After Action Report - The Zalozhniy Sanction - Part One.

Hi everyone,

this last weekend, Sunday 24 NOV 2013, we had Omar, Leslie and Joseph and were joined for the first time by Andrew. The team started the first session of the Zalozhniy Sanction. Given that this is a published adventure (with several modifications to fit into my future designs) it is of course time for me to shout...

***HERE THERE BE SPOILERS***

Sarajevo

Mon, 29 JUL 2013

11:26

The team have booked transport from Sarajevo to Sevastopol. Due to a lack of direct flights they will have to fly into Istanbul, experience a small layover and then make their way to Sevastopol International Airport, quite the name for what is a single runway affair just North of the city. The team dispose of their firearms, anything incriminating or illegal and ensure that they use alternative identification from that used when entering the country to begin the Lennart job.

Istanbul

Mon, 29 JUL 2013

13:40

The team arrive in Istanbul via a Kuwait Airways 777 and meet up with each other and their luggage. After verifying that they have not been tailed on their own or recent flights and grabbing some food they make their way to the flight to Sevastopol. This second leg takes around 2 and half hours on a Turkish Airlines 737.

Sevastopol

Mon, 29 JUL 2013

17:15

After their arrival in Sevastopol, Luc calls his contact and the team splits up make their way to a charming dacha overlooking Kalamita Bay. Donald Carroll and his girlfriend Marta introduce themselves to the team over a barbecue that he prepared and they also meet another two individuals that he has roped in for the task, Zygfryd aka “Fred” and Kelila. Fred is a young Polish man dressed in a shabby-looking suit who looks way too young to be involved in anything like this (he also appears more focused on his burger than those around him) and Kelila is a Palestinian who exudes professionalism and practicality.

Gyasi identifies Carroll as an ex-serviceman (Military Science) and asks where he served. Carroll reveals he is ex-Special Forces Operational Detachment – Delta but left in the mid-1980s along with several other operators after financial irregularities were discovered. He and a few other members of the SOF community had been stealing from black funds to provide for their own retirement. Since then he has made his home here in the Crimea, helping the Russians and Ukrainians get an understanding of American thought processes whilst simultaneously selling the US information on Black Sea Fleet operations. Both sides need and trust him so his past is forgiven and forgotten so long as he doesn't stray too far off the reservation. After some introductions Carroll begins to brief the team on what he needs their assistance with.

Carroll talks about how the Central Intelligence Agency has asked him to track a missing shipment of weapons bound for the Iraqi National Police and security services. This arms shipment was diverted from Baghdad International Airport and smuggled overland through the Kurdistan region to Turkey. From there they suspect it was transported to Port Izmir in Samsun and to it's eventual destination across the Black Sea to Odessa. His contact in Samsun reported a shipment that two days ago aboard a Turkish vessel named Yelkenci; a freighter registered out of Istanbul. He estimates that the 1400km journey will take a little under four days at around 8 kts (the most fuel efficient speed for the Yelkenci) and he intends for the team to catch up to the freighter, shadow it into harbour and then follow the cargo to it's final destination.

The weapons crates that went missing have RFID chips concealed within them and Carroll needs the team to verify the crates, who has received them and then find out where they are heading thereafter via the shipping manifests. Carroll warns that it is likely that the likely suspects are professional criminals; his contact in Samsun was professionally gutted after making the report. Carroll promises to help the team out once they do him this small service and offers to organise new identification and passports, RFID trackers keyed to the chips in the weapons crates and a small amount of cash. Finally he apologises for not coming along; he would go himself were he not on very poor terms with the Ukrainian intelligence agency, the SBU. He implies that he would likely end up tortured and killed if were he spotted in Odessa.

In addition to the technical and financial resources, he's also called in a marker with a Russian Admiral who owed him a favour and has managed to get hold of a Russian Black Sea Fleet boat and it's Captain as well as a few marines from the 880^th Naval Infantry Battalion.

Sevastopol

Wed, 31 JUL 2013

07:41

The Russian ship is a Sonya-Class minesweeper, the Leytenant Ilyin, commanded by Captain-Lieutenant Vadim Kostya of the 11^th ASW Brigade, 30^th Surface Combat Division. He appears to be concealing a decade of severe alcohol habits with a cheap Old Spice knock-off and yet more alcohol. Without much more than a shrug he hands the team the keys to the ship's armoury (containing several 5.45x39mm AK-74Ms, 9x18mm Makarov PMMs and a 7.62x54Rmm SVD Dragunov) and then introduces them to the fabled Black Sea Marines. Their well-known reputation for toughness and ferocity is unfortunately undetectable on the young, ruddy faces of seven raw, conscripted recruits averaging about 19 years of age.

Making a top speed of around 15 kts the ex-minesweeper will be able to reach Odessa in under 12 hours. The team will have plenty of time to prepare the ground for their arrival in Odessa and should be able to intercept the Yelkenci about an hour or so from it's destination. Ibis has flown in to Odessa International Airport along with some support gear. Ron contacts her and arranges transport at the port so that the team will be able to track the crates once they are unloaded. Ibis rents two Volkswagen Touareg V8 TDI R-Lines using a fake ID, figuring that the combination of endurance, carrying capacity, top speed and off-road capability will give the team all the advantages they will need.

The Black Sea

Wed, 31 JUL 2013

20:05

The team intercept the Yelkenci as planned maintaining a safe distance within the shipping lane but close enough to monitor them using the “big-eye” binoculars mounted on the bow of the Lt. Ilyin. Angela uses the telescopic lens on her camera to photograph the ship (Photography) and notes that it sits low in the water, clearly heavily loaded. She counts five crew on the ship, each of whom appears to be armed. Luc sees a small boat come out from the harbour and meet up with the Turkish ship. The small vessel escorts the freighter into the harbour and they tie up at berth 22. He identifies the boat (Streetwise) as belonging to the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVS), implying the criminals have their hooks into local law enforcement.

At the dock, the crew of the Yelkenci begin the long process of unloading the ship as four GAZ Sadko trucks pull up. Around ten armed men disembark from the trucks and begin assisting with the loading of the cargo into the trucks. Even with the assistance of the five Turkish sailors it looks as if it will take some time to transfer the cargo. The team takes the Lt. Ilyin's tender and make their way ashore whilst Kostya arranges a berth for the minesweeper with the port authority. The team locate and load into the Touaregs and check their gear, Angela verifying that the crates are the correct ones using the RFID detector provided by Carroll (Electronic Surveillance). Angela takes more pictures of the cargo (Photography) and identifies the cases as being those used to transport arms as well as a long silver, metallic box different from those around it. Pointing this out to the rest of the team she finds out from Gyasi that this is a USGI military coffin (Military Science)

Odessa

Wed, 31 JUL 2013

21:52

Kelila takes the wheel of the lead Touareg with Angela riding shotgun with the RFID tracker as the GAZ trucks weave through traffic with reckless abandon. They head North East, parallel to the shore until they reach a red warehouse just after the corner of Prymors'ka Street and Virmens'kyi Lane. The trucks begin to unload and another twenty armed men filter out of the loading bay to assist in the transfer. Gyasi spots two more armed guards on the roof of the warehouse opposite (Notice). Case after case is being wheeled in to the warehouse and the team take the opportunity to check the lay of the land. Evelyn tells the team that beneath most of Odessa there are underground limestone catacombs at various depths. Some dug during the 18^th and 19^th centuries and some at the start of the Great Patriotic War in 1941 as the Germans invaded. Some are flooded, some have been rebuilt and some have collapsed completely but all told there are around two and half thousand km of tunnels beneath the surface. This could work as an alternate entrance but it is also possible that the Bratva is using them as a storage area.

Gyasi spots a militsiya Skoda Octavia parked further down the street (Urban Survival). The officers appear to be watching for inbound traffic to the street, not watching the bustling warehouse. Gyasi surmises that their job is preventing interference from nosy civilians rather than arresting organised criminals working in plain sight. Luc spies a guard wearing a short-sleeved black vest and can see from his tattoos that he's Lisky Bratva (Criminology). Fred spots two more guards at the rear of the warehouse on the loading dock (Military Science) and two more in front while the others concentrate on shifting cargo. No external CCTV is visible on the warehouse so it looks as if it should be possible to sneak in once they've taken the crates inside.

After waiting for the trucks to be unloaded Evelyn leads Gyasi, Ron and Luc inside the warehouse (Infiltration) via the side entrance to the top floor. On making their way past the locked door the team split into two pairs, Gyasi with Ron and Evelyn with Luc. There are crates stacked high to the rafters throughout with writing in English, Cyrillic and Arabic. There is a small office on the right of the stairs and stairs leading downward to the ground floor. Evelyn heads to the office and begins searching for the shipping manifests in the mass of paperwork. Ron cracks open a crate with Cyrillic writing on it and finds Russian IRP-P food rations and thick woollen blankets. There is a manifest within the case that shows the eventual destination as Dragovir, a small village in the Carpathian mountains of Romania. In the office Evelyn turns up manifests referring to Debrecen in Hungary. Ron checks the manifests against one another any sees that they share a shipping company, Cistvaen Merchant Marine NV based in Antwerp, Belgium (Bureaucracy).

Gyasi is checking the Arabic crates and these are filled with books, folders, yellowed papers, and clay tablets, some crumbled or broken into pieces within the plastic-wrapping. Most of the documentation is in English and due to the age probably dates to around the British mandate in Iraq (History). There are handwritten margin notes that commonly feature the word 'Intrusive'. The clay tablets make mention of the city of Irem and the Rub' Al Khali or Empty Quarter. These documents and tablets were probably looted from the National Museum of Iraq in Baghdad. Luc sees that the military coffin is not located anywhere upstairs (Notice).

Inside the other crates are weapons, body armour, night-vision equipment, grenades and ammunition of various makes and models. Mostly US in origin the team take the opportunity to pick a few choice pieces of equipment for themselves whilst verifying that the gear is that sought by Carroll. The manifests in these crates shows the origin as Eglin AFB with the destination being Baghdad International Airport and the Coalition Security Transition forces. As the team photographs the gear an unknown female voice comes over the team comm line telling them that two guards are approaching from the North East corner of the warehouse.

Evelyn and Luc both react with surprise. Luc grabs up a suppressed FNX-45 pistol and he and Evelyn make their way silently to the south of the warehouse, behind the crates lined up near the wall. Ron and Gyasi drop into cover, Gyasi failing to notice that Ron is in no way surprised about the unknown voice that apparently just broke their encrypted comms. The approaching guards chat in Russian, one is grumbling to the other about missing out on how “The Doctor” is going to deal with Deniz (apparently one of the Turkish sailors from the Yelkenci). The two guards share a laugh together. Gyasi, listening in to their conversation, discerns a mixture of awe and fear in the men's voices when discussing “The Doctor”.

Ibis (for it is she) warns that there are two further guards approaching the stairs from the north east corner of the warehouse. Luc and Evelyn move to deal with these two whilst Gyasi and Ron prepare to take the first two down. Gyasi presses himself against the dark crates and watches them slowly walk past him without noticing him. He aims for the guard's mastoid process, just behind the jaw with the intent of instantly KO'ing the guard (Hand to Hand) while Ron takes first guard with slightly less technique but no less aggression. Gyasi's target falls to the ground, his body stiff whilst Ron's opponent is staggered by the heavy blow.

Luc tosses a coin on top of the crates distracting the two rear guards before taking shots at both of them (Shooting). The lead guard goes down with two in the chest and one in the head but the trailing guard is only wounded. Evelyn leans around the corner of the crate and draws a bead on his head. Just before she squeezes the trigger she adjusts her point of aim and puts a round through the guards leg (Shooting), shattering his tibia and causing him to screech out in pain.

Kelila, parked outside in one of the Touaregs warns the team that they have company. Three carloads of company as it happens. Ron plants a low kick on his opponent's left ankle, shifting him off balance, followed by a heavy right elbow to the kidney. The guard is stunned. Ron finishes him off by tackling him to the ground and punching him solidly across the jaw, bouncing the back of the guard's head off the floor and putting him under (earning a Hand to Hand refresh). Gyasi is meanwhile checking for a radio or comm device on his downed opponent. Luc motions Evelyn forwards to deal with the injured guard and runs towards stairs in the knowledge that the two guards from the loading bay downstairs will have heard the scream. Evelyn hesitates for a second but runs forward and drops knees-first onto injured guard's solar plexus, taking the last of the fight out of him (Hand to Hand).

Watching from outside, Kelila realises something has gone wrong inside and makes her way to the loading bay. Fred remains in the second Touareg with the engine running. She spots the two guards downstairs heading towards stairs. They hold AKS74Us in low ready and are moving cautiously to the base of the staircase. Gyasi pockets a radio found on the guard and sprints quickly to the railing by the stairs. Ibis brings her quad-rotor drone up towards roof and forwards the video feed to Angela's phone to give her live video of road to south and the approaching vehicles.

Gyasi, in a moment straight out of a WWE cage match, launches himself over the railing (Athletics) and onto one of the guards, elbow dropping him from the upper level (Hand to Hand). The guard is rendered unconsciousness (and about two inches shorter) by the impact. Luc puts a single round into the eye of the last guard downstairs.

Fred counts around 16 armed men outside, moving to form a perimeter around the building. They are unaware of the shooting so far as it has been suppressed. Evelyn searches the upper floor for a way out without starting a fire-fight they can't hope to win. She hears a hum of electric rotors and notices through the skylight that a small drone is hovering just outside, it's camera sweeping the area. Realising that they are surrounded she heads downstairs and upon noticing that the coffin is not down here either, she realises that there must be access to the catacombs below (Architecture). She starts hunting for access.

Gyasi has the guard's earpiece in and is listening in to their chatter. They are there to provide additional external security for the building but once the perimeter is set up it is highly likely they will notice the missing guards inside. Evelyn finally locates the entrance to the catacombs in the north east corner of the ground floor. It is wide enough for the agents to gain access. Angela and Kelila join Ron, Gyasi, Luc and Evelyn in heading into the subterranean maze in a bid to avoid going up against the security force that just rolled up. Fred remains in the Touareg, aware that he is now the sole person outside

There are work lights strung up every few metres in the tunnel below. Evelyn takes point as they head down the tunnel (Infiltration) followed by Gyasi and Luc, then Kelila, Angela and, finally, Ron acts as Tail-end Charlie. Ibis lets the team know that the guards upstairs are still making their cordon and have not yet entered the warehouse. The tunnels are dark but sound travels well in the cold, still air and Evelyn can make out a Turkish-accented voice speaking in Russian emanating from deeper beneath the earth.

As the team advances further into the depths, they hear a second voice speaking to the first. This second voice is not quite audible and sounds like a hoarse, scratchy whisper. Evelyn sneaks closer to get a visual. Up ahead is a wooden balcony above a large open area hewn from the surrounding limestone. The voices are coming from the far end of the space. Peeking out over the balcony she sees an oblong stone plinth in the middle of the space with the coffin dead centre. The Turkish man is begging forgiveness from a tall man in a dark suit stood next to this plinth. Evelyn recognises this figure as one of the three men seen meeting Brigovich in Odessa on Ibis' video feed. The Turkish sailor (most likely Deniz) is having a spirited discussion with the man who must be the “The Doctor” the guards upstairs were talking about. Ron silently urges the team step back away from the balcony.

Other figures move about the room shifting crates and cases from one place to another. There are Lisky Bratva soldiers and a couple of the Turks from the Yelkenci. They all share an overwhelming interest in the events taking place in the centre of the room and with their attention drawn to this the rest of the team moves closer to Evelyn. Deniz is telling The Doctor that problems with the Baghdad route will resolved as soon as possible. He will sort it out personally and that it will just take some time. His voice swings emotionally from anger to resignation by way of pleading.

The Doctor pushes past Denis and opens the casket. Evelyn can make out uniformed dead body which Gyasi identifies as wearing Crye Multicam, popular with US Army Special Forces units and his tabs indicate a master sergeant in the 5^th SFG (Military Science). Gyasi photographs the scene as best he can as “The Doctor” leans inside coffin and, taking something from his pocket, does something to the corpse. He turns sharply to Deniz and asks in his low rasping voice what he was saying again? Luc sees that the Doctor is holding a syringe. Deniz follows “The Doctor”, trying to talk to him as he walks away. On being rebuffed he reaches out to grab his shoulder to turn him round and make him listen.

One by one the team feel as if their heart skips a beat, as if the world has just stopped momentarily. They are brought back to reality as a uniformed arm bursts out of coffin and grabs Deniz by the throat; lifting and squeezing simultaneously. Luc immediately glances to his watch, Evelyn does so moments after.

Both have stopped.

Cellular phones and watch alarms reset, beeping loudly. Gyasi realises that they have just given the game away and starts ushering people back up the tunnel towards Ron who is already making fast to get the hell out of Dodge. Evelyn sees a bloodstained figure climbing out of the coffin. In less than a second, the figure appears on the balcony by the team. Evelyn, Gyasi and Luc are closest. Ron, Angela and Kelila are further back up the tunnel. Gyasi can tell just by looking that this thing is very capable (Eye Of The Tiger), well out of Luc or Evelyn's league.

Luc empties the magazine from his .45 ACP FNX-45 into the creatures chest (MOS - Shooting). Evelyn follows suit, emptying the 9x19mm Beretta M9 she grabbed earlier (Shooting). It takes every single round they can throw at it and continues to stand in front of them. Ron, disbelieving the magical woo rubbish that Luc had been spouting didn't mention any of this to Gyasi. His first experience of the supernatural is watching a creature appear within arm's reach of his face and then shrug off two dozen handgun rounds at point blank range. Not surprisingly he reacts with some shock (Stability loss). Evelyn and Luc, both having some small experience thus far adjust slightly faster though the shock of the creature's survival challenges closely held beliefs (Stability loss).

Gyasi feints a left jab to the creatures orbital socket, then throws a low sweeping kick that mid-way turns into a hard back kick with the aim of sending it back over the balcony (Hand To Hand). It stumbles back with the attack and appears to be held up by the railing around the balcony. Kelila takes the opportunity to send several two-round bursts from the .45 ACP Heckler & Koch UMP into it's chest, completing the effect (Shooting).

Ron sprints up with a pair of M67 fragmentation grenades; one in each hand. He has already pulled the pins and as he closes he lets the spoons fly off and sends them in a curving arc over the edge of the balcony (Athletics). Luc and Evelyn see the two grenades fly past them topple over the edge. The explosions, and the screams they cause echo from the walls in the close confines of the underground storage area. Luc begins to lean over the edge to check if the creature is dead but Ron yells at him to follow and he shakes his head clear and runs down the tunnel.

Ibis has gained access to a real time satellite feed from an NRO ZIRCONIC satellite overhead with Deep Ground Penetrating Radar. She sends an image through to Angela with the route out of the catacombs tagged. At this depth they still just about have signal but any deeper and they will be cut off. Angela indicates the southern tunnel being the fastest route out not involving slogging through 20 armed Russians and Evelyn motions Luc forwards and takes his AN/PVS-14D Night Vision Monocle. She drops the empty magazine from her M9, slaps in a fresh one and takes point again. Luc reloads his FNX-45 and grimly shoulders a .45 H&K UMP before following after her.

Ron picked up an M7 bandolier from one of the crates upstairs and rigs up an M1 Pull/Release firing device as a field-expedient tripwire at the entrance to the tunnel to catch any pursuers (Explosive Devices and Conceal). Evelyn leads team into south-west tunnel; Ibis saw the layout of the tunnels with the DGPR has given them turn-by-turn directions. The tunnel slopes downwards, but Ibis has assured the team that this leads to an exit. She has in the meantime updated Fred on their expected exit point so that he can make his way there and meet them with at least one vehicle.

Odessa Catacombs

Wed, 31 JUL 2013

22:15

A colossal explosion, a blast of overpressure through the tunnels and more screams indicate that Ron's trap worked. The tunnel ahead is also getting narrower and less well-maintained and more worryingly, the lighting is becoming much less frequent. There is graffiti from a century and a half of history on the walls and carved into the wooden beams supporting the crumbling, time-worn limestone. The team headed south-west as they hear distant shouts and running feet, Russian voices saying "Get him out of here, he's going to die".

Ron sets up some C4 (Preparation and Explosive Devices) in a narrow section in an effort to bring the tunnel roof down to block further pursuit. Once the team is at a safe distance he squeezes the clacker and sets off the charge. The roof collapses with a massive bang, the blast wave passes through the tunnel choking the agents briefly with dust from the ruined limestone tunnel. The tunnels branch multiple time but with Angela guiding the team using Ibis' map. Evelyn is still on point, moving quickly and quietly with her pistol ready for action. Ron can hear frantic noise from behind as the Bratva soldiers try to clear the collapsed tunnels.

Further down the tunnel is flooded. This didn't show on the GPRS. It's not too deep, maybe thigh-height, but it is freezing cold and slows the team's movement. Gyasi hangs back as Ron comes by acting as rear-guard. Ron laughs morbidly at their situation “Remember Beirut?” (Shrink). Gyasi smirks back at Ron, shaking his head at the circumstances (Stability recovered). Happy that Gyasi has bucked up and shifted into autopilot, letting the warrior inside him take the wheel, Ron moves past Gyasi, sweeping the Surefire flashlight mounted on his M-1014 down a nearby side-passage.

Gyasi sees dust settling in the water in a thin film. He follows the dust back up to the ceiling and sees the creature from earlier. He shouts a warning to the others as the creature crawls along the ceiling, defying gravity and all logical sense. It is clothed in smouldering rags, clearly the result of being hit by the grenade blasts. Gyasi is stuck in place, shocked to his core at this thing which hisses at him as it's talons pull it fast along the pitted limestone ceiling. Nothing he has seen so far in all his tours has prepared him for this (more Stability loss).

Everyone spins round to see the threat. Luc is badly shaken (Stability loss). He's seen about thirty rounds hit this creature. He knows two frag grenades landed within feet of it and it is still coming. This thing isn't like Vladek, at least he had the good grace to die when shot. Evelyn steels herself, slipping the M9 into a drop-rig holster and shouldering her own M-1014 shotgun. Angela leans against the wall, reeling in feat (Stability loss).

Luc's emotions shut down completely, his fear having reached a peak. He feels the buttpad of the SMG in his shoulder, sees the weapon track in on the target in slow motion like a witness rather than an instigator. The red dot of the reflex sight centres on the creature's head, his thumb has already moved the selector switch to “LOUD” without him thinking about it and feels his finger tug the trigger back. Luc leans into the recoil and the suppressed H&K UMP chatters at the creature, a line of bullets stitching across it's face and body. Casings bounce off the walls and spill into the water around him as he puts all twenty five rounds into the creature (Shooting refresh). It falls from the ceiling into the water, the splash churning the surface of the water.

Ron is busy trying to usher people further down the tunnel or get out of water. Gyasi sees ripples under the water heading straight towards him, gaining in speed. He pulls his survival knife and makes ready to try blade where bullets and bombs have failed. It launches from the water at him, long, taloned fingers outstretched and reaching for Gyasi's throat. Moving fast than he has ever moved before Gyasi buries the survival knife in the side of the creature's skull (Weapons). Luc leaps forward at the same time (Athletics), drawing his own blade and plunging it into the neck on the other side (Weapons).

Ron and Evelyn raise their shotguns and put a round apiece into it's head. It slumps down, now only being held up by the knives penetrating it's hide. Evelyn turns to one side and is quietly sick into the water.

Angela suggests that they take the body for study. Gyasi pulls out a bodybag from his medikit. The team hears voices in Russian closing in the distance. They reload, check themselves over and make their way towards the exit indicated on Ibis' map.

***SPOILERS END***

The link to the Night's Black Agents map is here and has been updated with more events, pictures, people and fun stuff.

Cheers,

Paul

After Action Report - (S)Entries - Part Five

Hello again and welcome to the fifth (and final) part of the NBA Intro game (S)Entries. This last weekend, SUN 17 NOV 13 we had Joseph, Omar and Leslie.

More Serbian gangsters were beaten and abducted and the team found out a little bit more about the threat they faced. I have diverged significantly from the adventure in the Core Rules at this point and so the Spoiler Warning is not in place for this session but it will be reintroduced next session when the agents begin The Zalozhniy Quartet.

Sarajevo

Sun, 28 JUL 2013

18:50 (GMT+1)

Gyasi tells the team that the bar that Knezevic is heading to is called “они и ми” (“Them and Us” in Serbian) and is located near the Sacred Heart Cathedral on Marsala Tita. Gyasi knows it from his own investigations here in Sarajevo and tells the team that it is a known hangout for the Serbian Zemun Clan here in Bosnia.

Gyasi describes the bar layout. The customer entrance is at the front and at the rear are double doors allowing deliveries, a rear entrance along with access to a cellar for barrels and other storage. There are two floors, upstairs is accessed by a beautiful wrought iron spiral staircase and consists of the landlord's quarters, but there are a couple of spare rooms upstairs used by visitors. The bar is a long L-shape downstairs made of dark oak and there are a number of circular tables taking up the main floor. Behind the bar and it's mix of spirits is a large mirror, dusty and smeared with the accumulated dregs of alcoholic beverages. The unisex toilet is to the rear next to the bar. Opposite the bar the walls of the bar are plastered with pictures of rough looking men in Serbian military uniforms, ill fitting suits or sportswear. It's a cosy little place with little space for manoeuvre.

The team split up, Ron is to wait over the road at a bar opposite nursing a pint and listening in, ready to provide backup or vehicle support if necessary. Angela and Evelyn will go in using the “lost tourist” method and distract the patrons with a tale about a broken down car. Gyasi will sneak in unobserved whilst this takes place. Luc will cover the rear, prepared to follow Kovacs should he decide to sneak out the back.

The tall wooden double gates are closed and a large blue panel truck is parked close to the alley wall. Green plastic bottle bins flank the rear exit. Luc adds to his dishevelled disguise by pouring some of the remains of the alcohol on his clothing then leans against one of the bottle bins.

Angela and Evelyn dress as tourists. Letting the air out of one of the tyres of the rental car gives them reason to stop off and seek assistance. They enter and note that Knezevic is not downstairs in the bar so they start straight for the bar. They see around 15 people sat around drinking rakia, playing cards and smoking cigarettes. Behind the bar an older man and a younger woman tend to the customers.

Evelyn asks the barman if they have a phone to call for a mechanic to help them out while Angela pretends to be looking up something on her phone (but is in fact sweeping the camera around the bar taking HD video of the patrons). The man behind the bar follows the gist of Google Translate but indicates that there is no phone behind the bar – he does however put a local business phone directory in front of Evelyn before turning back to making the glasses dirtier by rubbing them with a filthy washcloth tucked into his belt.

Whilst Angela and Evelyn are acting as distractions, Gyasi slips in, disguised to prevent Knezevic recognising him, and orders a slivovitz before seating himself as unobtrusively as possible near the front entrance. He pops open a notebook and makes as if to get some work done. Out back Luc, after verifying he is alone, moves towards the back door and notes that it is locked.

Evelyn asks for a Perrier from the bartender and as she takes delivery Knezevic comes downstairs. He has changed his clothes and bound the fingers that Ron broke during the interrogation. He heads to the back of the bar and sits at a table headed by a man that must be Kovacs. Two other men, Mirko Ivanović and Vladislav Petrovic are sat with Kovacs. Evelyn asks bartender where the toilet is located and he indicates the back of bar just next to Kovacs' table.

Angela waits outside the bathroom for Evelyn to finish, surreptitiously recording Kovacs' conversation with Knezevic and pipe it through to Gyasi, Luc and Ron who all speak Serbian (Preparedness). Ron relays the translation back to Angela and Evelyn. Knezevic is saying that he's in danger and needs to be sent somewhere safe to recuperate; Kovacs listens and nodding. Whilst this is happening a muscular looking seems to have taken an interest is Gyasi. He is puffing himself up and eyeballing him closely. Gyasi shuts and puts away his notebook and makes his way to the bar to order another slivovitz.

Out back, Luc attempts to pick the lock (Infiltration). In a moment of random chance he knocks over a bottle on the step which smashes, drawing attention from inside the bar. Kovacs, Knezevic and the other two men on the rear table look over at the back door. Luc drops the picks into his pocket and slumps up against the nearest bottle bin, hoping that if anyone does come out they will only identify a drunken man taking advantage of poorly guarded dregs. Petrovic indicates to the barkeep to toss the keys for the back door over so he can check outside.

Angela fakes an interest in the tattoo on Kovacs' arm and takes a picture of it, standing far enough back to get his face in the picture. Ivanović pulls his jacket aside showing the butt of a pistol tucked into his belt. He shakes his head angrily, indicating to Angela that she needs to back away from his boss. Evelyn tugs her away saying that perhaps they should wait outside for the mechanic and they both head to the front door. Ron is already reacting, heading to the car and starting it, hoping that he won't hear the emergency code they had previously established.

The man who was staring at Gyasi approaches him from behind and grabs him by the left bicep to turn him around. As Gyasi meets his eyes the man curls his lip in a sneer and in a thick Belgrade accent says

“У затвору, ја бих јеби се као кучка.”

Gyasi turns and smiles, fluttering his eyelashes at the Serbian and demurely offers to take him up on that offer (Flirting). The man is somewhat nonplussed at the reaction and stands there looking confused and unsure if his intimidation attempt was perhaps poorly worded.

With the back door now open, Petrovic steps out downstairs and sees Luc propped up against the bottle bin. He eyes him with a mix of opportunity and disgust. Knezevic and Kovacs stand and make their way to the back door and a few other bar patrons take an interest and start shuffling past the tables to make their way outside. Petrovic approaches as if to give the drunk a solid kick so Luc quickly gets to his feet and motions his assailant follow him around the back of the delivery truck where he has another bottle he is willing to share with his new friend. Petrovic tries to grab Luc but against some theatrical stumbling he is unable to get a grip.

As Luc reaches the rear of the lorry and turns in, Petrovic reaches under his shirt and pulls a sharp blade from it's kydex sheath. Luc feels the reassuring weight of the 21” extendible ASP baton tugging at the back of his belt (Preparedness) but for now he swiftly removes his coat and bundles it around his arm, giving him some defensive protection in the event of a knife fight. As the other men start filtering out through the back door Gyasi tugs himself free from his new beau and heads to the rear. Evelyn leaves and starts drifting around to the locked gate that leads from the street to the area at the rear of the bar. Angela joins Ron in the Jeep and they get ready to make a fast entrance or exit if necessary.

Gyasi's new BFF grabs him by the shoulder so as to continue their discussion but a swift backwards elbow strike into his diaphragm leaves him gasping for air (Hand to Hand). Gyasi sets him down on the nearest barstool and pats him gently on the head. He feints towards the bathroom before heading out the rear door and the gathering throng.

Petrovic approaches Luc, passing his knife from hand to hand with practised nonchalance. Luc throws him for a loop by hurling a bottle into his nose (Athletics) mid pass. The impact of the bottle shocks Petrovic, whose knife clatters to the ground next to the wall. He staggers back, bleeding from a broken nose, and his friends from the bar see him reeling. Embarrassed at being outclassed by a wino, Petrovic throws caution to the wind and charges Luc, hoping to grab him with both hands and pin him against the wall.

Luc attempts a sidestep and trip (Hand to Hand) but moves too slowly and get slammed against the wall. He reaches down and grabs Little Petrovic and the Twins, squeezing and twisting as hard as he can. Petrovic collapses to the ground shrieking in agony. Luc pulls the ASP and takes up a position just around the side of the lorry as Knezevic, Kovacs, Ivanović and two more patrons approach his position.

Evelyn begins to pick the lock to the rear access gate silently (Infiltration) whilst Gyasi moves quickly to disable the two rearmost Serbians. A lunging teep kick to the first man's head turns into a spin kick to the second and both men are down and out in mere moments. Gyasi moves up behind Kovacs who, distracted by Luc's battle in front of him has not noticed the two men rendered unconscious by the hulking Gyasi behind him. Luc extends the baton with a sharp whipping motion and attacks the two men as they reach the corner (Weapons). The first man goes down with a broken collarbone but the second strike misses.

Kovacs reaches for a handgun tucked under his shirt and Gyasi runs into action, grabbing him around the wrist with both hands and wrestling for control (Hand to Hand). Gyasi uses a fast hip toss and follows it up with a driving knee to the stomach (more Hand to Hand) simultaneously hyper-extending Kovacs' wrist and using a ridge hand strike to the rear slide of the pistol to knock it from his grasp. Kovacs, overwhelmed by Gyasi's assault and suffering from a concussion after being bounced off the side of the lorry drops to the ground and Gyasi scoops up the pistol, power-stroking the slide back into battery.

Luc viciously smashes the tip of the ASP into the temple of his opponent's head and sends him to sleep (Weapons) and then indicates that his next opponent look behind him. Gyasi is pointing Kovacs' relinquished Glock at Knezevic. Knezevic spots the three unconscious men behind Gyasi and decides that this is not a battle he is likely to win. He raises his hands and slowly drops to his knees. Luc's opponent also decides discretion is the better part of valour and assumes the same position.

Ron reverses the Jeep quickly into the access alley and pops the trunk as Gyasi hoists Kovacs over his shoulder in a fireman's carry and moves past Luc through the now unlocked access gate. Luc follows and they load their second captive Serbian in two days into the rear of the car. Luc jumps in the back and Evelyn and Gyasi make their way swiftly round the corner and jump in Gyasi's car, following after Ron who immediately starts running counter-surveillance patterns before heading back out to the abandoned farmhouse where Knezevic was questioned.

Outside Sarajevo

Sun, 28 JUL 2013

19:31  (GMT+1)

Arriving at the farmhouse, Angela and Evelyn stay out of Kovacs line of sight. Gyasi and Evelyn decide to head to Brigovich's house here in Sarajevo whilst Ron and Luc bundle Kovacs down into the cellar for a nice chat. Angela gets to poke around on his phone whilst the scene is prepared. Kovacs has been in touch with a number of landlines in Belgrade and with both Knezevic and Brigovich but not Dedopovic. Looking Kovacs up on Interpol records show he has a criminal record and has served time in several prisons over the years. She informs Luc and Ron so they have a little information about his background before they begin the questions.

Kovacs smirks at Ron and Luc after they tie him to a chair in the centre of the cellar. He has the scars from around thirty stab wounds on his stomach and doesn't look as if he will break as easy as Knezevic. Ron opens up with some basic questioning and is greeted with a guttural laugh and a threat that Kovacs will see him, his family, his pets and everyone he knows dead and everything he knows and loves burned to ashes. Ron indicates some of the implements nearby and Kovacs laughs once more.

“Био сам тукао бољи људи него што сте раније мог пријатеља. Постоје и горе ствари од смрти.”

(“I was beaten by better people than you before my friend. There are worse things than death.”)

Luc, unable to help himself, glances up at Kovacs, remembering Vladek. Kovacs sees this and in turn tries to gauge what Luc knows. He nods his head towards Luc and says

“знаш зашто сам уплашена.”

(“You know why I'm scared.”)

Luc's eyes bore into Kovacs.

“Знам шта се плашите. Плашиш се оно што видите у њиховим очима? Иза њихове очи?”

(“I know what you fear. Are you afraid of what you see in their eyes? Behind their eyes?”)

Kovacs goes pale and clams up immediately, refusing to answer further questions. Ron suggests that if he is unwilling to help they will drag him along and use Kovacs to slow these things down if they need to make a swift getaway.

Luc speaks up again.

“Ви не плаши смрти... Плашите ли се да ћете постати као они?”

(“You do not fear death... Are you afraid that you will become like them?”)

Kovacs looks panicked. Ron turns to Luc and says “We'd best keep hold of him for now. We can use him for any experiments we need to run whilst we're looking into this”. Luc nods his agreement and addresses Kovacs again.

“Можете да купите себи мало времена, ако почнете да говорите”

(“You can buy yourself some time if you start talking”)

Luc suggests that a future as an information source would probably be infinitely preferable to that of a test subject (Interrogation) and Kovacs kicks off, struggling against his bonds. He has given up rational thought, trying so hard to escape his restraints that he dislocates his own shoulder in an effort to free himself. Luc kicks the chair over to prevent him from doing further damage to himself and he and Ron attempt to hold Kovacs down. He is fighting with all his strength, self-preservation overtaking damage control as his primary concern and the struggle could end with him being gravely injured if it continues.

Ron hits Kovacs with his taser who convulses but instantly becomes a lot easier to handle. Passing the taser to Luc he runs upstairs and asks Angela for something to sedate Kovacs. Angela raids the medikit and hands Ron a syringe of muscle relaxant. Ron gets back downstairs and injects Kovacs with a half-dose. He is no longer struggling but his words are slurred. Luc and Ron right his chair and they sit down opposite him to record the rest of the interrogation.

Ron reiterates to Kovacs that he can stay alive by sharing information with them. Kovacs laughs morbidly and again lets the two men know he is not scared of what they can do to him. Luc presses him again and Kovacs tells them of a grainy video that Brigovich once showed to some of his subordinates. The video looked to have been shot in a disused warehouse and featured a figure in a black hooded sweatshirt and trousers doing things that couldn't be done.

The figure moved with uncanny speed and strength and at one point appeared to be crawling along a wall. Luc asks outright if the figure Kovacs saw looked like it was human. Kovacs looks up under hooded eyes.

“Једном. Можда.”

(“Once. Maybe.”)

He continues with his story. Brigovich showed them the video before they went to Odessa to help out with an arms shipment telling his men that if anyone tried to mess with the Russians on the deal they would have to answer to it. Brigovich implied that his connections to the Russians were such that he could call on their asset if needed. Kovacs never saw this thing anywhere other than the video. Luc asks if Kovacs ever met Vladek but gets a negative so he pushes for more about Brigovich.

Kovacs volunteers some information the team already knew, about his houses in Odessa and Sarajevo, his relationship with Zoric, position within the Zemun Clan, finances and influence. Due to his connections in the Balkans, the Russians often come to him direct when trying to get things done in the local area. In his dealings with the Russians in Odessa he appeared to be working for them. Kovacs talks about some of the Russians he worked with: Vasily, Uri and Rolan. Vasily was a veritable man mountain who always seemed to have a cigar in his mouth. Uri liked to wear expensive tactical glasses and aviator gloves and Rolan, a young, fit Ukrainian always seemed wired and full of nervous energy.

Sarajevo

Sun, 28 JUL 2013

20:04  (GMT+1)

Evelyn and Gyasi reach Brigovich's house in Sarajevo. It looks nice from outside and from what they can discern it is empty at this time. Evelyn breaks in (Open Sesame) and she and Gyasi take a look around. They take in an expensive minimalist interior and a well stocked wine cellar and in the garage find a black Hummer H2 and a rare and expensive Porsche 911 Sports Classic. Evelyn finds the car keys and a wall safe which she decides to open (Infiltration). Inside is a Glock 19 with two magazines, €90,000 in cash and two passports.

Both passports feature the same face; one Ukrainian and one Bosnian under the names Danilo Zelenko and Danilo Adamić respectively. Evelyn takes everything, ejecting a single round from one of the magazines and leaving it standing on end in the safe before closing and relocking it. Gyasi and Evelyn spend a few minutes setting up covert audio and video surveillance devices to cover the entrance, safe and other locations before they make their way back to the farmhouse. On the way back Evelyn sends MMS images of Brigovich's backup passports to Ron, Angela and Luc.

Sarajevo

Sun, 28 JUL 2013

21:14  (GMT+1)

Ron receives a phone call from Ibis and steps out to answer it. She lets him know that the cameras she hacked have picked up movement at Brigovich's place in Odessa. A black Mercedes Benz E-Class has pulled up and three men clamber out. A squat powerful looking older man in a well tailored suit, a tall gaunt man and a figure dressed top to toe in black including a black hooded top.

She sends through a picture of the three men to Ron and on receiving the passport photos of Danilo she updates the facial recognition software she is running. She next identifies the E-Class as a rental from Hertz at Odessa airport. She tries to break into the server (Digital Intrusion) but comes up short. Changing tack she gives Ron an address for a safe house in Odessa and he lets her know about the results of the interrogation of Kovacs.

Sarajevo

Sun, 28 JUL 2013

22:17  (GMT+1)

Arriving back at the farmhouse the team update Gyasi and Evelyn and decide what to do about Kovacs. Ron is all for taking him out back with a shovel but calmer heads prevail. Gyasi has a good friend as a contact in the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA), Captain Marko Lukic. They decide that they will be able to hand Kovacs over to him and arrange for him to get lost in the prisoner transfer system, at least until they are safe out of the country.

Gyasi takes the blood and tissue samples from the Vladek's not-overwhelmingly-well-preserved sniper rifle but is unable to detect drugs or anything else anomalous. Ron is unhappy at this as it defies rational explanation. Luc receives an SMS from one of his contacts and after a brief phone call gets the details of a man named Donald Carroll in Sevastopol who might be able to help with the investigation in Odessa.

Angela gets an email indicating that a news article has popped with one of her pre-defined search terms: Lennart. The article is about the death of Brigadier General Malcolm Lennart in a fatal car accident in Canada. The team gather together upstairs in the farmhouse before they drag Kovacs to the handover with Lukic. Evelyn splits the money found in Brigovich's safe between the team and they then share (most of) what they know with each other. The consensus is to head to Sevastopol and from there into Odessa.

The updated NBA Locations Map is HERE.

Thanks for joining us again - please feel free to drop me some feedback via G+ or the open RPG.net thread.

Cheers,

Paul

Maps & Legends

Hi there,

just a quick update before I write and post the After-Action Report for (S)Entries - Part Five. With a giant hat-tip to Omar I have discovered the joys of Google's Maps Engine and have therefore been bashing away at creating a map tracking the locations mentioned in The Lennart Dossier (using the Ludlum-style naming convention of course), clues, individuals, events, the agent's trail and so on. I will be updating this regularly alongside the AAR and will post the updated link to this at the end of each AAR as a result.

There will be images of the people, places and aftermath of the agents as they set Europe ablaze and I hope this is an interesting addition to the blog.

Link Follows - Night's Black Agents Map

Cheers,

Paul

After Action Report - (S)Entries - Part Four

Hi again,

this last weekend, SUN 10 NOV 13 we had Joseph, Leslie and Omar and we finished up the (slightly modified) introductory adventure from Night's Black Agents - "(S)entries". Despite the minor changes from the rulebook I will still refer to people, events and places from the original story and so, for the final time...

***HERE THERE BE SPOILERS***

Srebrenica

SUN, 28 JUL 2013

02:27 (GMT+1)

We join the team outside Ljobovija Hospital north of Srebrenica with the noise of sirens closing in. Angeline, Evelyn and Luc clamber in the Jeep and leave the parking area, heading towards where Ron has been setting up a safe house. On the way the three discuss what they just saw and what evidence they could gather from the hospital when things calm down a little.

Srebrenica

SUN, 28 JUL 2013

03:03 (GMT+1)

Back at the safehouse Angeline begins to start working on the clues they have gathered so far – starting with the money trail. She must track the funds back to their origin, requiring three Digital Intrusion rolls. Evelyn boosts Angeline's pool using her knowledge of private banking (Accounting) via Tactical Fact-Finding. Angeline makes the rolls successfully and tracks the funds from a Koernersbank branch on Vienna through a shell corporation in London and back to a dummy corporation based on the Isle of Mann.

Evelyn spends her last Accounting point to track the funds to a bank account in the name Verica Sanja Zoric. Angeline uses Research to search for public records on Zoric. She is linked to a few small businesses but has no educational records showing a background in business or anything similar. It is possible that the businesses are used for money laundering. Evelyn uses her Digital Intrusion and discovers that Zoric is an adult film actress named Samantha B.

Ron gets in touch with a hacker he knows back in London who goes by the name Ibis. Ron gives her remote access to the Lennart Dossier and asks for help in finding out more about Zoric and the money. Ibis uses Digital Intrusion and finds two residential addresses under Zoric's name. One is in Sarajevo and the other is in Odessa. The properties have approximate values of €250-300k and were bought with cash. Ibis establishes that Zoric's income is around €60-70k p/a and therefore it's highly unlikely that her finances are sufficient to purchase these.

Ibis looks into CCTV camera networks in Odessa and Sarajevo, and sets up facial recognition software for Zoric. Ibis reports this back to Ron, advising she will further look into the smuggling angle and try to identify who the mystery “Vincent” is on the shipping orders from the Lennart Dossier. Ron pushes this as the main focus of her investigation with the rest being supernatural mumbo jumbo.

Ron also takes the opportunity to ask a favour of another old contact, Gyasi. Ron still has a low level of confidence in the team's capabilities and wants the backup of someone he can trust. The two had worked together as part of a hostage rescue during in Afghanistan back in 2007 and Ron knew that he could rely on him. Already in Bosnia, Gyasi lets Ron know he can meet them tomorrow at Dveri, a small restaurant on Prote Bakovic in Sarajevo.

Srebrenica

SUN, 28 JUL 2013

03:26 (GMT+1)

Ron is outside, finishing up the call whilst the Angeline, Evelyn and Ron look further into the Lennart Dossier. As he finishes up speaking with Gyasi he spies a black Lincoln Navigator moving slowly down the street as if searching for something.

Or someone.

It's after 3am and this feels very wrong (Sense Trouble). Ron makes a move towards the Jeep, calling Luc on speed-dial and warning him as he reaches the driver's side. The disassembled Zastava M70 is still in the roof lining so Ron decides he will head around the block and quickly assemble it, meeting the others on the other side of the block. Luc remains on the phone and tells Angeline and Evelyn to pack up quickly and make their way out of the back and over the fence. Ron hits the lights and pulls out from between the parked cars outside of the safehouse and hears the Navigator surge forwards, engine growling.

Ron shouts “Contact!” as the the Navigator accelerates but then it crash-brakes outside the safehouse and the doors open allowing four men armed with custom AK Carbines to decamp. One pair covers the other, as they approach the front of the property. Luc is busy pushing Angela and Evelyn out the rear whilst simultaneously screwing the suppressor onto the extended barrel of his 9mm. As they make their way over to the rear fencing they hear the armed men kicking in doors and shouting “Jasno!” (“Clear” in Serbian) as they sweep through the house.

Whilst Ron speeds around the corner to the opposite block, the other three move into the house that connects to the rear. Angela and Evelyn run through the alleyway whilst Luc takes up a position on the corner of the south-east side. Luc hears a pair of men moving towards the fence and a harshly whispered “Ići” (“Go” in Serbian). A man scrabbles over the fence and drops to the other side and he turns to assist his friend as he now clambers over. Luc hears the Navigator accelerate away southwards, it sounds as though the vehicle is following Ron's route.

Ron pulls up in the Jeep as Angeline and Evelyn reach the pavement. He exits immediately, drawing his suppressed pistol and moving up around the north-east side of the house to flank whilst indicating to the ladies to get in the car and get moving. As all this is happening Luc draws a bead on the first man who had crossed the fence. He is currently holding both carbines and trying to assist his partner. The two subsonic hollowpoints that Luc double taps into the back of his head (Shooting spend) hinder this attempt and he collapses on top of the carbines.

Angeline climbs into the driver's seat and Evelyn into the back. Evelyn yanks the ceiling liner away and starts hurriedly re-assembling and loading the M-70. Angeline sees the lights of the Navigator approaching the road in the rear view mirror to the south. She pulls away quickly and they head north, back around the block again (known henceforth as “The Scooby Doo Manouevre”).

Luc approaches the remaining gunman pointing his handgun directly at the goon's chest.

“Ako se krećete ću te ubit” (“Move and I will kill you”) growls Luc.

The gunman remains in place and slowly raises his arms in surrender. Ron peeks over the fence and, seeing nothing climbs over. Luc indicates that the prisoner should make his way back the way he came. The disarmed gunman Scooby-Doos back over the fence and is met by a gruff looking Ron. Luc swipes both carbines from under the corpse. He effortlessly scales the fence and hands over a carbine to Ron. Ron makes his way back past the safehouse via the southern alley, checking for Angeline and Evelyn approaching in the Jeep.

On seeing the familiar headlights of the Jeep, Ron applies a rear naked choke (Hand to Hand spend) and quickly puts the gunman out. He and Luc drag the unconcious guard to the trunk of the Jeep and push him in before Luc climbs in the back. Ron motions Angeline out of the driving seat and guns the engine as the Navigator skids around the corner and approaches fast from the North. Luc and Evelyn raise their rifles as the bad guys begin firing out of the window.

Evelyn opens fire at the radiator and engine, near deafening the Jeep's occupants as she empties an entire magazine into the Navigator. Luc fires a short aimed burst at the windscreen (Shooting spend), hitting the driver and killing him instantly. The driver slumps into the steering wheel, his foot jamming the accelerator and the vehicle ploughs into a parked car before flipping over and landing on the roof.

The gunman carries ID naming him as Boža Knezevic. He carries a cell phone, two spare magazines for the AK carbine in a belt pouch and a small Spyderco locking knife. As the team get some distance from the crash they brainstorm about how they could have been found. The only time a third party has had access to their gear is at the point of supply: Nikolic. Whilst Angeline starts doing a tear down of the surveillance gear, Luc zip-ties and gags Knezevic.

Srebrenica

SUN, 28 JUL 2013

04:51 (GMT+1)

Angeline finally finds a GPS transceiver in the gear and the team decide to attach it to a long distance truck heading elsewhere. They stop off at a small hotel on the way to the border to get some rest at last. Angeline uses Diagnose and Pharmacy to sedate Knezevic safely. The team rest as best as they can and make the drive to Sarajevo in the morning, arriving around 11am.

Sarajevo

SUN, 28 JUL 2013

11:07 (GMT+1)

Ron sets up a new safehouse at an abandoned farmhouse several miles outside of Sarajevo. It has a cellar for the interrogation and plenty of open ground surrounding it to make defence a little easier. Ron zip-ties Knezevic to the pipes in the cellar before preparing the ground upstairs. The team heads off into town to meet up with Gyasi.

Sarajevo

SUN, 28 JUL 2013

12:22 (GMT+1)

On first impressions he is a big guy, built like a rugby player, clean-shaven and dressed similarly to the locals around him. Ron gives him the breakdown of last night's shootout, the basics of the job and otherwise brings him up to speed, including their prisoner. Gyasi offers Ron a ride and the team return to the farmhouse in convoy, Ron having used the time to discuss the arms smuggling and his reservations about the others in the team.

Sarajevo

SUN, 28 JUL 2013

13:12 (GMT+1)

Back at the farmhouse Knezevic is awake and belligerent. Ron and Gyasi want to take the lead with the interrogation and Luc also declares his interest and wish to be present. Before they head down to the cellar the team make sure they have as much information as possible. Evelyn and Angeline examine Knezevic's cellphone for information: “Verica” is one name in the listings and a recently called number has the name “Danilo” next to it.

Ron calls Ibis again, asking if she can find out who Danilo might be, or anything about Zoric with the additional information about their phone numbers. Ibis starts searching around the data stack she had gathered about Zoric earlier (Research spend) and discovers that Danilo is Danilo Brigovich, a mid-level Nasa Stvar gangster. Brigovich is listed as a producer in some of Zoric's adult films and according to some of the emails Ibis uncovers, also has a romantic relationship with her. Brigovich is currently staying at the Odessa home address listed under Zoric's name. With some more digging Ibis turns up some information about Knezevic – he has a record for attempted murder, assault, extortion and is a known Nasa Stvar associate.

Ibis shares her information with Ron who heads down to the cellar with Gyasi. Luc asks if Ron has developed any more info but is brushed off by Ron. Gyasi and Luc hang back whilst Ron approaches Knezevic, zip-tied to the pipes. As Ron gets close, Knezevic spits into his face and threatens him.

“Jebeni kurvin sin! pusti me, ili ću iseći ti glavu!”

Ron chuckles menacingly as he wipes the spittle from his face. He explains the situation to Knezevic carefully, that they are in the middle of nowhere and that nobody will be coming to rescue him. Knezevic asks for a lawyer and Luc, Ron and Gyasi share a look of bemusement before breaking out in laughter. For the first time, Knezevic looks a little less sure of himself.

Gyasi walks around behind Knezevic, out of sight but close enough that his presence is obvious. Knezevic begins talking, explaining that he is one of the Zemun Clan of the Nasa Stvar out of Belgrade. Danilo contacted them and told them how to track the team. Danilo asked that they kill everyone, take whatever equipment they could find and return to him with it.

They have worked with Brigovich for nearly a decade, he is their boss, a mid-tier boss in the Zemun Clan and pays them for various jobs; driving, intimidation, “disappearing” people. He has worked across Europe, the Balkans, Russia and France smuggling women and children into the sex trade. He worked distributing cocaine through Spain and in Norway (they have ties to the Norwegian chapter of the Hell's Angels). He knows Vladek from many years ago, they worked together previously. Gyasi watches his body language closely, trying to get a read on Knezevic (BS Detector). It appears that he is telling the truth but may be holding something back.

Ron switches to “enhanced interrogation” (Intimidation and Interrogation spends) and Knezevic starts babbling – he says he doesn't know why Rudek was killed as he had always been a stand up guy and dealt with them honestly. He then starts talking about weapon shipments moving through Odessa that he ran security on. The weapons came from all over the globe and were sold on to other parties.

The Zemun Clan helped to sell them but didn't provide the weapons in the first instance. These weapons came from various sources and they merely acted as middle-men and security.

Knezevic talks about the Russians they had worked with, many of whom had prison tattoos. Danilo was the money man for the last arms deal and is also close to Dedopovic. It was he who called in someone from out of town to extract Dedopovic, someone who couldn't be tracked, couldn't be traced and couldn't be stopped.

Sarajevo

SUN, 28 JUL 2013

15:19 (GMT+1)

After several hours of conversation the team have extracted all the information they are likely to get. They decide to release him into the wild and see who picks him up. Angeline plants a tracking device in the heel of his shoe and an audio bug on his collar as well as a hacked app that will allow full remote access to his smartphone. Gyasi mixes up sodium thiopental and some mild hallucinogenics (Pharmacy) and mixes this with the food and water they leave Knezevic. Once he starts reacting to the drugs, the team weave a fantastic escape story in his ears as they drive him to the outskirts of Sarajevo.

Sarajevo

SUN, 28 JUL 2013

17:37 (GMT+1)

They let him out of the Jeep and then set up a floating box surveillance grid around him (Ron in the Jeep and the others disguised and on foot). After coming around from the drugs, Knezevic slowly wanders, trying to piece together the events he is recalling and wondering at his amazing escape. He reaches for his phone and dials a number listed as Janko Kovač. He relates the tale of his escape and asks to meet up. Kovač says “Be at the bar in an hour” and Knezevic hustles. Gyasi knows which bar it is (Streetwise) and the team decide to make their way directly to see what happens when they start tugging on the thread.

***END SPOILERS***

Angeline, Evelyn, Luc and Ron are awarded 8 points. Gyasi and Ibis 4 points.

Thanks for joining us once more.

Cheers,

Paul