The Great War

[Dugan195]

The Blackstag Empire started in the British Isles and slowly captured all of western Europe and part of Northern Africa. Their land ended at the end of Germany. The Blackstag Empire is highly aristocratic. Everything is decided by social class and standing. They are the most organized and militaristic of all the nations. Anyone born outside of the British Isles are considered second class citizens, with the Africians the lowest class of citizen. While those in the Isles live lives of luxury and enjoy the technological advances that the Blackstag Empire has, and those are many since they are at the cutting edge of developing technology…mostly to use in their never ending ambitions. Those who live in mainland Europe live decently, mostly used to develop and produce the materials and goods needed in the isles. The African part of the Blackstage Empire is where the brute labor is done. They are driven as hard as possible to mine and gather the resources the Empire needs.

In response to the conquests of Northern Africa by the Blackstag Empire the rest of Africa unite under the flag of a dictator named Gabriel Dashee. Dashee united the various countries into the Confederation of Africa which has been building up its military to reconquer the northern parts of Africa from the Blackstag Empire. They don’t have nearly the same level of technology as the Blackstag Empire, but they have turned to a command economy and communist set up to garner a huge force of forces that intends to overwhelm the Blackstag Empire with numbers and reconquer the homeland.
Seeing the forces gathering against them in Africa the Blackstag Emperor set up a Sultan in the Middle East that controls all of the middle east all the way into Asia to the end of India. The Arabian Kingdoms are supplied with old technology of the Blackstag Empire that used; however, they are poorly trained and organized preventing them from being the truly terrifying force that they could be. The Arabian Kingdoms has always been based on feudalism, but the new Sultan’s dynasty has only been around for one generation as the current rulers were put in place by the Empire, leaving much resentment in the kingdoms.

On the farside of the Arabian Kingdoms lie the Khanate Lands, formed from the everlasting rule of the Mongols the Khanates rule over all of Asia and its vasts lands and many peoples. Though set up by the warlike peoples of the warlike Mongols over the years the Khanates have morphed into a semi-democratic, semi-oligarchy based nation. Each Khanate within the nation elects their own rulers who make their national capital in the heart of the Russian Steppe from where they rule. They are almost as technologically advanced as the Blackstag, and are seeing the Eastward expansion of the Empire have begun to amass the various peoples for war. The conditions and freedoms of the people of the Khanates differ depending on what ruler is in charge, and how the rulers are elected is just a varied.

Across the Pacific Ocean lie two nations. The nation in the north is United Tribes of America. For years the Indian tribes had roamed separately, living separately and in small numbers of the land, but as Europeans ventured onto the lands hundreds of years ago the Tribes united and repelled the Europeans and formed a strong nation of their own. They formed a democratic nation with a congress elected from each of the various tribes of the land. To the south of the United Tribes of America is a puppet state set up by the Blackstag Empire to start pursueing ambitions to get ahold of the many resources offered in the Americas. Fiorilla is a nation ruled by former rebels of mainland Europe, particularly those of the former nation of Spain. Defeated the Empire allowed for the defeated Spainards to move to South America and with their support managed to conquer all of South America long ago. As a puppet Fiorilla has been supplying the Empire with goods and services for years. Mexico, the connection between North and South America has always been disputed territory between the two American nations. For years the two nations have fought back and forth over this land, this has caused the United Tribes of America to ally with the enemies of Fiorilla and the Empire; the Federation of Africa, and the Khanate Lands.

Finally, there is Olgrod. Olgrod consist of Eastern Europe and nations like Denmark, Sweden, etc. Olgrod has survived because it serves as a buffer zone to between the Empire and Khanate lands. Conditions in the land are poor, and the Empire and Arabian Kingdoms constantly raid Olgrod. Without the means to handle the two superior nations Olgrod has thrown its lot in with the Khanates, sealing its fate as the battlefield for the war.

 

[Dugan195]

You are from the Khanate Lands, a land brought of mixed peoples and cultures. Perhaps you are a hard Russian from the East, born in an icy barren land and hard as nails. Or perhaps you are a Tartar from the Crimea around the black sea. Born around the capital your people use to be nomads long ago, but now live at the heart of the nation. The people who inhabit the areas around Astana, that capital of the nation. Maybe hail from southern Asia around Bejing area? A numerous people, you come from the bread basket of the nation. The people of southern Asia are numerous, but so are their lands. It is the poorer area of the nation, but a vital one. Oh perhaps you are from one of the many other areas within the Khanate lands? (You can look into the map and pick where you are from and make up a little about it) The Khanate Lands are the mortal enemy of the Blackstag Empire. You support any effort to halt their ambitions. Matching them in technology you are central nation in your alliance. The big dog you hail from the nation responsible for assisting the other nations against the unstoppable might of the Blackstag Empire and its puppets.

You are a veteran of many skirmishes and boarder conflicts with both the Blackstag Empire, and the Arabian Kingdoms. You have even spent some time down in Africa, helping out the Africans against their last war with the Arabians. Your specialty is gurillia warfare and you are known throughout the Khanates for your deeds and ability to accomplish great feats with just a handful of irregulars. Since the outbreak of the Great War you have been assigned to meet up with a group of irregulars miles behind enemies lines with one simple mission, to disrupt the enemy and hurt their presence as much as possible. The only question is where have you been sent?

Olgrod is the buffer nation between the two mortal enemies. If you go here you will be sent to the northern part of the nation, where the Alps are. You will be hidden up in the mountains free to unleash your attacks as you see fit from your base hidden away in the peaks. Your efforts will assist the main front of the war between the two nations.

In the Arabian Kingdoms there are many who remember the prosperity of the old regime. The new Sultan plays god and mistreats the people. Most live in fear of him, for he has the power and backing of the Blackstag Empire; but there are a few who choose to resist. You will be somewhere around Turkey, between the Black Sea and the Caspain. This is a vital root for the Blackstag Empire, as it is their path around Olgrod into the south of the Khanate Lands front into Olgrod. Your efforts will be to prevent the Blackstag and Arabian Kingdoms from side stepping the main battle front and rushing into the your homeland.

The Confederation of Africa is also in need of help. Being poorly equipped and poorly trained the enemy has already taken huge chunks of land from the Confederation. Your job will be to move from the jungles and savannahs and raid the spread out troops of the enemy. The Confederation makes up with bodies what they lack in skill, if you can cut off reinforcements and supplies to the enemy troops the Confederation can push back the enemy and then hopefully swarm into Europe forcing the Blackstag to retreat their relentless assaults against Olgrod and the Khanate allowing them time to crush the Arabian Kingdoms.  

[Dugan195]

With the Blackstag Empire’s unending hunger for more land and power all the nations in the world have been forced to side with or against the Empire. Those who side with the Blackstag hope to remain autonomous in return for services rendered in the Empire’s conquest. Those who oppose seek to stop the unending advances of the Empire. Firollia and the Arabian Kingdoms are staunch supporters of the Empire, using their advances in technology and coordination to their advantage. The two nations have been growing in power ever since the Empire has given them their support. The smaller surrounding nations have been sweep up into the two nations folds making them into Empire’s that are as big landwise as the Empire, however none are nearly as advanced. Following the old proverb the enemy of my enemy is my friend the United Tribes of America, Khanate Lands, Olgrod and Confederation of Africa have all signed a treaty promising a military alliance if the Empire’s ambitions continue to grow. With the whole world geared for war the tensions have been growing. In the Americas territory disputes over Mexico have continued to happen and many border conflicts have arisen. Seeking the help of their protectorate Firollia has been pouring in arms from the Empire giving them an edge over the TA forces. Firollia has pushed up into Mexico further then they ever have before. Tired of the border conflicts Firollia intended on pushing far into the Tribes and force them to sign a final treaty establishing their dominance over Mexico.

Their forces in disarray the Tribes of America request the help to help repel the invaders from their territory. The Khanate Lands, knowing the danger in tempting the Empire to war refuse the call to war, as does the Confederation, who being a new nation is too busy dealing with warlords and rebels against Prime Minister Dashee; however Olgrod, the buffer nation between super powers of the alliance foolishly accepts the request and sends a small fleet of men, tanks, and arms to help repel the Firollian troops. For years the Empire has been preparing to capture the buffer nation of Olgrod and turn it into a puppet state to use as a shield against the Khanate Lands during the inevitable great war that was too come. The Empire declared that the water between their colonies in Greenland and the British Isles was under their jurisdiction and that any ships crossing must gain permission from the Empire or it would be considered an act of war. Knowing that the Empire would never provide permission for their fleet to go against the Empire’s puppets Olgrod orders the fleet to cross anyway and hoped that the Empire would back down. Using this as an excuse the Empire’s fleets sails out and brutally crushes the Olgrod fleet. Declaring war The Empire sets a massive army group to blitz into Olgrod. With a lot of their soldiers lost during the battle on the sea Olgrod is helpless to prevent the blitz.

Seeing the Great War upon the world The Khanate Lands starts to mass their armies along the Olgrod border, preparing for a massive counter attack to reclaim the occupied land. However the Empire had already prepared for this long ago in secret and as mere days before the Khanate Land’s counterattack was to commence The Arabian Kingdoms unleashes a massive bombardment of the southern border of the Khanate Lands. With the opening of a second front the Khanate Lands were forced to call off the counterattack to save Olgrod and had to divert a major part of their forces to the southern border. Without the massive counterattack of the Khans, Olgrod was powerless to stop the assault of the Empire’s troops. The Arabian Kingdoms attacked with such force, such precision and without warning. The Khanate Lands had no information of them massing at the border, no information of them quickly mustering their armies. The attack had been planned long in advance revealing the true intentions of the Empire to those in the high commands around the war. The Empire had planned and manipulated the situation to cause this war. They sought to use it to expand their holdings in all directions.

This was only made more salient with the next move of the Empire. Knowing that both the Empire and the Kingdoms were exposed in the rear to the Confederation they quickly took advantage of the disorder in the Confederation as Dashee’s power struggle still waged on. The Empire launched massive tank formations that were supported by infantry from the Kingdoms that quickly swept down the Sahara into the savannahs towards the heart of Africa. The Confederaton’s troops being poorly armed, poorly trained, and without true leaders or cause melted away against the combined might of the Empire and the Arabian Kingdoms. Soon the entire top half of Africa all the way down to the Congo belonged to the Empire, with a small cut of it going to the Kingdoms ofcourse. As they reached the Congo however the Empire’s plans ran into a snag. The dense rainforest made their massive tank formations useless. Years of living in the rainforests allowed the soldiers of the Confederation finally rallied together and stopped the rapid advances of the enemy.  

[Joa-Boo]

“How excited are you guys that we are getting out of this tundra wasteland and finally working out of somewhere tropical?” Reggie Yershov tossed his arms around the man to his left and a woman to his right. His gesture bolstered energy out of the two, provoking a smile and excited laughter. Reggie’s bright smile, fixed in a happy plane, fit with big blue eyes and strikingly blonde hair. His pale skin stuck out against Susuki Kyoto, the woman on his left, whose complexion was far tanner and far less hairy. Her laughter rang through the Jeep that dashed along the military roads toward their transports. This was their last few moments in the motherland.

“I have had my eye on this job since the news rang. There is no way I would miss a chance to be in Africa.” Desmond Crater gave his pride a good wear. It was his expertise that got them assigned to Africa. Desmond cocked his thick-curly brown haired head to the side for another good look at the life he was leaving behind. It would be fun to adventure around Africa and stick it to the Empire every now and then, but nothing beat being home. He was certainly fine with saying goodbye to Russia but there was no substitute for Australia. Africa was the one place Desmond had yet to spend a significant time in to make that judgment. He was excited to finally get the chance to compare.

“So who did you have to blow to get us here Desmond?” Reggie was full of questions. If there was one thing more persistent than that smile of his, it was his quest for answers and understanding. Reggie was a quick one. He turned down the opportunity to work in the homeland as a internal agent to instead continue in the specialist field with his long time friend Desmond. His strong ability to catch small details and think things through made him an invaluable asset to Desmond’s team. So the question, while truly arbitrary, was something Desmond could not leave unanswered after facing Reggie.

“Are you kidding me? If it was left up to me you two would be the last I pick.” Desmond joked, jetting another group of laughter from the group.

“Look at all that new meat.” Susuki pointed out to the others. Just outside her window, passing by the military base, crowds of newly enlisted soldiers marched through their basics. “I am so ******** happy we are done with tours. That was the worst.”

“Aww come on military training wasn’t that bad.” Desmond never liked a joke aimed at their institutions. Susuki was one of few people in the world he could let that guard down for. Even then he tossed a few words in its defense.

“Yeah, try being a woman in the army. You get hit on by everything that breaths; even the other women. There wasn’t a single safe place for me to change?” Her words provoked a fine mini day dream in both Reggie and Desmond’s mind. She punched them both in the side which they responded with a great deal of laughter. As funny as it may have been it was still true. At one point both Desmond and Reggie had asked Susuki out. Susuki was a spectacular model of the female specimen. Between her ideal shape and beautiful features she was sure to turn heads while walking down any street. Contrary to popular belief, this damsel would be the last woman you would find in distress. She was the most weapon trained Desmond had ever seen and a far better shot than either Reggie or Desmond, maybe even better than the two combined.

“You sure got it good Susuki but nothing beats my Natalie in looks.” Reggie ran back to his dreaming. He got so caught up in his fictional happy world that he did not noticed the uncomfortable state that put both Desmond and Susuki.

“I am really sorry about your loss man.” Desmond couldn’t let the silence go on for much longer. He angled himself in his chair to get a good look at Reggie. He barely fell from his dream state.

“Dude it’s been like half a year. That’s old news. I just want to remember the good stuff now. No more of this moping.” Reggie shrugged off Desmond’s kind words as a defense mechanism. Reggie could say all he wanted but the other two knew he was not fine. In fact Desmond fought to get Reggie on his team because Reggie needed to get out. The man had sat around doing nothing ever since the funeral. Reggie’s fiancée, Natalie Swan, was their previous translator. She was no longer with them.

“That is good to hear man. I am going to need that type of attitude if we are really going to make a difference in this war.” Desmond harked.

“Right you are boss. Let’s kick some Empire a**!” Susuki yelled while throwing an arm upward. The others followed to suit and matched her yell.

Desmond was on fire. This was his big chance to make a difference. All his life he had heard of the Empire and their cruel ways. His homeland, Australia, which he loved unendingly, was once ruled by the Empire. Back then they mistreated his ancestors in many degrading ways. To them he was nothing but a second class human with no purpose but to serve them. He was always taught a day would come that the Empire would wage war and his people drank to that. They hoped for the day they could regain their honor as a people and put the Empire back in their place. On behalf of Australia, Desmond was ready to kick some a**!  

[Dugan195]

A few days later Desman was standing in a dimmly lite room aboard a cruiser taking him to Africa. Nineteen other men where standing in line around him. All standing at attention their eyes were on Colonel Chang standing in front of them before a giant map of Africa. He spoke with an accent from the China region of the Khanate lands, but was speaking in Mongol, the universal language of the Khanate lands. "Alright boys, this is it. You all have been hand selected for this assignment. The Empire troops are pushing the Africans back hard and fast. The Empire and their Arab allies have taken most of the Northern half of Africa all the way to the Congo. A lot of people back in the homeland don't think this is a vital front, but they are wrong. If we can push the enemy back out of Africa then the African forces will be free to push into the Arabian Kingdoms which will force them to pull their assaults on the South Front back and allow all the troops in the homeland to focus on pushing the Empire out of Olgrod and then straight into the heart of Europe.

The African troops are numerous, but they lack weapons, they lack discipline and they lack training. Many of the other passengers on this ship are going to Africa to help alleviate those problems; however, you all have a special mission. All of you have seen combat before. All of you have shown exceptional skill on the battlefield and now we will put that to the test. Your mission is simple. You will sneak into the heart of occupied territory and meet up with resistance groups operating in different parts of Africa. Once you have met up with them you are cause as much trouble and pain to the Empire and Arabian troops as possible. How you do this is up to you; however, High Command have come up with something else more devious on top of that. A system of communication is being set up between the resistance that will be used to call all the various groups into one location to carry out massive militia operations. When these calls come heed them. Between them however, rain hell however you can.

You all have your teams that you got to hand select. Hopefully they will be of use to you in the field, due to the diversity of Africa and the peoples you will encounter you all are being assigned a translator who is familiar with a variety of languages that will assist you during the struggle. These people will not be enough however, you will need to rely on and build the resistance movements that you are assigned to. Some of the people you will work with will be hardened killers, Africa may be in theory under the rule of General Dashee, but in reality they are a bunch of tribes and nations and bands of brigands. Some will never have seen the field of combat, those who rise up against the rule of the Empire. Some will fight for you for money, some for their freedom, and some for the pleasure of killing. Supplies will be limited, but the homelands will try to assist your troops when possible; but don't count on it.

You will enter Africa alongside an amphibious assault support by a group of Confederate troops. We are going to land in a weak unvital part of the coast just behind the current battle lines, so be prepared for a long trek to your areas of operations. In your quarters you will find a file with your specific area of operations and how to find your assigned resistance group. Your translators will be along shorty. That is all, dismissed."  

[Joa-Boo]

Desmond saluted the Colonel Chang at the end of his words and stepped away with his group once dismissed. Colonel Chang was a well respected official and Desmond had only seen him on one other occasion. Both times were just as inspiring. It was good to know they were being backed by someone who truly believed in their cause. Some times that little bit of support can make or break an operation.

“Alright you two here is our disguise. I want you guys to practice this role for the next week until we touchdown. Once we are in Africa this is your identity. Unless I give the alright, you do not let down your cover.”

“Alright what do we have?” Susuki was a mixture of excitement and curiousness. She took the envelope from Desmond and opened to the first page of documents. The first thing she saw inside was false identification documents such as birth identifications, passports, and certifications. “I am an archeologist? ******** that!” Susuki’s face scrunched to show her distaste. If there is anything less useful than the classics I couldn’t tell you.”

“Come on Susuki it could be fun. Adventuring through tombs and ancient civilizations is somewhat exciting. Sure ancient Japanese classics are boring but I have heard African ruins are pretty intense.” Reggie tried to be a bit optimistic but on the inside he was laughing. “Are you kidding me? I’m an intern.” Reggie got a glimpse of his documents and noticed he was playing a student studying abroad with his two professors. “This is bullshit, who came up with this?” Reggie directed his questions to Desmond who only smiled faintly.

“Come on you guys this will work.” Desmond was begining to break into a blush. “Alright I put a lot of thought into this guys and it plays to our strengths and weakness as well as fits our location. I believe these personas give us the best chance at success.”

“WE ARE MARRIED!” Susuki shrieked.

“Newlyweds to be specific. This is seconding as our honey moon. We are the happy couple of archeologist who have always wanted to see Africa and we aren’t going to let a war ruin that.” Desmond was proud of his creation.

“Hey now I am the only one with any real marriage experience. Why aren’t Susuki and I the newlyweds?” Reggie was burning red by this point. His comment once again put Susuki and Desmond in an awkward place. He did have the most experience, not that it was needed, but Desmond wanted to stray from reminding Reggie of his still recent loss.

“The real question is why I have to married to anyone!”

“It doesn’t mean anything you guys. It is just a convincing disguise. It is not like we have to actually be a married couple.” Desmond heard himself speak and the words fell through. Yes it did. He blushed again. “Well we only have to pretend when we have to keep up our disguise. Listen this will be the most convincing so we are sticking to it. Get to know your character and play them well. At least we don’t have to change our names because none of us are well known.”

Even with all of their resistance they knew that Desmond’s words were final. Susuki and Reggie sucked it up, took their files, and proceeded to their rooms to work on the details. Desmond already knew his pretty well. He was playing Suzuki’s newlywed and a young archeologist looking to learn something about the ruins and culture of the many tribes in the Savanna. For now he was just Desmond the specialist and he needed to meet his new translator. Desmond found someone with the information and asked where he could find the translator assigned to his team. Who ever they were, they were going to play a very important role in Desmond's team. It was vital he built a good relationship with their translator so that they could get the most accomplished without friction.  

[Joa-Boo]

Name: Desmond Crater
Race: Caucasian
Age: 28
Rank: Staff Sergeant
Home: Australia
Languages:Fluent= Mongol, English and French. Understands = Dutch ((Schools in Australia still teach French and Dutch because it was once occupied by Black Stag Empire))
Skill set: tactical expert, leadership, networking, and military training

Name: Susuki Kyoto
Race: Asian
Age: 27
Rank: Specealist
Home: Japan
Languages: Fluent = Mongol,Chinese, and Japanese Understands = English (if they exist)
Skill set: Military trained, best aim in class, and explosive specialist

Name: Reginald Yershov (goes by Reggie)
Race: Caucasian
Age: 28
Rank: Specealist
Home: Russian
Languages: Fluent in Mongol, English, Russian
Skill set: Military trained, interrogator, Detective training, and hunter (sneaky and tracker) (I would assume these skills are not related to military training?)

((know English because they have known Desmond for so long))

Background: Desmond has an incredible amount of love for his home land. If it was up to him he would make Australia the strongest super power in the world. He loves everything about his home; from the exotic wild life to the beautiful landscape. With this great fondness for Australia comes a deep resentment for the Empire that humiliated them for a very long time. Once occupied by the Black Stag Empire, Australia was just a colony seen as the lowest class of Empire citizens. They were denied many basic human rights and were practically reduced to slaves of the Empire. These wounds never healed even after the Empire’s hold on Australia has faded. Much of the Crater’s heritage and ancestry experienced this degrading treatment imposed on them. His family no longer held any honor or pride, much like many of the Australians. It hurt Desmond to see so many of his fellow Australians hold their head down in despair because of their passed. So Desmond had vowed to his family he would get revenge on the Empire. He joined the Army by age 16. He was smart enough to graduate early and started studying military in college. Since then he has climbed the ranks with all of his military involvement. While in college Desmond met Reggie

When Desmond turned 20 he began his full career in the military. Through more extensive training he met  

[Dugan195]

As the trio discussed their persona's they heard a sharp knock on the door to Captain Crater's cramped quarters. Desman yelled for him to come in and a young African man in an officer's uniform stepped in. His insignia showed him to be a First Lt., just one rank below Desman. The man saluted to Desman, "First Lt. Masamba Okonjo reporting for duty sir. I am your assigned translator for the mission into Africa." Desman saluted back and set the man at ease, however :t. Okonjo's at ease was not much different from his at attention posture.

"I have brought the mission briefing about the mission sir." He handed folder with the word classified on it to Desman and Lt. Okonjo started to explain its contents as Desman read, "We are to use the cover of the landing to push through enemy lines and make our way to the savanna in the Kitale region of Kenya. This region is just a couple dozen miles behind enemy lines and is full of enemy supply lines, reinforcements and wounded coming and going and various air bases, HQs, etc for the African front. This close to the coast we will see manly Arabian Kingdoms troops, but there are contingents of the crack Empire troops that are being used to bolster the Arabians' efforts. We will meet up with a small group of local who have started to build up a resistance against the occupation, the latest information puts their base of operations somewhere in the Saiwa swamps to the north of Kitale. Any questions sir?"  

[Joa-Boo]

Desmond reviewed the information as Masamba spoke. Everything about it made Desmond want to snicker. He could tell that made Masamba tense. Desmond just always felt like people were acting or trying to hard when they were as crisp as their new translator.

“I hope our target location won’t be a problem for you. How adverse are you with the local languages there?” Desmond replied, it sounded like something he should ask. He thought for a moment and then asked another question. “Is there anything a little easier I could call you?” This made the other two giggle. Desmond shot them a look, showing that he was perfectly serious. “How about the expected resistance we will come into contact with on our way to the Saiwa swamps?”  

[Dugan195]

Masamba scowled as the three snickered at him, the casual nature of the three irritated Masamba. Captain Crater was an officer and yet he acted like the fresh recruits taken from the street and sent to the front for the war. It was completely unprofessional. "I am fluent with Mongolian, English, Arabic, Common Indian and Spanish (official language of Firollia), as well as my native Zulu (primary language of Africa). I am proficient in a four lesser African languages, including Kenyan which is what most people in the Kitale region speak primarily. I have basic understanding of several other tribal and regional dialects from Africa, enough to convey vital information, some of which we might encounter. A huge portion of African speak Zulu to some extent so I should be able to communicate with almost everyone we encounter sir. If my name is too hard to pronounce sir Lt. will be perfectly acceptable" Masamba walked over to the table in the middle of the room and pulled a small map of the region out from the folder and bent over the table, "From my understanding the attack will draw most of the enemy troops towards the coast, so there should be a lot of enemy activity immediately behind enemy lines, but a group of four should have no problem sneaking through. After we get past the battle I'm afraid I have no idea what to expect, the Confederations troops are currently pushing all along the front so the situation is changing rapidly, and intel isn't quite clear on enemy positions yet. Africa is a vast land with sweeping amounts of territory between positions making it hard for reconissance to get a good read, but as with the initial push past the battlefield I don't expect us to run into anything we can maneuver around sir."  

[Joa-Boo]

“Reggie and Susuki will you guys leave us. Go practice your new identities. We will meet up tomorrow to put together a more explicit plan.” Desmond released his friends once he saw just how upset it made Masamba. He waited for the two to be outside of hearing distance. “I am sorry if that was incredibly rude. It has been a while since we have had another person on the team. We are used to a very personal level of contact. Your direct and professional nature caught us off guard.” Desmond paused after finisheing his apology. “It sounds as though you are the right guy for the job. Natalie, our last translator, would have struggled with some of the African languages but you, you have it all.” Hearing Masambe put a big part of Desmond at ease. Conversing with the locals would not be easy without someone who knew a lot of the languages. “Are you from Africa, if so where?” Desmond didn’t want to sound interrogative. It was important to him that he knew his team well and they all had a certain repore. These relationships could be seen as a crutch but for Desmond and his past experiences would say otherwise. They were more efficient, effective, and fought harder for one another. He wanted nothing less with Masamba. “The only reason I ask about your name is because I wanted a quick nick name for you. You see I have this thing about getting to know me time. I didn’t mean to over step my….” Desmond took a deep breath after something occurred to him. This could be Masamba’s home land he was fighting for and they were taking the job lightly like some pleasure cruise. “I bet your willing to do a lot to make this mission of ours work!”  

[Dugan195]

Masamba eyed Desman up and down as he spoke. Perhaps, he had judged this man too quickly? He might be informal, but he did seem to have the qualities of a leader about him. Masamba was not use to higher ranked officers trying to get to know him, most just wanted the information they needed and moved on. This was Masamba's first time working with a group for an extended period of time in the field. Usually he was stuck in some headquarters translating messages back and forth. The war had changed all of that though, everyone who could fight was being mobilized, and even though Masamba was a linguist he had proven himself rather capable of combat during boot camp. Now he would have the opportunity to test his skills in real combat for the first time though.

Masamba turned towards his new commander and his scowl turned to a neutral expression, "My family comes from a small village further south in Africa. We moved to Russian steppe around the capital when I was young though. Before the war I have been to Africa many times, though it has been a long time since I have called it my home....those in the Khanates who had trouble calling me by my name referred to me as Masa, if you would like you may call me that. I look forward to working under you sir, your dossier says you have quite a bit of combat experience, that is good. I unfortunately have never seen combat first hand, being a linguist has kept me in support roles so far, so I may help you with communicating, but I fear I may drag you down once the firing begins."  

[Joa-Boo]

Desmond marveled at the success he had at reaching out to Masamba. He had his doubts but this showed him that Masamba would make a huge contribution to their team other than just playing his part as translator.

“Masa, I like it. If you don’t mind I would appreciate using this short hand with you. You mention home. I am glad you have been able to call Russia home. Home, it is a very important to our beings. Most of us would give our lives to save our home. The Black Stag Empire took my home once I am will stop at nothing to make sure they don’t do that to anyone else.” Desmond had a hard time stopping himself once he got on the topic. It was obvious to Masamba that this was something he was very passionate about. “But I digress!” Desmond took a moment, shifting in his seat, before addressing the next set of words Masamba brought up.

“You have a far more important role than your combat skills. You stay near me at all times and you will see plenty of action but your words will strike far harder than your fist. Let me do the punching, you, you will be my instrument that makes my fist worth throwing. Anyone can sing a song but it isn’t heard without a microphone. I want you to know just how important you are to me Masa. I won’t be able to get much done without you so please stay near.” Desmond hoped he was getting through to Masamba. It might have been the alcohol speaking but the truth was he wouldn’t be able to get much done without their translator. “Get some rest and soon we will be in Africa!”  

[Dugan195]

Masamba looked at Desman as he spoke. The two had just met and the man was already speaking as if Masamba was dear to him. Part of him felt touched that an officer realized the how valuable their their troops were. A lot of older officers that Masamba worked with were so disconnected from their troops that they saw them as nothing but tools, living weapons for war...their lives didn't matter and everything they did was for their success not the soldiers. The other part of Masamba felt cautious of his closeness. Even though it made him glad to have an officer who wasn't pompous their was a fine line with how close an officer should get to their troopers. Desman seemed to be towing this line quite closely. It would make his troops lack discipline, question his authority, and every death would toll at his heart. While an officer should not throw away the lives of his troopers, Masamba knew that death was inevitable and an officer's role was to be hard and keep the troops together through all the death when the regular soldiers lost it. Would Desman be able to set aside his feelings and hold the team together when the time came? Masamba was not sure about it. If Desman was going to be the singer, and Masamba the microphone, then Masamba would have to help keep Desman in line as an officer. As the singer Desman could keep the troopers hearts while Masamba as the technical tool would have to keep them functioning and operating. As the other career officer Masamba could bear being the stricter, more logically focused commander even if that meant the scorn of some of their troopers. (Masamba is technically your second in command if you didn't notice btw) "Yes sir, I bid you farewell Captain," Lt. Okonjo saluted Desman and turned around sharply and made his exit.


A few days later....

The four stood in the middle of a U-boat (front drooping open topped boat like from Saving Private Ryan first scene) surrounded by Khanate regulars on all sides. Water splashed up over the side of the boat as explosions ripped into the water all around them. In the distance they heard an explosion as a U-boat went up in flames, the sounds of men burning and frantically trying to get off the sinking vessel echoing out over the sound of crashing waves. Machine gun fire pinged the side of their U-boat, but it was no where near strong enough to pierce the sides of the boat. The landing point had light fortifications manned by Arabian Kingdom soldiers, but due to the rapidly changing battle lines it was not heavily fortified. They would have had a couple of days notice, maybe more depending on their spies within the Khanate lands, to pull troops from the area to meet the assault. Luckily the Confederation was making a major push out of the Congo further west so the Empire could not come to their ally's aid. Unfortunately the assault was really just a screen to get the various teams into Africa so it wasn't a full assault force, that would even the playing field a little.

Masamba looked around at the scared boys around him and felt himself start to quake. Despite being a First Lt. like most of the fresh recruits here this would be his baptism by fire. His heart raced and sweat dripped down the sides of his face. Their objective was simple, but accomplishing it might be rather hard. They were to fight with the regulars until the Khanate troops had started to make breaches in the defensive lines. Once breaches had been made they were to abandoned the assault and run sneak through the breaches past the reinforcements and out into the heart of enemy territory. Clutching his Mosin Nagant close to his body he hoped his time away from basic wouldn't leave him rusty. Despite being in a support role Masamba kept himself in superb shape, but the tactics, the little tricks and in and outs learned in basic might have slipped his mind.

The firing got louder and more machine gun fire strafed the side of their boat as they neared the shore. The various officers started to call out orders and give little pep talks to the troops around them. Some men cried for home as others sat their silently already resigning themselves to death. The operator of the boat leaned over the back and called out, "30 seconds till the gate drops. Good luck boys, make the Khans proud!"

((For weapons look up real world Russian weapons http://historyofww2.webs.com/weaponsoftheussr.htm#tt33 good basic information about the common weapons or you can look up more uncommon ones on your own))

((You can post all the way back to the end of the conversation with Masamba and up to the last 30 seconds but don't go any further))  

[Joa-Boo]

Desmond put a hand on Masamba’s shoulder. It was a comforting gesture that sought to help clam his nerves. Desmond remembered his first combat experience. This one moment can make or break a soldier and it was vital to Desmond that Masamba passed with flying colors.

“Do you all hear that pinging. That is the sound of evil and angry men seeking to take not only your life but your loved ones and your home. They will, if you let them, take everything from you. We are not going to let that happen. Listen to that pattern of hot metal crashing into these walls. If you don’t want that metal to hit you when this wall falls you need to keep your head on NOW. You will listen to my every order and act; you do not have time to think. Let me do your thinking and you will live!” Desmond knew there was only a few seconds left. As the vessel slowed for their release he billowed his orders. “Rush the beaches once the wall drops. Front lines do not stop firing at your closest target. We spread out into a big box. Run to the first sign of cover. Then we team up in twos and run from cover point to cover point while the rest support fire.” Desmond’s words ended just as the moment for the release came.

All the while listening Reggie and Susuki were listening to the spray of bullets. Reggie was carrying the same assault weapon as Desmond, the standard Russian machine gun. Susuki had her rifle tailored for more range. She listened to the way the bullets hit the ship and with that, tried to mentally imagine where the machineguns were stationed. It was her priority to take out those positions first to try and limit the number of initial casualties.