<div class="floatright">(http://i1099.photobucket.com/albums/g393/theredfear/MaleCharPics/The-vampire-diaries-2x14-crying-wolf-tyler-lockwood-cap_mid.jpg)<br/><strong>Name:</strong> River<br/><strong>Species:</strong> Primal - Totemic<br/><strong>Location:</strong> Enclave<br/><strong>Summary:</strong> On the way to see Tara<br/><strong>Tagged</strong> Abi, Tara, any </div><br/>"Kind of a tradeoff. She might get more annoyed if we make her wait. She might get more annoyed if we show up smelly. Can't say for sure, but I for one would rather get it over with so that I can relax after I wash up. Assuming we can spare the water for a bath. Of course, I'm thinking the other Rangers will volunteer their bath-water rations for me wash up before they let me through the barracks doors. Heh. "by the time Thunderstruck was done blaring, they were almost to the Hill...and had quite a following in their wake.<br/><br/>To locals, Redemption was divided in two. Redemption and the Enclave. Redemption made up the majority of the town itself. Habitable buildings, and crudely-erected shanty towns, creating a twisting seething mass of humanity crammed desperately into as much free space as could accomodate them without creating a hygenic nightmare that was ripe for the next Bubonic Plague. Alot of effort was put into keeping things sanitary, though clearly some districts benefited from this effort better than others.<br/><br/>Then as you moved up sloping hills and streets, you came to the Enclave. This seemed to be primarily comprised of what you would call Suburbs back in the old world, with a few houses that were just large enough to be considered mansions, and the remnants of a small commercial district and old college campus. All in varying states of repair of course. While rampaging demon hordes weren't that much of an issue in this region during the initial stages of the collapse, a squadron of fighter jets out of fort Homestead did engage a flight of dragons in a pitched aerial battle sixteen years ago, so several stray rockets and bits of debris had left their mark here and there. This portion of the city held about 10% of the population of Redemption. This was where the important people lived. The Enclave. The main barracks and training grounds of the Rangers. Doctors, engineers, botanists, animal breeders, and others who posessed high-value skills that made them critical to the survival of the over all community. It was more spacious in the Enclave. Food and water rations were more plentiful and of higher quality. That was probably the single biggest source of tension between the Haves of the Enclave and the Havenots of Redemption. The people who provided the most invaluable services to the community reaped greater rewards.<br/><br/>Most outsiders of course didn't distinguish between Redemption and the Enclave. To them there was simply "The Enclave". Residents didn't distinguish either, until Elsa had begun her rabble-rousing in recent years, sharpening and defining the divide in class structure within the holdout. By the time they reached the gates seperating Redemption and the Enclave however, something that hadn't happened in years was unfolding. Haves and Havenots alike were hearing something that they either had not heard in sixteen years or...for many like River...had not heard ever. When River and the others reached the gate they had a mingled crowd of people laughing, dancing, and generally rocking out in their wake. The music was having a profound effect as people with rumbling bellies rose to their feet with a new sparkle in their eyes. They were about halfway though 'Back in Black' by the time River spotted Tara and steeled himself.<br/><br/>Leaving the wagon, music, and growing party behind he went ahead with the others so his reaming wouldn't disrupt the impromptu festivities. He watched first as the Slayer was handed off to Nicola. He swallowed a bit at the threat, and nodded at her words. "Yes ma'am... " He knew he should leave it there, but he hesitated to leave. Then he decided to speak up anyway. "With due respect Tara...We would have made it without them. It might have even been easier. "<br/><br/>It was a minor issue perhaps, but considering what an incredible accomplishment they'd pulled off, he did not want it diminished by the thought they wouldn't have made it if the feline cavalry had not showed up.The group had worked too hard and accomplished something incredible, and he felt there should be recognition of that. Not just from Tara, but from all the holdouts. Especially when it came time to convince the other leaders of the value of uniting more firmly in a true alliance. And he really did think they would have had a smoother exit without the 11th hour arrival of the feline cavalry. The bulk of the Suvolte horde did not attack until the smell of the cats overwhelmed the smell of the Slugg musk. He doubted they would have given any serious pursuit of the group once they realized the group was fleeing.<br/><br/>"That said, the Helka were able to exploit the disarray in the Suvolte to thin their numbers considerably. Between that and the loss of their central nest, the Suvolte territory might actually be ripe for a big push to fully eradicate them. " he added, trying to give her a tactical assessment of the mission which she...as leader...could take into consideration for future operations she sanctioned. "Assuming we strike before they have time to dig in again. A month, maybe two at the most. At the very least we may be able to push the Suvolte east...right up against Gorshlak's front door. Give that sunuvabitch a nice surprise.  "<br/><br/>Gorshlak was one of seven Demon Warlords in the region. He controlled a large army, and held thousands of human slaves that he and his kind used for food, sport, and general amusement. The armies these warlords commanded made them generally too strong to be directly challenged for any holdout with the possible exception of Mercury Lake. The warlords mostly didn't care about the Holdouts, focused primarily on a cold war between each other. They knew none of the Holdouts really had the strength to challenge them directly...not on their own. But they also knew the Holdouts were strong enough to make any serious effort to conquer them costly. And that cost would leave them vulnerable to conquest from another Warlord. So the Warlords mostly left the Holdouts alone and vice verca. Occasionally they would launch breif attacks or send a few waves of Cannon Fodder at the Holdouts to weaken them a bit and ensure none grew strong enough to pose a direct threat. But that was about the extent of it. In fact, it was the fast-breeding Suvolte they often used for such Cannon Fodder.  Although considering how brutishly tough they are, Suvolte really do put the 'Cannon' in Cannon Fodder. "We play it right, we might even be able to make it look like Freya's forces sent them. Gorshlak would never beleive we were strong enough to route the Suvolte and drive them frenzying into his territory. If we can push the Suvolte north first, then east...it'll look like they came from Freya's direction. We get Gorshlak and Freya's armies killing each other...that's the kinda show i'd pay to see ma'am. "<br/><br/>Of course such an ambitious idea would take alot more manpower...and firepower...than the Rangers alone could bring to the field. But they were having a summit with the other Holdouts specifically to address the kind of operations no one Holdout could execute alone.