DAY 5 – APRIL 22nd 2000
PRASZKA, POLAND – MORNING
LED and ALEX are escorted to the church they scouted the previous afternoon, with one belltower on either side of the front facade. Their guide informs them that the council gathers in another building which used to be a synagogue and they’re still in session, so they’ll have to wait here in the church, which doubles as command post for the town’s militia.
The outside of the building is still in decent shape: paint is chipped here and there and there’s multiple cracks covering the façade. The main door and the frame around are riddled with bullet marks and the door itself has been partially repaired and reinforced with wooden planks. The lot is surrounded by a metal fence but its main gate has been uprooted and now lies on the ground. In its place there’s a sandbag emplacement manned by two guards.
Entering the church is like stepping in a time machine. Much of its inside is painted in bright colors, there’s painted ceilings and walls, icons in dark wooden frames still hanging on the columns and a couple candles lit on the main altar on the opposite side from the entrance. Despite a layer of dust and grime covering everything, the many boxes staked along the side walls and the faded paint, the place evokes a state of peace. Even the people present keep their voices down and everyone has their head uncovered.
[image from the Parish of Praszka’s website www.parafiapraszka.pl]
Most of the church benches have been moved to the side, but there’s still a few rows in place right in front of the main altar. ALEX crosses himself and takes a bow towards the altar, his right hand still on his heart. LED notices the guide doing the same thing in the corner of his eye, he stands interdicted for a moment, then crosses himself as well. ALEX asks something to their guide in Polish and the man replies with a few words.
“This church is dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary” says ALEX.
“Very specific” comments LED, having found nothing better to say.
“Very important” replies ALEX.
LED observes some broken chandeliers that have detached from their hanging wires and are now piled in a corner right next to wooden panels that can be placed over the arched windows. ALEX briefly talks to their guide, then nudges LED and points to the pews.
“He says we can sit while we wait”
LED nods and they take place on a pew in the second row. In front of them is the altar, clean and covered in a white thin cloth decorate with laces. Two small candles are lit on it, propped up by brass stands.
“Can I ask… are you Catholic?” asks ALEX.
LED ponders for a few seconds “well, technically, yes”
“You crossed yourself at the entrance”
“I know, I saw you doing it and that triggered some memories I guess”
ALEX doesn’t reply, his head still tilted toward his comrade.
“My parents are Catholic, so I was baptized and I went to church on Sundays, and I went to Sunday school, but I stopped when I grew up” adds LED.
“I don’t want you to feel less special, but you just described a lot of people”
“Right you are. My heart was never into it, so I didn’t make a big deal out if it”
“Well, you’re baptized, and I guess you haven’t been excommunicated, so you’re still in the family”
“Hence the ‘technically Catholic’ from before” says LED making air quotes “haven’t been to a family reunion in quite some time”
“Welcome back then” says ALEX with a smile.
LED chuckles a bit “thank you”
ALEX takes a good look at the altar before saying “you mind if I pray? In private”
“Sure” says LED motioning to get up.
“No, stay, please. I just meant I won’t be talking for a while”
LED nods and then takes a deep breath, taking in the smell of dust, wood and incense. He observes the altar, the shrine behind it, the ceiling decorated in a geometric pattern and then his mind goes blank as he focuses on the little dancing flame on top of one of the candles. As time passes, he sees his parents’ house, his mother folding laundry and his father studying the paper, he sees his childhood friends challenging him to a race, a pretty girl smiling at him while caressing his face. Minutes go by before his focus returns to the tasks ahead.
WITH the EYES of the REFEREE [click to expand]
ALEX recovers one stress point. LED is sleep deprived and can only recover stress by sleeping or resting for a full shift
The door opens and a man and a woman enter, closely followed by a soldier from the militia. They walk to a side chapel to the right of the main altar, LED and ALEX can clearly see they are looking at them. Quickly after, CJA enters the church, stops briefly to cross himself and then follows the steps of the group. He sees the players and nods toward the side chapel. LED and ALEX get up and follow while their guide stays in the main nave.
The side chapel is accessible through an iron grid door and contains a long table in the middle, some metal shelves on a side and a small altar at the far end surmounted by a statue. There’s an empty weapon rack on the left side, next to a door leading to the main altar, with binoculars of various magnification on top. On the far end of the table is a bulky radio set with a microphone and headphones plugged in; a thick cable departs from the apparatus and exits the chapel through a hole in the decorated glass window. The radio operator is a skinny teenage boy currently rummaging through a plastic container on the floor.
Everyone takes standing position around the table. CJA introduces the tall, freshly shaved man with thick glasses and the short-haired, middle-aged woman with pale skin as two doradcy (counselors) of Praszka: STEPHAN and MARIA.
AI generated portraits – check A note about ART to know more
The conversation is entirely in Polish. The pace of the talk is too quick for ALEX to be able to adequately translate, so LED is only informed of the salient points while relying on what he can gather by observing the body language of each speaker to fill in the blanks. He can see ALEX advocating for the group and at times being rebuked.
After a while the situation is the following:
- The players are allowed 3 nights in town, 3 meals and one shower each. The town will not, and cannot afford to dedicate more resources to foreigners.
- During the three days DONNA has to spend a shift per day working in the hospital, and one of the other players has to spend one shift per day training the town’s militia greenest recruits.
- Doradca (counselor) STEPHAN appears somewhat hostile towards the players, while doradca MARIA’s manners are far more polite.
- The prospects for the future of Praszka as a town able to defend and maintain itself, as bleak as they already were, are far bleaker after the last attack.
- The prisoners will undergo a trial as per the town’s laws, though the authorities are in no hurry to set a date as there are more pressing concerns.
- The soldiers captured at Garage Hotel are likely to be sentenced to forced labors, while the Flock’s leader taken prisoner at the school is likely to be hanged after a thorough interrogation (i.e. torture). No mention is made of the LEADER the players captured at Garage Hotel.
After about fifteen minutes of conversation, STEPHAN moves for the door, stopping as ALEX says something in Polish. He turns to look at him, says a few words and exits the chapel closely follow by the militia soldier.
“That did not look good” comments LED.
“It wasn’t” replies ALEX “his son was part of the team that assaulted the school with us. He died”
“Got it” says LED while looking down at the floor.
MARIA briefly looks at the young radio operator, now busy rummaging in a wooden box filled with cables. She then turns to LED. “Americans?”
“Yes ma’am”
“Fifth division?”
“Yes ma’am”
“Infantry soldiers?”
LED and ALEX look at each other. “At the end of the day we’re all infantrymen” says LED, not willing to reveal his true branch or ALEX’s.
“You escaped Kalisz?”
LED nods and MARIA nods in return, apparently satisfied by those answers.
“Counselor, we have captured a wounded soldier, a Polish captain, last night” says ALEX.
“I know” replies MARIA “but I have been told the prisoner is a captain of the Flock’s army” she adds gesturing towards CJA.
“We told you…” ALEX tells to CJA before being interrupted.
“Yes, you told me your version, and then I told the council the truth” says CJA.
LED steps in “counselor, we captured that man, he and his soldiers joined the Flock because it was the only way they could survive. We… I shot him, and now he will die unless we do something. Our doctor can help him, the same way she’s helping all your wounded man and women, but only with your resources. I promised I would have helped him, and I want to keep my promise”
MARIA forces a smile, while CJA is looking at the floor, slowly shaking his head.
“You could convince me” says MARIA “and with a lot of persuasion another counselor too, but the other three are unmovable. An enemy who attacked the town won’t get the operation he needs using our medical supplies. It’s 3 against 2 at best, and we have already received a contrary opinion” she finishes glancing at CJA.
“What if we trade for the medical supplies?” asks LED.
“You can trade for medical supplies” answers CJA “but you will not have access to the prisoners”
“Is there anything else we can do for you? Anything to change the vote of the council?” asks ALEX.
“I’m sorry” answers MARIA.
“How about a working pickup and some fuel?” asks LED suddenly.
Everybody, including ALEX, turns to him.
“Your defensive perimeter is undermanned and your militia is stressed thin, right?” says LED to CJA “think about it: with a working pickup you could transport troops where they’re needed far more quickly. Plus, you could transport supplies, heavy machinery, your AT platform we saw at the northern checkpoint, you name it”
“And this pickup” says CJA “do you have it in your pockets?”
“We left it about 20 km North of here. We had to abandon it because it broke down”
“So, you want to give us a broken pickup?”
“I’ve been to your arsenal; you have the parts we need to fix it, and the tools”
“Good, bring the pickup here and then we will talk” says CJA calmly.
“It’s 20 km from here, plus time for the repairs” says ALEX “the guy will never make it”
“There’s no time CJA” insists LED “we trade you for the parts, and the tools, we get to the pickup, fix it and bring it here. But the prisoner has to have surgery right now. I’m not asking you to free him, DOC fixes him and you put him on trial and administer the sentence”
“As long as it’s not a death sentence” quickly adds ALEX.
“He has to get the surgery, right now. After everything we’ve done here, you have to trust us” CJA’s face is blank, he turns to MARIA who just raises her eyebrows.
OPPOSITE PERSUASION ROLL [click to expand]
Time for an opposite PERSUASION roll, and here are the modifiers that come into play:
- LED gets a +1 for having helped CJA (and Praszka) before
- LED gets a +1 for his offer of a working vehicle
- LED gets a +1 for his Psy Ops specialty (+1 for Persuasion rolls to change somebody’s mind)
- LED gets a -1 for being wounded
- CJA gets +1 for having the council’s majority already on his side (I’m interpreting the +1 for having more men on his side)
CJA has EMP B and PERSUASION C.
Here are the possible results:
- LED wins the roll: CJA consents to the operation and the players owe the city a working pickup. CJA can tell he used the medical kit for one of his men, bypassing the council.
- A draw: CJA wants the pickup before he authorizes the surgery
- CJA wins the roll: CJA doesn’t change his mind
Opposite PERSUASION roll:
- LED rolls[D12+D12] = 1 SUCCESS (rolled 6 and 5)
- CJA rolls[D10+D10] = 1 SUCCESS (rolled 7 and 5)
LED can sense CJA is on the fence and pushes the roll:
- LED re-rolls[D12] = still 1 SUCCESS (rolled a 2 on the re-rolled second die)
LED tries to plead using the little Polish he has learned while in country, but lack of sleep and a modicum of confusion make him blabber some very unimpressive nonsense. CJA wants the pickup in Praszka before he greenlights the surgery.
CJA sets his conditions and leaves: he wants the pickup in Praszka before greenlighting the surgery.
“Man, I really f**ked up” says LED leaning against the table.
“Sorry” is everything ALEX can say.
MARIA, who’s still standing in the chapel, asks the radio operator to leave and the young guys agrees and exits. She follows him with her eyes until she’s sure he’s out of hearing range.
“If his superior finds out he just left the radio unmanned he will be in a lot of trouble, so let’s make this quick”
LED and ALEX exchange a look without saying anything.
FINAL COMMENTS
The group will enjoy the promised, and very basic, town’s hospitality. Yet their duties towards Praszka seem to be never ending, but medical aid and training are definitely better than another firefight.
The meeting with a portion of the governing council was a bit on the rough side, and it looks like the possibility of helping the captured enemy LEADER is getting more and more distant.
It seems though there could be another item on the agenda…
Referee’s hat on: the players have a few days to recover; their basic needs (food and shelter) won’t be a concern, and that grants them the possibility of focusing on trading, gathering intel and planning.
The city of Praszka will benefit from their presence, and that subtracts one shift from a couple of the players every day. I think of it as an effective way of both keeping them immersed in the town’s atmosphere and forcing them to use their remaining shifts wisely, without the burden of making camp and foraging.
Now my job is to present an interesting enough hook for the next chapter of the campaign.