NationStates Jolt Archive

OOC: To join, see OOC/sign-up thread here: http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=569386

- - -

A light autumnal breeze blew against Rear Admiral Reinhard Queeg's face. It was a pleasant feeling, almost like the kiss of a beautiful woman. He looked up at the morning sky with a smile. The sun shone brightly and seagulls flew about. He tried to cherish the exceptional weather while it lasted, for he could see a squall approaching in the distance. The admiral, commander of Submarine Forces for the Home Fleet, was joined by approximately thirty other men. They were gathered at a small naval base in southern Rammsteinburg to witness the launching of a new submarine built by Genii Naval Industries. Code named "Red Dawn," it possessed a new silent propulsion system and the most state-of-the art equipment. If the testing went well, it would become the pride of Rammsteinburg's submarine fleet.

"We're ready! Eveyrbody in!" somebody announced. Admiral Queeg quit admiring the lovely morning and followed every one else inside the dry dock where the 'Red Dawn' was being held. His eyes widened when he first caught a glimpse of the magnificent vessel. It was even more beautiful than the weather outside.

"A real beaut, eh, sir?" someone said from behind him. Queeg turned around and saw Master Chief Warrant Officer Johannes Wollenstern, the head of Rammsteinburg's review board and one of the nation's foremost experts on submarines.

"Every sub is. But this tin can tops them all."

The warrant officer chuckled. "Just wait until you see it on the inside."

"I'm looking forward to it. I just wish I could go out to sea with you. You're a lucky man, Mr. Wollenstern."

"Oh, I know." A big, goofy grin grew on Wollernstern's face.

Among the men present in the dry dock were Dr. Toby Loch, Minister of the Navy; Vice Admiral Erik Zieggler, Commander of Submarine Forces for the entire navy; and Captain Eddy Papst, liasion to Genii Naval Industries. Fleet Admiral Krystan Emmerich was originally going to attend, but was unable to make it due to personal matters.

Master Chief Warrant Officer Wollenstern joined the other ten members of the review board and the crew of 'Red Dawn' on the vessel's deck. Captain Viktor K. Roppen, III was the last to join. One of Rammsteinburg's top submarine skippers and due to be promoted to Commodore in a few months, he was personally selected by Rear Admiral Queeg. As he approached, walking slowly in an authoritarian manner, with his arms wrapped behind his back and his eyes examining the men he neared, the Chief of the Boat called the crew (including the review board) to attention. Once in front of his men, Captain Roppen stopped and just stared directly forward for a few seconds that seemed like ages to the crew. Finally, he spoke: "At ease." The men obeyed.

"Alright," he said, "I'm not one for long speeches. I like to get straight to business. So, let's get a few things straight: I expect 120% from each and everyone of you. Anybody who screws around will seriously regret it. We have an important job ahead of us. It's up to us to determine if this new sub is fit for duty in this fine Navy. Don't take this responsibility lightly, but don't let it overwhelm you either. Do your job, do it well, and report all comments to Mr. Wollenstern or other members of the review board. So... with that said, let's get to work!" The captain turned to the COB. "Chief of the Boat, dismiss the men."

"Crew-- DISMISSED!" With that, the men who would be operating the 'Red Dawn' for the first month of the testing phase and those who would rate its performance went below. Minutes later, the dry dock began filling with water.

At 0700 the Red Dawn departed for sea. Half an hour later, after its escort of 10 cutters from the Coastguard Service had turned back to Rammsteinburg, it submerged.

7:30am

Depth 75 metres and diving.
Location - Tory Channel (Very deep sea canyon)- South sea.
Silent drive engaged.

Lieutenant Josh McKay was navigator aboard "Red Dawn", for him this sea trial wasnt the end of a long process of Red Dawn's development, it was rather the beginning of his new naval Career in the yet to be declared Imperial Kunesdorf Navy. This submarine and the part several other crew members were to bring to play on this day, were the price he paid for the command of this new weapon of war.

Engineer Chief Absolum reported to the bridge there was a slight problem with the air circulation system. He added it wasnt serious, but would require the assistance of marine engineers Dawson and Evans.
As they made their way from the bridge, Chief Absolum gave Lieutenant McKay a slight nod and smile.

Seaman Gordan McClaughlan was at the "wheel" he reported to his master Coxwain tghat he was feeling desperate with diahorrea and need to go to the "heads".
The Master Coxwain reported to the captain that "he was taking over while Seaman McClaughlan sorted himself out."

Weapons expert Henry Johnston had little to do on this trip, this was a "test drive" to observe the sailing capabilities of the new sub, not its weapons system. He had therefore little to do other than checking all weapons systems such as the torpedoes and harpoons were "locked away" securely.
He heard McClaughlan report to the captain that he was taking over the seat of co-driver, he saw Chief Absolum leaving the bridge and he knew it was time for him to make his way to his duty station at the weapons control. However before he did so he reported that he would observe developments forward in the torpedo room.

7:32AM

Matra - Kunesdorf

The phone rings at von Brunswick's desk, his secretary tells him there is a call from someone called Jade, von Brunswick says he will accept the call; smiling to himself that his secretary would think that Jade was a person not a place.

"Von Brunswick" he said into the phone.
The voice replied
"Governor, the flowers you ordered are to be delivered in 15 minutes, is that acceptable"
"Yes fine, very acceptable and thank you"

He replaced the phone and smiled to himself.

OOC: Just to Clarrify, what is the BH doing at htis point

OOC: We ought to use the sign-up thread as an OOC thread from now on.

7:31 AM, BMS November,
International Waters

The BMS November (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14114156&postcount=223) cut through the temperate waters of Rammsteinburg, a towed sonar array stringing for several meters behind. The crew had been on patrol for only two weeks, but there were already signs of fatigue and boredom which defined life for mariners at peace. The majority of the officers onboard the November were seasoned veterans, but the enlisted men were almost entirely green, having never before served on a real combat mission. In many respects, this was a test for both them and the ultra-modern submarine they were serving on.

Captain Faust checked his wristwatch, tapping it lightly to keep the hand moving. It had been a present from his wife, and he hadn’t the heart to tell her that it was a terribly bad gift. The soft white lighting of the conning tower illuminated the hands and shone on the other men in the tower, joking and watching their respective stations. Faust’s second-in-command—Chief of the Boat Mansley—watched the scene from the corner of the room, walking slowly among the men to check their work. The internal communications system crackled a bit before a voice came through.

“Conn, sonar, checking in. No contacts at this time,” the sonar operator chimed in. The sonar operator onboard the November, Lieutenant Klien, was a grizzled veteran who had served onboard the BMS Tiefsee in the Siege of Hafenstadt. He had proved himself time and time again, and was by far the most trusted man onboard the ship. Still, the November was an extremely new design and no one quite knew what to expect from the electronics.

“Sonar, conn, copy that. Continue sweeps until directed otherwise. Conn out.” Faust removed his finger from the commo button and let out a sigh. Unfortunately for him, it seemed that two whales and a miniscule underwater earthquake would be the only contacts on this patrol.

OOC: Just to Clarrify, what is the BH doing at htis point

OOC: As a potential buyer of the submarine, you are entitled to have a few people from your navy aboard as a review board. You'd also have people back at the dry dock. Also, you're allowed to have a few warships in Rammsteinburg, but they won't be doing much of anything right now.

OOC: Ok, so a few on the Sub and others, ok will post, let me know if its wrong

<Battlehawk Taskforce>

Admiral Christian Billing stood aboard the RBS Intrepid checking through the last of the reports on the current depoloyment

7:35 a.m.

A Predator UAV launched from the escort carrier RNS Hund patrolled the waters just beyond the boundaries of Rammsteinburg, not far from where the Red Dawn was currently submerged. It was one of many such unmanned aircraft that, along with several small warships and coast patrol submarines, routinely monitored the waters near Rammsteinburg for potential threats. So far, it had only spotted a tanker and a few commercial fishing vessels... Nothing to be concerned about.

- - -

Master Chief Warrant Officer Wollenstern appeared on the bridge as Seaman McClaughlan ran out. The hurrying helsman nearly hit him, but the chief of the review team moved out of the way just in time.

Wollenstern walked up to the captain. "Everything okay, sir?" he asked.

Captain Roppen continued to look straight ahead as he responded. "All is well, Mr. Wollenstern. But it'll take some time before I can make a real judgment on this sub."

"Of course, sir."

Roppen turned to Commander Holgel, his executive officer. "Mr. Holgel," he said, "you have the conn. I'm going to take a walk. I want to get familar with every nook and cranny of this ship." He turned to Wollenstern. "Mr. Wollenstern, you're already familar with the Red Dawn. Care to be my guide?

"I'd love to, Captain," the warrant officer replied, knowing he had actually been given an order, not a decision.

7:40

Captain Hans Uhlrich, RMC had been part of an undercover operation in Rechburg for almost half a year now. Operating under the cover name of Franz Harrison, he worked as an assistant to Governor von Brunswick. As the closest person to the governor, who was suspected of plotting a coup against the government of Rechburg, he was a vital part of the operation. He was to provide any information that supported the suspicions of the government of Rechburg. But unbeknownst to his comrades, 'Harrison' had been working as a double agent for the past two months and had been providing false information given to him directly by the governor.

"Greetings, Mr. Harrison," the governor's secretary said as he walked into von Brunswick's office.

"Morning, Valerie. Is the governor in? I have some important information to discuss with him."

"Yes, he's here. I'll see if he's busy."

"Right-o."

'Harrison' smirked. It was sort of fun working as a double agent, really. And nobody suspected a thing. Or at least that's what he thought.

Across the street, 'Harrison' was watched through a pair of binoculars. The man observing him was his CO, Commander Vogel.

I'm on to you... Vogel thought. And I'll have my proof soon enough.

7:41

"aah greetings Harrison" von Brunswick greeted his assistant.
"How are we looking today?"

7:41am

Republic of Battlehawk

Police detective Hans Colmar was sick and tired of being on the "reported missing" team, for him this was rookie duty, not for someone with his vast experience. However being a detective with a drink problem, Hans realised he had let himself down just too many times.
The Police department had been sympathetic, even helpful with providing counselling, but his exposure as a possible alchoholic meant he was taken off front line duties.

"Well screw them" he would mutter to himself everytime he pondered on the situation.
Two days ago he had been assigned a task of doing a routine check into one Conrad Holger.
Conrad Holger had been CEO of Diamond Technologies, a very progressive computer company that was very heavily involved in defence contracts for the Battlehawk defence department.Holger was said to be one of the brightest computer systems analysts in Battlehawk.
Then rumours began to circulate that he was involved in a very secret project for the Rechburg defence department, investigations found that in fact he was being employed by Fletcher Limestone Corporation. his project was reported to Battalehawk intelligence as being routine.

But a short time later he dissappeared, further intelligence investigations led to rumours that he had been living a double life, he was involved with the Countess Charlotte von Brunswick, daughter of the Baron von Brunswick in Rechburg.
As Holger had not committed any crimes and his son took over control of the company no further action was taken.

However two weeks ago Conrad Holger reappeared, he was recognised by one of his old collegues, when hailed by his friend he realised he had been recognised, he seemed to panic and ran away from his friend.
Two weeks later, that is 3 days ago his body was found washed up on the coast.
The conclusion was suicide, but Hans wasnt convinced, why reappear after such a long time just to commit suicide, no it wasnt right.
So Hans had dug deeper, and he found that Conrad had been living the last few weeks in a country cottage.
Another strange thing, was that Hans was sure he was being followed, he had tried several times to try and see his tail, but each time he failed.

This morning Han's, totally out of character rose early, he was determined he would wrap up this case today and get on with life.

He travelled out to the cottage, broke into it and searched the place, to no avail.
He was just about to leave when he noticed a corner of a envelope poking out of a book in the book shelf, he carefully removed the envelope, it was addressed to

Conrad Holger
c/- of Fletcher Limestone Company

The envelope was empty but on the back someone had scribbled notes, they were vague but he could read

"Moir Island.
Jade
and what appeared to be a shopping list consisting of hundred of computer parts and programs. At the bottom was scribbled in pencil was

"Im not a traitor" written as if doodled.

Hans was now sure there was more to Conrad Holger, and he knew this was clearly beyond a missing persons case, he had a friend in Military Intelligence so he decided to ring him and to bounce his findings of him.

He rang, his friend wasnt available, so Hans left a voice message.

"Sam, its Hans. I have been looking into this Holger chap, you know the one.. from Diamond technologies.
The thing is Sam, I have found some odd notes, a shopping list of computer parts and some place called Jade, and on the bottom he or someone has doodled Im not a traitor. I just thought this was just to odd to pass over.
I will drop around tonight and show you the stuff"

He replaced the phone, he was sure he saw a shadow pass over the telephone receiver, the next thing he knew was a Phhht sound and searing pain in his heart. he never even had time to turn around.

Hans body was found over 20 miles from the cottage, which was now a smoldering ruin.

7:42

On board tanker "Pegasus"

Aboard the tanker Rechburg registered "Pegasus", the captain Brian Stevenson checked his maps with the GPS system, he was on course and 12 miles from the restricted zone declared by the Rammensteinburg navy.

He picked up the mic and called down to his chief engineer,

"Ok Sam, bring her to a stand still and blow the steam out, I want anyone nosing around to think we having Boiler issues".

He next turned to his radio operater,
"Dave call up on the international distress signal, tell them we are stalled but are ok, make sure you tell them its a temporary valve issue and we are calling merely as courtesy to other shipping"

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

On board " Eldorado" a large fishing trawler off the Pegasus Port side 10 miles distant.

The radio operator George McNiel yelled out to his captain

"The Pagasus has just radioed her distress signal".

The captain nodded and then turned to his helsman

"Ok Dave myboy lets go, I think ol Grumpy Stevenson is going to keep everyone in the area busy, course 35 degrees and lets just go trawling nice and slow like"

8:00 A.M.

The Arleigh-Burke class destroyer RNS Brenner was patrolling 20 miles off the coast of Rammsteinburg. It's skipper, Commander Orison Lang, had just appeared on the bridge. He sat relaxed in his chair, still sipping his morning coffee. The OOD, First Lieutenant Charles van Keen, stood to his left.

"So, Mr. van Keen," the captain said to the OOD in a friendly tone. "How are you liking it aboard the Brenner?" The lieutenant had recently been transferred to a carrier.

"To be honest, sir," van Keen replied, "I like it a lot. There's something about these smaller ships..."

The captain laughed and took a sip of the coffee. "Yea, being on one of these surface warfare vessels makes me feel like a real sailor. I was an XO on a carrier once. Hated every minute of it. Too large. Too many people. I never got to really enjoy being at sea. Here, I go out on the forecastle on a starry night and... god, it makes me glad I didn't choose to go in the army."

Commander Lang stared out at the cloudless sky and calm sea. "Nice day," he said. "Too bad there's reports of a squall coming our way."

Just then a lookout, Seaman First Class Briggs, rushed into the bridge. "Sir, there's an unmarked vessel off the port stern!" he reported.

Lang jumped out of his chair and ran outside to look. Lt. van Keen followed. The captain could see a ship in the distance -- barely, but it was there. "Mr. van Keen," he yelled, "get me my binoculars." The OOD obeyed, going back into the bridge and returning ten seconds later with binoculars. Commander Lang put them to his eyes and examined the vessel.

"Appears to be a fishing boat. Sort of reminds me of one I served on as a lad. But I don't see any fishing gear. And..." The captain wasn't sure, but he thought he saw a man with a gun. "I might be wrong, but I think I just saw a gun."

Captain Lang went back into the bridge and gave the helmsman orders that would bring Brenner alongside the unidentified vessel.

- - -

Zachary Rommel awoke with a sick feeling in his stomach. He wanted to blame it on bad food he ate for dinner last night, but he knew its source was psychological.

Traitor. That word kept repeating in his mind. It haunted him.

"Today's the day," he said. "Today's the day..."

He did not realize his wife was awake. She turned over to face him and said, "Today's what, dear?"

"N-nothing," Rommel replied.

But it's not nothing. You turned your back on your country....

No! Shut up! Shut up!

That dreadful word appeared again in his mind. He couldn't make it go away.

Mrs. Rommel sat up, revealing her breasts. She wrapped her arms around her husband. "I don't believe you. Something's wrong. You're sweating and shaking. What's up?"

"I'm telling you, I'm fine.... It's -- I'm feeling a bit ill, that's all. And I don't know what I was saying earlier... I..."

"Shhh." Mrs. Rommel put her finger on his lips. "No need to say anymore. Just lay down. I'll call the Ministry later and tell them you can't make it."

Rommel laid down and his wife covered him. She gave him a kiss. He tried to enjoy the wonderful sensation of her soft, moist, warm lips touching his, but he couldn't.

Traitor. Dirty traitor.

8:05 A.M.

The Rammsteinburg Coastguard Service cutter RNS Schleswig-Holstein came alongside the Pegasus, having received its distress signal.

8:00 AM, BMS November
International Waters

“Conn, sonar—unknown target detected, bearing three-four-zero, range 16 miles!” The voice boomed into the conning tower, and the feeling of boredom which permeated each sailor quickly evaporated. Captain Faust immediately pressed his finger onto the commo button.

“Sonar, conn, can you identify unknown vessel?” he demanded, trying to keep his voice level as the officers and crewmen in the control room listened intently.

“Copy that, Captain. Vessel is Arleigh-Burke class, probably Rammsteinburg Navy. It’s moving fast, Captain, 26 knots at least,” the sonar operator responded, his voice legitimately calm. He had been through the motions dozens of times and by this point, they were more instinct than anything else.

“Very good, Lieutenant. Keep me informed.” The destroyer was traveling far too fast to detect the submarine, but it could slow at any minute. Captain Faust turned towards the COB and nodded. “Battlestations, Chief,” he said quietly. The lighting flicked to a dull red and the men immediately scrambled to their stations, headsets put on and watches synched. Faust looked down at his own wristwatch and smiled, tapping it again.

“Diving command, dive to seven hundred feet on my mark,” he said, now looking up at the digital clock mounted in the conning tower instead of his wrist. “Three…two…one…mark. Command, dive to seven hundred.” The pilot of the massive submarine tilted up on the rudder control, sending the vessel into a rapid dive to deeper waters. The captain was determined to keep this patrol mission on-track, and getting depth charged was certainly not on the agenda.

8:06 A.M.

RNS Brenner passed over the submarine without even realizing. It then sped past the slower, unmarked vessel and turned around, coming alongside its starboard side and matching its speed. A sailor on the deck of the destroyer held a megaphone to his mouth and announced, "This is a warship of the Great Warlord Republic of Rammsteinburg. You are currently sailing in Rammsteinburgian waters. You are unmarked, and we demand that you immediately identify yourself."

Below deck the armory was being unlocked.

8:05

Captain Stevenson had seen the destroyer approaching, had even anticipated it might happen. He waited until it turned and pulled alongside. The nets were trailing behind and Captain Stevenson was apparently quite agitated.

He picked up his own Megaphone.

"Ahhh Good day Navy, damn you guys are bloody jumpy"
He waved down towards the stern,
"You bloody near ripped up my goddamn nets".

"What ya mean we are unmarked, me bloody name is all over the bow of the ship, see it says "Pegasus" . Thats how I know this ship is mine everyday i walk down to board it. Ok its a bit washed out; but then we dont have the national bloody treasury available to keep our ships nicely painted like your pretty ships. And by the way navy that registration number is from your own godamn ship register, we are from Rammsteinburg. Not that i would expect you gentleman to wander to friggin far from your cocktails to go and check.
Godamn it, go hassle some ol lady in a row boat, leave us real sailors to do the work."
He looked around, almost enjoying his part.

"From what I hear, there is a bloody great tanker over there in trouble, why dont you toodle along and hassle them."

8:05
Red Dawn
Tory Channel.

On board Red Dawn.

Chief Absolum and the three seamen, checked to see whether they were being observed, seeing no one was around they unloaded the air filters from the air circulation system and inserted several canisters of “fentanyl” a type of sleeping gas.
Each gas canister had a 3 minute timer, once secured the 3 men left the filtration system, the chief pressed a button on his pager which sent a vibrator off in every conspiraters own pagers. They all casually looked at their watch, it was three minutes to go.

Three minutes later the fentanyl gas went off, and quickly circulated through the sub, every conspirator reached into their bags, drawers or shelves to get the gas masks on.
Several of the crew, uninvolved in the conspiracy were absolutely stunned to see some ship mates putting gas masks on, thinking perhaps its was some new gimmick being invented. Within seconds however all those without masks collapsed, several would die as the gas was quite unstable in its toxicity.

All the conspirators made their way to the conn, there were seven of them, all key members of their own departments. It had been realised in the original planning that as long as the sub wasn’t performing at battle stations, 7 members were the minimum required to keep the sub sailing deep and quiet.

Chief Absolum immediately went back to the air filtration plant, replaced the filters with washer baffles and recirculated air. Within 5 minutes the toxic air was replaced, with 10 there would be no trace at all.

The men knew what was expected of them and went to their stations immediately.

The Red Dawn had been stolen.

8:12
Red Dawn
Tory Channel.
On board Red Dawn.

"Conn, Sonar. On passive we have surface contacts at 270, 6 miles, that will be the tanker and likely a navy vessel. Sadly sir I cannot be sure as she arrived before I assumed my place here. We have two surface vessels 220 at 4 miles, that will be the Eldorado and a Navy vessel..
We have a transient noise at 180 at approx 8 miles, sounds like a sub diving deep and fast, it has just gone between thermals. There is a significant thermal layer at 500ft, it runs the full length of the channel.

"Conn, Helm. We are at heading 358, speed 7 knots, drive is performing and we are invisible."
"
Conn, Engineering, we are running perfectly, she is a little hummer"

"Conn, Weapons. we have tube 1 & 2 with Mk 48 3 and 4 with anti surface harpoons.

'This is Conn, thank you, advise if any changes."
"Helm Conn, keep heading for the tanker, I want to park right underneath her, and I mean scrapping the barnacles off her hull".

8:15

On board Tanker Pegasus.

The captain of the cutter called up the Captain of the Pegasus

"Tanker Pegasus, this is Coast Guard of the Warlord Republic of Rammsteinburg on your starboard quarter, do you require assistance"

"Negative Coast guard, we only radioed a distress situation report because we would be stationary on a shipping route while we under went emergancy repairs, My engineers tell me we will be underway in 10 minutes. It seems it was a faulty overide pressure switch, not a big deal but big enough to drag us to a halt until we dealt with it huh.
Thanks for the offer though coast guard, sure is good to know you guys are so quick to respond."

8:15am


Franz Harrison left his office after completeing the morning reports, he had an appointment at 8:30 with his Rechburg counter-part. Being a double agent also meant that he had to keep the masters of the other side happy as well.
He supplied the Rechburg people with misinformation prepared by Governor Brunswick, but he also gave them true tidbits that gave them something else to consider; bits of the truth.
As he made his way to the carpark, he was sure he was being watched. his years as an intelligence officer gave him a sixth sense in these matters, he would have to be more careful.

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

Governor Alexi Brunswick having seen Harrison leaving his office, decided it was time for him to leave for his command post on Jade.
As he looked down from the window of his office, he saw Harrison climb into his little Ford, it never ceased to amaze Alexi why such a colourful man as harrison should drive around in such a small plain car. Very odd, but then he pondered no doubt men who lived on their wits such as intelligence agents were a little eccentric.
Harrison pulled out of the carpark and zoomed away at speed, almost sideswiping a car that was approaching the carpark exit.

Alexi sniggered to himself, what an idiot harrison was.
Then he noticed a man leaving the bushes opposite the carpark, quickly leap into a car and race away after Harrison. The Governor was immediately suspicious, he noted the registration of the car and rang his security chief and asked him to check on the registration number.
He then packed up his papers and made his way to the helicopter pad at the rear of his office

The RBS Intrepid altered course, to investigate strange movements of Rammsteinburg ships

<Battlehawk>

Police officers swarmed around the body of one of their own, his charred body was hardly recognisable.
"Second Detective in as many days" Lt Thomas Munro muttered

8:06 A.M.

Commander Lang could not shake the feeling that something was askew. He examined the bow and, indeed, there was a name and hull registration number there -- barely. He thought for a second about what to do and then decided: he grabbed the megaphone from the sailor and said, "This is Commander Orrison Lang, captain of this vessel. Please wait here while we verify your identity." He then ordered a seaman to go below and run a search on the hull registration number.

We can't afford to be slack in our security today, Lang thought. While he was not in the loop about the Red Dawn, he knew something important was happening today, as all patrol vessels had been given orders to be extra cautious.

- - -

8:07 A.M.

Captain Roppen and Master Chief Warrant Officer Wollenstern were walking down a passageway when they saw two seaman suddenly collapse.

"What the hell?!" Roppen yelled. Just then, Wollenstern collapsed beside him. A second later, he too was unconscious.

- - -

8:11 A.M.

On board RNS Brenner, the sailor returned with the info on the Pegasus's hull registration number.

"So, what's the word?" the captain asked.

"It's not valid, sir."

Lang was not surprised. He brought the megaphone up and said: "Pegasus, your registration number is not valid. Prepare to be boarded!"

An armed boarding party of 6 men was already assembled on the main deck.

8:16 A.M.

At a small hotel near the base from which Red Dawn had departed, those who were present for its launching were enjoying a breakfast together.

Rear Admiral Queeg was seated with the Minister of the Navy, Captain Eddy Pabst, and a representative from Genii Naval Industries.

"So, when is the Red Dawn suppose to report in again?" Queeg asked.

Captain Pabst replied. "The cruiser RNS Feuervogel is set to rendezvous with it at predetermined location at 0900."

From RBS Intrepid
To RNS Brenner

RNS Brenner, this is Admiral Billing of the Battlehawkian Navy ship Intrepid, do you require help there?

End Of message

8:18

On the northern outskirts of the restricted Zone and 5 miles from the Pegasus the Rechburg Destroyer RDR Matra was officially observing the Rammsteinburg manouvres.

The Matra was one of the latest Destroyers in the Fleet, it had been raised purely from funds within Kunesdorf, and as such Governor Brunswick and the Kunesdorf legislature had insisted that it be crewed by Kunesdorf naval personal. The commander Captain Hugh McMann was in fact married to Baron Brunswick's niece.
It wasnt by accident that the Rechburg naval command had ordered the Matra to observe the Rammsteinburg manouvres, it had taken months of careful calling in favours and influencing certain people; but it all paid off.

The Matra was ordered by the Navy command to observe and record all Rammsteinburg Naval manouvres, she was also the southern picket ship between the Rammsteinburg restricted Zone and the Rechburg restricted Zone 200 miles further north. In that area the Major elements of the Rechburg navy and airforce were undertaking their own annual manouvres.
Captain McMann also had other orders, they came from the Kunesdorf Naval office, in other words direct from the Governor of Kunesdorf.

Not only was he to observe the manouvres he was if possible to aid the escape of the Red Dawn

8:20

Aboard Red Dawn.

The Red dawn had quietly drifted towards the Pegasus and positioned herself directly underneath, from here she was totally undectable. Through the camera on the periscope the men in the bridge of red dawn could clearly see the hull of the tanker above them, in fact they were so close they could see the Rivets in the hull.
Sadly because of the noise from the Pegasus's turbines as they powered up Red dawn was virtually deaf.

8:20

As the turbines powered up, the steam valve was tested by over presurrising the turbines, when the new valve detected the over pressure, it tripped and opened to allow excess steam to escape before the turbines blew up.
The screeching and howling of the escaping steam deafened everone aboard.
Quickly however they released the valve and brought the pressure back to normal.

The Captain radioed on the distress channel

"This is tanker Pegasus, we have recovered mobility and are now preparing to be underway, the distress notification is withdrawn, we wish to thank all vessels in the area and wish you a good day."

8:23

Aboard the Spn Business jet

Governor Alexi Brunswick, always enjoyed flying, he did it as often as possible himself that time would allow, today however he had urgent business papers to sort through so he was in the passenger seat. In the hold of his aircraft he knew there was a special crate, a crate that would give him a nation.
The phone rang, it was his security Chief back in Albany, the capital of Kunesdorf, the Chief told him who the car belonged to that he had enquired about.
Alexi told the Chief to take care of things, he didnt want complications, he replaced his phone and picked up a file headed

Most Confidential
Moir Island.- Code Name Jade.
Fletcher Limestone Corporation.

Map Of Moir Island
http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k411/Game-Images/MoirIsland.jpg

When he opened it, he found photos of the extensive preparations and alterations made on the island. To the casual observer or Satelite they looked like simply preparations to renew mining on the island quarries, but the truth was really what was hidden in teh tunnels and caves, as well as under neath the vast harbour cover that must have been big enough to cover something as big as a destroyer, or as Alexi said to himself with a smile.... possibly a submarine.

Alexi continued reading

Moir Island.

Moir Island was a private island owned by the Fletcher Limestone Corporation. It wasn’t all that large, the island was 35 miles wide and 43 miles long.

Its was 500 miles South from Rechburg and 800 miles sou-west from Rammsteinburg.

The Fletcher Limestone Corporation had mined limestone on the island for over 20 years, the quarries were reportedly now expended, the workers had long gone.
For over a year the island had remained virtually unoccupied, that was until 8 months ago. Workmen had arrived and had refurbished the buildings, shelters were dug into the hills and the deep harbour was dredged clear, a helicopter pad was even prepared.
Word in the business community was that a new source of Limestone had been discovered and new quarries were being opened.

What would have seemed odd to the casual observer was that the “workers” seemed terribly regimented, almost like soldiers. To the same observer the increased wiring and technology being brought to the island seemed far beyond what was necessary for simple quarry work.

The man that was overlord of all that was being done on the island was a man called Conrad Holger. Holger had been CEO of Diamond technologies until 12 months ago, then for some unknown reason he resigned and disappeared.
During his absence from the public eye, Conrad Holger had been contracted to establish a secret para-military base on the island. He had been told that a mercenary group had purchased the island as a training base, as far as Holger was concerned he simply didn’t care; the money ensured his loyalty. Holger’s talent for organisation and getting things done had ensured the first stage was completed 6 weeks earlier than scheduled.
A week after he reported the work completed, a para military force did indeed arrived They were deployed in securing the port area and creating a compound which included barracks. Technicians arrived and installed sensors, radars and weapon systems. Weapon pits were prepared, and even missile systems were installed.
The security of the island was under the command of Brigadier General Lew Watson, a well known Mercenary leader. He had with him 500 veteran mercenaries, all who had fought with Brigadier General Watson in dozens of countries and in countless battles.
Watson also brought with him a new breed of mercenary, these were the surveillance and intelligence type of men, men who didn’t hire out their guns, but their expertise in their chosen fields.
These experts monitored the radar, the underwater acoustics, the land sensors and the radio systems.

The main jetty had been covered, the roof covered not only the Jetty but out into the harbour. There were several large freighters in and near the jetty, they were so placed as to screen any observation into the Jetty region.

OCC
Please remember this info is not known by other players just yet. It is there simply to help you connect dots as the story unfolds.

8:24 A.M.

Xavier Lemp, CEO of one of Rammsteinburg's largest manufacturers of cheese products, had carelessly fallen asleep at the wheel of his yacht after a night of heavy drinking -- again. He was awoken by Anna Martin, his latest mistress. Dressed in only a light blue bikini, the tall, red-haired woman of 28 years of age shook the chubby businessman until he finally regained consciousness.

"W-What?" Lemp muttered.

"You fell asleep at the wheel, you idiot!" she yelled. Her face was red with anger. "Where the hell are we?"

Lemp didn't seem to comprehend. He yawned and said, "W-what are you talking about? I did no such thing..."

"Yes, you did! Look around us! Do you see Vanna Island anywhere?" Vanna Island was a popular vacation spot for wealthy Rammsteinburgians.

Suddenly Lemp realized his error. He lept out of his seat and screamed a long string of profanity. "Great!" he yelled. "Just frickin' great!"

His yacht, Trixie (named after the first of his three wives), was 5 miles from the coast of Moir Island.

- - -

The boarding party from the RNS Brenner had given the fishing vessel a through search, but they turned up nothing.

Something still doesn't feel right, Commander Lang thought. But there was nothing he could do.

8:30 A.M.

Commander Vogel had been following Uhlrich ('Harrison') ever since he left the Governor's office. The double agent pulled into the parking lot for his apartment complex. Vogel parked on the other side of the highway. He had a room he used as an observation post there. Two other members of his team of Special Commando Unit operatives were already there, having just bugged their traitor of a comrade's apartment so well that even the most experienced of spies would not be able to find them all.

Vogel and his team's only worry now was that 'Harrison' was already on to them.

8:45am

The Tanker Pegasus had slowly made its way out of the Quarantine zone, they passed close to the Rechburg destroyer Matra.

The Tanker Pegasus was a large tanker, it had 3 holds, 2 of then were empty the central hold was full of fuel oil, as they quietly sailed along; the captain ordered the middle hold pumped into the holds on either side.

The Red Dawn was cruising immediately underneatth the tanker, to all sonar and MAD searches, they were one.

8:45am

On board the El dorado, the fishing boats radar showed that the tanker had cleared the quarantine area, the Captain was furious, that he was being delayed; however this delay had been foreseen as a possibility so he just reminded himself to calm down.

There was nothing on the fishing boat that would get them into trouble, so for all purposes he had nothing to fear. Except of course the fact that there were enough men on board to crew two fishing boats, but then that wasnt illegal ... even in Rammsteinburg.

8:46am

Harrison quietly made his way into his room, he looked out of the window, more out of habit than expecting to see anything or anyone of interest.
He went to the cabinet and took out his "bug sweeper", after circling the room several times, he was satisfied he wasnt being bugged.
He was expecting a visitor and what was to be said, possibly should never heard by anyone out of this room.

Moir Island

"They are still there General", Lieutenant George Smyth-Adams said to his Mercenary leader over the radio.

"Ok Lieutenant, if they attempt to come in , send a company boat out and tell them its a private island, be pleasant and no guns, dont even take any with you, be nice but be firm".

8:50

Tren Ler

Police Cars sped through the Streets of Tren'Ler. Sirens wailed and lights flashed as the convoy of Police cars powered along the Main Street. They all skidded to a halt outside the main Libary of Congress and the police officers poured out, weapons drawn. They set up a perimiter to wait for the BSWAT teams to turn up to enter the building...

RBS Intrepid

Having received no messages the Intrepid turned back to its assigned patrol sector and awaited futher problems if there were going to be any.
"So what do you think Liam?" Christian asked her XO Captain LIam Dale as they sat in the Ready room, just off the bridge.
"I don't know theres alot of things that don't seem right here" Liam replied "Reminds me of a film i saw once"
"It always reminds you of a 'film you saw once'" Christian commented.
"True, True, But i still don't like it"

8:53 A.M.

"We're five minutes away from the rendezvous point, Herr Kapitaen," the OOD, Lt. Commander Willis, said as Captain Josef Kegelman entered the bridge of the Manticore class cruiser RNS Feuervogel.

"Good, good," Kegelman replied. He took a seat in the leather captain chair. Of all the great things about this new ship, the captain thought, [i]this chair is the best."

Once they reached the rendezvous point, a full stop was ordered. It was now 8:59 A.M. The cruiser was still on the calm sea. In exactly one minute, Red Dawn was due to surface...

9:00 A.M.

"Damn it, the radio doesn't work!" Xavier Lemp ripped the useless piece of equipment from its console and tossed it across the room. He then kicked an empty bottle of beer.

"Great, Xavier, just great!" Anna yelled. "Now we can't even contact the Coastguard Service for help!"

"I'll think of something!"

"We'll probably get tipped over by a wave or killed by drug dealers or pirates before then!"

Xavier walked up to his mistress and slapped her hard across the face. "I don't need this, Anna! I really don't!"

Anna Martin said nothing. She simply stormed outside. She leaned against a rail.

Two minutes later, she scream with excitement. "An island! I see an island in the distance!" Lemp ran on to the deck.

"What? Where?"

"There!" She pointed.

Lemp leaned against the rail, as well. It took him a few seconds, but he finally spotted it.

"Hot damn! Maybe we can figure out where the hell we are now!"

9:08 A.M.

"Sir, radar and sonar don't pick up anything," a sailor informed Captain Kegelman. "The sub's not here!"

9:10 A.M.

Seaman First Class Joachim von Holt was alone in a small compartment performing some routine checks when the nerve gas was released. He had been lucky to have the one functioning air quality monitor in the entire submarine, and when he learned of the toxin in the air, he immediately sealed off his compartment from the rest of the submarine. Since then, he had been surviving on the oxygen left in the small space. But he was running out now, he knew. He would have to leave. But what waited for him outside?


OOC: Something similar happened in an episode of 24. :tongue:

9:20am
On board Pegasus.

Once the central hold had been pumped out, visible in the centre of the hold was a very long tube structure that was seated onto a large box structure on the bottom of the hold.
Seaman Gordon Kemp, the lastest crewman aboard Pegasus stood aghast at the sight of the structure, he turned to Petty Officer "Shortee" Harrison.
"Ere what the hell is that thing" he asked pointing at the long funnel structure.

The Petty officer, smiled
"That my orrible little man is a pressure tube, its used to allow divers to climb in and escape out through the hull of the ship."

"Jeez, what the ell to what one of them things, I mean we ......" he stopped mid sentence, as a large group of men came up from the crew quarters. The men all wore aqualung equipment.
The leader lay a long ladder structure over the hold, once in place he walked out to the central tube, he fixed a rope ladder and climbed down to the top of the tube, once on the lid he unscrewed the lid and climbed into the tube.
The next man then went out, until there were 4 men in the tube, the lid was closed by a seaman and then, all on board heard the roaring and rushing of water being pumped in, then a few minutes later it was pumped out and the divers passed through a escape hatch in the hull of the tanker. They swam down to the waiting red dawn 25 metres under the tanker, they opened the diving hatch and entered the submarine.
This exercise was done until all 26 men were down aboard the submarine.
The last man down was handed a waterproof box from inside the submarine and he swam back to the tanker and climbed into the hull and emptied the water out, he then made his way to the top; up the ladder steps in the side of the tubing. he was assisted out and the pegasus's part of the operation was complete.
Except for the box, it was handed to a Kunesdorf Security agent who took the Disk out and placed it into his own computer, he then typed in the address and the plans of the Red dawn were sent to several secret locations by way of heavy encryption on a burst radio. He then destroyed the disk and the radio.
(Please read - No detection possible)

Once the operation was completed , the oil was pumped back into the central hold from the two outside holds until the central tower was hidden by the thick oil.

On board Red dawn.

Once the divers were all in, they climbed out of their equipment and made their way to the bridge.
Arriving there the men on the bridge recognised the leader as Captain Tom Coombs, the most celebrated submarine officer in the Rechburg Navy.
Captain Coombs returned the salutes and smiles, he noticed the bodies of the crew still on the deck.

He turned to 6 of the new men.
"Alright get out the handcuffs, and handcuff everyone and sedate them again.
Make sure you count all the bodies I dont want anyone missed"

He looked at the periscope camera screen, went over and picked up the growler phone.

He simply said
"Phase 1 complete"


The captain of the Pegasus replaced the phone and turned to the helmsman

"Right - lets go 270, 10 knots and watch the Matra as she comes in behind, we wouldnt want to scratch the Gentlemans ship now would we."

9:45am

On board the Rechburg (Kunesdorf) destroyer Matra

The Matra slowly slid in behind the tanker Pegasus, the tanker turned to port 270 degress and Matra took her position over the Red Dawn.
Captain McMann picked up his growler phone and said, "Phase 2".

The destroyer and Red Dawn increased Speed to 15 knots, they were on a heading of 300 degrees - heading to Moir island.

The tanker Pegasus now continued on its journey to Kunesdorf.

Rechburg Naval Headquarters

Operations Room
Malmaison
Rechburg

The radar/satelite operators were closely watching the Rechburg Naval manouvers, while others were watching the rather puzzling movements of the Rammsteinburg manouvres. It was the worse kept secret that they were trialling a new drive system, supposed to be the quietest in any navy.

Few in that room new that rumour to be false, for only few were aware of the new Duke class submarine that was super quiet and used stealth technology as well as a new cell drive system. There were only two in existence at the moment, one of them was at sea watching the island of Moir.

One of the Satelite operaters noticed the "Matra" was going out of station, he called over his duty officer.
"Sir , the Matra is moving off station"

The Lieutenant came over observed the radar screens and the satelite imagery, he then picked up his phone, he spoke to his superior, he reported that the Matra was moving off station.

Rear Admiral Foy replaced the phone, only to pick up another; direct to Duke Leo's office

"Its happening, the Matra has moved off station"

The Duke replied "Any information why"

"No sire, not as yet"

"Very well, send a message to Admiral Ney, he is to cease the Manouvers and return to Rechburg waters, is to remain on station opposite Kunesdorf. Order Ney to send 3rd & 4th destroyer Flotillas to trail Matra, we need to know where she is going and why".

Rear Admiral Foy said "Sire we know where she is going, to Moir Island. Surely there is no doubt, that is where Brunswick has been training his special raider troops, if there is to be a war; its from there he will strike."

"No doubt my friend you are right, but why would Baron Brunswick risk moving the destroyer just now, surely he must be aware we are watching and would have noticed the destroyers movements. What we need to know is the why, from where will he strike, from Moir or from Kunesdorf." Replied the Duke.

"Yes Sire, we will continue watching, what about the Rammsteinburg submarine trials".

"Yes well we will let them think they have the technological advantage, just keep a satelite watch for now."

9:47am

Moir Island

The 4 men boarded the company launch, they speed out of the harbour to intercept the luxury sailing boat.

9:50am

Matra
Kunesdorf
Duchy of Rechburg

Harrison knew his visitor would arrive soon, so he opened his laptop that he always carried with him.
He entered in his encryption key and then opened up the secure channel for downloading, there was a file waiting and thus was downloaded instantly. He checked and it was from "Mother goose" the code name for the tanker Pegasus.

Once downloaded he connected his laptop to the printer and the pages began moving as the files were printed off.

The first page read

Top Secret
Rammsteinburg & Genii Joint Project

He eagerly watched the papers coming out of the printer, hoping that it would be completed before the buyer arrived.

This is a very approx map of the area.

http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k411/Game-Images/Submap.jpg

The Rechburg destroyer Matruh and red dawn are sailing south towards Moir Island.
The rammsteinburg fleet are near the mainland expecting Red dawn to surface.
The closest ship to Matra is battlehawk and the submarine.

There. are two Rechburg destroyer Flotillas 8 Destroyers and 2 cruisers steaming to intercept Matra.

OOC: I made a few additions to the map. Feel free to add some more if you please.

http://i430.photobucket.com/albums/qq27/Rammsteinburg/Maps/Submap.jpg

Note that this is before the Home Fleet search for Red Dawn begins. Obviously there will be more vessels out once that starts. Also, this map excludes vessels that are part of the exercise, as there are too many to list.

If you're wondering about the Metzger and Metzger-2 Classes, they are air defense destroyers that I designed. I'll be putting up their specs soon.

Flaw in map: RNS Brenner should be near "Assumed Red Dawn."

9:50 A.M.

Where is Red Dawn?!?! This question had been haunting the Rammsteinburg Navy for almost an hour. Captain Eddy Papst, Rammsteinburg's liaison to Genii Naval Industries, was the first to learn about it when the message "RED DAWN NOT PRESENT" came from RNS Brenner at 9:15. He quickly passed the news on to Rear Admiral Queeg and Vice Admiral Erik Zieggler, and then to Dr. Toby Loch, Minister of the Navy. An order was sent to Fleet Admiral Viktor Ward, Commander-in-Chief of the Home Fleet (CINCHMFLT) to begin a search for the missing sub. Ward, who was in the loop about the details of the Red Dawn project, knew this would be a difficult task -- and likely impossible. He recalled one of his favourite novels, Tom Clancy's bestseller The Hunt for Red October, and suddenly felt a new sympathy for the Russians in the story.

While the Home Fleet prepared to begin its search operation, the Ministry of the Navy and Genii Industries began to consider a disturbing possibility: somebody had leaked information and the Red Dawn was stolen. ... But how?

- - -

10:00 A.M.

A light sleeper, Zachary Rommel was awoken by a muffled scream. The sound instantaneously threw him into "ready to fight" mode, his body suddenly surging with adrenaline. He jumped out of bed, naked, and went for the draw where he kept his handgun. But before he could reach it, a voice urged him to stop. "Hold it right there!" it said. Rommel paused. He looked towards the source of the warning and was shocked by what he saw: a man armed with a Smith & Wesson Model 29 in his right hand and his left covering the mouth of his horrified wife.

"You know too much, Mr. Rommel," the man said. "I'm afraid you're a liability. You can't be trusted, so we're gonna have to let you go..."

- - -

10:04 A.M.

Timothy Helch of the Ministry of War Criminal Investigations Unit had been assigned leader of the investigation into the possible leak of information about the Red Dawn Project. He had received the call around 9:40, and he immediately took the 20 minute drive from his flat to the Ministry of the Navy office at Naval Station New Ramm City. He was now in the office of Deputy Minister of the Navy Rik Noll.

"I understand that the Red Dawn Project was classified TOP SECRET - COMPARTMENTALIZED, correct?" Agent Helch asked.

"That is correct. I've already prepared a list of every individual who was cleared for it."

"Good. That's exactly what I was going to ask for."

"I was with CIU for almost 7 years. I know how things are done," the minister replied. He handed over the list.

"Let's see here," Agent Helch said as began reviewing the list, "30 people overall, not counting the review board and the crew. Ten of those people work here in this building. I'd like all to see all of them."

"I'll get on that right away," Noll responded, already dialing a number into his phone.

"Hello? Klara? Can you see for me which of the following personnel are present today?"

Helch read off the names and the deputy minister immediately repeated them to his secretary.

"Bergen, Coltrane, Jimmel, Kohl... and Rommel. Thank you, Klara."

The secretary returned with a response a minute later. "They're all present except for Mr. Coltrane who is with Dr. Loch today and Mr. Rommel who called in sick this morning."

"Alright, thank you."

"You're welcome, sir."

Deputy Minister Noll hung up. "Only two of them aren't here. One's with the minister and the other called in sick," he told the CIU agent.

"Oh? What's the name of the one of who called in ill? I think I'll start with him."

"I'll have his personnel file delivered."

10:05 A.M.

Seaman von Holt had been wandering throughout the Red Dawn since 9:16, narrowly avoiding the Rechburgian hijackers multiple times. As he walked past his unconscious comrades, some of whom he knew very well, he asked himself, Why? What in the world is going on here? Whatever it was, he needed to do something soon.

He was now in a passageway leading towards the after torpedo room. He moved stealthily, carefully moving each of his feet so as to avoid making even the tiniest sound, and he kept his back to the starboard bulkhead. As he neared an intersection with another passageway, he heard voices. He stopped and listened carefully.

"Damn, this guy is heavy," somebody said.

"You just need to work out more, that's all," another person replied.

Von Holt tightened his grip on the M9 Pistol he had taken from a Master-at-Arms earlier. Slowly, he moved towards the intersection, praying to God that he'd make it through this day alive. Once at the corner, he turned his head slightly to observe. Two men were moving sailors to bulkheads so they wouldn't obstruct the passageway. Another man held a clipboard and seemed to be counting.

Again, the Seaman First Class asked himself, What is going on here? Who are these men? He could tell by their accents that they weren't Rammsteinburgian, at least. Maybe Boshkovian? Linnii, perhaps? Rechburgian?

Seaman von Holt took a deep breath. Then, he jumped into the passageway where the three men were and pointed the gun at the one with the clipboard. They all became motionless.

"Quiet," von Holt ordered, "and I won't shoot you. Now, who are you? And what have you done--what are you doing--to this vessel?"

"Admiral, The Rammsteinburg ships are beginning what appears to be a systematic sweep of the area, and are spreading out.
"Open a link to their command chain, and take us to yellow alert"

TO: Rammsteinburg Navel Command
From: Admiral of the Intrepid

This is Admiral Billing of the RBS Intrepid. We request that you clariffy your fleet movements.
End MEssage

OOC: Don't forget that you're in Rammsteinburgian waters at the moment.

From: CINCHMFLT
To: Admiral Billing

Rammsteinburg Home Fleet conducting Level 5 search mission. Unable to specify at this time.

- - -

Aboard his flagship, the battleship RNS Rammsteinburg, at Home Fleet HQ in Naval Station Ark, Fleet Admiral Ward spoke to his chief of staff, Admiral Koontz.

"Sir, don't you think we should let the Battlehawk fleet into the loop?" Koontz asked. "They could be helpful."

"We've already had potential leak of information," Ward responded. "Do you think we should risk another by letting more people into the Red Dawn Project?"

"Well, I think we should at least suggest it to the Minister, sir."

"Alright, Admiral, we'll do that. Get him on the phone."

"Aye, aye, sir."

10:07 A.M.

The day's naval exercises had been canceled and all ships involved rededicated to the task of finding the Red Dawn. Ships from naval bases throughout southern Rammsteinburg joined them, as well ones as from the Home Fleet outposts and the bases on Krawstein and Feuerberg Islands. A total of over 60 vessels were involved in the hunt for the submarine, in addition to dozens of aircraft.

Commodore Adolf Bootsmann led the vessels launched from Home Fleet Outpost #3 from the Dactyl class cruiser RNS München. His ten ships--3 cruisers, 4 destroyers, and 3 frigates--moved northwest in their search... heading right into the path of the Mantra and Red Dawn.

OOC: Yea I know, reasonable to want to know what is going on

From: Admiral Billing
To: CINCHMFLT

Understood, just curious

OOC: Don't worry, you'll be let in eventually. Just being realistic.

10:10 A.M.

"Let Admiral Billing in," Dr. Loch told Fleet Admiral Ward over the phone. "His fleet would be a valuable addition to our search effort. Just make sure he informs his men only that they are cooperating with us in the search for a Rammsteinburgian submarine. He's not to tell them anything more."

"Alright, I will do as instructed, Doctor Loch," the admiral said.

"And make sure you find that blasted sub!"

"Will do, sir! Goodbye."

"Bye." The minister hung up.

Admiral Ward turned to his chief of staff. "Admiral Koontz, have a message sent to Admiral Billing. Let him in on what's going on and instruct him only to tell his men that they are working with us to find a Rammsteinburgian submarine -- NOTHING else. The details must remain a secret."

"Aye, aye, sir." Koontz stood briefly at attention and then departed to have the message sent.

OOC: Admiral Billing is female BTW

"Admiral, we are receiving a coded message from the Rammsteinburg command" Liam commented quietly to Christina "They are saying that the Red Dawn has gone AWOL"

OOC: Admiral Billing is female BTW

"Admiral, we are receiving a coded message from the Rammsteinburg command" Liam commented quietly to Christina "They are saying that the Red Dawn has gone AWOL"

OCC

Wow a mutch better map, and you could just imagine Red Dawns surprise when they discovered all those bases and ships :p

10:15 am

Red Dawn

The Captain looked at his watch it was 1015 hrs , he picked up the Growler and said "phase 3."

Further Astern of Red Dawn commando Hans Meyer was stunned to find a armed sailor pointing a gun at him. Their was no way he could reach his revolver in the shoulder holster, but he did manage to quickly and unobstrusively click on the throat microphone.

"Woooo, take it easy sailor, no need to go around waving a god damn gun"

With that sentence every one of the new men aboard Red Dawn knew there was a armed enemy aboard, and that meant moments later everyone aboard Red Dawn knew about the armed sailor.


Meyer continued
"We are special Forces from Rammsteinburg, we have just recaptured the submarine from terrorists, and as far as we are concerned these, and you are suspects. So you go and put that goddamn gun down son; before you become a dead terrorist and not just a suspect: and I mean right now".

10:15am

Matra

The Captain of Matra, replaced the Phone, he hit the alert button and a klaxon started squealing; he waited a few moments and spoke into the ships speaker system.

"This is the Captain speaking, we are now going to full alert"

With that everyone donned helmets and survival equipment, doors were closed and full weapon systems were manned and checked.

He turned to the Helmsman

"Take us 180 degrees".

He then went to the panel and picked up the scrambler phone that connected him to the Rechburg Naval Headquaters.

"This is Captain McMann of the Royal Duchy of Rechburg destroyer Matra. We have a serious failure of our freshwater condenser and are therefore making our way to Moir Island which is the closest Rechburg territory with water. I repeat, the Freshwater system has failed and we have a complete freshwater contamination, we are going to Moir Island so we can undertake repairs and freshwater."

10:15 A.M.

Seaman von Holt did not believe the man. To test if his suspicions were correct, he used a bit of Rammsteinburgian slang on the man: "Bist du nach der Hoogle von Feuerstein?"

10:16 A.M.

Commander Vogel watched the traitor, Uhlrich, using a pair of binoculars and listened with headphones to all the sounds inside his apartment. At the moment, Uhlrich ('Harrison') was listening to Luft!, a popular Rammsteinburgian rock band. The commander barely heard the knock on the traitor's door.

Harrison opened the door, there before him stood a small balding individual, he presented a Card which merely identified him as "George Kruger".
Harrison knew that was the name of the man he was expecting, he quickly glanced down the hallway and then said

"Quickly, come in"

Both men entered the room, clearly "Mr George Kruger" was discomfitted by the loud music.
Harrison said
"I apologise for the noise, the room isnt bugged but they may using directional mic systems so we cant be too careful".

Harrison went to the coffee table and picked up the folder, he casually handed it to Kruger.
The discomfitted Kruger adjusted his glasses and quickly glanced through the hundreds of pages of diagrams and text of the Rammsteinburg propulsion system.
"Excellent, that is fine"

Harrison then asked
"The Package, has been delivered?"

"Yes, it was delivered to the Barons personal jet and will now be at Jade, i presume" Kruger replied.

With that he nodded to Harrison and walked out of the room.

Leaving Harrison very satisfied with himself, he had just succesfully completed the ultimate middleman deal.
He had exchanged one major powers most deepest secret for a nuclear warhead for a helion cruise missile from another major power. Not only did this flatter his ego, it made him extremely rich.
He sighed, It was time for Mr harrison to disappear.

Meyer looked sternly at the seaman as he slowly stepped forward, his eyes fixing those of the seaman. All the special forces group that came aboard had been selected for their multi ligual abilities amongst other things.

"Dont you try your goddamn slang on me, I am Rammsteinburgian thru and thru, my friend here is a much decorated special forces man, we are goddamn heroes and I am not going to listen to a snivelling traitor play games with me.
Son you give me that goddamn gun or your entire extended family will feel the pleasure of the security services, and I am sure you know what that means."
He noticed the sailor name tag and said
"So come on now volger, hand over the gun and take a seat, no one wants to hurt you, but right now you are in a power of trouble."

The captain heard the name von Holt and quicly went to the ships computer and ran through the personnal files until he came to the only Von Holt on board.

He spoke into his mic, Meyer heard in his earpiece

"von Holt is married and his wife just had their first son 2 months ago"

Meyer said, almost calmly
"Son the security services have just told us, you have a new son, now I dont believe you are a traitor, but your actions right now mean that your wife and baby are likely being picked up as we talk.
The security services believe them to be the family of a traitor. Personnally I dont, but you are sure as hell are acting like one. Now put the gun down and we will talk this through and get your family back home."

Matra
Kunesdorf

The Research Department 717 had been watching Harrison and his room for sometime, they were also aware of the Rammsteinburgians and their bugging of his room, but their instructions were to allow The Rammsteinburgian squad to remain active as Harrison was a "Joint" problem

But what Dr Paula Ramsey had heard from their own listening devices was that there was now a nuclear warhead in the hands of a man who at the very least wanted to start a civil war, at the worse start a international war using a nuclear war head.

Immediately she ordered the 717 snatch squad to grab Kruger as he left the room and the others were to grab Harrison. Both men would be the guests of the 717 interrogation specialists, men devoted to their work and never failed.

Dr Ramsey also ordered a transcript to be sent to her brother Duke Leo.

One other squad was sent to the apartment where the Rammsteinburgians were observing and to "invite" them to come along as well. It was time everyone did some explaining.

Rechburg Naval Headquarters
Malmaison
Rechburg

Admiral Ney was both watching and listening on the huge screens as Rammsteinburg and battlehawk ships suddenly started acting strangely.
The screen showed the Matra cruising south, although she had been moving slowly she was now moving much quicker.
But the Rammsteinburg forces were indeed puzzling.

His intelligence chief Andre Clooney came off the phone from Research Department 717, he walked up beside Admiral ney.

Ney stood transfixed, watching and trying to work out why the Rammsteinburgians had all of a sudden gone crazy.

He turned to Evans
"What do you make of it Andre, what the hell just happened>"

Evans whispered into the admirals ear
"717 believe the Baron has a nuclear warhead on Moir island, we also believe he may have a delivery system there as well, if not now; he will have when the Matra arrives, it carries Harpoon cruise missiles."

Admiral Ney looked at Clooney then whispered
"Oh my God, this is the nighmare scenario"

He looked at the screens again,
"But what the hell is happening there, with the Rammsteinburgs"

Clooney, a man who always followed his instincts
"My guess admiral is they have lost the Red Dawn".

Admiral Ney just muttered to himself
"Absolutely bloody amazing"

He immediately went to his desk at the back of the room and above the people below.
He spoke into the PA system

"This is Admiral Ney, as of this moment the Royal Rechburg Navy is at full war alert, all personnal off duty are to be brought back on immediately, all ships and aircraft ready for immediate action".

The Admiral then picked up the phone to his cousin Duke Leopold.

Meyer looked sternly at the seaman as he slowly stepped forward, his eyes fixing those of the seaman. All the special forces group that came aboard had been selected for their multi ligual abilities amongst other things.

"Dont you try your goddamn slang on me, I am Rammsteinburgian thru and thru, my friend here is a much decorated special forces man, we are goddamn heroes and I am not going to listen to a snivelling traitor play games with me.
Son you give me that goddamn gun or your entire extended family will feel the pleasure of the security services, and I am sure you know what that means."
He noticed the sailor name tag and said
"So come on now volger, hand over the gun and take a seat, no one wants to hurt you, but right now you are in a power of trouble."

The captain heard the name Vogel and quicly went to the ships computer and ran through the personnal files until he came to the only Volgel on board.

He spoke into his mic, Meyer heard in his earpiece

"Vogel is married and his wife just had their first son 2 months ago"

Meyer said, almost calmly
"Son the security services have just told us, you have a new son, now I dont believe you are a traitor, but your actions right now mean that your wife and baby are likely being picked up as we talk.
The security services believe them to be the family of a traitor. Personnally I dont, but you are sure as hell are acting like one. Now put the gun down and we will talk this through and get your family back home."

OOC: Vogel? It's von Holt.

Von Holt refused to give in. Continuing to point the gun, he said, in the most austere manner he could, "No. I will not put down my weapon. And I will not be fooled by your tricks. Rammsteinburg is not like that anymore! It hasn't been since the days of the first civil war. Whole families are not punished for the actions of one bad seed. I have no reason to believe you are truly Rammsteinburgian! You have done nothing to prove it to me! How do I know YOU aren't really terrorists? Prove it to me!"

Don't give in, Joachim, the seaman urged himself. Yet however hard he tried to look committed, in the back of the mind he couldn't help but think What if I'm wrong?

10:20 A.M.

Paul Katzenbach was an old, tired man. At the age of 72, he was only a few years away from his forced retirement. He had served his homeland, Rammsteinburg, in many ways throughout his life. As a arrogant young soldier, he was part of the Revolutionary Army which practically destroyed the monarchy in the first civil war, and he fought in some of the most historic battles of the conflict -- he had even been part of the platoon which raided the Royal Palace. For his hard work and dedication, he was awarded a commission in the new Rammsteinburg Army. Thirteen years of his life were spent there, and then, wary of military life, he left. The Rammsteinburg Special Intelligence Service quickly recruited him and five more years of his life were spent in the world of espionage. But he was not happy serving his beloved nation in that way, so he left for the foreign service at the age of 40. In that time he worked all over the globe, serving in some of the most magnificent countries on the Earth, as well as some of the nastiest.

And now the aging diplomat enjoyed the peace of the relatively boring work as ambassador to Rechburg. He had done little in his four months at the post. Most of his days were spent playing Sudoku until sunset. Sure, there would be meetings here and there, but usually about the most mundane topics one could imagine. Katzenbach never expected anything interesting to happen in his time in Rechburg, and he wouldn't have it any other way.

But then a mysterious phone call came through on the red priority phone. Katzenbach thought he was just seeing things at first, but then it hit him that there really was some sort of emergency! He nearly dropped his cup of coffee at this realization. He picked the phone up and answered.

"Ambassador Katzenbach. How may I help you?"

"Mr. Katzenbach, it's Hans Kohlberg," the main on the other end said.

Katzenbach was even more shocked now. It's the minister himself! he thought.

"Why good morning, Dr. Kohlberg! What's the problem?" the ambassador inquired.

"I'm sorry, but I can't go into details at the moment. I simply need you to contact Rechburg's chief of naval operations, or whatever they call the guy who leads their fleet, and give him my number. I need to talk to him immediately!"

Katzenbach paused in amazement at this suddenly interesting turn of events so long that the Minister of Foreign Affairs asked, "Hello? Are you still there, Katzenbach?"

"Oh, sorry!" the elderly diplomat said. "I... I'll make the call right away, sir."

"Great." Kohlberg hung up without even saying goodbye.

Jesus, Katzenbach thought to himself, what is happening?

The ambassador wasted no time in calling Admiral Ney.

10:22 A.M.

In the flag Combat Information Center (FCIC) of the battleship Rammsteinburg, Fleet Admiral Ward observed the movement of the Home Fleet on a large screen. As those tiny colour-coded dots slowly moved about, all he could think about was the immense damage done to national security and the distinct disadvantage at which Rammsteinburg's Navy would be if the Red Dawn fell into the wrong hands.

Admiral Ward failed to notice his usually steady hands shake.

<Tren Ler>

The BSWAT teams turned up and created a bullet proof blockade of the front enterance. The teams got out and began to plan the assualt.

<At Sea>

The Battlehawk task force began to spread out to aid in teh search

OOC: Battlehawk, just a bit of advice: Try to be more detailed with your RPs.

Naval Headquarters
Malmaison
Rechburg
Admiral Ney office
Chief of Naval Staff.

The phone rang on Admiral Neys desk, it was his Lynette his secretary

"Admiral I have the Rammsteinburgs ambassador Mr Paul Katzenbach on the phone".

Admiral Ney just shook his head, with all that was happening now he had the goddamn Rammsteinburg ambassador wanting a piece of the action. It was a call however he had expected.
He picked up the phone
"Ambassador Katzenbach, how can I help you"

Red Dawn

Commando Kevin Stark had been at the stern of the sub, handcuffing and sedating the crew in the rear torpedo room before he made his way forward, he was somewhat surprised to hear Meyer talking to someone about a gun; so he made his way forward as quietly possible.
He spoke via his microphone to the captain who told him of the situation between Meyer and this stupid sailor who was putting everything at risk.

It was most fortunate that he had left all the doors open when he went aft, so all he had to do was quietly make his way back forward. As he came out of the engine room he saw the sailor whith his back to him, he had a gun drawn and Meyer was talking to him.
Stark drew his silenced pistol from his shoulder holster and carefully took aim and fired hitting him in the back of the head and scatter blood and gore all over Meyer. The sailor fell probably not even aware of what had hit him.

Meyer simply brushed his face clean and said to others,
"Right get this heap of shit our of the way and get the rest cuffed and sedated".

He immediately made his way to the conn and reported to the captain that the situation was resolved.

The captain then ordered the helmsman to take her under the thermal layer and run quietand deep.
The sonar man reported all was clear except for the Matra as it made its way south.

For all intents and purposes it seemed Red Dawn had dissappeared.

In the small room where von Holt had hidden, things had been moved around by the frightened sailor. A Large tin of cleaning material started to shake as the submarine dove deep and passed throught the thermal layers with its heavy current. The shaking had been sufficent to bring the tin to the edge of the shelf, where it balanced precariously.

10:30am

George Clooney was not a brave man, the mere fact that he had been apprehended as he left Harrisons room had been enough to scare the daylights out of him. Being caught with secret papers from Rammsteinburg was enough to have him in serious trouble.
When he realised he was in the hands of the department 717 people he panicked. He just couldnt help him self, his knees gave way and he collapsed on his way out of the building, the men had to literally drag him to the car. When they threw him into the back seat they noticed with disgust the wet patch on the front of his trousers.

As Clooney babbled incoherently to himself, through his tear covered eyes he saw a bloody and shaken Harrison being dragged out and thrown into another car.
Still the convoy of cars waited and eventually another party of men were being escorted out of another apartment, however they were not being mistreated; Clooney just didnt understand any of this.

The one thing he knew was to save himself from the insanity many prisoners of department 717 suffered from he would talk; he knew he couldnt stand the pain of physical or worse the psychological torture that the 717 people were well known for.

10:30 A.M.

Agent Tobias Fletcher of the Rammsteinburg Special Intelligence Service, The Great Warlord Republic's foreign intelligence agency, was leader of the Rammsteinburgian component of the joint investigation of Governor von Brunswick. He operated under the name Agent Reading; his true identity was not known even to the Special Commandos under his command. When Commander Vogel learned of the arrest of Uhlrich and Clooney, he was promptly notified.

"Sorry, my dear," 'Reading' said to a tall, red-haired Rechburgian 10 years his junior. They were at one of the finest restaurants in Kunesdorf. "I really must go. Important business."

The woman did not bother to hide her disappointment. "I've hardly gotten to spend any time with you for the last month!" she protested. "You're the boss. Can't you delegate some more tasks to your subordinates and take a little time off?"

'Reading' put his hand on the woman's. The softness of her flesh made him regret that he had to run off -- and that he would likely have to return to Rammsteinburg soon. He began to gently rub her long, pale fingers, cherishing every moment of it. With genuine sadness he replied, "I must, Sarah. I absolutely must. Believe me, there's nothing more that I'd like to do than be with you right now, but something has come up and only I can fix it.'

Sarah sighed. "Alright," she said, "go tend to your business. I'll be at my apartment, waiting."

"I'll be back as soon as possible," 'Reading' said. He lifted her hand and kissed it. He said goodbye, left some money to pay for their meal, and then hurried outside.

While walking to his car, he began the process of switching from 'casual mode' to 'business road'. He had to push the beautiful Sarah out of his mind for now. He had to put on a serious face and walk with an air of authoritarianism. And most importantly, it was time for him to throw his mind into high gear and begin analyzing every minute detail presented to him.

'Reading' came to his car, a black luxury coupe -- one perfectly matching his assumed identity as a high class business man. He hopped in and quickly backed out of his parking space and drove to where the two capture spies were being taken.

Not being big on unnecessary multitasking, 'Reading' preferred not to think when driving. When driving, he liked to just drive. But today it was hard for the Rammsteinburgian agent to separate the two tasks. He could not help but think of his disgust at Uhlrich's treason. But I've suspected it for a long time. Almost since the beginning of this mission. And now my suspicions have sadly been confirmed. But at least there's no proof of the others being involved in it. 'Reading' had been having other SIS agents spy on the rest of the Special Commando Unit team.

10:37 A.M.

Commodore Bootsmann's squadron sailed right past the Matra, heading north as the Rechburgian ship headed south. On the main deck of the Arleigh Burke class destroyer RNS Meister, an intelligence officer took notice of the ship and identified it as the one which called in reporting troubles and its destination of Moir Island.

A thought suddenly developed in the officer's head, something that had been thus far overlooked because of the panic caused by the Red Dawn incident. Why would that Rechburgian ship be heading all the way to Moir Island? There's plenty of Rammsteinburgian bases and outposts nearby with adequate facilities to tend to its needs. What's on that island anyway? I thought it was abandoned. He stared at the Matra.

Oh well, he thought. It's odd, but not important. We have more important matters to deal with. The officer put the Rechburgian vessel out of his mind and headed below deck.

"Yes, hello," Ambassador Katzenbach said. "I am calling to inform you that Dr. Kohlberg, our Minister of Foreign Affairs, is requesting you contact him right away. I don't know about what, though, but he sounded like it was urgent, and I've never known the minister to over dramatize trivial matters. His number is international area code 65A, local area code 455, 234-9432, extension 100."

that sucks

Naval Headquarters
Malmaison
Rechburg

Admiral Ney may took note of the number, he was about to ring the Ministry of Foriegn Affairs in Rammsteinburg when he was handed a note about the arrest of a double agent in Matra and the secret Information. He was also informed that the possibility that there was a Nuclear warhead or missile on Moir Island.

He immediately rang Duke Leopold, he was informed the Duke was already on his way to Naval Headquarters, and should arrive by Helicopter in 10 minutes.

Admiral Ney had time to ring the Rammsteinburg Foriegn Minister.

He had his secretary place the call, a few moments later Lynette buzzed and him via the intercom and told him Dr. Kohlberg the Minister for Foriegn Affairs
was on line.

Admiral Ney picked up the phone
"Minister Kohlberg, a rare pleasure, I believe you wished to speak to me".

"You believe correctly, Admiral. I have been asked to inform you that this morning a new submarine of ours, codenamed Red Dawn, went missing during it's inital at sea testing. We are not positive about anything, but we're considering the possibility that it was stolen. We would like to enlist your help, Admiral, in our search."

11:00am

Moir Island

Baron von Brunswick sat at the terminal in front of a massive screen, on it he was watching all the naval and air movements of the forces in the south sea area.
Using technology that allowed him to tap into foriegn satelite reports and his "weather satelites" that one of his multi-national companies specialised in he had all the relevant information at hand.

He sat in a bunker deep beneath the southern hill range, the complex dug out months ago under the pretext of mining and exploration. The technology was awesome, but for one of the richest men in the world, it was nothing.

Around him running this complex were technicians and milirtary personal that had been selected because of their loyalty to Brunswick ambitions, to the belief in the Greater Kunersdorf, and in a rare case or two; just money.

Von Brunswick knew he was well protected, the island was safeguarded by a complete "Safeguard missile system". It was one of 3 AA missile systems that Rechburg had purchased over the last 12 months, the other two were already being installed in Rechburg; the third had been reported as being "held up due to technical difficulties. No one doubted General Scoringe, the arms procurement Officer for Rechburg Military and a loyal Kunesdorf nationalist, he had simply redirected the entire missle system to Moir Island where the technicians had wired it into the defence complex of the island.
The missile system was capable of hitting aircraft over 1100 km away using satelite and in built systems. That meant he was capable of hitting aircraft over Rechburg, Rammsteinburg or Battlehawk.

On the ground he had several batteries of helion cruise missiles, these sea skimmers could take out ships out to an equal range, though currently only having a high explosive capability, he also had one that was armed with a nuclear warhead.
Protecting all this Baron von Kunesdorf had 500 of the most experienced Kunesdorf special forces and Mercenaries.
The entire island was covered with observation cameras and electronic sensors, any movement could be detected and reported almost immediately.

For now Baron von Brunswick, just sat watching all the movements and marvelled at the confusion his plans must be causing his opponents.
The greates sadness so far was that Harrison had been caught, but that wasnt too much of a problem as he suspected Harrison of being a traitor to the Kunesdorf cause. His god money led to his demise.

The Red dawn had been his most brilliant achievement thus far. Months of planning the operation, securing the best personnal and the intricate plans within plans had all the hallmarks of brilliance. The theft of the submarine was causing a huge headache for the Rammsteinburg Government, but after all it was bait not essential, the secrets of the propulsion system were already out in the world, the copies Harrison had on him were only one of several. Already large sums of money and promises of aid were being delivered as the secrets were being passed on. What did the Red Dawn matter to him, it was merely a means to an end.
Even now, von Brunswick mused to himself, the players are all playing their bit, some are seeking the Red Dawn, some are wondering about the Matra, others chasing agents and by now no doubt Moir island is foremost on many minds. But do any of them know the storm about to be unleashed, a storm that will unleash a war and the creation of a Greater Kunesdorf.

11:01 A.M.

Aboard Commodore Bootsmann's Flagship, RNS München

Sonar Operator Seaman First Class Klaus Mueller was bored out of his mind, the initial excitement he felt at learning he was to be part of a massive hunt for a Rammsteinburgian submarine--exactly why, he didn't know--having faded after 40 minutes of hearing nothing but orinary noises. His mind began to wander. He thought of his fiancee back at home and of attending Petty Officer Training School in a month. And he regreted not waiting until after college to fulfill his military obligation as an officer.

At least my watch is over in half an hour he thought.

- - -

Zachary Rommel sat in a corner, covered in blood and staring at the two corpses a few feet away: one of his wife, and the other the unknown assailant's. His phone was ringing, but he payed no attention to it. He didn't even think of it. He didn't think of anything.

- - -

"Nobody's picking up still, sir," one of Agent Helch's subordinates told him.

"Right, then," Helch said. "You and Johannson head to Rommel's apartment."

"Yes, sir."

11:02 A.M.

Aboard the RNS Rammsteinburg


Fleet Admiral Ward examined a large map spread out on a table. "Where, oh were, could you be heading?" he asked, referring to the Red Dawn.

Matra
Kunesdorf

Clooney wasnt a brave man, once he had seen the impressive "hospital"s the department in Matra he decided talking was the only way he had of staying alive and of saving his sanity.

He told everything, after all he was only a buyer, he hadnt been involved in the theft or any treason.
Clooney was a Battlehawk arms dealer, he had possible customers in the Battlehawk Government as well as independent buyers. He was shocked to learn that several copies of the "secret drive system" were now out in the public domain, the sheer dishonesty repulsed him. Clearly he thought there was no honour in dealing with thieves.

The Rammsteinburg commando team had, been interviewed, but due to the escalating tensions rather than sending them packing, it was best that since this man was involved in Rammsteinburg espionage, both he and Harrison would be handed over to the Rammsteinburg team, on the condition both would be made available for evidence against Baron Brunswick should it be required.

Commander Vogel assisted--rather roughly--the handcuffed traitor, Uhlrich, into the back of an official SUV provided by the Rammsteinburgian ministry. The rest of the commando team was already in the vehicle, with Agent 'Reading' at the wheel. The SIS agent had just finished skimming through the documents Clooney gave Uhlrich and decided to call the ambassador to schedule a flight back to Rammsteinburg. 'Reading' had yet to hear anything about the Red Dawn incident.

"Ambassador Katzenbach," the elderly diplomat said.

"Good morning, sir. It's Agent Reading. One of my commandos, Captain Uhlrich, had been apprehended for espionage. We found him with what appears to be a technical manual or something for a submarine propulsion system and--"

Katzenbach cut him off. "Did you say submarine propulsion system?" The ambassador connected the dots in his head. "Mr. Reading," he said, "I think what you found may prove to be very important. Something's going on today, and I don't know what, but I have a guess..."

11:03

Engrypted message

From Naval Headquarters
Malmaison
Rechburg.

To: Captain of Matra
From Admiral Ney
Chief of Naval Staff

Have received your message regarding damage to water condenser, you are ordered to seek assistance from nearest Rechburg destroyer Flotillas 3 and 4 which are approaching from the west. They have been instructed to assist you, expect a condenser arrival by helicopter soonest.
You are not, repeat not to continue to Moir Island.
On receipt of this order you are to turn west and join nearest Rechburg Fleet vessels.

Admiral Ney

Red Dawn

The sonar operaters reported the Matra steaming away to the south, it was by now almost 15 miles away. There were several naval vessels nearer, the sonar operater couldnt be ceratin of nationality as many of the nations used similar vessels.

The captain ordered the two torpedoes replaced with 2 more harpoons, this will give them a first salvo of 4 cruise missiles if or when needed.

Red dawn continued sailing ever so quietly north, towards Rammsteinburg and the Rammsteinburg Home Fleet.

The RBS Intrepid plowed through the water as she turned on another search tack. In the Command ready room Christina sat with Liam.
"What do you think is going on then?" She asekd liam
"She could have been stolen" LIam commnted "Could of course have suffered a mechanical fualt"
"Indeed" Christina replied

<Tren'Ler>

SWAT Sergeant James Bauer led his four man element towards the north side of the Libary
"Team one in postion" He reported
"Team Two reday"
"Team three ready"
"Team four ready"
"70-David to Ten David, request entry clearence" James reported.
"10-David here, entreance authorised, you are clear to enter"
James signled to his officers and they took up postions at the door as James picked the lock. As the lock clicked open James steadied his M4 and quietly opened the door. The Tactical flashlights on the front of the officers weapons illuminated the darkened corridor
"They've cut the lights" Blue one commented "And seem to have blocked out all windows"
"They've been planning this for too long" James commented as they entered the building and closing the door as they headed for the first intersection.

OOC: If its not too much of a pain could one of you play the terrorists, this does have something to do with the theft.

OCC - I will try to do this later today for you. can you give me some parameters

Are they a fantaical group, heavily armed and roughly how many.
I dont want to presume too much in case I spoil your thread.

Red Dawn

The sonar operaters reported the Matra steaming away to the south, it was by now almost 15 miles away. There were several naval vessels nearer, the sonar operater couldnt be ceratin of nationality as many of the nations used similar vessels.

The captain ordered the two torpedoes replaced with 2 more harpoons, this will give them a first salvo of 4 cruise missiles if or when needed.

Red dawn continued sailing ever so quietly north, towards Rammsteinburg and the Rammsteinburg Home Fleet.

OOC: Towards Rammsteinburg???

OCC

Yup, and like everyone else you would be thinking its fleeing. Instead there is mischief. What else would expect from meglamanics such s the baron and myself.

11:05 A.M.

Flag Combat Information Center
RNS Rammsteinburg

"Sir, the satellite images of Moir Island are available now," Admiral Koontz informed his boss.

"Put them on screen."

On the large screen in the middle of the flag CIC, a high-quality satellite image of Moir Island taken half an hour ago appeared. Fleet Admiral Ward studied it carefully.

"Hmm, these buildings could be part of a military installation. They might not be. There's really no way to be certain," the C-in-C of the Home Fleet said with unhidden disappointment.

"How likely do you think it is that this island is the intended destination of the Red Dawn?" Koontz asked.

"It's hard to say. We're still not even sure that it was stolen. They could've suffered a mechanical problem."

"Active sonar swept the area between the launch location and the rendeszvous point. And besides, there's over 5 ways the sub can send an emergency distress. I think it is wise to assume the Red Dawn has been taken--by whom, I'm not sure."

Ward always held his chief of staff's opinion high regard. "This is true, this is true. You may be right, Admiral," he said. He thought. "To be honest, I've had a gut feeling all morning that Red Dawn was stolen. But you know how reliable gut feelings can be..."

"But you know how useful they can be, too, sir," Koontz responded.

"Yea, I can't say I haven't been forced to relay on them in my many years in the service. And experience seeemed to just increase their accuracy."

"I think the thing is that sometimes gut feelings have a logic basis, it's just that we aren't able to verbalize it."

Fleet Admiral Ward examined the map harder. "If only I could know for sure," he said. "But we can't. We have to relay on guesswork for now. And my best guess is that the Red Dawn has been stolen, and Moir Island seems the most likely location within a 500 mile radius."

"What if they plan to not surface until they reach their homeland? They could be heading outside the 500 mile radius."

"Yes, Admiral Koontz, I asked myself the same question. But the only nation within 500 miles of us that has any resemblance of a navy advanced enough to even have people capable of operating such sophisticated technology is Rechburg. And I doubt the Rechburg government is behind this. And I figure that the crew of the Red Dawn is dead. And they'll have to get rid of the bodies due to smell and serious sanitary concerns."

"I see," Koontz replied.

Ward continued. "I think Moir Island is the most likely location, because of the 5 islands not controlled by Rammsteinburg within that 500 mile radius, Moir is the only one with anything built on it. It's one of the furthest away from Rammsteinburg, as well. Now, I could be wrong, but I believe it best to play it safe and assume for now that it's the destination."

"Right, sir. So, what do we do?"

"I haven't worked out the entire details yet. We'll definitely send some ships to patrol near the island."

"We could also mine the waters near the island, sir," Koontz suggested. "There is a Mine Warfare Squadron located at Home Fleet Outpost #4, led by my nephew, Commander Phillip Walden. They have at least 3 minelaying vessels, I believe."


"Good idea, Admiral!"

"Thank you, sir."

"Okay, then. Let's get working on the details of this plan."

- - -

John Katzenbach's hands were sweaty. The thought of a Rammsteinburgian submarine stolen... it was horrifying. And what if it were armed with nuclear warheads? The ambassador hoped that he was wrong.

Agent 'Reading' told him that the traitor, Uhlrich, had been working for a Rechburgian governor, Baron von Brunswick. He was only vaguely familar with the man. He had heard the rumours of the seperatist movement like everyone else who had been in Rechburg for more than a week had, but he never took them too seriously. But now it seemed very likely that they were true.

Just think of what he could achieve with a submarine with a new silent propulsion system... He shuddered.

Katzenbach knew he needed to make some calls. He dialed Dr. Kohlberg's direct numbered and waited anxiously.

One ring... Two rings... Three rings. Come on, pick up! he thought. Four rings.... "Kohlberg here. Hello?"

"Oh, hello, sir! I was worried you wouldn't pick up. I--uh..."

"What's the matter, Mr. Katzenbach?" the minister asked. "You sound like somebody's got a gun to your head."

"I'd rather that than have what I suspect be true. Doctor Kohlberg, I was recently informed by an intelligence officer working here in Rechburg that a double agent was just caught with documents on what seems to be a submarine propulsion system."

Kohlberg dropped the phone.

"Hello? Dr. Kohlberg?'

The minister got control of himself and picked the phone back up. "Yes, I'm here, I'm here. Listen, Mr. Katzenbach, don't tell anybody else about this until you here from me. And get those documents in your hands and faxed to my office at once!"

"There's a lot of pages, sir."

"Yes, but we don't have time to wait for it to be flown back here, do we?"

"I understand, sir."

"Good. Now do as I've instructed. I have some urgent calls to make!" Again, the minister hung up without even saying hello. There was no time to worry about manners today.

Back in Rammsteinburg, Kohlberg phoned Dr. Toby Loch, Minister of the Navy, who was on his way to Home Fleet Headquarters in Ark.

OCC

Sadly guys I will be out of action today, I will catch up tonight... A busy day at work due.

Regards

The Black Baron

OOC: Well theres a fair amount of them and as stated in post they are well prepered, so well armed and booby traps. And as i siad they are to do with the Red Tide, so what ever is best for the plot

11:07 A.M.

Alfred Eckhardt grinned. He was pleased with himself, and he felt no sadness at the thought of leaving his homeland, Rammsteinburg, never to see it again in his life. In fact, he was happy about finally leaving the sordid place. He hated Rammsteinburg. He was tired of fighting to make it better; his days as a revolutionary were over. At the age of 64, he had spent the majority of his life working hard for a cause in which he believed, but now, a weak and gray-haired old man, he had finally given up, and all he wanted now was to relax. Eckhardt was one of the leaders of the notorious Blackcoats group, the hardcore capitalist terrorist organization which pushed The Great Warlord Republic into it's Second Civil War. Most of his friends were gone now, either dead or rotting away in prison cells, and he had just narrowly escaped both. Two of fingers were lost fighting for the Cause, a long scar running from his right ear almost to his chin destroyed his once handsome face, and he was forced to walk with a cane. And what good did I ever get in return? he asked himself.

Absolutely nothing, that's what. The Blackcoats failed to destroy socialism in Rammsteinburg. Sure, the nation became less socialist, but it really wasn't much of an achievement. And now, thanks to the Civil War, there was practically a military dictatorship in place! That was as bad as having a monarchy, which his countrymen in the First Civil War had fought against.

Eckhardt looked out the window of his limousine. Out on the horizon, beyond the hustle and bustle of a major Rammsteinburgian metropolis, lay the tranquility of a mountain and one of the nation's few remaining rain forests. The tired ex-revolutionary was struck by a sense of nostalgia, as he thought back to his childhood, when that big city was his little hometown and he would spent whole weeks in the forest with his father and brothers.

"We will be at the airport in ten minutes," the driver announced. Eckhardt would be leaving the country on his private Leer jet, registered under a false name of course, and would fly to his new home 800 miles away. With the money he gained from Baron von Brunswick, he purchased a modestly sized estate near a lake, and he could spend the rest of his life in peace.

I've done my part. I practically masterminded the whole thing. I recruited Rommel, I purchased the nerve gas, and I made sure every little part of plan would go smoothly. And I did it all making certain that I could not be connected to any of it. I'm safe. This was my final blow to this horrible country from which I sadly come -- my last time spitting in the face of the corrupt government of Rammsteinburg. I'm done now. I'm done, I'm done, I'm done.

Tren'Ler - Blackhawk.

Karl Meinhoff waited, coldly calculating how many people were coming down the corridor, on his night vision screen he could see the light green eerie figures making their way carefully and cautiously down the corridor.
He smiled to himself, they were fools to have given himself so much time, and fools had to pay for their mistakes.
Calmly he reached for the twist lever, smiling to himself, he twisted the plunger.
Down on the corridor the two claymore mines, seated quietly in the darkness and disguised as meter boxes on the floor and wall, suddenly exploded sending literally thousands of metal balls hurling down the corridor, some ripping the walls to pieces, other tearing into flesh.

Meinhoff, still smiled to himself and whispered
"welcome to my place".

Red dawn - 11:15.

The captain looked at his watch, it was time.
Turning to the weapons team he watched them, and smiled with admiration at the profesionalism of his team. They had a thousand to one chance of surviving this operation, but like the gambler he was, those odds still offered the chance of success and ultimate glory as the man who struck the blow against Rechburg and Rammsteinburg.
Rechburg because the accursed Duke had killed his wife and child two years ago, killed in a car accident when a heavy tank transporter had crushed their car. In the following investigation the authorites saif it was an unfortunate accident, accident he whispered to himself.
Her car was stopped and the drunken truck driver had lost control, the damned Government just dismissed it as a sad and unforunate accident.
As for Rammsteinburg, that hive of fascists had killed both his parents in the civil war, so this was a double blow against the hated people of both nations.

"Sir we have locked in all the co-ordinates to the harpoons, the GPS and sonar co-ordinates have been programmed and accepted'

The captain looked at the screen, it was quiet and the distant ships all were heading into the wrong areas.

"Aye, thanks simon" the captain whispered, he smiled to his men that were close by and said " its time gentleman, bring us up above the thermals."

The submarine silently drifted up through the thermal layer, slowly and quietly she shouddered through the current of cold water, rising from its protective liar; the Red dawn prepared to strike.
The Captain looked to the sonar screen, then to the water gauge, almost through the thermals, we are safe.

Further aft in the cleaning closet the the tin with cleaning materials had been shuddering and shimmering on the shelf, finally with the last shake it fell hitting the metal deck with a crashing clang and a combination of rattles and bangs.

11:15am

Moir Island

The General walked over to the Baron
"Your excellency, its time"
The Baron looked up, shaken from deep thoughts he looked at the clock on the wall, then to the General, he nodded
"So be it General, let us strike for freedom".
Baron von Brunswick picked up the phone and dialled the number of his commanders in Kunesdorf.
"hello"
The baron said firmly,
"This is eagles nest, you are to start Operation Condor", he then replaced the phone and sat watching the huge screens on the opposite wall.
Down below him, people were frantically tapping keyboards and or speaking into microphones.
For all of them, this was their moment of truth, for some huge riches; others revenge and for a few a sense of nationalism so long denied them.

"Aww shit!" James cursed as he threw himself to the ground "TOC, multiple detonations, no contact from the other teams, my men seem fine!"
James got back to his feet
"Shout up lads"
"Red 1, I'm hit but ok"
"Red 2, no hits"
"Blue 1, took one in the leg sir!"
Blue 2, One in the arm Serge"
"Thermal imageing" James mutterd "Search for the heat Signiture of any more bombs"

11:17am
Aboard Matra

The captain knew he had major problems, too many unexpected eventualities had occurred.
First he could never understand why the siezure of the Submarine had been part of the plan, then why had he been ordered to sit right out here in the middle of the south sea; alone and vulnerable.
The only answer that he kept coming back was he was a pawn in a bigger game, and as he knew all to well; pawns were expendable.

The problem was did he want to be a pawn in a game that resulted in either the death of hundreds of his men, or the shame and ignomony of a naval enquiry.
Also he had to wonder about his men, most were Kunedorf born and raised, but did that make them loyal and devoted followers of the Baron, he doubted that.

He walked from the terminal to terminal in the CiC, he needed time to think, right now he needed time and he wasnt being given that luxury.
The one thing certain, was that he was surrounded by ships that could sink him in an instant were the truth be known, but right now; all that was known was that his ship was in some difficulty due to a faulty condensor.
All he had done in this crazy scheme was perhaps cover the Red Dawn in its escape, but that could be described as an unintentional accident.

But with this message ordering him to turn around and rejoin the Rechburg Fleet, that now meant he had to make the choice.
Anther thing was now certain, The Rammsteinburg ships near the horizen and the Rechburg ships just over the horizen were not going to allow him to reach Moir Island; the only thing left was to choose life over death, glory over shame.

Tren'Ler - Blackhawk.

Meinhoff was surprised that two claymore mines had caused so little casualties, damn he cursed to himself, perhaps i should have placed them myself.

The dust and dirt of the explosion finally cleared enough for the camera to show a hazy collection of figures as they were picking themselves up, then it went black.

Meinhoff switched to the other camera that covered the intersection, he saw the damn Blackawk squad continuing along the hall.

He whispered into his mic
"Petra, they are coming your way"
The response was an affirmative click on her mic.
Hidden just around the corner of the hallway, both Petra and Denis, brother and sister waited for their death, but in their death they would would take many of these dogs with them.

She could hear them, the scrambling of feet on rubble, the whispers and the grunts from wounded men. Petra smiled at Denis, place on finger on her lips, then to his; he smiled back.
The enemy were only meters away when the two terrorists brother and sister in life and death stepped out and sprayed the hallway with machinegun fire, then pulled the cords on the bomb vests, the explosion was devastating, the walls and roof collapsed in, the entire section of the building collapsed.

All the screens that showed images of that part of the building were now showing white haze, Meinhoff, watched not knowing what happened, but burnt in his memory with love was the brave image of his two comrades who died so honourably.

"Gold Leader" TOC said "It's confirmed the other teams have taken injuries and are pulling back"
"Understood, Gold out"
James led them to a corner where he used hte Optiwand to pere around the corner when a massive explosion ripped through the building bringing the down in that area. James pulled himself out form under some rubble and looked around
"TOC, my team is down, Red 2 is dead, the others seriosuly injured, I am continueing on myself"
"Negative Gold one!"
James ignored and went a different way

11:12 A.M.

Fleet Admiral Ward, Admiral Koontz, and CINCHMFLT's operations officer, Vice Admiral Bismarck were busy deciding how to deal with Moir Island when a Signalman First Class burst in with an urgent message. "Sirs," he said as he stood at attention and saluted the three flag officers, "a message from the Minister of the Navy has just arrived."

"Hand it over, son," said Admiral Ward. The sailor complied and was dismissed. Ward read over the short message in a few seconds.

"What's it say, sir?" the operations officer said.

Ward was as shocked as he appeared. "Good news and bad news. It is now almost certain that Red Dawn was stolen. However, we have a likely suspect in its theft. It appears a double agent was captured by the SIS who had on him the technical manual for Red Dawn's propulsion system. And this man was working for a Governor von Brunswick of Rechburg... whose been rumored to be leading a separatist movement."

"I see," was all Admiral Koontz could say. Vice Admiral Bismarck did not respond at all.

What now? the Home Fleet commander asked himself. What now?

- - -

After calling Minister Loch, Kohlberg called the Rechburgian ambassador. He waited impatiently as the phone rung.

- - -

"Mr. Rommel, open up!" Agent Johannson yelled. He pounded on the man's door. "Ministry of War Criminal Investigations Unit! We need to ask some questions." He knocked again, but no response.

The other agent, Agent Schmidt, spoke this time. "Mr. Rommel, if you don't open up this door, we will be forced to break it down! Do you understand?" He knocked furiously, but nobody answered.

"Alright," Schmidt said, "I'm kicking it down." Johannson nodded.

The CIU agent stood back against the opposite wall and took a deep breath. He counted in his head: one ... two... three! He ran up to the door and kicked it open. What he saw became instantaneously burnt into his memory...

"Sweet Mother of Jesus!" Schmidt yelled.

"What the hell?" Johannson said.

Blood was splattered all over the place. Two bodies, one of a man and the other of a naked woman, lay on the floor. Items were scattered all over the floor, including a broken lamp that appeared to have been used on the dead man. It was certainly not a sight the agents had expected to find.

And in the cover, shivering, was the stupefied Zachary Rommel.

- - -

OOC: See the OOC thread.

11:15 A.M.

"Sir, I've heard something!" announced Sonar Operator Second Class Reinhard Stockholm with excitement. He was on board the Dactyl class cruiser (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=567894&highlight=Dactyl+class) RNS Nurnberg. "It's like a bunch of junk fell off a shelf or something."

The cruiser's captain gave the order to turn on active sonar. The familiar pings that sends a shiver down every submariner's spine immediately emanate from the ship.

Red dawn

"For Christ sake what the hell was that" yelled the capatin.
Everyone in the conn looked to each other, shaking their heads.
"I'll take care of it", yelled the CPO as he ran out of the Conn towards the area of where the noise came from.
The Capatin quickly overcoming his shock, glanced at the weapons panel, gratified to see the Green lights on the weapons systems. He looked to the WO, who simply nodded and said
"We have 100% resolutions and are set to go sir".
"Fire damn you, Fire".
He then turned to the PO by the Helmsmen
" Take us down quick, get under that thermal"

The four Harpoon sea skimmers launched out of the submarine, escaped from the enclosed tubing and quickly gathered their data from the satelites and their on board computers.

1 harpoon was less than 2 minutes from the Rammsteinburg cruiser, the rest skimmed the sea, settling on their journey towards Rammsteinburg; below the radar horizen.

The captain snapped at the weapons officer
Get the torpedoes loaded and fast"
Though he knew the expression "fast" was futile, because with a skeleton crew on board nothing would be done fast, but maybe, just maybe we will have time.
Meanwhile the first harpoon, using its onboard radar simply looked, memorized the location, speed, and direction of the cruiser; checking is memory bank, the onboard computer confirmed the target and the missile flew 500mph staight into it

Plese see OCC thread.

OOC: The Dactyl class cruiser is angled to reduce radar cross section and built and with radar-absorbing material. Sorry I didn't originally post the link to the specs.

- - -

RNS Nurnberg

The launch of the Harpoon missile was picked up in the cruiser's Combat Information System. The bridge was immediately informed.

"Captain, four Harpoons launched, one heading straight for us, closing in fast!"

"Launch the SM-2s!" ordered Captain Harmon Volkinov.

One SM-2 Standard Missile was released and flew straight towards the incoming Harpoon.

The ship had already been called to general quarters. If it's a fight you want, Cpt. Volkinov thought, it's a fight you'll get. "Do we have a fix on the location of that sub?" he asked the CIC.

"Yes, sir."

"Fire the ASROC. I want her at the bottom of the sea."

"Aye, aye, sir."

With a tail of fire beneath it, a RUM-139 ASROC exited the ship's VLS and flew high into the air.

OCC
It would not have mattered at this close range, first because the position of your cruiser would have been fixed by the passive sonar and loaded via GPS computerised navigation program, Secondly radar absorbing material is valuable for long range radar evasion but at close range there just too many surfaces that cannot be covered, often inside, doors, gun barrels missile ramps, the radar housing etc ,etc. Not to forget you just fired a asroc which would have made a mess of any attempt at radar evasion. But for the purpose of this RP its of no consequence if you dont want the cruiser destroyed just claim it shot the missile down, but again in the time permitted by range it would have been a damned good system to have got it, but not impossible.

IC
The submarne quickly dove back beneath the thermal layer, the capatain whispered to the Helsman,
"go to 45 degrees, ensure silent drive is engaged."

Then all of a sudden the nighmare of all submariners, the sound of a counter attack.

"Conn, Sonar, we have just had a mk 46 drop in at 160 degress, it probably wame in on asroc, and its above the layer"
"Aye Sonar"
"Helm,Conn take us down 1000 metres and change to 33 degrees."
"Weapons, Conn, be ready with noisemakers if necesary"
The Captain looked at the waterfall, he could see the water temperature changing, He thought to himself,
"Damn we are going to get to another thermal if we get time."

The CPO came running back into the bridge waving a bucket
"This is what caused the bloody racket, a cheap sodding bucket, whoever heard of anyone having a metal bucket on a submarine designed to be super bloody quiet. Jesus H Christ, havent the goddamn Rammsteinburgers ever heard of plastic".

"conn Sonar the the torpedo has breached the layer and its gone active"

The captain said "drop us below 1200 metres and fast"

The captain was thinking For now the torpedo hasnt found us, it just was searching in circles, but it would soon, unless they made it to the next thermal.

Meanwhile the other 3 harpoons continued on their way to Rammsteinburg.

OOC: Okay. I wasn't exactly sure the ranges at which those things actually matter, plus the likely range between the Red Dawn and the cruiser. I knew that once I launched missiles of my own, though, that our location would be unable to be hidden.

The Harpoon was destroyed by the cruiser's missile just in time. Meanwhile, the torpedo within the ASROC was released and fell into the water. The captain of RNS Nurnberg sat patiently in his chair on the bridge, awaiting word of Red Dawn's destruction. Preoccupied with dealing with the stolen submarine, he overlooked the fact that three other missiles had been launched.

Fleet Admiral Ward just received the news: Red Dawn had been spotted! But his joy at its discovery was quickly overshadowed by horror when he learned that three Harpoon missiles were launched by the submarine and were on a heading towards Rammsteinburg. He could not be sure of the exact targets, unfortunately, so it was essential that the entire nation be ready. The Great Warlord Republic's land based anti-missile defenses and the Home Fleet were put on full alert.

Halfway between the Red Dawn and RNS Nurnberg and Rammsteinburg was carrier battle group two. It had started out the day engaging in routine exercises, and now its 12 ships were surprised to find themselves engaging in real action. The Nimitz class carrier RNS Köln was at the heart of the group, serving as flagship for Rear Admiral Hans Hoffbauer, III. Two F/A-18E Superhornets already in the air were given the task of shooting down the missiles. As the Harpoons traveled north towards The Great Warlord Republic, the jets flew south, straight towards them. In the event the F-18s failed, various cruisers and destroyers stood by, ready to assume the immense burden of responsibility.

Subcommander Gregor Thompson piloted one of the two powerful war machines. Having transferred from the Air Force a little over a year ago, he was on his first tour at sea. He only received all of his carrier qualifications a few weeks ago. But while he was new to the difficulties of flying carrier-based planes, particularly the notioriously hard task of landing, he was no rookie once in the air. Thompson had seen action several times before, and he currently had three kills to his name. The subcommander knew what was at stake, for in the Second Civil War of Rammsteinburg he witnessed a Harpoon missile destroy a tiny town in the country's northern most island. When he got the chance to tour the area on foot, he was absolutely disgusted by what he saw. An annihilated school, dead children... Gregor Thompson refused to let such a horrible thing happen again. No civilians are going to die today on my watch.

He got a fix on one of the Harpoons, only 14 miles away. This was his chance, and he wasn't going to miss it. One movement of his thumb released an AIM-9 Sidewinder. The air-to-air missile's infrared homing system locked on.

With almost all of her ships out of port due to the massive search for Red Dawn, Coastguard Service Outpost #2 was practically defenseless. Only two cutters, one unmanned, and a frigate undergoing repairs in dry dock were present. Unlike the Home Fleet outposts, it had no land-based missile defense system. One of the three Harpoons flew past the two Superhornets and headed straight for the vulnerable island outpost. By the time the missile was detected, it was too late. The single Goalkeeper CIWS of the manned cutter, RNS Kiel, fired in vain at the incoming Harpoon.

The missile struck the frigate RNS Zimmermann forward of her after VLS. A few missiles remained in the magazine--they were due to be removed later in the day--and were ignited by the blast. The ship was completely destroyed. Fifteen sailors and a dozen dock workers were killed.

Red Dawn

The sound of the on board sonar aboard the mk46 torpedo, was the sound of death, and that was the sound that the sonar man heard at that moment.

"Torpedo has us its at 400 metres, 135 degrees"
The captain looked to the waterfall, he was calculating quickly in his mind the speed and distance the submarine had to the thermal as oppossed to the speed and distance the torpedo had to the submarine.

"We just might make" he whispered to himself".

"300 and closing," the sonar man reported.

Then there was the shudder of the submarine as it went through another layer.

"Right, WO 2 noisemakes, now, now"

"Helm after the 2nd noisemaker. hard starboard 90 degrees and get us back above that layer".

The two noise makers were ejected out of the submarine, they both made hard "knuckles" of disturbance in the water, knuckles that would hopefully fool the sonar on the torpedo.

As the torpedo sped thru the layer, its on board sonar kept searching for the submarine, once clear of the layer, its tiny computer registered the presence of a solid structure immediately at 330 degrees; a slight shift and it was on track.
The sonar couldnt differentiate between water disturbance and metal, it simply was diverted by the 1st noisemaker, it crashed through the water disturbance, sonar still searching. It found a second solid presence and it continued on its downward dive, it passed through the 2nd "knuckle in the water and no longer having a "target" it continued searching, again back in a down spiralling pattern; until it hit the bottom of the sea, barely audible on the surface.

On board Red Dawn, the sweat and tension clearly visible, everyone breathed a huge sigh of relief. The captain licked his lips with a dry tongue, the adrenelin draining all moisture from his mouth.
He whispered
"Helm 5 knots, and let her drift on top of this layer"
"Sonar, whats happening"

"Our Harp, must have missed sir, no explosion, the cruiser is still there, its pinging away, but we are safe here, that damn first layer is thick sir"

The captain turned to the weapons panel, the lights were finally green with two mk48 torpedoes.
The down side being at this depth it would take a huge amount of oxygen to fire them, the good side' they only had half a crew breathing. However he reasoned to himself, we will keep them as a last resort. We are safe here, under that layer of thick cold water, obviously it was bouncing the sonar away, they could if necessary duck under the 2nd, but he didnt want too as the submarine was itself deaf under the 2nd layer. No this is a time for evasion and stealth, not a gunfight with the damn Rammsteinburg navy.

The men on the bridge, were nervously smiling at their captain, the CPO only too aware that it was the experience of Rechburg's greatest submariner that had saved them.

Tren'Ler - Blackhawk.

Karl Meinhoff couldnt believe the destruction at the far end of the complex, it was almost certain everyone down there was dead. But he couldnt be sure.
From camera's hidden on the outskirts of the area, Meinhoff could see the Blackhawk teams were pulling back, clearly with heavy casualties; but he couldnt be sure about the north end.
Despite the massive explosion, there could be survivors, so he told Diamond 1,2 and 3 to watch, these men were his best snipers; they would watch for movement.

Meanwhile Meinhoff had to prepare for his escape, he had to go down below and open the hatch so he and his people could escape to inflict pain and destruction on Blakhawk again.
He moved slowly from the tall lighting tower that had been his hidden command post, finally reaching the ground.
"He whispered into the mic,
"Diamonds 1,2,3 remain until we are clear then use plan Beta, the rest meet me at the hatch now".

On board a blackhawk helicopter 30 miles nor east of the Rechburg Military command complex in the Humbolt Mountains - Rechburg

Duke Leo very much enjoyed flying, in fact he was very proud of the fact that there was nothing in the Rechurg military that he couldnt fly. As the helicopter skipped over the rolling hills of the Lombardy region, he admired the patterns of the Vineyards, they were almost laid out chequerboard fashion.

His co pilot was airforce Colonel "Ripper" Mason, "Ripper was too old to be a active military pilot, but he wasnt too old to be the Dukes personal friend. In days gone by, Duke Richard IV; Leo's father had employed the Colonel to be Leo's military instructor; the years together had developed the relationship into a strong personal bond".
"Ripper" was very proud of his young protege right now.
Not only a capable military leader, but he had shown the maturity in governing his people, he was considered fair minded, but firm almost dictatorial in ensuring loyalty.

Duke Leo turned to his friend
"I guess its time I finally settled that vipers nest in Kunesdorf, I know you have considered me being too lenient in dealing with him, But quite honestly "Ripper" I wanted to give him rope to hang himself"

"Well Sire I think you have surely done that, with Kunesdorf now a hive of unrest you are going to have your handsfull."

"Well I have plans already under way Ripper, right now the 1st & 2nd Corps have crossed into Kuesdorf, the troops that are loyal to me in Kunesdorf are already making arrests."

He turned to look at his friend
"Dont worry Ripper its all in hand, I just need to work out what to do with Moir island"
"Sire, Nuke the shit hole, its only rocks anyway"
"Well Ripper that did occur to me, except if I know that bloody weasel the Baron, he will have buried himself deep, and further more I suspect Rammsteinburg may not be too happy with a radioactive dust cloud blowing north over their islands... could ruin the tourism for the next few hundred years".

All of a sudden, the threat panel lit up, the sqawking indicating that a missile had lock on the helicopter.

Instinctively, the colonel hit the flare button, sending a cloud of chaff and flares out of the launchers.
The Duke pushed the controls forward and dove for the ground, as he did so he yelled

"Where the hell is it"
The gunner in the rear starboard side, reported over the radio,
"Its a stinger, coming at us from behind"
The port side gunner yelled
"and one this side as well".
"Shit" exclaimed the Duke, he knew he had just ran out of time.

There was a vicious explosion just aft of the Blawkhawk helicopter , shards of hot metal shot through the rear of the helicopter disabling most of the controls and killing both gunners and all the Dukes aides. The 2nd missile went off, amongst the rain of Chaff and flares but the helicopter was already out of control and plumetting down. It hit the ground near the Rheinoff winery, one of the Dukes own wine estates.

*********************************************************************
The two Kunesdorf Special Service teams that had been hiding in two farms, quickly packed up their gear and vacated the area.
Lieutenant Steven Scoringe, son of general Scoringe had been told the Duke would fly this path when the emergancy started, since the SS teams had the radio frequencies, it wasnt difficult to determine when the Dukes helicopter was in the air and where it was going".
Lieutenant Scoringe was the proudest man in the Kunesdorf SS at the moment, he had struck the mightiest blow for the cause by asassinating the Duke of Rechburg; only the 2nd Duke to be killed in action.

Rechburg State Telivision News


Breaking news.

It has just been announced by Rechburg High command that Duke Leo's helicopter has been shot down. At this early stage it is to soon to determine if the Duke has been killed, all we know is that on a remote Winery in Lombardy, the burning remains of the Blackhawk helicopter are clearly visible.
Local residents reported seeing two trails of smoke heading towards the helicopter moments before the crash.
However at this time, we do not have any news if the Duke is alive or dead.

I repeat, there has been an Assassination attempt on Duke Leo, more details will follow"

RNS Nurnberg

"Anything, sonar?" asked Captain Volkinov anxiously through the cruiser's internal communications system.

"Conn, sonar, nothing, sir. I think they evaded the torpedo, Herr Kapitän," reported SO2 Stolkholm.

"Damn it!" the captain yelled. He was not shy about expressing his anger in front of his crew. Knowing the danger posed by extreme emotion, he quickly calmed himself and began thinking.

"Alright, alright," he said, speaking mostly to himself. "That sub may have escaped this time, but it's gonna take divine intervention for it to get past me again. I'm not calling it quits yet."

Captain Volkinov sent out a message to Commodore Bootsmann, the overall commander for his sector, requesting assistance. A response was promptly returned: every ship in a 20 mile radius would join in the fight. This force included 7 cruisers of the Manticore and Dactyl classes, 6 Arleigh Burke class destroyers, 4 Metzger class air defense destroyers, and the Nimitz class carrier RNS Adler. The two closest, the Burke class destroyer RNS Potsdam and the Manticore class destroyer RNS Kohl, immediately initiated their active sonar.

11:45

Red Dawn

"Conn, Sonar - we have multiple screws heading this way, indicating a shit load of ships sir."

The Captain looked to his 2IC, "Well it seems they dont like us"
He looked at the sonar plot, he was comfortable here, for the moment.

"Continue drifting, they wont hear us, and without a fix they would be damn divine intervention if they could hit us"

Change course to 360, stay on the top of the layer.

"Got it!" Subcommander Thompson announced joyously over his radio. One of the Harpoon missiles was destroyed by the AIM-9 Sidewinder launched by his Superhornet.

"Good job," said Commander Hans Braun, the other F-18 pilot, "but we still got one more to take down."

"Right-o."

The other Harpoon continued on its path towards Rammsteinburg. In another minute it would activate the automatic missile defense system at Klinger Air Force Base in the south of The Great Warlord Republic. Though the land-based system would likely stop the missile before it reached any place in mainland Rammsteinburg, the two pilots were determined to get to it first. Making a quick u-turn in the air, they sped after it. Once again, it was the ex-Air Force pilot Subcommander Thompson who got the fix on it first. Two miles directly astern of the Harpoon, he released another Sidewinder which instantly homed in on it. He was confident that the AIM-9 would hit its target, but he was shocked when it flew off course and began diving towards the sea.

Thompson cursed. Just what I need right now! A defective missile

The Harpoon was now only 30 seconds from being targeted by the land-based system.

"I'm not giving up yet!" Thompson said. He locked on to the missile and released another Sidewinder.

Come on... Come on... Come on... The subcommander bit his lower lip.

Only ten seconds remained before Klinger AFB initiated its own attack on the Harpoon. The Sidewinder was a mile astern and closing in fast. Thompson was worried now. The Harpoon had been detected by the ground system and was being targeted. A missile was only seconds away from being launched... But then the Sidewinder rammed into the Harpoon and both were annihilated in a massive explosion witnessed miles away by Rammsteinburgians ashore.

The successful F-18 pilot laughed over the radio and did a victory roll. Commander Braun congratulated him. "Great job, kid," he said. "I guess some Air Force guys actually do have talent."

The good news was relayed to Fleet Admiral Ward, who decided on the spot to award Thompson with the Silver Distinguished Flying Cross, the second highest medal given to Rammsteinburgian aviators.

OOC: Updated map coming soon. How far from Rammsteinburg should Red Dawn be located?

11:46am

Atlas Bay
Kunesdorf

Commadore Dan Perry, looked at his watch, he was a minute behind schedule.
He had been watching the satelite screens and radar plots reporting the concentration of Rammsteinburg ships.

He was commander of the 3rd strategic Missile command, a battery of 50 helion cruise missiles, some of the most advanced technology available.

The missiles had each been programmmed a target.

He looked up at the clock one more time and said " Fire"

On his command a swarm of Helion missiles left the launcher sites and immediately dove for sea level, there remaining below the radar horizen.
The missiles were a mix, they had Jammer definers that would seek out any location trying to jam them, they had anti radar missiles that would attack anything emmitting a radar energy, if choices were available they would select on type and size, and finally there were just the "Dumb" missiles; those preprogramed to look for selected targets.
All the missiles used stealth technology and were super sonic.

11:47am

Military Command

Radar Operator Stan Kline couldnt believe his eyes, he immediately instituted a systems check, it came back affirmative system ok.

He almost squealed
"hey did we just declare war"
The OOD immediately ran over to his panel screen,he typed up the operaterors code and there on the large screen was a mass of blips streaking out of Atlas bay.
He just stood there, watching, unbelieving; then exhaling he said

"Holy Shit"
Admiral Ney had heard the commotion as he just arrived at the Command Headquarters, he saw the blips and said
Yes son, it is Holy shit"
The day was going badly for everyone, especially for Rechburg. He had just been told the Duke and his staff including several high command officers may have been killed and that he Admiral Ney was senior commander.

He immediately said to the radio officer.

"Get hold of Rammsteinburg High Command, tell them they are under attack by Helion missiles fired by the Baron from Kunesdorf. Add that we will in the next 30 minutes have secured all Kunesdorf military installations; but for god sake tell them this is not a attack by Rechburg"

Moir Island

The baron had been watching the gathering of forces as they chased the Red dawn, just as he had predicted they would. The attack on Rammsteinburg was not in it self expected to do much, but the effects were traumatic, the enemy navy were concentrated and every ship was emmitting electronic noise of one sort or another.
Then he saw, as he had commanded, the missile Battery at Atlas bay had fired, 50 super sonic stealth missles, each a electronic genius would seek out the enemy ships and one by one would destroy the rammsteinburg Navy.
The Rammsteinburgs, had to believe this was a Rechburg attack, it would be the start of things to come.

11:46 A.M.
Naval Station New Ramm City

All of Rammsteinburg's satellites were monitored at Joint Homeland Defense Office, located in The Great Warlord Republic's largest naval base in its capital of of New Ramm City. Chief Radar Operator Lisa Mossel would have been stunned by what she saw on her screen the day before, but today, she had learned, was no ordinary day. Still, the sight of a massive missile launch frightened her like nothing ever had before -- and she had experienced the horror of war. It was one thing to be on a ship and have a missile fired at it... but this wasn't just one or two missiles! There were 50 of them... She thought of the damage they could do and felt a chill.

Red lights flashed and an alarm blared in the situation room. Warning messages were sent to all military installations in Rammsteinburg and within a 500 mile radius, as well as to all vessels. The entire military was placed on the highest alert level. Rammsteinburg had prepared for a situation like this, and all response plans were initiated.

Lieutenant General Timothy Stein, RMC was the officer in charge in the situation room at that time. He called the President-General, Fleet Admiral Fredenmuenster. Other officers were making calls to other top officials.

"What's happening, General?" Fredenmuenster asked. He was at his country retreat in the northwest.

"Bad news, sir. Fifty missiles have just been launched from Rechburg, and we believe that we're the target."

The President-General was an old man. At 74, he was well past the normal retirement age. He had been a tough-as-nails man who rarely showed any emotion in his youth, and when he did it was generally anger. Showing fear was not in his nature. But he was not as strong, physically or mentally, now as he had been, and he worried that he made his fear known in his response. "My god... What actions are you taking?"

"Sir, we're doing everything we've been trained to do. But unfortunately, we are not able to track the missiles. They must be using advanced stealth technology. We're trying, sir, we really are, but..."

"Listen," Fredenmuenster said, interrupting, "I trust that you and your men can handle this threat. You don't need to be wasting your time talking to me. Get to work, General!"

"Yes, sir! Goodbye, sir." The general hung up, rather surprised at how the head of state of The Great Warlord Republic had responded. But he could not afford to dwell on such oddities. Stein did as ordered and got back to work, though he knew the chances were slim that the missiles would be located before it was too late.

The battle cruiser RNS Jolt was the first the first victim of the massive missile attack. The Helion appeared on the ship's radar too late, for before the radar operator had time to make a report, the missile rammed directly into the forward 16-inch gun turret. The bow became practically non-existent. Another missile struck amidships. The once mighty warship list to port and in less than a minute was completely upside-down. Not long after Jolt started to sink, taking hundreds of officers and men to their graves.

Fleet Admiral Fredenmuenster's personal lawyer drafted the official declaration of war against Rechburg and was about to hand it to the President-General for signing when an urgent telephone came. It was the Rechburgians denying responsibility for the attacks and blaming Baron von Brunswick. Not ready to enter a war without having his facts straight, the elderly admiral held off signing the declaration and requested an immediate teleconference with Rechburg high command.

The President-General's decision to postpone the signing of the declaration of war disturbed his chief of staff and long-time best friend, Admiral Aaron McGill-Austerlitz, RN (Ret.). He pleaded with him, arguing that the window of opportunity for a good counterattack became smaller as each minute passed. "We have ships close enough to attack Rechburg. Third Fleet Outpost #1 is only over 100 miles away." But Fredenmuenster refused to listen. He insisted upon talking with the Rechburgians first.

"Aaron, we've had good relations with the Rechburgians for years" the President-General argued. "Do you really want to throw it all away just like that?"

"Sir, they've attacked us! Reports of strikes are already coming in. We have a sunken battle cruiser!" (It should be noted that McGill-Austerlitz only called the Fleet Admiral "sir" when upset; otherwise, they were on a strictly first name basis.)

"Yes, I know this, Aaron, but have you forgotten about the Baron von Brunswick rumors and his implication in the theft of Red Dawn?"

The chief of staff's tone grew more harsh. "We don't know that the whole Rechburgian government is behind this and that this separatist movement stuff is a trick," he said. "We can't afford to wait and find out."

"Aaron, my mind is made up! You're dismissed."

Thrown off guard by the President-General's sudden and uncharacteristic display of anger towards him, McGill-Austerlitz said, quite timidly, "Yes, sir." He left Fredenmuenster's office. As he did, he thought Joachim's putting the entire nation at risk. I've got to do something.

Commodore Bootsmann's group was hit hard by the Helions. Missiles seemed to fall from the sky like rain. Every few seconds another explosion could be heard and seen. No vessel was left unscathed. Three destroyers were barely keeping themselves afloat and one had sunken, and the carrier RNS Adler was dead in the water. All four frigates now rested forever at the bottom of the sea. Bootsmann's flagship suffered two nasty hits, one missile striking the starboard bow and the other aft of the after vertical launch system. Luckily, damage control teams managed to keep the fire from spreading to the magazine and igniting the ship's missiles. RNS München's speed was down to 10 knots and the crew struggled to fight fires throughout the cruiser.

OCC the Red dawn should be 100 miles or so from Rammsteinburg heading for the east coast.

Red Dawn

"Conn, Sonar, we have massive explosions on the surface"

The captain glanced at his watch
"Seems the Baron's plan has worked, damn that man should have been a psychic; a shame we will never meet him just once more"

He turned to the weapons panel, the weapons crew had finally had 4 Mk 48's loaded,
"WO, solutions on the biggest target and fire please"

"But sir at this depth we will use 75% of our oxygen, the 2IC interupted"

The captain turned on him,
"Dont ever second guess my orders, we fire and we then escape; do you have a problem with that".

"No sir" the 2IC muttered.

The captain looked to the weapons officer, he nodded.

The WO, satisfied he had targetable solutions hit the fire button, there were 4 distinctive thuds as each successive mk 48 was ejected out of the submarine, the sonars on passive until they closed, then they would become active.

The captain smiled, then said, "Right Helm, get us below the layer".

Atlas Bay
Kunesdorf
Rechburg

The radar operator reported the flight of Blackhawks as they were landing on the roof of the complex.
Commadore Perry sighed deeply.

"Right men send a signal to the surface, we are coming out, unarmed"

He had thought about this, he could have ordered his men to die in a firefight, but to what end, most of these men believed that Rechburg was under attack from Rammsteinburg, that theirs was the first strike in retaliation.
The rumour was confirmed when they heard reports that their Duke had been shot down, they were incensed and ripe for Perry's guile.

He followed the men out of the control room, told the last man he had papers to collect and he returned to the control room.
As the men waited near the lift, they heard a single gun shot, several ran back, to find their commander dead on the floor.

Now they were really worried, if as it seemed rammsteinburg was attacking Rechburg, why were Rechburg Special Service troops attacking their complex. Even more worrying was, why had their commander committed suicide"?

Four torpedoes raced towards RNS Adler. Both its nuclear and diesel power plants inoperable, the carrier was doomed; there was no possibility of evasion. Captain Kenneth von Oberhorst hated the feeling of helplessness. He wished there was something--anything--he could do, but he was out of options. The first torpedo struck the bow and was followed three seconds later by the second. The large and now useless ship shook from the explosions. Captain von Oberhorst lost his balance and fell on his XO, Commander Doenitz. Moments later two more torpedo blasts rocked the ship. Normally, damage reports would have flown into the bridge, but Adler's internal communications system was, like the propulsion system, out of service. The captain knew that the only thing left to do was send out the order 'ABANDON SHIP'. It was an order he issued with great reluctance. In his 20 years at sea, it was something he had always dreaded the thought of doing.

Commodore Bootsmann's morale was at an all time low. Two of the destroyers that had fought so hard to keep afloat had sunk in the last ten minutes, and now RNS Adler, after having been hit by four torpedoes, was abandoning ship. His own ship, RNS München was badly beaten up, but at least the fires had been put out. And though he was unaware of it, Rammsteinburg naval bases on Krawstein and Feuerberg Islands were under attack. Forty percent of the Home Fleet was damaged or destroyed.

The commodore paced about the flag bridge, contemplating his options. He wasn't ready to give up yet.

Moir Island

The Baron, almost leapt out of his chair as missile after missile slammed into the Rammsteinburg, each one a nail in the coffin of Rechburg.

My God this had done well, it seems he still had the Red Dawn, he had seriously damaged the Rammsteinburg fleet, it seems he had killed the Duke; the only questionmmark was the Matra. What would she do, sail south to Moir, or turn as ordered to rejoin the Rechburg Fleet.

RNS Rammsteinburg

Fleet Admiral Ward sat alone in his cabin, devastated by the surprise attack upon the Home Fleet. Twelve ships were sunk, and many others were damaged. Nearly half of the Home Fleet, a fourth of the entire Rammsteinburg Navy, was hit. Sure, the damage done to the fleet was not irrevocable, and there were still plenty of ships to defend the nation, but the moral damage would take a while to heal.

Ward thought of all the men who died. He thought of the families who had lost loved ones. So far, it had been a gloomy day for The Great Warlord Republic. And it's only half way through. The admiral looked at his watch. It was 12:14 P.M.

Aaron McGill-Austerlitz could not stand by and let the President-General put the homeland at risk. As much as he respected his boss and close friend, the retired admiral refused to put personal loyalties above the interests of Rammsteinburg. He knew that Rechburg had to suffer. Yes, it might have been a separatist group who was actually responsible for the sudden assault on the Home Fleet, but there was no hard proof and action needed to be taken right away. Let the diplomats sort out the mess later if the rumors prove true.

The President-General's chief of staff went to his room. An important call needed to be made, and it was crucial that it be done in private. He dialed the overseas number into his cell phone.

"Third Fleet Submarine Command, Rear Admiral Logan's office. Yeoman Second Class Pfeiffer speaking," a woman said. "How may I help you?"

"Hello, this is Aaron McGill-Austerlitz calling on behalf of Fleet Admiral Fredenmuenster."

The Yeoman recognized the name. She was excited to be speaking to such an important figure in the government. "Oh, why, good afternoon, sir! It's an honor. What can I do for you?"

"I needed to speak to Admiral Logan A.S.A.P." McGill-Austerlitz replied.

"He is out at the moment, but he should be back within the next ten minutes," said the yeoman.

"Okay, just tell the admiral that I called and have him contact me right away. It's as urgent as can be."

"Aye, aye, sir. Is that all?"

"Yes, thank you. Good afternoon, yeoman."

"Good afternoon, sir." The line was disconnected.

McGill-Austerlitz put the phone down and walked into his private bathroom. He examined himself in the mirror. A mild hatred for himself developed in his heart, as he had expected, though he knew he was taking the right course of action... at least he was fairly certain that he was.

If my plan is discovered..., he thought, if Logan doesn't agree with me... I'll be charged with treason and hung. He turned on the water and splashed his face. God help me...

12:20 P.M.

Alone in his private jet, Alfred Eckhardt watched the news report about the recent attack upon the Rammsteinburg Home Fleet.

A young female reporter stood outside the gates of Home Fleet Headquarters in Ark, where a large press crowd had gathered. Fleet Admiral Ward was due to to make a statement soon. The reporter spoke: "Today, an unexpected attack devastated the Rammsteinburg Home Fleet. An estimated fifty missiles struck at least 30 warships, some of them sunken and others damaged beyond repair. The details of the incident are not being released at this time. It is unknown to the public where the missiles came from and whether a declaration of war has been declared. All that we can say is that this is the largest blow to the Rammsteinburg Navy in the last two decades." A picture of RNS Adler appeared on the screen. Around the carrier were many packed lifeboats, as well as men in the water. Coastguard Service helicopters were in the process of rescuing the crew. "This here is the Nimitz class aircraft carrier RNS Adler," said the reporter. "It is one of many warships affected by today's tragedy." The woman reappeared on the screen. "This incident is just one of several unexplained events that have taken place today. Earlier this morning, an exercise being conducted by the Home Fleet was suddenly broken off. The navy then raised its alert level and engaged in what ex-sailors have told us appeared to be a massive search effort. Later, a missile destroyed the frigate RNS Zimmermann while it was in dry dock at a Coastguard outpost. It is unknown how, or if, these events are linked. Home Fleet Commander Fleet Admiral Viktor Ward will be issuing a statement shortly. Please tune into RNN for further details."

Eckhardt turned off the TV. He smiled and decided to celebrate this good news with some fine wine. He called the stewardess. She was a short, blond haired Rammsteinburgian with an excellent figure. Her uniform included a skirt that would've been deemed inappropriate by a commercial airline. She had been chosen for her resemblance to the ex-terrorist's late wife, and the sight of her always excited him.

"Hanna," Eckhardt said, "bring me that bottle I told you I was saving."

"Yes, Mr. Grün," she said. Her was was very light, and she kept her head down.

"Thank you, dear." Eckhardt stared at her rear as she left.

Alfred Eckhardt considered himself a lucky man. He may have never achieved his lifelong goal of eradicating the sick system of socialism from his homeland, but he did not care anymore. He could relax now. And he was safe. It was time for him to finally enjoy life.

Hanna the stewardess returned with a glass and a bottle of red wine. She poured her boss a glass and he sipped it slowly, savoring the exquisite taste. He had never been able to truly cherish the finer pleasures in life before.

Admiral Ney switched on the television in his office, for the first time today he was alone and felt he desperately needed the space.

Afew minutes later the regular program was interupted by a Breaking News item.

"This is Sandra Evans of TV 3, The Malmaison Military Hospital as issued the following press announcement.

"At 12:01pm today, Duke Leopold died as a result of serious injuries which occurred as a result of an assasination attempt. I repeat, Duke Leopold is dead......"

The Admiral, just sat there, he couldnt believe it, the reporter was still talking, clearly she was crying; but he could no longer hear her. His Duke was dead, god this was going to have enormous repercussions.
He looked at the photo of the Duke on the wall, standing their with his son Prince Blaise, the words "Avenge me' seemed to be screaming out at him

A sailor knocked on the door of Fleet Admiral Ward's cabin. "Admiral, the press is waiting. You were expected ten minutes ago, sir."

Ward sighed. His shirt was untucked, and he held a glass of scotch in his hand. His eyes were that of a very tired man. The 63 year old admiral felt his age for the first time. Yesterday he had maintained unusually youthful energy and extreme confidence; today, he felt impotent and suffered from low self-esteem. He thought back to when he was an ensign aboard the battleship RNS Engel, and he remembered witnessing a nearby destroyer get pulverized by the 16-inch shells of an enemy battleship. And he recalled sailors screaming "Help me!" as their ship fell towards the bottom of the sea. Some of them were rescued, but some were killed by the gun of a low-flying plane. It was his first taste of action -- his first time being confronted with the mortality of man.

"I'm getting too old for this," Ward said out loud. He completely ignored the sailor outside his cabin.

Faces appeared in the fleet admiral's mind -- faces of men and women with whom he had served in his five decades in the naval service. Among them were some close friends of his. A tear was shed for each.

- - -

"No response, sir," an aide informed Fleet Admiral Fredenmuenster.

"Well, try again! It's important I get in touch with the Rechburg High Command!"

"Yes, sir. I'll try again."

In the corner Aaron McGill-Austerlitz stood silently, staring contemptuously at the President-General. His cell phone vibrated and he excused himself to answer the call. He went down the hall to his room to answer.

"Hello?" he said.

"Good afternoon, sir. It's Admiral Logan. I understand you wanted to speak to me."

The chief of staff grinned mischievously. "Yes, Admiral, I did. Are you alone?"

Malmaison Palace.

The mood in the palace was sombre, the late Duke's wife Duchess Foy was grief striken, no matter who tried, no one seemed to asauge her grief. He had offered his condolences, these were plainly too inadequate, but he had done all he was capable off at this time.
The Household had sent urgent messages for the Prince, however he was currently in Kunesdorf leading the Rechburg occupation of that province, it would take some time for him to return.

Admiral Ney had travelled from Naval headquarters to see her, however he could not stay due to the extreme situation. He made his apologies and was quite relieved to get out of the grief srtiken atmosphere of the palace.

Arriving at the general headquarters he was given a situation report, he contained devastating reading.

The Rammsteinburg Navy had taken a huge hit, apparently there had been no communication with his counter-part in Rammsteinburg.
Since the major missile attack the Red dawn seemed to have disappeared, there had been no word from the Matra, the Duke was dead and there was moderate resistence to the Ducal forces occuppying Kunesdorf.
The only good reading was that all the strategic weapon sites in Kunesdorf had been secured by airborne and special forces.

After reading the report, he decided that the next steps were, to get the Prince back to the capital, he had to take command, meanwhile Ney realsied it was up to him.
He had to make contact with the Rammsteinburg Government, and he had to organise a retaliation against the Baron that didnt include making the south seas a radiated ocean.

"He turned to the operations officer, I want a complete situation report on available special forces and submarines., you will send another message to the matra ordering them to return; if they fail to respond sink them".

The only good news from all this the strategic airforces were available, but they were of little value in an operation that required a surgical like operation.
The navy had one of the secret Duke class submarines down at Moir, but it only had a 5 man special forces team on board. Apparently they had been spending the days on the sea bed and nights recconoitering the island. They had been locating the electronic devices, weapons barracks etc. They were making good progress, but they were totally inadeqate for any thing other than what they were doing, pathfinding.

Rear Admiral Logan was informed of the current situation by Aaron McGill-Austerlitz. He agreed that it was risky trusting the Rechburgians, but he was reluctant to accept the view that the President-General's actions were a sign of cowardice. He thought hard.

The commander of submarine forces for the Third Fleet and Fredenmuenster's chief of staff had a long history together. They met at the beginning of the former's career, when he was assigned to his first submarine. McGill-Austerlitz was the weapons officer aboard that vessel and was Logan's direct superior. They became close friends, and the elder officer became a sort of mentor for the young ensign fresh out of the Ark Naval Academy. They served on the sub together for about two years, and they served together again ten years later as part of the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations' (Submarines) staff. Rear Admiral Logan did not want to believe what his friend was proposing... but he knew McGill-Austerlitz to be a genuine patriot, so he did not doubt for a second that his actions were motivated purely by concern for the good of Rammsteinburg.

This is treason, Logan told himself. But he was inclined to agree. It was the toughest decision of his life.

"I'm really not sure about this, sir," he told McGill-Austerlitz.

"It's for the good of The Great Warlord Republic, and you know that," the President-General's chief of staff replied.

"Maybe," Logan said. "Maybe. You know that if I decide not to go through with this... I'll be forced to turn you in for treason, sir."

"I know, and I would not expect you to do any less. Please just think hard about this first."

Rear Admiral Logan contemplated the matter further, weighing all the pros and cons. Finally, he reached a decision. "Okay, I'll do it," he said.

"Excellent."

"But you know that I'm going to need a launch code from the President-General himself."

"Don't worry about it. I'll handle that problem."

"Alright, sir," said Logan.

"I will call you as soon as I get the launch code. Get a sub on alert in the meantime."

"Aye, aye, sir." McGill-Austerlitz disconnected the line.

Rear Admiral Logan wondered if he had just made a mistake. He sat down in his leather chair and looked at a picture hanging to the right of his door. It was a crew photo of his first sub, U-432. He was standing to the left of McGill-Austerlitz, then a First Lieutenant. He considered calling the Rammsteinburg Bureau of Investigation and reporting his long-time friend, but decided against it.

I hope I'm making the right decision. He dipped his head and rested his chin on his knuckles. But what if the Rechburgian government really isn't behind this? He told himself that Rammsteinburg could not afford to assume that, that action needed to be taken now before The Great Warlord Republic was attacked again. The admiral repeated every argument McGill-Austerlitz gave him. You're doing the right thing, he told himself. And this time he meant it. He straightened his back and was overcome with a sudden surge of confidence.

Logan picked his phone back up and made a call to the communications department. The department head, Commander Fitzpatrick, answered.

"Commander, send a dispatch to U-642. Tell them to go to general quarters and prepare for a nuclear strike against Rechburg. The exact location and the launch codes will be sent shortly. And make sure as few people as possible know the intended target."

"Aye, aye, sir," said the commander. Having heard about the missile attack, the order failed to surprise him; in fact, he had been expecting it, and he followed it with pleasure.

The following dispatch was sent to the submarine U-642, which lay near the border between the 3rd Fleet and 4th Fleet areas of operation, approximately 150 miles from the coast of Rechburg:

From: COMSUBTHRD
To: Commanding Officer, U-642
Subject: NUCLEAR STRIKE

PREPARE FOR NUCLEAR STRIKE AGAINST DUCHY OF RECHBURG. REPEAT PREPARE FOR NUCLEAR STRIKE AGAINST DUCHY OF RECHBURG. NATURE OF MISSION CLASSIFIED. INFORM ONLY NECESSARY PERSONNEL OF MISSION NATURE. STANDBY FOR LAUNCH CODES AND COORDINATES.

The message was decrypted and delivered to the submarine's skipper, Captain James Norbert. U-642 went to general quarters, and the captain informed the two other officers with launch keys--the XO and weapons officer--of the situation.

Naval Headquarters

Since 11am the Operations staff had been detailing plans and forces for the capture of Moir Island.
The intel reports from the Special forces on the island along with Satelite pictures ensured that the staff had a reasonably clear picture of the defensive arrangements on the island.
What wasnt clear what the Baron intended to do with the Nuclear warhead. It was obvious to the planning staff that he needed the Harpoons aboard the Matra, so that ship had to be stopped or turned around.

Information being gathered by the Department 717 people was showing a complicated plan of initiating a war between Rechburg and Rammsteinburg, once the war had been started the Baron then intended to play his hand and declare Kunesdorf a seperate Republic. Blaming the war on Rechburg he would seek international support for his move to independence based on the fact Rechburg had become a rogue state.

As a result of the interrogations the involvement of certain Kunesdorf, Blackhawk and Rammsteinburg personal had been responsible for the capture of a new submarine, the Red Dawn. Where that submarine now was seemed a mystery and what further part it played was unclear.

With the volumes of information unfolding Admiral Ney realised he needed the involvement of Rammsteinburg Government, he asked his secretary to get hold of the Rammsteinburg ambassador and to invite him to naval headquarters immediately, he was also to be advised to bring his intelligence and defence attaches.

1st Battlefleet.
At sea 100 miles from Rechburg

The orders had came through to 1st Battlefleet, load up the expeditionary force and move to Moir Island.
The Naval ships were already at sea, sailing home from the recently cancelled naval exercises.
The 1st Battlefleet, was the naval part of the expeditionary force, the transports were in port while the ships loaded the troops, the equipment already loaded as part of the pre-positioned element of the strategic forces.

Admiral Stuart, sat in his conference room aboard "The Rechburg" a Knights class battleship. Around the table sat the various captains of the ships, Colonels and Generals of the land force and Lieutenant General "Dey" Cobham commander of the expeditions air element.

"Gentlemen we have been tasked with evicting the baron off Moir Island, and evicted he will be. This operation is two fold, the first segment will be "operation sun", this is the landing of special forces on the island, and the securing off the nuclear facility.
The 2nd element is Operation "shine" the destruction of the Barons forces on the island.

Intelligence reports suggest that there are approximately 500 elite special forces and mercenaries on that island. They know we are coming and they have no where to go, so its a fight to the death for them.

Intitially gentlemen we need to secure a naval perimeter around the island, to ensure that there are no missiles or planes are coming off that island. Should operation sun fail, we are sure the Baron will use the nuclear weapon. Intelligence tell us that he does not have a delivery system, but this Baron has been too damn clever for us to assume that for certain.
The 3 anti air missile cruisers will be the basis of the perimeter around Moir, they will be backed by the naval air units.
We will have constant AWACS and EW aircraft aloft so as to ensure we know if something is lauched or sent up against us.
We have the safeguard anti air missile systems back on Rechburg in case anything gets through.
Once we have heard the codeword that the nuclear warhead is secured the land units will go in. I expect nothing less than the total elimination of all enemies on that island. Do you hear me gentlemen, no prisoners.

I have just heard from Admiral Ney, he tells me the new Rammsteinburg submarine Red Dawn has not been found, so the task force will be operating on full anti sub defensive measures. I want helicopters out, I want anti submarine patrols sweeping completely around the task force. I expect to be able to walk around this bloody task force on sonar bouys, do I make myself clear."

There was a general murmering and shaking of heads, by many of the various commanders.

"In addition gentlemen Admiral Ney informs me he is sending 2 submarine squadrons and some of the P'3's out to search for the Red Dawn, the patrols are being extended out towards Rammsteinburg and its last reported position. As well as keeping patrols on station around Rechburg Admiral Ney has told me, and I tell you gentlemen we will get the Red Dawn before he does to us what he did to the Rammsteinburg Navy."

Commadore Sneddon leaned forward and asked
"What about the Matra admiral, is she one of ours or one of theirs"?

The Admiral, breathed deeply, it hurt immensly to admit one of your own ships was crewed by traitors, these were men that have sailed and fought for Rechburg in the past, he just couldnt imagine what had happened to convert a ship crewed by Rechburg sailors into a ship crewed by Kunesdorf traitors.

"That matter will be resolved in the next few minutes Commadore, we have destroyer flotillas 3 & 4 coming into range, if the Matra doesnt heave too, she will be sunk".

Colonel Madison, commander of 1st Rechburg marines asked

"Have we heard from Rammsteinburg, Admiral. I mean I can imagine if the roles were reversed we would be at least looking sideways at them. Jesus, look what those goddamn helions did".

"Colonel, we have not heard from the Rammsteinburg Government or their military, Admiral Ney has informed me that he is very concerned about the lack of contact, and he isnt ruling out the possibilty of a retalitory attack"

"Good God," Captain Mannering muttered, "then the baron gets his war"

"Well captain I doubt very much if it matters what the baron wanted, if it comes to war with Rammsteinburg there will be very little left of either country, however that is not a possibility we need to worry about just now. Gentlemen before you, you have your sealed orders, when you get back aboard your ships and planes, you may open them, until then keep them tight".

Ambassador Katzenbach received word that he was being requested at Rechburg naval headquarters. He was not entirely sure what was going on, as he was still being kept out of the loop on the Red Dawn situation and he had not yet heard of the attack upon the Home Fleet. Regardless, he did as asked and called his Ministry of War liaison, Colonel Oldendorf, and his intelligence officer, SIS agent Commander Weiss. The three met downstairs in the parking garage where an armored SUV was waiting.

- - -

Back in Rammsteinburg, Fleet Admiral Fredenmuenster was informed that attempts to contact the Rechburgians failed once again. Their refusal to respond to his calls made him suspicious, and he wondered if maybe the Rechburgian government was really behind the missile attack after all. Nevertheless, he insisted upon continuing efforts to contact Rechburg high command. The President-General had no way of knowing that somebody inside his office had sabotaged the communications system.

Retired Admiral Aaron McGill-Austerlitz stood in a corner again, staring contemptuously at Fredenmuenster. It was clear that in his old age the once strong and intelligent officer was incompetent to lead. His insistence on contacting the Rechburgians despite repeated unsuccessful attempts only served to confirm this. It was insanity, he thought, to keep trying at this point. It was clear that Rechburg did not want to speak with anybody from The Great Warlord Republic, and anybody with a properly functioning brain could determine why. All doubts in the President-General's chief of staff's mind about what he was doing disappeared. And now he was left with one question: how to steal the nuclear launch codes.

OOC: Okay, here's my new map. You still have to add all of your stuff.

http://i430.photobucket.com/albums/qq27/Rammsteinburg/Maps/Submap-1.jpg

Note that, with the exception of Commodore Bootsmann's damaged group, this map only shows those ships unaffected by the missile attack.

Edit: Sorry for the blurriness. You'll probably have to download the image and zoom in to read a lot of it.

OCC
My Forces.

http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k411/Game-Images/Submap-1.jpg

IC

Sonar Operator "Dunker" Dawson was intently listening on the new line of sonar buoys his P3 and dropped, this had been the last of a long line of buoys dropped in the last 30 minutes. On the screen next to him the radar plot showed a maze of radar images, clearly these indicated a very large build up of Rechburg and Rammsteinburg naval forces.

"Dunker" was well known for his ability to identify whales mating as far away as the western coast of Rammsteinburg. It was hardly a reputation he was ever likely to be proud off, however his record and won him and his fellow crew members the "Delaware" cup for anti sub expertise every year for the last year.

Currently Dunker was flying south of Rechburg, he was part of a large anti sub screen around the gathering Rechburg fleet.

Rear Admiral Logan learned of the growing force of Rechburgian warships when a directive came through from 3rd Fleet HQ urging strict non-interference. All Rammsteinurgian vessels within 150 milles of the Duchy of Rechburg were ordered to immediately head south and return to their home ports. In addition, no attempts were to be made to crack the Rechburgian naval code. U-642 was just within that 150 miles, so Logan sent an order for them to move back enough to be just outside the declared no-zone for the Rammsteinburg Navy. It did not matter really, because the range of the nuclear ballistic missiles used in the U-640 class was well above 150 miles.

Ambassador Katzenbach left the Rammsteinburgian embassy unsure about the nature of the requested visit to Rechburg naval headquarters. He had guessed that the stolen submarine (which he did not actually know for certain was stolen, yet was fairly certain about it) had something to do with it, but the experienced old diplomats had a feeling there was more to it. Everything became clear when he first learned about the attack on the Home Fleet from his Ministry of War liaison. Suddenly Katzenbach felt an immense burden of responsibility pressing down on him. A war could break out between The Great Warlord Republic and The Duchy of Rechburg, and it was very likely that Rammsteinburg was already preparing for that circumstance. This meant it was his job to see to it that such an event did not occur. The ambassador had experience preventing war through diplomacy, but this was the first time he found himself practically alone in the task. It was not a job he looked forward to.

Colonel Oldendorf and Commander Weiss were to his left and his right, respectively. The former's appearence was that of a perfectly stereotypical old-fashioned German military man. Short, yet bulky and witha mustache like that of Otto von Bismarck, he was intimidating. He radiated an aura that demanded respected. The colonel's Marine Corps uniform had more ribbons than that of most four-star generals. Katzenbach wondered why he wasn't yet a general and how the battle-hardened officer got stuck with an embassy liaision assignment. Commander Weiss, on the other hand, was a fairly non-descript individual if you overlooked his flamboyant attire. Like all military officers in the Special Intelligence Service, he wore civilian clothes rather than his naval uniform. In the commander's case that was a black suite, red collared shirt, and a green and yellow striped silk tie. He was much taller than Oldendorf, but not anywhere near as awe-inspiring.

The ride to Rechburg naval headquarters was a bumpy one. To his dismay, Ambassador Katzenbach observed that there were a lot of roads in serious need of repair in the duchy. He tried to keep his mind off the unpleasant up-and-down motions of the SUV by preparing himself for his upcoming job. As a veteran of the First Civil War of Rammsteinburg, he was well aware of the horrors of war and did not glorify it like many of his countrymen, including fellow veterans. He hoped that he could prevent another from happening.

The ambassador's concentration was abruptly interuppted by the irritating ringtone of Commander Weiss' cell phone (it was the chorus to some song by a Rammsteinburgian pop band Katzenbach hated). The SIS agent answered.

I wonder what that could be about, Katzenbach thought.

The man stepped into the command centre of Naval headquaters, his dirty army uniform a clear contridiction to the smart clean uniforms of the headquarters personnal.

The young man stood, quietly in the door way taking in everything in, seemingly unnoticed by the people in the central command room he remained stationary; just watching.

Admiral Ney looked down from what he called his "crows Nest", the commanders office that looked down on the central command room and all its huge screens that reported military activity around the world.

He didnt notice the young man until several other uniformed personnal squeezed past him, that activity took Admirals eyes away from the screens showing Naval deployements around the South Seas to that of they young face of Prince Blaise; heir to the throne and now his commander in Chief.

The Prince stood, waved his hand in a casual salute to Ney and quietly made his way to the staircase leading to the Admirals office.

Ney was both concerned and relieved. He was concerned how the Prince was bearing up, considering his father had been assasinated in a little over an hour ago; and relieved that finally Rechburg had a leader back in charge.

Admiral Ney quickly rose from his seat, but before he could reach the door, the young Prince was there having opened it himself.
Ney pondered just how fast the Prince must have leapt up those stairs, to reach the door; before he could cross the floor to do the same.

The Prince's smile, one of acknowledging an old friend.

The Admiral stood, and officially saluted, put his hand out to shake that of the Prince; the Prince grasped it in a firm handshake

"Admiral, you kinda look a tad busy here, why dont I just take a seat and you can fill me in whats happening".

A lot of tension left the Admirals shoulders, he was wondering how he was going to coax a grieving son through the issues that would face him today, yet now he realised that the son was a man of action. Clearly he had as his father used to say "compartmentalise the issues and deal with the oines you can deal with".

"Ok Admiral, I have been briefed on my way here from Kunesdorf as to the situation, but why dont you go ahead and give me another "dog and Pony" show so I get a better understanding of issues."

The Admiral then recited the events of the day, which has he went through them just seemed so sureal. Having finished the Prince stood up, walked to the back of the room and looked down on a table that had large digital screen that portrayed the South Seas.

"You know admiral this morning I woke at 4am, with the prospect of having a game of golf this afternoon, a game that was to be a highlight of my day.
Since then, we have had a Rammsteinburg submarine stolen, one of our destroyers and its entire crew seemingly go awol, have a province go the verge of destabilising, the Rammsteinburg navy take heavy damage, from one of our own strategic missile batteries. Not to mention we have one of our own governors become some meglamanic who wished destruction on both nations so he could reign in his province, nor not forgetting the same Governor assassinated my father.Instead of driving a golf cart today, I was in a tank leading the 1st Corp into Kunesdorf so as to prevent a civil war. Instead of having dinner tonight with my parents, I am planning my fathers funeral, can it get much worse admiral."

"Yes sire it can"

"Outstanding Admiral Ney, absoulutely outstanding, what else is happening."

"Well sire, I believe the Rammsteinburgs are planning a strike on us. We have tried to make contact with them, both through diplomatic and military channels. They cannot have failed to see that we ourselves have been attacked and harmed, merely by the television covergae being shown around the world. Yet despite this they are not talking'.

"Have you spoken to the Ambassador?"

"Yes Sire we have, and he is on his way here, albeit very slowly".

"The problem we have sire is that the expeditionary force is assembling of Matra bay right now, though this is a powerful naval group, it is not strong enough to fight our way through to Moir Island. Our other Battlefleets are out of position sire and will not be back in range until this evening."

"Normally we would simply inform the Rammsteinburg government we were transversing through near their territory, yet now I have a feeling the Rammsteinburg Government may see our fleet as a possible invasion fleet".

"So, Admiral as I see it, we have an island on the other side of the south seas, that has a meglamanic governor with a nuclear warhead, for us to stop him we have to risk a war with Rammsteinburg; the very people he attacked and hurt".

"Yes sire, thats about the strength of it".

The Prince paced over to the large sloping windows that looked down onto the floor of the command control, he turned

"What have we got in place in or around Moir Island, right now"

"Well sire, we have one of our Duke subs with a seal team, we have the Matra, but we dont know what her intentions are; and we have destroyer flotilla's 3 and 4, which consists of 8 destroyers and 2 cruisers."

"Well Admiral, the one thing I do know is, we are not going head to head with Rammsteinburg over this thing. If they wont talk to us, we dont go. You are to unload the troops, the Battlefleet is to take up defensive stations south of Matra bay."

The Admiral nodded, "And Moir island Sire?"

"Well Admiral Ney we have no choice but to order the seal team to land and neutralise that warhead"

"But sire there are 500 men on that island, it is fortified, what can half a dozen men do?"

"They can prevent another war Admiral, dont you think I know what i am asking of them, but to do nothing is to risk the Baron seizing the initiative yet again".

Ludwig Coolidge waited calmly in an abandoned building 100 feet from a major highway in Rechburg, the same one which Ambassador Katzenbach and his two liaisons traversed on their way to the naval headquarters. A citizen of Rechburg and Rammsteinburg, he possessed an immense hatred for both nations. He grew up in the latter, and when he was old enough he had tried to join the Rammsteinburg Marine Corps. But he was rejected. They said he showed anti-social tendencies and were put off by his police record (he was charged with assault on three seperate occassions). Collidge moved to Rechburg for college, but dropped at after two years and joined the Rechburgian army, where he became one of their best snipers. All was well for five years, but then he was passed over for promotion. His commanding officer had a strong dislike for Coolidge and wrote a scolding letter to the promotion board. Furious, he positioned himself in a tree in his COs yard and killed him. The Rechburgian police searched hard for him, but Coolidge fled to Rammsteinburg, where he joined The Blackcoats. In the Second Civil War of Rammsteinburg, he assassinated two top military officials and the Deputy Prime Minister. After the war, he went into hiding, but was found by Alfred Eckhardt.

The armored SUV would be passing by any minute now, Coolidge knew. His index finger rested lightly on the trigger of his sniper rifle. He could not penetrate the vehicle's body or windows, the sniper knew, but he could take out the tires and hopefully cause it to crash.

Agent Claude Dyke and his partner Stephanie Crawford were following the Rammsteinburg Amassadors SUV, it was normal practice to observe and track all diplomatic movement in Rechburg.

For Dyke and Crawford, two of the most experienced diplomatic squad officers in the unit, this was a milk run duty. Crawford looked at the old buildings as they transversed the area

"Why the hell dont they do something about this shit hole," she asked her partner.

"Well its because none of the Knights have business interests here, havent you noticed that where the Knights have interests everything gets done, the rest of the place just make do".

Commander Weiss hung up and places his cell phone back in his pants pocket. He turned to the ambassador and said, "Mr. Katzenbach, I've just been authorized to fill you in on the Red Dawn situation."

"The what?" Katzenbach asked.

"The submarine that was stolen, sir. I know you had your suspiscions, and now I can confirm them. This morning a new submarine designed by Genii Naval Industries was stolen. Code named Red Dawn and due to be registered as the U-700 that rumors have been flying around about if accepted, this sub possesses a new silent propulsion system--the details of which I haven't been filled in on. At first we believed Red Dawn to have been stolen by Kunesdorf seperatists led by Baron von Brunswick, but in light of recent events we're not sure if the Rechburg federal government was behind this all and using the seperatist story as a cover."

Ambassador Katzenbach remained silent.

"And one other thing, sir," the commander began. Just then, the SUV swerved violently to the right and there was the painful noise of metal scraping against asphalt. A bullet had burst the front right tire. It was quickly followed by another which blew the rear. The driver struggled to keep the SUV in lane, but it swerved to the left and scraped against the metal railing. The passengers sat wide-eyed in horror. The driver froze. He did nothing as the vehicle headed straight for a pick-up truck parked on the side of the highway at over 40 MPH.

Katzenbach yelled at the driver, but he did not respond. Realizing what had happened, the ambassador removed his seat belt and jumped into the front passenger seat. He bent down and searched furiously for the emergency break. He found it, pulled it, and prayed that the SUV would come to a stop in time.

OOC: Let's get back to stating the time. I rather liked that.

1:30pm

Dunker was quietly tuning into the new line of buoys his P3 had dropped, it had been uneventual duty this morning, and he couldnt wait to get back home. Today was his last day before he had a fortnights leave and he was going to make the best of it.

All of a sudden he heard a slight ping, checking his screen he called the Tac officer

"I have a ping on 4, its faint on three and getting stronger on 5, sir we have a submarine heading south, type and speed unknown. I suggest we drop a line east west at the end of the last line, lets box this sucker in".

The Tac officer acknowledged and informed the pilot, he radioed naval headquarters. It wasnt unusual to find subs this far out, but today of all days having an unknown sub near the Rechburg territorial waters was worth noting. Not the least in case it was the stolen Rammsteinburg submarine they had been briefed about.

1:31 p.m.

U-642 headed south at 10 knots. Captain Norbert paced the bridge, considering the reprecussions of a nuclear strike against the Duchy of Rechburg and wondering why such an order was issued. And why is it taking so long to receive the launch codes? Part of him hoped they would arrive soon, but another wanted them to never come, for he did not enjoy the thought of what he was ordered to do.

Norbert was unaware that his sub had been detected.

1:30pm

Crawford saw the flash in the window, at first she thought it was a reflection on the glass, then all of a sudden her car was braking to a halt and Agent Dyke was swearing.
When Crawford looked up she saw the Rammsteiburg car swerving and finally coming to a halt, immediately she looked back at the window and saw a movement.
She yelled to Dyke, "we have a shooter in the building across the street, 2nd floor 3rd window from this end".

Immediately she radioed HQ,
This is unit 56, we have shots fired on the Rammsteinburg embassy vehicle, we are at 33rd and 67th east sector. Repeat shots fired, casualties are unknown; am investigating"

While she was reporting in, Dyke pulled up his car so it was between the Rammsteinburg vehicle and the window, he leapt out of the door only to have a bullet whisk by nicking his ear.
Crawford scrambled out her door and made her way around the SUV so it was between her and the shooter.
She tried to open the door, but it was locked on the inside.
"She yelled at the man scrambling back from the front seat.
"I am agent Crawford from the Rechburg Diplomatic squad, please open up so we can get you out of here."

Even as she spoke she could hear the first whiring of the approaching police helicopter, and the wailing of sirens as police cars were blocking the area off.

1:31pm

Dyke with blood flowing from his ear, ran swerving and weaving across the road to the building where Crawford had reported the shooter.

1:31 p.m.

The SUV miraculously stopped only three feet short of the parked pick-up. Katzenbach saw a woman banging on the door as he climbed back into the back seat and he heard her speak, but couldn't make out all the words. All the ambassador got was "... Rechburg... squad... out of here." Commander Weiss was the closest to the window, but he had fainted, so Katzenbach rolled down the window. The woman repeated her message. The ambassador opened the door and crawled over the unconscious SIS agent to get out. Colonel Oldendorf, who seemed totally unshaken by what happened, opened his door and walked out as if the vehicle he traveled in was attacked by a sniper every day.

- - -

His mission completed, Ludwig Coolidge ran downstairs and removed a board from the floor. Dropping his rifle in first, the sniper squeezed into the narrow passageway that led to the basement of another building several blocks away. He ducked down and replaced the board. He was surrounded by darkness now. Leaving his rifle behind, he began crawling. He would return for the weapon tomorrow.

1:35pm

Dyke ran up the stairs and down the long corridor, as he did so he was counting of the number of rooms and windows; until he came to the one that he estimated where the gunman would be.

With a great kick he kicked the door open, then carefully went from room to room, again with great caution.
He stood in the window, hand on his ear, he took up his mic

"No one here, though this is the window he took the shot from, the dust and debris has been disturbed"

"Roger, stay there, the police and 717 will want to take a forensic look, I have the ambassador and we are flying them out by helicopter"

1:40pm

On board Rechburg Destroyer "Matra"

Captain McMann saw he was in a dilemma. He had been picked for this mission, for his loyalty to Kunesdorf and his ability as a naval officer, or so it seemed at the time. There was no doubt in his mind that he like all his ancestors, were loyal Kunesdorf patriots.
When he had been approached to lead a secret mission, at first he expected to be on behalf of Rechburg, but later he came to discover the truth; by then it was too late.

His family had always expected him to do his duty, particularly if it meant the advancement of Kunesdorf, however over the last hour or so it became obvious even to him his dilemma was to whom was his loyalty paramount.
He loved the Duchy, it had been kind to him and had given him the chance to command its latest destroyer, yet his inner voice, told him to be a loyal Kunesdor patriot.
Most of the crew aboard this ship were Kunesdorf men, yet most were not nor would they consider themselves traitors to Rechburg.
The one thing Captain Mcmann knew for sure, traitors in Rechburg put their entire families at risk, and on board this ship; that represented a lot of people that could or would be subjected to loss of citizenship and all that entailed.
They would become non-citizens, not eligible for Government support and rejected by most authorites. Unable to get loans and jobs they would simply become refugees in their homeland.
So why, McMann asked himself would he risk all that. Well he had to admit the fame it was in a a large part his ego, this venture would place him foremost amongst his illustious line of loyal Kunesdorf ancestors. The man that helped bring down a Duke, the man that defied one of the largest navies in the South sea areas, he could be that man. McMann had been given a huge amount of money in gold and Rechburg dollars, millions which now sat in banks in Rammsteinburg, Blackhawk and a few other secret nests. With all that money came the trust that he would deliver a harpoon missile to Moir Island.

At first it seemed so easy Matra was appointed as naval intelligence gathering on the outskirts of the Rammsteinburg restricted exercise area. This was a duty that the baron himself had arranged. It had two advantages, the Matra was well away from other Rechburg authorities so that would enable it to assist in the capture of the Rammsteinburg submarine "Red Dawn".
He had been told all he had to do was allow the submarine to "tuck" itself under his hull so as to avoid detection and sail out of the area, which he had done with complete success.
Then he was to rush south to Moir Island faking mechanical repairs, there he was to have a "special warhead" placed on one of his harpoons, when the time was right he would be told his target and he would fire the missile off.

However several things had changed. First the Baron had not foreseen that the destroyer flotillas 3 and 4 would be deployed so far south, it actually meant they were closer to Moir than he would be when it became time to begin his run.
Then he had read a Rechburg intel report that stipulated that the baron was on Moir island and he had a nuclear weapon.
Mcmann figured it hadnt taken an Einstein to know that the "special warhead" was in fact a nuclear warhead. That prospect changed everything, if he was reluctant to risk his crews families being enforced outcasts, he was even more reluctant to be the murderer of thousands of innocents lives.

The Baron had taken it upon himself not to tell McMann that he would be an outcast in the world. rather than the honour of being the man who helped free Rechburg, he would become a monster who killed thousands for his own peopl, or if not his people sertainly other innocent lifes would be put at risk.
A traitor he could be, given certain circumstances, however a mass murderer, never.

So now the diemma, the Matra was racing toward Moir Island, the Rechburg Flotillas were racing to intercept him, and they didnt even have to get close, already he was in range of the Helion missiles on board the cruisers that commanded the Flotillas. Those helions could already be on their way and his sensors would not detect them until too late. Already there had been two demands for him to rejoin the destroyer flotillas or at least to stop.
McMann had considered taking his ship further east, away from the Rechburg ships, but further east his radars had started to detect an even larger Rammsteinburg fleet. His choices were clear, he would not be allowed to reach Moir even if he wanted too, secondly; he wasnt the cold bloody murderer that the baron expected him to be.

There were only a few men on board the Matra who were involved in the plan, his 2IC, the engineer and the communications officer, others knew something was wrong, but they just didnt know how wrong.

Mcmann had called the conspirators into his cabin, he had told them of the options and the choices. None were keen to be branded as traitors, he had to right the wrongs but how could he and his men do it.
It was his communications officer that came up with the idea, they had to convince the admiralty to allow the Matra to continue on to Moir, and once their using the missiles and guns the ship could destroy the facilites.

The Baron expected the matra to sail in, so why couldnt it do just that, possibly even with a few Rechburg ships chasing it for a while. The only slight problem was someone had to convince the admiralty to allow the men on board the Matra, the opportunity chance to redeem themselves.
Mcmann knew he had to be the one to do it, he knew the communications suite had one of the new burst radios, a radio that recorded an entire conversation, encrypted and compacted it, the entire message which may tale 5 or 10 minutes to recite would be sent in under 2 seconds on channels picked at random out of thousands of available channels.
The communications officer had told Mcmann the only other burst radios were at Naval headqarters, and on the cruiser "Leo" which commanded flotilla 3. The Matra and the Leo, being the two latest ships out of the dockyards were the only ones fitted out with them so far.

McMann had sent the message to Naval Command telling them all, he also made it clear most of the ship were unaware of the events and were completely innocent. He sent the message and now he waited for the reply.

1:42 P.M.

Chief of Naval Operations FADM. Krystan Gottfried Emmerich had thus far been uninvolved in the day's events. In Rammsteinburg, traditionally the commander of the Home Fleet operated independently of the CNO, leaving the latter to deal mostly with the Expeditionary Fleet, so Emmerich did as was expected of him and kept his nose out of Fleet Admiral Ward's business. But now he was learning that CINCHMFLT had locked himself in his cabin aboard RNS Rammsteinburg and that the President-General refused to even prepare for war with Rechburg. It was disgraceful, the CNO thought, that such cowardly men held two of the highest posts in The Great Warlord Republic. It was time for some real leadership; it was time for a real warrior to take charge. To hell with tradition, he thought.

Emmerich stormed into Fleet Admiral Fredenmuenster's retreat wearing his full dress uniform and a very stern face. The yeoman at the front entrance did not hesitate in letting him through. The President-General was called right away and informed of the CNO's arrival. Instead of taking the elevator, Emmerich walked all the way up to the 5th floor where Fredenmuenster's office was located. Once there, he walked into his superior's office, stood at attention and saluted, saying, "Fleet Admiral Krystan Gottfried Emmerich reporting, sir. Request permission to confer with the President-General."

Oddly enough, Fredenmuenster felt overwhelmed by the CNO's commanding presence. He said, rather sheepishly, "Permission granted." He looked at the three other men in the room and nodded. They all left, leaving just the two five-star admirals to talk.

"Please take a seat, Krystan. What's this all about?" the President-General asked.

Emmerich chose to stand. "I'm here to urge you in the strongest possible terms to prepare for a war with the Duchy of Rechburg, sir."

"Krystan," Fredenmuenster began, "we have been friends with the Rechburgians since the days of the monarchy. I find it hard to believe that--"

The CNO made history by being the first person ever to have the courage to interrupt the highest figure in the entire Rammsteinburg government. "Sir, I am well aware of our historically good relations with Rechburg, and I am also familiar with the rumours of a separatist movement being behind this. Now, this may be true--and in fact, it probably is, and I really do hope it is--but we cannot afford to just assume that. We must begin to act now. Even if we do not declare war yet, we need to at least get ready."

The President-General's mouth was agape. It was shocking to be interrupted by a subordinate and to be spoken to in such a harsh, disrespectful manner. And yet the frail old admiral did not rebuke Emmerich for his lack of military courtesy. Instead, he simply rubbed his chin and considered what the CNO had told him.

An entire minute passed without a word being spoken. Fredenmuenster sat in deep thought while Fleet Admiral Emmerich stood at attention. Finally, the former broke the silence. "Okay, I see your point," he said. "It would be wise to at least begin preparations for war. The Rechburgians will likely see us as a threat for doing so, but they're probably already expecting such actions by now. I will get in touch with the rest of the High Command."

"Sir, there is something else I wish to request first," Emmerich announced.

"Oh? What is it, Krystan?"

"I want full control of the fleet. Legally, of course, I have authority over the entire navy and am Admiral Ward's superior, but we both know of how things have always worked in Rammsteinburg. Sir, I want you to directly order him to keep out of my way."

Now the President-General was really taken aback. "Admiral, do you realize the ramifications of what you're asking? There is no precedent for this!"

"Actually, sir, there is. In 1914, King Johannes IV issued a similar order to Home Fleet commander Admiral Karl Leicht. I am sure you are familiar with the incident."

"You're right, I am. But those were entirely different circumstances! Admiral Leicht lost his nerves and made a bad decision that cost Rammsteinburg nearly 3/4 of its battle fleet."

"Sir, the circumstances aren't all that different. I believe Admiral Ward has made some serious mistakes today. In addition, sir, a friend of mine on Rammsteinburg has told me that he has locked himself in his cabin and refuses to come out. He has succumbed to cowardice, sir. He is unfit to command. You MUST put me fully in charge."

Fredenmuenster reluctantly agreed. "Alright, Krystan, I'll support you 100%. Admiral Ward will not get in your way."

"Thank you, sir," Emmerich said.

"Yea, yea... you're welcome. Dismissed."

"Aye, aye, sir." Emmerich about faced and exited the President-General's office, feeling the sweet taste of victory.

1:50 P.M.

Fleet Admiral Emmerich wasted no time in getting to work. He sent out a message to the Home Fleet, 3rd Fleet, and 8th Fleet, ordering them to prepare for war. He then began reviewing his options. Eliminating all vessels rendered nonoperational from the Helion missile attack, he considered possible fleet movements. His first decision was to send Admiral Adolf Leiber's Carrier Battlegroup 5 towards Moir Island. Unless attacked first, they were to simply circle around the island until receiving further instructions. The CNO then ordered 3rd Fleet to gather its surface forces for an interception of the growing Rechburg expeditionary force. Like the carrier battlegroup, they were not to engage unless attacked; instead, they were to parallel the Rechburg fleet's movements until an official declaration of war was issued. As for the Matra and the destroyer flotilla that had entered Home Fleet waters... the fleet admiral was still considering how to deal with them.

1:54 P.M.

Lütjens Naval Base
Southern Krawstein Island


Men and women ran to their battlestations on warships throughout the larger of Krawstein Island's two naval bases. On shore those manning the four anti-aircraft batteries also readied themselves for a potential war with the Duchy of Rechburg. Land-based planes and those on the base's sole aircraft carrier, RNS Fletcher Bay, entered the air and joined aircraft from the north to form a defensive perimeter around the island.

Lütjens Naval Base had been hit by 10 of the Helion missiles, but the damage done was relatively small. Only a corvette had been sunk and three frigates and a battlecruiser were temporary out of action. The 40-year old Engel-class battleship RNS Admiral Kemp, one of only three such ships in the Rammsteinburg Navy, suffered merely superficial damage, giving credence to its nickname, "Rusty Old Reliable." A supply warehouse and three barracks in the adjacent marine base were also destroyed. Over a thousand men had lost their lives. The emotional impact on the sailors and marines stationed at the base was high, but the material toll significantly smaller than the the other places affected by the attack.

Twenty three ships maintained operational readiness: 1 Nimitz-class carrier, 7 Burke Class destroyers, 3 Metzger class air defense destroyers, 5 Sachsen class air defense frigates, the battleship Admiral Kemp, 1 Manticore class cruiser, 5 Visby class corvettes, and 3 Krieger class battlecruisers. Including the damaged RNS Fredenmuenster, named after the President-General of The Great Warlord Republic, Lütjens Naval Base was home of all of the Krieger-class battlecruisers in the Rammsteinburg Navy. These ships were all commissioned in 2006 and were among the most advanced warships in the country. Boasting one forward mounted 16-in. gun turret and an after vertical launch system with room for over 100 missiles of various types, as well as a top speed of 35 knots, the Krieger class ships were one of the most respected war machines in the entire armed forces of Rammsteinburg.

Vice Admiral Wilhelm von Mäch commanded this powerful force, flying his flag on Fletcher Bay. A former liaison to the Rechburg Navy and the stepfather of a Rechburgian army officer, he loved the duchy nearly as much as he loved Rammsteinburg. He dreaded the thought of going to war with The Great Warlord Republic's long-time ally. But he was prepared to do it if he had to.

Several unmanned aircraft scanned the area around Krawstein Island. One of them spotted the Matra. Minutes later, it flew directly over the nearby Rechburgian destroyer flotilla. This intelligence immediately made its way to Admiral von Mäch, who ordered regular updates on the movements of this approaching force.

OOC: Full specifications for the Krieger and Metzger classes coming soon. They'll be on a site I'm making for the Rammsteinburg Navy.

1:55pm

Matra Harbour
Rechburg

The Port city of Matra was by now a scene of total chaos. It was from here that the entire Kunesdorf seperatist operation had been planned. Yet today it was full of Rechburg regular troops.

Units such as the 1st Corp and 2nd Corp had crossed the provincial border with the objective of quelling any possible revolt. There had been little resistance, as the Barons plans had not included the general Kunesdorf populace until much later. By then he had expected to have international support behind him, and it would have taken little effort to raise the Kunesdorf people in revolt. Howver all that was no longer an option as the Rechburg military was firmly in control.

Later in the day, resisdence of Matra had seen the huge Rechburg Naval expeditionary force arrive on the horizen. They then saw the container ships begin to "raise steam" and prepare for sailing, as well as the land units of the expeditionary force arriving in the city.

Total chaos seemed to reign, yet out of that mess was a system and slowly units had boarded their ships.
Then early in theafternoon for some inexplicable reason, the people saw the ship being unloaded and the troops taking up positions around the coast and further inland.

The Naval ships that had earlier been waiting on the horizen for the land forces to load, were now gone.

At the Matra airbase as well as at Diamond point airbase, Terrance Airbase and Dover naval base further north there was the constant coming and going of air units.
Raptor fighters, flying off out to sea as well as the much bigger AWAC aircraft, then the lumbering Galaxy transports would arrive. It seemed to the people of Rechburg, that for some unknown reason the Duchy of Rechburg was preparing for war.

1:56pm

The security services helicopter that had picked up the Rammsteinburg Ambassador and his aides landed in the grounds of the Rechburg Naval Command, they were quickly ushered into the conference room.

Further down below in the Command centre the Rammsteinburg radio messages had been intercepted, though not all were fully decoded yet the pattern was clear; Rammsteinburg was preparing for war.

Prince Blaise sat at the head of the table, around the table sat the Chiefs of staff and intelligence experts.

The Prince sat quietly reading the reports he had been given, just as were most of the other people present.
A short time later the Prince said.

" Hmmmm Well Ladies and gentlmen, it hardly makes pleasant reading"
The others nodded in agreement.
Admiral Ney still looking at his papers said
"Sire, Rammsteinburg is preparing to go to war with us, we must respond or risk being taken totally unprepared".

Geoffery Hamilton, the Foriegn Minister said,
"Sire, for us to prepare for war, without at least talking to the Rammsteinburgers, is ludicrous; we will just blunder into a war that simply occurred because the Baron wanted us to. Sire, we must make every effort to talk with their Government"

Admiral Ney quickly cut in.
"Mr Hamilton, I have had people trying all day to get Rammsteiburg Government oifficials, there is no one talking. I can ring my great aunt Joyce in Dilly Dally Rammsteinburg, but I cannot ring my opposite number because they are not taking calls."

He turned to the Prince
"Sire, we have at this moment the Rammsteinburg ambassador on his way here, he may even be here already, we need to talk to them; someone in Rammsteinburg must have a clue whats happening.

The Prince nodded his head
"Geoffery, we will not blunder into a war, if we go to war its because we have no choice. Admiral Ney, we will talk to the Rammsteinburgers soon, but first I need to know where we are, before I try to understand where the Rammsteinburg Government is.

He looked at the papers on his desk.
"It says here that Captain Mcmann has made a full disclosure of his guilt in the Kunesdorf conspiracy, he further claims that only a handful of officers on board the Matra know of the conspiracy. What I want to know is do we believe him and what do we do about him?".

Admiral Foy butted in, he had only just flown in from the 1st battlefleet, so of all the people present he was the least prepared.

"Sire its no so much what do we do, its what will the Rammsteinburg Government let us do. From my briefing before I left, it becomes clear the Matra and the destroyer flotillas are in a bad place. My suggestion is sir we send some officers from the flotillas, to the Matra and relieve McMann and his officers, we then bring everyone back to Rechburg waters.
Sire, we can do nothing with that force, they will simply become casualties in a war we dont want.
Bring them back out of there Sire... please."

The Prince nodded
"What do you see as a possibility of the success of the ruse Mcmann proposes, that the Matra sail into Moir and cut loose."

Admiral Ney interjected.
"Sire that plan is ridiculous and its a feeble attempt by a traitor to curry some sense of honour out of a totally dishonourable affair. All our intel, both electronic and human, tell us the Moir defences are underground and extensive. His ship will do little more than annoy the Baron, even if he is still there. As for the success... no chance Sire, I agree with Admiral Foy; bring them all back".

The Prince looked around the table,
"Very well so be it, Captain Mcmann and his officers are to be relieved and flown home for a enquiry, the Matra and the destroyer Flotillas will turn around and come home"

Vice Admiral Noble, chief of Naval intelligence raised his hand.

"Sire there is another important matter we need to discuss. One of my P3's just minutes ago identified a Rammsteinburg nuclear submarine just a 150 miles or so from our coast".

The Prince looked up, most concerned
"How reliable is this report Admiral"

"Sire the crew that tracked and identified the submarine are our best, if they say its a nuc, its a nuc. The kids on board that aircraft go beyond the pail when it comes to expertise, in the anti sub school of life, that crew are gods"

The Prince smiled
"Thank you admiral, and I gratified to hear you are obviously proud of the men"

"Well sire I am, and I should be, my son commands the aircraft"

The people around the table sniggered, the light relief taking some pressure off the tension.

Admiral Ney said
"It matters little, if this sub is 150 or 300 miles from us, it can hit us; but the odd thing is, we already have the range to hit them, and they us; why risk pushing a sub nuc so close when it could have stayed well back and hit us. To my mind there are only two answers, either their sub missiles have a small range, which is dumb when you have nuclear weapons, or they are sending us a message, a threat if you like".

The Prince thought for a moment,
"Where is that sub now Admiral Noble?"

"It is about 170miles from our waters sire"

"Then admiral you are to keep that submarine under the heel for now".

The Prince rose from his chair.
"Well ladies and gentlemen, I need to talk with the Rammsteinburg ambassador, Admiral Ney will you join me. I suggest the rest of you, get more updates and report back here when I call".

2:00pm

On board Red Dawn

The weapons console now showed the submarine had loaded mk 48's and Harpoons, the sonar operater reported that there we no distinguishable sonar contacts. The Capatin had ordered the Red Dawn above the first layer and once through the sonar operator noticed the distant rumblings of ships some distance away.

"Conn, Sonar. Captain it seems we are clear".

The captain at alst allowed himself, the chance to smile and breath a deep sigh of relief. Not only had he and his men captured a submarine, they had attacked the Rammsteinburg Navy thereby forcing them to concentrate to find him, once all the Rammsteinburg ships were concentrated the Baron had hit them with a Barrage of Helion Missiles, causing huge damage.

Now he was clear, his orders were to pick off either Rechburg or Rammsteinburg vessels at random, but he was to stay close to Rammsteinburg.

"Ok helm take us down under the layer and lets go visit the naval base"

Quietly the rebel submarine sank deeper and crept closer to its target.

2:00 P.M.

The Rammsteinburgian delegation had remained completely quiet since being picked up the Rechburgians. They now simply waited in the conference room. Ambassador Katzenbach pulled out a pocket-sized sudoku booklet and began playing. Commander Weiss leaned his head on his left hand and stared impatiently at his watch, wondering when the conference would begin. Colonel Oldendorf, not surprisingly, kept as still as a statue. Katzenbach apparently forgot to ask Weiss what he was about to say before the sniper assault, and the SIS agent had forgotten he was about to say anything at all.

Finally, the doors open and the Prine and Admiral Ney entered. The Rammsteinburgians looked up.

2:00 P.M.

Amidst the preparations for war triggered by the Helion missile attack, the missing submarine Red Dawn had all but been forgotten. Fleet Admiral Emmerich wanted the search continue, but not wanting to delegate a large surface force to the task, decided the hunt should be conducted on Red Dawn's own turf -- beneath the sea. At U-Boat Base 4 in southwestern Rammsteinburg, 6 attack submarines departed. They were manned by some of The Great Warlord Republic's best submariners -- including some of the best sonar operators. Among them was Warrant Officer 2/c John Borg, Jr., temporary assigned to U-500. Borg was a legend in the submarine force. He had won the Sonar Operator of the Year Award 11 years in a row. And most importantly, he was a technical advisor on the Red Dawn project.

Red Dawn

"Conn, Sonar, we have multiple screws 35 degrees and approximately 20 miles away, I would desiginate these as Rammsteinburg attack submarines
Sierra's 1 thru 6."

"Well my friends, it looks like the game is a foot, these will be the lads to come and sort us out. Right then WO, change harpoons to 48's and Helm take us down to 950, we will wait and drift at that."

He turned to his 2IC, well they have to make all the play, by just sitting still and beneath 2 layers we are just a current.

2:01pm

As Prince Blaise entered the room, he saw before him 3 quite different characters, each clearly identifiable as per their duties.
The Prince was reminded of an old childhood movie he used to watch, the three stooges, these three definetly looked like stooges. However he was quite aware that regardless of the looks, they were men selected for thier tasks, and the warlord didnt pick fools to represent him.

He walked in, and addressed the ambassador

"Ambassador Katzenbach, a rare pleasure, a rare pleasure indeed"

He turned to Admiral Ney, and then the others.
"Gentlemen, you all clearly know Admiral Ney' he indicated to the table,
"Please gentlmen take a seat, we have much to discuss I fear".

2:01 P.M.

Katzenbach was the first to speak. "It is a rare pleasure, indeed," he said. "It is unfortunate that we must meet under such unpleasant circumstances. And even more unfortunately, I can't say that I'm totally aware of what's going on. I haven't been kept in the loop on my government's activities. You might be able to fill in some of the blanks for me."

2:05 P.M.

The six subs were about 10 miles out now, moving at 25 knots. It was a known fact that with Red Dawn's passive sonar system, as well as due to the speed at which they were moving, that these six were probably already detected by the stolen vessel. But that was okay; in fact, it was what Fleet Admiral Emmerich wanted. He wanted those thieves to know that the hunt was still on.

U-505 was the first to submerge. It was shortly followed by U-500 and U-502. All were beneath the sea within two minutes. They dove slowly and once they were at 200 feet, they leveled out. They then spread apart, each moving at only 10 knots now.

2:07 P.M.

Agent Helch of the Ministry of War Criminal Investigations Unit had been working hard all day to figure out who was responsible for the leak of information on the Red Dawn project. So far he had found little of any real use. The biggest lead in the investigation was uncovered by somebody else, hundreds of miles away in the Duchy of Rechburg. Captain Uhlrich would be arriving in Rammsteinburg in an hour, and Helch hoped that the traitor would provide him with some useful clue.

Zachary Rommel was in a conference room in the Ministry of the Navy headquarters. After showering and putting on some clothes, he was questioned hard, but the man refused to give any names, despite the fact that those who hired him also tried to kill him. Why is he protecting them? Agent Helch wondered.

"I don't know his name, I swear." This is what Rommel kept insisting. He also claimed that he never even got a good look at his face. Agent Helch could tell the man was lying.

A check was done on Rommel's bank records. For six months he was wired $50,000 on the 13th of every month. Such a large sum was well above his pay grade at the Ministry of the Navy. The source of the money was a fictitious company called Fletcher Christian Inc., a joke which did not go unnoticed by the CIU agent. The company had a legitimate business license, it seemed, yet its address turned out to be that of the sight of a former strip club in New Ramm City.

Agent Helch walked into the makeshift interrogation room with a cup of coffee in his hand. He avoided looking at Rommel. The investigator sat down, drank his coffee, and pretended to be totally oblivious to the other man's presence. He continued to ignore him for ten minutes. Finally, he spoke, but without moving his eyes towards Rommel.

"So, you met with this man how many times again?" Helch asked.

"Six or seven," Rommel replied.

"I see. And explain to me again how he recruited you."

"I was in a conference in Rechburg. Something about joint naval exercises. I didn't do much of anything, just sat around and tried to interested. Anyway, I was taking a walk through the city--Matra, it was called, I think--one night when somebody tapped me on the shoulder. It startled me, and I turned around with my fists up, ready to fight. But there were a lot of people on the sidewalk, and I couldn't be sure who had done it. I put it off my mind and continued my walk. When I got back to my hotel, I took off my jacket and found a tiny piece of paper on my coat. I open it, and there was an address and a time. I went to the place at the written time, and the barkeep said to me, 'Hey, you a Mr. Rommel?' 'Yea,' I said, and he told me somebody left a package for me. So I take it, but I wait until I get back to the hotel to open it, and..."

Helch finished that part of the story for him. "And you found $500,000 Ramm dollars in 100 bills, along with a letter telling you there was more and to go to an alley later that night. You go there, it's dark, and you meet the guy, but you don't get a good look at him."

"Exactly!" Rommel exclaimed.

"And then you met him... seven more times, yes?"

"Six or seven, yea."

"And in all that time, you never got even a slightly good look at him. You can honestly tell me that you can't even begin to describe the man?"

"Well, he was sorta tall, and he might've had a cane or something," Rommel conceded.

"Might've had a cane?" Helch said. "I'd think you'd know something like that for sure."

"Well, I don't!" Rommel was getting angry. "Listen," he said, "my wife was killed today and--"

"Don't you start telling me about your wife!" Helch yelled. "Damn it, you're a traitor to your country! Your wife is dead because of your treason! Why are you protecting the man responsible, huh? He tried to kill you. Come on, Zach, I've been doing this a long time, and I've gotten pretty good at telling when somebody's full of crap. Now, tell me the truth! Every time you tell me the same lies, you once again spit on the honour of Rammsteinburg!"

Rommel gulped. The investigator's fury had gotten to him. "Alright," he said, "I can give you a name. At least it's what he told me. Don't know if it's true..."

"Oh?"

"Herbert Grossenmeyer."

"And what did Mr. Grossenmeyer look like, Zachary?"

"I honestly don't know!"


Well, it's a start, Helch thought. The agent went to get another cup of coffee. He was going to need it...

- - -

A.J. Dönitz was part of the maintenance team at the President-General's northern retreat. He was doing some routine checks in the building's basement when he stumbled upon something odd: wires belonging to the communications system rerouted into a strange metallic device. He called his supervisor to check it out.

2:07pm

Rechburg Naval command

After the introductions Admiral Ney switched on a large wall screen, across the screen were the islands and land mass that made up the territories of Rechburg, Rammsteinburg and the Islands of the South seas.
Intermixed with these were the positions of ships and units as shown by the many intelligence satelites.

The Admiral then related all the events as known by the Rechburg authorities, from what was now known to have been a stolen submarine, through the events of the baron sitting on Moir Island with an atomic weapon, the Baron's assassination of the Prince's father Duke Leo.

The Prince then waited, while the Rammsteinburg people conferred, he then said.
"Gentleman we have shown and told you all we know, but the greatest threat to us and Rammsteinburg is what we dont know. We have spent countless hours trying to reach your Government and military, but they are not reponding and that will lead to dire consequences; as I am sure you can see."

"So far we have a nuclear submarine near our coast, we have several large fleets intersecting our units approaching Moir Island and your countries military messeges are consistent with a nation preparing for war. Sadly gentleman as we cannot communicate with your nation, we must respond to your threatening moves with a equal response."

He walked to the screen on the far wall, waving to all the units being displayed.

"Somewhere Gentleman on this screen is the trigger to a catalysmic war, a war that most likely will start as a result of an accident, a misunderstanding or because we couldnt talk. I am hoping, nay I am imploring you mister ambassador, help us reach your Government before that trigger is set off".

Admiral Ney then stood and walked over to the screen, he pointed to Moir island.
"This is the trigger Gentleman. right here".

He then pointed to the destroyer force,
"Until a few minutes ago we had a force heading to intercept the Matra, which was going to Moir Island, the Matra was involved in the Barons schemes and fortunately as we speak the Matra is being reclaimed by our Navy.
Gentlemen we had intended to close Moir island off with our ships, sadly as we could not tell your forces of this I have since decided that your navy may see our moves on Moir as a possible threat to Rammsteinburg. However Gentleman the fact remains we have 8 destroyers and 3 cruisers surrounded by elements of your armed forces, it would only take a nervous finger, or possibly a desire for revenge and from there we would go to oblivion in next to no time.

Again he turned to the screen and pointed down to Moir Island,

"Here we have a submarine with 6 Special forces men, they have been there for a week observing and tracking the defences on the island, but with just 6 men we can do nothing".

"On that island gentleman, we will have an increasingly desperate man. he has the same satelite images we have, he can see the forces around him, if he should set that weapon off for any reason, the South seas and southern Rammsteinburg will become a radioactive zone.
Finally gentleman and perhaps as a bit of irony that nuclear weapon was brought by a Kunesdorf man, from a Rammsteinburg agent who was acting for a Battlehawk arms dealer".

2:10 P.M.

Katzenbach spent a few minutes talking the matter over with his two liaisons. Commander Weiss had known that preparations were being made for war, and he was just about to tell the ambassador before the sniper attack. But neither he nor Colonel Oldendorf could explain the lack of communication from their government. That was what was really confusing, Katzenbach thought. Why would his government not want to talk with the Rechburgians? It was understandable for preparations for war to be made right away, but as much of a warrior nation Rammsteinburg was, it was not like The Great Warlord Republic to simply remain silent in an event like this. Even if there was nothing that could be said to prevent war, diplomats were usually sent to talk to the enemy to at least make them think that there was a chance.

The ambassador stood and spoke. "Gentlemen, this situation is even more serious than I suspected," he said. "I am sorry that I cannot explain my government's actions, but I will, I promise you, contact my superiors in Rammsteinburg immediately and seek an explanation for this. Believe me, a war between our two nations is not what I want. Not after hundreds of years of peaceful relations. If you'll excuse me, I will go make that call right now."

2:10 P.M.

U-500 crept along silently beneath the sea on a heading straight towards Red Dawn's last known location. One of Rammsteinburg's newest submarines, it possessed the best sonar system in the entire U-Boat force, besides Red Dawn, of course. But more important than that was Warrant Officer Borg. If anybody could find the stolen sub, everyone believed it had to be him. After conferring with the CO, Captain vaan Hausen, Borg reported directly to the sonar station. To see him walk by was like Elvis suddenly appear to the sailors on board U-500. A few even saluted him, though it was not customary to salute warrant officers.

Once at the sonar station, Warrant Officer Borg relieved a Sonar Operator First Class. Borg sat down, put on the headphones, and concentrated hard.

2:12am

"Conn: Sonar, Sierra 1 at 400 meters, 85 degrees, Sierra 2 at 283 meters 90 degrees, Sierra 3at 658 meters 95 degrees, Sierra 4 at 600 meteres 120 degrees, Sierra 5 300 meters at 150 degrees and Sierra 6 at 800 meters at
25 degrees".

The Captain watched the plot, he had slowly surfaced the Red Dawn up through the 2nd layer, like the monster from the deep she was. He had remained deep, well below the second layer and allowed the Rummsteinburg attack submarines to slowly cruise by above him. Occasionally one had been dipping above and below the layer, it was this one that worried him the most. Watching its plot it was clearly the most experienced Captain, he was like the true hunter an attack skipper should be. Sniffing and looking for a scent of his prey.
However this prey had a few tricks of his own, and a bite to match. The main problem for the Captain of Red Dawn was that there were simply too many targets. With only 4 bow tubes and 2 aft tubes he was in for a great amount manouvering once he opened fire, that meant he could not allow the guide wires on the 48's to remain intact for too long. Once he cut the wires and the 48's went active, the whole hide and seek game became a slugfest.

The only advantage he had, was now as his submarine rose above the layer he was in the baffles of most of the enemy, the hardest place for a submarine to detect an enemy.

"Conn here to all stations, in a moment we will take a snap shot with tubes 1 and 4, once clear they will go active. We will dive immediately at flank speed on a heading of 270 degrees going down to 850 metres.
Once we are under the layer, which should only take a few seconds I want tubes 5 and 6 to fire and then drop decoys. When at 850 we drop speed and settle down into the canyon at maximum depth.
What I am relying on here people is the confusion our initial fire will create, those subs will have to manouvre so their sonars will go to hell, that gives us a window of several minutes to escape. At this range we should take out most, but thats not certain. So WO, I expect you get those Torpedoes loaded damn fast.
Is every one clear"

He waited a few moments and ensured that the weapons officer had the torpedoes matched to each target and the said

"Fire 1 to 4".

There were 4 consecutive thuds, and then almost immediately the 4 torpedoes went active heading straight to their targets, Red Dawn dove seeking depth and speed, but naturally she was making noise and lots of it. The only boon the captain allowed himself was the enemy were making more. then he heard the thud of tubes 5-6.

"Conn:Sonar, the picture has gone to hell and back skipper, its chaos up there"

"Sonar:Conn stay on it" WO deploy decoys, Helm hard 270 and then manouvering speed only".

2:15pm

Matra airbase

Base Commander Bart Evans and Airforce General Colin Simpson watched from the control tower, down below on the tarmac was a scene of organised chaos.

For the last hour the airbase had become a hive of activity. Raptor fighters and attack aircraft had been arriving constantly. Some were prep'ed and sent aloft as Caps for units out to sea, either covering the 1st battlefleet or watching over the AWAC's that were cruising Rechburg airspace.
Occasionally a lumbering Galaxy would roar in or out of the base, bringing supplies and or troops. The one immdediately below him was unloading a AA missile system, that particular load made him feel a whole lot better.

Other aircraft were being prepared for naval strikes. These activities were being repeated right along the Rechburg eastern seaboard.

2:20pm

Baron von Brunswick had gone from extreme elation after watching the Helions destroy large parts of the Rummsteinburg Navy, to utter despair when he realised the Matra had turned around.
The vexations he heaped on Captain Mc Mann were many and varied.

The Baron had been watching developments from his base on Moir island most of the day, he saw the Rammsteinburg fleet approach, he watched the Rechburg Destroyers approach rapidly and then inexplicably turn around with the Matra.

For the Baron, his plans were not progressing as they should. The Rammsteinburg retaliatory strike against Rechburg had not materialised, he saw the potential was there but how could he possibly push them just one step closer. Without a delivery system, his nuclear warhead was useless except as a counter balance against invasion of Moir, there had to be something he had overlooked.

2:11 P.M.

Warrant Officer Borg was feeling the pressure. Everybody expected him to find Red Dawn, but he had his doubts that he could. The expert sonar operator had found the 5 times in simulations, but those were all due to flaws in the propulsion system which were eliminated due to his input. There were some theoretical flaws left, but they were all very unlikely. Had there been more time, he could have programmed U-500's computers to account for them, but unfortunately he had barely even had time to get to the U-Boat base on time. Borg worried that, thanks to him, the system was too good. He wished that he could appreciate the humor in his predicament.

At around 2:09, the warrant officer's hopes were raised. He heard something too faint to identify, so he amplified the sound. It was an odd swooshing, unlike anything he had ever heard before. Could it be? he asked himself. He recalled that, if overworked, Red Dawn's propulsion system could create an unusual swooshing sound, though he did not remember the exact science behind the problem. It's a long shot, he thought, but it just might be...

Borg was contemplating ways to test his theory when all of a sudden the relative silence which he heard through his headphones by a loud and all too familiar noise.

"Conn, sonar, we have torpedoes in the water!"

- - -

The situation room at High Command Headquarters was a scene of controlled chaos. Men rushed about. Live images streamed on all of the large tactical displays throughout the room. The sounds of ringing phones, fast typing, and hurried footsteps filled the air. Preparation for war was no easy task, but luckily those responsible for doing so in The Great Warlord Republic were ready for the challenge. Regular drills kept their skills sharp, and most of them had experienced the real deal.

Fleet Admiral Emmerich was fifteen minutes away, flying in on his private helicopter. His counterparts from the other services were already at High Command HQ waiting for him. They had just received a message from the President-General informing them that the Chief of Naval Operations had been given overall command of the preparations.

2:12 P.M.

The first torpedo headed for U-505. Acting fast, its skipper, Captain Hermann Schwimmer ordered the decoys released. He knew that their effectiveness against 48's was not that great, but he had to do something. Luckily for him, the wire connecting the torpedo to Red Dawn was cut too soon, and it fell for the trick, locking onto a decoy instead of the Rammsteinburgian submarine. U-503 was not quite as fortunate. Commanded by the inexperienced Commander Theo Kraft, it was hit in the engine room. The nuclear power plant was rendered useless and radiation filled the vessel. U-500's first attempt at thwarting off the torpedo headed for it failed. The 48 went right past the decoys. The torpedo continued straight towards it. But Captain vaan Hausen did not panic. This was not his first time being fired at, and he was not about to let it be his last. Meanwhile, U-508 and U-502 were hit. The former was struck near her forward torpedo room, and the latter was struck amidships. The crews on both vessels struggled to combat flooding and raging fires.

2:15pm

The Red Dawn fired off decoys as she dived beneath the layer, with all the decoys spinning, the torpedoes pinging wildly the Captain realised he had to distance himself from this underwater furball. The sonar reports for everyone would have been utterly destroyed, with all the movement from decoys, torpedoes, and sinking submarines.

Once clear he ordered the sub to slow and he waited, deep beneath the layer. Slowly drifting with the current and changing to 60 degrees. Everyone on all submarines waiting for the snowy confusion to clear so they could determine their next action.

2:16 P.M.

Half of the Rammsteinburgian submarines--U-500, U-505, and U-504--survived the torpedo attack unscathed, thanks to knowledge and quick action of their skippers. Only U-503 had sunk, taking a hundred officers and men down with it. U-508 and U-502 were forced to return home due to heavy damage.

One of the remaining subs, U-504, began pinging away with its active sonar, and they were quickly followed by U-505,but a message from Captain vaan Hausen in U-500, the senior skipper, urged them to stop.

That was a gutsy move Red Dawn made, vaan Hausen thought. Either the captain's a fool or was trying to play us for ones. Well, I'm not going to fall for his trap. He wanted to throw us in disarray, but I won't grant him that pleasure.

The captain had a tough question to answer: What to do now? Red Dawn had taken things further. He was really determined to find the stolen sub now. But how?

Just then, Warrant Officer Borg called the bridge. "Conn, sonar," he said, "I think I've stumbled upon something useful. Can you come down here, captain?"

OOC: Okay, we got way too many subplots already, so I'm going to start cutting back. The whole thing with Zachary Rommel really isn't important now, so I'm going to finish up with that. He'll play a bigger role in the proceeding RP.

- - -

2:16 P.M.

Three attempts at contacting the Minister of Foreign Affairs had failed. Ambassador Katzenbach was about ready to give up and call somebody else, but he decided to try one more time. Whoever said the third time's a charm was an idiot, he realized, because the fourth try turned out to be a success. After three rings, Dr. Kohlberg answered.

"Kohlberg here," the minister said nonchalantly.

"Hello, Dr. Kohlberg," Katzenbach said. "It's Ambassador Katzenbach. I've been trying to call you for ten minutes, sir."

"I'm quite sorry, Mr. Katzenbach, I was being briefed by the Minister of War."

"On the preparations for war with Rechburg I presume?"

"Yes. How do you know about that already?"

Katzenbach wished the minister could see his smirk. "Well, I happen to be meeting with the prince of Rechburg and their naval chief, Admiral Ney. They're very concerned, Dr. Kohlberg. Why has our government been ignoring them?"

"Huh? Mr. Katzenbach, it's my understanding that the President-General has tried repeatedly to get in touch with Rechburg. We thought they were ignoring us..."

"What?!" the ambassador exclaimed. He noticed the prince and Admiral Ney look up.

"I am just as confused as you now, Mr. Katzenbach," Kohlberg said.

There was a pause. Then, the Minister of Foreign Affairs asked Katzenbach to wait a moment -- he had a call on the other line. The ambassador tried to be patient. Finally, Kohlberg returned.

"Mr. Katzenbach, I was just informed by the President-Gereral's office that a saboteur messed with the communications system at his retreat. The problem has been fixed, though. Admiral Fredenmuenster wishes to have a video conference with the prince and Admiral Ney right now."

The ambassador put his cell phone down and spoke to the two Rechburgians. "Good news, gentlemen. Our head of state is ready to talk to you. It turns out that my government wasn't ignoring you after all. Somebody tampered with the communications system. The President-General has been trying to contact you. What do you want me to tell him?"

2:17 P.M.

Captain James Norbert lay in his bed on board U-642, reading Tom Clancy's The Cardinal of the Kremlin. He was still unaware that his vessel had been detected. At present the U-640-class nuclear ballistic submarine moved at a slow speed of 4 knots just outside of the restricted zone. The skipper tried to keep his mind off of the effects of using a nuclear warhead, but he was constantly plagued with the terrifying images of the damage done to Hiroshima and Nagasaki over half a decade earlier. Though he would not admit such a thing to his men, Norbert was more scared than he had ever been in his life. He joined the Rammsteinburg Navy as an enlisted man almost 27 years ago, and in all that time, after all of those drills and war games that were supposed to prepare him for a situation like this, he never expected he would one day have to face it for real.

There was a knock on the door. It was his executive officer, Commander Engels.

"Enter," said Captain Norbert. The XO opened the door and walked in.

"Good book," Engels said, observing his skipper's choice of reading material. "One of my favourites, but I think Clear and Present Danger is better."

"Tom Clancy is a crappy writer. Knowledgeable when it comes to military matters, but he hasn't a clue how to write... I don't know why I read his stuff, really."

"Well, his books certainly lack any real literary merit, but hey, I like them. His plots are interesting. He simply neglects character development, that's all... Well, except for in Without Remorse, I guess."

"I'll concede that Without Remorse was pretty good. Anyway, what do you want, Günther? I know you didn't come to discuss pop literature with me. Did the launch codes arrive?"

"No, sir," the XO said. "I was just thinking, that's all, and... well, captain, why do you think that it's taking so long for us to get those codes? This is odd."

"I thought it strange at first, too," Norbert told Engels. "But then I thought hard about it and figured that the High Command is bickering about whether to go through with the nuclear strike. It's a tough decision, you know, commander."

"Right. That makes sense, sir."

"Anything else?" the captain asked.

"No, sir. Goodbye, sir."

"Bye." The XO turned around and left.

Let them keep bickering until whatever our problem with Rechburg is has blown over, the captain thought.

2:17 P.M.

Fleet Admiral Fredenmuenster rubbed his forehead. The stress of the day's events were taking a toll on the old officer's mental health. He had tried combating the extreme fatigue he felt with coffee, but with little success.

The President-General's only company was his chief of staff, Aaron McGill-Austerlitz. Fredenmuenster's longtime friend leaned against the wall to the right of the locked door and underneath a painting of RNS Admiral von Dortmei, Rammsteinburg's first aircraft carrier, sailing beneath a purple, cloudless sky as a group of planes circled around it. McGill-Austerlitz was still trying to figure out how to get his hands on the nuclear launch codes the President-General kept in a suitcase he constantly carried with him.

"It's been a long, lone day," Fredenmuenster said. He leaned back in his chair and stretched. "Such a very long day..."

"It's been tough on all of us, sir," his chair of staff replied.

"But especially so on me," the tired Fleet Admiral added. "I'm getting way too old for this, Aaron. I realize now that I should've retired years ago... What was I thinking?"

"You're more than fit to command, Joachim," McGill-Austerlitz lied. It was the first time he addressed Fredenmuenster by his first name since he became the highest government and military official in The Great Warlord Republic five years earlier.

Fredenmuenster rubbed his forehead again. "No... No, I'm not," he said. "I've become weak."

"Nonsense."

"It's true." The President-General sighed. "And I've decided that I'm going to resign. I'll probably make the announcement tomorrow. I'm not entirely sure yet. And I'm going to name Admiral Emmerich as my successor."

McGill-Austerlitz hid his joy at hearing that the incompotent Fredenmuenster was planning to step down. He put on a face of feigned disappointment. "Joachim, you're a great leader, and Rammsteinburg still needs you. Don't do this." I hope I'm not too good at this, the chief of staff worried. I don't want to actually convince him to stay.

"My mind is made up, Aaron." The President-General stood. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to use the restroom." Fleet Admiral Fredenmuenster left, his head hanging low... and with the suitcase containing the nuclear launch codes still resting on the floor beneath his desk.

Aaron McGill-Austerlitz could hardly believe how lucky he had become. He did not waste this golden oppurtunity. Making sure the door was locked first, he ran behind the President-General's desk, opened the suitcase, and searched for the codesheet for U-642. He found it, folded it, and placed it in his pants pocket. The chief of staff then unlocked the door and waited for Fredenmuenster to return. Once back, he would excuse himself to his quarters where he would call Rear Admiral Logan.

2:17

Prince Blaise, almost knocked the Ambassador over in his eagerness to get closer, Mr Katzenbach, I urgently need you to tell your President General that Rechburg is not, I repeat not going to war with Rammsteinburg.
Please explain why I am speaking to him and not my father, and forgod sake please make him understand Rechburg has only deployed in defensive positions.
In fact we have even pulled back all our ships in Rammsteinburg waters or near Rammsteinburg areas of influence.

Please Point out to him Sir, that we have two primary concerns, Baron Brunswick has a nuclear warhead on Moir Island, because of the tense situation in the South Seas; we are unable to do anything.
You may tell him we have a submarine down there with a SEAL team on board and they have mapped out the defences. He has our permission to contact the SEAL Commander who will co-operate in whatever way is necessary.

The other concern we have is that there is a Rammsteinburg Nuclear Submarine 150 miles or so from our southern coasts, this is making us extremely nervous as we have a major fleet in the area. My Naval experts want me to prosecute this submarine for operating in Rechburg area of interest, but of course I am reluctant to do this because of the dire consequences.
Please ask him Mr Katzenbach, to remove this threat from my nation, once done I will then step down my status of preparedness until we are back to normal.

2:19

Red Dawn

The biggest difficulty in operating Red dawn under the present circumstances was always they were not operating at full efficency, things had to be done under pressure or negated altogether.

The torpedo crew aboard Red dawn had been constantly at work, with only half the men available to work the torpedo loading, it took longer, much longer; and the men were becoming tired and careless.

After the last salvo of torpedoes was fired, the loading was taking much longer than normal, even allowing for the fact it was already twice as long a process than normal

Stan Henderson, one of the weapon experts that came on board had just primed the last torpedo, he turned to tell his station chief they were ready to load the automatic hoist when the spanner he had been using fell out of his overalls pocket and hit the deck with an almighty loud CLANG.
Everyone in the room stopped looked at Stan, waiting, petrified to move; almost holding their breath in the vain hope that no one heard that the clatter.

2:19 P.M.

Sonar Operator 1/c Anton Lang manned the sonar station while Warrant Officer Borg explained his theory to the captain. He played amplified recordings of the sound and explained the little bit of the science behind the flaw with Red Dawn's propulsion system that he could muster up from his memory.

Lang heard very little through his headphones. The noise from the decoys was now, and the sound that Bord had noticed extremely faint. It could be a very a boring job at times, just sitting there listening to the sounds of the sea and hoping; but he was an experienced sonar operator and had learned how to keep himself alert. The inner discipline he had gained through his practice of Zen Buddhism helped a lot. Lang managed to keep his mind empty, yet functioning well and ready for action.

The clang startled the sonar operator a little. Suddenly, his mind shifted into high gear and he yelled, "I've got something!" Warrant Officer Borg and Captain vaan Hausen turned and looked at Lang with excitement and shock.

U-500 switched on its active sonar. The other remaining subs reported their positions and U-500's computer programmed to eliminate them.

Sonar Operator Lang yelled Red Dawn's depth, heading, and speed. Captain vaan Hausen sent the order to the forward torpedo room to fire tubes 1, 2, and 3. With swift effeicency, the skipper's orders were carried out. The deafening thud of the first Mk48 torpedo launching filled the submarine, quickly followed by that of the second and third.

Red Dawn

"Transients, we have 3 transients coming from 295 degress and bloody close" yelled the sonar operator.

"Shit" yelled the captain

"Deploy noisemakers, take us above the layer and fast" he said to the WO and the Helm OOD.

"Christ" he thought to himself, "Caught with my bloody pants down, not even one torpedo loaded".

The submarine quickly accelerated throught the layer, the 1st torpedo distracted by the noisemaker dived down, the other two, possibly being guided by the enemy chased the Red Dawn through the layer.

"We have lost 1 transient, its gone after the noisemaker. transient 2 and 3 have us and are pinging"

The captain looked at his crew, they all knew it was the end, there was no escaping two pinging torpedoes at close range; but he had to try.

"Take us up through the next layer, deploy noise maker now, then turn 45 degrees".

The submarine climbed at speed, but now the loudest noise and the biggest Target was Red dawn. The next torpedo hit the Red dawn with a loud thump, but did not explode.
As the Submaine had made the sudden turn the torpedo instead of hitting directly hit it on a glancing blow and bounced of, its steering gear damaged it simply drifted down.

The crew yelled with excitement, they had evaded two torpedos, they were touched by the gods surely.

The third torpedo however hit the submarine in the rear driving into the rear propulsion system and exploding. Immediately the engine room started to flood. Fortunately all doors were secured.
Not waiting for a damage report, the captain knew the end was here.

"Blow ballast now"

As the initial energy of the submarine was in a upward motion and the crew immediately blowing ballast, the submarine shot to the surface, almost leaping out of the water. She lay stern down on the surface and sinking by the stern slowly deeper

"Everyone out now"

The hatches flew open and the crew climbed out as fast as possible, the captain stayed.

OCC - I will leave the fate of the Red Dawn to you at this point. It could be rescued or allowed to sink as you see fit.

Tren'Ler

It had taken several hours but James was crawling throught hte air vents above where the terrorists hat their HQ

Tren'Ler - Blackhawk.

Karl Meinhoff, started moving the latch on the hatch, he heard a sound above him, it sounded like it came from the ventilator hatch, he waited but the sound didnt occur again. Convincing himself it must be falling debris somewehere at the other end of the shaft, he lifted the hatch.

Whispering into his head mic

"Diamonds 1,2 and 3, stay in position, Im about to enter the hatch"

James attached his drop rope and began to slide down to the floor, his weapon at the ready

Tren'Ler - Blackhawk.

Meinhoff was about to climb down the hatch, then heard that noise again, he waited; nothing, so he climbed in and closed the hatch secured the lock and then climbed down the metal rungs until he was in the sewers below.

Gasping at the stench he made his way along the large and very old sewer, the cluggy filth sticking to his boots every step of the way, each step adding to the stench.

James swore unders his breath as the lock secured. As h reaced the floor he aimed his weapon and blew the lock off

Tren'Ler - Blackhawk.

Meingoff heard the shot as it echoed down the tunnel, glancing behind it was too dark to see anyone, he spoke into his mic

"There is someone behind me, Im nearly there; drop the ladder"

Meinhoff now in a hurry struggled against the sludge of mud and shit that lay on the bottom of the tunnel, suddenly he heard a clang as a lid in the roof of the tunnel was opened. A rope ladder was dropped, grabbing the wildly swinging ladder Meinhoff started climbing.

James grabbed for the rope ladder but missed. He then fired upwards towards the top of the ladder

Meinhoff heard the shot and felt the pain all at the same time, the next sensation he had was laying on his back in the shit, he all of a sudden felt very tired; he needed sleep. Looking up he saw a man with a gun standing over him, then from the gap in the roof of the tunnel a grenade came down and landed beside Meinhoff.
He smiled to himself

"At least Im taking one with me".

An inflatable boat filled with 10 armed men from U-500 bounced violently up and down on the water, heading towards the sinking Red Dawn. Dark clouds hung overheard, and the wind was gradually picking up speed. Water constantly sprayed the sailors in the boat. A few of the junior enlisted men on their first sea tour held tight on the plastic handles on the sides, fearing that they would be washed overboard.

Back in the conning tower of U-500, Captain vaan Hausen watched his men through a pair of binoculars. He sort of envied them. He recalled the first team he led a boarding party as a First Lieutenant on a destroyer, just before he transferred to submarines. He remembered how excited he was. The captain considered ignoring protocol and leading his men in their apprehension of the Rechburgian thieves, but decided against it.

Noticing that Red Dawn was slowly sinking, Subcommander Deutschen, who was standing to the captain's right, said, "Herr Kapitän, she's going down! Are we going to try to save her?"

Vaan Hausen realized that Deutschen was right. He knew then that he would be forced to make a big decision that would determine his future in the navy. If he sent men over to try to save the sinking sub and they succeeded, he would be honored as a great hero upon his return to Rammsteinburg, probably receive some sort of medal, and be placed high up on the list for promotion to Commodore. But if he just allowed Red Dawn to fall to bottom of the sea, he would be berated for allowing this new submarine--one which was supposedly going to revolutionize the U-Boat fleet--to be lost. And if he sent his men to rescue the sub and they failed... then he will have sent several fine sailors to their watery graves. It was that last thought that scared him. As captain the fates of the men assigned to U-500 were his responsibility; if they died, he alone would be to blame. He asked himself a tough question: Do I risk the lives of my sailors for the chance to move my career forward?

No, Captain vaan Hausen told himself, I can't do it. I won't do it. I'm not going to jeopardize their lives. He was fairly certain that Red Dawn could be saved, but he was not prepared to take the chance. He looked at Subcommander Deutschen and said simply, "No, Commander, we are not." He then continued observing the boarding party, which was only half a minute away from Red Dawn now.

Second Lieutenant Klaus Brücker led the boarding party. He removed his M9 Pistol from its holster and screamed over the heavy wind, "Get ready, boys!" The other nine men removed their weapons and prepared themselves. They could all make out the faces of the people struggling to keep afloat in the rough water around the sinking Red Dawn.

Red Dawn

The Captain looked around the sub, it was his last command; but what a command. He mused himself what may have been possible if he had a full crew and a head start.

He walked down to his cabin, and laid down on his bed. He wondered which was the better way to die, drown which he had be told was a very peaceful way to die, or the quick way with a gun.

He reached for his revolver in the shoulder holster, looking at the gun for a few moments, he decided it was best with a gun, no way to be saved and put on a show trial; much better.
As he raised the gun to his head, he wondered,,, "Wonder how the Baron did"

Up on deck, a shot was heard.

The stern of the Red dawn was now almost under the surface, the submarine like a cork in a pond seemed to want to play and bounce before sinking.

James took a running dive away as the grenade exploded and was injured by the explosion, hwo badly he wasn't sure. he managed to speaok into his raidor
"Bauer, to control, Ineed EMT's on the roof!"

Lt. Brücker watched the stern of the mighty submarine, Red Dawn, disappear beneath the gray-blue water of the Sea of Rammsteinburg as he lifted one of the thieves into the boat and handcuffed him. It was sad to see her go, as he remembered that she was a Rammsteinburgian vessel with the bodies of many of his countrymen still on board. He wondered if she would've made a good addition to the fleet.

The wind died down just for a moment -- just long enough for what sounded like a gunshot to reach the surface.

With all the Rechburgians in the boat, Brücker gave the order to turn around and head back to U-500. Once there, the thieves would be temporarily detained--the lieutenant just then wondered if the brig was large enough--until a Coastguard service vessel arrived to take them back to land.

Tren'Ler - Blackhawk.

With their leader dead the 3 remaining terrorists ran the length of the air aquaduct that ran the length of the sewer until they came upon a ladder hanging down.
Climbing up the ladder all 3 climbed onto the floor of a automobile garage. They quickly pulled up the rope ladder and closed the lid over the hole. They then pushed a nearby car so its wheel rested on the lid.

They then changed their clothes, put them into a burning incinerater and left.
Mr Clive Lawson went to Tren ler University where he worked, Ms Dianne Sherman went to the "Protect the Battlehawk Wolves" office where she worked as an administrator and Master Sergeant Alan Donaldson returned to his Marine Barracks.

All agreed they would meet in the alternative meeting place in one weeks time to go over their options and future plans.

2:30pm

Moir Island

The business jet flew off from the airstrip on Moir Island, keeping low to avoid radar it headed south.

2:35pm

On Board Cruiser "Normandie"

Rear Admiral Alan Soult commander of the newly designated Taskforce 1/A which consisted of Destoyer Flotilla's 3 and 4, quietly stood on the outer Bridge of the cruiser observing his command with his binoculars. His 9 Destoyers (Now including the Matra under new command) and 3 cruisers were sailing Nor West towards Rechburg.
Their mission orders had changed, originally they were to intercept the Matra, which they did. Then they received orders they were to "blockade" Moir Island", but with the changing situation with rammsteinburg Naval headquarters had ordered them out of Rammsteinburg waters immediately.

He was officially in international waters, but the area with its bountiful Rammsteinburg Islands had always been considered a "Rammsteinburg area of influence". Now he was in what was often referred to by the media as a "tense international situation".
He had received orders he was to rejoin the 1st Battlefleet which was sailing south in Rechburg waters to meet him, however with the absence of communications from Rammsteinburg and the increased Rammsteinburg military activity Admiral Soult considered himselfand his command a "priority target"

Captain Stan Evans jioned him on the bridge.
"We just had confirmation from naval headquarters Admiral, they are sending two P3's to join us and a flight of F35's; so at least we have air cover and anti sub protection."

The admiral now looking down on the deck of the Normandie below the bridge turned to look at Captain Evans

"Stan, how the hell did all this go wrong? This morning we were on exercises and having a peaceful day, a few hours later we are the enemy of Rammsteinburg and not only deep in their waters, but we are deep in the shit."

The Captain, took out a cigar,
"Admiral I am willing to bet that very question has been asked dozens of times today'

He lit the cigar and enjoyed the sense of relief a "Stoggie" gave him.
"We may be deep in the shit Admiral but we arent exactly going to lay down and die for anyone, half our fleet are anti sub assets, the other half anti air; so we can take care off ourselves so long as we dont go head to head with a surface fleet. Fortunately Sir, we dont have any of them near us"

The Admiral liked Evans, he was a sailor of the old school, if he wanted a good flag captain, in Captain Evans he had the best.
"Well Stan the only consolation I have is if we go down, 2 entire fucking countries are going down with us".

"Hmmm personally admiral, thats of little consolation to me, I just want to get home to a nice warm lady and a cold glass of whisky; dying isnt big on my things to do today."

The EMT's ran onto the rooftop and knelt down by James. All was a fuzz as they placed him on a strecter and a helicoptor arrived to air lift him to hospital

2:36 P.M.

"Gentlemen, I have informed my government everything that you told me,"Ambassador Katzenbach said. "They inform me that, for now, your warships will be allowed to pass through Rammsteinburgian waters and that our military is lowing its alert level. As for the nuclear submarine, it is operating within the established area of operation for 3rd Fleet--an area, which I must remind you, your government approved of. I assure you that it is not a threat to you. Rammsteinburg has no intention of launching a nuclear strike on your country--believe me, if they were going to, I'd know about it, because they would get me and all other Rammsteinburgian government officials out of the country." Katzenbach paused to clear your throat. "Finally, I've been told that our President-General wishes to have a teleconference right away to get everything sorted out."

OOC: I need to backtrack a bit...

2:29 P.M.

Fleet Admiral Emmerich was greeted with a surprise when he entered the conference room where the Rammsteinburg High Command was meeting. Upon his entrance, everybody present got out of their seats and stood at attention.

"What is this?" Emmerich asked. "I'm just the chief of naval operations..."

"Actually, sir," said Field Marshal Gregor Traugott, head of the army, "you're just been removed as chief of naval operations."

Air Force chief of operations General David Pfaff continued. "We just got word. You've been promoted. Herr President-General."

Emmerich was taken aback. "W-what?"

"Admiral Fredenmuenster just resigned, sir," Pfaff said. Hermann König has been promoted to O-11 and given your old position"

The new President-General did not know what to say. It was an overwhelming experience. He looked around the room, at all of those men in uniforms whom he now commanded. He felt... powerful. It was a magnificent feeling.

Emmerich decided it was best not to say anything, to get right down to business instead. He set the precedent for his entire presidency in that moment. He would be known as a leader who did not waste time--a man who believed in getting straight to work. The new head of state for Rammsteinburg nodded and took the seat at the head of the table.

"So, what's our current situation?" asked President-General Emmerich.

Field Marshal Traugott spoke up. "Readiness reports are still coming in, but so far it seems most of the military is ready, sir. Also, we have made contact with the Rechburg government finally." He put special emphasis on the last word.

"Do elaborate, please," responded Emmerich. The new President-General was straight-backed with a stern face. He eyed Traugott with intensity. He almost looked angry, but in reality he was quite happy--as happy as he could be given The Great Warlord Republic's current predicament, that is.

"They spoke with our ambassador, Paul Katzenbach."

"I know Mr. Katzenbach," Emmerich interrupted. "Good man. Go on."

"Well, sir, it seems we gave the Rechburgers quite a scare. They still insist that one of their provincial governors, a Baron von Brunswick, head of some sort of separatist movement, is behind this all. Their recent actions do not indicate that they intend to go to war with us. They had a some ships south of Krawstein Island, but they withdrew them in response to our preparations to war."

"They could be trying to trick us."

"This is true, sir," Field Marshal Traugott said. "However, I don't think it's true. And well, sir... if it isn't, we have another big problem on our hands."

"What is that?" the President-General inquired.

The chief of Army operations gulped. "Sir, the Rechburgers are claiming that von Brunswick has a nuclear warhead on Moir Island."

Fleet Admiral Emmerich's eyes widened. "What?!"

"They tell us that's why they have ships heading into Rammsteinburgian waters. They also claim to have a special ops team off the coast of Moir Island prepared to try to stop von Brunswick."

Emmerich stood up. "Okay, here's what we're going to do," he began. "I want emergency response teams throughout the home islands and the territories on alert. I also want all of our missile defense stations on high alert." He then looked at the new chief of naval operations, Fleet Admiral König, and said, "What's the status of the carrier battlegroup I sent towards Moir Island?"

"They're quickly approaching the island, sir. The island is well within striking range of the carrier's aircraft and the missiles of its escorting vessels."

"Good. Call Admiral Lieber. I want to talk to him. But first I need to talk to the Duke of Rechburg."

"Sir, the duke was assassinated," Field Marshal Traugott informed the President-General. "His son, Prince Blaise, has taken over."

Emmerich was saddened by this news. He had met the duke several times and had genuinely liked him. But he also knew the prince, and he knew him to be a fine young man. "Damn shame," he said. "Alright, then, get the prince for me. We must talk immediately."

An army corporal knocked on the glass doors of the conference room. Emmerich gestured for him to enter. "At ease, son," he said. "What's up?"

"Sirs, a message has just come in from U-500. Captain vaan Hausen reports that Red Dawn has been sunk and the hijackers apprehended. The Coastguard frigate RNS Wurz is on its way to rendezvous with the sub and deliver the hijackers to Rammsteinburg."

The mood in the room changed. The serious faces of the members of the High Command glowed with relief. Some, including Fleet Admiral Emmerich, actually smiled.

The President-General spoke. "It is a shame that Red Dawn has been lost, but at least those responsible will get what they deserve. Now we can devote our full attention to our other little problems. Oh, and you're dismissed, corporal."

"Yes, sir!" The corporal saluted, about-faced and left.

"The tides are beginning to change, it seems," commented General Mueller, commandant of the Marine Corps.

"This is a bit of good news on a very gloomy day, gentlemen, but let us not forget that the day is still young and there is still much to be do," Emmerich said.

"I have to agree," replied Field Marshal Traugott. "Let's not get our hopes up too high now. We can't think clearly with our heads in the clouds."

"Exactly," the President-General said. "Now, get me Prince Blaise right away!"

Prince Blaise studied the screens before him, though they gave him all the information of things happening in his part of the world; in truth they told him nothing.

He could not understand why the Rammsteinburgers would risk war without at least talking to him, he couldnt undertsand why the Baron had tried to start a war just so he could assume control of his own province as a Imperial Republic.

He could not understand how the Rammsteinburg Navy could lose its latest submarine on the very day that the Baron had made his move.

Finally what truly baffled him now, how was he going to neutralize the Baron and that nuclear war head on Moir Island, especially if he also had to fight a war with Rammsteinburg.
A war that would seriously catch all his naval units out of position, the 1st battlefleet was the only one of the 3 Fleets in Rechburg waters, the other 2 were in deployment elsewhere and would not be with range for another day.

Admiral Ney. His Naval Commander was handed a message, he read it, looked briefly at the messenger then handed the message to the Prince.
The Prince read the message

President General Emmerich wishes to speak with the Prince urgently

The Prince looked at Admiral Ney
"Who the hell is President General Emmerich?"

Ney shook his head,
"The only Emmerich I know over their is Admiral Emmerich their Chief of naval Operations, how the hell he got to be President General I have no idea".

Prince Blaise looked at the message again
"This could explain everything, there must have been a coup; and the new leaders are going to go to war against us"

Admiral Ney shook his head
"No Sire, more likely they are trying to stop a war. Why would new Coup leaders risk a war right now, surely they would consolidate their hold first"

The Prince thought for a moment
"They could be using the Baron's missile attack as an excuse to have attempted the coup, then use the war to distract the people and unite the country under patriotism, not unlike Argentina in that Falkland issue many years ago."

Admiral Ney, couldnt accept that this meant war,
"Well Sire one thing is certain, you can only find out by speaking with this President General, whoever he is."

The Prince smiled,
"Of course Ney, you are right, here we are speculating on the worse things like old fishmongers wives."

He turned to the Admiral Ney smiling,
"Please could you get someone to ring Rammsteinburg, we need to see if there is anyone home now"

Moments later he was handed the phone

"President General Emmerich, Prince Blaise here, sadly I am acting regent of the Duchy since my fathers assasination this morning. I believe sir we have much to talk about".

"Lt!" James shouted as he was wheeled to an amublaunce "LT!"
"Yes Sergeant"
"You should run across check on anyone who has been using the Libary recentylu alot and crossreferance it with those with any terrorests linkes, I think some people got away"

"Hello, Prince," Emmerich said. The President-General was alone in an office adjacent to the conference room. The High Command waited anxiously next door for the news. "It deeply saddens me to hear of your father's death. He was a good man who I got to meet several times. I genuinely liked him. But I'm sure you will do well in his place. Prince, we're both in rather awkward situations, I understand. We started this day like any other, never suspecting that it would end with us becoming the new leaders of our great nations. We have a tough job ahead of us."

Somebody knocked on the door. Emmerich moved the phone away from his mouth and told them to come in. It was Field Marshal Traugott. "Admiral Leiber is ready for you when you're done, sir," he said. The President-General acknowledge and waved the chief of army operations away. He continued talking to Prince Blaise.

"Now, I understand that one of your provincial governors is leading some kind of separatist movement, is responsible for the theft of one of our new submarines, and is holding a nuclear warhead on Moir Island? You're right, Prince, we do have much to discuss. Now, I'm going to go ahead and give you the benefit of the doubt for now. The Rammsteinburg Navy will not stand in your way. What do you plan on doing about this von Brunswick fellow?"

Admiral Lieber watched an F/A-18E Superhornet preparing to take off from the flag bridge of the Nimitz class carrier RNS Ludendorff. The aircraft was to be one of the first to fly over Moir Island. Lieber was a short man with a soft, almost sheepish voice and a mild lisp. He had the face of a strong military leader, however; his face always having a somber expression, as if he had just returned from his funeral, and his eyes radiating a fierceness that intimidated his subordinates, yet demanded their respect. The admiral was somewhat glad at the day's startling turn of events. He expected his carrier battlegroup to make a brief stop at Krawstein Island for a few days before returning to its home port in northern Rammsteinburg. He would then spend his last few months in the navy dealing with mundane issues and then retire to peace of a relatively boring life in the country with his wife, Gertrude. But now he was possibly going to see some real action once again! Lieber was excited at the thought of putting his skills to the test in the harsh arena of actual combat one more time before his career of 37 years came to an end.

The Superhornet raced down the flight deck, pushed forward by the ship's powerful catapult, and then flew off and rose high in the air. Lieber experienced the same awe that he had the first time he witnessed a carrier takeoff. It was a sight he knew he would miss.

Captain Wilhelm Kruspe came up behind the admiral and said, "The President-General wishes to speak with you, Admiral."

Still watching the controlled chaos on the flight deck, Lieber responded, "Admiral Fredenmuenster? What does he want, Willy?"

"No, sir, not Admiral Fredenmuenster. He's resigned and named Admiral Emmerich as his successor.'

If Lieber was one for showing his emotions to the men under him, he would have worn the face of a man who just saw little green men walking down the street. "Really? I did not expect Joachim to step down so abruptly. It's still early in the day, and a lot is going on. But then again, I occasionally wondered if he had become frail over the years. So, what does Admiral Emmerich want?"

"He did not say, sir," Captain Kruspe said. "But he said to be ready for him to call back in a bit."

"Alright. Let me know when it's time, then."

Another Superhornet entered the cloudless blue abyss above.

Prince Blaise looked at the new message just being handed to him, while he was on the phone to President-General.

Sig-Intel source - Leo
2:22pm
Small business jet left Moir Is is flying 200metres ASL at 180 degrees (South).

"Mr President General I have just been handed a message that indicates a small business jet has left Moir Island, that begs the question who or what was on that plane.

However to deal with your last question regarding what to do with Moir.
Our initial response was to surround the island with anti missile ships to prevent a missile launch, and then to take out the warhead using special forces units if it were not launched.
I can tell you Mr President-General that we have had a 6 man special force unit down on Moir for the last week, they have been locating and mapping the islands security devices, positions and defender locations.
What we have found is that the island is covered with electronic warning devices, however our team has found a weakness in their system and can clear a path into their bunker system.
That sir brings me to the next problem, the island has several companies of Kunesdorf commandoes loyal only to the baron and they are backed by 3-400 mercenaries. That garrison is too large for our 6 man team to deal with alone.
We did have assets on the way, but owing to the escalating situation they were with drawn back to Rechburg, least they be perceived by your Government as a possible threat.

However sir, the greatest concern is the nuclear warhead, we know little about it. All we know is a Blackhawk arms dealer sold it to a Rammsteinburg intelligence operative who exchanged it for the plans of your submarine. Both the Rammsteinburg agent and the Blackhawk arms dealer have been handed over to your officials here in Rechburg.
However it appears no one seems to know for certain how big the warhead is.

We have to assume its in the 200 - 300 kilton range, simply by the description given to us by the arms dealer, if so it is a serious threat.
Were it detonated on Moir it would effectively destroy your islands south of Rammsteinburg and depending on wind it may even reach your mainland.

It has occurred to me a new possibility now exists, the warhead is on board that jet, and as it is flying low, we cannot track it with radar. That may be best done by your fleet assets in the area. However it may already be out of range even for your units as it was flying south.

It is my belief sir, the Baron will use the warhead as a negotiating tool, for his escape from any prosecution. He maybe a meglamaniac, but I dont believe he is a suicidle maniac, unless he feels he has nothing to lose."

2:35 P.M.

Joachim Fredenmuenster packed up his personal belongings in his office at the northern retreat. Meanwhile, men were clearing out his other offices throughout Rammsteinburg. The room was practically empty now, besides the desk, chair, and a pile of boxes near the door. The now former Fleet Admiral did not wear a naval uniform; he was dressed in sneakers, khakis, and an untucked flannel shirt. It hurt him to be leaving the navy after having dedicated the entirety of his adult life--over half a decade--to servicing The Great Warlord Republic. For men such as he, the military was more than just a job, it was part of who they were; an inherit quality, like their gender or hair colour. Fredenmuenster did not know how he would spend the remainder of his years.

But I've made the right decision, the ex-President-General knew. A man must know when they've outlasted their usefulness.

On the wall directly behind the desk hung Fredenmuenster's gold handled officer's sword. It was the same one he had received when commissioned as an ensign after graduating from the Rammsteinburg Higher Naval Academy. He experienced an initial reluctance to take it down. Though his resignation as President-General and retirement from the navy was already official--his personal lawyers had seen to it that the process was sped up--he did not entirely feel that he had left his beloved service yet. Once he packed away that sword, however, it would finally hit him: his career had reached its end.

Hands quivering, he reached up for the sword. He took it down slowly, cautiously, as if he were handling a fragile work of art. Fredenmuenster then started over to the boxes, but halfway there he froze, his legs refusing to respond to his conscious mind's orders, choosing instead to listen to the pleadings of his unconscious. The ex-Fleet Admiral did not realize letting go would be so hard. Maybe, he thought, the problem is the fact that I allowed myself to continue for so long, 14 years past the typical retirement age. Maybe they should have forced me to retire when I turned 60, like they did in the old days.

Aaron McGill-Austerlitz walked in. He skipped the hello and said, "I wanted to see if you needed any help packing, si--Joachim."

"Yes, I could use some," Fredenmuenster said. "If you could take my officer's sword and put it in that long box over there, that'd be great."

"No problem." McGill-Austerlitz grabbed the sword and placed it in its box.

"It's tough, isn't it?" Fredenmuenster's long time friend asked--or rather commented.

"More so than I expected."

"It was tough for me to leave the navy, too. But my time was up. I had to move on in life. And besides, I had the consolation of knowing that there were plenty of other ways to serve the country."

"It's different for me, though, Aaron," Fredenmuenster told his ex-chief of staff. He sat down on the desk. "You were much younger than I am now. You were... what, 58?"

"Fifty seven, almost fifty eight." McGill-Austerlitz joined him on the desk.

"Yea, yea. Well, I am 74. Not much for a man like me to do anymore. Unless you count sitting at home watching TV most of the time as something."

"Hey, you still have your wife at least."

"True, true." His wife, Klara, was twenty years younger and in good health.

"You know, Aaron," Fredenmuenster began, "I want to thank you. For everything. All your hard work... all your loyalty. You've always been there for me when I needed you, both as a colleague and a friend."

A sharp pain hit McGill-Austerlitz heart. He felt shame for his treason. It was a struggle for him to find the right words to respond. How do you accept the sincere gratefulness of a man who does not know you have betrayed him?

Luckily for McGill-Austerlitz, he was rescued from that awkward dilemma by the man who created it. "Don't worry about saying anything, Aaron. There's nothing you could say that I don't already know. We've gotten to know each other well over the years, after all," Fredenmuenster said.

The former President-General hopped off the desk in a strangely youthful manner. He looked as if the pain of retirement was slowly dissipating--and it was true; he was starting to accept his fate. What else can I do? he asked himself, already knowing the answer.

"Say, Aaron, can you go grab the nuclear football for me, please?" Fredenmuenster asked. "It needs to be delivered to Admiral Emmerich."

"Uh... yea, sure." McGill-Austerlitz became even more unnerved. The launch codes for U-642 still lay in his pocket. He had not used them yet, the sudden change of leadership making him decide to wait.

"Okay, thanks," Fredenmuenster said when his ex-chief of staff handed him the nondescript black suitcase which contained all of the nuclear launch codes for The Great Warlord Republic. "The movers will be here soon. I'm going to be taking my jet to New Ramm City. I'll personally hand Admiral Emmerich the football."

"Right..." McGill-Austerlitz could not feel any more awkward than he did at that moment.

"I'll try to call you every now and then, Aaron."

"I'd like that. Well, uh... I need to get moving myself, Joachim. Goodbye." McGill-Austerlitz shook Fredenmuenster's hand and hurried out.

Outside the office, he put his hand on his pocket for reassurance. The folded sheet of paper was still there. He knew it would be. But he needed to check.

What would he do now? Should he continue with his original plan? Or should he act as if he had never committed that act of treason? But how could he pretend it never happened? Rear Admiral Logan knew his plan, and the missing launch codes for U-642 would be noticed. There was no clear-cut line between the right and wrong option to make. McGill-Austerlitz might as well have been trapped in a windowless, doorless room. His situation was impossible. No route of escape was in sight.

"Prince, I have a carrier battlegroup near Moir Island and a fleet on its way north from the south to temporarily reinforce the Home Fleet. I'll have them both try to intercept that jet right away."

The President-General called Field Marshal Traugott, who had decided to name as his chief of staff. The army chief of operations ran into the tiny office. "Yes, sir?"

"Get a dispatch sent to Admirals Lieber and Lindemann. Tell them that a jet possibly containing a nuclear warhead has just departed Moir Island and is heading south. Order them to intercept. Try to convince it to turn around and be escorted to the nearest naval base. If they refuse to cooperate, then shoot them down! Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir. I'll get on it right away." Traugott rushed downstairs and ordered an Air Force communications specialist to send the messages immediately."

Back on the phone with Prince Blaise, Emmerich said, "I just sent word out to the commanders in the area. We're going to do all we can. Prince, Rammsteinburg is committed to full cooperation with Rechburg in this time of crisis. We will NOT let there be a nuclear blast today!"

Field Marshal Traugott came back in. "The messages have been sent, Admiral."

"Good," Emmerich said, his mouth away from the phone. "That's all for now." Traugott left, and the Fleet Admiral continued with his conversation. "We're currently implementing all appropriate protocol here. Our emergency response teams are preparing, and the military is on alert. If there's anything we can do for duchy, or if you have any more information to share, please do so now."

2:40pm

Prince Blaise was much relieved, but that private jet had a 15 minute head start and at the speed it is capable, he was worried it may escape.
But what worried Prince Blaise most of all, was he didnt know if the Baron was on board or a nuclear warhead; or possibly both.

Moir Island

A radio message sent to Rammsteiburg

" This is Baron von Brunswick, Governor of Kunesdorf wishing to speak to the President-General of Rammsteinburg. "

An army staff sergeant sat in front of a console in the situation room of the Joint Defense Office when the message from Moir Island came in. He immediately called over his direct superior, Major Morgenstern.

"What is it, Sergeant?" the major asked.

"A message was just received from Moir Island, sir. Apparently a Baron von Brunswick--he says he's governor of Kunesdorf, which is in Rechburg, right? Well, this von Brunswick is requesting to speak to the President-General."

Major Morgenstern had yet to be briefed on the full details of the current situation, so he was unaware of how huge this development was; had he known, he would have skipped the usual protocol for handling requests to speak with the President-General and speed the process up by going straight to him.

"Print it out, and I'll take care of it, Sergeant," the major ordered.

Ten seconds later a single sheet of paper came out of the printer adjacent to the flat screen monitor at the staff sergeant's station. Morgenstern grabbed it and went back to his own station. There the major ran a quick search on Baron von Brunswick. When he did a flashing notice appeared on his screen, indicating that he had been placed on the nation's joint Most Wanted listed. This alarmed him, and he ran upstairs to the conference room where the High Command met.

2:41 P.M.
SIS Safe house
Somewhere in Rammsteinburg


Sweat dripped down Captain Uhlrich's face. He was tied to a metal folding chair, dressed only in blue boxer-briefs, in an otherwise empty, dirty room. It was widely believed that The Great Warlord Republic had given up torture as an interrogation method six years ago--and it was almost true. Such extreme tactics were seldom used, due to their ethical controversy, but more importantly because of their limited effectiveness; a man would say anything just to make the pain stop if pushed far enough. However, in certain extreme cases torture was still used, but only when permitted by the President-General. The treasonous Marine officer knew that.

A skinny, blond-haired man in his early 30s entered the room. He wore a plain brown suite with a wrinkled yellow tie over a wrinkled white shirt. The man's facial expression was one Uhlrich recognized--to his horror. It was the face of a man completely emotionally detached from his actions, the face of a man who had forced himself to forget the words 'compassion' and 'mercy'. Uhrlich knew because he had seen many of his colleagues look the same, and he had worn that awful mask himself.

"Hello, Captain," the man said to the traitor in a deep, somber voice. Uhlrich figured that such a voice would send shivers down most men's spines. But he was not just any individual.

"I know why you're here," the captain exclaimed, "and you know that I've been trained to withstand torture, just like you!"

"And you should know that everyone has a breaking point. It's simply harder to find some people's," was the disturbingly emotionless response.

"Oh yea, you're real good at this aren't you? You're trying to intimidate me. You want to make me afraid. But I'm not afraid, and I won't give in!"

"Say that all you want. We both know it's not true." The blond-haired man removed something from his right pocket and hid it behind his back.

"What's that?" Uhlrich asked.

"You'll see."

"I'm telling you, I won't talk!"

"You will. In time. Oh, and don't even think about trying to give us false information. Because if anything you tell us turns out to not be true, you'll pay, especially if your lie causes more lives to be lost. Now, I believe it's time we begin... Tell me, Captain Uhlrich, what do you know about Baron von Brunswick having a nuclear weapon?"

OOC: Rechburg, if you could RP Uhlrich from this point, that'd be good.

Captain Ulrich new that once he talked he was dead, so he had to hold out and possibly make a deal.

"I Know nothing of the Baron's plans, do you truly think he would tell me".

"Maybe you know somebody who does. Of course, I can't say I entirely believe your claim of ignorance. I think you need a little persuasion, Captain." The man revealed what he was hiding behind his back: a syringe with a strange blue-green liquid inside.

"Something new. We started using it last month while you were in Rechburg betraying your country. It's quite good stuff." The interrogator stabbed Uhlrich in the left forearm and watched coldly as he screamed in agony. The substance, currently known only as X-763, sent excruciating pain throughout the entire body.

"So, now... what do you know about the nuclear weapon?"

2:41 P.M.
Rammsteinburg Joint Defense Office
Naval Station New Ramm City


The new President-General reclined in his leather chair in his tiny, practically empty office next to the conference room. The initial exuberance he had felt had vanished in the face of the reality of the job's pressure. An immense burden rested on Fleet Admiral Emmerich's shoulders; the responsibility was unlike anything he had ever experienced before. As a naval officer of flag rank, he was used to the stress of command, but it was different now. He was no longer a military leader, but a national leader--a head of state, the face of the entire warlord republic. The admiral questioned whether he was right for the job, whether he even wanted it.

Nonsense! he yelled in his mind. He scolded himself for his lack of confidence. Of course you're right for this job. In fact, he thought he deserved it. Krystan Emmerich had worked hard all his life to get where he was.

The son of a Polish immigrant and a half-indigenous Rammsteinburger, the fourth President-General of Rammsteinburg had a rough time growing up. He was born and raised in a poverty-stricken village in the southeast of the country. His childhood was in the paradoxical era following the first civil war--a time of both chaos and extreme hope. His father instilled strong patriotism in him, something Emmerich had always found odd considering his constant persecution for his mixed blood. Maybe that was part of the reason the future fleet admiral enlisted in the navy two months after graduating from high school. But for the most part, it was a decision made completely on a whim, and it was a controversial one in his family. Krystan's father, a sergeant in the Rammsteinburg Luftwaffe in WWII, vehemently opposed his sons involvement in the military in any way. But the young Emmerich ignored his fathers plead and found he belonged in the navy; he was a sailor at heart. At the age of 20, then a Gunner's Mate Seaman First Class aboard a cruiser, he was accepted into the Rammsteinburg Higher Naval Academy, the more prestigious and thus exclusive of the two naval academies.

It's been a long road getting to here from there, the President-General thought. Life had thrown him a lot of lemons, but he grabbed each one, attached a grenade to it, and threw it right back at life--at least that was the way he liked to think of it. Yes, Admiral Emmerich believed, this position--the highest in the entire country--was well-earned, and he had what it took to be a great national leader.

And besides, he thought, what choice did he have right now anyway? Rammsteinburg needed leadership today. It could not afford to have another President-General step down. Whether he liked it or not, Krystan Gottfried Emmerich, son a humble auto mechanic, was obligated to lead his country.

- - -

Major Morgenstern burst into the conference room. He nearly forgot about military courtesy, but remembered just in time. Standing at attention, looking like something out of a recruitment poster, the Air Force officer said, "Request permission to confer with the President-General, sirs!"

The air force chief of operations, General Pfaff, beat his colleagues in the High Command to the response. "Permission denied," he said. "Admiral Emmerich is very busy at the moment, and he has asked to not be disturbed unless necessary."

"Sir, what I have to say is very important," the major pleaded.

"And what would that be?" asked Field Marshal Traugott.

"A message, sir. From a Baron von Brunswick."

This made everybody in the room wide-eyed. "What? Give it here, son," Traugott demanded. Morgenstern walked over and handed him a single sheet of paper. Traugott read the brief message.

"My god!" the army chief of operations said. "This is big. The President-General does need to be alerted."

"What's it say, Gregor?" asked Fleet Admiral König.

"Von Brunswick wants to speak with the President-General!"

"Do you think it would really be such a good idea for him to do that?" General Pfaff wondered out loud.

"I don't know, but that's up to Admiral Emmerich, not us," Traugott responded. "I'm going to go tell him.

- - -

The President-General was looking over a memo from the Special Intelligence Service regarding the traitor, Captain Uhlrich. It seemed his order was being followed out. Emmerich did not particularly like the thought of condoning torture, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

There was a knock, followed by Field Marshal Traugott's entrance.

"Yes, Gregor?"

"Herr President-General, you must read this." He passed the paper.

President-General Emmerich said nothing. But it was not because he was dumbfounded. He was deep in thought, considering the best course of action.

2:42 P.M.

Aircraft from Admiral Lieber's Carrier Battle Group 5 and Admiral Kinderheit's 8th Fleet searched the area south of Moir Island, trying to find the jet that possibly contained Baron von Brunswick and the nuclear warhead.

2:45 P.M.
SIS Safe house
Somewhere in Rammsteinburg

The pain was excruciating, he kept trying to remember his training, take yourself out of the body. But the spasms kept breaking his attempts to control his mind.
Then there were the pains in his chest, his heart felt like bursting, then the arteries were on fire and he heard a voice so piercing so crazed as if from a madman.
Finally there was peace in mind and body as he blacked out.

2:45 P.M.

Just as I expected, the interrogator, Agent Frederik Lindsey, thought when Captain Uhlrich blacked out. X-763 proved to be an extremely powerful substance in tests. For an ordinary individual, the amount given to the traitor would have caused death; but the captain was a very fit man, and thus able to tolerate the large dosage. Lindsay expected Uhlrich to regain consciousness on his own in about five minutes, but if that did not happen, he had another syringe full of stimulant. He waited.

Hopefully when he wakes he'll be a little more cooperative.

2:47pm

Captain Uhlrich slowly regained some sense of consciousness, but it all seemed so strange, his brain seemed to numb, too confused to put anything into rational thought. His body was racked with pain, his hand and feet shaking in spasms, the sweat running down his face. He was mumbling and murmering, but nothing coherent, the confusion only to evident to those watching

2:47 P.M.

"Just relax, Captain. Just relax," said Agent Lindsey. The interrogator sat in a chair two feet in front of the traitor. He leaned forward and removed a pack of cigarettes. Uhlrich's file mentioned him being a former smoker. Lindsey took one out and began to smoke it, blowing it in the captain's face. Unknown to the latter, the cigarettes were fake; they were a recently designed item that merely gave off the smell of the real thing.

For Captaim Uhlrich the smoke was nector, it awkened the longing for a cigarette, but in the process of the mind registering the need for a cigarette it also began to refocus and concentrate the mind.
Through the haze of smoke in the eyes and a cloudy vision, Captain Uhlrich a voice whispered the far reaches of the mind,
"yes you can beat them, you are winning, you will beat them"

The voice would them be clouded out by spasms of the receding pain, but the wholetime his mind slowly cleared.

He whispered "I dont know why I am here, the baron would not speak to me of his plans, talk to the arms dealer from Blackawk; I know nothing else".

The interrogator was silent at first. He just smiled at Uhlrich and continued smoking. Then, as the flame was reaching the cigarette's butt, he pulled it out of his mouth and pressed it down on the captain's thigh. He stood and punched Uhlrich so hard that his chair fell back on the floor. Agent Lindsey stood over the man and screamed, "Bullshit! You know more than you're telling me!" He kicked the treasonous marine in the ribs.

Lindsey felt the vibration of his cell phone in his jacket pocket. He knew that it meant his supervisor, Lieutenant Colonel Ernst Garten, wanted to speak with him. The SIS agent gave Captain Uhlrich one more hard kick to the ribs, said he would be right back, and went outside. Lt. Col. Garten was leaning against a wall with his arms crossed over his chest. The 50 year old army officer had the build of a football player and a long, horse-like face with a small scar on his left cheek that he got from a piece of shrapnel in combat early in his career. His black hair was starting to gray, and he had large mustache similar to that of Stalin, earning him the nickname "Man of Steel."

Agent Lindsey asked what he had been called out for.

"I've decided to bring in the Doc, Fred," the colonel said.

For the first time since starting his interrogation, Agent Lindsey showed emotion. "Are you mad?" he exclaimed, forgetting for a moment that he was speaking to a superior.

"I think the situation warrants it," was the reply.

Lindsey put his hands behind his head and grunted. "Colonel, I've only been in there with Uhlrich for a couple of minutes now. It's hardly time to resort to such... extreme measures."

"We don't have a lot of time to get information out of him, Agent Lindsey. If there's a nuclear warhead that could be used on the home islands or any of the territories, we need to find it fast."

"But..." Lindsey was at a loss of words. He paced back and forth, holding his hands behind his head. Finally, he thought of what to say. "Sir, with all due respect, you're not thinking clearly. I mean, seriously now, the Doc, that madman? The President-General authorized the use of torture, but I'm sure he didn't have something like that in mind. What that sicko does is beyond torture. It's one thing to cause a man horrendous pain, but there's no recovering from what the Doc does... It's--it's unjustifiable, unethical... it's inhuman!" The strangeness of the SIS agent's sudden display of humanity towards Captain Uhlrich and his use of words such as 'unethical' was not lost on him.

"My mind is made up," Lt. Colonel Garten said. "The Doc's already been called. He'll work on Uhlrich, and then he'll deal with that Battlehawk arms dealer. And just so the latter knows what's in store for him to cooperate, they'll be in the same room together."

"You're INSANE!" Agent Lindsey yelled. He did not care that Uhlrich could hear him in the interrogation room.

"Listen, Fred, it is MY call, and if you have a problem with it, you can go work on your letter of resignation right now because, damn it, I am NOT going to put up with insubordination!"

Emasculated, Agent Lindsey said--or more accurately, whispered--"Alright, Colonel. I understand. You'll have no more protests from me."

"Okay. Go cool off. You're done for the day."

"Right, sir." Lindsey walked off, hanging his head low.

- - -

A red Ford Taurus pulled into the driveway of the safe house. Inside was Felix "Doc" Gottschalk*. He got out and walked to the passengers side, opened the door, and took out a nondescript black duffel bag. He slung it over his shoulder and proceeded towards the building where Captain Uhlrich and the Battlehawk arms dealer were being detained.

- - -

* OOC: Joke - 'Gottschalk' is translated as 'God's servant.' ;)

OOC: I am about ready to wrap this RP up and get working on the hunt for Alfred Eckhardt. Will you be up for working with me on that, Rechburg?

OCC

Yep Im following your lead

OOC: Alright, cool. Let me know how much Rechburg involvement you want in it.

I want to do a bit more preplanning with the next RP. I'd like a rather deep, complex (yet not too much so) plot.

OCC

Well I dont mind the level, as Im not sure along what lines you are thinking I am ok with what happens as long as we arent coming to blows. Perhaps in the end it brings a stronger relationship.

OOC:

If anything, it would bring Rammsteinburg and Rechburg into a closer relationship. Nothing I am planning could possibly result into further conflict between our nations. It will basically be a large detective RP. I'll go into more details when I form the OOC thread, which will be whenever we finish this RP (hopefully within the next week or two).

2:50 P.M.

Aaron McGill-Austerlitz was a broken man. He had betrayed one of his oldest friends and the leader of his country. In turn he had betrayed Rammsteinburg, though he had acted with its best interest in mind. Intentions mean little in reality, though, he told himself. In the end it does not really matter if your heart was in the right place or not. What matters are your actions, not your motivation, and the consequences of them. The former chief of staff to the President-General despised himself. After returning to his room in the retreat, he went to the bathroom to splash water on his face, and when he saw the reflection of himself in the mirror he felt such a rage that he nearly punched the window; but he got control of himself and simply averted his eyes.

Now McGill-Austerlitz lay on his bed, eyes fixed on the rotating fan above him. He considered his options, which he knew weren't many. He could turn himself in. He could try to pretend nothing happened, but he knew there was a good chance his treason would be uncovered. Or he could take his own life and spare himself the shame of facing a trial. The thought of sitting at the defendants' table in the ancient palace occupied by the High Court, with seemingly the whole of Rammsteinburg history judging him, with his fellow countrymen staring contemptuously, and the 9 statue-like robed men watching dispassionately as the prosecutor read off his crimes -- it was more terrifying to consider than death. I can't allow that to happen, he told himself. That left only one option: to take his own life. And the sooner, the better.

Before taking his own life, however, McGill-Austerlitz had some business to take care of. He called the office of Rear Admiral Logan. The submarine commander for 3rd Fleet was out, according to his yeoman, and would not be back until 3:30. Not wanting to wait that long, he instructed the yeoman to inform the admiral that he had said "Plan's off" -- just that. The ex-chief of staff repeated the message and hung up without saying goodbye.

With that matter out of the way, it was time to act. But how would he kill himself? McGill-Austerlitz thought about it and realized that his room was on the 5th floor, high enough up so that if he jumped there was practically no chance of survival. The traitor opened the window and a pleasant breeze entered the room. He could see a forest and mountain in the distance, beyond a glittering river. There was a small town by that river, one which reminded him of the village his grandparents lived in that he would often visit as a child. He regretted what he was about to do, but his foolishness had left him with no alternative. In a last minute attempt at justifying his suicide, he reasoned that it was best for The Great Warlord Republic not to have to witness the trial of a former top government official.

McGill-Austerlitz closed his eyes and stepped out on the ledge. He was about to jump when somebody pulled him back inside. He felt a hard kick to the gut and opened his eyes to see a stranger standing over him pointing a gun. This man had been waiting in the closet the whole time.

"Who the hell are you? What do you want?" McGill-Austerlitz demanded to know.

"Give me the launch codes," the man said coolly. "You're going to die either way, and I could always search your pockets, but I am being nice and giving you one last chance to do the right thing."

McGill-Austerlitz did not bother thinking. He reached into his pockets, pulled out the folded sheet of paper and said, "Here." The armed man ripped the paper out of his hands and placed it in his own pocket.

"Thank you," the man said. He flashed a fake smile and aimed at McGill-Austerlitz's head. Wasting no time, he fired and a single bullet penetrated the ex-chief of staff's brain, killing him instantly. The sound of the shot was muffled by a silencer.

The assailant holstered his weapon, returned to the closet, and retrieved a rope which he tossed out the window. The other end of the rope was caught by another man, a member of Fleet Admiral Fredenmuenster's security detail. McGill-Austerlitz's murderer climbed down and ran 10 yards to the nearest road where his car was parked behind an overgrown bush. He drove off quickly, heading to the nearest airport.

As the business jet flew very low over the waters of the south sea Baron von Kunesdorf was becoming worried. It was clear that the war he tried to start between Rechburg and Rammsteinburg hadn’t started, he couldn’t understand why, considering the massive damage he had inflicted on the Rammsteinburg navy. Von Brunswick was sure that at no time in history had 1 man done so much damage to a nations fleet, all that and still no war.

He had tried to contact Rammsteinburg, to give them an ultimatum, but that was unanswered; so he had few options left. His Mercenary leader Gen Lew Watson had suggested he leave Moir Island, as before long the island would be besieged thus he would be trapped.
It had not taken too much convincing, the Baron was terrified of being caught, knowing full well the torture and death he would face.

It was fortunate that he was one of the wealthiest men in the world, he didn’t have a worry about where to go, it was who was going to follow him that worried him most of all. Both he and the General had devised a plan in which the Baron would flee Moir Island, he would parachute out from the plane at a certain location, and be picked up by a ship hired by him to be there at that time. The plane would be blown up with a bomb on board. He would then simply disappear into the world, and once again he would in time seek his revenge.

General Wallace would remain on the island as he refused to abandon his men, so the Baron decided to go alone. Gen Wallace’s men had helped load the bomb on board and gave the baron a trigger that he could use to destroy the plane after he abandoned it.
General Wallace was sure he would get lenient terms as neither he nor any of his men had taken arms against either Rechburg or Rammsteinburg. All he had done was to fortify the island, he didn’t even report to the baron that his men believed that enemy SEAL teams may already be on the island.

They shook hands on the tarmac, The General saluted his employer, and the Baron boarded his aircraft which he would pilot alone. As the engines warmed up, the general watched the baron wave with the bomb trigger in hand and a huge smile.

Once the plane had taken off the general made his way to the control room, by the time he got there he was told the Comms team had intercepted a radio message from the Baron to Rammsteinburg. The General knew this wasn’t part of the plan, clearly the baron was going to make a deal with the Rammsteinburgers.
He went to the draw and took out another control pad, not unlike the one the baron had, he lifted the switch which activated the bomb on the plane, without a second thought he pressed the button.
His radar operator reported at that instant the plane had disappeared from his radar screen.

He instructed the radio operator to contact Rammsteinburg for him

“This is General Lew Wallace, security commander on Moir Island, The baron is dead and the island is able to be handed over to your forces. The nuclear warhead is safe here and secured by my men.”

3:00 P.M.

Field Marshal Traugott handed the message to the President-General. Emmerich read it out loud. Both man's eyes widened. Assuming this was no lie, then the day's chaos was over... just like this. After all the insanity of the past seven hours, it all came to an end so suddenly, not by the doings of The Great Warlord Republic or the Duchy of Rechburg, but by the actions of one of Baron von Brunswick's own men.

Fleet Admiral Emmerich asked Field Marshal Traugott to send a message to 8th Fleet and the carrier battle group. While he did that, the President-General would inform Prince Blaise of the news.

But first the new head of state of Rammsteinburg needed a moment of rest, a bit of time to take it all in. He leaned back in his chair, balled his right hand into a fist and placed it on his lips. It was so bizarre, he thought, how so much could happen in such a short amount of time. The day was still 13 hours from being over, and yet already there had been enough action for an entire week. The President-General told himself, Life is funny like that.

Emmerich was in the middle of dialing the number for Prince Blaise when he realized that he still had not told his hospitalized wife of his promotion. He had not spoken to at all since he left the hospital to go visit Admiral Fredenmuenster. Figuring that the Rechburgers could wait a little longer, he punched in the number for his wife's hospital.

The couple talked for ten minutes, longer than the President-General had expected. There was so much that Krystan Emmerich wanted to tell his love, but there was still much he had to do. With great reluctance he told his wife that he had to go and that he would see her again tomorrow morning. It broke his heart to say goodbye, but as the leader of an entire nation he understood that personal sacrifices would be a large consequence of his job.

Fleet Admiral Emmerich called Prince Blaise. The phone rung once... twice...