Team GONG
- Thread starter Empiremaker
- Start date
CommandoBob
AbstractArt
Added new thread 'The Causes of War'.
?
Empiremaker
Human Fish
Rodent - I don't know if CB saw it. He might have just copied and pasted from a word file.
CommandoBob
AbstractArt
I did see Rodent's add-on. I just couldn't come up with a way to post his work and give him due credit. 
I did a Preview Post where I quoted his post, but that just didn't look good. Rodent's words would have been in the grey text area and that would have diminished their impact. At the time I didn't think about putting any explanation inside the Quote tags and removing the Quote tags from Rodent's words.
However, Rodent could post what he has written into that thread. His post would need to titled in such a way that non-FreeZers could tell that he was continuing the story and not commenting on it (which would be their first impression).
I did a Preview Post where I quoted his post, but that just didn't look good. Rodent's words would have been in the grey text area and that would have diminished their impact. At the time I didn't think about putting any explanation inside the Quote tags and removing the Quote tags from Rodent's words.
However, Rodent could post what he has written into that thread. His post would need to titled in such a way that non-FreeZers could tell that he was continuing the story and not commenting on it (which would be their first impression).
Empiremaker
Human Fish
Could we make peace with GONG, and then a 2-4 turns before we invade our next opponent, have GONG declare war and invade with a few infantry. Hopefully, the other team should have enough time to load their units on transports and sail them away, before we land and blitz through their cities. SABER might be our biggest threat for the space race, and so if we can cripple them, we may have an easy space race. The Council just doesn't seem to be able to research that fast.
Elephantium
Trampling the AI
I doubt GONG feels desperate enough to accept a client-kingdom relationship with us.
As for attacking SABER, we need to be careful - we don't want to end up at the bottom of a dogpile!
As for attacking SABER, we need to be careful - we don't want to end up at the bottom of a dogpile!
CommandoBob
AbstractArt
Turn 208: Gong's Land at Start of Turn
Turn 209: Gong's Land at Start of Turn
Turn 210: Gong's Land at Start of Turn
Turn 211: Gong's Land at Start of Turn
Turn 212: Gong's Land at Start of Turn
Spoiler :
Turn 209: Gong's Land at Start of Turn
Spoiler :
Turn 210: Gong's Land at Start of Turn
Spoiler :
Turn 211: Gong's Land at Start of Turn
Spoiler :
Turn 212: Gong's Land at Start of Turn
Spoiler :
CommandoBob
AbstractArt
This is just a rough guide to how Gong's cities have fared in the war.
Turn 208
Gong Cities Visible at SoT:
Free Cities Visible at SoT:
Ruins Visible at SoT:
Turn 209
Gong Cities Visible at SoT:
Free Cities Visible at SoT:
Ruins Visible at SoT:
Turn 210
Gong Cities Visible at SoT:
Free Cities Visible at SoT:
Ruins Visible at SoT:
Turn 211
Gong Cities Visible at SoT:
Free Cities Visible at SoT:
Ruins Visible at SoT:
Turn 212
Gong Cities Visible at SoT:
Free Cities Visible at SoT:
Ruins Visible at SoT:
This list is taken from the screen shots in the previous post. It is not reconciled to the battle logs.
Turn 208
Gong Cities Visible at SoT:
- Basement on a Hill (?)
- California Girls (1)
- Castle Donnington (1)
- Graceland (12) - Capital
- E Street (1)
- Guitar Town (3)
- Hotel California (1)
- Kokomo (1) - 1 tile island
- M???? (4)
- Palace of the Brine (6)
- Ring of Fire (2)
- Rock Lobseterford (2)
- Rutupiae (2) - 1 tile island
- Slane Castle (2)
- Sugar Mountain (12)
- Sunset Strip (3)
- Stony Pony (2)
- St. Alphonzo's (3)
- Sweet H??? (3)
- Townes van Zandt (6)
- Unknown name on NW coast (5)
- Whip It! (7)
- Whiskeytown (2)
- Yellow Brick Road (6)
- ??? Beach (?)
- ??? Skies (?)
Free Cities Visible at SoT:
- None
Ruins Visible at SoT:
- None
Turn 209
Gong Cities Visible at SoT:
- Altamont Raceway (2)
- Basement on a Hill (3)
- Castle Donnington (1)
- CBGB's (1)
- Dark Side of the Moon (9)
- Dirty Old Town (6)
- E Street (1)
- Graceland (9)
- Great Walls of Fire (6)
- Guitar Town (3)
- Hanger 18 (3)
- Kokomo (1) - 1 tile island
- M???? (4)
- Nutbush City (9) - capital of Gong
- Palace of the Brine (6)
- Paradise City (7)
- Pete's End (3)
- Ring of Fire (1)
- Rutupiae (2) - 1 tile island
- Scarborough Fair (1)
- Slane Castle (2)
- Sugar Mountain (9)
- Sunset Strip (3)
- Sweet H??? (3)
- The Watchtower (6)
- Unknown name on NW coast (5)
- We Built This City (6)
- Whip It! (6)
- Whiskeytown (2)
- Woodstock (2)
- ??? Beach (?)
- ??? Skies (3)
Free Cities Visible at SoT:
- California Girls (1)
- Rock Lobsterford (1)
- Stony Pony (1)
- St. Alophonzo's (2)
- Townes van Zandt (5)
- Yellow Brick Road (5)
Ruins Visible at SoT:
- 2SE of Graceland
Turn 210
Gong Cities Visible at SoT:
- Altamont Raceway (1)
- Basement on a Hill (3)
- Castle Donnington (2)
- CBGB's (1)
- Dark Side of the Moon (7)
- Dirty Old Town (5)
- E Street (1)
- Graceland (7)
- Great Walls of Fire (5)
- Guitar Town (2)
- Hanger 18 (3)
- Nutbush City (5) - Capital of Gong
- Paradise City (6)
- Palace of the Brine (2)
- Pete's End (2)
- Ring of Fire (1)
- Rutapie (1) 1 tile island
- Rock Lobsterford (1)
- Scarborough Fair (1)
- Slane Castle (2)
- St. Alphonzo's (2)
- Sugar Mountain (7)
- The Watchtower (5)
- We Built This City (5)
- Whip It! (4)
- Woodstock (2)
- ??? Skies (3)
Free Cities Visible at SoT:
- Whiskeytown (3)
Ruins Visible at SoT:
- 2 SE of Graceland
- Hotel California
- Kokomo - 1 tile island
- M???
- Stony Pony
- Sunset Strip
- Sweet H???
- Townes van Zandt
- Yellow Brick Road
Turn 211
Gong Cities Visible at SoT:
- Altmount Raceway (1)
- Basement on a Hill (1)
- CBGB's (1)
- Dark Side of the Moon (6)
- Graceland (6)
- Great Walls of Fire (4)
- Hanger 18 (1)
- Love Shack (1)
- Nutbush City (4) - Capital of Gong
- Paradise City (5)
- Pete's End (1)
- Ring of Fire (1)
- Rutapie (1) 1 tile island
- Scarborough Fair (1)
- Sugar Mountain (5)
- The Watchtower (4)
- We Built This City (4)
- Whip It! (3)
- Woodstock (3)
- ??? Malice (?)
Free Cities Visible at SoT:
- Castle Donnington (1)
Ruins Visible at SoT:
- 2 SE of Graceland
- E Street
- Guitar Town
- Hotel California
- Kokomo - 1 tile island
- M???
- Palace of the Brine
- Rock Lobsterford
- Slane Castle
- Stony Pony
- St. Alphonzo's
- Sunset Strip
- Sweet H???
- Townes van Zandt
- Whiskeytown
- Yellow Brick Road
- ??? Beach
- ??? Skies
Turn 212
Gong Cities Visible at SoT:
- Altamont Raceway (1)
- Basement on a Hill (3)
- CBGB's (1)
- Dark Side of the Moon (6)
- Dirty Old Town (3)
- Graceland (6)
- Great Walls of Fire (3)
- Hanger 18 (1)
- Nutbush City (3) - capital of Gong
- Pete's End (1)
- Ring of Fire (1)
- Rutupiae (1) - 1 tile island
- Scarborough Fair (1)
- Sugar Mountain (4)
- The Watchtower (3)
- We Built This City (3)
- Woodstock (3)
- Whip It! (2)
- ??? Malice (?)
Free Cities Visible at SoT:
- None
Ruins Visible at SoT:
- 2 SE of Graceland
- Castle Donnington
- E Street
- Guitar Town
- Hotel California
- Kokomo - 1 tile island
- Love Shack
- M???
- Palace of the Brine
- Paradise City
- Rock Lobsterford
- Slane Castle
- Stony Pony
- St. Alphonzo's
- Sunset Strip
- Sweet H???
- Townes van Zandt
- Whiskeytown
- Yellow Brick Road
- ??? Beach
- ??? Skies
- SE-S of M???
- E-SE of M???
This list is taken from the screen shots in the previous post. It is not reconciled to the battle logs.
Empiremaker
Human Fish
CommandoBob, do you want to write a story for the destruction of GONG?
CommandoBob
AbstractArt
This is what I have so far. It is not complete, not by a good bit. I had a longer war in mind. Kuningas changed that!
Gong War - After the Start (working title)
Wake up,' said the voice, shaking CommandoBob roughly on the shoulder, 'You need to wake up.'
'Ouch! That hurts! Okay, okay, I'm awake. A bit.'
'Good, you've both got to get dressed and get dressed quickly. We don't have much time.'
Slowly CommandoBob rose up in the bed he was in, finding out that he had a lot of places that were hurting. One eye would not open all the way so he squinted as he glanced over the surrondings.
'Come on,' pestered the voice, still unseeen, and somewhat upset, 'we don't have all day.'
'Yeah. Right,' groaned the aching one, 'What's the big rush?'
'Your pals at FREE have gone nuts and declared war on us. This city has been captured by your people. No one likes that. Some hot heads have taken to shooting at FREE soldiers. I just heard some muttering about you two being here and being easy targets.'
'Ahh, ow, I see. Where are my clothes; I'll get changed.'
'Alright, you get started; I'll awake your partner.'
Slowly, achingly, CommandoBob and Peter Schickele got dressed. As they laboriously got into their own clothing, they got a brief update on their condition and the world around them.
'I'm Dr. Paul Smith, I treated both of you. You both came her unconscious but beside that you have no real permanent injuries. You each have some cracked ribs, but nothing is broken. No signs of concussion or serious cranial injuries. You'll have headaches for a few days though. Your faces are a mass of bruises but your teeth are all intact. We got your glasses replaced so you can still see, but the frames are different.'
Wordlessly, both men of FREE examined their new spectacles. Small, wire frames had been replaced with thick, black, plastic frames.
As one, they donned the dark frame horrors and saw that they could see things in focus.
'Thanks, doc,' said Schickele, thickly.
CommandoBob shook his head slightly and was rewarded with a very lightheaded feeling caused by a blinding pain inside his head.
'Sorry, you don't want to do that,' Dr. Smith chided.
'Oh, yeah, you got that right,' gasped CommandoBob.
'So, physically were fine, right?' asked the other.
'Not fine, but living. You both need a few days bed rest for the pain to go away. The bruising will fade with time. But the war has changed things.'
'In what way?'
'People want to kill you because they blame you for the war. I know, you were here when it started and under sedation at the time, but the masses want a scapegoat and for now it is you two. We've kept your presence here at a low profile, but that protection is gone. People know where you are at.'
'And you've got a plan?' guessed CommandoBob. 'Yes, of course you do, or you would have walked away.'
'I have a plan. No one knows what you look like, really, so it should work. We're going to switch you with two recent victims of the war that look a bit like you. They will stay in your room while you leave.'
'Better than death,' muttered Schickele.
'What do you need from us?' queried CommandoBob.
'ID papers for the bodies, mostly. We'll have to produce them to help validate the death.'
Both men grimaced, but slowly pulled out the required documents and gave them to the doctor. In return, he gave them a similar set of documents.
As CommandoBob opened his he said, 'My new name is, ah, Clark Kent?'
'And I'm Peter Parker?'
'I don't know. I didn't give them their names, ' defened Smith. 'Why, what's wrong with 'em?'
'Uh, well, is mine wearing a red cape with blue leotards and a red bathing suit?'
'And is Parker masked, in a red body suit with a big spider on his chest?'
'I didn't see the bodies when they arrived, but we did have a series of unfortunate events at Science Fiction convention. Why?'
'Nevermind.'
CommandoBob
AbstractArt
And from here the planed plotline was that they would become toilet-cleaners at The Great Library in Sugar Mountain and spend the war there.
Maybe we could sign the capitulation documents there next turn? Capture Graceland first and then Sugar Mountain. With The Great Library, the city should not autoraze, even at size 1.
Maybe we could sign the capitulation documents there next turn? Capture Graceland first and then Sugar Mountain. With The Great Library, the city should not autoraze, even at size 1.
CommandoBob
AbstractArt
This looks like a four part event. I've got three of them written and the fourth is just mentally sketched out right now.
1. Graceland (revised from earlier)
2. Sugar Mountain
3. The Great Library
4. The Last Day
1. Graceland (revised from earlier)
2. Sugar Mountain
3. The Great Library
4. The Last Day
CommandoBob
AbstractArt
'Wake up,' said the voice, shaking CommandoBob roughly on the houlder, 'You need to wake up.'
'Ouch! That hurts! Okay, okay, I'm awake. A bit.'
'Good, you've both got to get dressed and get dressed quickly. We don't have much time.'
Slowly CommandoBob rose up in the bed he was in, finding out that he had a lot of places that were hurting. One eye would not open all the way so he squinted as he glanced over the surrondings.
'Come on,' pestered the voice, still unseeen, and somewhat upset, 'we don't have all day.'
'Yeah. Right,' groaned the aching one, 'What's the big rush?'
'Your pals at FREE have gone nuts and declared war on us. This city was captured by your people and then retaken by Gong troops. Lots of people died. All the "cultured" places were destroyed. Now that the city is back to being Green, people are angry. I just heard some muttering about you two being here and being easy targets.'
'Ahh, ow, I see. Where are my clothes; I'll get changed.'
'Alright, you get started; I'll awake your partner.'
Slowly, achingly, CommandoBob and Peter Schickele got dressed. As they laboriously got into their own clothing, they got a brief update on their condition and the world around them.
'I'm Dr. Niklas Broberg, I treated both of you. You both came her unconscious but beside that you have no real permanent injuries. You each have some cracked ribs, but nothing is broken. No signs of concussion or serious cranial injuries. You'll have headaches for a few days though. Your faces were a mass of bruises but your teeth are all intact. Most of the bruising is gone by now. We got your glasses replaced so you can still see,
but the frames are different.'
Wordlessly, both men of FREE examined their new spectacles. Small, wire frames had been replaced with thick, black, plastic frames.
As one, they donned the dark frame horrors and saw that they could see things in focus.
'Thanks, doc,' said Schickele, thickly.
CommandoBob shook his head slightly and was rewarded with a very lightheaded feeling caused by a blinding pain inside his head.
'Sorry, you don't want to do that,' Dr. Broberg chided.
'Oh, yeah, you got that right,' gasped CommandoBob.
'So, physically were fine, right?' asked the other.
'Not fine, but living. You both need a few days bed rest for the pain to go away. As I said, the bruising is just about all gone. But the war has changed things. Now, swallow these pills. They'll make the pain go away and fight off any infection you might have picked up here.'
Both men swallowed the small blue pills with a small glass of water.
'You said the war changed things. Okay, how? In what way?'
'People want to kill you because they blame you for the war. I know, you were here when it started and under sedation at the time, but the masses want a scapegoat and for now it is you two. We've kept your presence here at a low profile, but that protection is gone. People know where you are at.'
'And you've got a plan?' guessed CommandoBob. 'Yes, of course you do, or you would have walked away.'
'I have a plan. No one knows what you look like, really, so it should work. We're going to switch you with two recent victims of the war that look a bit like you. They will stay in your room while you leave.'
'Better than death,' muttered Schickele.
'What do you need from us?' queried CommandoBob.
'ID papers for the bodies, mostly. We'll have to produce them to help validate the death.'
Both men grimaced, but slowly pulled out the required documents and gave them to the doctor. In return, he gave them a similar set of documents.
As CommandoBob opened his he said, 'My new name is, ah, Clark Kent?'
'And I'm Peter Parker?'
'I don't know. I didn't give them their names, ' defended Broberg. 'Why, what's wrong with 'em?'
'Uh, well, is mine wearing a red cape with blue leotards and a red bathing suit?'
'And is Parker masked, in a red body suit with a big spider on his chest?'
'I didn't see the bodies when they arrived, but we did have a series of unfortunate events at a Science Fiction/Comic Book convention. Why?'
'Nevermind.'
'So these are our new names. What else?'
Dr. Broberg presented each man with a large, rather lumpy bag that had two padded straps attached to it.
'I've got a backpack for each of you. Food, snacks and a change of clothes are in each one. In the side pockets is enough currency to keep you going for a while.'
'I've also got two train passes for you to get you out of Graceland. These passes will let you go anywhere here that a train goes to. The train station is nearby.'
'Look, Doc, I don't know what to say, but you've overlooked one thing. Our clothes are just too conspicious. No body rides a train, carrying a backpack, dressed in a tuxedo,' observed CommandoBob.
'Oh, that's right.' The doctor turned around and opened up another bag. 'Here, put these on,' handing each a small oblong box.
'Tennis shoes! White tennis shoes with a tuxedo!'
'Calm down, Peter, calm down. White tennis shoes, a tuxedo and a backpack, carried by someone with a beard. Does that seem like a dangerous person?'
'Sounds like an eccentric professor,' quipped CommandoBob.
Schickele nodded his head.
'Well, yeah, I can play that role,' he answered. 'Can you?'
'I can always play the straight man and let you deliver the punch lines,' replied CommandoBob. 'That works for me.'
Quickly the shoes were switched out and the tennis shoed tuxedos combed their hair, picked up the back packs and made ready to leave.
'Doc, this is awful nice of you. We didn't expect such help. Why?'
'Well, I'm not a native of these lands. I came from the land of Dark Blue and as soon as you two clowns shove off I'm heading back home. I'm ready to do some damage to the Purple People Eaters.'
'Well, Dr. Broberg, we do appreciate all your help. Thank you,' said CommandoBob as he stuck out his hand.
'You're welcome,' responded the doctor, 'Quite welcome.'
Both men stared at each other strangely as they shook hands.
'We haven't met before, have we?' asked CommandoBob.
'It sure feels like we have, but then again...'
'Smurkz,' said Schickele.
'Huh?'
'Oh, sorry. I belched,' explained the embarassed professor. 'I swallowed some air with my pills; I do that all the time.'
'Maybe we'll meet again later,' said the doctor. 'But for right now we need to leave.'
'Yes. Come on, Peter Parker, we have a train to catch.'
'Surely, Clark Kent, we shall have a super time.'
'Ouch! That hurts! Okay, okay, I'm awake. A bit.'
'Good, you've both got to get dressed and get dressed quickly. We don't have much time.'
Slowly CommandoBob rose up in the bed he was in, finding out that he had a lot of places that were hurting. One eye would not open all the way so he squinted as he glanced over the surrondings.
'Come on,' pestered the voice, still unseeen, and somewhat upset, 'we don't have all day.'
'Yeah. Right,' groaned the aching one, 'What's the big rush?'
'Your pals at FREE have gone nuts and declared war on us. This city was captured by your people and then retaken by Gong troops. Lots of people died. All the "cultured" places were destroyed. Now that the city is back to being Green, people are angry. I just heard some muttering about you two being here and being easy targets.'
'Ahh, ow, I see. Where are my clothes; I'll get changed.'
'Alright, you get started; I'll awake your partner.'
Slowly, achingly, CommandoBob and Peter Schickele got dressed. As they laboriously got into their own clothing, they got a brief update on their condition and the world around them.
'I'm Dr. Niklas Broberg, I treated both of you. You both came her unconscious but beside that you have no real permanent injuries. You each have some cracked ribs, but nothing is broken. No signs of concussion or serious cranial injuries. You'll have headaches for a few days though. Your faces were a mass of bruises but your teeth are all intact. Most of the bruising is gone by now. We got your glasses replaced so you can still see,
but the frames are different.'
Wordlessly, both men of FREE examined their new spectacles. Small, wire frames had been replaced with thick, black, plastic frames.
As one, they donned the dark frame horrors and saw that they could see things in focus.
'Thanks, doc,' said Schickele, thickly.
CommandoBob shook his head slightly and was rewarded with a very lightheaded feeling caused by a blinding pain inside his head.
'Sorry, you don't want to do that,' Dr. Broberg chided.
'Oh, yeah, you got that right,' gasped CommandoBob.
'So, physically were fine, right?' asked the other.
'Not fine, but living. You both need a few days bed rest for the pain to go away. As I said, the bruising is just about all gone. But the war has changed things. Now, swallow these pills. They'll make the pain go away and fight off any infection you might have picked up here.'
Both men swallowed the small blue pills with a small glass of water.
'You said the war changed things. Okay, how? In what way?'
'People want to kill you because they blame you for the war. I know, you were here when it started and under sedation at the time, but the masses want a scapegoat and for now it is you two. We've kept your presence here at a low profile, but that protection is gone. People know where you are at.'
'And you've got a plan?' guessed CommandoBob. 'Yes, of course you do, or you would have walked away.'
'I have a plan. No one knows what you look like, really, so it should work. We're going to switch you with two recent victims of the war that look a bit like you. They will stay in your room while you leave.'
'Better than death,' muttered Schickele.
'What do you need from us?' queried CommandoBob.
'ID papers for the bodies, mostly. We'll have to produce them to help validate the death.'
Both men grimaced, but slowly pulled out the required documents and gave them to the doctor. In return, he gave them a similar set of documents.
As CommandoBob opened his he said, 'My new name is, ah, Clark Kent?'
'And I'm Peter Parker?'
'I don't know. I didn't give them their names, ' defended Broberg. 'Why, what's wrong with 'em?'
'Uh, well, is mine wearing a red cape with blue leotards and a red bathing suit?'
'And is Parker masked, in a red body suit with a big spider on his chest?'
'I didn't see the bodies when they arrived, but we did have a series of unfortunate events at a Science Fiction/Comic Book convention. Why?'
'Nevermind.'
'So these are our new names. What else?'
Dr. Broberg presented each man with a large, rather lumpy bag that had two padded straps attached to it.
'I've got a backpack for each of you. Food, snacks and a change of clothes are in each one. In the side pockets is enough currency to keep you going for a while.'
'I've also got two train passes for you to get you out of Graceland. These passes will let you go anywhere here that a train goes to. The train station is nearby.'
'Look, Doc, I don't know what to say, but you've overlooked one thing. Our clothes are just too conspicious. No body rides a train, carrying a backpack, dressed in a tuxedo,' observed CommandoBob.
'Oh, that's right.' The doctor turned around and opened up another bag. 'Here, put these on,' handing each a small oblong box.
'Tennis shoes! White tennis shoes with a tuxedo!'
'Calm down, Peter, calm down. White tennis shoes, a tuxedo and a backpack, carried by someone with a beard. Does that seem like a dangerous person?'
'Sounds like an eccentric professor,' quipped CommandoBob.
Schickele nodded his head.
'Well, yeah, I can play that role,' he answered. 'Can you?'
'I can always play the straight man and let you deliver the punch lines,' replied CommandoBob. 'That works for me.'
Quickly the shoes were switched out and the tennis shoed tuxedos combed their hair, picked up the back packs and made ready to leave.
'Doc, this is awful nice of you. We didn't expect such help. Why?'
'Well, I'm not a native of these lands. I came from the land of Dark Blue and as soon as you two clowns shove off I'm heading back home. I'm ready to do some damage to the Purple People Eaters.'
'Well, Dr. Broberg, we do appreciate all your help. Thank you,' said CommandoBob as he stuck out his hand.
'You're welcome,' responded the doctor, 'Quite welcome.'
Both men stared at each other strangely as they shook hands.
'We haven't met before, have we?' asked CommandoBob.
'It sure feels like we have, but then again...'
'Smurkz,' said Schickele.
'Huh?'
'Oh, sorry. I belched,' explained the embarassed professor. 'I swallowed some air with my pills; I do that all the time.'
'Maybe we'll meet again later,' said the doctor. 'But for right now we need to leave.'
'Yes. Come on, Peter Parker, we have a train to catch.'
'Surely, Clark Kent, we shall have a super time.'
CommandoBob
AbstractArt
Once outside the medical facility, the visible effects of two occupations in Graceland were hard to see. This portion of the city had been spared any fighting, but the people seemed nervous and skitish. The rain did not help any, either.
'We need to change clothes,' said CommandoBob. 'What Niklas said made some sense, but people will remember two men in tuxedos.'
'I'm hungry. I don't remember the last time I ate.'
Ahead was a small resturant, McGongald's. They entered it and CommandoBob headed for the door that said 'MENS'. The room inside was empty. He entered a stall and flushed the toilet. over the sound of running water he dug through the backpack and found the stash of local currency. A few bills were rather small, but many had 3 digits on them. He took one of those and the smaller ones and stuffed the larger ones into his left front
pocket and the smaller into his right pocket. He exited the room and met his partner outside. Quickly he glanced over the menu and said, 'I'm buying; you find us a place to sit.'
Once he got the meal to the table he sat down and told the other tuxedo, 'Eat fast. We gotta leave soon.' He spoke quietly.
The other one opened up the paper wrapping, took the hand meal and took out a large chunk of it. 'Mmwmwy?' he asked.
'We don't fit in here. We're way overdressed. We stick out like a sore thumb.' He took a sip of his drink and then a bite of food. 'We're about to have a fight.'
'?'
'I'm going to start it, you follow my lead. After it's over, you go left and I'll go right. We'll meet back in the middle one block south of here. Got it?'
Peter swallowed and nodded in reply. 'Got it.'
CommandoBob suddenly stood up, knocking some food onto the floor. 'Take it back!' he said rather loudly, nasally and in a higher pitch than normal. 'You take that back this instance, do you hear?'
Schieckele rose slowly to his feet and placed his hands on the table. 'I will not. What I said was the truth and you know it.' His voice, normally rather soft, now boomed throughout the small room.
'Was not. It's a lie. Lie, lie, lie!' shrilled CommandoBob, and stomping his feet.
'It's the truth, but you're too stupid to see it,' growled the other actor in the drama.
'Oh, now I'm stupid am I? Just last week I was the most brilliant thing you had ever seen. But now I'm stupid.'
'You're stupid and you dye your hair and I don't want to see you again!'
'Well, I can take a hint. But first,' and here he took the remains of his hand meal and slowly spread it all over Peter's face. The meaty portion fell to the table, but the liquids just dripped from his face. Schickele's brows knit together and his face turned deep red.
'Why, you little - ' he began as he pulled his right arm back and balled his fist.
Suddenly a large man in a green uniform with a badge stepped between the two men and pushed them apart.
'Allright, what's going on here, huh? Somebody want to tell me?' he glared at both men, his hands now on his hips.
'He started it,' bleated CommandoBob, with a slight sniff. 'He said the flute player was prettier than I was. And,' here he stopped for a breath and a sob, 'that she didn't have to dye her hair like I did.'
'Oh, I see,' stated the man in green, now obviously a cop, to Peter. 'Trying to break up quietly in a public place, aren't we? Git outta here,' he said, grabbing both men and pulling them towards the door.
'My brother runs a respectable place and your scarin' the customers. Now git,' he said, pushing them out the door.
'But!' wailed CommandoBob.
'Is this your gear?' asked the cop. 'Well, go and get it.' So saying he threw one bag in each direction down the street. 'Go away and don't come back!'
'My treasures!' cried CommandoBob as he went to get the one thrown to the right.
'Good riddance, pest!' growled Peter as he picked up the one thrown to the left and kept walking down the street.
The other one sobbed as he picked up the back pack and continued down the street in the other direction.
In a few minutes the two men met up again. One of them had managed to change clothes.
'I saw a clothing store, looked expensive.' stated CommandoBob.
'I found a receiving dock with a dumpster nearby, down a short alley. My old stuff is in the dumpster.'
'Show me.'
In just a few minutes the other tuxedo was gone, too, and both men were walking to the train station, following the locomotive signs and arrows posted along the streetsides.
'Did you keep the belt, Peter?'
'Yeah, why? It's the only belt I've worn over here.'
'Good. Back in Free, just to be safe because we were traveling abroad, I took the precaution of having a duplicate set of ID papers sewn inside of everyone's belt. I didn't think we need them, but I went ahead and did it, just as insurance. Now that there's a war on -'
'We've got a way to prove who we are, if we need to. Good thinking.'
They walked in silence as they neared the train station.
'Uh, by the way, Mr. Kent, where are we taking the train to?'
'Sugar Mountain, near the coast. Have you ever been to The Great Library? Wonderful place.'
'We need to change clothes,' said CommandoBob. 'What Niklas said made some sense, but people will remember two men in tuxedos.'
'I'm hungry. I don't remember the last time I ate.'
Ahead was a small resturant, McGongald's. They entered it and CommandoBob headed for the door that said 'MENS'. The room inside was empty. He entered a stall and flushed the toilet. over the sound of running water he dug through the backpack and found the stash of local currency. A few bills were rather small, but many had 3 digits on them. He took one of those and the smaller ones and stuffed the larger ones into his left front
pocket and the smaller into his right pocket. He exited the room and met his partner outside. Quickly he glanced over the menu and said, 'I'm buying; you find us a place to sit.'
Once he got the meal to the table he sat down and told the other tuxedo, 'Eat fast. We gotta leave soon.' He spoke quietly.
The other one opened up the paper wrapping, took the hand meal and took out a large chunk of it. 'Mmwmwy?' he asked.
'We don't fit in here. We're way overdressed. We stick out like a sore thumb.' He took a sip of his drink and then a bite of food. 'We're about to have a fight.'
'?'
'I'm going to start it, you follow my lead. After it's over, you go left and I'll go right. We'll meet back in the middle one block south of here. Got it?'
Peter swallowed and nodded in reply. 'Got it.'
CommandoBob suddenly stood up, knocking some food onto the floor. 'Take it back!' he said rather loudly, nasally and in a higher pitch than normal. 'You take that back this instance, do you hear?'
Schieckele rose slowly to his feet and placed his hands on the table. 'I will not. What I said was the truth and you know it.' His voice, normally rather soft, now boomed throughout the small room.
'Was not. It's a lie. Lie, lie, lie!' shrilled CommandoBob, and stomping his feet.
'It's the truth, but you're too stupid to see it,' growled the other actor in the drama.
'Oh, now I'm stupid am I? Just last week I was the most brilliant thing you had ever seen. But now I'm stupid.'
'You're stupid and you dye your hair and I don't want to see you again!'
'Well, I can take a hint. But first,' and here he took the remains of his hand meal and slowly spread it all over Peter's face. The meaty portion fell to the table, but the liquids just dripped from his face. Schickele's brows knit together and his face turned deep red.
'Why, you little - ' he began as he pulled his right arm back and balled his fist.
Suddenly a large man in a green uniform with a badge stepped between the two men and pushed them apart.
'Allright, what's going on here, huh? Somebody want to tell me?' he glared at both men, his hands now on his hips.
'He started it,' bleated CommandoBob, with a slight sniff. 'He said the flute player was prettier than I was. And,' here he stopped for a breath and a sob, 'that she didn't have to dye her hair like I did.'
'Oh, I see,' stated the man in green, now obviously a cop, to Peter. 'Trying to break up quietly in a public place, aren't we? Git outta here,' he said, grabbing both men and pulling them towards the door.
'My brother runs a respectable place and your scarin' the customers. Now git,' he said, pushing them out the door.
'But!' wailed CommandoBob.
'Is this your gear?' asked the cop. 'Well, go and get it.' So saying he threw one bag in each direction down the street. 'Go away and don't come back!'
'My treasures!' cried CommandoBob as he went to get the one thrown to the right.
'Good riddance, pest!' growled Peter as he picked up the one thrown to the left and kept walking down the street.
The other one sobbed as he picked up the back pack and continued down the street in the other direction.
In a few minutes the two men met up again. One of them had managed to change clothes.
'I saw a clothing store, looked expensive.' stated CommandoBob.
'I found a receiving dock with a dumpster nearby, down a short alley. My old stuff is in the dumpster.'
'Show me.'
In just a few minutes the other tuxedo was gone, too, and both men were walking to the train station, following the locomotive signs and arrows posted along the streetsides.
'Did you keep the belt, Peter?'
'Yeah, why? It's the only belt I've worn over here.'
'Good. Back in Free, just to be safe because we were traveling abroad, I took the precaution of having a duplicate set of ID papers sewn inside of everyone's belt. I didn't think we need them, but I went ahead and did it, just as insurance. Now that there's a war on -'
'We've got a way to prove who we are, if we need to. Good thinking.'
They walked in silence as they neared the train station.
'Uh, by the way, Mr. Kent, where are we taking the train to?'
'Sugar Mountain, near the coast. Have you ever been to The Great Library? Wonderful place.'
CommandoBob
AbstractArt
CommandoBob and Peter Schickele walked into the Grand Plaza of The Great Library and looked around. Off tot the right were public lockers where they stowed their back packs.
'Follow me,' said CommandoBob.
At a leisurely pace the two men strolled through various ante-chambers and displays of ancient and modern wisdom. Then CommandoBob just opened a door and beckoned Schieckle to follow. He did. Without speaking, CommandoBob started walking at a brisk pace down the narrow hallway. Schieckele struggled to keep up. They went up several flights of stairs
and passed many doors. Most had writing above the door frame but there was no time to read. Finally they stopped by a door that looked like all the other doors they had passed before.
'Almost there.'
This door opened up onto a thick carpet in a richly paneled hallway. Still leading the way, CommandoBob strode down the hallway and stopped in front of a door that said 'The Great Librarian' and under that in smaller letters, 'Hector Archimedes'. CommandoBob smiled. 'This is the man we want to see.' And he opened the door.
As expected, this room was nicely decorated. A lady sat behind a desk and seemed suprised to see them. Before she could say a word she was asked 'Is Hector in?' by CommandoBob as he walked across the room to another door. 'Yes, I mean no, he's busy right now,' she began.
'That's okay, he'll see us,' she was told while that door was being opened. The two men walked in and tried to close the door behind them but the secretary kept it open.
'I'm sorry Mr. Archimedes, but they wouldn't listen to me.'
Hector sat behind his desk and looked up from his reading. He looked at the two men and slowly asked, 'What can I do for you?'
'We would like to discuss the cleanliness of the facilites here. Specifically, the cleanliness of the executive facilities,' started CommmandoBob.
The Great Librarian leaned back in his chair and chewed on a pencil.
'Miss Jones, I think I'll be okay. We shouldn't need to call security, but you can if it would make you feel safer.'
'If you say so. I may call security anyway, just in case.'
'Ma'am, we need five minutes alone with your boss. We are not armed and mean no harm. We simply have a private business deal to discuss.'
'Plus,' added Peter, 'five elementary school buses just pulled up out front. Security is going to be more worried about little Johnny destroying a priceless antique than they are about us.'
'What?' exclaimed Archimedes as he jumped up from his chair and looked out the window. 'Five buses? That's not until tomorrow. Miss Jones, go help Security; I'll be down shortly.'
'Yes, Mr. Archimedes, sir.' And she left, closing the door behind her.
'Now, gentlemen, let's make this brief, since I don't have much time. What is this private bussiness deal? How much does she want this time to stay quiet?'
'You've got us wrong,' corrected CommandoBob. 'We're not here about that.'
'Well, hurry up then.'
'Here's the situation. The FreeZers came in and captured the city and did not damage this complex. Gong liberated the city and still no damage. Pretty good. But the city lost a lot of people and those guys in teal are still camped out on the beaches northwest of here. The counterattack cost a lot of lives and until the FreeZers are gone the larger cities are going to be drafted to provide military units.'
'So.'
'So, suddenly this place is extremely important. The Freezers destroyed a lot of libraries, but they left this one untouched. There is probably more learning here than in the rest of Gong combined.'
'Maybe.'
'That means lots of influential people will be coming here. Lot's of big shots using your potties. And that is where we want to help.'
'We do?' asked Schickele.
'You do? How?' shot back Archimedes.
'We want to clean your bathrooms. For a small price, of course.'
'Of course,' sneered Hector, 'And your small price is...'
'Uniform, supplies, a place to sleep and food to eat.'
'Sure,' shot back the disbelieving Librarian.
'Consider your benefits,' countered CommandoBob. 'First, no head count. We won't appear on any audit of the books. Second, you've got plenty of empty and vacant rooms in the lower levels, places that no one goes to anymore. We'll use one of those. Third, that gives you some extra places to put those sons and daughters of the influential who want their children to avoid the rigors of war. And all you have to do is just increase your student count and give us food passes. That shouldn't be too hard, students are always coming and going and their precise number is always sort of vague.'
The Great Librarian sat down, a puzzled look on his face.
'You're serious about this. Do you know how many bathrooms there are here?'
'My last count was 200 stalls each, men and women, in the public area for the masses, about 200 combined stalls in 18 various locations for the support staff, and 50 or so for the executive staff and one, and only one, private potty for you.'
'Yeah, those were the numbers a few years back, but we've grown since then. Six hundred public stalls and 300 support staff stalls.'
Now he got wary.
'But what's in it for you two? That's quite a bit of messy work for a place to sleep and cafteria food to eat.'
'Well,' said CommandoBob, putting on a big smile, 'It's like this. You see, I'm CommandoBob and he is Peter Schickele and we're both FreeZers, and we are sort of responsible for this war and we're just looking for a place to hide out until peace breaks out.'
Archimedes spread his hands wide. 'Okay, okay, if you don't want to tell me just say so. I was curious, that's all. No need to make up stories.'
'Now, I've got to go and help Security with crowd control. You are going to help me. And after that, once we get the ankle biters out of our hair, the potties are yours, gentleman, they are all yours.'
'Follow me,' said CommandoBob.
At a leisurely pace the two men strolled through various ante-chambers and displays of ancient and modern wisdom. Then CommandoBob just opened a door and beckoned Schieckle to follow. He did. Without speaking, CommandoBob started walking at a brisk pace down the narrow hallway. Schieckele struggled to keep up. They went up several flights of stairs
and passed many doors. Most had writing above the door frame but there was no time to read. Finally they stopped by a door that looked like all the other doors they had passed before.
'Almost there.'
This door opened up onto a thick carpet in a richly paneled hallway. Still leading the way, CommandoBob strode down the hallway and stopped in front of a door that said 'The Great Librarian' and under that in smaller letters, 'Hector Archimedes'. CommandoBob smiled. 'This is the man we want to see.' And he opened the door.
As expected, this room was nicely decorated. A lady sat behind a desk and seemed suprised to see them. Before she could say a word she was asked 'Is Hector in?' by CommandoBob as he walked across the room to another door. 'Yes, I mean no, he's busy right now,' she began.
'That's okay, he'll see us,' she was told while that door was being opened. The two men walked in and tried to close the door behind them but the secretary kept it open.
'I'm sorry Mr. Archimedes, but they wouldn't listen to me.'
Hector sat behind his desk and looked up from his reading. He looked at the two men and slowly asked, 'What can I do for you?'
'We would like to discuss the cleanliness of the facilites here. Specifically, the cleanliness of the executive facilities,' started CommmandoBob.
The Great Librarian leaned back in his chair and chewed on a pencil.
'Miss Jones, I think I'll be okay. We shouldn't need to call security, but you can if it would make you feel safer.'
'If you say so. I may call security anyway, just in case.'
'Ma'am, we need five minutes alone with your boss. We are not armed and mean no harm. We simply have a private business deal to discuss.'
'Plus,' added Peter, 'five elementary school buses just pulled up out front. Security is going to be more worried about little Johnny destroying a priceless antique than they are about us.'
'What?' exclaimed Archimedes as he jumped up from his chair and looked out the window. 'Five buses? That's not until tomorrow. Miss Jones, go help Security; I'll be down shortly.'
'Yes, Mr. Archimedes, sir.' And she left, closing the door behind her.
'Now, gentlemen, let's make this brief, since I don't have much time. What is this private bussiness deal? How much does she want this time to stay quiet?'
'You've got us wrong,' corrected CommandoBob. 'We're not here about that.'
'Well, hurry up then.'
'Here's the situation. The FreeZers came in and captured the city and did not damage this complex. Gong liberated the city and still no damage. Pretty good. But the city lost a lot of people and those guys in teal are still camped out on the beaches northwest of here. The counterattack cost a lot of lives and until the FreeZers are gone the larger cities are going to be drafted to provide military units.'
'So.'
'So, suddenly this place is extremely important. The Freezers destroyed a lot of libraries, but they left this one untouched. There is probably more learning here than in the rest of Gong combined.'
'Maybe.'
'That means lots of influential people will be coming here. Lot's of big shots using your potties. And that is where we want to help.'
'We do?' asked Schickele.
'You do? How?' shot back Archimedes.
'We want to clean your bathrooms. For a small price, of course.'
'Of course,' sneered Hector, 'And your small price is...'
'Uniform, supplies, a place to sleep and food to eat.'
'Sure,' shot back the disbelieving Librarian.
'Consider your benefits,' countered CommandoBob. 'First, no head count. We won't appear on any audit of the books. Second, you've got plenty of empty and vacant rooms in the lower levels, places that no one goes to anymore. We'll use one of those. Third, that gives you some extra places to put those sons and daughters of the influential who want their children to avoid the rigors of war. And all you have to do is just increase your student count and give us food passes. That shouldn't be too hard, students are always coming and going and their precise number is always sort of vague.'
The Great Librarian sat down, a puzzled look on his face.
'You're serious about this. Do you know how many bathrooms there are here?'
'My last count was 200 stalls each, men and women, in the public area for the masses, about 200 combined stalls in 18 various locations for the support staff, and 50 or so for the executive staff and one, and only one, private potty for you.'
'Yeah, those were the numbers a few years back, but we've grown since then. Six hundred public stalls and 300 support staff stalls.'
Now he got wary.
'But what's in it for you two? That's quite a bit of messy work for a place to sleep and cafteria food to eat.'
'Well,' said CommandoBob, putting on a big smile, 'It's like this. You see, I'm CommandoBob and he is Peter Schickele and we're both FreeZers, and we are sort of responsible for this war and we're just looking for a place to hide out until peace breaks out.'
Archimedes spread his hands wide. 'Okay, okay, if you don't want to tell me just say so. I was curious, that's all. No need to make up stories.'
'Now, I've got to go and help Security with crowd control. You are going to help me. And after that, once we get the ankle biters out of our hair, the potties are yours, gentleman, they are all yours.'
CommandoBob
AbstractArt
While not written, CB and PS meet the Prince and Yiral of Gong. CB and PS manage to build a radio or somehow pass information along to Free about current unit placments. They are present when Gong attempts to destory the Great Library and try to prevent it.
CommandoBob
AbstractArt
Evening was just beginning when CommandoBob stepped out onto the roof of The Great Library. For some time now it had been his habit to spend the evenings and part of the night on the highest portion of The Great Library Complex, which towered over the city of Sugar Mountain. The Great Library was built into the side of Sugar Mountain, a fact that he knew quite well. Some parts even went all the way through Sugar Mountain and opened up to the grasslands near the coast, but these were small and well hidden. Right now, as he walked to his little, private spot on the rooftop where he kept his tables and chairs, he noticed the quiet of the city. When he had first arrived it had taken damage from the war, but ever since it had slowly shrunk in size and each night seemed quieter than the last.
As he completed his last steps across the concrete to his terraced retreat on the rooftop he saw that the door was open. Strange. Nothing of any real value was inside, no gold or gems, and the furniture had seen better days. Not too worried, he stepped inside and saw that whoever had broken the padlock was still inside and resting in one of the easy chairs.
'Can I help you?'
The person in the chair arose. He was clad in a dull, dark green outfit, with short, sturdy boots.
'If you are CommandoBob, why, yes you can.'
'CommandoBob? Isn't he a FreeZer? I thought he was dead.'
'Oh, no, he is very much alive, aren't you?'
'But I'm...'
'Clark Kent, yes I know. Hector Archimedes told me all about you.'
'He did?'
'Sure he did, how else would I know where to find you?'
CommandoBob shut his open mouth and then frowned knowingly. 'Touche.'
'And he told me about your pay arrangments. And the private study areas that you rented out to the students here, down in the lower levels.'
'He told you about that?'
'Well, his son let it slip one day. He's a student here, by the way. Hector liked the idea but as Great Librarian he could not implement such a plan. So he did nothing, while you helped him by removing, ah, study distractions, away from the studious.
'And then recently he approached me about his suspicions of you and Peter. And now we are here.
'Allow me to introduce myself. I am PrinceMyshkin, Commander of Gong Forces.'
'Prince MaShooSkin?'
The other laughed slightly. 'No, not even close. Prince will do just fine.'
'Then call me CB. Now, one of the first things I do is fix some coffee when I get here. It's decaf, but it's warm and it does get chilly here. Want some?'
Prince nodded slowly. 'Yes, I think I will have a cup or two.'
'I've got some homemade pizza. It won't take long to cook. Hungry?'
'Now you're talking. Yes!'
The next few minutes were spent making small talk while the pizza baked and the coffee brewed. CB told of how the room had been built, which was mostly with college labor and a great sense of humor. 'I really didn't think they would do all of this, but they just loved the idea of a janitor having his own place on the roof. And building it in secrecy and getting it wired for electricity without other libary people knowing anything about it.'
~~~~~~~
After dinner, Prince asks and CB explains the war (screenshots?), as was seen from here and from Gong newspaper accounts.
CB tells Prince the war is lost, but Prince already knows that.
Prince hints/tells CB about the plan to destroy the Great Library.
16 million tons of C4 for The Great Library.
CB tells Prince that Sugar Mountain sits on a fault line and that much explosives could trigger an earthquake.
Prince has men on the rooftop, protecting him, but CB did not see them.
Prince assigns Vinnie and Mack to be CB's bodyguards out of the city.
Prince and CB part ways.
(None of which conflicts with PrinceMyshkin's story, as far as I can tell).
As he completed his last steps across the concrete to his terraced retreat on the rooftop he saw that the door was open. Strange. Nothing of any real value was inside, no gold or gems, and the furniture had seen better days. Not too worried, he stepped inside and saw that whoever had broken the padlock was still inside and resting in one of the easy chairs.
'Can I help you?'
The person in the chair arose. He was clad in a dull, dark green outfit, with short, sturdy boots.
'If you are CommandoBob, why, yes you can.'
'CommandoBob? Isn't he a FreeZer? I thought he was dead.'
'Oh, no, he is very much alive, aren't you?'
'But I'm...'
'Clark Kent, yes I know. Hector Archimedes told me all about you.'
'He did?'
'Sure he did, how else would I know where to find you?'
CommandoBob shut his open mouth and then frowned knowingly. 'Touche.'
'And he told me about your pay arrangments. And the private study areas that you rented out to the students here, down in the lower levels.'
'He told you about that?'
'Well, his son let it slip one day. He's a student here, by the way. Hector liked the idea but as Great Librarian he could not implement such a plan. So he did nothing, while you helped him by removing, ah, study distractions, away from the studious.
'And then recently he approached me about his suspicions of you and Peter. And now we are here.
'Allow me to introduce myself. I am PrinceMyshkin, Commander of Gong Forces.'
'Prince MaShooSkin?'
The other laughed slightly. 'No, not even close. Prince will do just fine.'
'Then call me CB. Now, one of the first things I do is fix some coffee when I get here. It's decaf, but it's warm and it does get chilly here. Want some?'
Prince nodded slowly. 'Yes, I think I will have a cup or two.'
'I've got some homemade pizza. It won't take long to cook. Hungry?'
'Now you're talking. Yes!'
The next few minutes were spent making small talk while the pizza baked and the coffee brewed. CB told of how the room had been built, which was mostly with college labor and a great sense of humor. 'I really didn't think they would do all of this, but they just loved the idea of a janitor having his own place on the roof. And building it in secrecy and getting it wired for electricity without other libary people knowing anything about it.'
~~~~~~~
After dinner, Prince asks and CB explains the war (screenshots?), as was seen from here and from Gong newspaper accounts.
CB tells Prince the war is lost, but Prince already knows that.
Prince hints/tells CB about the plan to destroy the Great Library.
16 million tons of C4 for The Great Library.
CB tells Prince that Sugar Mountain sits on a fault line and that much explosives could trigger an earthquake.
Prince has men on the rooftop, protecting him, but CB did not see them.
Prince assigns Vinnie and Mack to be CB's bodyguards out of the city.
Prince and CB part ways.
(None of which conflicts with PrinceMyshkin's story, as far as I can tell).
Empiremaker
Human Fish
I checked the save, and GONG is eliminated.
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