Mid-West Campaign
Session Seventy-Six

Sunday, 10 June 2001

Meanwhile in Arizona, Benedict is woken from his sleep by the local sheriff. Ben has visitors in the shape of Michael Levin and his redoubtable assistant, Monty. Putting his cards on the table, Levin wants Benedict to inform him on the activities of Artemis Black. He was originally going to ask Jane, but Michael doesn't want to put her in that situation given their relationship. Levin knows that Artemis left the country recently and went to the Bahamas, but he doesn't know why.

Of course, Benedict doesn't know why either, but he plays it cool and tries to get more information. They chat, and Michael Levin says that Artemis becoming a "prominent public figure" and playing a very dangerous game with the various factions on earth. By seeking a formal alliance against the brain bugs, by involving NTOPFOR he is setting himself up as a target. Levin would like Benedict to watch what is going on, and help Levin find Artemis's killer after the inevitable murder. He can offer access to Valerie Hudson in return. Ben says that Artemis will probably tell Levin everything he wants to know himself when they meet in a few days.

Levin speaks to Benedict at length about Jane, and tries to gauge her feelings for him. He is quiet pleased with Ben's answers. Monty is increasingly irritated and impatient with his boss, whom he considers to be slightly hopeless. Levin tells Ben that he has bought the house Jane rents in a spontaneous romantic gesture. He is concerned this might have been overstepping the bounds of common sense. Ben agrees.

Levin and Monty leave and Ben is returned to his cell. Soon he has another visit - this time from agents Eric Vitrano and Nicole Levin. They don't realise that Ben knows who they are, and Benedict pretends not to recognise them. Little does he realise the danger of his situation, or how wise it would have been to brutally fillet them where they stood. However, he plays along which proves to be a fatal mistake.

Vitrano and Lavin are apparently masquerading as agents from internal affairs. They say they are investigating Jane, they are concerned that her team has an unusually high mortality rate. But their real purpose is assassination. When they depart they leave a case under the desk with a bomb inside it. Ben realises too late and covers himself in his protective armour. It is insufficient to save him as the case explodes incinerating the police station and killing Ben.

In the Wichita HQ, Jane picks up a call from Michael Levin informing her of what has happened. Shocked and profoundly saddened, she clings on to a shred of hope - no body has been recovered. She realises that they have to get to Arizona and clean up this mess. Leaving Dominic and Burchill at HQ, Jane takes Stone, Ecks and Campbell-Robson and heads to the airport. En route she collects Todd. She wants him there. She is vaguely considering using the time door to find out what happened.

Todd alerts Artemis to these events, who telephones Jane. Jane reports the whole matter to him. Artemis says that they must contain the situation as best they can. Acting in an almost telepathic manner, Artemis instructs Jane: "no time travel". He reminds her of the wish that Archangel Raphael. Jane says that it had occurred to her, but Artemis can tell she is still in two minds about using it.

Jane and her team arrive in Arizona at 11:30am. The crater where the police station once stood is still smoking. Jane remembers that Benedict should be shot full of nanites and she contacts Schult. Schult confirms that Benedict is dead, and gives the exact location of the body. It will be impossible to remove the body until the ground cools.

Stone and Ecks speak to the local police. Ecks says that the explosion could have been a terrorist attack on one of the evidence response agents (that doesn't go down too well). Ecks also checks the area for radiation and finds a powerful amount of it. Conclusion: this was a dirty bomb! This is an old KGB trick. The agents panic, Artemis is informed and everyone is pulled back one block and the area sealed. Ecks creates a cover story of further explosives. Artemis says that a similar trick killed Agent Turn recently and the radiation should disperse within 24 hours. Levin and Monty leave the scene at this stage.

There seems nothing else to be done. Leaving Campbell-Robson and Ecks at the scene, Jane and the others return to Wichita. By the time they arrive, Artemis is there and he is pushing Jane to use her magic cracker. Benedict was useful agent (and also part of Operation: Certain Death, )

Jane doesn't know what to do. She has one wish, how can she possibly decide what to do with it? How is bringing Benedict back a better use of the wish than restoring Alex or Nathan… or even Kirsty Faber? Or the old west coast team - Jane still remembers the painful afternoon spend watching the messages they recorded for their families. She could stop global warming or write off third world debt! She could restore her mother to health! And to think about it, why not use the wish to wipe out the brain bug fleet?

Artemis thinks fast, he is a consummate psychologist and Jane's profound respect for life and inner decency makes her particularly easy to manipulate. He says that Jane can't wish for anything that would affect The Game - Raphael wouldn't interfere in that, so destroying the brain bug fleet is out of the question. He says that Raphael didn't give her the wish for great world-altering events, he gave it to benefit Jane. He also questions why Jane thinks the wish could only be used to restore one person to life. She could use it to restore everyone.

This does make Jane think. She can see the worth in that. Too many good people have died in the line of duty in the past nine months. But what about Nathan? Would restoring him set Raphael against Lilith? And what about Eisenstein? She never trusted the man. Artemis advises a very careful wording of the wish. Jane allows herself to be coached. In the end she snaps breaks the cracker and says the following:

"In this location, please restore to life and full health (and full possession of own souls) any member of a Project Braille team who has died since September 2000."

Nothing happens, so Jane says it again prefaced by "I wish". This time it is obvious that something has happened. She can hear Raphael's voice chastising her for putting so many clauses in the wish - he's not a demon after all. She apologises and then runs upstairs with Artemis. The floor of evidence response is a sea of people, Jane never through she would see again.

The dead have returned to life! The original west coast team: Alan Cummings, Mathew Wilson, Klaus Goldfarb, Anthony Tate, Jennifer Summers and Paul Hilderbrandt. Deceased agents of the north-west and north-east teams (Julian Turn, Henri LeBeau, Gregor Yanislav, Hank Dawson and Budd Stone). And the dead of the mid-west evidence response team: Benedict Oaxaca, Elise Steiger, Philip McKraken, Alex Drake and Nathan Harlow! But not just one Nathan Harlow, three Nathan Harlows! There is the original chunky Nathan, there is the "Michael Hunt" version of Nathan in the cahuna's body and there is Nathan+ from the brief alternative time period (Jane doesn't recognise him). And more…. Eisenstein is back from the dead (much to Black's annoyance) and another man called Judge than none of the team recognise.

Jane rushes forward and greets Elise and Nathan and all the others. She is swept away in the moment and the hubbub. But Jane is Jane and she keenly feels for everything she didn't accomplish with this wish. She apologises Kirsty. The room is chaos and noise. Eventually Artemis takes charge and orders everyone down to the debriefing room.

Artemis explains what has happened to everyone. Benedict is touched that Jane did this for him. Several changes have been wrought. Benedict no longer has his special powers and is back to the age he was before he received them. Alex Drake has lost his magical abilities and his incredible unluck (although his sports car has returned from the afterlife with him). Artemis offers an amnesty to all recently-resurrected agents who do not want to return to their old jobs and dangerous lives. Eisenstein says that he might take the opportunity to retire (as he has been given a new sixty years of life). He seems happy for Artemis to stay in charge and for Eisenstein to stay on in an advisory capacity.

Agent Judge reveals who he is. He was the partner of Richard Justice Williams. He was assassinated in Washington only two days after starting with the team. He was killed for what he knew. There is a secret operation to create some sort of super submarine. The computers were supplied by Dynamicorp, the weapons by Armitage Arms (a group with a cabalistic link to Majestic). He says that there is some sort of Shadow Government at work. Artemis arranges to meet Judge back in the mid-west HQ in two weeks.

Nathan+ is such an odd superhuman character without any willpower, that Artemis vows to keep him at his secret base in Washington where no supernatural nasties can get at him and dominate him.

Benedict tells Jane that he was killed by Vitrano and Lavin. Jane takes the news predictably well. Artemis is concerned by this and silently determines to speak to Huntingdon-Price about it. He doesn't see it as a barrier to continued relations between NTOPFOR and his teams.

Artemis says that every who died will be "mildly compensated" for the inconvenience. They can return to their old lives if they want to with a suitably explanation as to the announcement of their deaths. Black will look at the redeployment of agents around the country and perhaps the creation of additional teams. However, that is for the future. He gives everyone two weeks leave and sends the resurectees home.

The room empties leaving Jane, Benedict, Stone, Todd, Burchill and Dominic. Artemis now sits back and explains Operation: Certain Death to Jane and Ben. He asks for volunteers, he says that he will understand if Jane doesn't want to come, but Jane says that of course she will come. It's just come at a bad time. Benedict says that without his special powers he may not add much to the mission. Artemis agrees and decides that Nathan Harlow should be sent in his place. Harlow is recalled from his leave.

The team is set at Jane, Nathan, Ecks, Stone and Campbell-Robson. They talk about the equipment they will need, including a deadman's switch for the nuclear device. However, they still need coordinates for the Shaggai vessel. Artemis telephones Marc Georgeson and explains the plan. Georgeson is excited by it. Removing the frigate will mean a period of "unrestricted technical growth" on earth. However, using his active sensors to find the position of the frigate will give away Georgeson's location to the brain bugs. If he is going to risk this, he has to be sure that evidence response has the means to teleport into the vessel. Artemis will provide Georgeson with proof!

Very late in the evening Artemis, Todd, Burchill, Ecks, Dominic, Benedict, Nathan and Jane rendezvous with Ecks and Campbell-Robson at the west coast HQ. The mission will leave from here. Ecks will be in charge. Todd uses the door to transport the team into Georgeson's study in Winterset. Georgeson is convinced that the team has the means. He agrees to help them. But what will they do on the ship.

Jane isn't too pleased with the whole "nick as much as you can" mentality and thinks that they should just destroy the ship and that is that. She thinks it is unnecessary risk to put the team under. Artemis concedes that they may not need to take too much as it looks as though Georgeson may be much freer with his stuff when the ship is destroyed.

Monday, 11 June 2001

By the time midnight has passed the agents are ready. They have the explosives, they have the guns and the nuclear device. The had the demon-infested CD and the AI from the I-Ching book in case they need to infect the computers on the vessel.

The plan is to open the portal in the engine room where the radiation from the engines should mask the portal's existence. They will leave the door open and the bomb by the door. There will be a camera on the bomb sending images back to the team at the west coast HQ. The team will be suited up and ready to attack any invaders who come through the door, and with the door open Schult will be able to monitor the health of the team.

The team of five will leave the bomb and head off to salvage what they can. Then they will return set the bomb on a 20 second timer and leave the ship. Well, that's the plan anyway. Jane writes some letters, and Bruce gets tooled up.

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