NationStates Jolt Archive

OOC: This is closed at the moment, but will be open soon enough, and I'll let you know when that is. Also, for those of you who know whats going on...don't tell.

IC:

Rain. Thats all there was now, rain. The Imitoran rainy season was one of the worst in the world. The one time tropical paradise that was now a full industrial nation was situated just in the right way so that the five month long rainy season kept the nation uner the rain clouds twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. Current estimates said that, despite only being a week in, there had been over 56 inches of rain, and much much more was comming.

However, the pilots of the 133rd Special Operations Air Wing were in their element. Night and rain, nothgin hid assault aircraft better. The MV-22Is were flying all but blind, with a display projecting a FLIR image onto the cockpit windscreen. Displays in the cockpit relayed doppler imaging and night vission pictures. The three advacned flight radars, two on the nose, and one mounted on a triangular mast above the cockpit allowed the pilots to fly the MV-22I as if it were perfect daylight conditions.

There were three of the MV-22Is, each holding, spaciously, 42 members of the 22nd Special Operations Task Force, the elite light infantry unit of the ICMC. Each were armed heavily, with CAR-25 (http://www.boomarms.com/collector/SIR51/1.jpg) assault rifles and every third rifle a M230 40mm grenade launcher.

The MV-22Is were quiet, with the sound dampeners on and the rain and thunder hiding the sound of the heavy props cutting through the air, pulling the tilt rotor forward through the air. The tri barrled 20mm cannon mounted under the nose of each Osprey rotated as the gunner looked for targets, the gun's FLIR, NV, and IR cammeras relaying the image to him.

In front of them, hovering at just under a thousand feet over the tareget, a small village, two AH-6I Little Birds, armed with .30cal miniguns and 7in folding fin rockets. The pilots watched the activities of the town through NVGs or FLIR cammeras. They two had sound dampeners, and the more powerfull baffles kept the helicopters totally silent.

They watched the six figures climb onto the roof tops of designated houses, and move sliently to the edges. The pilots moved their helicopters away seeing them move safely to their spots, and waited for their orders.

On the roof tops, three two man sniper/spotter teams moved to the edges of the roofs, and set up their arms. Each sniper was armed with a custom made rifle, made to meet his exact specifications by Umbrella. Each marksmen, also known as the spotter, was really just a sniper in training, and was getting field expierince form the actions. They two were well armed, packing a CAR-30 (http://www.boomarms.com/collector/SPR/2.jpg) marksmen rifle. They were from the 1st SOU-D, the elite of the elite.

Romeo Six Six, element check in
Romeo Six Five, check, I got three
Romeo Six Seven, check, I got two
Right, Romeo Six Six has two. Thats seven bingos, weapons hold till go

They each had sighted in their primary kills, and with seven targets and six shooters, it wouldn't be to hard to eliminate the visable threat. Romeo Six Six was the lead of the group, a true veteran. He had seen combat in every Imitoran conflict, all but once as a sniper. He worked the custom lock bolt back, the action smooth enough so that he could work the bolt with his pinky, and looked through the scope, a custom tactical 10x scope. The stock had been custom made to his exact measurments, and required no adjustment whatsoever. The triger was dialed in to an exact 2.25 pound pull. He called over the radio to the Ospreys.

Nightrider Lead, Romeo Six Six, targets are covered, overwatch is good, your go on call, over
Romeo Six Six, Nightrider lead, we are four four out, ready for drop, you got cover, do your thing, over
Copy Nightrider lead, Romeo Six Six has confirm. Romeo Element, weapons free, I repeat, weapons free

Romeo Six Six worked the bolt, chambering the Winchester .300 magnum round, sighted is target, and squeezed gently, sending out teh large caliber round towards a new home. The fluted and ported free floating barrel would acurately put the hand loaded .300 round into a dime sized circle at 1000 yards. He wathced his target drop, and then moved his rifle to watch the rest drop.

Romeo Element, check in
Romeo Six Five, check, targets down, good kill
Romeo Six Seven, check, targets down, good kill
Copy on all, Romeo Six Six is good, targets down, good kill. Nightrider lead, Romeo Six Six, targets are clear, you are good to go

Seconds later, he could see, but not hear, the large MV-22Is swoop in, rotors tilted upward, and come to a hover just over the roof toops. Ropes were kicked out, from both the small side doors, and the rear loading ramp. Opertives from the 22nd SOTF fast roped in, hitting the ground, and moving towards teh intersection corneres of their drop sites. The moved quickly, yet methodically, and had secured the area. It took a little more than 15 seconds for each Osprey to drop its cargo and slide off into the night.

The Marines had noted their targets, and moved quickly. Each platoon split into two 21 man units, and went building to building, eliminating targets. The CAR-25s sent their 6.7mm rounds towards targets with deadly acuracy, and soon, each building that had been on the target map was clear.

As the Marine lined up in the pouring rain in the town square, an unarmed MH-6I slid down, and came to a hover a few inches from the ground. A man opened a door and slid out, unarmed, wearing just fatigues and no assault gear. He storde forward with confidence, and returned the salute given to him from the platoon luitenants.

"Gentlemen," he shouted above the rain, "you did well. You have trained for months in both night and rain conditions, but never both. Now you know what is gonna be like when we move out in one month. Remeber, when the actuall assault comes, your gonna be using real ammunition, not paint rounds. Now then, you know what this was like, so you know what the next month leading up will be like. Plenty of long nights in the rain getting ready. But I got faith in you. Now then, go home, get dry, grab some chow, and some sleep. In 22 hours, we do this agian. Dismissed!"

He stepped back as the first 42 man platoon ran forward to board the just now landing Osprey. It took exactly a minute for the three Ospreys to reload and take off back to the training center. The men who had been 'killed' by simunition rounds trotted out. They were ICMC regulars, and all but honored by the fact that they had been killed by some of the best. They loaded onto trucks that lead them out of 'town' back to the training center. One man, similarly dressed as the other, remained.

"What about my shooters? They are ready to rock." Behind him, the three two man shooter teams seemed to apear out of the darkness, weapons slung. "I'm thinkin some Aye See work?"

"Yeah, your boys are good as they are gonna get, and ready too. They leave in fifteen hours, get some in country time on site before having to go to work. Let them get in contact with local rebels and what not, get them on our side. Come back with me, I wanna discuss the plan some more."

"Aye sir." With that, the two men, high ranking officers in their perspective units, boarded the remaing MH-6I that had been hovering in the square, and left. The shooter teams waited, going over their shots, untill their transport, another MH-6I(L), large enough to hold the three teams inside, arived, and escorted them out of the training site.

Target Location

Romeo Six Six moved through the target city quietly. He was dressed in standard civilian clothes, and was spending his time observing the movements of enemy soldiers. They were, and would be, lightly armed, and ill-prepared.

he had seen final assault plans, and based on the initial assault, the assaulting forces would be well entrenched and supported by the time the opposing force had a chance to move out. However, there would be no strikes on the opposing forces home basses, as that would be an all out act of war, and this wasn't an all out war, simply a fast assault force landing in a target city and assaultign enemy forces.

He was armed simply with a cammera, and stood, taking pictures of emplacements and the like, the enemy forces assuming nothign, and therefore not reacting.

OOC: And here is where the fun begins. Feel free to RP a response however you wish, but keep everythign IC.

IC:

Target City
23:13

The rain pelted the MV-22Is, sweeping in low below enemy radar and anti-air systems. After a month of training in rainstorms at night, the four platoons of Marines from the 22nd SOTF were now ready for there final actions. They were locked and loaded, so to say, armed with the newer CAR-35 (http://www.boomarms.com/collector/ANDY_MCNAB/M4RAS2/8.jpg) assualt rifles. The sat quietly, going over the final assault plan in their heads before the actual assault.

The aircraft were hovering just a mile outside the target, totally silent with the noise canceling systems engaged, and still unspoted. They were escorted by five F/A-75 Ravens that held high overhead, looking for incoming boogeys. The pilots were quiet, listening to the radio communication between the 3 two man sniper teams in the city. They waited for the right word.

Romeo Element, Romeo Six Six, check in with goods, over.
Romeo Six Five, I got three, light arm, alone, far 200, close 50, will take close first, check, over.
Romeo Six Five, I got four, light arm, one em-ge, all alone, far 400, close 100, will take mid range at 315 first, on heavy, check, over
Romeo Six Six, I got four, light arm, one double a, all alone, far 400, close 300, will take close first, holding for confirm, check, confirm. Spot em. Good spot, weapons free in three...two...weapons free

The targets never heard the shots that hit them. Romeo Six Six fired first, sending out .300WinMag death towards his first target, holding an assault rifle. He watched the target drop, blood spray filling the air. However, once he saw the body move, he had already worked the bolt, selected his next target and fired, droping him. All the snipers proceded this way, working in succesion to eliminate all exposed targets. Bodies dropped without knowledge they had even been fired at.

Romeo Six Six, targets down, clear on site, check. Good kills
Romeo Six Five, targets down, clear on site, check. Good kills
Romeo Six Seven, targets down, clear on site, check. Good kills.
Black Knight Six, Romeo Six One, Open field, targets down. Secure air, you are clear on our watch, go for gold, cover open.
Romeo Six Six, Black Knight Six, open air, begin move, clear on our watch, targets are free

Black Knight was an element of AH-6I Little Birds, each armed with either two .50cal Machine Guns or two .30cal Mini Guns, and two seven inch rocket pods. With the noise cancleing systems, they 'swooped' in over the target city, opeing fire on any small trucks or jeeps that they saw. The explosions were the first over acts of the assault, and the bright flames lit up the night sky.

Black Knight Six to all ops units, clear on heavies. Mustang you are clear on pipe, five by five, open flight in, good luck Nappa Element.

Nappa element was the name given to the Marines that would be landing on the ground. The explosions in the city cause enough confusion so that the large MV-22Is were able to slip in and drop their 42 Marines into the proper city squares. Through FLIR cammeras, the pilots watched as the Marines, experts in Urban combat, moved through the city, opening fire on their targets. Local insurgants also appeared, and the stacato of AK-47 fire could be heard intermixed with the sounds of the CAR-35s. They watched as the entire enemy garrison, about 200 soldiers in all, fell. They listend to the combat reports comming in exactly 32 minutes after the initial shots.

Nappa East, target clear, holding for orders
Nappa West, target clear, holding for orders
Nappa South, target clear, holding for orders
Nappa North, target clear, holding for orders
[/i]Rodger Nappa Element, hold and secure for four, support at light, good kills, casualty reports[/i]
Nappa East Six, 5 KIA, 2 wounded
Nappa West Six, 0 KIA, 0 wounded
Nappa South Six, 1 KIA, 0 wounded
Nappa North Six, 3 KIA, 4 wounded
Rodger, confirming 9 KIA, 6 wounded. Good stuff, will provide cover for night, congrats on a success, Black Knight Six out

Nappa East was the last unit to land in, and therefore by the time they hit the ground, the enemy soldiers would have time to respond and gain their senses. However, 5 out of 42 was excellent numbers, a testament to the training for the mission. The city was secured, and the men knew that across the nation, other cities too, were under Imitoran control.
__________

FNW
First News Wire, The First in News

The man on the screen was the standard midnight to six am anchor, who most people didn't know. However, this story would be his big break

Good evening. I'm Mike Craigfield, and your watch FNW, the only station to provide you with the first in news, all day. This is a special report just in. Tonight, at approxamately 12:22am local time, explosions and gunfire rocked Belfast, Ireland aswell as other cities in the north. Our corespondandts on site have reported that they were, by order, not alowed to release video, but have confirmed this: An unknown number of operatives from Imitora's 22ns Special Operation Task Force have landed in multiple cities in the northern portion of Ireland, and have cunducted assaults on British outposts in co-ordination with PIRA operatives.

The reason of these attacks are unknown, but with the recent succesful capture of Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, one may suspect that the government is looking towards a European colony. However, the working with local insurgants may offer another idea into the story. It is unsure how many casualties Imitoran forces sustained, but acording to corespondants in the area, many if not all of the cities have been secured. We have been informed that First Speaker John Griffin will be adressing the nation shortly. Stay tuned for more.

After the introduction, the story continued to play over and over agian in standard news station fashion, with pictures comming through every now and then of fires burning in the night, or Marines securign a temporary check point. In Imitora, the now awake nation waited to hear from Griffin.

OOC: Oooooh! taggy taggy, an Ireland incursion..

OOC: Bump, will be posting soon

The room was the First Speaker's Press Release Room, a room bathed in blue curtains around the walls, with a simple oak podium and microphone at the front. The room was filled with simple folding chairs that were quickly filling up with reporters, many reserved for news agencies world wide. The FNW seat, front center, had been filled by a reporter at all times. Refreshments were offered at the back of the room, but the table was relatively untouched.

Suddenly, a side curtain moved aside, and four men, clad in black suits with white shirts and crimson ties, wearing dark aviator sunglasses and clear ear pieces moved out into the room, past the front of the stage, and to the other side. Another four men did the same, staying at the side closest to the table. The lights dimmed slightly, hardly noticable, and one of the Second Speakers, Ried Holst, from the souther district, approached the podium, and spoke into the microphone.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, First Speaker John Griffin," he said, then stood aside.

Griffin walked out of the side, approached the podium, and once the light applause died down, he spoke into the mic.

"Ladies and gentleman, as you have been informed, Marines from the 22nd Special Operations Task Force landed earlier today in multiple towns in the northern part of Ireland. I can say, with pride, that of four hundred and thrity two Marines landed, casualties are minimal. Thrity two KIA, twenty four wounded beyond comabt capabilities. We have succsefully taken all target cities."

"In Northern Ireland, an English government as, for too long, oppressed Irish persons of the land. Those not adhering to the oppresive British government have been killed, arrested, or have simply disapeared. I authorized the assault on the British soldiers in Ireland more than a month ago."

"Currently a stratagy for a low class, short term occupation is being devised, so that by June 6th, all ICMC units will be removed, and a freely elected government emplaced in the Northern territory. Imitora will not interfere with the nation any further than nessacery to assure the freedom of the nation."

"Currently, the 7th Infantry is en route to North Ireland, via transport and assault subs, and Northampton firgates modified for troop transport. Further, an undisclosed amount of Virginia VI, the newst line of attack submarines, are en route or already stationed in the Celtic Sea and English Channel in order to secure and suport Imitoran Units."

Griffin paused again, and took a sip of water. He stared into the flashing lights of cammeras and the bright bulbs of video cammeras. He took another sip of water. "I will now take a few questions."

(OOC: I hope I didn't mistake the openess of this thread or anything. May I ask, is Imitora something of a future tech nation? If so, well, I don't exactly plan to start a war anyway, but this will just serve as an elaborate tag inspired by the fact that I can't get Flogging Molly out of my head since this thread appeared.)

Iskra!, The PCBG's central state media organisation, was represented at the First Speaker's Press Release Room by a comrade Cerys Melling who, like more than sixty million of other Beth Gellens, claimed Irish blood to be foremost in her otherwise Welsh veins. Beside her sat a man, perhaps the term boy would be more fitting, apprenticed to the correspondent. He fumbled nervously with his notebook, taking shorthand and visibly sweating a little.

Comrade Melling gestured for the First Speaker's attention, and the youngster winced in anticipation of the scene his mentor was half liable to create after introducing herself.

"Cerys Melling, regional Foreign Affairs Correspondent, Iskra!" She started. "Does Imitora intend to prosecute a war against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland? We have heard speculation to the contrary, but can't help but wonder what else may ever result from sending warships into British waters after firing on British subjects."

Assuming she was recognised, Melling didn't have any designs on retaking her seat. Not until she'd brought up Imitora's abject lack of social or political freedom, even compared to those of the UK, or learned what the Grand Dominion planned to do when Northern Irish voters backed a return to the UK in promised elections.

I can't get Flogging Molly out of my head since this thread appeared.)

OOC: Yeah, I go back and forth. While my ground troops are between 2015-2050 (for example, within seconds, the rifles can be converted to fire magnetically assisted rounds, liek rail guns), Aircraft very from 2010-2050, but they are all backed up by a rather large, rather powerfull space fleet. And, on the Flogging Molley, I now know that my mission is accomplished...Swing a little more...

IC:

Amid the hands and shouts or his attention, Griffin picked the first of many reporters, and read the name of the news agency of the seating chart. "Uh, Iskra."

He listened to the question, and responded after a few moments of thought. "This is not meant to be an open decleration of war on the United Kingdom. The attacks launched, yes, were an act of war, but we are hoping for the British to do the logical thing, and stand down. The Virgina VIs are there simply for the protection of our Marines on the ground, and will not fire on any British military units unless fired upon first."

"He paused to take a sip of water, then continued on. "I will not order a war against the United Kingdom, nor will I authorize attacks on the British Island. I will state that, unless attacked, no British citizens after this day will come under any harm from Imitoran Marines. Further, I believe those in the British government, both the Prime Minister and Parliment, should recognize that this is a war they cannot, and will not, win."

Bump

C'mon...I know people gotta be intrested...

Last bump then Im assuming no one cares and Im set to go...

Seeing no other reporters chomping at the bit, Melling thought to continue before the conference was wrapped-up.

"Ah, speaker, considering that the Dominion is internationally recognised as furnishing its subjects with fewer rights, both civil and political, than are enjoyed by British subjects -including those on Ireland- one wonders how it -the Dominion- is qualified or even able to 'free' the people of Northern Ireland. If it is proven possible, if I am wrong to harbour doubts, then can we assume that Imitorans are about to enjoy a similar rise in their freedoms... so they be significantly more free than the British?"

Melling was waving a pen in a fairly distracting manner. Why she even carried it was a puzzle, since the poor boy apprentice seemed to do all of her writing. Cerys added one further question before she was satisfied with her lot.

"...You do say, com... mister speaker, that elections will be held in Northern Ireland and that following their conclusion Imitora shall withdraw -putting aside for a moment the apparent fact that the Dominion is unable to uphold a reasonable government by the people at home and assuming that it can manage to implement it on the doorstep of modern democracy- will this hold true when the people of Northern Ireland vote for a return to the United Kingdom? Indeed, will they be allowed that option, or is Imitora really in Northern Ireland to deny its population one more choice?"

Cerys' young ward almost cracked a tooth from nervously clenching his jaw as he scribbled.