Rescue from the Nightmare

[alertcommando]

The door opens into the streets of a small abandoned village: it is night, a chilly autumn night.

The bright moon in the sky makes the numerous footprints of heavy boots and the even more numerous prints from attack dogs' paws clearly visible. The ground also shows tire marks and the tracks from an Armored Personnel carrier. A keen eye might also notice spent bullet casings here and there.

Unfortunately, none of those seems much recent.

Comments

[diamond-badgirl.livejournal.com]

Lucy checks around for observers. Judging by the relatively old and largely undisturbed tracks, nothing's been by this way. Still, the sooner the paranoid kicks in the better. She tries to keep out of sight and out of the way.

[song_tra_bong]

Mary Anne follows close behind, covering the rear.

"Want to go look for that local help, or follow the tracks?" she wonders, voice barely above a whisper.

[daphsnpc.livejournal.com]

The vehicle tracks seem to go all the way across the village and out of it, straight south-east. From the maps, they know that most likely leads to one of the small naval camps, probably the one from where the ferry departs.

Let's see, too much coincidence that Tanya was sent on a mission this deep into enemy territory, so close to one of their most infamous 'reeducation' centers? Hmm...

Local help is supposed to be found in the nearby city, following the road straight east.

[diamond-badgirl.livejournal.com]

Lucy gestures east. "We'll need information first." Surely soldiers aren't an uncommon sight in this place, but even so they might stick out a bit. Best to move quickly and quietly towards the city. "Eyes open but not like we're expecting to get jumped any second. Even if we expect to get jumped any second." She's muttering, half to herself. Trying to keep herself focused.

[song_tra_bong]

Mary Anne nods, smile a touch grim.

"I hear you. You happy taking point?"

[diamond-badgirl.livejournal.com]

"I got it." Lucy moves out following the map in her head. She's also got a device like a GPS, that only responds to her fingerprint, but the mental map is good enough for now. She's watchful and swift without appearing to be in a big hurry. Even if that's the hard part. Her guns are handy, but concealed.

[song_tra_bong]

Mary Anne follows behind, keeping her head up and her eyes open. Any trace of nervousness gets buried by anticipation and focus.

Her rifle is slung across her back, her handgun out of sight in the small of her back. A small bag rests on one hip, loaded with grenades. Her knives are stashed in various places--up her sleeve, strapped to her ankle--but her hands stay empty for now, loose and ready at her sides.

[daphsnpc.livejournal.com]

There is a guard post on the road when they get closer to the city; but it can be easily avoiced by simply going around it.

A half dozen soldiers, two attack dogs, a jeep with a machinegun.

[diamond-badgirl.livejournal.com]

Lucy resettles the straps of her backpack before leading the way around the guardpost. Some of her equipment is disassembled for transport, and rattling just now would be bad.

Dogs can be trouble, but only if their humans heed them. Better to raise no alarm at all. As wide a curve as possible is made around the post, and Lucy's still keeping an eye out for passive alarms and traps. No tripwires or lasers have caught her in years, but it's unfamiliar territory, and outdoors.

[song_tra_bong]

Mary Anne is used to country with landmines buried in it, so she treads carefully and keeps one eye on the ground.

She tries to put her footsteps right in Lucy's, the better to keep avoiding any traps.

[daphsnpc.livejournal.com]

None in this area. They manage to reach the outskirts of the city without incident.

Now it is just a matter of finding Spot X on the city, giving out Signal Y, and waiting for a contact.

And hoping to not be caught by a patrol; the underground agents are supposed to be watching the contact area 24/7, but... surprises happen.

[diamond-badgirl.livejournal.com]

Making it to the contact point in the alley behind a butcher's shop is easy; getting the light signal is not so much. Lucy's not a smoker, but the only way she could come up with for not looking too conspicuous while flicking a lighter that many times and in that pattern it to light a cigarette.

The choking should make it clear that she's not just jonesing for nicotine, but she'll switch to the flashlight if the message isn't clear enough.

[song_tra_bong]

Mary Anne isn't a smoker either, or she'd have offered to help.

As it is, she just tries to look as relaxed as possible, while keeping an eye out for the reply.

[daphsnpc.livejournal.com]

[Tap]-[Tap][Tap]-[Tap][Tap][Tap]-[Tap]

The sound resembles water dripping, but the pattern repeats itself three times. Then a door down the alley opens a few inches, revealing light for a moment.

An invite, or a call.

[diamond-badgirl.livejournal.com]

"Thank god." Lucy gratefully stubs out the wretched cigarette trying not to look too happy to be doing so. She nods at Mary Ann and leads the way towards the door, checking around for observers. "If it's a trap, run." Not that she thinks her companion needs to be told that.

[song_tra_bong]

"You got it."

She leaves out the fact that the only way she's running is if she's hauling Lucy after her. That detail's not important now; the only thing that is is whatever is on the other side of that door.

[daphsnpc.livejournal.com]

A short hallway, then stairs leading down: at the bottom, another door slightly ajar, light filtering out...

[diamond-badgirl.livejournal.com]

Lucy walks down those steps as silently as possible, then when she approaches the open door, she taps on it in a two-one-two pattern before pushing it open far enough to see inside.

[daphsnpc.livejournal.com]

The night passed mostly uneventful. The sound of choppers and the soviet APC and dog patrols might have made sleep a challenge, but... morning comes and there is a knock on the door: "Open up." The voice is of the older woman's, the one who interrogated them the day before.

Did she introduce herself at all?

[diamond-badgirl.livejournal.com]

Lucy's been up and ready to move for a while now- too nervous and keyed up to sleep well. When the knock comes she's giving her guns the check-over she missed the night before while she was tinkering.

She stands and goes to the door. No watchword for the arrival of friendlies, but the voice is right. Gun in hand helps, of course. Lucy glances at Mary Ann questioningly. "Ready?" For her to open the door that is.

[song_tra_bong]

It may have been a while, but Mary Anne is still more used to sleeping in the dirt (or the mud) prior to a mission. After checking all her weapons last night, she dropped off like the dead and didn't so much as twitch until the knock, when she opened her eyes.

Now, she's sitting up on the edge of bed with her pistol trained on the door. She nods. "Go ahead."

[daphsnpc.livejournal.com]

Opening the door, indeed there is the woman. "I hope you are rested, we have a lot to do today, including detailed planning." She walks in.

"My operatives are ready. If you make enough of a distraction, we will need to relocate, after the damage we have planned to the soviet installations."

[diamond-badgirl.livejournal.com]

"We're ready; I want to get moving." Lucy is getting antsy about the time. It's already been too long, but rushing wouldn't help Tanya right now. "And I think we can entertain them sufficiently to give you some room to move."

She stashes her gun under her coat and puts a hand on her pack, ready to go.

[song_tra_bong]

"Right behind you."

The pistol gets tucked in the small of her back, then she bends over to pick up her rifle and bag from under the edge of the bed.

[daphsnpc.livejournal.com]

She will guide the two women to the basement, where a mini 'war room' is set: maps and such, on a large table, schematics, blueprints... two men are waiting there as well.

"Very well, what we pout together until now, is, tomorrow, before sunrise, you two, along with Nick and Hans here, will sneak into the ferry, then get off and sneak around here..." She indicates a map of the island. "You will wait until 9 AM, when the garrison goes on leave, and only perimeter patrol remains."

"Then you will move here, near the helipad, and one hour later the transport chopper will arrive. The boys will help secure the transport, and then you can go in take your friend out. After that, it is a matter of taking off and heading south-west, you should have enough fuel to make your way to Crete."

"Now, questions, suggestions, and what you have planned for a distraction?"