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Post by The Rubber Baron on Jul 11, 2009 13:58:01 GMT -5
It was customary in international trade to send armed escorts when going through narrow straights in certain waters - normally where pirates were common: Nigeria, Somalia, Indonesia.
Armed escorts were not common two miles out of Mercury Bay, however. Mercury Bay Police boats were not trained, nor fully manned enough to spot five men crawling up the starboard hull of an Ocean Wide Shipping cargo truck, and the south african mercenaries had little trouble, armed with small arms and a working knowledge of the ship's layout, taking control of the ship without any warnings being sent.
Then it was simply a matter of continuing the course to the rendezvous.
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Post by The Rubber Baron on Jul 22, 2009 2:06:25 GMT -5
Tanker crews were a little warrier what with the sudden disappearance of a container boat the previous week (along with the entire crew that was on it). So when a group of mercenaries came up over the side railing of Ocean Wide Shipping 78594, the crew managed to actually get a call for help out on the radio before the trained soldiers wrestled the captain to the ground and took the helm.
The ship was past the final checkpoint of the bay before any Bay Police boats came along side, and were answered with a burst of automatic fire.
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Post by Anei and Hokori on Jul 22, 2009 22:01:16 GMT -5
Rachel White had a rebuttal to the shots ready second one volley ended, the dark-clad young woman kneeling behind a piece of meager cover with her HK-416 rifle to her shoulder, sixth sense stretched to pick out and, hopefully, pick off a target the second they decided to follow in the first shooter's footsteps.
Arella White was similarly ready, all six senses ready to find a target for her rifle to pick off, waiting for the commander of the patrol to give an order. After all, the sisters were here for support, not command, and she wouldn't blame them if they fell back from a defended position the enemy just might blow up anyway if it fell.
(Tagging anyone with a SWORD agent and/or cop who wants in?)
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Post by Agent Lloyd Wakeman on Jul 23, 2009 20:40:25 GMT -5
Wakeman stepped out from the cabin of the lead Bay Police boat, pulling out a pair of binoculars and sweeping the cargo ship.
"Well now," he said, "isn't that interesting?"
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Post by Agent Erik Pettersson on Jul 24, 2009 10:46:04 GMT -5
Pettersson had barely gotten out of the plane on the main runway of Yeager AFB when a junior agent rushed to him, a cell phone in one hand, a dossier in another.
He grabbed the papers and listened to Kowalski urging him to go back Wakeman up in the Bay.
"I barely got out of the plane from DC", Pettersson protested to the voice on the phone. "If this is not Cordite I'm not really interested in field work."
"Pirates? Wouldn't that fall under organized crime? The Navy?"
"Inside national waters? Oh, so they are not really pirates after all. Posse comitatus blah blah, I get the point. But I still need a ride."
The agent that had brought the phone pointed at a black helicopter parked on the runway a few hundred feet away. Pettersson could make out a pilot and a few agents sitting inside, waiting to leave.
"Oh, that'll do, yes."
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Post by Daniel Palmer on Jul 25, 2009 13:26:40 GMT -5
Playing parent to Jamie had put serious dents into Palmer's superheroics schedule. He couldn't leave the house unattended anymore, especially late at night. At least he could do stuff in the day, by sending Jamie off to a daycare, and if he wasn't working...
So here he was, on the docks in broad daylight, and looking utterly ridiculous. He was wearing a bandanna over his lower face in addition to his normal headgear, to hide his face from anyone who might recognize him.
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Post by The Rubber Baron on Jul 27, 2009 18:35:48 GMT -5
The police boats were keeping their distances at this point, staying away from the spread of automatic fire. Barring an endurance contest, however, the heavy tanker wasn't getting away from the smaller police boats. The mercenaries had so far kept the course fairly linear, although it was slighly diverging now from the path inputed in the computer. They were each taking up well fortified positions around the boat. From various estimates there were a dozen or so of them - posted at various angles on the sides of the boat, more patrolling the center and presumably below decks, and some staying in the cockpit.
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Post by Anei and Hokori on Jul 27, 2009 19:44:30 GMT -5
Rachel lowered her weapon somewhat, triggering her ear radio, "Agent Wakeman? Bring us within about ten feet of the freighter for a second, and my sister and I could get aboard easily if you keep their heads down, provide a violent distraction if you'd like one. Sir."
Her voice was chipper if serious, the young woman's expression calculating as she eyed the 15 feet or so above the waterline railing on the ship, an easy enough jump really.
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Post by Agent Lloyd Wakeman on Jul 31, 2009 20:31:17 GMT -5
Wakeman lowered his binoculars, an impish grin crossing his face. He stepped back inside the cabin.
Leaning his head out the door for a moment, he said, "Both of you, try to take them alive if you can. These are the same guys who attacked the Cygnus building. They may have a lead on Cordite."
He took the helm and brought the boat toward the freighter.
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Post by Anei and Hokori on Jul 31, 2009 22:57:35 GMT -5
"Sir," intoned the younger sister cheerfully as she secured her rifle behind her back, rising to her feet and tensing her legs for a telekinetically-boosted leap. Like it or not, this was what she, and her sister, still lived for, dancing along the edge of lethal probability and ensuring that others wouldn't have the chance to do so again. Really, a very bad habit.
She'd think about it after defeating these monsters though.
Range was closed, and Arella jumped 25 feet up in the air, arching to a clanging landing atop a cargo container, chest pumping for air beneath her bullet-proof vest and all six senses poised in the lethal seconds after she landed and hadn't quite gotten her footing for an offensive.
Rachel was seven feet away on an adjacent container and facing the oppisite direction, just as wary and one hand reaching for her pistol.
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Post by The Rubber Baron on Aug 1, 2009 17:44:05 GMT -5
Bullets splashed through the water and tore holes through the front and sides of the police boat as it came for a broadside. The two mercenaries on the starboard side of the ship - the side that Rachel and Arella landed on - were caught somewhat by surprise at the sense-defying jump, but soon get their bearings back. The twins have only a second to recover before armor peircing rounds start tearing through cargo containers at them - blind firing since the angle made it impossible for the mercenaries to peg their positions.
A third mercenary, placed further towards the center of the boat, was already radioing the rest of the group on the frieghter, calling for backup.
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Post by Anei and Hokori on Aug 2, 2009 13:25:07 GMT -5
Rachel jinks forward through the hail of bullets and launches herself into a telekinetically-powered kick at the mercenary on the left as soon as she gets a pause in the firing.
The mercenary on the right is on the receiving end of an attempted grapple and toss by the younger sibling, Arella landing next to the man and trying to remove him bodily from the ship. Clear out a side, allow the other's to board... simple enough.
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Post by Agent Erik Pettersson on Aug 2, 2009 13:32:00 GMT -5
Pettersson could barely spot the stand off at sea from high up in the helicopter as it approached the Mercury City harbour.
"Okay sir, where do we put down?" the pilot asked.
"How much fuel do we have left?"
"Maybe around thirty minutes."
"And how long is it to the tanker from here?"
"Um... I'd say five."
"Okay, take us in. Close as you dare. Strap yourselves in guys, it's going to be windy here soon." He radios Wakeman on his ear piece. "Wakeman, Pettersson here. I'm coming in to cover you from the air. Now's a good time to board."
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Post by The Rubber Baron on Aug 3, 2009 19:47:59 GMT -5
The first mercenary goes down with a yelp as the kick strikes him center mass, the magazine he was attempting to reload into his rifle flying from his hand.
The second man drops his weapon as Arella approaches, pulling out a knife to close to CQC. His knife fails several times to land any telling blow, however, and when Arella gets a stable hold on his arm, she seems to move in the exact opposite direction than what he expects. He was still contemplating just how a girl half his size could toss him ten feet into the air when he hit the water.
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Post by Agent Lloyd Wakeman on Aug 4, 2009 18:38:10 GMT -5
As the gunfire started, Wakeman brought the police boat closer in to the side of the freighter. The mercenaries would be too focused on the Whites to stop him from coming aboard. As the boat closed in, he tossed a line up to the freighter's deck, securing it around a railing. He climbed up the side of the freighter, before pulling himself up on deck.
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Post by Anei and Hokori on Aug 5, 2009 16:06:31 GMT -5
"To the bridge?" questioned the younger twin, watching her sister toss the disabled merc into the water and readying her rifle for use.
"To the bridge," confirmed the older twin, readying her pistol and appointing herself to point duty. She led the way, all six senses alert as they quickly and quietly headed for their target, weapon held low but primed for firing when more trouble reared it's head.
(Three days late but better than nothing.)
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Post by The Rubber Baron on Aug 6, 2009 12:28:21 GMT -5
The containers laid throughout the ship were proving quite the hindrance for the mercs to spot their targets before they were spotted. The two from the opposite side had, however, pegged down the general location of the twins, and one tosses a Flashbang grenade over a container and crouched behind two nearby containers.
As soon as the familiar explosion sounded, they came out from around their cover and opened fire.
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Post by Anei and Hokori on Aug 6, 2009 23:33:02 GMT -5
The mercenary's shots find Rachel throwing herself into cover behind another cargo container, the sister's powers having given them precious seconds of warning. Not enough to get entirely clear, but enough to only get mostly deafened as they fled into cover. The older twin hit the ground, grimacing and shaking her head, pistol gripped tightly in one fist.
Arella popped back around the corner soon as the volley of firing ended, trying to ignore the acute ringing ringing in her ears, keep the mercs head down or even take one down. Where in the name of hell was their backup?!
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Post by Agent Lloyd Wakeman on Aug 9, 2009 18:11:49 GMT -5
Wakeman moved fast as soon as he heard the explosion. He kept low, using the containers for cover and trying to avoid making contact with the mercenaries shooting at the twins.
He came around from behind another container, off to the two mercs' left. He very quickly raised his revolver, took aim at the center of the closest merc's body mass, and pulled the trigger.
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Post by The Rubber Baron on Aug 10, 2009 15:02:02 GMT -5
The round hits him dead in the back and the mercenary goes down with a grunt. His partner fires a quick burst in Wakeman's direction and immediately starts retreating to a more defensible position from both the twins and wakeman, leaving his companion behind.
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Post by Anei and Hokori on Aug 10, 2009 17:17:25 GMT -5
Arella nods quick thanks to Wakemen and fires a sloppy burst of fire in the merc's general direction with her rifle, encouraging him on his way.
Rachel, levered herself atop a cargo container in a single, smooth motion, landing with a soft clang as she sprinted forward, sixth sense trying to compensate for her ringing ears and slurred balance, intent on dodging any incoming fire and leaping down at the merc in a hopefully disabling tackle as soon as Arella quit shooting.
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Post by Agent Lloyd Wakeman on Aug 11, 2009 1:05:16 GMT -5
A second after the bullet had left the barrel, Wakeman had taken cover behind the nearby container. Bullets ripped past his head as the mercenary retaliated.
The burst lasted for but a moment. Wakeman counted off a beat to see if any further rounds materialized. When they didn't, he swung out from behind cover, and attempted to take a shot at the fleeing mercenary.
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Post by The Rubber Baron on Aug 12, 2009 20:20:46 GMT -5
The mercenary, all his attention spent dodging fire, gets up from a roll just as Rachel bounds into him. Her weight bears the both of them to the ground violently, but doesn't do anything to the two hundred pound mercenary other than daze him. After a moment of bleariness, his hands reach for the sidearm on his thigh, which is quickly drawn and the safety ticked off.
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Post by Anei and Hokori on Aug 12, 2009 23:25:55 GMT -5
The older twin sees his intention coming and pushes her boosted reflexes to beat his, lashing out with all her strength in a double-handed blow that could sent him flying backwards into a cargo container with a potentially lethal degree of force, eyes cold and angry mirrors on her face.
"Not now," cursed her sister under her breath, reading her sibling's intention even as she rushed forward to support her, weapon at ready to down any further reinforcements.
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Post by The Rubber Baron on Aug 13, 2009 1:26:43 GMT -5
The chinese duplicate sidearm falls to the floor with a clatter at Rachel's feet, and Arella arrives next to her sister to see a gruesome sight. Pieces of the mercenary were splattered onto the floor and the side of the cargo container, the rest was not in sight, presumably the bulk of his body within the jagged thee-foot wide hole ripped in the steel.
*******************
"A team, report!" the team leader shouted into the short-range radios. The civilian pilot and other crewman were tied up and stowed in the corner of the bridge, the mercenary himself, along with his lieutenant, ducking down in the fortified compartment.
"A and B teams down," replied the remaining mercenary on the deck, beating a hasty retreat. "B and C teams are steel below decks. What ees ETA on reinforcements?"
"Five more minots. Hold your positions unteel then."
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Post by Agent Lloyd Wakeman on Aug 18, 2009 18:39:23 GMT -5
Wakeman came up behind the twins. He stared at the hole torn open in the cargo container, blinked a few times, then shook his head.
"We need to get to the bridge," he said, "both of you, follow me."
He started making his way across the deck toward the sterncastle.
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Post by Anei and Hokori on Aug 19, 2009 22:02:01 GMT -5
Rachel blinked a few times, coming out of her fugue as she wondered briefly at the blood and gore splattering her arms and torso. Oh. That would come to haunt her later. Worry about it then. "Yes, Sir," she replied flatly, shaking her head to clear it of the last buzzing from the flash-bang and following in Wakeman's trail, readying her rifle.
Arella sighed and hoped the issue wouldn't be taken as anything more than a kill or be killed case of self-defense. The younger twin took up a position flanking Wakeman on the oppisite side, ready and wary for anything with all six senses.
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Post by The Rubber Baron on Aug 20, 2009 21:44:36 GMT -5
Automatic fire rains down on the team as they approach the bridge. The bridge is elevated, about fifteen feet off the ground, the boarded up window (except for a convenient spot about the size of a head) having a good angle on the deck, as well as on the only entrance to the bridge, and the single staircase leading up to it.
"I hawv hawstages!" the team leader's voice carries through. "Lay dawn your guns or I will start shooting! I swear!"
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Post by Agent Erik Pettersson on Aug 24, 2009 3:17:41 GMT -5
The chopper, after spending what must have amounted to an eternity for the agents now boarding the ship, finally makes it into effective range off the ship.
The side door slides open and a strapped in Agent Pettersson trains a scoped rifle at the bridge. He furrows his brow as he notices the window has been boarded up. From a helicopter, with the crosswinds and the ship on the waves, into a porthole like that, it's an impossible shot even for him.
"Wakefield, it's Pettersson, I'm here. What's your status." He peers away from the scope and looks down at the deck, scanning it for stragglers.
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Post by Agent Lloyd Wakeman on Aug 26, 2009 18:00:59 GMT -5
Taking cover behind a container, Wakeman answered into his radio. "I've got three people aboard the ship. Four mercenaries down so far. At least one more's holed up on the bridge. He claims to have hostages."
"And it's Wakeman, by the way."
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