DAY 13 – APRIL 30th 2000
OUTSKIRTS of DOBRODZIEN, POLAND – EVENING
MARIA adjusts her position on the bed, carefully bending to get leverage without stressing her wounded abdomen. LED, his help having been refused, observes the process from his position by the window, breathing in the dusty air of the room.
“Am I to assume there is still some capability left on your side… a network that spans broader than the distance between the two of us?” he asks.
“It is our side” replies the woman “and there is an ongoing effort to fight the enemy, though objectives and methods have changed”
“We changed objectives?”
“The last 18 months have been focused on gaining material advantages, while tactical advantages and geographical strategy have been moved down the priority list. The latest debakel proved that a shift in paradigm was in order”
“The 5th was annihilated in Kalisz because of an intelligence failure, not the other way around” says LED.
“Yet here you are”
“We got lucky. And I’m sure there’s plenty more who didn’t get so lucky, probably roaming the countryside while doing what they can to survive. I’m assuming you’re not trying to put together a company of stray dogs”
“As I said: different objectives and different methods”
“I guess different methods means less people”
The woman tilts her head to the side “fielding an army has become… unpractical”
“That’s an understatement”
“It is” agrees MARIA.
“And the new objectives?”
“The world is either burning or it has already burned down; there’s no point in sitting on a pile of ashes. But someone will rebuild it, one tiny bit at a time. Actually, someone has already started. This is no longer about stealing supplies and controlling farmable land. This is about shaping the future now”
“So, less manpower and broader objectives. Could be the new motto for the Agency” says LED to himself.
The woman smiles, then they both hear the sound of steps getting closer on the other side of the door. They culminate in a single knock, and a fraction of a second later the door opens.
LTC MOLLY WARREN steps on the wooden floor carrying a folder under her arm, briefly looks around, then closes the door telling the soldier escorting her to wait outside.
She nods towards LED and gets closer to the bed, where she stops to examine MARIA’s status.
“I’ll survive” says MARIA.
“You always do” replies WARREN “this what you wanted?” she asks handing her the brown folder.
MARIA takes it and starts looking through its content.
WARREN reaches LED and offers her hand “glad you made it. I’ve been told you delivered more than we asked you to”
LED shakes her hand “we did what the situation called for, ma’am. How are the people we liberated?”
“I was just in town, trying to negotiate between the people there and the newcomers. Looks like that road is going to be a steep climb”
“They don’t want them in town I get”
“They don’t want them near the town either. They can spend the next few nights at the edge of it, that’s what I managed to broker so far” WARREN turns “I guess you guys are talking shop”
MARIA has produced a map from the folder and placed it on the blanket covering her legs. “Want to bring our guest up to speed?” she asks WARREN nodding towards LED.
“Yeah” nods WARREN “I’d say he’s earned it”
WARREN looks at the other two “I’m not here to play into whatever agenda the two of you have” then to LED “I’ll give you the lay of the land, and that’s it”
“Fair enough ma’am” nods LED.
They gather around the bed, with the map in between them.
“Excluding the Flock business, the situation around us is… stable, and nowadays that goes into the ‘good’ column. Bad news is that stability is when you gather strength for your next move. Equilibrium, that could be a better description: if someone moves, it falls apart”
“You think someone’s preparing for such a move?” asks LED.
WARREN just glances at him, then puts her finger on the area South-East of Czestochowa “our friends to the East have a large force in the area, with the 20th Guards Tank Division controlling a large swath of land under the command of Colonel ALEXANDER KAZANOV. He replaced the old commander about six months ago, and that’s about everything I know about him. The 20th has still some armored, light vehicles, and a few thousand troops. Their HQ is somewhere around Szczekociny, and they have garrisons in Zyrardόw, Włoszczowa and to the South and South-East. Before our last offensive, they patrolled up to the outskirts of Czestochowa”
“Any idea what they’re planning?” asks LED.
“Not a clue. But even moving such an army would be quite a feat, logistics alone would be a nightmare. If they are doing something, they’re doing it with small numbers. Small groups nimble enough to move unnoticed If they want to” she raises her head and looks at LED directly “you know what that means, right?”
“KGB agents, GRU operatives… Spetsnaz” answers LED with a hint of concern.
“Right, and those people don’t joke around. If you encounter them somewhere, it’s because they wanted to be there, and you can bet they have orders telling them why”
“We’ll keep our eyes open”
“Good, just make sure you do it when you’re sleeping too, okay?”
“We’ve got four sets, we should manage” answers LED, who then goes back to the map “what else?”
“Our Soviet friends have a few cousins in Kluczbork, North-West of here. A few dozens, possibly more, from different units, mostly 11th Tank Division. Looks like they are getting along well with folks over there. They wouldn’t be a concern, but recently I had reports of a train running the East-West line that goes through Kluczbork”
“That I can confirm” says LED “we saw a freight train moving East two days ago” he points at a spot on the map “roughly here. It had an armed escort on the top”
WARREN appears concerned “this complicates things… Aside from the two Soviet divisions being able to communicate, there’s the fact that that particular line goes through Krzepice, North-East of here”
“You think that fell to the Soviets?” asks LED.
“No, Krzepice is under a different flag, one that should be opposite to the Soviets, yet they’re letting their trains go through their town”
“Someone’s changing side or an exchange of favors?”
“Doesn’t bode well either way. Krzepice is under control of a Polish Army unit, and at the head of it is JANUSZ WALEŃSKI, a Polish Army Captain. Though today he is known with a different title: the Baron of Krzepice”
LED raises his brows but doesn’t interrupt.
“Couple weeks ago I had a scout go there pretending to be just a US struggler. He was detained for three days. They didn’t torture him or anything; actually, they treated him quite decently. They had a lot of questions for him though”
“Questions about…”
“Pretty much everything: his unit, its quarters, places he had been, people he spoke to, what they talked about. At one point he thought they wanted to write his biography”
LED smiles “seems like standard M.O., anything that stood out?”
“They were interested in something… curious: they asked him multiple times if he had been in or around Częstochowa”
“That city was nuked, right?”
“Correct” nods WARREN.
“Then why would anybody get close to it, let alone enter it?”
“That’s curious indeed. I could offer some speculations…”
MARIA clears her throat loudly.
WARREN glances at her “… but there are people here who would think I’m overstepping some boundaries”
LED registers the information and the non-verbal interaction, but stays on the matter at hand “is imprisonment and questioning the standard treatment for anyone approaching Krzepice?”
“More or less, but this…comfortable detention seems to be reserved for US army personnel. Of course, all Soviets visitors are identified as invaders and treated accordingly, though that could be changing”
“Did your scout bring any more intel, ma’am?” asks LED.
“He says the Baron is respected and competent. His resources are limited but efficiently administered”
“So the Baron is looking for intel, possibly intel he can only get from US personnel” says LED pondering.
“It is likely the Baron is receiving orders from higher up on the chain. See, he didn’t simply step into town one day and declared himself the Baron of Krzepice, he was given that title”
“It takes a King to appoint a Baron” observes LED.
“Yes” nods WARREN “or someone with the ambition of becoming one”
“JULIAN FILIPOWICZ” spells out WARREN “that’s the name that probably carries the highest weight in Silesia” she pauses briefly. “Now, if you had asked me who he was a couple months ago, I would have told you he was the commander of the Polish 11th Armored Cavalry Division, tasked with defending the Katowice area when the war broke out”
LED tilts his head just slightly “and now…”
“Now he is the leader of the self-declared independent Margravate of Silesia, which makes him the Markgraf of Silesia. He has recruited soldiers from other Polish divisions, as well as NATO countries, and controls a total force numbering in the thousands. Also, he employs a militia of sorts, possibly a thousand more men”
“That’s a sizable manpower” comments LED.
“And it comes with a sizable territory” replies WARREN “his HQ is in Racibόrz, a town South, on the Oder. I’ve been told he occupies a castle there”
“Very fitting”
“Indeed” WARREN starts pointing at various location on the map, just under the observant eye of MARIA “his forces have garrisons in Kożle, a bit North of Racibόrz on the Oder, and possibly even further downstream. He has control over other major settlements like Pyskowice near the ruins of Gliwice, and Strzelce Opolskie. The extent of his territory to the South and East is unknown, but I think there’s enough to give you an idea”
“Plus Krzepice, where he appointed the Baron” adds LED.
WARREN nods “he has appointed a Baron in every major town under his control. Apparently, he didn’t like mayors”
“Mayors get elected” points out LED “with a Baron, you get to decide”
“Precisely” agrees WARREN.
LED’s mind is working at a fast pace while his eyes are fixated on the map. “His forces… what are we dealing with exactly?”
WARREN stares at him until he raises his gaze and their eyes meet “luckily, we are not dealing with anything at the moment…”
LED nods.
“…but we’ve seen mostly light weapons, light vehicles, some machinegun nests. I had reports of a couple of T-80s and BMP-Bs from travelers. And horse-mounted troops, quite a few actually”
“Horse-mounted?” asks LED.
“That’s right. Soldiers on horses patrolling the roads and the countryside, armed with light weapons… and lances”
“Due respect ma’am, but you’ve got to be kidding me”
WARREN shakes her head “at first it was voices, then I had multiple confirmations by eye witnesses, and a week ago I got to see with my own eyes a group of raiders, armed with lances and carrying the flag of Silesia”
LED is processing the surprise “well, that’s some old-world s**t right there, ma’am”
“It is” agrees WARREN “and apparently it comes with some old-world ambitions”
“Of course, we just nuked the planet, but there’s always room for people wanting to rule the world”
“I don’t know about the world” says WARREN “but Poland is definitely on his mind”
“A unified Poland” ponders LED “with him at the head of course”
“Being called King sounds a lot cooler than being called Markgraf”
FINAL COMMENTS
Reading back this part made me think whether I would have done it differently have I had players around the table. It’s nice (I think) to have an interaction such as this if you are telling a story: it’s a chat between characters, hopefully written with a pace that makes it enjoyable, presenting information that expand the world around the group of characters.
Yet for players, it may feel too close to an info dump: a lot of intel all bundled together and unloaded on the players at once. Unless they write everything down, there’s no telling what they will remember and what will slip away.
Depending on your players, I would advice to proceed in one of two ways in a situation such as this: either give them the intel in written form – ideally with an official-looking handout – and then go over it, or give them a map with notes and expand on it verbally.
Or combine the two approaches: a map for quick reference, and a written document to expand on them as necessary. You can even make the documents in-game objects; something that can put the players in trouble should they get captured.
I am assuming LED will update his map with (coded) notes, and will present one at the end of the chat.