The man looked at Seamus oddly. Then the light came on. Maybe.

"Yes, yes. There is alcohol." He laughed as he said it. He pantomimed drinking to his friend whom said something in reply, also laughing. "You Irish do not say no, eh?"

Seamus was at a loss. He didn't know if he should laugh with the man or punch in the jaw. It about that time that Seamus noticed a man standing near a well in a yard just down the road. He was staring at Carter and Himself. The man was wearing what looked like a Tanker's coverall. A coverall that very much reminded him of the one's worn by her Majesty's tankers.

"Hold on one second, I need to discuss this with my team."

Seamus turned and looked at the man, raising a hand in acknowledgement as he walked towards him. He get both his hands clear of his weapons to make clear that he was unarmed.

There was a moment when Benjamin could feel his hand begun to move to his hip where he had his pistol holstered. He fought down the urge, even as one of the men approached. His suspicions were eased as he saw the approaching man keep his hands visible, clear from any weapons he maybhave on him. Benjamin returned the gesture, keeping his hands out in in front of himself as he began to take steps  towards the strange man in an allied uniform.

When Benjamin has closed the distance to a point where he feels comfortable speaking without raising his voice, he simply says, "Name?"

Tom took note as Seamus headed off from the local he had been chatting to , and moved himself up to see why. He spotted the man in the British tankers uniform, and thought that they might have a new recruit. Assuming he was pukka.

Fedor, for his part, was very armed and had no idea how these people would react when they learned he was Russian.

He watched the events unfold from a distance.

"Hey, another one." The man said.

He repeated the phrase in German to his pal who looked from the two in front of him to the lone man at his back. He said something that drew a laugh from the English speaker.

"My friend says that you are not from the same unit." The man went on, pointing at Pruitt, then back to Seamus. "He was in tanks. Canadian tanks made in Germany. Mighty leopards! But, you, you drove up in trucks last night. Little trucks. Are you not all NATO?"

"Captain Benjamin Pruitt," he finally spoke to break the stalemate between he and the other NATO members, adding, "Canadian Forces, Armored Branch, Lord Strathconas Horse. I'm afraid I'm all that's left however."

"I'm Private Seamus Murphy, formerly of the Queen's Royal Irish Hussars. Also formerly armoured. I guess your lot must be desperate if they're using horses."

Seamus meant that as a joke, but considering the situation, he could have been riding a horse at some point...

He then turned back to the others.

"We are all NATO." If we were Russian, you'd be dead by now.

Benjamin smirked at the comment made by Seamus, "Truth be told, there were rumors that we may have to saddle up. Luckily we were able to scrounge up enough fuel for our push here."

Pruitt let out a breath and looked around, "Glad to see another friendly face, Murphy. What's your status? From the chatter it sounds like you have a few more more with you."

Maybe it was a bit formal for the current situation, but some semblance of order needed to be kept. Though it seemed he may be the odd man out here, so if need be, he'd lay down the Captains bars. He just wanted to know what he was getting in to.

"Our status, sir?" Seamus asked and tried to find the right woods for the situation, then just went for honest. "[expletive] had it. We've been shot at multiple times and buried multiple corpses in the past day or two. We're heading west for something in the United States, or what's left of it. We're in no position - or inclination - to engage in any offensive operations. With all due respect, sir."

Because if he suggested they go back into this war, Seamus was going to show him a fistful of respect.

As if responding to Seamus' words, there was a distant crack of automatic weapons fire to the west. It was distant, maybe a kilometer or closer to two, but it was definitely an exchange of fire.

"I'm sorry to hear that Murphy," Benjamin said sincerely.

He had wanted to relate to the man with tales of his now losses  but now was neither the time nor place. There was comiserating and comparison, and he felt that speaking to his own experiences in this moment would just come off as comparison. No need for that right now.

"Tell you what, I'll come along for the long boat ride. We get across the ocean, I'll part ways with you and yours and head north."

Pruitt looked to the sound on the gunfire and frowned, "We might be done with this war, but I don't think it's quite done with us."

"Sounds like the war still follows." The German said. Turning to his pal he spoke in rapid German and then the two turned. Speaking to Pruitt the man went on, "The tanks, you were with the tanks. Thank you, sorry for your friends. But, I think trouble still calls to you."

Roch flinched at the sound of gunfire. Then he sighed, grabbed his gear and stood up. Nothing seemed to be amiss so he might as well try and find out what these men were doing and if they knew what was going on in the area.

He shouldered his rifle, started to walk towards the men while holding his empty hands up. "Bonjour, no shooting now, s'il vous plaît".

"Shinen!" One of Germans shouted as Toussaint stood up nearby.

"Ha, Bon Chance!" The other said. But, that was real extent of his meager French. "You really frightened us. Thought you might be the Soviets."

In reply to GM (msg # 15):

Seamus turned towards him, trying to glean some details of this guy from the uniform. He was probably French. Or Belgian. Or maybe even Swiss. Seamus had never been able to tell the difference, although there probably was one.

"You don't shoot us, we don't shoot you. What's your name?" he asked.

The automatic fire suggested that they probably didn't want to spend too long around here. It might lead to trouble for these people if they were identified.

"I'm Roch", he said, glancing in the direction of the gunfire the whole time. "Roch Toussaint. You don't happen to know what that's about, non"? Roch nodded towards the sound of shooting, pulled his pale green shemagh scarf down a bit and scratched his stubbled chin. He was dressed in dusty fatigues of the kind worn by the french special forces, boots and a pale green toboggan hat matching the scarf. He also carried full field kit, a tactical vest, a NATO SMG and a sniper rifle slung over his right shoulder.

He seemed composed but weary, almost distant. "Peut-être nous... maybee we see what's what over there"? he asked in a thick french accent.

Pruitt smirked as he watched the new arrival walk towards them without much care in the world. It was hard to say what the man was truly thinking, but by his demeanor he was either really trusting, or had just ran out of <expletive> to give.

"Pruitt," he responded to the newcomer, "To be fair, I have no real need to find out what all the shooting is all about."

Pruitt was really done with the war. He'd come over all gung-ho and ready to fight, but when the scant news that made it over on this side of the Atlantic indicated that some places in North America had been struck with nukes, the wind was completely knocked out of of his sails. He and his crew had fought like hell only to be taken out of the fight. They had made no difference, they had changed nothing.

"I'm going to suggest that we take our leave," Pruitt said reluctantly, then adding, "We can stop at the battleground where I lost my tank and grab any salvageable supplies. From there, I suggest heading west, far away from here."

Tom was surprised when another figure popped up out of the wood work. Obviously his sentry skills needing brushing up as he hadn't spotted any of them. He wandered to find Fedor and asked him "Are there any more people wandering about here who are going to join us - or more importantly try and kill us, mate? I obviously can't spot shit!" he said, trying to make light of it but concerned by his lack of observation skills

ooc

just checking in tbh

"Well, I can't see anyone else at the moment and quite frankly, they're too late..." Seamus remarked.

He turned to the Germans.

"All the best of luck to you. Hope these guys ignore you..."

With a certain sadness, he knew that they almost certainly wouldn't and this place was about to have a very bad day.

There was movement in the distance. With binoculars it was possible to just make out the lead vehicle. It was a UAZ 469 coming around the curve of the old highway at a waling pace. There was a man standing at pintel mounted machine gun. It was far off, around twelve hundred meters at least. But, it was definitely trouble coming their way.

"Merde!" Roch exclaimed. "The shooting 'as found out about you, I think, Pruit'", he said and sprinted for cover, away from the road.

OOC: I'm looking for some place that'll give cover but also an overview of the road leading into the village. Somewhere I can set up the sniper rifle if there is time.

Roch moved up along the side of the road about five yards and found a stable platform along the safety rail coming off the bridge. It allowed him the kneel and set out his rifle's bipod. The on coming troops were still very distant and had no clue of his presence.

Seamus looked to see how far the M1114 HMV was and started running towards it, hoping that they had enough ammo still in there for yet another engagement.

Seriously, when were they going to get a proper rest? When they were dead?

Pruitt also made for cover on the opposite side of the road from Roch and readied his MP5. The Frenchman was right, the fight had found them, now they would have to survive this.

He was about to call out Murphy as the man had run off but thought better of it. He wasn't about to give away his position until the shooting started. Where ever Murphy was heading, it was out of his hands.

When Tom heard the shooting he flinched, but not as much as he used to. He must be getting used to it.

When people started diving about and Seamus started running, he called out "Whats going on?"

ooc
Tom isn't with Seamus, just nearby so I am assuming he can't see the Russkies

"Better to hide!" The english speaking German said as he and he companion ran off towards a narrow path in the trees.

In the distance the faintest traces of movement could be caught with the naked eye. Scopes and binoculars would reveal that the Soviet troops had rounded the distant curve in the highway and were proceeding at their slow pace towards the town. They were still over a kilometer away, but it was plain to see that they were at least a platoon in strength and supported by three light trucks armed with machine guns.

Tom heads for the vehicles and hisses at Seamus "Whats up mate, are we bugging out again?"

Roch swore. He knew he should have stayed in the woods. "A full platoon', at least". He called out to the others. "Don't suppose you haf some more men hiding around here, eh nato boys"?

"If we had, we wouldn't be running away now, would we?!" Seamus responded as he continued towards the Hummer. Once he reached it, he would be immediately on the gun, ready to fire if needed. But only if necesssary. Probably not a good idea to draw attention to themselves.

Fedor was stood next to the vehicles when he was seen again.

"We go."

His English was not great so he stuck to the basics.

"Fight is bad for us and bad for local people. We go."

He punctuated this by getting back into the vehicle he had come in and waiting, briefly, for anyone who wanted to get in.

Well, who was he to turn down a good offer? Roch picked his stuff up and made for the vehicles. "Mind if I tag along"?

Piling into the trucks was akin a controlled Chinese fire drill. But, ten minutes later the motley group was moving along an open paved road at speeds approaching a comfortable sixty kilometers and hour. The breeze felt good, though a warm meal and a cup of hot tea, or possibly some Irish coffee, would make the ride all the more enjoyable.

In a matter a kilometers the trucks began nearing remnants of civilization; road signs.

The highway markers had been covered with a reflective paint and then painted over with writing in Polish and in German. On the outskirts of a suburban area that seemed to be somewhat busy with the daily lives of farmers and herdsmen.

(Does anyone speak these languages?)

Roch sat silent, mostly, answering any questions honestly enough but his heart wasn't in it. What were they supposed to do now?

OOC: Roch speaks polish.

Roch looked a the painted messages on the road signs as they came to them. The first read 'Entering the Agrarian Collective'. A few kilometers later another sign read 'Sigfeld Colony 8 kilometers Southwest, Nuehelm Colony 23 Kilometers South, Marksenburg 2 Kilometers ahead'. A small road sign tucked of the road a bit read 'No violence, no theft, and no foreign currency accepted on pain of death, 8th Jeager Kommando'.

Tom was sorry to be on the move again, he had hope dthey could rest up at the village. Hopefully soon they'll get to stop somewhere for more than a few hours rest, and get their shit togethor.

When he saw the signs he asked "Anyone speak Polish? Are those signs saying theres an all you can eat Buffet in town?"

ooc

I generally don't assume things get translated in a game unless the player says they will. But for this game should we assume things get translated?
This message was last edited by the player at 07:39, Thu 05 May 2022.

Facing the possibility of further violence with the Soviets, or former Soviets at least, Ben Pruitt stepped of the road and began trotting of to the southeast through an overgrown field. Taking that as his queue, Hendrick Maes did likewise as he shouldered his pack and took up FNC rifle. Nodding to others as if to say good luck to them he turned to the northeast and began marking off into the wood line.

It was going to be close to toss their gear from the night into the vehicles and get rolling ahead of the incoming forces. Despite their slow pace, the trucks and marching troops would be crossing the Orde in less than five minutes.

Roch waved to the two men goodbye and watched them disappear into the underbrush. He stared emptily ahead for a moment before coming to, cast a worried look backwards and started packing their gear.

"Where to' then, eh"? he asked the remaining men. "Never 'erd of the Agrarian Collective but it sounds better than soviet slave camp, no? How 'bout we move south an' see wat's wat"?

OOC: So we're down to 4. Maybe we should pack into one vehicle and abandon the rest? It's easier to find fule for 1 vehicle than 3, right? Can someone drive the m114 or should we just go with a humvee?

In reply to Roch Toussaint (msg # 38):

Seamus felt a bit sad as the two men disappeared, but he had seen an awful lot of loss in recent months. Best not to get too close to anyone.

He looked down at Roch as he explained the situation.

"Debatable. Collectives sound pretty communist to me... so when we see this gift 'orse, let's give it a dental check, shall we?"

As they drove, Seamus kept an eye for any checkpoints or people trying to shoot them. That was a real possibility anywhere these days.

Tom was sorry to see the two guys leave, they needed to get a stronger team, but these guys had just passed through. As what was left of them drove off, Tom thought at this rate they'd soon have more vehicles than drivers. They needed to rest up and re plan their strategy in terms of travel and everything else.

When they stopped he picked up the radio and spoke to the other vehicles "We should take advantage of this location to reconfigure our travel arrangements" he said, hoping it was vague enough that anyone listening in wouldn't be able to figure out anything useful, but also that the others would take the hint.

ooc
 not sure who is driving what, but if Roch and Seamus are in a vehicle togethor TOm is probably driving.

The sides of the road were giving way to more fields, recently sewed and regularly cared for. Up ahead an overpass for a local surface road was coming up. It looked clear of vehicles, structures, or guards. A sign approaching the exit ramp declared that the their once had been two small communities within few kilometers of here. But that was a world war away these days. Who knows what remained of any of the towns here.

Fedor had not spoken for the entire trip.

He genuinely did not know how to interact with people without Cece to act as an intermediary.

He found his voice, "Agrarian is not the important part of sign."

"Important part is German Light Infantry Kommandos make law here. Punish for crime is death. Foreign money is crime."

Seamus took the hint and pulled over, waiting for further instructions while keeping watch in case anyone decided they were breaking the law and it was time for a quick execution.

But he wasn't sure about them just having one vehicle - eggs and baskets etc.

When Toms vehicle pulled up he leaned out the window to speak to the others. "IF we decide to rearrnage ourselves here, we can try and trade out what we don't need for other kit, or fuel or whatever. This Agrarian place I guess will have stuff to trade we might want. I mean I forget the last time I had some actual bread..." he trailed off.

Then added "SO I think we maybe risk seeing if we can find somewhere in the Collective we can trade. But I know nothing of these Commandos - what do you know about them Fedor?"

(OOC: since the unit was originally an intel unit, no one has ever heard of anything about the 8th Jeager Kommando. most likely assumption is that it is one of the local, home defense units from during the last years of the war. most likely organized from german army soldiers from units somewhat similar to the US army rangers. the 8th is probably a form of designation for a training cadre turned into a unit during the late war.)

Roch, realizing his presence in the group might not be the most called for presence ever, mostly stayed silent when it came to making decisions regarding property. He did nod approvingly though at the mentioning of trading vehicles for supplies. Especially fuel would probably be scarce in the time to come.

In reply to Thomas Carter (msg # 44):

Seamus waited for Feodor's answer as he looked for the nearest place that might have someone willing to trade in it. He wasn't overly optimistic. Hope was a town in Arkansas and it was probably nuked by now.

As they pondered their options the men in the trucks were passed by a wagon pulled by a team of oxen. It was loaded with baskets of vegetables and the six men riding aboard waved in a friendly manner as they neared.

Seamus waved back at them. That was a relief, but they weren't out of the woods yet. Especially as those men could report their presence.

Thomas waived at the farmers then triggered the comms "Anyone speak German, or anything else can have a word with them? They might have some useful intel on whats up ahead, and this area"