Paybacks - Chapter 7: The Odessa Syndicate

Dieter 2005-05-09 17:00:06
Back in Kiev...

Team A begins its egress from the trapped elevator, Ayumi spearheading the manuever with Artis providing suppressive fire against the forces above.

Landing on her feat with guns drawn, Ayumi sees a similar bay of elevators leading to the building's residence areas. Expensive wall sconces light up the hallway, apartment doors every 10m or so leading to a T-Junction about 50m away.
Gatac 2005-05-09 17:12:08
Peter bows down to the opening, trying his best to address Ayumi without alerting the upstairs opponents to the conversation.

"We keep them busy, you circle around and pop 'em from behind."

Righting himself, he fires his revolver upwards at the sources of light in the shaft.

"Keep their heads down!"
CrazyIvan 2005-05-09 18:49:56
It never goes smooth...how come it never goes smooth?

Brian moves closer to Ilyanna, his body tensing. So far, he's keeping up the image of the guy whose just as happy to let his boss do the talking. He keeps one hand near his own sidearm, the other handing Ilyanna the FSB badge he's been holding onto, in case she wants to go the path of "Intimidation via Talking" rather than "Hail of Gunfire".

(Edited by Dieter at 12:56 pm on May 9, 2005)
fanchergw 2005-05-09 21:54:07
Ilyanna sighs. "I was brought in by the Ukrainian government as a special investigator." She provides the name of someone in that organization that she knows the clearance request went through. "My clearance has already been confirmed, and my orders were to follow-up the investigation here as it relates to other security matters of concern to the government. You also have your orders to allow us access to the site. I don't believe it would be in your best interest for me to have to notify the central office that you did not comply with those orders.

"Regarding the report, we just got the orders to come here less than an hour ago, and did not have time for a full briefing. I had hoped that you could save me a little time, but it's not a problem either way."

(Edited by fanchergw at 12:55 pm on May 9, 2005)
Dieter 2005-05-09 22:12:02
"At ease!"

Stavne's men loosen up, standing at attention near the entrance.

"Very well. Do not take my reaction as one of suspicion, it is just that these are trying times in this country and you cannot be sure who you are dealing with unless you go the extra mile. I did not come here to start some bureaucratic feud between the Service and Central Command."

The detective walks over to a desk and retrieves a clipboard with several sheets of paper attached.

"That should get you up to speed. That report is from this morning. Nothing new has been found since. Now..."

(gesturing for the Team to leave)

"...if you would be so kind. I have a staff meeting to plan and a letter to write to the wife of a colleague. Her husband was killed late last night after stepping on some unexploded ordinance in the backyard. Please be mindful of the barrier tape. I cannot guarantee your safety unless you do so."
Dieter 2005-05-09 22:21:58
Kiev

Moten struggles with negotiating the tight exit space, getting stuck at the ribcage, the product of too many Krispy Kremes and late-night pizza deliveries at Quantico.

Artis and Peter keep the guards upstairs at bay, forcing them to withdrawal from the elevator shaft. Second later, the ominous *dink* *dink* *dink* sound of (at least) two grenades are heard trickling downward.


(Edited by Dieter at 4:28 pm on May 9, 2005)
fanchergw 2005-05-09 22:25:15
* Phew. *

"I understand, commander Stavne. Your dedication is commendable.

"And thank you. We'll be out of your hair as quickly as possible."

Ilyanna leads Carla and Brian out of the tent. "Okay, why don't you two have a look around while I give the commander's report a quick review. Alright?"
Gatac 2005-05-09 22:31:23
After years of mercenary work and dealing with explosives, Peter's brain instantly recognises the sound of plinging grenades...never his favourite sound, come to think of it.

He does his best to shove Moten outside with his foot, yelling "Hit the deck!" at the top of his lungs. If he gets Moten out in time, he will drop down and try to cover his head.
CrazyIvan 2005-05-09 23:35:18
Brian nods and begins looking over the mansion, looking for tell-tale signs of a particular operative, doing his best to keep up a "don't fucking talk to me" expression on his face.
Dieter 2005-05-10 16:10:22
Quote:

Quote: from Gatac on 4:31 pm on May 9, 2005

He does his best to shove Moten outside with his foot, yelling "Hit the deck!" at the top of his lungs. If he gets Moten out in time, he will drop down and try to cover his head.

Peter gives Moten the boot, aiding in his escape. He falls to the floor below and is helped to his feet by Ayumi just as both grenades go off.

[color=red:fcedc21f2d]*boom* *boom*[/color]

Shattered pieces of hot steel and copper shred the elevator's roof, Artis dropping down and diving through the open elevator door saving himself from the blast.

Peter isn't as fortunate, his heroic efforts to save a friend are met with painful consequences.

Smoke rolls out of the elevator opening with Peter emerging a few seconds later, cut to pieces from his waist up, his hair and clothes nearly burned-off.

---

Investigators at the crime scene give the Team a wide berth as they peruse the area. The news footage previously seen on TV didn't do the carnage justice. Spray-painted outlines on the scorched and dismembered lawn show at least twenty people were present at the time of the grisly event.

Ajoining tables used for what appeared to a dinner party are contorted and twisted at sharp angles, indicating that it was probably the primary target.

Ilyanna looks over the report.

-Bomb crater underneath the table settings suggest a small, high-yield explosive device was planted prior to the party.

-Initial measurements and preliminary coroner findings indicate that the COD of nearly all those involved were due to injuries sustained from the explosive device.

-Those bodies found outside the explosion pattern were found with one-two gunshot wounds to the cranium. Exit wounds indicate a high-velocity weapon was involved.

(Edited by Dieter at 3:12 pm on May 10, 2005)
Gatac 2005-05-10 16:17:30
Peter stumbles out, nearly collapsing from the pain.

"Kill the fuckers...please?"
Gatac 2005-05-10 16:38:30
Ayumi winces sympathetically, then puts her game face back on.

"On it."

With a quick touch to make sure her swords won't go sliding out on her, she tenses, then barrels down the hallway toward the T-junction. Her eyes flick back and forth rapidly, scanning the doors either for small windows, exit signs, or pictures of little silhouetted men walking up or down stairs.
Dieter 2005-05-10 20:37:23
The stairwell door to the 10th floor is carefully opened by Ayumi, as to not draw unwanted attention...at least not until she's ready.

Three guards, clad in tactical vests and SWAT helmets stand before the open elevator shaft, planning their next move.

One of the guards says something in Russian, just before clipping in to a static line secured to the elevator's doorframe. Another replies to the man's comment, before calling on his helmet's headset while the third guard reloads his MP5.

Ayumi sees her chance and charges toward the two with blades drawn. She jumps up, striking downward into a guard's vest, landing in a crouched stance and slashing across the other's hamstring.

The remainder of Team A addresses their wounds with Artis standing guard. Standing near the (what's left of) the elevator, he can hear the sound of nylon-on-carabiner punctuated by footfalls.
Dieter 2005-05-11 15:58:29
Before the two guards get a chance to respond, Ayumi attacks again. A blade slashes the across Guard#1's wrist, slicing every major blood vessal as her second stabs the other man in the heart.

Ayumi stands up as both her target slump to the floor in pools of blood.

"All clear up here."

A few floors below, Artis finishes sealing up the elevators doors with a bit of spot-welding from his laser watch.
fanchergw 2005-05-11 20:54:50
After reading through the official report, Ilyanna rejoins Carla and Brian and gives them the highlights thereof. She cannot help noticing either the sheer magnitude of the carnage, nor the efficiency with which the killing was performed.

"So, does this sound like the work of your friend? From the looks of things, I'd guess this was done by more than one person, though I could be wrong."
Dieter 2005-05-11 21:19:55
Jessica's was trained to get up close and personal with her targets. No doubt she probably wooed the man into his own home and offed him with all the effort it took to uncross her legs.

Wait a second...what the hell is this lass talking about?


The report Ilyanna was giving obviously was the one detailing the event at Bol'shoy Fontan, not here in Omsk. A fatal mistake, but why?

(Edited by Dieter at 3:20 pm on May 11, 2005)
fanchergw 2005-05-12 00:20:36
Ily senses something wrong with the report she's reading, but it takes her a moment to identify it. Stavne gave her the wrong report.

But why does he even have it?

Pulling out her cell phone, Ily starts making calls. She needs to identify through her contact at Central Command that Stavne is truly the assigned commander here, that the man she met is truly him, and that he should have a copy of the report from the other location.

Also, she'll try to obtain a copy of the correct report for Petrenko's house.
CrazyIvan 2005-05-12 02:10:50
Brians eyebrow arches as he listens to the report, growing ever more suspicious of their "host".

Suspicious enough that he undoes the safety on his sidearm.
fanchergw 2005-05-12 17:30:07
After over a half hour of working through channels via her cell phone, Ilyanna finally packs it away. She huddles with her two teammates to discuss what she has learned.

"Okay, here's what I've got: The report I read to you earlier is apparently the one from the attack on Bol'shoy Fontan, rather than here. No one is quite certain why Stavne would have it or would have given it to us instead of the proper report. I would suggest that there's something fishy with him and that he bears watching.

"I was also able to get a copy of the correct report for this location. Here are the salient points:

"One. Coroner report indicates that Petrenko was indeed tortured pre-mortem. Massive bruising on the face as well as partial immasculation confirm this.

"Two. Part of the floor in Petrenko's study was removed and replaced. It would confirm suspicions that Petrenko was keeping parts of laundered funds for his own "retirement" plan. The total amount was/is a mystery, but was estimated to be at least 3 million dollars (US). If this was done by your friend Jessica, then she has quite a warchest at her disposal now.

"How do you want to proceed? According to the other report, it's clear that someone thinks Jessica was involved there."
fanchergw 2005-05-12 18:04:50
"All right, this should be Sam's pad. Plan A's scrapped - she won't be coming back here, so let's get what we can quick."

Artis motions to Peter while reloading his AK. "This is probably one of the more secure floors in this building. Let's make sure their guys can only come at us one way, whether it's one elevator, one stairwell, or one doorway further in."