Birth of a legend

[Canton Rouge]

OOC: This is basically back story as to how matthews got into politics. Feel free to join in and perform whatever roles, as it will probably be part RP, part novel.

IC: 2002, 6 years ago,
Central Africa

It was a rough life out in the oil fields of central Africa between terrorists bombing the pipelines sending out the valuable crude, to the ever so random hostage taking crisises to even assassinations, one had to have the guts to even consider working in one of the world's most dangerous areas in the world. But that wouldn't even help if and when a rebel group would attack a refinery one worked at.

And that's exactly what was happening now at one of the Royal Canton Rouge Shell refineries, as another splinter terrorist faction had just taken over the facility and were in the process of making their demands. They apparently wanted RCRS to shut down operations in Africa, and to stop supporting the corrupt government of Nigeria. To the people of RCRS, that was not going to happen, but they needed to resolve this conflict...

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15 miles away from Mabosa Refinery, Nigeria

Onboard the lead Stryker of the convoy heading to the refinery were the 'negotiators' of this operation. But in actuality, they were members of the Canton Rouge Internal Strike Force, or CRISF, the special forces branch of the army. They dealt hard, and were not afraid to crack a few skulls in order to accomplish an operation. They also served as the Counter-Terrorism (CT) force for Canton Rouge.

The members of this operation included: Team Leader Johann "Magnum" Werntz, Riflemen Samuel "Eagle" Delter and Michael "Bowman" Steinmerker, Demolitions Expert Karl "Big Bang" Van Kloos, Electronics Specialist William "Wireman" Freztel, Medic Samantha "Bandage" Selkin, and a relatively new person, who actually was attached to the army. They referred to him as "Gab" because he could easily defuse any situation, but to few, he was actually future leader Timothy Matthews, fresh out of college after studying International Diplomacy.

It was odd that he would be attached to the army, but in order to fund his way into college, he elected to join the army and do his duty while studying, and was still able to pass Magna Cum Laude, an impressive feat. And they offered him a nice job as negotiator with the army, something he had to accept. After all, it would be a great position to advance into politics someday.

Yet, the CRISF lacked any available negotiators to assist in the operation, so they turned to Matthews, as a replacement, which was suitable. After all, he figured it would be something simple. Nothing more than a few rebels who could probably be coaxed out with a little understanding. He knew that if he could negotiate his way into the army, through college, and to be on this operation, surely he could do this job just fine.

As the convoy approached the 5 mile mark to the refinery, Magnum instructed his team to pay attention as he read out the briefing. "Alright, listen up," he commanded. "Our job today is relatively simple. A rebel faction has overran the Mabosa Refinery nearby, and have taken hostages. Right now, they want ceasing of oil production by Canton Rouge in Africa, an escape route, and an unknown amount of funds."

"Naturally, we're not going to do that. Instead, we're going in to see if we can't coax them out of here. If not, then we're gonna force them out of the refinery. Any questions team? How about you, Gab? Think you can handle your first assignment?"

Matthews looked at the leader, and responded, "Affirmative sir. Hopefully they'll listen to reason and logic."

"Alright, we're almost at Mabosa. We'll continue the perimeter the local police established. Then, we'll move in and go from there. Check your gear and good luck men!" Everyone sounded off and looked over everything one last time as the convoy began pulling into the Mabosa Refinery area. For the team, it was a chance to see how these rebels would respond. For Matthews, it would be the first of many instances where he would have to use his knowledge and negotiating skills to get out of a predicament...

[Canton Rouge]

The convoy pulled up next to the Mabosa Refinery, where local police agents had already contained the rebel fighters. Although what they done was miraculous, if the rebels attempted to break out of the refinery, the police would not last long against the rebel forces, which was why the Stryker convoy was sent over to help assist with the perimeter, and to allow back up for the strike teams.

Magnum went over to what was the head of the police force and asked if he knew who was behind the operation. He responded that it was a rebel group known as The Jungle Gang. They were a notorious rebel group that gained a reputation in the 90's for being able to cause havoc amongst Sub-Saharan Africa, particularly western Africa, thanks to the completion of the Trans-African Highway. While they were known for assasinations and bombings of European assets in Africa, this was the first recorded hostage scenario, which Magnum believed was a change of tactics.

Magnum then turned to his assembled team and said, "Well, looks like these rebels have changed the way they act, and this it their first recorded hostage attempt. Now, according to the refinery map, the bulk of them are in the offices and administration annex nearby. Our team will hit that area. Bravo and Delta Team's will clear the refinery, and Omega Team will flush out terrorists in the storage center. Any questions?"

The team responded that they had no questions, and this pleased Magnum. He said to Matthews, "When we get into position, you'll negotiate with them via this bullhorn, and your cell phone. We'll cover you, so don't worry." Matthews nodded, and the team began entering the refinery, being careful not to make too much noise that would alert the terrorists. It was too eerie inside, and it was too weird for a group that had previously been bombers to all of a sudden take hostages...

[Canton Rouge]

The team entered the administrative annex, and after approaching the entryway to what was one of the larger meeting halls, Magnum ordered everyone to stop. He then ran a camera underneath the doorway, and to his luck, he found a group of hostages and terrorists. To him, this would be a chance to use their negotiator.

Magnum turned to Matthews, and whispered, "So here's what will happen. We'll stand back and allow you to go in. There, you'll hopefully be able to talk with the leaders inside. Just so you know, they may also shoot you and kill you, or hold you hostage. But hopefully, they'll want to talk. You understand this?"

Matthews nodded, which pleased Magnum. He then sent Matthews off inside, to hopefully resolve this conflict....

Inside, the rebels were busy plotting what to do with their precious cargo when they saw Matthews enter. "Intruder, kill him!" one of the rebels yelled.

"Easy now, I'm just a negotiator, I just want to talk," Matthews replied. He showed his hands to prove he was unarmed, which at least please the guards. "You can do the full search if you want. They don't authorize negotiators to carry any weapons, so basically I'm at your mercy. But tell me, what compells you to do such a thing here?"