NationStates Jolt Archive

Life begins, grows, attains great heights, ages and dies, all to cycle around again...but when a nation does that, it gets messy - for on the macro scale it doesn't just leave one body behind but millions, and the creations of it's macro self and its individual people as well. And just as any corpse attracts scavengers, so does the corpus of a nation.

And Fatal Terrain has seen the collapse of a number of nations of late, and the scavengers have come calling. Scavengers can get out of hand, especially human ones. And then clean up is a must.

***********************************

A youngster up on the Tater, the original Tanaaran Orbital Habitat, had been setting up his holocameras to catch avian migratory patterns and had inadvertently witnessed the event, catching it on his memory chip. Though the quality was poor it was enough to show the destruction. The chartered airliner, at its cruising altitude of some thirty six thousand feet, simply disintegrated, caught in the nearly invisible beam of the Phonon Maser. Additionally they had the simultaneous recordings by other Tanaaran surveillance satellites of the energy spike that accompanied the firing of the P- Maser from a hidden base deep in the defunct nation's eastern mountains.

"What hell is that?" Miraade Errant of Catawaba asked as he watched the air liners mid air disintegration with horror.

“Literally the sound of destruction. That plane had it’s molecules shaken apart by sound, vibration." The Tanaaran Archon's voice was ground glass, raw and pain filled at the deaths of one hundred and ninety of his people, mostly teachers and students.

Colonel Hardcastle of The Militarized Zone watched the replay in silence, her face pale but composed, then spoke 'Le Clerq got into the system, that's his proof of power" She said more than half to herself, but Rob's sharp glance and brief nod signaled his agreement with her.

She spoke up to grab every ones attention. "I mentioned earlier that the Operational Council had been approached by those claiming they had access to WMD's. We have all but one under surveillance and have the ability to round them up whenever we chose. However, one shadowy figure has managed eluded us."

Rob and Shalamar both nodded now, their faces matching studies in grimness. They'd been working with TMZ on cornering the rats, but this one had not only eluded them but now had hurt them in the process.

"We know him only as Le Clerq, he is -according to himself -the spokesperson for a group that has, until their first contacts with us, been completely off the map. We weren't sure if the group even existed, but played it safe and acted as if they did, while trying to find any evidence of their existence and abilities."

"The man, this Le Clerq, is an unscanable psi null" Lady Shalamar, Tenerista of Cats Keep admitted. "My own chief of intelligence couldn't keep a lock on him, and if any one other than I could, Peter should have been able to. This raised the suspicion that off world psi tech was involved, but we didn't have concrete evidence. But he swore to get us proof that he, and his group, was able to access the weapons systems."

Shalamar continued "One of the problems is that that spine of mountains has many of the same rare earth deposits as the Lossefanyar Athan has - making it immensely hard to scan that region with psionic talents, and it even warps arcane energies to a strong degree." The Lossefanyar Athan, the Snows beyond the Skies, was the great north south running massif that bested even the better known Himalayas in breath and height, bisecting the central Fatal Terrain continent.

“And unfortunately we have been concentrating on the remanats of their space forces, and those problems, rather than the ground based forces."

A shield against orbital bombardment didn't give off any higher temperatures than the surrounding countryside if ones tech base was high enough. And another, almost as good a defense, was to bury the necessary parts deep in the guts of a mountain...And both had been done.

The chartered plane hadn't been flying a fixed, scheduled path. They had started out from Tanaara - and should have never been over that section of sky. But they had to fly an alternate route as they had a first stop at TMZ International airport to pick up half of the geologist and students. They had been studying the TMZ's own volcanic make up. This alternate routing had not been advertised beyond those scheduled for the seminar, which meant that either the weapons usage had been random chance, or some one had chosen the flight knowingly.

The Tanaaran Intelligence Directorate was already looking into both. And they would find the answer, quickly and efficiently. They didn't have much holding them back, not in a situation such as this.

But it was already known that the Masers base is in a psionic and arcane dead zone, and buried deep within a mountain's sheltering bulk.

Those chosen will have only a short time to train togather, and will have to go after it the hard way, the old fashioned way - they'll have to hump their way in.

This is a small mission - more fashioned after The Guns of Navarone, The Dirty Dozen, or The Heroes of Telemark than any sort of mass combat scenario - to take care of one of those scavengers, and the weapon his compatriots have taken control off.

This is mostly limited to Fatal Terrain nations but if you tg me with a good enough character I may be willing to include you ( but no guarantees )

On behalf of Tanaara:

Charli Firewalker (http://jkayjax1.googlepages.com/firestarter-tng)

Name: Liam Anderson
Nationality: Assingtonian
Photo: N/A
Ht: 195cm (6ft 4)
Wt: 90kg (198lbs)
Age: 30 years
Build: Muscular
Health: Very fit/immune to most disease
Degrees/ Skills: Various forms of close combat marshal arts and weaponry training.
Military Rank/Years in Service: Captain/8 years. Part of a recently developed nano-soldier battalion.
Marital Status: Single
Biography: Liam is a career soldier is known for his dedication and effectiveness. He comes across as being far less intelligent than he really is but that suits him just fine.

Even before his nano-enhancements, Liam made a name for himself in the Cloak and Daggers, a special forces unit within the Assingtonian army designed for operations requiring stealth and precision. He has a fair number of rescue, assassination and intelligence gathering missions under his belt.

Unusual gifts/ abilities: The nanites have granted Liam enhanced strength/speed/reflexes and regenerative capabilities. He is also a strong telekinetic but his training is rather limited in other aspects of his psychic potential.

Basic Psychology: Easy going personality but is dedicated to his work. Generally not a very open person despite the appearance of being laid back.

After returning from a somewhat unpleasant expedition into space, Liam found himself assigned to the unit known as the Praetorian Guard, responsible for the well being of the President and Vice-President of Assington. Over the years since the assignment Liam demonstrated his usefulness by preventing three assassination attempts on the newly appointed VP and became quite well known to the top members of government as a man used to get the job done.

When Assington heard about the destruction of a chartered Tanaaran flight and the operation being put together to take out those responsible, Liam was immediately volunteered to the team.

Most Secret

From Togovian Genetic Warfare File #1138

Prospectives on Project: Vornskrari

Purpose: Drawing on native superstitions about lycanthropesque creatures called the vornskrari, Dr. Moore Eau has asked for and recieved permission to turn his attention from Project: Egghead to concentrate on a new genetic warfare initiative aimed at quelling messianic rumors amongst the native population by routing out any so-called 'miraades' and shamanesses in the aboriginal population.

To that end, Dr. Moore Eau has selected a native canine species, the vornskr, for his hybridization. Again, this project aims to use native paranoia and mythology to instill fear amongst the population when these creatures are used to hunt and prey upon their leaders, both secular and sacred.

Appearence: A Vornskrari appears to be like a human crossed with a vornskr, producing a thuroughly bestial humanoid. It stands about six feet three inches. The body is totally covered in black fur, a long human-like mane falls in tresses from the back of the head. The ears are mounted on top of the canine shaped skull, which obviously has a mouth full of sharp canine teeth. The eyes are a reflective red that seems to glow in most lights.

The limbs are a strange combination of humanoid and canine physiology. It has humanoid arms tipped by digipaws (paws with finger-like digits) and legs that are almost entirely canine (making boot improbable and useless, its clothing will also tailored to fit physiology). The most noticable part of its anatomy is its whipish tail that is topped by a tear-drop structure called a bob. The bob conceals an extendable stinger.


Weapons: A vornskrari naturally has short claws on its paws. However, its prefered natural weapon will be its tail as either a whip or the stinger at the end.


Abilities: The canine half, the vornskr, is naturally attuned to fields and senses that current research and throught places in the paranormal, perhaps psionic. Vornskrari have the ablity to sense and track living beings through this 'hunting sense.' Taung miraades, alor, and other beings so seemingly gifted with preternatural ability are especially showing in this vornskrari hunting sense.

There is some speculation that after the initial objective of eliminating aborignal leadership is accomplished there maybe still some use to these creatures in hunting and destroying the uptrend of preternatural entities, such as vampires, mages, and other ilk, growing in the region. If the test subjects survive their primary mission, it will be more cost effective to find other uses for them rather than dispose of them. The consesus, however, that this project will not be enough to truely stem the tide against pure preternatural phenomena. Even so, Dr. Moore Eau and I think that a great deal of data could be gained for a future genetic warfare project to deal specifically with the preternatural threat.

Vornskrari have the natural trait of being hard to read or influence mentally. Their surface thoughts are immediately obvious, but beneath the individual would have to make considerable effort to dig deeper. It can be accomplished, but it'd just be quicker to kill the subject and less frustrating.

The vornskrari will be trained as a Togovian assassin and infiltration agent. They will have secondary training in espionage and special operations. Most of these were centered around its planned role to kill Taung leadership and other preternatural targets.

[OOC: I'll post Bios tomorrow. I figured I should get this together first.]

Name: Robert Fortier
Nationality: Imitoran
File Photo (http://www.mymovies.it/cinemanews/2007/2073/clive1.jpg)
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 200 lbs, lean muscle build
Fitness: Exceptionally
Age: For lack of a desire to explain, lets just say 42
Rank: Simulated Major
Experience: More than enough. Eight years Imitoran Colonial Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance, eleven years Imitoran Colonial Marine Corps/Imitoran Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance TRACT (Tactical Reconnaissance Action and Counter Terrorism), three years ICIA Special Activities and Operations Unit
Skills: A lot. A whole lot. When you are the Imitoran special ops shooter, you tend to learn quite a bit. There is a long list of acronyms I could post up, but what purpose would that serve? Suffice to say, if he needs to do it, chances are he knows how to do it. And then some. In 24 years, he's served in seven wars, five police actions, countless "peace time" counter terror actions, was influential in the coup that put Mercy into the Tanaaran throne, led a revolution, and carried out more than just a handful of ICIA black ops. He has been stabbed, shot, blown up, thrown out of many a moving vehicle, run over, kicked, punched, poisoned and abducted (by the little green kind)). He's fought humans, lycans, vampires, aliens, zombies, biological weapons, and was once in a nuclear fall out zone.

Thats pretty much it. However, my IC intro post is now on page 8, and I'm just getting to the gear whore part. So all the important stuff will be explained later.

Links to montages of what the surrounding terrain / countryside looks like - and the target.

One set (http://www.atddm.com/cwm1.jpg)

Target, left and right views w/ terrain map (http://www.atddm.com/target.jpg)

OOC: So many familiar faces...

IC:

Name: Dekker Bray
Age: 40 years
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 280 lbs
Specie: Human
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Blue
Marriage Status: Divorced
Build: Brick Shithouse

Military Service: 4 years USMC (Force Recon/Scout Sniper), 4 years USN (SEAL Team 6), 10 years Association of International Mercenaries (AIM)

Expeirence: Has executed operations in the following hotspots, to name a few:

Angola (Oil Merc)
The Congo (Diamond Merc)
Darfur (Humanitarian militia training to fight Sudani militias and end genocide)
Sudan (Search and Destroy against Al Queda funded Sudani militias)
Somalia (Assassinating warlords after US withdrawl from Mogadishu)
Iraq (Contracted by Blackwater for various operations and protective details)
Afganistan (Search and Destroy against Al Queda)
China (Classified, CIA Contract)
Iran (Classified, CIA Contract)
North Korea (Classified, NSA Contract)
South America (Anti-Drug operations funded by the DEA)

A consumate professional, Bray is one of the most expensive mercenaries on today's market, but worth every penny. Specializing in close-quarters battle and unarmed combat, Bray's immense physique lends itself well to both aspects of his best operational skills. He holds several advanced degrees and certifications in MCMAK, Krav Maga, Systema, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Muay Thai, and Hapkido, as well as a Golden Gloves in Western Boxing. Bray prides himself on his fitness and physique, and spends most of his time either in the gym or running himself though ever-more difficult shoothouse scenarios, or courting female heads of state at expensive diplomatic dinner parties. While Bray's military career was short by most standards he has supplemented his skillbase with courses at Gunsite and Thunder Ranch, making sure his performance is top notch in all aspects of modern warfare.

Bray's client list is a surprisingly short one, he won't work for any terrorist group or otherwise rogue outfit and won't support a cause he himself wouldn't die for, simply because he very well might. Contracted extensively by the CIA, DEA, NSA, Blackwater, and several branches of the US Military, he has also worked for a new national police agencies as a tactical instructor.

In the recent year, however, Bray has been permanently contracted by the Argonian government as a military advisor to their developing special operations community.



Name: Whiptail
Age: Undetermined, roughly 600 years
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 190 lbs
Specie: Dark Argonian
Hair: ?
Eyes: Dull Gold
Marriage Status: Widower
Build: Effing Ripped

Military Service: None

Expeirence: Grandmaster of the Order of the Shadowscale, an ancient guild of Argonian assassins and spies, and has held the title for over five centuries.

Whiptail's dossier might not be as impressive as Dekker's, but his operational talents are well known and feared by nearly every corrupt elected official worldwide. Whiptail's exploits are many, and known to very few. He participated in the operation to bring Tanaara's Archon Robert Ryan Hexx-Fortier back from the Hell dimension, and that is his only well-known and well-documented adventure, excluding his controversial role in the 'Heaven's Reach' operation. His assassination records, however, are estimated to be around five-hundred thousand individual lives taken during the course of his career before the Order itself was hunted nearly to extinction by the new Modernist Argonian government.

Whiptail counts himself among around a dozen Shadowscales who still live, and only one of four Grandmasters, all of which escaped the government death-squads.

Name: Victoria “Lollipop” Escher
Nationality: Simatarian
Age: 32
Height: 5’10
Weight: 150lbs
Hair: Natural Brunette but dyes her hair purple
Relationships: Girlfriend living in city of Pembrooke

Military Rank: Captain
Current Unit: 17th Airborne Division

Bio:

She received her nickname from her addiction with lollipops and still carries a healthy supply with her. Taken in by a orphanage run by nuns as a baby, she was adopted by age 4 by a young couple. Her father was an Army officer while her mother was an art history teacher.

From a young age she excelled in academics and in sports. Deciding to follow in her father’s footsteps (much to her mother's distress) she attended the Karnotz Military Academy directly from high school and graduated twelfth in her class. From there she went straight into Airborne training.

She has seen combat before in various peacekeeping operations where she showed extremely high competency in combat command. Lollipop briefly saw combat during the Fatal Terrain Demon War. She was wounded on the third day of the battle and sat out the rest of the fight in a hospital.

Her temper she has yet to fully control and keeps her from advancement. The last ‘victim’ of her temper was a drunken Lieutenant (after failing to seduce her made a grab) who is still in hospital with a shattered pelvis. Prior to the incident she was being considered for Black Operations boot camp.

After the downing the airliner and Red Cross plane, Lollipop volunteered for the mission to get out of the Anti-Vampire Operations she has been trapped in.

Primary Weapons: Brakner A23 assault rifle, Brakner P45 automatic pistol, combat knife

Tarlachia, you need to get your bio up here, as does Catawaba.

Assington and TGS, you are welcome to send a second character each, if you'd like.

For the teams medic, and representing TMZ as an independant contractor...
Travis Noel Tenkiller (http://www.atddm.com/tnt.htm)

Okay every one- here is the Link to the IC thread (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=567280) - please read this post before you post there.

This is day one of the training - it is meant to be more of a chance for y'all to introduce your characters than anything else. I'm not going to play out the five days of training very much, more of a skim over.

Each of your characters were picked up by a Tanaaran Dragonfang (http://www.atddm.com/dragonfang.jpg) and flown to a hidden base - it is subterranian, and equipped with every thing you can possibly think of for training for the mission.

and yes WA, including the training room from the Falling Star ( but sadly Papa Jango and the others that you played with are busy elsewhere )

to every one else that is a hologram kill house much like the Star Trek holo decks - though of course the rooms will be simply generic approximations, as they have no specific intel on the actual interior of the CW base.

Yeah, sorry. Forgot about this and then couldn't find the creative process for it...you can blame my recent surge in painting and drawing I've been doing in my free time. :P

Anyway, I'm gonna send in two characters.

Name: Rikan Tansho
Nationality: Tarlachian
Gender: Female
Race: Dhampir-human
Age: Undetermined, appears to be in her late 20s
Height: 5'9''
Weight: 154 lbs
Hair: straight, Raven-black, shoulder length
Eyes: silver-grey
Build: acrobat

Expertise and Background: Freelance mercenary. Formerly clan-leader of a now defunct highly trained mercenary force. Most of them have, like her, become freelancers. Rikan has offered her services for countless conflicts and engagements, the most recent being the Dark War.

Rikan has remained in the shadows, as befitting of her lifestyle as a stealth agent. She's all but forgotten by society and the Tarlachian government, even enjoying a certain degree of myth to her name. However, there are those with long memories who know of her, and have use of her from time to time. It seems that this latest assignment has come from the highest levels of Tarlachian government, perhaps even the Empress herself. Rikan hardly cares for whom requests her services, but she does care to be paid appropriately; an irony since financial security is not a concern of hers.

Weapons: Dual spike katars, throwing knives,
semi-automatic rifle: Imitoran built CAR65, Armalite base, 6.5mm Grendel Round in a 32 round magazine. Custom built to operator specifications, with a 12.5 inch barrel, QD silencer on standard bird cage flashhider, ACOG weapon site, off set surefire weapon lite, Magpull Miad grip, VLTOR mod stock, standard rail interface system for any other goodies she wants.

pistol: Sig Sauer P226 in .40S&W, match grade extended threaded barrel, silencer, light trigger work, crimson trace grips



**********
**********
**********

Name: Armal Evershone
Nationality: Tarlachian
Gender: Male
Race: Elf
Age: Immortal
Height: 6'1''
Weight: 180 lbs
Hair: Dark Brown,
Eyes: emerald green
Build: acrobat, lithe

Expertise and Background: Armal is of the elven population within the Aria Forest in Tarlachia. Like many of his kind, he is highly attuned to the earth and its arcane energies. He, however, exhibits more capacity for such than usual, and so has been selected to provide his expertise and analysis of the arcane abnormalities in the area of interest for this mission. His expertise can be trusted, as there are very few who can even match his skill, if not best it. He is also skilled in healing abilities, although his strength lies in portals and life-activation (trees coming to life, animals submitting to his will, etc)

Weapons: twin battle-daggers, elven bow, arcane abilities

OOC: I apologize my tardiness in writing this but nothing else.

Secret IC:


Mission Personnel Abbreviated Dossiers

Name: Gold Mira’ad
Age: 22
Height: 6'0"
Weight: 189 lbs
Species: Vornskrari
Hair: Black body fur, dark auburn mane and forelock
Eyes: Bright Crimson
Marriage Status: Single
Build: Cross Country Runner

Military Rank: Squad Sergeant in the Miraaderic Guard
Military Service: 3 years Miraaderic Guard, 19 years Togovian Weapons Project

File Image of Gold Mira'ad (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v35/jedierrant/Gold.png)

Name: Mird Mira’ad
Age: 22
Height: 5’6"
Weight: 176 lbs
Species: Vornskrari
Hair: Crack pepper-colored body fur, short mane and forelock
Eyes: Bright Crimson
Marriage Status: Single
Build: Cross Country Runner

Military Rank: Corporal in the Miraaderic Guard
Military Service: 3 years Miraaderic Guard, 19 years Togovian Weapons Project

[The following is a part of the transcript of a meeting between the Military Affairs Committee of the Assembly of Advisors and Major Margaret Delaney of the Miraaderic Guard. This meeting occurred two months ago after the third and most violent and deadly attempt upon the Miraade’s life. In the course of the Miraaderic Guard’s response to the Liberalist attack, several Vornskrari members of the Guard were deployed as a quick reaction force. The Vornskrari were able to assault and flank the positions of the Liberalist assassins and prevent their escape. The portion of the transcript below is Major Delaney’s briefing to the Committee on the Vornskrari and their first public deployment.

Note: this briefing took place shortly after Popular Referendum Three was passed by an overwhelming vote, making Catawaba an autocracy under the Miraade. The assemblymen still retained their titles as ‘legislators,’ which would not change until Miraaderic Edit 421.]

Chairwoman Bethany Wilkinson: Thank you for coming, Major.

Major Margaret Delaney: It is no problem, Mrs. Chairwoman. [Laughs] With the Miraade’s order, it was not much of a choice.

[Laughter]

Wilkinson: Still, Major, thank you.

[The Major waves away the thanks, politely]

Delaney: Why don’t we get down to business, shall we? [A pause while looking for the legislator’s nods.} Good. I know I don’t have to explain what the confidentiality agreements you signed mean, but I must stress their importance.

The Miraade did not hide the existence of the Vornskrari for his protection. No, he hid them for their protection.

Legislator Marcus Abernathy: Their protection? They seemed quite able to fend for themselves, Major.

Delaney: Yes, sir, they can. Neutralizing the Liberalist strongpoint overlooking the plaza was a more than an adequate demonstration of their ability. And it was precisely the moment the Miraade had been waiting for you. You must…

Abernathy: He had planned…

Delaney: Legislator, if you would let me finish?
[A pause as she gained Legislator Abernathy’s agreement and silence]

Thank you.

No one can deny that the Vornskrari are intimidating. They were purposely
engineered to have that appearance, taking advantage of Taung mythology. More than that, they are fearsome because they are not human. It was those fears the Miraade wanted to prevent.

He had always intended to wait for the right moment to reveal the vornskrari, not for any benefit to himself. He wanted them to be able to walk the streets in broad daylight as uncommon citizens only in the fact that they are respected as some of the most brave and able sons and daughters of Catawaba. The Miraade knows that some will never warm to them, that some will fear and hate them because they are different.
However he wanted to do his best for them, in repayment for their service to him and Catawaba. Their actions at Meehan Plaza were merely representative of the covert work they have done to protect us, actions and bravery that none will hear of for many, many years, legislators. And while the rest of us have enjoyed the freedom of these last two years, they have voluntarily stayed shut in, hiding, prisoners of their own choice and duty.

At Meehan Plaza, they acted as the Guard’s trump card. The attention and praise they have earned as a result is the precise first impression that the Miraade has hoped to earn. The Miraade suggested and arranged this briefing to help cement that impression, legislators.

Wilkinson: How might we do that, Major?

Delaney: The Legislature, even by its lesser standing since Referendum Four, is still respected as the forum of the people of Catawaba. You were elected by your constituents to carry their voices to the peaks of government and solve their local problems nationally. Should you come out in support of and praise the Vornskrari, it will help assuage any fears left over.

[Chairwoman Wilkinson leans in with smirk.]

Wilkinson: Major, are you channeling the Secretary of Foreign Affairs?

[Delaney smiles in return.]

Delaney: There isn’t much Lolimba Bevu does not have her two cents in, ma’am.

Wilkinson: That is quite all right, Major. This committee has been enthralled and swayed by Secretary Bevu to understand. Please, go on.

Delaney: I’ll assume that you have read the document titled ‘Togovian Genetic Warfare File One One Three Eight?’

[Major Delaney waits for and attains the nodding agreements she was looking for.]

That is the write-up of the Togovian GW project after the first vornskrari, named ‘Subject Zero Two One,’ survived to maturity. Zero Two One died not a few months later in a live fire training exercise. Our vornskrari report that they experienced a high mortality rate as the Togovian attempted to proof their methods. The oldest, surviving vornskrari, a corporal named Jaro, states that his subject number was One One Three. Most of the other vornskrari serving in the Guard had subject numbers beginning at One Six Four and upwards. The eldest of this main cohort of vornskrari is Gold, their alpha female and a squad sergeant, is only a year and a half younger than Jaro.

[The Major pauses to allow that to sink in.]

Thankfully for us and the vornskrari, the Togovians did not utilize genetic methods to speed up physical development.

Legislator Nathan Phyllion: Could they, well, advance their growth?

Delaney: Yes, Legislator, they could. Growth acceleration was frequently used in the early stages Togovia’s genetic warfare testing. We have evidence that it was used heavily in the Herringdom. However, the downside to growth acceleration is that it is incredibly hard for them to deactivate. The net result is that subject has a short life span, which was not cost effective in the Togovians’ minds. It also was one of the causes that set the GW anthropomorphs in the Herringdom revolted against and eventually devastated Togovia.

Wilkinson: So the vornskrari age at an ordinary pace?

Delaney: Not exactly, ma’am, they age at nearly twice the average rate of a human. At the vornskrari’s mean age of twenty, they are all equivalent to forty year old humans at biological age. We currently do not know any way to slow that.

Wilkinson: Will you be searching for a way to accomplish that, Major?

[Delaney shifts uncomfortably in her seat.]

Delaney: The Miraade is unsure whether that is something the government or the Miraaderic Guard should concern itself with. It is a tragic but a natural occurrence, and the Miraade does not want to privilege any group, even one that he loves like vornskrari, ma’am.

Abernathy: You mean set precedent where he has to pay for everybody else’s genetic therapy.

[The Major spits Legislator Abernathy with a glare.]

Delaney: If you want to believe that, Legislator, you are welcome to. The Miraade is, in fact, planning to pay for any genetic therapy out of his personal funds.

Wilkinson: That is very generous of the Miraade. Is it not, Marcus?

Delaney: It isn’t generosity, ma’am. The Miraade adopted the vornskrari into his allit, his family clan. He sees their accelerated age a family matter.

Wilkinson: The Mira’ad allit, was it, Major?

Delaney: Yes, ma’am.

Wilkinson: I think that is very noble. I have read much about the Miraade’s
past, Major, and I assume he finds kindred in the hardship with the vornskrari. It is good they can find connect and support amongst all that, just as we try to do the same with the country, eh?

Delaney: Very well put, ma’am.

[Chairwoman Wilkinson smiles.]

Wilkinson: Thank you, Major, but it appears I’ve brought us off topic. Please continue.

Delaney: Yes, ma’am. [She pages through her notes.]

The Togovians began training the vornskrari at the age of seven.

Legislator Etain Skirit: Age of seven? Is that what the Togovians considered the age of ‘maturity’ for subject Zero Two One?

Delaney: Unfortunately, ma’am, they did. From the age of seven vornskrari were trained in basic infantry combat. Training was often times live fire and with no padding or safety equipment. The Togovians wanted to breed harden soldiers for best efficiency. Weakness and failure were seen as a product defect and terms for termination. A large percentage of vornskrari were ‘washed out’ during this phase of training.

[The Major waits for the gasps and muttered curses.]

At the age of fourteen, the vornskrari began advanced training lead by Togovian Force Intelligence and Subversion Teams. FIST members would school vornskrari in special operations tactics and methods. While a generalized field of special operations was taught to the vornskrari, a special emphasis was placed on assassination during the vornskrari’s training.

Their main purpose, as you all read, was to destroy any resistance amongst the Taung by eliminated their members.

Abernathy: Did the Togovians really believe that vornsrkrs, vornskrari, miraade and alor have some kind of magical power?

[This comment earns a contempt-filled glare from the committee’s Taung legislator, Etain Skirit]

Delaney: Legislator Abernathy, they believed it.

Abernathy: Unbelievable…and they called themselves scientists.

Delaney: Not so much, legislator. I have seen vornskrari do things that would defy belief. Sure, their extrasensory tracking abilities that the Togovians sought to cultivate could be chalked up ordinary biological senses. But Science cannot entirely disprove or prove that, at least not yet.

[She chuckles.]

In fact, one of Miraade’s frequent houseguests, Doctor Indy Ana’jones, the famous archaeologist from the University of Graceland, expounds with table-rattling conviction that science cannot and should not ever prove or disprove anything with any sort of certainty. If there is anything that the pursuit of knowledge has taught us, Doctor Ana’jones has said, that we must be ready to say ‘based on all the evidence gathered to date, we have no earthly idea, but we’re still on the case.’

Wilkinson: Good advice, even legislators should keep in mind.

[She casts an eye towards her colleagues.]

Wilkinson: Major, I suppose you will not give us any specific details on the vornskrari’s missions either in the employ of Togovia or Catawaba?

Delaney: No, ma’am, but I can go into general descriptions of their capabilities.

Wilkinson: Please do.

Delaney: The vornskrari’s main duties in the Miraaderic Guard are protection of the Miraade himself. To be perfectly honest, legislators, professional bodyguard training is lacking. The professional and governmental bodyguards prior to the Revolution were all in the employ of the Togovians. During the events of the Revolution, all have died, fled the country, or simply stayed hidden. The vornskrari have stepped in, and while they too lack the training necessary to be a purposed protection detail, they do have the qualifications to act as counter-assassins. It is second-best, and we are looking to region allies to attain the proper training.

Their secondary duties pertain to any special operations the Miraade should assign to them. They have in this respect been a part of the core around which the Guard has been built. They have training that allows them to form teams specializing in force reconnaissance and direct action with covert insertion by land, boat, underwater means, parachute, or aircraft.

Other mission types such as subversion of enemy populations, training foreign paramilitary assets, and recovery of friendly personnel are jury-rigged at the moment. We plan to approach region allies for this as well.

[The rest of the committee briefing goes on to describe the other aspects of the vornskrari’s service in the Miraaderic Guard. However the entire briefing came down to a series questions from Chairwoman Wilkinson.]

Wilkinson: Abernathy, a moment. Major, do you trust the vornskrari with Miraade’s life?

Delaney: Yes, ma’am.

Wilkinson: Do you trust them with your life?

Delaney: Yes, ma’am, I do every time when we go out with the Miraade, and I do it with any reservations or concern about their loyalties, abilities, or stability.

Wilkinson: Would trust them with the lives of your family?

Delaney: Yes, ma’am, I’ve invited them into my father’s ranch many times. My father treats them like the grandchildren he says he’ll probably never see.

[Delaney gives a slight grin.]

They see him as the grandfather they never had. I never worry that they’ll snap and harm them. Frankly at night when twenty-five vornskrari are strewn throughout the house on guest beds, couches, and the floor, you don’t generally worry for you safety. They’re all light sleepers, never unarmed, and overprotective of those they view as their own.

[End transcript.]

Name: Kade Whitebear (http://www.atddm.com/kade.jpg)
Nationality: naturalized TMZ, expat American
Rank: Captain
Gender: Male
Marital Status: Single
Race: human - Native American
Age: 35
Height: 6' 4.5"
Weight: 250
Hair: black
Eyes: Brown
Build: brawny, exceptionally fit

Bio: Joined the US Navy at 17, underwent bud's training two years later, assigned SEAL team six; served with the team for eight years. Chose not to reenlist and emigrated to TMZ enlisting in their INCH - special ops program- and has served with distinction since then in numerous covert operations.

• Skills: All that one would expect a US Navy SEAL to be exceptional with and more. Especially adept with improvised and primitive weapons.

I think my initial post may have caused some confusiion- Day Two for the prisoners is the same as Day One for the team.

And that puts them at Day Three for the Regional Conference ( if there is a Day Three needed)

Okay, good continuity is established and all is well. I'll post in a bit

I've made a minor change to Mird and Gold after talking to Shal a bit. Mird is now significantly shorter and his fur is different colored. Gold is taller and bigger.

Did this thing die already?

Definitely not. We're all still here.

Alrightly. Just checking. There hasn't been a post made in a few days and I was beginning to wonder.

I think everyone has been a little busy lately.

Yep. I'll agree. Thanks for the prompt response!

~Imitora

This is an anthropologist's plea.

Darwinism isn't the strongest survive. That's Social Darwinism which breathed its first breath as a poor Victorian rationalization the jingoist mentality of the time. Social Darwinism placed the white Western European and those of that descent as the 'fittest' and the top rung in their new scientifically-supported Great Chain of Being. It is at best pseudoscience at the shoulder of eugenics and phrenology.

Darwinism is based on the theory of natural selection which is "individuals best adapted to their environments are more likely to survive and reproduce." Charles Darwin was a scientist, a naturalist. His theories give no rise or support to political or social ideology, no justification to genocide, prejudice, or tyranny.

To a second point,

Your SWORD members are NOT 100% normal humans. They are psychotic sadomasochists, and you are heavily banking on their immense psychosis to enable them to do superhuman feats either of endurance or depravity.

Okay, y'all. I got a question. Will, Dan, could Liam and Rikan, being the freaks of...I mean unnatural strong folk that they are, carry a forty-fifty pound M2 .50 machine gun for a bit and wield it?

Oh, and if anyone has a bright idea on how we find a hidden door shield by hitech camo and forcefield, please share. I'd like us to figure out how to get into mountain base before Shal has to tell us out of pity.

Maybe we can airdrop in a dwarf who can sense stone passages...

I'd say the whole recoil thing makes that an impossibility. It also weighs a lot more than forty pounds. You mount the thing in pieces, namely the barrel and the reciever, then headspace and time it while it's mounted in the turret. Fully assembled, its best carried between two grown men to and from the tripod. Don't let Dead Rising fool you :)

Between the butterfly trigger and the lack of a hand-hold anywhere on the thing (the carry handle for the barrel doesn't come on the mounted ones, just the 'emplaced' versions) would make using it downright frustrating anyway. Not to mention lugging the belt of ammunition around with it (another twenty-five pounds between bullets, box, and bracket) Best to stick with what you currently have. We're supposed to be a light infantry force anyway :) No need for anti-material weaponry other than the grenade launchers.

As for finding the door, that's a good question. Perhaps we just get lucky? There has to be some sort of reference point for incoming friendly troops, however, so they know where to go. Maybe there's a map on one of the dead guys?

Ain't played that far into Dead Rising...beyond the demo...to know there was a M2 there.

I know the system is unwieldy, heavy...but if they have a newer M2 with a more ergonomic grip and regular trigger, it could be a bit easier. Anyways, I did ask the freaks of natur...I mean the "supernaturally and appreciatively strong" if they thought they could...umm...realistically do it.

Sure we're a light infantry force...but if I've got a Wookie wandering with me, he'd going to be carrying some weight, if he can possbily do it.

The map's good idea, but these guys are wildlings as Shal calls him. They may or may not have anything to do with the Big Bads. Also the Big Bads have hovertransports, no tracks in the snow. Heat shielding will require Charli to get close to detect.

I was thinking that Mird, a demo guy, might have some fancy Tanaaran handheld scanner (funky GPR-like thing), or perhaps a someone might have a Rainbow Six like heartbeat detector, but both would probably be close range. Other than that, my ideas have been sniffing'em out with the vornskrari or the damphyr, baiting them out somehow (shal says unlikely using any of the girls or crashign some recon UAV nearby...and airdrop puppies are out of the question as well).

Had an idle wondering if the camo&shield would block a laser range finder. Hitting the mountian with it until you get an anomalous increase in distance might work.

"Ah, nevah said this'n was gonna be easy"

Refresh time:

The maser base has been there about a century - Central Worlds had always been an Future Tech nation - even when the base was being carved out of the living rock of the mountain they didn't use roads to bring in construction machinery or the materials. So, sorry no roads.

Most of the information on the base was destroyed - between the crumbling of what on planet goverment there was and the mutiny that took place in the CW navy. No exact floor plans, or exactly were the primary entrance is located is available.

The base has it's own geothermal power supply. While this is a very tectonically stable region the formation of the mountain chain is upthrust / fault versus fold ( Rockies type mountains versus Smoky/ Green / Apalachian mountains )

The base had a small compliment of technicians, military security and some scientists doing odd lot research. There is no 'exterior' component to the base, it's all inside the mountain.

The ragtag forces that Fortier and Whiptail & Dekker have been harrassing are rogue remnants of the CW colonial military and the bases they have set up in the area are not tied to the maser base. To the best intel Tanaara has been able to come up with is that those rogue remnants are simply acting as hired guns for those that hold the maser base. And may not even be in direct, regular contact with that group.

Their operational rules seem to simply be:

1) to keep any force coming overland tied up

2) destablize the area, making it uninhabitable for any survivors from the collapse of Central Worlds cities who might had a mind to migrate into the area. Or if that proves impossible, to keep such groups corralled and under your thumb ( like any good warlord would do )

It is very likely that those holding the maser base didn't even know the automated defense system was there, or that something triggered it.

All of the wildings you all just took down are human, male, between the ages of 20 and 30 and honestly -other than the repair man- give off the indenitfyable air of some one who never finished highschool and never had a highschool to go to anyway. Their weapons are better taken care of than their bodies are but thats not saying much. And repair man didn't look more than a low level tech to boot.

They have no extraneous padding on their bodies - not that they are toned/ buff - it is the spare gauntness of never having anything resembling a series of good meals/ proper nutrition. They are not in anything resembling uniforms, and their clothes are the stiff with dirt and ragged due to fibers wearing out. Their teeth are in pitiful condition and they all bear scars that show old, healed but poorly treated wounds.

"Roads? Where we're going we don't need Roads"

Had to throw in that line.

It was nothing short of comical to watch Frank West hip-shoot a mounted M2. Right hand on the butterfly, left holding the carry handle, he levels it and sweeps or fires single shots with pin-point accuracy.

The newer M2's have the same trigger system, just a safety selector since the older ones didn't even have that. That new system they're developing is lighter, and I think it has something along the lines of a grip. Forget the name, though. They had it on future weapons, it can go from .50 BMG to some sort of small grenade round like a 25mm or something. It was pretty cool and touted as man-portable between your standard gunnery team. Carrying the ammo would be a bitch though. The stuff's heavy :)

Liam would be able to deal with carrying the weight but WA makes the valid point that the recoil would render any sort of aiming obsolete and the weapon isn't exactly designed to be held and fired.

If we are keen on taking the gun, Liam would be able to carry it but if we want to use it then we'll have to mount the weapon somewhere.

Not keen, just wondering.

I find it not so subtly ironic that the one nation in FT that practices genocide is spouting off about the Geneva Convention. Especially as the man that has been captured does NOT fall under the definition GC Prisoner of War.


Prisoners of war, in the sense of the present Convention, are persons belonging to one of the following categories, who have fallen into the power of the enemy:

Nope - Doesn't fit this one -1. Members of the armed forces of a Party to the conflict as well as members of militias or volunteer corps forming part of such armed forces.

Nope - Doesn't fit this one -2. Members of other militias and members of other volunteer corps, including those of organized resistance movements, belonging to a Party to the conflict and operating in or outside their own territory, even if this territory is occupied, provided that such militias or volunteer corps, including such organized resistance movements, fulfill the following conditions:

I'm not sure if the one giving the orders would have considered himself responsible for his “subordinates” (a) That of being commanded by a person responsible for his subordinates;

Nope - Doesn't fit this one -(b) That of having a fixed distinctive sign recognizable at a distance;

well, he was doing this(c) That of carrying arms openly;

Nope - Doesn't fit this one -(d) That of conducting their operations in accordance with the laws and customs of war.

Nope - Doesn't fit this one -3. Members of regular armed forces who profess allegiance to a government or an authority not recognized by the Detaining Power.

Nope - Doesn't fit this one -4. Persons who accompany the armed forces without actually being members thereof, such as civilian members of military aircraft crews, war correspondents, supply contractors, members of labour units or of services responsible for the welfare of the armed forces, provided that they have received authorization from the armed forces which they accompany, who shall provide them for that purpose with an identity card similar to the annexed model.

Nope - Doesn't fit this one -5. Members of crews, including masters, pilots and apprentices, of the merchant marine and the crews of civil aircraft of the Parties to the conflict, who do not benefit by more favorable treatment under any other provisions of international law.

Nope - Doesn't fit this one -6. Inhabitants of a non-occupied territory, who on the approach of the enemy spontaneously take up arms to resist the invading forces, without having had time to form themselves into regular armed units, provided they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war.

We're not an invasion force, unless someone is a spearhead of such and simply forgot to mention it to me. We aren't operating against any government - there ISN'T one - and the people we are intending to attack are not military or a part of any organized resistance forces. This man is not a citizen of Central Worlds, though he and we are within the lands once considered part of CW, and is not a part of any recognized military organization.

We are going after little more than common criminals who have kidnapped and killed Citizens of Tanaara, taken hostage and killed citizens of Central Worlds, have destroyed valuable private property, have occupied and are illegally making use of classified military ordinance and technology, and are attempting blackmail against the people and nations of Fatal Terrain.

Gives TGS a long and level look "Now you tell me how any of that falls under the Geneva Convention. Interpol maybe…”

Oooo...WA, if you like the Win Model 70 more than the Rem 700, that makes me want to at least try it out. I've fired the 700 in a 5.56 and a 700 5R in 7.62 and loved them both. I can only imagine what the Win 70's like.