A small city in Greenland, the northermost inhabited city in the world and subject to polar climates. It's not quite small enough for everyone to know everyone, but quite enough that outsiders are obvious. This is a human city, with a few winter-related dragons thrown in.

---

Early the next day, Yin is critically examining these infiltration plans one last time. There's actually a silo here...pretty advanced. No indication on the surface except for a shop for lighting fixtures innovatedly built in an old water purification station. The owner has a quaint, well-decorated and restored little abode in an adapted water tower. One guess as to what else it can do. The dragoon's looking for anything missed...this has to be perfect the first time. They need to move to the next target, there's no time for a feint.

She hasn't slept. She likely won't until this is over. She'd popped the first of what will no doubt be a string of stimulants. Head's killing her, but cognitive impairment is gone. After considerable debate, she and Arux had parted ways. She's leading a team of handpicked agents from several other units. It may have caused a leadership crisis with a former second-in-command present with a current one...for Arux and members alike.

Taps a pen. No, she's sure nothing's been missed. This sting is ready to go.

"Okay... commander Iejir? We've got a positive read on the number of hostiles." Her on-loan tech guy, one of Menayen's many contacts given the heads up around the world, hands a printed sheet to Yin. "There are about ten of them. They'll have pretty quick access to a cache of AK-47 and 74 rifles, and probably some frag grenades too. Some of the members won't be in the target area, since they have to keep up their cover. But we should expect high surveillance on the inside of that shop."

Yin nods a bit. Doesn't look up just yet, reconsidering what he's told her while looking at the blueprints. "As big a fan as I am of covert infiltration, it isn't going to happen here. This is going to have to be a classic sting. Fast takedowns that prevent alarms from being sounded. Neutralization of arms should be complete within..." scans again. "Four minutes, to keep the full cell from mobilizing."

"Have to hit all entrances at once, then. I'm gonna see about screwing with the power grid in that area, and getting it to shut down all at once. They'll have generators, but probably on back up so that the city doesn't wonder about them being off the bill."

Yin nods. "Great." Looks up. "Keep me posted. If you can get it down, don't hit it until I signal, and please clear tampering with me ahead of time. They do have someone working at the hydroelectric plant, and I'm not sure what level of 'see everything' she's attained."

"Righty-o."

"So we're going in armed, then? Do you know if it's just humans in there?" Arn Skaldjir, one of the local unit leaders and tactical leader working under Yin this time, approaches with a cup of iced iced coffee. An ice dragoon like Yin, he's worked with the armed forces aspect for a number of years.

"Very much so. Stun and lethal measures should both be available. Stun is preferrable on the strong majority of targets since they're likely to hide evidence of our attack themselves for the next couple of days." Yin looks up to him. "A whole mess of bodies is too visible. They aren't going to want to make it seem like anything but petty murder. An obvious cell cracked open gets every government looking for similarities with other cells, and they'll want to make sure at such a critical moment that other cells in the same network are left undisturbed. I'm confident that our people can jam communications with their superiors for at least a few hours to buy us time, while the sleepers cover from the civilian side. As for races...the vast majority are human. The second-in-command is a dragon. The commander is a half-dragon."

"Understood. So we won't need especially heavy weapons." Arn down the coffee. "It's a pretty well fortified place. I think the only way into it is through the front door, but I know they have a second entrance somewhere. Maybe in the basement of an adjeacent building."

Yin nods. "I'm going to handle the front team. The relatively 'loud' ones, since Millarca already has my number and my involvement won't come as a shock. You'll be working with the detachment looking for the second entrance, say, fifteen seconds behind, and will likely end up more involved with the neutralization itself than us. Rats do always have two holes." leans on entwined fingers, considering. "A wildcard is the dragonbloods. The fullblood is a mountain dragon. Very strong physically, and very resilient, but with mixed elemental ability and no damning skill in any. But the halfblood...has been smarter. There is no intelligence there. We don't know what kind of power level or element we're dealing with. Maybe he's just a longevous human. Maybe we should be worried about the ocean closing in on us. Quick neutralization is in order with that one.

"You and I are ice dragons. Why don't we just freeze the whole lower level?" Arn smiles a very paternal kind of smile. He's older than Yin in body, since he's not vampiric. "Between the two of us, we should be able to. And freezing the nuke will render it inoperable."

"Hm..." Yin considers this. "That is a damned good suggestion, Arn." Smiles a little. Fades. Considers. "We'll need to be covered to get close enough. Also, how weakened do you suppose you'll be after a maneuver of that scope, and how long do you think it will take to recover?" Looks up at him. Not as much as in the tropics. They're in their element here, the arctic circle in winter, and much more powerful for it.

"You'll fare better than I, I'm afraid, but considering what's on the line I'm more than willing to take the risk. Besides, I'll have my girlfriend with me." He glances to the corner, at a dark-haired, quiet-looking human woman of about thirty-four years of age. She has a peaceful aura to her that soaks into those around her as if by osmosis, calming their rattled nerves.

Yin nods, considering. Quiet. Finally. "Okay. Sounds good. We'll still need to get very close, but that does give us a much simpler neutralization method that puts a needed delay on problems like safely removing the warheads from the area." Looks up to the human. He's the tactical person for a reason, after all, and she's had a good deal of respect for him and his work for quite a long time. "I'll rework the plans to see if I can get us close enough without a visible sting. In the meantime, I'd like you to look over the specs and strategy possibilities for the Texas cell if you don't feel that it will impair your performance on this one. Nothing too in-depth, but opinions and impressions would be wonderful. You won't likely be able to maintain this same level of concentration for a few days and I'd like to get them while I can." The ice thing going to wipe him out. He'll be too deeply exhausted to be useful again before the global operation has either failed or succeeded. But by then, he'll have done his part.

"I can do that. Just tell me where they are." If he's tired, he hasn't shown it yet. "Everything should go right. You've done a good job mustering and leading our people."

Yin smiles, wryly. But then, her lips don't really know how to smile without a smirk. "Impending global doom is a fabulous incentive to behave and get along." Flips through some files as she speaks. Pulls one, and holds it out to him. "My briefing is on top. The rest is the intelligence spiders and dragons have gleaned on them through the years. I'll flag you down within the next couple of hours...with luck, we should be able to move in three."

Arn takes the file, almost reluctantly. Okay, so he's already worn out. Still, he bows his head a bit and moves without complaint. The calming woman doesn't go with him, but does offer him a tranquil little smile.

"Hey," tech guy calls to Yin, "I'm ready to bring down the grid, whenever you want."

Yin smiles at him. Nods. "Great. You're quick. What probability is there of them being able to stop you at this point?"

"Unless they have counterintelligence working in this room, less than five percent. If they do, well, eighty percent unless we find 'em first."

Yin nods. She wishes that she could be fully confident they don't. She doesn't think so...but double agents abound nowadays. Still...she might not fully distrust said traitors right now. Millarca has functioned on a "save some people from an inevitable calamity!" platform for a long time, and they've very much proven that that's an utter lie they have only days to dismantle. "Good. Grab an hour's rest before we get ready to go. That will give you plenty of time to re-prime anythign that deadens."

"Okee dokey." Tech guy is only too glad to. He's been at it a while, too. As he walks past the calming woman she gives him a long, searching, almost eviscerating gaze. He can't help but feel like she's taking him apart DNA strand by strand to examine him with that look.

Yin flips quietly through the blueprints again. Once tech-guy is gone. "Is something wrong, Agent Fjir?"

She turns her deconstructing gaze onto Yin. She has a soft purse to her lips, a thoughtfullness about her eyes-- no malice whatsoever, and yet the gaze is still a deeply troubling one even for the men around her.

"He is beautiful, in his way, is all." Her voice floats softly, like the footsteps of fog. "Even with the pocket protector and taped glasses."

Yin nods a bit. Aya bothers her. Can't read her. But she's been good for keeping people steady thus far. "You should probably take some rest too, if that's all."

"I would prefer to stay, if that is alright with you, commander." Aya looks down at the ground.

"Of course." Yin sets several blueprints side by side. Can they do this without a sting angle? Alone she could, but alone she couldn't freeze the lower level. Even if she had the power, she couldn't take the time and lack of backup in enemy territory to freeze it all, or probably get out afterward. And even though it's slightly lower than usual..."get everyone in and out safely" is very, very high on her list. Finally.. "is there something else on your mind, agent?"

"Millarca has eyes everywhere. He'll be watching his cells, almost certainly." She sets a delicate finger to her chin, likewise fragile-looking. "I simply want to watch our associates for treachery."

"Considering how many double agents I've had confirmed to me, the concern is near and dear." Nail trails half-idly along a marked pipeline. Expression clouds a little. She hates traitors. "I expect to be betrayed before the end of this, Agent Fjir. However...it should also be considered that Millarca's whole project has been based on an ideal for a very long time. Most of his agents--not to be confused with 'most mediators,' of course--have been working for a long time towards the goal of saving one or more races from an inevitable fallout, our dear bioterrorist friend cast in the role of 'benevolent though demanding savior'. I can only hope that his lies blowing up around him, proving almost the opposite of what he's been claiming, will have at least some buffering effect. It depends whether the individual follows Millarca or his supposed agenda." Looks up. "That agenda is ours now, except we mean it. Fissions are inevitable, people following us and their cause while others follow Millarca the name or man. I suspect that's the reason for the rifle malfunction in Japan earlier today. One of Millarca's who responded honorably to Millarca turning out to be the bad guy. Treachery remains likely. But less than it would have been."

"You would not have known to say such things a year ago, you know." Aya sits, and a few busy bees around her sit as well. "Did you know that I am one of those who believed his lies?"

"I wasn't the same person a year ago, or living in the same world," the dragoon returns. It almost surprises her. But...it's true. Eyes soften a bit, though pensive. Considers Aya's words. Nods inwardly. Outwardly, a little. She's not surprised. After a few moments..."it's quite a risk for you to have said so," she observes.

"Even more of a risk for someone to find out later," the witch points out. A few of the braver men have takena moment to glance at her mostly bare - despite the cold - waist, about which is wound a rattlesnake in stasis. "Wouldn't you agree?"

Yin smiles a bit. Nods. Good answer. She doesn't trust Aya totally, of course--a little bit of honesty makes for a much more complete lie--but then, she hadn't before, and quite a bit closer now. Looks back down to the blueprints. "So. Now that that's in the open...when did you decide that Millarca wasn't really the altruist in question, Aya? It couldn't have been an easy internal debate. He's a very convincing man."

"When he strung the ex Wyvern general up on the gallows for half an hour for suggesting that the threat might not be real."

Yin closes her eyes just a moment at this. Can't help it. She's been so worried about Revilier this last month. It's been making her insane, the not knowing. Hearing his voice yesterday was the biggest relief of her life. But...he's suffering through the time. Knew he must be. But the confirmation hurts. Eyes open, and she just nods. "That would do it. Contrary opinions are much less threatening than that when you're telling the truth."

Taps idly on the blueprint. Why does she keep coming back to this spot? There's something useful her subconscious is trying to tell her.... "No matter. It's in the open now. We're going to actually spare the races from a nuclear Holocaust, or we're going to die just a little early trying to. This one goal is so tantamount that what comes next after is hardly even worth considering yet. Glad to have you, Aya."

"You're seeing a water access pipe. It's big. You could freeze the water somewhere up the pipe, enter it easily."  Aya looks back up. "Enter easily."

"Mm..." Yin considers. Nods a bit. "We'll need to be fast. A town this far north with plumbing is going to have some very good de-icing methods, and likely accurate methods of detecting frozen pipes as well. But then, we'll only need a few minutes." Begins flipping through the infrastructure. That might work, actually...there are water pipes throughout the structure, of course there are. If they can get a small team in there... "Five-person squad on site. Two on standby for cover fire and as lookouts, one to set charges and wreck these mains...and your boyfriend and I to use the water to freeze the warhead level."

"My wha?" At this, Aya actually loses a bit of that calmness she's exuded the entire time. "Who said that? My coven would be terribly upset to hear that."

One of the techs passes another five bucks. "You were right."

Yin laughs softly. It's a much needed release, really. "Nevermind, then. My mistake." Menayen is friends with little pervs. Imagine that. Has to smirk sidelong at the bill passing. "Major Skaldjir and I will be there to freeze the level."

"Ah... alright, then. What should I do?" Aya's talents are, like pointing out the real-life features of that spot on the map, primarily concerned with surveillance.

"Make sure that if we've been detected, we know about it immediately." Yin nods a bit. "It won't be an easy situation for it, but...well, that's your specialty. I don't need to tell you that."

"Of course. I will be in the next room with a map, then. Please let me know if you need anything." Aya heads that way, the snake slithering around her waist and belly in a loop.

Yin nods. Breathes out, closes her eyes a moment. She's still too tired for this. Confirmed Mediator. Aya could still go either way. Still...at this point, she's not sure it wouldn't cause more problems to cut her out. And instinct says to believe her...on their side, at lesat for this one endeavor.

Walks off, herself, to consult with her weapons specialist.

---

Two hours later, Yin has awakened her tech and approaches Arn. "Well? What do you think?"

"I think the setup in Texas is the same as this place. It's a grocery store, though. Everything we've decided to do ought to work in both places, with a little variation for the different dragons that live in Texas." Hot, so Ice Dragons dislike it. And it's Texas.

Yin smiles a bit. Nods. "So, Ford-driving dragons. Fair enough. How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay. Aya smacked me for the girlfriend comment, and I'm just glad that she didn't hex me." He grins. "No matter how much you want something to be true, right? I'll never get lesbians, no matter how you interpret that statement."

The white-haired dragoon laughs softly. "All of the above. Sorry about that, by the way."

"Ah, I had it coming. Anyway... we can proceed on this any time you're ready. I'm as prepared for my part as I will ever be." Arn straightens up a bit. Business, now.

Yin nods. "The others are ready to go. We're taking demolition and two combat. Freezing a large water main and entering that way, and hopefully leaving the way we came."

"Right. Okay, let's do this, then. Do you have anyone else you need to contact to get this party going?"

"Nope. Not yet."

"Alright, let's have at it." Arn smiles a little bit more brightly. "We're saving the world, do you believe it?"

Yin smiles a bit as she turns to head towards transport with him. "Well. That's our job."

"Is it?" Arn trots next to her. Greenland is Greenland, and it's blissfully cold. "I thought we were more for keeping the status quo."

"Well, that too. But nuclear fallout's bad for said status quo. It's hard to listen to a general who's mutated into having a miniscule penis growing out of his forehead." This to avoid a rant. It's not the time to have any revelations about how modern dragons treat dragoons, no. As it is, she just smirks. The weather is heavenly.

"Oh, I just mean that nothing this big generally happens. Usually it just affects us, you know." Arn takes the hint, though.

The light store isn't horrendously far from base. Far enough that their presence is likely to go unnoticed, and as the vehicle approaches the street, a fairly typical semi-urban street, nothing seems out of sorts at all.

"Stop here." Once it has, Yin steps out of the car--hair and horns tucked beneath her old black cowboy hat--and sets her hand to the ground near manhole 227D. Hopes to freeze the pipeline.

No one really gives her much notice. Arn hops out on the other side, smiling at anyone who looks and waving them on. It's subtle enough in this weather that the only real physical sign of the pipe freezing is the sound of creaking and cracking ice. 

A worker in the fixture store glances through the mostly glass store front, arbitrarily.

And Yin "finds" and picks up a cell phone she'd dropped three inches a moment before. Brushes it off, flips it open to see if it still works. Grins up at Arn after a moment, and stands up. "Still works, despite my best efforts. Loops her arm around his, leaning on him a touch, as she puts the cell phone away, and sets off walking down the street, looking around or cracking a joke, grinning, and laughing easily as they go. Greenland is such a nice vacation spot for the true traveller.

The worker eventually moves away from the window. Arn just chuckles to himself. 

"So the pipe's frozen, we're in the clear, and I am having a great day. What next?"

Yin grins. Still that front, but she looks like she's having a great time. "We walk four blocks and hope it's cleared by now. The power will be cut in three. The others will meet us there. So...just enjoy the weather for the moment, I guess. It is lovely to not be in the middle of a real summer."

"Isn't it? How are you doing with the sunlight, though?" Arn knows her very well, mostly from file research. "It's pretty powerful today."

Yin smiles. "I can barely see and I think my brain is trying to pulverize its way out. But that is entirely inconsequential. We'll be underground soon."

Arn nods. Remind me not to ask about your health again.

Blocks pass. Arn separates from Yin a step, feeling that familiar apprehension creeping into his bones. People mosey along on all sides as though nothing unusual is happening.

"Okay. Thanks." Yin looks over to Arn as they approach the manhole. "Power's down."

"Great. So where do we enter the pipe?"

Yin holds out a "department of water services" cap as they approach a manhole surrounded by four orange cones. "Right here." Three familiar guys in similar caps--caps from the government, a simple surprise inspection that local city services had been informed of--have lifted the cover and are just heading down. "We'll be freer to work in the sewer.

"Good call." Arn dons the cap. Wonders. Stiffens a bit more as he heads down the ladder. He's been paid handsomely to subdue Yin, dead or alive but preferably alive. She's a genuine threat to Millarca, that's sure, but the Mediator's cause is just not Arn's own. Yin, for all her flaws, is a good, honest person. Still, he'd accepted the payment. Still further, Yin does not deserve a backstab.

He's still considering this as they slog though the cold pipes.

Yin would not be surprised to receive a knife to the back. She suspects no one in particular, and everyone, and has no expectations of whether she'll survive the next two days. She can only pray that she's made the right personnel calls in the field part of this mission and that it will be competed. Stops after a block of quick walking, looking to demolition guy. "This wall leads to our pipe. I don't hear running water. Get us in there."

Demolition guy, an Earth dragoon with a muscular chest like two kegs standing next to each other, nods for her. He sets a hand to the wall, looking for something to manipulate. 

"Everyone, hang back." He's a local, and his accent is so thick that the English comes out like peanut butter. The wall spiderweb cracks. Begins to separate.

And then bursts inward. Arn, thinking that there would be no better time to kill her or wound her and be done with it, closes his eyes. And steps away from her. Not today.

"Alright," Yin nearly growls, relieved that no water bursts through..."Arn with me. Yian and Bennett ahead. Deniigi behind for the moment. We have three minutes to get there and fewer to get out, so let's hurry it up." Takes off running behind the first two.

Arn goes. This job is important, after all...

It's empty. The hole leads into a vast warehouse full of crates and such, and even the missile is just sitting there, ready to launch, but untended. Scrambling footsteps can be heard from above as the backup generators kick in, though.

Yin glances up. Sprinkler system. Hadn't been in the plans. But of course there's one. You don't want a fire in with a nuclear missile. Nice. That saves the trouble of breaking pipes when a fire dragon's with you. "Yian, set off that sprinkler system. Bennett with me, ready to cover. Arn, be ready to supplement the ice. Start without command when I do." Takes off across the room in a quiet hurry, leary of traps or plans, flanked by a friendly machine gun.

The players play their parts. A searing gust of flame licks at the ceiling, setting a downpour over the nuclear device. The others keep their eyes open, once firing at a set of feet tromping down stairs and forcing them to back off.

Yin drops to a knee, sliding to a stop in the water to save seconds, hands pressing into the growing film on the floor. A trial of ice crystals immediatly shoots from teh floor, racing for the missile and using the water as a springboard from which to begin to wrap and into around thrusters, guidance components, the warhead...to render inoperable, and to encase far too deeply in ice to wrest any time soon. She hopes.

Arn rolls to the floor a moment later, adding his strength Yin's. The ice swirls around the missile like a creeping vine, choking it down as bullets begin to rain all around. A slab of earth seals the stairs, buying them a bit more time.

"Everyone," Aya's voice floats through the air, "a full Shadow Dragon is on approach. Hurry."

Yin's brow twitches, but her hands don't. Shadow? From where? They aren't equipped to take on a full shadow dragon. Doesn't matter. "Thanks, Fjir." The ice soars suddenly. She's putting a painful amount of power into it...and her guardian dragon happens to be strong in his own right. Ice hits the ceiling, a gleaming crystalline column around and inside the warhead. That begins to expand rapidly. The water on all the crates begins to freeze and expand a foot or so all through the room, to make them impossible to pull apart again.

Releases a slightly blooded breath about twenty seconds later. Her hands and magic is still active, ice still expanding. "Fall back. We're done here, get back to the sewer and get the hell out. Deniigi, if Arn's having trouble, carry his ass."

"Roger," the earth growls, and drags the semi-conscious dragoon from the floor. The others obey instantly, and vanish into the sewer without hesitating a breath.

Yin breathes out, trembling. One last thing...all the doors ice shut thickly. The ice stops after a crust. She grits her teeth, and it shoots outward. Sinks onto her hands a moment. No. There's no way they can get this place or missile operational. Tries to rise. Stumbles, mustering herself, and grudgingly starts running.

Enough of the facility is caught off guard and neutralized by this point that there's little resistance to the escape. The other members of the team clear two hostiles - one with a fist, the other with a temporary wall of rock - and lead Yin back to the surface in relative safety.

Yin, I am sending a spell to help your strength. It will not last long, so please hurry to the extraction point. Aya's voice only just precedes a cooling in the air, a cold mist that dims the sunlight around Yin.

Yin breathes out. "You're way up there on my list of favorite people at the moment," she notes as her running picks up speed to match the rest of the team's. "There's no way helping being conspicuous, so just worry about speed. Get to the extraction point," she note-barks to her team, carefully watching everyone's movements a few moments to check for injuries.

All of them know their part. Only one of them, the earth, as it turns out, seems to be wounded and that wound is just nick from a stray bullet. This could not have gone better.

As they turn a corner, the tail of a starting helicopter can be seen in a nearby park. 

Yin's tensely alert, scanning around them despite the bright sunlight, a pistol ready. She's relieved when they get to the helicopter, getting everyone else loaded on first.

It goes smoothly. For the most part. Smoothly except for the enormous shadow dragon that appears in the sky as the bird begins to rise.

The commander almost cringes. Fan-fucking-tastic. As easy as it is to lose a sense of how powerful dragons really are, living and working with them...she knows well enough to not doubt how much trouble they're in right now. Bites her lip. Shadow... "Fire off all our flares, as close to its head as possible! Don't shoot at it, they won't be effective! Then with the speed, get above it!"

The pilot, a nameless soldier who never asked for more than that, does exactly as told. The dragon banks, smokey tendrils already flowing from his neck and plesiosaur-like head. The flares burst and flashbang the entire city down below. The dragon wheels, screaming at the light.

"Hold on!" The pilot shouts as the chopper jerks and rises up and back.

"Aya," Yin snaps as she locks a rifle into place, "confirmed that this isn't one of ours?"

"The dragon is feral," Aya answers, though her voice is strained. The presence of the dragon causes tremors in her spell. "It just appeared out of the mountains."

Yin's brow creases. Feral...? Rare. Why's he here, why now, why attacking them? "Check. Get away from that thing fast, stay above it at all times!" It can't just be territorial. They hadn't encroached any more than anyone else. But it's a possibility. Takes aim with the rifle, steady on the trigger. They'll just have to see what happens next.

As the chopper rises, gaining ground from the dazzled dragons, the pilot quite suddenly turns his head to look out the side window.

"What the hell is all that?" He asks no in particular. "That's not on our surveillance." 

In the distance, behind the dragon's trajectory, the mountains fall away to reveal an in-progress city with four towers at the cardinal ends. It's several miles out, but it's there.

Yin narrows her eyes. It's like Millarca's city. But...the dragon ones are supposed to be in South Africa and Mexico. "Ponder, get those coordinates to Okarthel immediately and see what you can do about surveillance."

"Roger."

The dragon, by now, seems less intent on the chopper. It growls and streams back toward the city, leaving only a dark aura in its trail.

"It's fleeing. Yin. Word is coming in from other teams, requesting permission to move." Aya's voice sounds somewhat less strained now.

Finger eases from the trigger. It rubs her dragoon feathers the wrong way to shoot a dragon, anyway. "Brief me on their statuses."

"All are in place. There is... activity among the other cells."

"Permissions granted."

---

One hour later, the chopper has returned to the somewhat secret base. Arn is lying on a couch, recovering himself. Aya stands near him, sprinkling things on him and chanting. Ponder just watches, fixed on Aya's ceremonial vestment of a few well placed chains and two snakes.

"Yin," Alou's voice says over a speaker, "as far as we know, all our targetted cells are down. There was one launch, but a Chinese anti-missile defense laser shot it down. You did it."

Yin almost smiles tiredly. It fades. Let's see what comes next. Does't know if there's a contingency, but...still. Allows that slight smile through. "Nah. The sum total of my involvement includes slapping all the races' intelligence agencies and trying to get them to talk and work together." Snickers quietly. Yawns. "Has there been any movement from Millarca?" Damn. Latest stimulant is wearing off.

"Nothing. We do have word on that dome, though." A pause. "It's up. I don't know if Revilier got out, but the thing is enormous. Pakistani government's looking into it now."

A pause. Yin nods slowly. Revilier.... "God I hope they're not shielding against something they hid from us. Anyway...any word on that almost-city in Greenland yet?"

"Looks like a dragon-sized copy of the other one. It's too big, though, there's no way the infrastructure would hold for long. Dragons, you know. There've been a number of Ferals there lately, and I think someone put 'em there."

"Plus, I have yet to see evidence that it can be shielded like the Dome. Okarthel itself can get up strong enough magical shields to withstand a nuclear war, but the infrastructure would only be good for in the vacinity of seventy years to push it. Dragons are just solitary creatures...they aren't designed for cities, and that's probably because cities aren't designed for them. Can't get enough agriculture working for them; it would take enormous tracts of land not to mention the elemental variation on dragons." Slightly off track. Anyway... "Any thoughts on who planted the ferals? One did charge us, but it was shadow so we stunned it with flares to the eyes. What I want to know is why it attacked us when aircraft come and go all the time, and humanoids are always down in the city. It wasn't a coincidence, for certain."

"God only knows with a feral Shadow. Listen, you sound really wrecked, Yin. Get some sleep. Our part's done for now, so rest. Okay?"

"Yeah. I may or may not be back around soon...still waiting to see what draconic authority wants done with me. I still owe Gabriel a look at my spell for his part in this, too, but...well. I'm sure he can track me down himself if he needs me. Take care, Alou. Glad to hear you in one piece."

"Glad to hear from you, too. I'll be around." The line clicks off. Just like a spy, to end with a vague statement.

Meh. It's why she gets along with him. They "get" one another. Yin yawns...heads over and checks up with everyone once again...general health, psychological health, situations. Orders a few more people to retrieve a few resting ones and take their turns in bed, before finally assured that everything's in order. She wanders off to a bunk, herself. Sleep good.

---

Time passes. Aya orders everyone to leave Yin be for a while, so that she can recover herself. During this time, reports begin to flood in from around the world, detailing what could be the most effective tandem surgical strike in the history of military intelligence. Dozens of civilian installations damaged or destroyed, with two African villages of peoples seeming to disappear from the map.  Not all the strikes went as well as Yin's - there were casualties, and one team barely escaped intact - but the overall effect is the crippling of Millarca's efforts at scouring the planet.

All the while, Ponder studies what information he can on the Dome. A few attempts have been made to breach it - mostly out of curiosity, since no one really knew it was there until the shields went up.

The most interesting thing about it, though, is the apparent exodus of spiders, dragons, and wyverns from the city prior to raising the shield. In fleets they left the city, sometimes at gunpoint, until 99% of the city's populous was only human. many of those leaving were rounded up for questioning.

It is those reports that Ponder pores over as Yin sleeps, hours after she initially went to the bunk.

It is most grudgingly that Yin silences her beeping watch, yawning--she could do with another six hours, and now she's groggy, but it will ultimately have helped, anyway. She washes her face in a bowl she retrieves, water quite chilled, and returns to the unit. Looks around...glances at what Ponder's doing. Well. That's interesting. Heads over his way. "So. What's changed since I distracted myself with the inside of my eyelids?"

"Aya's gotten most of them men to drool by trying to invite one of the girls into her cult. I think they broke out the popcorn when she started telling her what they do."

"It's a coven!" Aya calls from her room. "Not a cult!"

"Anyway, her cult." Ponder pulls out a chair next to him. "Sit. Lots of stuff happened." And he proceeds to explain everything he's learned.

Yin nods slowly. "Interesting...so it's confirmed, then, that Millarca's goal was to preserve humans exclusively. Or, to give far more benefit of the doubt than is deserved, at least segregate them off for a fully human life in the post-apocolypse. What about Adelisa and her children?"

"They weren't among the evacuees. You know, I--" Ponder breaks off. Looks over to the fax machine, and wonders who's using an archaic method to deliver a message. Wonders how the damn thing got plugged up. Wonders where they found one, let alone two.

Then remembers that they'd decided to use them for double secret messages. Right.

Ponder snags the paper. "Hey. Another Dome is up."

Yin blinks. "What? Where?" Leans over to take the paper. Hey, that's the nice thing about being a commander again. She gets to be included in whatever knowledge she wants.

"Looks like a spot in Canada." Ponder hands it to her. "Saskatoon."

"Lovely." She doesn't show that this disconcerts her. Damn. Always near her clan. "Do we have any specifics? Like what race is living there?"

"Well." Ponder snatches the paper back. "I can tell you that there aren't any humans, spiders, or dragons there. Looks like another exodus."

"Well...leaves wyverns, presumably, for major races." Wonders if Revilier is there. Still sealed off. Oh well. There are more important things in the world than how she feels on the matter. If it is the wyvern city...well. He's brilliant, and he really cares about what's best for his people. He knows how to balance individuals against wholism and...just the right one to be running it. "I'm sure other units are already running recon there. I'll confirm that once we wrap up and get back to Okarthel."

"Yeah. Look, Yin. You need to start putting your affairs in order, eh? Head back to Okarthel, and Aya and I will finish up here."

"Yeah..." Smiles a bit. "My usefulness is done here, anyway, I'm a strike specialist. Thanks for your help, Ponder, you've been great."

"Baby, I've been awesome. GOod luck with your litigation stuff." He grins. "And if you ever want to be in a cult, come back."

"Coven, idiot!"

Yin shakes her head. "I'm still technically your commander. That said..." Looks to Aya. Smirks. "Consider permissions to hit him granted." Winks at Ponder. "Have fun, kids. See you around. Oh, and Aya...thank Arn for keeping my back." Instead of stabbing it. He'll know what she means.

This said, she turns to leave. Yes. Plane. Long plane ride back to Okarthel. That means more sleep. And jet lag. But still...sleep.