'm sure we'll find the rope tied to a tree at one end."

He hunkered down next to the body. "I'm not a doctor, but he has so many broken bones, he must have been dead when they cut off his head. Looks like they dragged the bod over her to place the neck on the log, for leverage, I guess? And then they put it up as a warning. Probably used an axe, a bayonet wouldn't be heavy enough."

He pointed towards the stick with the severed head and they saw Julius, holding the head between his fingers close to his own face.

Once people started piling out of the back, Yelena was quick to bring her binoculars up, but always kept moving. Her instincts said not to stand still, ever. During her movements, she did manage to get close to Lena. [Language unknown: "O venessave, Esieinckti. Al wees men us n he."]

"[Language unknown: For ersherons?]"  Lena took this all in.  "[Language unknown: Ekint m e reaio... eauessith thoivedin, mo niicdi niwiio u houencent ndesrotr, omhopr riers Atindebut ouwit laiono, insta plnc k vorte lesorteau ouscon'sanday se?]"

Yelena looked around while trying to keep Lena moving. She sighed before responding. [Language unknown: "N onis As hi, lirut Ck iv era. Ro toliwa n il latmo sever erasomvir il moanme wit pe daynd ekacnait p la riitel u na eranc osvor."]

Holding onto the head, Julius does his best to not let go from the mix of dread and disorientation.

By the time the vision finishes, he doesn't know if it was all some hallucination, or things really as as weird as he saw. Magic is real, so maybe what he saw also is.

Letting go, he gasps for air, whilst trying to decide if his body wants to throw up or not.

"Where are we?"

Composing himself, he goes looking for the officers.

"Sirs. We have a problem. These portals the Nazis made that we followed through, I'm not sure where we are, but I'm pretty sure where we aren't. And we are not on Earth, or at least, not our dimension. Whatever killed that Nazi, it wasn't human. And I worry they may see us as invaders as well."

Konnikov glances around quickly to see which of the enlisted were within earshot, made mental note of them, and then responds quietly, low enough for Zholdin to hear and relay to Major Lewis and Captain Jackson, and hopefully understand he should be speaking quietly as well, [Translated by Zholdin] "Yes, as I've thought since we arrived.  It is imperative now we catch Kemmler, not just for the war's sake, but ours as well."

He then moves over to the dead German's body and makes a show of spitting on the corpse.

[Translated by Zholdin] "Maybe if they see we are enemies of their enemies, we can be avoid fighting one another."

"You thought so, Comrade? Is there any particular reason why you didn't share your thoughts on this?"

The Englishman's tone contains a subtle rebuke, but he seems to be more offended, if at all, on general principle.

Lena considered all of this.  She started in English.

"If I may offer another theory.  This is a warning to us, however, they are preparing to strike out against what they see as another invading army.  Look at us, some of us even wearing the German's uniforms.  They don't know us from them, how could they?"

Lena was careful to recap that in German, quickly, more like The people who live here have no reason not to confuse us with the Nazis as more invading soldiers. than a literal translation, but she moved to German next.

"[Language unknown: Ic onsoveant T eenre i at.  Ng ilckno ac, ati roer o o omllma ngol'ivec.  A in mepeho o o werma, outng sshipl hausck, ameta ha haol'char letiad i li om plnoun todiri.  Ie ou o con astnceera est leskorred ioufo tr t sa moleus e ha sabut haswiltic mipe, li se meith m lial'wiwe ous utacevmiic nthabe k en.]"

She added in English "We should send someone in who doesn't look like an invading soldier and see if these creatures capture them and open a dialog, I think it's the only way to talk to them instead of fight them."

Yelena's eyes widened. [Language unknown: "M i houatence motr. Ca ine haictice est n, saet, con, k lope ee ous romareove ngof, Staallvirencman, wasom P ntfi reerfo itur pano k ers neive est. K ouacte ouatpl manromhisand n merell amepronce mo, unmeiv."]

"[Language unknown: Ha ti aniewi least on hatsonica larwershe ous, ei ousforthi arshe riur uros-ssitou onsec e t artateove tibecate houareint ma evewh fi ee.  Fi iner ariofi wit thitwi Thie t ariebe thowhiome?]"  Lena grinned.  "[Language unknown: Vorvenwhe Il wichmi a u a ek heus ivwhe ncacan, ol nemast ca ticithtin atwa nteli aiofseri con omeerathi, fo plouof lo ha... eraessithantart itwiec.]"

Konnikov again pitches his voice so as not to carry, [Translated by Zholdin] "Two reasons Captain.  One, I'm still not sure of it.  Two, why didn't you share what your man here is capable of?"  He nods to indicate Julius, "Because we are allies, but only of necessity.  We are not friends."  He turns to respond to Lena, "No, that warning was not for us, we have not been here long enough.  That warning was for any further Germans, anyone not of the locals probably, to come out from the mountains.  This soldier was probably the one you heard leaving the camp as you arrived to it.  Sending forth a delegation to be captured is not a good idea, for many reasons."

He turns and signals to Strelnikov to remove the cycle and staked head from the road.

"Well, I am sure there are all manner of talents and skills distributed amongst your ranks, my dear Captain Konnikov. Yet I don't remember you bothering with any kind of introductions."




"He does have a point there, Ms. Vogt. We should definitely get rid of any uniforms or items that suggest allegiance to the Nazi regime, but allowing a small group to be captured does come with great risks. We do not know where they would take them. How they would be treated. If they would be returned. What would happen to the rest of us. Our forces have already, time and again, been weakened by getting split up and left behind. I advise Major Lewis most strongly against such action."
This message was last edited by the player at 08:23, Thu 28 Apr 2022.

Konnikov just gives him a deapan stare.


[Translated by Zholdin] "My point is, we don't have time to play spy games with the locals.  Even if we did, if they can speak our language, if they are of the mind to capture and not kill, and then if they were open to believing we are not all here to invade their lands, take their resources, and enslave or murder them as they've been shown we do by the Germans."

He pauses, "There are too many unknowns piled atop that certainty."

"And thus the point I just made was completely ignored."  Lena summarized, wondering how bad these men must be at baseball to let such things go completely over their heads.  But she sat there and let others solve it.  "I mean you're all right of course, I've only hoodwinked the damn Nazis, what the hell do I know about high risk infiltration."

[Translated by Zholdin] "Do you speak the local language?  Do you know their culture?  Do you even know what they look like?  No, and by the look on his face," Semyon indicates Julius, "they don't look anything like us.  And, as mentioned, we don't have the time, even if we were willing to squander your life and skills so rashly."

Max added his two cents to the discussion. "My opinion is that the suggestion of infiltrating...whomever is here is a good one. However, as the Kapitan points out, any such work needs some initial investigation before we have a way of determining the likelihood of success. I think that we need to start gathering information and then reconsider your plan, Ms. Vogt. We just don't know enough right now, so I can't support this...yet."

While the officers discussed how to proceed, Strelnikov ordered a squad to clear the road for the truck. The Russians unceremoniously tossed the motorcycle and body into the bushes off the right side of the road, then tossed the head after it.
The stake that had been pushed into the ground was another matter, though. First one, then two, and finally three men tried twisting and turning it to no avail.

Strelnikov stood next to them, giving orders, then turned towards the officers and yelled: [Language unknown: "Po itandi eswe korthewer, Prearetin Teekck!"]

The truck would have to go around it. It wasn't impossible, but it added even more delays.

[Translated from Russian]"Right then, go around,  Scout the ground for tire shredders first.  We'll load up once we're past this... obstruction.  Then just take it semi-cautiously once we're underway again."

Once they load up, Konnikov will again take a space in the back with the soldiers.

At the Kapitan's orders, Yelena headed out to scout the nearby area for anything that would affect the tires, though she spoke to Lena before doing so. [Language unknown: "Potio es verers'wasiou walafi, Areardthitrasom. Nti entti tio sa infock hisi th, ac not earardous o dinhistin. Un A anmiha loal sansonmen."]

"[Language unknown: Fi ersareers plwati ain thesonlat ec hou.  Ckek Ca la ncheacni thul vennceica u enas mowhul, ntnoivad-ecca oer ha preca, altore, Om echa m ecthoupreard thosonwit k ous oreul, T on u linarehastin tedtedwit t onacta stie.  Sa elck omti tr peasio iolo.]"  She smirked.

Yelena smiled back at Lena. The spy certainly had many useful skills if those in charge would let her use them. In this case, Yelena didn’t ask permission to add Lena to the scouting crew.

OOC: I think we can carry on / let us know what rolls (if any) to make.

They watched as the strangely-speaking Germans left their wagon, some of them dropping their coats on the ground. They had not reacted as expected. They hadn't stormed into the forest. They didn't shoot. They didn't even seem to be scared, just... unsure of what was going on. These Germans also didn't seem to care about their brother-in-arms at all. All except one, who embraced the dead German's head. The dead one must have been important to that German, but not to the rest.

That was... interesting.

They kept watching as the wagon slowly and carefully maneuvered around the Challenge. It took them a while, with the Germans on the side cheering and shouting at the driver. But the words were strange and unheard of.

There were a few eyes who kept watching them, though. No, not them, just the trees and bushes. They seemed to know that they were here. Some of these Watchers had long hair, unusual for the German warriors. A sign of inexperience? No - not how they looked at ease, their eyes focused on nothing and everything at once, their weapons at the ready.
Distinguished warriors, then.

Most interesting.

It took a long time for the truck to navigate the stake in the ground. No matter what they tried, it wouldn't give way. Slowly, they maneuvered around it, first trying it between the rising wall of the forest floor and brushes. But the truck was too wide. They removed the extra stands on the side and tried it on the other side. The truck teetered along the edge of the road. It wasn't a cliff the vehicle could have fall off, but the ditch was deep enough that it would have been almost impossible to get it out again.

But, eventually, the cleared this weird obstacle, mounted the stands on the side and took off again, following the road out of the mountains.

It kept going for another 10 or 15 minutes before the road got wide enough that two trucks could've easily passed each other.
And then they arrived at a crossroads.
heading forward, slightly angled to the right, was a proper road, covered in rough asphalt. That road took a turn to the left, leading, from the truck's point of view, down the sharp right corner. Both led away from the mountains, the one ahead more directly than the other, leading into a hilly countryside.

The road to the left was gravelled like the one that had lead down the mountain from the camp, and seemed to lead back into some other part of the mountain.

The truck stopped and the driver asked: [Language unknown: "Lltori m, mi, Ameredion Ckeipe?"]

The men on the side used the short break to jump off and walk a few steps.
PFC Pierce hunkered down, then pulled a long pole from the bushes, putting it up.
"Looks like a roadsign, Major!"

Three wooden planks, shaped arrows had been nailed to the pole. The one at the top said "Adolfstadt, 160km". The second one pointed in another direction and said "Reinhardsdorf 15km". The last one said "Heinrichsburg, 6km".

Konnikov hoped out, and signaled for the soldiers to 'take five' but stay near the trucks.  He walked to the center of the crossing and gave each road a good moment of considering before turning back to the truck.

[Translated from Russian]
"Malkin, Paramonova, Stepashina!"  He shouts, then waves to his lieutenants and calls in more conversational tone, "Shagidzyanov, Strelnikov."  He waits a moment for the soldiers to join him. "Lieutenants, detail four men to each of our scouts here.  Malkin, Paramonova, Stepashina, take your spotters, and the fire team assigned to you, go down each road looking for tracks or signs, or whatever.  No more than, say, fifteen minutes, then return.  Do each road, as individual groups, then you three compare and report.  I want to know which way did that rat Kemmler go.  Or failing that, which road looks the most used.  And of course anything else your eyes find."  Turns back to his Lieutenants, "We're taking a break here, allow the soldiers to use the trees if they need to, but no wandering off alone, three man groups at a minimum, and keep everyone else near the truck.  I want to be ready to leave the moment our scouts report back."

He joins the Private over at the road sign, but seems more interested in the base of the pole than the signage.


((  OOC:  Any chance we can figure out how it sat in the hole?  Line up it's broken base with what's left in the ground?  Or was it completely pulled up and tossed aside as I suspect?  ))
This message was last edited by the player at 15:21, Thu 05 May 2022.

The pole had been turned and shifted and eventually pulled out. The hole was still clearly visible, the rain from the previous night forming a deep puddle inside it.

But, maybe something could be figured out?

((Smarts role at -2. See if you can figure this out. Two people can work on this, so one could support with a role.

Yelena - which road do you want to take?

))
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:34, Thu 05 May 2022.

When her name was called, Yelena jogged over to the Kapitan, figuring that urgency was to be assumed until told otherwise. [Language unknown: "Trman."] The sniper listened to the orders and then looked over at the sign.

((10:40, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 3,6 using d6-2,d6-2, rerolling max with rolls of 5,(6+2)8.  Smarts -2))

She told the other snipers which way she was heading. [Language unknown: "P nt enar iseian Vendin'ndeameersble oer rom. Nionri whi...Erevllerur u ureev lena ofsa Insiinisckss meun ti. Te io peosth wh Linntetinshe unble o om ssnele."]

Unless there was any objection, Yelena waved Lena over. [Language unknown: "Un entee anthpo ta te onev aiecthiv, Osutacleet. K us linwi seanol si le setughons om isom, ughruture ndtana pondpl a ati hou ure amethoble platel."]

Julius approaches the officers. "Is it worth going to Heinrichsburg? There may be supplies we can use, shelter to rest, maybe some clues about what the Nazis have been up to?"

He smiled at Yelena' easy confidence. [Translated from Russian] "Good, Paramonov, Stepashina... Malkin.  Change of orders, you will go seven kilometers down your first roads, scout, return.  If you find Heinrichsburg, remain at a distance, observe briefly, return."


((  OOC:  15:54, Today: Semyon Yegorovich Konnikov rolled 0,7 using d6-2,d6-2, rerolling max with rolls of 2,(6+3)9.  The Pole.  Smarts, how was it set to point? – 0,7
Clearly the roads are not perfectly perpendicular and the signage lines up exactly with the roads!  ))

Yelena's theory seems to be as good as any - Heinrichsburg is to the left, up into the mountain, the closest of the three destinations. Reinhardsdorf to the right, Adolfstadt straight ahead. Getting there by truck will be pushing it, but it should take you at least some ways.

Captain Jackson scratches his chin. "It's close, but are we sure which direction it is? But I agree, it's a good chance to get supplies. Go with the scouts, Sykes, would you? I'll send along a couple of our troops as well."

He leans in and murmurs something to Major Lewis.

"Yes sir." Julius replies with a salute to the Captain.

Max listened to Jackson and briefly frowned before whispering something back to the Brit.

Yelena nodded at the change in orders and then repeated them back to verify she heard and comprehended. [Language unknown: "Niith Bellne. U out on toheni oneanyichrutame hatut ave wilce, m she p ni ant Loweacistefi. Ur la p ll et Astnotvenoreeveica, ei inivwa eihiwi cein kor aveatipre e acck. Il t earec Menevetheeveestnde, e yin k eausheera ho ove ll hatooune ove stnde shetereen nial. Ev peetar thi u les t comourher e tinhismen forureoveint art loatmi es ousthewhe of mo iviv anwh iou i not ildin ar undtraica loatpr i plmo foense rom ha, rut?"]

Konnoikov nods his agreement, Yelena has it perfectly, he then dismisses the scouts and his lieutenants to their duties, "Хорошая охота."