Branch 47/Alicia - Revision history

Starkllr at 14:14, 19 May 2011

2011-05-19T14:14:57Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:14, 19 May 2011
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	Distinction: Chameleon		Distinction: Chameleon

	Background:		Background: [[Alicia_McBride]]

Starkllr: Replaced content with '*Back ---- Alicia McBride Attributes: Agility d8 / Alertness d10 / Intelligence d8 / Strength d6 / Vitality d8 / Willpower d8 Roles: Grifter d10 / Mastermin…'

2011-05-19T14:13:54Z

Replaced content with '*Back ---- Alicia McBride Attributes: Agility d8 / Alertness d10 / Intelligence d8 / Strength d6 / Vitality d8 / Willpower d8 Roles: Grifter d10 / Mastermin…'

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Starkllr at 17:41, 13 May 2011

2011-05-13T17:41:23Z

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Starkllr at 20:44, 11 May 2011

2011-05-11T20:44:20Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 20:44, 11 May 2011
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	'''Age 26 - October, 1956 - Ann Arbor, Michigan'''		'''Age 26 - October, 1956 - Ann Arbor, Michigan'''

	She'd reached a dead end. It was not something that Alicia was used to; in her experience there was always a way, always a Plan B or an alternate route to get what you needed.		She'd reached a dead end. It was not something that Alicia was used to; in her experience there was always a way, always a Plan B or an alternate route to get what you needed.

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	"Go tell Alexandra to prepare herself!" the director called out. "And fetch a doctor!" He disappeared then in front of the curtain, to announce to the packed house that there would be a delay in the opening of the performance, an unavoidable change in the cast, and that the great American soprano Jenny Linden would be unable to perform. ALicia could hear the disappointed murmurs of the audience, and the shuffling as the crowd took advantage of the delay to use the bathroom, have another drink or a smoke or otherwise stretch their legs.		"Go tell Alexandra to prepare herself!" the director called out. "And fetch a doctor!" He disappeared then in front of the curtain, to announce to the packed house that there would be a delay in the opening of the performance, an unavoidable change in the cast, and that the great American soprano Jenny Linden would be unable to perform. ALicia could hear the disappointed murmurs of the audience, and the shuffling as the crowd took advantage of the delay to use the bathroom, have another drink or a smoke or otherwise stretch their legs.

	In "Jenny's" dressing room, where Alicia waited once the stagehand and the conductor had carried her there, she waited precisely seven minutes for a knock. "Enter," she called out in Russian, and her stagehand, and her target, the man from the third row, also the man who'd designed the security systems for more than 30 Soviet embassy buildings across the world. She gestured to a small bag on the floor, and the target opened it, dressed himself, and took up the small medical satchel. The stagehand took the target's clothes and put them on; Alicia had chosen well, at a cursory glance, they could be taken for each other. He left, hurrying back out to the front of the house to take "his" seat in the orchestra. The newly minted "doctor", meanwhile put an arm around Alicia as she stood up using a pair of crutches, favoring her bandaged and "broken" ankle as they headed out back to the waiting car, and then to the airport...		In "Jenny's" dressing room, where Alicia waited once the stagehand and the conductor had carried her there, she waited precisely seven minutes for a knock. "Enter," she called out in Russian, and her stagehand, and her target, the man from the third row, also the man who'd designed the security systems for more than 30 Soviet embassy buildings across the world. She gestured to a small bag on the floor, and the target opened it, dressed himself, and took up the small medical satchel. The stagehand took the target's clothes and put them on; Alicia had chosen well, at a cursory glance, they could be taken for each other. He left, hurrying back out to the front of the house to take "his" seat in the orchestra. The newly minted "doctor", meanwhile put an arm around Alicia as she stood up using a pair of crutches, favoring her bandaged and "broken" ankle as they headed out back to the waiting car, and then to the airport.

			Two hours later, once the plane had crossed the border and she could relax, Alicia turned to her defector and sighed. "You know, there is one thing I regret. I really would've liked to have seen the performance."

			The defector nodded in agreement. "They say that your Metropolitan Opera is almost as good as the Bolshoi, though. Perhaps once I've been debriefed, they'll let me go to New York to see it?"

			Alicia gave him a grin. "It's a date."

Starkllr at 19:53, 11 May 2011

2011-05-11T19:53:38Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:53, 11 May 2011
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	Age 26 - October, 1956 - Ann Arbor, Michigan		'''Age 26 - October, 1956 - Ann Arbor, Michigan'''

	She'd reached a dead end. It was not something that Alicia was used to; in her experience there was always a way, always a Plan B or an alternate route to get what you needed.		She'd reached a dead end. It was not something that Alicia was used to; in her experience there was always a way, always a Plan B or an alternate route to get what you needed.

Starkllr at 19:52, 11 May 2011

2011-05-11T19:52:29Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:52, 11 May 2011
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	In the meantime, she had a flight to Washington, and from there to Vienna, and then on to Moscow...		In the meantime, she had a flight to Washington, and from there to Vienna, and then on to Moscow...


			'''Age 28 - April, 1959 - Moscow, Soviet Union'''

			She peeked out from the curtain, and there he was - third row, second from the aisle on the left side of the orchestra. Alicia looked for her contact; there he was, exactly as instructed, posing as a stagehand, carrying an armful of costumes for Act II, not looking where he was going. She got herself set, stepped into his path, and right on cue he hit her.

			She went down hard, snapping the emery board in her hand just as her leg hit the floor. It had taken hours to get it just right, so tha the sound would emulate that of an ankle snapping. She let out a stream of curses in French - it was ''Carmen'' she was supposedly singing, after all. The director and the conductor rushed over, expressions of horror dawning on their faces. "Miss Linden" the director cried out in broken English. "Tell me, please, no!"

			Alicla let the stagehand help her up, and immediately she allowed her right leg to buckle, shrieking as she did. "It's no good. Broken," she said, letting her voice edge towards hysteria.

			"Go tell Alexandra to prepare herself!" the director called out. "And fetch a doctor!" He disappeared then in front of the curtain, to announce to the packed house that there would be a delay in the opening of the performance, an unavoidable change in the cast, and that the great American soprano Jenny Linden would be unable to perform. ALicia could hear the disappointed murmurs of the audience, and the shuffling as the crowd took advantage of the delay to use the bathroom, have another drink or a smoke or otherwise stretch their legs.

			In "Jenny's" dressing room, where Alicia waited once the stagehand and the conductor had carried her there, she waited precisely seven minutes for a knock. "Enter," she called out in Russian, and her stagehand, and her target, the man from the third row, also the man who'd designed the security systems for more than 30 Soviet embassy buildings across the world. She gestured to a small bag on the floor, and the target opened it, dressed himself, and took up the small medical satchel. The stagehand took the target's clothes and put them on; Alicia had chosen well, at a cursory glance, they could be taken for each other. He left, hurrying back out to the front of the house to take "his" seat in the orchestra. The newly minted "doctor", meanwhile put an arm around Alicia as she stood up using a pair of crutches, favoring her bandaged and "broken" ankle as they headed out back to the waiting car, and then to the airport...


			'''Age 30 - March, 1961, Baltimore, Maryland'''

			She had a month leave, and it had taken her until the 28th day to make the breakthrough. But she finally had. She had a name, an identity, and, thanks to yet another favor called in, she had a stack of files sixteen inches high.

			She was on her fifth pot of coffee, and her 30th hour without sleep. But it was worth it. How often did you get to learn about the twin you were separated from at birth, after all?"


			'''Age 31 - December, 1961, Annapolis, MD'''

			Alicia saw him there through the window. Same table as always, near the back, against the wall, good view of the door. Exactly like they taught at Langley – never sit with your back to a door or a window.

			On the other hand, he’d been coming to the same restaurant once a week for the past two months. Same day, same time, same meal order. Surely he knew better than to fall into a pattern like that.

			But then again, maybe it was his way of inviting her to meet. There was hardly a protocol for this kind of thing, after all. And she did want so badly to meet him, to know all the things he could tell her.

			Clearly that was it. She’d studied his file – what she could find of it, anyway. And she knew his reputation. He’d never be so sloppy, it had to be intentional. All these weeks, he’d been waiting for her to make the next move.

			She watched for a few minutes more, shivering as the cold wind blew in from the sea. It was that, more than anything else, that pushed her to do it. In the end, the thing itself was so much easier than all the waiting and planning and wondering how it would go. She went straight in, passed the hostess with barely a nod of her head, and sat herself down at his table.

			“I can’t even count how many hours I spent going through records in that hospital in Ann Arbor. You’d be amazed what you can learn, if you’re just patient and persistent enough. I’m really hoping it was all worth it, little brother.”

Starkllr at 16:24, 11 May 2011

2011-05-11T16:24:43Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:24, 11 May 2011
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	It took two extra weeks, and many, many practice runs, but in the end, Alicia got through the course. Barely. She devoutly hoped she'd never need to put her Survival Driving skills into practice.		It took two extra weeks, and many, many practice runs, but in the end, Alicia got through the course. Barely. She devoutly hoped she'd never need to put her Survival Driving skills into practice.


			'''Age 25 - January, 1956, Prague, Czechslovakia'''

			Alica watched as the bag bobbed up and down in the current of the Vltava River. If you didn't know to look for it, it would be almost impossible to see on this moonless night. It might never be found, if it made it as far as the confluence with the Elbe. It didn't matter, ultimately; when Gregor failed to report in two days in a row, they'd go to his flat, and once they realized he hadn't ever come home, they'd track down his minders, and then they'd know. Alicia watched until the bag passed completely out of sight; he had been an enemy, and what she'd set in motion had to be done, and she would do it all again without hesitation, but even so, he'd still been a human being. She felt that she owed him at least that little dignity, to keep a watch for these few minutes, when no one else was there to do so, or even to know that there was anything to watch.

			It had been his own people who'd done the actual killing. All Alicia and her team - ''her'' team, and there was no doubting that now - had done was to set things in motion. They'd been brought in to work with the Prague station chef to help track down a mole. But Williams had gone and broken his leg climbing down the jetway after a flight to visit his wife in Geneva, and orders had come from Langley to abort the operation. Alicia had ignored them; her instincts told her they wouldn't have another chance like this, and she'd been right.

			She'd taken charge, claiming authority from the Director himself, and ordering complete communication silence so that nobody could verify it. She'd planned out the trap they set for the mole, using Williams' accident as the bait, and when the mole had brought bck to his minders the documents he'd stolen right out of Williams' flat - documents fingering the minders themselves as double agents, they'd done the only thing they could, they'd killed Gregor themselves.

			Those two minders would return home to find envelopes that had been delivered at Alicia's order, containing hastily-developed photographs she'd taken herself, among other information, and instructions on what they were to do next if they didn't want copies of those photos to be passed on to their superiors.

			It had been a very successful week's work...


			Age 26 - October, 1956 - Ann Arbor, Michigan

			She'd reached a dead end. It was not something that Alicia was used to; in her experience there was always a way, always a Plan B or an alternate route to get what you needed.

			She'd been here two weeks, calling in a favor to extend her leave in order to have that much time, but all she found were brick walls in her way. She knew who her birth mother was, and she knew she'd been, by two minutes, the firstborn of fraternal twins. But the woman was dead, having left no other family. There was literally not a single person working in the hospital who'd been there 26 years ago, nor in the church that had facilitated her adoption. Her mother's house had been sold, the school where her brother had gone had spotty records, and from what she could tell he'd changed his name and identity at least once since leaving Ann Arbor.

			With another month, she imagined, she might come up with another lead, another clue. But she didn't have it. Duty called. Maybe in six months, or a year, she could come back, and comb over a trail that would be just that much colder.

			In the meantime, she had a flight to Washington, and from there to Vienna, and then on to Moscow...

Starkllr at 00:12, 11 May 2011

2011-05-11T00:12:16Z

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173.221.243.25 at 23:47, 10 May 2011

2011-05-10T23:47:20Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:47, 10 May 2011
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	----		----

			Alicia McBride

			Attributes: Agility d8 / Alertness d10 / Intelligence d8 / Strength d6 / Vitality d8 / Willpower d8

			Roles: Grifter d10 / Mastermind d8

			Distinction: Chameleon

173.221.243.25: Created page with '*Back ----'

2011-05-10T23:43:40Z

Created page with '*Back ----'

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