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103 - A Curse and a Caterwaul

 
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Shad

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PostPosted: Sun Mar 21, 2010 1:37 am    Post subject: 103 - A Curse and a Caterwaul Reply with quote Add User to Ignore List

Hamilton, Ohio

[p:127qc1ae]"What do you want kid?" asked a soldier slouched against the side of a building at the end of a long narrow alley.[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]He was standing between Justin and the entrance to the district marketplace. "My mom sent me down here for some vegetables."[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"Pretty irresponsible of her, isn't it?" the guard said without getting up.[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"The grocery stores are all empty. She said, she said they wouldn't waste their time with the markets. She said there would be food here." Justin stretched his neck to peak around the corner without passing the guard. The plaza beyond looked empty.[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"Kid, there isn't going to be food in this town for a while. You go back home and tell your mom she better start rationing."[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"But why?" Justin looked up at the guard. "Why aren't we allowed to buy food?"[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"Your new leader Tzimisces, he's got plenty of food. Just cross the river." A slight smirk broke across the soldier's face. "One Nation is allowing all east-bound traffic to pass across the river."[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]Justin nodded with determination and turned around to sprint back home. The soldier yawned and slouched a bit more against the wall.[/p:127qc1ae]
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[p:127qc1ae]"Mom!" Justin bolted up the stairs to his house and threw himself through the door. Linda looked up and sighed; no groceries. "Mom, mom, I talked to a soldier and he told me we can have all the food we want, the army is allowing us to cross the river!"[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]She brightened up immediately. "You mean Tzimisces is no longer turning people back?"[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"Um.... No, he said "One Nation" is letting people cross." His mother paused, expressionless for a moment, then turned and slammed her fist into the refrigerator.[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"Damn it all!"[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]Justin was terrified. Was it something he said? "...Mom?" he asked. She was staring at the floor, breathing hard.[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"We.... You stay right here Justin, do you hear me? Don't leave this house," his mom ordered. "I'm going down there. I'm going to do something about this."[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"What are you going to do mom?" he asked sheepishly.[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"I don't know! ...I don't know. I'm going to do something. You just stay put, alright sweety?" Linda kneeled down and gave her son a big hug. "You don't leave this house. No matter what happens, you don't leave."[/p:127qc1ae]
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[p:127qc1ae]Justin kept his distance as he trailed his mother down to the docks. He didn't want her to see him, but he had to know what was going on. When the riverfront came into view, people were gathered all over the place. Many of them were shouting, and a lot of them had guns. There were soldiers around dressed in the same uniform as that man guarding the marketplace, but they were between the crowd and the river. They were back on top of the bank, gathered around a bunch of hastily constructed ramparts. They seemed to be leaving the mob alone, and vice versa. A bunch of passenger boats were tied up before them, and the crowd was piling in. He saw his mom talking to a neighbor, Mr. Dawson, and then she started walking towards the boats too. He handed her something... was that a gun?[/p:127qc1ae]
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[p:127qc1ae]A number of helicopters appeared over the river as the boats set across, each with some news logo on the side. This was obviously a no-fly zone, but apparently Ohio had guaranteed safe passage. As the boats reached the other side, the mob on board, angry and tense, ready for conflict, were to their great confusion met by a small civilian welcoming party. Sudden changes of heart are always cause for suspicion, but with the city locked down for a week now no one was about to pass up the bread and bottled water they were handing out. A man with a loudspeaker called out to the crowd. "Please forgive us for the delay. It was necessary. You are all safe now. You can return for your families very soon. Please, bear with us, and remain calm."[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]The next few hours were a bit bewildering. The mere shock of being admitted turned this barely organized rabble into an obedient herd. They were fed and ushered into a series of tents, which they were assured were only for the night. Orderly lines formed within each, where some clerks took down each evacuated person's name while others humored complaints and registered people wishing to return and get their families. An honest effort was made to render the process as comfortable as possible, and some assistants were helping men and women locate their spouses (very few children had crossed over) who may have been escorted to a different tent.[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]The chatter wasn't always optimistic though. Everyone had noticed the news helicopters overhead. This was the first time they'd been permitted to enter the area since One Nation's occupation of the western bank. Suspicion was amplified by the fact that the tents were heavily guarded. The Ohio guards had requested firearms be turned over to aid the defense, but very few were offered and none were taken by force. Some of the evacuated demanded Karn reassure them in person. After being shut off for so long, a personal apology was the least he could do. But the voices declaring a trap only served the amplify the wails of the majority, Linda included, who feared they might not be able to recover the children they'd left behind. The complaint line far outlasted the name-taking.[/p:127qc1ae]
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[p:127qc1ae]It was about one in the morning when guards entered Linda's tent. Before she knew it her gun had been snatched away from her side. The sweep was so quiet it was eerie. No shouts, no blinding lights, just soft feet and flashlights sweeping from one person to the next, snatching up firearms. Once some people started to shout, then the blinding lights came on. "We know that some of you are still armed," a voice blared. "The majority of you are not. Do not risk the lives of your friends and families."[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]Another voice followed immediately after. "We have just uncovered a contingent of One Nation spies among you plotting to assassinate General Tzimisces. We apologize to the innocent majority of you, but as a matter of national security we must temporarily return you to the other side of the river. Passage will be open again as soon as this situation is resolved."[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"Bullshit!" one older man yelled. "This was just a show for the press!"[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]Linda wasn't sure what happened after that. Shooting broke out, and a lot of it, but not in their tent. Everyone froze, guards and citizens alike. Was this a One Nation attack? Or had another tent gone trigger happy? The guards looked really, really tense. After that a stray bullet flew through the side of the tent, clipping someone in the leg, and everything went to hell.[/p:127qc1ae]
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[p:127qc1ae]"Talk about a nightmare. They're tearing each other to pieces," a One Nation soldier nestled into his bunker on the western bank said to the man next to him. The bright lights of gun fire on the eastern bank seemed to be aimed everywhere except across the river.[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"Mismanagement, that's what it turns into," his friend replied. "They try to make themselves look innocent on camera by letting these people cross. Good idea. But you know what I think happened? I bet they tried to ship them back over at night. They thought it would make things nasty for us, but look where it got them."[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"I don't know, a bunch of old geezers with guns could have started shooting for any stupid reason. What they should have done was just disarm them all by force in the daylight, with more guards present."[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"But you've gotta figure Jack," the soldier leaned back in his trench and stretched out as he mused, "supposing they intended to send these poor bastards back all along, it's not like the whole Ohio guard knew it. It's not like Tzimisces is going to tell his men hey, help me abuse our own countrymen for the sake of a better image in the media. I'm sure whoever all received them on the other side thought the transaction was legit."[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"I still think they could have disarmed them sooner without causing a big stink. I mean, these aren't trained soldiers we're facing off against. They don't know psychological tactics. They don't know the rules of engagement. You just tell them this is how it's done; they aren't trained enough to smell a rat."[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"That's exactly why I think they were dumb enough to send these people back over to us. It might not have been Tzimisces's decision at all. Any undisciplined dumbass thinking he knows better might have called the shot."[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]A series of explosions much louder and deeper than gun fire sent the relaxing guard onto his stomach in a hurry, and his friend followed fast. "Jesus christ, you don't think someone over there's dumb enough to think WE are the ones shooting at them?"[/p:127qc1ae]
[p:127qc1ae]"You're the one who said they aren't properly trained..." The shrill whirl of an artillery barrage passing overhead was all the confirmation they needed. Ohio had struck first. Croft's standing orders on the matter were clear. Return fire.[/p:127qc1ae]
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