NationStates Jolt Archive

OOC: I assume you are Asian by both your name and the character you described...

IC:

Both ships had been sent out. They stayed out of each other's radio range for plausible deniability. On the deck cargo areas of both ships there were what looked to be a large number of crates. However, underneath these facades were Mi- 35 Hinds. The Aristotle had two of these. The Socrates had one as well as a MI 2 Hoplite Transport.

Below deck one both ships a couple hundred men were wandering arround the inner cargo bays. Some played cards, others cleaned their weapons, a few were even kicking footballs around. They were bored, bored and waiting.

On the bridge of the Aristotle, the young man on sonar called out, "New target due Northeast! Bearing is Two-Two-Five, headed our way! Speed eightteen knots, range five thousand yards and closing"

Captian Downings grabbed his walkie talkie from his belt, "Watch, this is the Conn, confirm new target at two o'clock, bearing Two-Two-Five."

First Mate Sean Dillon tossed his cigarrette and grabbed the night vison goggles from the table beside him. He looked in the direction his superior had told him. He replied over the walkie talkie, "Conn, this is watch, target is confirmed at about five thousand yards!"

The captain looked around the Conn, "Master at arms you have the Conn! I need to go to my quarters."

"Aye aye, sir! I have the Conn" replied the young man.

In his quarters Brendan Downings took a picture off the wall to reveal a small safe. He pulled out his key and unlocked the first lock. Quickly he unlocked the second with the combination he had memorized. Inside was a satilite phone. Taking the satilite phone he pressed Two on Speed Dial.

On board the Socrates Captain Eamon O'Shill's beaper sounded, "First Mate you have the Conn."

"Aye aye, sir! I have the Conn," replied First Mate Ed McShain.

Eamon quickly went to his quarters and did the same thing as Downings only he pressed Three on the speed dial.

The phone in Downings' hands went off. He quickly picked up and instantly filled in O'Shill on the target. Once that was done he hung up and returned to the Conn.

"I have the Conn!" He called out. "Comm room, start sending out an SOS. Engineering, set off the fire alarms!"

They did as they were told, knowing what the captian was trying to do. Meanwhile, the Socrates was now on it's way from the Aristotles's Nine o'clock to it's six in a curved path to stay out of radio and sonar range.

"Oi, we got a ship incomin cap'n, its sendin an SOS"! Yelled Alehkras first mate, "Flag? Is she flying a flag"? Asked Alehkra. "Nope, I'm not seein anything cap'n." "Are we close enough for radio contact"? "In 3...2...1... We are close enough cap'n.". "Open up transmission, and then rouse the crew, just in case." Alehkra very rarely trusted flagless ships. He checked his shotgun, and began the process of unsheathing his katana. His first mate handed him the radio, "Hello? What nation do you represent? Are you a friendly? What is your dilemna"?

Captian Downings heard the incoming transmission. "Give me the radio," He ordered, " and shut down the engine!" To him self he though, Finally, all those plays my mother had me be in will be usefull...

Trying to sound distressed as possible he called out over the radio in his thick Irish accent, "Aye, there's been an accident in our engine room, we can't move! A fire is spreading fast amongst our lower decks! Please help us, we're merchant traders from Drexel Hillsville! Please lend us aid quickly, if the fires make it to the cargo hold, well even my five year old know what happens when fire meets air freshener!"

In the cargo hold the men readied their weapons and stood at attention while their officers told them what to do.

By now the Socrates had pulled around the six of the Aristotle. Quickly is began to fly an old flag, that of MelekTausdav, a long deceased ally of the Hills. It now began to move straight ahead in order to be able to hopefully stay out of sight and sonar range of target Alpha One. Unfortunetly they would soon be blind since the captain of the Aristotle would no longer be able to guide them and they themselves had no visual or sonar contact with the target.

Alehkra glanced at the flag, "Have you ever seen that flag?" "No cap'n, its unfamiliar." Answered his first mate. Alehkra sighed. "Well, we might as well help them, draw up beside the ship." "Aye cap'n, will do, should I tell the men to relax"? Alehkra thought on that for a second. "No, we don't know that flag, and we don't know them".

By now the Socrates was at the target's six. Captian O'Shill quickly ordered that the RIBs be lowered to the water. Using the Fake cargo crates as a visual shield and the hull of the Socrates as one from sonar Dozens of RIBs were lowered into the water, crew, gear and all.

Snipers got ready, they stayed hidden behind the crates as well to make sure that they could not be spotted. The only thing the enemy wouldbe able to see at this time of night would be the blinking lights of the ship and possibly some lit ciggarrets.

Alehkra got back on the radio, "Hello? Permission to link to your ship to get any crew onto our ship".

Alehkra got back on the radio, "Hello? Permission to link to your ship to get any crew onto our ship".

Downings replied, "Permission granted just get us the hell out of here! All the crew will be on the Deck!"

Downings gave a signal. All members of the crew reported to the deck aside from a few essential men in the Conn with him. The raiding party stayed below deck in the cargo hold as they had been ordered to do.

The first mate saw to the linking of the ship, while Alehkra was busy shouting order. "Oi, all hands on deck, get every man off that ship, immeadiatly"! Alehkra just realised that the ship looked fine. He did'nt even smell smoke in the air. Odd.

The ARIBs began to pull out into the night. On board were men, weapons, and climbing gear. They made as rapid a pace as possible towards the targets six as thier engines ran on silent to avoid detection.

Aboard the Aristotle Captian Downings quickly figured out who was in charge of the aid. He approached the man who he assumed was first mate, "Hello, I'm Captian Downings of the DHTV Aristotle, can I meety with you captian?" First Mate Sean Dillon was right at his heels. Niether had even glanced at the Sig Saucer they each carried at their sides.

The first mate nodded, "Oi, the man wants ta talk to ya cap'n"! Alehkra walked over, "Yes sir, you called"?
OOC: Please don't randomly kill Alehkra, he'll probably die eventually, but he might as well get to put up a fight.

Downings saluted, something still left over from his Naval days. He said to the captian, "Sir, can we talk somewhere a little more private, it concers my ships uhh... cargo."

Alehkra grinned, "At ease sailor". "On a more serious not, yes, follow me to my cabin". He motioned for him to follow and walked torwards his cabin.

The ARIBs were in position. The man leading the attack group was First Mate McShain. He was nervous. This was the most nerve racking part, the waiting. He hoped that his men's aim would be good enough.

On board the target Downings and Dillon followed the other Captian. Dillon kept an eye out behind him, trying not to seem to obvious though. He wanted to make sure the captain didn't have any security following. A few men looked suspiscious but nothing definitive. He made sure to keep his right hand near his Sig at all times. Not to close though, he didn't want to alert anyone.

While they were walking, Alehkra decided to ask a question, "Hey, if your ship was on fire, why was'nt there the smell of smoke in the air"? At that moment they got to the cabin, "Ah, here we are, after you".

Shit, Downings thought, We forgot to set of the smoke grenades! However he was quick on his feet though, "The ship was designed in compartments. Should one be filled with smoke or a dangerous toxin we can seal it off. Thankfully the compartments are air tight. However, just a couple of months ago the was a fatal disaster on a sister ship of the Aristotle. " Downings made a small sign of the cross, "The captian of that vessel, the Zeus, relied too much on that. He did not realize that there were holes in some parts of the dividers. The fire quickly spread through the ship and the cargo blew it in half. Ever since that happened many of the other captians and I agreed that should fire break out again and we can not put it out we must try to seal it off and then abandon ship. The risk would be to great for us to stay, even if the cargo isn't dangerous."

With that he walked into the captians quarters. Dillon stayed out side feeling that it would be better for them both if there was a man to keep an eye on the hallway.

Alehkra nodded, "I would do the same. Now, you had something to say about your cargo"?
OOC: Sorry I did'nt answer sooner, I'm juggling thre threads at the moment.

OOC: Perfectly understandable I have two up at the moment...

Downings closed the door, "Yes, we were recently hired by the Hillian government to carry some special cargo. Arms, documents, rations, you name it. If that ship is found un attended it would be a maurader's dream and the government would have my head. We have a sister ship coming along this route they are probably to far off for radar though. Do you have an flares or something of the sort that could be shot up to signal a problem to them?"

Alehkra shrugged, "Sure, I'll tell the men to be about it". He stepped outside, "Oi, send up a flare"!

Both Downings and Dillon braced themselves. They knew what was about to come.

Outside on the water McShain saw the signal. The Flare! He thought. He quickly got on his field radio and quietly called out to the other boats, "That's the signal! Commence firing!"

With that two scores of M72 LAWs fired at the radio tower and antenea. With that many shots it would be nearly impossible to miss. Suprisingly only a few of the Attack RIBs capsized, thanks to Kraven's genius in design no doubt. While a few ARIBs stayed back to help fix their capsized comrades, the majority of the forty ARIB fleet moved in close to the ship, firing thier grapling hooks up onto the deck.

Meanwhile a look out on the Aristotle yelled down the hall of the ship to the rest of his brothers still in the cargo hold. They came rushing out, their Sterling A2s and AK 103s ready. Others had heavier wapons like M60's which were quickly set up on the deck of the Aristotle.

Aboard the target vessel Dillon tried to shove Alehkra back into his quarters. Captian Downings already had his Sig drawn. Downings told his counterpart, "If you want you and your men to live you will turn this ship over to myself and the rest of the children."

OOC: This is a bump and just an FYI... In a few days I'm going to be leaving town for two weeks. I prolly won't have much internet access sinec I'm going to the Dominican Republic. Basically we can try and finish this fast or we can keep going and put it on hold...