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Catalonia/Lita
"Close enough," said Karla. She'd finished sorting the paper piles into two heaps, one substantially larger than the other. It was the smaller one that she took. "The short of it is this: we suspect there is a djinni living here on the estate. Think...spirit, or genius loci. Potentially very powerful."
"You forgot the best way to describe them," said William. He was completely, grimfacedly serious. "Gods. Small gods, devils maybe. But definitely magical and definitely powerful—Horcrux-level powerful, easily."
Charlie Stross's cheerful, optimistic predictions for 2017, part one of three.
I really need a job...
Lita frowned. From what she knew, djinns were closer to angels or demons than gods, but she didn't know what to believe anymore. She'd have to read about them.
"Okay, so say there's a djinn living in the estate, what are we supposed to do about it?"
edited 25th Mar '13 4:45:32 PM by Faramir
Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, you can't sell him fish anymore. http://thoughtfulspurts.wordpress.com/
Show an affirming flame
Catalonia/Commandos
The colonel blinked. "He mentioned nothing, just what I told you. We'll get him for additional tests as soon as we can. Detailed psychological and medical screening. For now..." Diaz took a deep breath. "I'll tell the soldiers, all our intelligence to be treated as suspect. I don't like this. I'm going to call in the armor too." He glanced out the window; it was nearly sunrise. Diaz rubbed his eyes tiredly.
"And no still sign of the second building cluster, either." He gestured to the buildings that the aerial photograph had indicated was in the old marble quarry. "Might you have anything to help us there?"
Charlie Stross's cheerful, optimistic predictions for 2017, part one of three.
The Man in Black
"If they're using normal muggle-repelling spells the men posted in the area will acclimate and find it eventually." Clark said. "If they're using a Fidelius, the odds of finding the place are...slim. Recon flights would probably be your best bet to direct ground troops there."
"Your mission is not to nuke the squid god." —Faramir
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Otis ANGB
"We'll keep them distracted," said Price. Another spray of red tracers slashed across the blowing snow; another burst of rifle fire aimed into the murk. "Peace, Fields, we have you on IR. Adjust left a little...there you go. Watch it. Signatures on your left, a few hundred meters off."
"Hurry. We've got a few casualties, and the medic wants them in shelter as soon as possible," added Wilkins. The Air Force radio channel was busy as the chain of command tried to unknot itself; someone had evidently recovered a Humvee, but snow flurries were making it difficult to drive. No word on where on the field it was, and reports of gunfire had spread throughout the airfield.
Charlie Stross's cheerful, optimistic predictions for 2017, part one of three.
Otis ANGB
"Understood" Warren said as he motioned for Fields and the remainging Guardsmen to rally on his position. "We're gonna end this shit now, buddy team bound, and let some rounds on bad guys; watch your lanes, center mass shots. Fields, you're with me."
Waiting until everyone present gave him a nod of understanding, he took a brief second, before sprinting from cover while the Guardsmen provided cover fire. They repeated the motions over and over, one group moving forward to cover, while the other provided fire. Soon enough, all were on-line, and able to discern their enemy. Taking aim at the first shape he saw through his optics, Warren held slightly above the heart and fired twice.
edited 27th Mar '13 5:49:58 AM by Kino
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Catalonia/Lita
"We grab it," said William. "Like we've been doing for the last sixty years." The old man's stare was focused intently on his granddaughter. "Q network is what you could call...mm, Dumbledore's other Army. Back in the postwar days the old bastard figured out a few tricks about compartmentalization. Figured that he couldn't just rely on a single network where everyone knew each other." He glanced over at Karla with challenge in his eyes.
"It's history, I suppose," said Karla. She was now reading through the papers in her hands, but her posture was alert and intent.
"Damn right it's history. If the Order of the Phoenix was supposed to be a more-or-less public resistance network—oh, the Maquis, or the Home Army, he put it to me once—Q was the, the secret army. George Smiley with wands." William's stare had some of its intensity as he looked back across history. "The old man knew from right after Grindelwald's defeat that the poison he taught would still be there, as it was. And—somewhere in his wanderings—he came across the idea of the more-than-magical, the supernatural. The mystic. The damned, deadly powerful, the kind of magic that gives you the Deathly Hallows, the stuff not worked by human hands."
"The Arabs called them the djinn, so that is more or less what we went with," muttered Karla. She glanced back up, the light reflecting from the lenses of her glasses. "And if someone gets the bright idea to harness their power, or even fail to, it could result in the unleashing of...unimaginable power. Earthquakes, plagues, mass insanity."
"More or less," said William. "It's the kind of power even Voldemort dismissed as too unlikely. Or too much trouble." The name of the Dark Lord rolled off old William Garza's tongue without a hitch, and indeed there was a slight, satisfied smile as he said it. "The way he was working with his horcruxes, he probably would have drawn their attention, mind you. And now it looks like there could be someone trying to get their attention again, down at the old castle."
Catalonia/Commandos
"Noted," said Diaz. He turned to the command post, and there followed an exchange in rapid-fire Spanish about the possibility of getting a helicopter feed.
"Until then...hmmm." Diaz looked out of the windows, where the first bands of light silhouetted the mountains to the east. "Most of my men will be engaged taking that castle and providing local security. Do you think you may be able to call up help? Counteract the magic somehow, find whatever's hidden?"
Charlie Stross's cheerful, optimistic predictions for 2017, part one of three.
The Man in Black
Clark looked to Browning. "I think it might be good to check the area out ourselves first. You want to come?" He asked. he'd need a team-mate to ensure that he didn't get lost solo.
"Your mission is not to nuke the squid god." —Faramir
I really need a job...
"Okay, how do we 'grab' a Djinn?" Lita asked, going back to drawing Merlini on the last few pages of the dictionary. Then she got out her notebook, and added a few more simple commands.
edited 28th Mar '13 3:34:40 PM by Faramir
Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, you can't sell him fish anymore. http://thoughtfulspurts.wordpress.com/
THE SLORG!
"Just hope we can tell friendlies and tangos apart aside from point-blank" Alex said with a nod to Warren after being told to accompany him. Then he moved with Warren, accompanying the back and forth of either giving covering fire or sprinting forward while the guardsmen did.
Once they were all at the line, Alex gave a quick glance around at the guardsmen that came with them. "We all shoot together" Alex told them, then took aim with his P90 at the closest target, dead center of the chest. Once Warren fired, Alex fired three rounds.
You are reading this.
Actually, it's Euphinatrix.
Hefting her shotgun, Olivia nodded. "I'll watch your back, don't worry." After medical school, she was supposed to think only positive thoughts towards the health of her fellow man. Now, she just hoped there would be several stragglers for her to empty a shotgun into. It was a boring life as a medic, and it wouldn't feel right if she went hope without shooting or stitching someone.
Not for the first time, she wondered if she was in the right line of work.
edited 29th Mar '13 9:49:26 PM by RenaTheArchmage
I am become Death, Destroyer of Miniputts.
The Man in Black
Clark nodded, pleased. "Grab a GPS tracker, just in case it works. We'll want every advantage we can get."
edited 29th Mar '13 10:00:48 PM by Wysp
"Your mission is not to nuke the squid god." —Faramir
Actually, it's Euphinatrix.
"Will do," she confirmed, happy to finally be getting away from the Spaniards. Though she'd never say it, she didn't trust Europeans, especially ones that spoke in rapid Romantic languages. Some childhood memories just never went away.
"Those things do work around magic, right?" she asked, thinking back to what she'd heard about wizards and technology.
I am become Death, Destroyer of Miniputts.
The Man in Black
"Depends. It only cuts out if there's a strong magic source or if there's a dedicated anti-magic field, though weaker magic can make it do weird things." Clark said as he kitted up. He made sure to stick some chalk in his pocket.
"Your mission is not to nuke the squid god." —Faramir
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Catalonia/Lita
"Aye, well, there's the rub," said William. "There's usually a specific object or...or some kind of spell, I suppose, that's linked to the djinni. Finding that is going to be the hard part. You can't just tap the creature on the shoulder and tell it to do something."
Karla finished reading the papers, setting them down on the table. "Not generally," she agreed. "Typically the ritual required to summon one is dark, twisted, and arcane magic, the kind that is normally locked away in a library." She glanced at the Garzas meaningfully, waiting for one of them to complete the thought.
Charlie Stross's cheerful, optimistic predictions for 2017, part one of three.
I really need a job...
"So are we going to go to that library then?" Lita asked. "I'm all for sitting around and reading old musty likely cursed books in older Spanish."
Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, you can't sell him fish anymore. http://thoughtfulspurts.wordpress.com/
Did you know this section has a character limit?
Otis ANGB
Ruadhrí was under siege by Murphy's Law. First, it was well below zero and snowing heavily. He'd barely seen snow, let alone a blizzard. Secondly, he had been caught napping, something which could be attributed to jetlag and the aftereffects of multiple Red Bulls.
Thirdly, and the biggest problem, was that he had naively stripped the Minimi down when packaging it for transport. And there being definitely no time to to attempt putting it back together, all he had on him was his sidearm.
After the long and arduous journey that was the maneuvering towards Warren's line, Ruadhrí picked a target, aimed for center mass and emptied five round from his P226 into it.
edited 2nd Apr '13 5:06:39 PM by GeekCodeRed
They do have medals for almost, and they're called silver!
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Otis ANGB
The shapes did twitch and fall, although the battle line's firing continued, some of it aimed vaguely out into the murk of half-imagined silhouettes. The bound-and-fire maneuver carried out in those visibility conditions, and with the ad-hoc leadership, had badly disrupted their cohesion. But one of the corporals bellowed for cease fire, and eventually the chattering of rifles and machine guns died away. The covering-fire group had halted their fire much before.
One of the National Guard sergeants ordered them to pack up and advance to meet up with Warren's group, leaving behind a few to drag the wounded into cover. One of them tossed a rifle for Ruadhri to use; the airport tug's engine coughed into life and trundled along behind them, still bearing the recoilless rifle, and the soldier with the Javelin CLU, a generally-ragged heap of stragglers.
There was a brief white glow in the darkness, prompting a round of hisses to "put that out!" But a moment later the private gleefully reported that he was getting good reception on his smartphone, despite the blowing white curtain around them, GPS as well.
"We'll need that," was Price's verdict. "Keep your eyes up, and don't get lost. AFSEC, get in contact with your chain of command."
"Just a second, sir," said the corporal. He fiddled with his radio. The channel was taken up by the colonel's sulfurous upbraiding of a hapless Humvee security team, which had apparently gotten bogged down after breaking through ice and ending up axle-deep in semifrozen slush; worse, they had gotten apparently gotten lost, because while their navigational equipment said they were on the runway, they were surrounded by stumpy trees and low brush.
"Oh, no," muttered Captain Wilkins.
Charlie Stross's cheerful, optimistic predictions for 2017, part one of three.
Did you know this section has a character limit?
Otis ANGB
Ruadhrí gladly took the rifle, an M 16 A 4 with an attached M150 RCO. Whiskeys... didn't usually use firearms, in his experience. And the fire they had been taking was definitely from firearms.
He quickly made a decision. "Cover me, I'm gonna check those bodies for identification."
He darted forward and kneeled down next to the nearest body, and started rifling through it's apparel for identification. A wallet, a phone, dog tags, whatever they could find. He prayed this wasn't blue on blue.
But the search was hardly necessary, as the body was in a US Uniform. His fear was realised. Murphy's Law had struck once more, with unfortunately fatal consequences. Quickly, he shouted to the group behind him, "Blue on Blue!".
edited 3rd Apr '13 9:42:08 AM by GeekCodeRed
They do have medals for almost, and they're called silver!
Actually, it's Euphinatrix.
"What kind of weird things?" she asked, checking over her gear and making sure her shotgun and ammunition were as they should be. Nothing was more important to a medic than her weapon, Browning's opinion.
"Make it explode? Give wrong coordinates? Play the Happy Days theme?" she joked weakly, trying to keep conversation going in order to stave off boredom.
I am become Death, Destroyer of Miniputts.
The Man in Black
"Most likely short out or give wrong coordinates." Clark said. "You ready to go?"
"Your mission is not to nuke the squid god." —Faramir
THE SLORG!
Alex's grip on his gun tightened and his teeth grit in anger after hearing Raudri's words. Some part of him realized how much tactical sense that made. Why bother using guns yourself if you don't know how to very well, or hiring people to do it for you, when you can just use Goddamn magic to brainwash your enemies into shooting at each other? It accomplishes the same goal and you don't have to worry about casualties since ultimately your enemy will be shooting at their own guys.
But son of a bitch, that didn't mean it was right, so mostly he was just angry. I find out who's responsible for this, I'm gonna murder that fucker Alex thought to himself, grabbing his radio as there was more immediate concerns. Such as the Humvee team lost in a 'swamp'. "Humvee team, stay on guard; I believe that is the runway. Repeat, you are still on the runway, it's just been altered by magic, over" Alex yelled into the radio, then looked around. "Man, air force is just gonna love that part of their airstrip is now a freaking swamp" he muttered to himself sarcastically, wondering what they should do next.
"That team might need help. Maybe we should regroup on them?" Alex suggested uncertainly to Wilkins.
You are reading this.
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Catalonia/Commandos
In the end Diaz would allow them a light advance; there would be further troops on standby down the road, and a tiny UAV as well, but it turned out to be impossible to patch the footage over to their smartphones. Otherwise, Olivia and Clark would be on their own.
The quarry site itself proved surprisingly elusive; air photos had indicated where it would be, but the footpath wound away from it, and it took repeated GPS references to position themselves. It could not hide forever, and by mid-morning the quarry—minus any sign of buildings or people—was in sight, sloping down from a treacherous hillside where waist-height shrub obstructed movement.
Catalonia/Lita
"Not quite," said Karla. "I'm more interested in finding the resources needed to summon up anything unearthly and making sure our adversaries don't have control of it. Somewhat more exciting."
"Not Spanish Ministry, then," said William. "I thought the spells seemed rather slapdash."
"Happenstance, coincidence, and enemy action," said Karla. "You know the saying. All packed, Miss Garza? Good. Lead off..."
As William was the one who actually did the scouting, it was he who Apparated onto a hill, with both Karla and Lita alongside. The annex was supposed to be just over the crest.
Charlie Stross's cheerful, optimistic predictions for 2017, part one of three.
I really need a job...
Lita began walking. Her notebook with Merlini in it on one pocker, a pencil on the other, her wand ready to be drawn, her magic gloves stuffed in her pockets. She was happy that the magical coat her grandpa gave her had so many pockets.
Her backpack was on her back, and her glasses where inside of it. She didn't really need them—she'd done okay without glasses since Romania, but it was good to have them there, specially if she was gonna do a lot of reading.
The two small pieces—one behind the ear another on her throat, were well-placed, and she was supposedly prepared. But nothing could really prepare you when the Djinn could be involved, so that sense of dread she felt as she walked made sense. The wary tension of her not wanting to get shot was also there.
She just hoped she wouldn't leave the area as a ghost.
Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, you can't sell him fish anymore. http://thoughtfulspurts.wordpress.com/
Chessie kept her hands shoved deep into the warm woolen pockets of her overcoat. Considering the situation... and how little she really understood about what was going on, she looked up at Charmdrummer with an expression no more pleased then his, "Need to know if inside. If inside, need get out. Anyone pass as service employee?"
Let God do His work, we will see to ours. Bring in the candles.