WCOH 36 Everything Thread

[-Anthor-]

World Cup of Hockey 36
Quarter-Final Cutoff

Alpine Union 2–1 Abanhfleft

Anthor 7–0 Valanora
Referees provided by the Quebec Hockey Federation

Royal Kingdom of Quebec 3–3 Elejamie (3-4 OT)


Neu Engollon 2–2 Cosneolta (3–2 OT)

Semi-Finals Schedule

Elejamie v. Alpine Union
@ Barclay Arena, 7:30 pm

Neu Engollon v. Anthor
@ Prince Daniel Stadium, 10:00 pm

[Neu Engollon]

Alpenhorn Street
Outside Pine Park HQ Campus
Geneva

The Austrakian commandos and black ops agents sat in the vehicles, awaiting word that they would head into action. They waited, and waited and…

Leo tried to suppress all the thoughts flowing through his head. He wondered if maybe they should abort and rethink Plan B, to crack open the armored car when they transported him from Pine Park back to the NESA prison. They had originally scratched that plan because it seemed too risky to Walther, as the fatality factor went way up if they attacked the convoy and hit the wrong vehicle with heavy anti-tank weapons.

In a couple minutes, it would be too late anyway to pull back as they passed the point of no return.
He looked at his watch as the time crept up on them. He keyed the scrambled radio to talk.
“Alright, we’re going to roll soon. Let’s get ready.”

---

Monk's Garden
Pine Park (National Gendarmerie HQ)
Geneva, Neu Engollon

He was circumspect in his travels today in the Garden. Making sure to stall and inspect every bush and tree that caught his eye, observe every bird and small scurrying animal. He didn’t know how much time they needed, but every second he could give them, he would. There were of course a myriad of variables he was unaware of and had no control over, but this was the one that he could manipulate. Then again, what if they expected him to carry on with his normal pace and he was fucking it all up with the dilly dallying?

It was the second time back since Dr. Celeste and her superiors had yanked these outdoor ‘field trips’ as a privilege from him some days back. He had obsessed the other day that that first trip back might be the day when he would see his freedom, hoping against hope that they would spring him loose. As they loaded him back up in the armored car, it became obvious that he had gotten his hopes up for nothing. He had to be practical with these things, he himself knew from planning such operations that a lot of it was observation and timing to narrow down any chances of odd happenstance destroying a perfectly planned operation.

Celeste, as usual, was a few steps off to the side. Their first few forays through the gardens, she simply couldn't keep up and didn't attempt to do so. Rather than physically confront him, she would reprimand him verbally, reminding him that the outdoor privilege could be rescinded at any time.
Now, as slow as he was walking, she had to be keeping distance by choice, not due to the inability to keep pace.

“Well, let’s get to work, Walt.”

“Uh boy.”

“Walt, you know the rules.”

“Aren’t you tired of talking about the spy stuff that I deny?”

“Sure, sort of. Today, let’s just talk about how you feel.”

“What? No needling me for information?”

“Nope. Just you talking about feelings. I think we’ve hit a dead end on the ‘spy stuff’, as you call it. Yes, you’ll deny it. I’ll insist. It goes round and round. We know what we know. Anyway, let ‘er rip about your feelings. You can get it off your chest.”

“Get ‘what off my chest’?”

“Whatever. Anything. Nothing. Does it matter?”

They neared the far Northwest corner. He could feel the moment approaching. This had to be the day. The day the nightmare ended and he could go home.
“Really, Doc, it’s all tied up. My feelings, my honesty about the situation, the constant pressure to confess, my treatment in the prison.”

“Detention facility.”

“Really?! I mean...I guess my biggest feeling is how surreal this all is. Talk about denial...You... Your organization, your superiors, continue to deny that I was kidnapped and continue to be illegally detained, after I was officially invited into the country as part of my nation’s athletic delegation. Even more bizarre, I willingly walk along here and don’t resist. In my mind, I will not give in, but physically? I walk along and am compliant as if it is the most natural thing.”

“I see. So you feel that you need to be more physically resistant?”

“Yes...I suppose. Even if it is futile.”

“Futile indeed. I think you know the measures taken to ensure both your safety and ours. Besides, if you got physically violent, I would have to have them restrain you...We’d have to resort to drugs...It would get messy, Walt.” She paused, studying his face intently. “Do you feel it’s your duty to resist?”

“I know what you’re trying to get at. You’re just proving my point that we can never get away from trying to force a confession from me. Besides, there’s other ways to resist than just flailing around and physically trying to run or fight.”

“You didn’t really answer my question, Walt. Do you feel it’s your duty to resist?...Let's say just as a patriotic Austrakian...”

They walked a little further on up the path. They were entering through a patch of flowering trees he didn’t know the name of but were quite beautiful. They had hanging moss draping them. If he did want to resist, this would be a great spot to overpower Dr. Celeste and sprint for the wall and fenceline.
“I...um…”
He focused on the break in the trees where he could see the wall off in the distance.

“You seem a bit distracted, Walt. What’s going on?”

He turned to face her, then began a first tentative step towards her, followed by a fimer one.

“Walt. Whatever is going through your head right now, you better think again.” She made a motion over her head with her hands. Walt stopped, frozen and unsure. Two men in camouflage rose up and began to walk through the trees towards the path. They weren’t armed with any heavy weaponry, but they had sidearms and carried some kind of batons or shocksticks in their hands. Walther shook his head, berating himself in his mind. Of course they would have men in there. Why wouldn't they be prepared for such a move?

Suddenly, they heard rotors above. The sound hadn’t been there before, masked by surrounding buildings as it swooped low. Then there it was. He saw it through an opening in the trees as it drifted overhead. The tree tops whipped around from the pressure and the beating rotors were rudely loud in what had been a peaceful sanctuary only moments before. It was a full on Mangusta gunship with the purple, crimson and gold roundels on its side of the NEDAF.

Walther’s shoulders slumped. “A bit of overkill, don’t you think?”

Celeste snorted in derision. “It’s not for you, silly. It’s for your friends.”

“I’m sorry? What?!”

Another man had exited the woods onto the path, unnoticed by Walther. He wore dark clothes, and had well kept grey hair. The way the other agents and the psychologist deferred to him, it was obvious he was Celeste’s superior - a top NESA man, Chief Agent or possibly a Deputy Director. He spoke with a deep, rattling voice:
“Your BND friends, Walther Laubmann. The ones trying to get on campus right now to rescue you. We’ve been waiting for them. They’re making an attempt right now. I just need you to remain calm and do as we say and we’ll get through this.”

[Union of Socialist Alpine Republics]

The Alpine Union makes its way to the final four

Girvan, Anthor - (NAP) The Alpine Union beat Abanhfleft 2-1 to make its way to the final four! With this win against Abanhfleft, the Bisons can't finish lower than 4th. The Alpine Union scored early in the 1st period when Slawomir Zawistowski was on a breakaway after recieving the puck from Czeslaw Szerszenowicz. He tries to put the puck past Jeremy Gonzalez and the puck in in, 1-0 Alpine Union! Jenni Kekäläinen also got an assist on the goal. With less than 4 minutes remaining, Slawomir Zawistowski was recieving the puck from Sebastian Krug and, just as he was recieving the puck, Lino Mable open ice hits him. Zofia Stepniewska jumps on Mable and they both fight. Zofia Stepniewska threw the best punches and we can say she won the fight! Lino Mable got a 5 minutes major penalty for an illegal check to the head, another 5 minutes for fighting and a game misconduct. Zofia Stepniewska got 2 minutes for instigating, 5 minutes for fighting and a 10 minutes misconduct. Slawomir Zawistowski didn't return to the ice after the hit. The score was 1-0 Alpine Union at the end of the 1st period.

The score was still 1-0 at the start of the 3rd period and with 13 minutes remaining, Ted Kawakami scored on a 3 on 1 with Cristobal Rosenberg and Brandon Weyandt. 4 minutes later, Ruben Arnold was penalised for playing with a broken stick and the Alpine Union goes on the power play! Szymon Krzysztalowicz has the puck in Fleftic territory and he passed to Emilia Zyskowska who passed back to Krzysztalowicz. Krzysztalowicz passed to Stanislaw Wojciechowski who passed to Melania Zyskowska who passed back to Wojciechowski. Wojciechowski shoots, Emilia Zyskowska tips the puck which goes directly into the net and the Reprezentacja Alpejski takes the lead! With the Alpine Union leading 2-1, Abanhfleft pulled their goalie with less than 1 minute remaining but they failed to score and the Alpines won 2-1.

The Alpine Union will find a familiar opponent in the semi final, Elejamie, who beat Québec in overtime. The other semi fnal will be played between Anthor and Neu Engollon. Slawomir Zawistowski, who was the victim of an open ice hit in the 1st period is out for the remainder of the tournament. Hampus Wiktorsson will takes his spot on the 3rd line and Hunter McGuire will be in uniform and will skate on the 4th line alongside Mikko-Petteri Karjanlahti and Arkadiusz Zlomanczuk. McGuire and Zlomanczuk are the two best fighters on the team and will play on the same line against Elejamie.

BOXSCORE

1st period
17:38 - Slawomir Zawistowski assisted by Czeslaw Szerszenowicz and Jenni Kekäläinen

2nd period
No goal

3rd period
13:19 - Ted Kawakami assisted by Cristobal Rosenberg and Brandon Weyandt
7:46 - Emilia Zyskowska assisted by Stanislaw Wojciechowski and Melania Zyskowska (PPG)

[Elejamie]

"... Over to John Daverson now with the news of that nerve-wracking quarter-final game. John?"

That's right, Steve! Good morning, Elejamie! The Icy Elephants have made it through to the semi-finals after an incredibly tough game against the Royal Kingdom of Quebec. The Ice Knights, an old rival of Elejamie's dating back to the 1960s, were hot off the heels of a hard-fought 2-1 overtime win against Mercedini, whereas Elejamie were coming off of a 4-2 win against Kita-Hinode. However, despite being the hot favourites going into the match, Elejamie were pushed to their limits by Quebec and, in the end, could only manage a 4-3 overtime win against a strong opposition in a game filled with plenty of tension which, yes, boiled over into fights. Here are the highlights.

The first period got off to a quick start as Quebec grabbed the first shot eight seconds in when a shot from Kim Seong-Jong was easily caught by Peter Berg; Kim would have a second chance shortly after the face-off but that, too, was saved by Berg. Elejamie's first shot came shortly afterwards, when Anatoly Kasputin's wrist shot sailed over the crossbar before it was cleared by Quebec defenceman William Cha. The first fight of the evening came with 16:12 left when a shoving match during a face-off between Ethan Swinburne and Thierry Sutter saw both of them drop the gloves shortly after, with Swinburne just about managing to win. And then, exactly halfway through the period, we saw the first penalty, when Felipe Barajas was given a two minute minor for tripping Pascal Nakitanda, although Elejamie managed to kill it off with relative ease. Quebec would get their first penalty with 7:15 left in the period, when Rasmus Fisker was given two minutes for high-sticking Lupe, although Quebec were able to kill off the penalty as well. Eventually, with 4:52 left in the period, Anatoly Kasputin would open up the scoring with a shovel shot from close range to make it 1-0 to Elejamie; line-mates Cerin Meloten and Stacy Saunders were credited with assists. Other than Pascal Yoon being given a minor penalty for hooking Meloten shortly after the goal, with Stacy Saunders going into the box five seconds later for interference, at the end of the first period, Elejamie were leading 1-0.

The second period was where things started to look up for Quebec. A potential second from Kasputin just under a minute into the period had to be disallowed when it turned out that he was offside. Another goal for Elejamie shortly afterwards, after a line change, was also disallowed when it turned out that Lucas Madgwick bumped into Quebecois goalie Mason Park; as a result, Madgwick had to spend two minutes in the box, although fortunately his side killed off the penalty with relative ease. Quebec would go on to get their first goal exactly four minutes in after Francis Williamson won the face-off and passed it to Rasmus Fisker; although Fisker's one-timer bounced harmlessly off of Peter Berg's stick, his rebound made its way through Berg's five-hole to make it 1-1. Shortly after the face-off, however, a second fight broke out, with the 5' 7" Bill Harrison managing to hold Vitali Komarov - who's four inches taller - to a stalemate before the refs separated both players and sent them both to the box for five minutes. There would, however, be a rematch 8:15 from time, with Harrison winning comfortably. With 1:58 left in the period, Michael-Noah Philbin was sent to the penalty box for two minutes for slashing Carlos Sierra; however, with 7.1 seconds before his penalty was due to end, Bill Harrison would intercept a pass from Kieran Wright and slap it into the back of the Quebecois net to give Elejamie a 2-1 lead at the end of the second period.

The third period, however, was where everything seemed to go Quebec's way. First up, a fight between Jermaine Chabot and Lupe broke out 30 seconds into the period, a fight that Chabot barely won. Shortly afterwards, with 19:15 left on the clock, Fisker would score his second goal on the breakaway, thanks to a bit of a bit of clever deking and assistance from Francis Williamson and Yang Yong-Hak. And, with 18:54 remaining, George Lincoln was given two minutes for tripping Alex Veleno, although fortunately the Icy Elephants were able to kill off the penalty. Quebec would go on to lose a player of their own with 15:14 left when Mattias Santarelli was given two minutes in the box for charging, with him being joined 15 seconds later when Vitali Komarov was given a minor for roughing, although Quebec were able to kill off both penalties. Eventually, with 7:50 left on the click, Adam Keane was given a double minor for high-sticking Philippe Yim-Goulet; 24 seconds later, Kim Seong-Jong would go on to make it 3-2, thanks to an unassisted snap shot that caused the puck to just sail over Berg's glove. Elejamie seemed down and out as memories of the 33rd World Cup of Hockey started flooding back. However, 1:30 from time, Elejamie managed to tie things up when Paul Morton won the face-off and passed it to Bill Harrison who, in turn, passed it over to Lucas Madgwick who netted it off the one-timer. The score remained that way when the klaxon went for the end of the third period, meaning that overtime had to be played. Fortunately it was relatively quick; 20 seconds after the start, Anatoly Kasputin's wrist shot from the point, assisted by Cerin Meloten and Lupe, found its way into the back of the net, giving Elejamie the 4-3 win.

In a post-match interview, head coach Michael Madgwick said "That was a tough game. That disappointing 1-1 draw aside, this was the hardest game we've had all tournament. And, in my opinion, it was one of the best. A return to form of the old rivalry we had, especially when I was playing back in the 80s and 90s, as well as the early 2000s. I was anxious going into it, since I was expecting a repeat of that time the Ice Knights swept us the last time we were here in Valanora. But instead what we got was a repeat of the time we swept them, back in the 29th edition when they hosted it, which we went on to win.

As for my usual praises? A hearty congratulations on Bill Harrison for his GHT there, great goal, great assist, great brace of fights. A well done to Anatoly for his two goals, especially the overtime one. A congratulation goes to Lucas for his goal, well done son. And well done to Ethan and Lupe for their fights as well. But I'd like to give a big congratulation to Quebec as well for the challenge; sorry we beat you but there's always next time."

"How do you think you'll fare against the Alpine Union?"

"The Alpine Union will be tough. No doubt about it. We've had two games against them, the comfortabl 6-2 and the 6-5 game where they nearly beat us. They've managed to sweep aside Vilita and Turori, with some difficulty as it also went into overtime, but still something to be wary about. They also got a win here against Abanhfleft, although that was in regular time and I forgot what the score was. There's no doubt that they'll be a thorn in our sides and they will try and prevent us from making it to back-to-back finals. We need to beef up our defence and cut down on them scoring. Our forwards need to train extra hard just to get past their defence. I'm not saying we're going to get six goals again but I'm saying that we should get a few good ones in."

Meanwhile in the other quarter-final matches, Neu Engollon also had to wait until overtime to despatch Cosneolta 3-2, the Alpine Union comfortably beat runners-up from last time Abanhfleft 2-1 and hosts Anthor absolutely destroyed Valanora 7-0 to make it to their first semi-final since the last time they hosted. Yes, you heard that right, 7-0. Now, let's go to tonight's games and, as you can see, Anthor will be up against Neu Engollon. But we'll be facing an old foe in the Alpine Union. Will we manage to conquer them and make it to back-to-back finals? Or will they get the last laugh and force us to settle for the third place playoff? Find out on Puck Drop!

Over to the rugby, now, as Mical Caerofim has announced that he'll be retiring from international rugby after the upcoming Rugby Sevens World Cup. The 34-year-old Wyverns winger, who also plays as a winger/fullback for the Elejamian sevens side, also announced that he'll retire from the sport at the end of next season when his contract runs out...

---

Period			P1	P2	P3	OT	FS
Quebec			0	1	2	0	3
Elejamie		1	1	1	1	4

Three Stars:
Anatoly Kasputin (EJM) (2G, 0A, 2 points)
Rasmus Fisker (QUE) (2G, 0A, 2 points)
Bill Harrison (EJM) (1G, 1A, 2 points)

[-Anthor-]

Duck's Demolition Derby!
On the back of a record night from the team captain Robertson, the Ducks destroy the Calcuttas

^{SHARE THIS:}

Gnaeus Tanicius Vopiscus (@Gnaeus Tanicius Vopiscus)(TH)
^{Baltha 64, 602AE 2:00 PM | Vaumort, Anthor}

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Graham Robertson celebrates his second of eventual three goals with teammate Timothy McLeish

Vaumort, Anthor(Herald) — For just the second time in their history, the Ducks are going to be returning to the World Cup of Hockey semi-finals, and it's after perhaps their most significant victory, for it already secured its place as their most absolute victory as they cruised to a thrilling 7-0 demolition of former six-time world hockey champion Valanora Calcuttas.

This match was expected to be one that was to be fought down to the fingernails, as the former six time champions in the Calcuttas are currently sixth in international ice hockey rankings, while the Ducks are just one place behind them at seventh, and the Ducks record when facing big historic ice hockey powerhouses as been one of the few errors they have yet to correct (Such as the glaringly terrible record against Elejamie). However, whatever manager Horn put into their water during their training sessions this past week or whatever inspiring speech he gave, whether it was a do-it-for-Robertson or let's finally win against a big team, it was clearly effective as this Ducks victory marks their biggest international win since their debut more then seven World Cups ago.

Perhaps one of the first things fans and analysts could point out is that the Ducks were on fire coming out of the group stage, only losing a single match and splitting points on a draw with Cosumar (who also incidentally caused the loss), but they left the group stage with 50 goals for, which ranks among the most prolific offense in this year's Cup. Robertson, Kersey and Jewel have all continued to perform in the stardom role they have been thrust in years ago, and on the youth end of things, Scott Bebbington has thus far proved himself to be a highly able star center for the future, given some more time to develop and train.

For the match end of things, Graham Robertson began the scoring just seven minutes into the first quarter when he drilled home a slapshot past the Calcutta's goalie after getting a quick pass from Erhardt Müller near the half court line. Four minutes later, Albert Kersey was eager to add to his goal tally for this entire Cup and brought it up to 13 as he managed to sneak one around the corner of the goal post after a pretty tenacious struggle behind the nets between himself, Robertson, and Zandra Ström and Deniz Danielsson. After a few minutes of back and forths, tussles, shoves and pushes, Robertson managed to get the puck free from Danielsson's control and chucked it over to Kersey's stick which managed to slip it right around the corner before Birk Dahlberg could stop him. The rest of the first period proved to be a probing game as Horn reigned in the offense slightly, trying to learn more of the Calcutta's weaknesses as both sides changed lines and the Calcutta's sought to try to even the scoreline out. However, Timothy McLeish ended up ending those efforts just before half time after he sent one flying past Dahlberg after Michael Brice managed to dispossess Jamie Hansson and slap it towards a Scott Bebbington who was at center ice, and he then promptly forwarded it to McLeish who buried home to increase their lead and the Duck's score to three.

The next two goals came just as quickly as McLeish's, as after eight minutes into third period, Blair Johnson managed to lay Helmer Dahlberg into the boards on a heavy hit, and this allowed Roderick Deschamps to steal the puck off of him and run it down the boards to an awaiting Albert Kersey, who then managed to tussle his way through a Calcutta defender and flick the puck forward to Austin Poindexter who notched yet another goal on a savvy assist from Kersey. Less then four minutes later, Harold Jewel added to the already out-of-hand scoreline on a 1-2-3 pass from Thorpe-Bohatec, and that brought to scoreline up to 5-0. The remaining two goals would be scored by Graham Robertson and Bert Tabor, who celebrated together as the team mates back home in the AIHF celebrated each other's success on the international playing field here in their home country. The final whistle sent the sold-out crowd at Prince Daniel's Stadium into a frenzy, and the Ducks dogpiled on their captain as the ageless dual threat turned in yet another amazing performance, as he currently leads the team with 16 goals this entire Cup. They will head into their semi-final match against Neu Engollen hoping that his amazing leadership and performance of late, combined with the high morale and performances felt throughout the locker room and all lines on the Duck's roster will help them beat a similarly high performing Neu Engollen and allow the Ducks to advance into their very first international ice hockey championship finale.

Gnaeus Tanicus Vopiscus contributed to this article.

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[-Anthor-]

World Cup of Hockey 36
Semi-Final Cutoff

Elejamie 3–3 (3-4 OT) Alpine Union
Barclay Arena (47,320), City of Kirkwall

Neu Engollen 3–7 Anthor
Prince Daniel Stadium (51,000), City of Kerveguen
** Referring provided by the Free Republics Ice Hockey Association

Finale and 3PPO Schedule

Anthor v. Alpine Union [Championship Game]
@ Prince Daniel Stadium, Kerveguen

Elejamie v. Neu Engollen
@ Norshye Arena, Girvan

[Neu Engollon]

Alpenhorn Street
Outside Pine Park HQ Campus
Geneva

Leopold sat tensely in the SUV just near the mouth of the alley. He glanced down quickly at his watch to check the time. They were close to losing their window. When he looked up, a shadow had rounded the alley and was taking a familiar shape. He frowned as Markus, head of their cyber team approached the driver side of the vehicle.
He rolled down the window.
“What are you doing?”

“We did it. The security grid is down.”

“Well fuck! We have just a couple minutes then. We have to roll! Get back to your station.”

“You don’t understand.”

“Understand what?”

“Well...It...um...It was too easy. We began our attack on their system, and then...It just sort of...shut down. Like it just collapsed too easily. It’s hard to explain in non-cyber terms. It shouldn’t have been as easy to bring it down as it was.”

“Maybe your team is just that good.”

“Our team is not that good. Not compared to Neu Engollian cyber security.”

It began to dawn on Leo. Now that he thought of it, a civilian hadn’t crossed the alley, nor across the street in some time and very few cars had cruised by. It was eerily quiet for this time in this part of downtown.

“It’s a trap! Scatter!” He frantically picked up the scrambled radio and shouted into it over the team net, “Abort! Abort!”

That’s when they closed in.

---

Monk’s Garden
Pine Park HQ
Geneva, Neu Engollon

Walther stood transfixed, registering what he was observing and hearing, but still incredulous to have been played to such a degree. He had been bait the whole time in order to bring the BND and Austrak intel networks in the Confederacy to the surface and then capture or destroy them.

To punctuate that thought, he heard a smattering of distant gunfire, some of it very large caliber from the judged distance in relation to the reports. A blast, possibly of a grenade or RPG. His rescue team was in trouble and any hope of rescue was now dashed. They would have long since aborted and be trying to save their own skins at this point.

Walther found the courage and fortitude to finally speak.
“Laubmann?” They had gotten a hold of his file, maybe from his early recruitment days. He would not be goaded.
“Again with the accusations. I think you overestimate my government’s value of me. They wouldn’t send a bunch of agents to rescue a mere sports official.”

The NESA team leader waved a dismissive hand. “Full denial to the end, eh, Walt? Agents and commandos, by the way. We’re pretty sure they sent in a Jagdkommando team to assist. Whoever it was, we’ve been tracking their progress through 4 different airports to the autobahn to here. We’ve been ready for them for a long time. Ever since we started bringing you out here. Your sloppy attempts to alert Reyner only firmed up our plans. We know exactly where they are now. We’ve been tracking them for days. Now we just need to capture them with as little fanfare and bloodshed as possible. Which...seems like that might have gone out the window.” More gunfire in the distance.

Walther stepped even closer to her and the unidentified leader as the security menacingly closed in.
“What do you get out of all this? He barked angrily.

Celeste piped in happily..
“We’re getting several BND assets for the price of one now. That’s pretty neat. An operation well done.”

The older man spoke, as if Celeste hadn’t at all.
“Besides a promotion? We get more security for the Confederacy. We shut down BND operations here for a long time. I think that’s obvious, Walther. There wasn’t any new intel we could learn from them by continuing our passive observation. We decided it was time to bring down the network, get the sleepers to activate. This was certainly the perfect catalyst, so thank you again, Walther.”

“Fuck you!”

“Tsk tsk, Walt. It was inevitable. Don’t blame yourself. If it wasn’t you, we would’ve found some other bait. I hope you don’t carry this burden of responsibility for too long. It would certainly wreck a lot of Dr. Celeste’s work with you.”

“Because that’s a really big concern for me…” Walt’s response was dripping with sarcasm. “You do realize that this incident could start another war? It would be much more disastrous than our last full blown war.”

The last war between the Bundesrepublik and the Confederacy had been about a hundred years ago. It had started over a small border incident but escalated into the first modern war the two nations had participated in, utilizing aircraft, tanks and machine guns and other weapons of war that had never yet seen the field of battle in that corner of the world. It had claimed thousands of lives and the fallout and political upheaval nearly ripped the Confederacy in two. There had been relative peace between the two nations since, although border skirmishes still did pop up, the latest just a few years ago. There had never been a formalization of relations between the two nations and the peace was held with a flimsy treaty hammered through after the armistice. But it had held.

“That’s something for the big wigs in our Presidential House and your people in Vilgenna to figure out. But I highly doubt it. The spy war has always been waged between our nations regardless of the cooling or warming in relations. This is just another chapter.”

“It’s going to play out in public opinion, online and in the streets.”

“It’s my understanding that your government has quite the clampdown on public opinion, much more so than ours.”

Walt scoffed. It was stabbing him in the heart that as they calmly conversed, his fellow agents were being round up or slaughtered just a mere kilometer away.
“I mean it, though. What do you get out of telling me all this? You could have just snapped them up and I would be none the wiser.”

Celeste answered.
“We want your cooperation, Walt. It’s what we’ve always wanted. So that things don’t get further out of hand, as you pointed out they might. Confess, or at least let the trial go through. The quicker things get put to bed, the better. Maybe it speeds up your repatriation.”

“Or maybe I’m traded with a bunch of other prisoners of war following the resulting war? And you’ve always wanted my cooperation so you could capture my fellow countrymen, so it turns out, not because of any legal or diplomatic concerns. Your boss’s words there. Mr….?”

He pointed to the NESA team leader, who only shrugged in reply.
“You're being very dramatic, Walt. None of this matters anymore. It’s a done deal, and no, I don’t think there will be a war. Ha! You have a very inflated sense of self worth. Something maybe you need to work out with Dr. Celeste here. You will have plenty of time to figure it all out back at the detention facility.”

Walther frantically looked around.

“What are you gonna do? Run?”

To Be Continued in my next NSS Tournament

[Union of Socialist Alpine Republics]

The Alpine Union beat Elejamie in overtime and makes the final

Kirkwall, Anthor - (NAP) The Alpine Union is on a roll! After defeating Vilita & Turori and Abanhfleft, the Bisons beat the Icy Elephants in overtime by a score of 4-3! The Alpine Union has now beat the teams ranked #1,2 and 3. With 13 minutes remaining in the first period, Czeslaw Niemczynowicz passed the puck to Melania Zyskowska who skates in Elejamie territory, she goes behind the net and skates to the face off circle. She passed to Emilia Zyskowska who shoots on the post, Czeslaw Niemczynowicz takes the rebound and shoots the puck in the net and the Alpine Union is leading 1-0! 4 minutes later, Elejamie is penalised for roughing and the Alpine Union goes on the power play. 45 seconds later, Emilia Zyskowska passed to Szymon Krzysztalowicz who shoots wide left, Czeslaw Niemczynowicz takes the loose puck and passed to Melania Zyskowska who shoots and scores! The Alpine Union is leading 2-0! And as soon as the puck is dropped at the face off, George Lincoln and Hunter McGuire drops the gloves. The fight ends up in a draw and both players goes to the penalty box for 5 minutes. With less than 3 minutes remaining in the 1st period, Cerin Meloten was on a 2 on 1 with Stacy Saunders. Melotin passed the puck to Saunders who shoots and he scores. Adam Keane also got an assist on the play and the score was 2-1 Alpine Union.

With 5 minutes left in the 2nd period, Carlos Sierra tries to pass to Bill Harrison but it's intercepted by Niko Virtanen who passed to Hampus Wiktorsson who's on a breakaway and he tries the five hole and he scores the Bisons are leading 3-1! This is the only goal of the 2nd period.

The 3rd period is pretty much boring with Elejamie scoing 2 goals to tie the game so let's move directly to the overtime. The score is now 3-3. With 7 minutes remaining in overtime, Anatoly Kasputin scored and everyone thought Elejamie won 4-3 but coach Otto Klötzer was arguing that Cerin Meloten was offside and asked for a video review. The call on the ice was overturned and there was no goal! The play continues and two minutes later, the Alpine Union was on a 3 on 1 when Melania Zyskowska was skating with the puck and passed to Emilia Zyskowska who shoots, Peter Berg makes the save but doesn't control the puck and Stanislaw Wojciechowski comes in and shoot the puck into the net! The Bisons won 4-3 in overtime against Elejamie!

The Alpine Union, ranked 17th pre-tournament, is going to the World Cup of Hockey Final against the hosts, Anthor, ranked 7th! The Alpine Union will send the same line up as they used against Elejamie with Slawomir Zawistowski being sidelined with an upper body injury and power forward Hunter McGuire replacing him in the line up.

BOXSCORE

1st period
13:19 - Czeslaw Niemczynowicz assisted by Emilia Zyskowska and Melania Zyskowska
8:27 - Melania Zyskowska assisted by Czeslaw Niemczynowicz and Szymon Krzysztalowicz (PPG)
2:45 - Stacy Saunders assisted by Cerin Meloten and Adam Keane

2nd period
5:02 - Hampus Wiktorsson assisted by Niko Virtanen

3rd period
16:28 - Lucas Madgwick assisted by Bill Harrison and Paul Morton
9:04 - Anatoly Kasputin assisted by Cerin Meloten and Lupe (PPG)

Overtime
5:10 - Stanislaw Wojciechowski assisted by Emilia Zyskowska and Melania Zyskowska

[-Anthor-]

World Cup of Hockey 36
Championship Cutoff!

Anthor 1 – 0 Alpine Union
Prince Daniel Stadium (51,000), City of Kerveguen
** Referring provided by the Equestrian Ice Hockey Authority

Elejamie 1 – 5 Neu Engollen
Barclay Arena (47,320), City of Kirkwall