---
To the north were mountains. To the west, the ocean. Neither myself or my opponent had any naval forces, so nothing to worry about there, thank goodness. No, my forces were engaged in a defensive front and feint to the south and east. My opponent's rocket launchers and mobile artillery fired just before my tanks could rush them- fortunately, the strikes did very little damage against my fortified forces, though I did lose an already damaged artillery unit. Dammit, another squad of soldiers lost!
It had been a stalemate for a while now- While I kept shoring up the defenses, he would keep tearing them down. I had sent in a squad of recon vehicles and a pair of mechanized infantry to draw some fire away, to buy us some time to finish work on some new units. Each of us had tanks engaged, artillery and rocket launchers providing support. Unfortunately, my opponent had a longer reach with his indirect firing units. But soon, there would be a new problem for the man to deal with. I had sent, earlier in the battle, several units to the direct east, where there was an airport stationed. It was the only one in the immediate area, and while the CO I was facing had no infantry dispatched, I had quite a few securing the airport.
Then a message came in from one of the infantry troops. The airport was ours! I ordered them to begin building a Battle Copter, and then I knew what would be needed more than anything. There were a pair of missile launchers behind the line of indirect firing units that had simply been idle since the beginning of the campaign. A nearby explosion told me that a medium tank unit, that had been brought into our territory for repairs, had just been targetted and destroyed by artillery and rockets.
"Dammit. That's it. I want two new medium tanks ready very soon. Switch production over to them now!" the commanding officer demanded, and then he walked off to his personal APC. Now was the time for him to join the battle personally. To the driver of the APC, he told him to stick to the cities and forests if possible. There was no fog of war conditions, unfortunately- if there was, he would be at more of an advantage.
"Now... bring up the reserve tanks and destroy those rocket units! I don't care so much about the artillery, the rockets and missile launchers must be finished or badly damaged!" he told everyone over the phone that had been installed in his APC for good reason. The APC came to rest beside a pair of tank units and a rocket launcher unit, and his troops immediately sprang into action, resupplying the units beside the APC with fuel and ammunition. He hopped out of the APC, giving his troops a salute as he went over to the undamaged tank unit that the APC had stopped beside, and then he entered the nearest one.
He would command this charge personally. "Alright, move out! Our target is the rocket unit straight ahead." he told the men and the driver nodded, turning back to look out front. A deafening barrage of artillery shells and rocket fire came from all around, and then the tank was moving. Up ahead, rockets and shells converged on the already damaged frontline of the opponent's units. A unit of Rocket Launchers loomed before him as they passed their own front line, now going into enemy lines, and they emerged into a city. "Fire!"
Five tank units sounded and 3 damaged units of Rocket launchers and artillery were destroyed. Two of his medium tanks engaged the smaller, weaker tank divisions and wiped out a unit of tanks each, even as his reserves pulled up to the front line to stop any of his opponent's machines from proceeding deep into his own territory. Then, there was a bit of calm for a moment before the CO raised his hands and grinned. "Defensive Might!"
The order was noticed by all of his men, and they worked double time to increase their defenses. The enemy wouldn't know what to expect, but would understand soon enough. The enemy's own tanks converged on the units that had found their way deep into his territory, but found that the counterattacks of the five tank units deal more damage in return than they could do to them! The enemy's artillery units, the only indirect firing units still available to the opponent, launched another attack of shells upon the targetted tanks that were deep inside enemy territory.
His tank shook as shells rocked it. He lost two tanks from his division of ten, but his defensive might held up, his tank counterattacking the opponent's tanks as they hit, his unit in general dealing far more damage than they were sustaining. It was this power of the CO's that had brought him to the attention of his superiors, the reason for this battle. It was not over yet, and it was not time to think about his power. Just let it work and save the people under his command.
There was a calm outside, and the CO checked the latest reports that were forwarded to him. The enemy's frontline had collapsed thanks to the superior counterattack strength and defensive might of his units! The way to the artillery was cleared. The medium tanks were ready, the ones he had ordered built, and the young CO smiled. "Full attack!" he called out, and then the entire scene was gone.
---
The CO saluted as a man and two others walked towards him. The man in the lead clapped his hands twice before saluting in return and ordering the CO to stand at ease. His hand came to rest behind his back as he watched the man before him. He had dark brown hair cut short to his head, a gray uniform on that displayed the bars and awards for different campaigns that he had commanded and survived in. His eyes were serious but not fully like steel- this was a man who could still feel emotion and fight at the same time.
"Well done, Arik. You successfully routed commander Net here. You had us worried for a while, I must admit." the older man said to him. The CO that stood before him, the young man that had just been called Arik, nodded slightly in return. Indeed, Net had very nearly finished him off before he had been able to use Defensive Might. Net was a lot like a certain other commander of Wars World, but did lack a few critical things... most notably, defense.
"Yes sir." was all that the young CO said in reply. Who was he to speak back to the leader of the Silver Mountain forces? This man had almost single-handedly defeated the remainder of the 'aliens' who had invaded several years ago. Nothing had been heard of from those strangers for almost a year now, but ever since then, their land had become a military nation. The elder CO nodded slightly at the response, and then smiled slowly.
"Now I know that we made a good decision, adding you to our ranks of CO's. With your abilities, I do believe that we can hold on in any war." he told the young man, who just watched the older CO. Indeed, Arik was not sure if he was supposed to say anything or not- he had heard that Lance, the man before him, liked to talk to himself while speaking with others. It was apparantly something he had picked up since his campaigns against the Black Hole armies that he had routed, after their main force had been transported away.
"You shall go with Sheila here and take our navy east towards the place that is known as Orange Star. Intelligence has proven that there are several continents out that way, and perhaps we will find Black Hole there as well. If you find them, you are to send word back to us. Until then, we will prepare for an invasion of Black Hole's land." Lance told him, and Arik saluted him. Lance nodded once more, giving the new CO a salute in return before turning and walking away. Then, the young CO was stuck with the aides who had been standing behind Lance during the whole conversation.
The woman on the left had blonde hair and wore her uniform in a loose fashion- the white shirt she wore beneath the gray uniform could be seen, the uniform itself unbuttoned save for the top two buttons on it. She was smiling at the new CO, and Arik couldn't help but to smile back to the attractive woman before he looked over to the man beside her. This man wasn't smiling in the slightest, and it wasn't difficult to determine why. He had black hair and a pale complexion, and a frown on his face that could drown most any smiles in the immediate area.
This man was Net, the CO he had just fought against in the simulator mission that they had just been in. The man was considered a tactical genius when it came to anti-naval and anti-aircraft warfare. The problem is, he couldn't counterattack worth a damn, and his naval and airforce couldn't stand against a well-timed attack. There was no real reason he shouldn't have been able to defeat the new CO, save for the obvious fact that was pointed out.
"Well now Net, looks like you underestimated our new comrade. Who knew he could actually outlast your attacks like he did, eh?" the woman said, teasing the man that stood beside her. The tone of her voice made Arik doubt that the woman did that just for fun. She said that in such a way as to almost demean him! The young CO could only wonder what kind of relationship the two had, even as a finger made itself known to the young woman that had spoken to Net.
"Ah, shove it, Sheila. We had to test his abilities against mine, and we did. Besides, if I'd been able to get more money, he would've been swamped over by my rockets and shelling. Proved it to you before, haven't I?" the man said, and she just started shaking, her face reddened by the memory of what Net had done to her in simulator missions before. Net grinned slightly, and then looked back to his new comrade. "Well, perhaps congratulations are in order. It is rare that anyone manages to outfight me in logistics and in tactics. Well played, but I will beat you next time, kid."
Arik grinned slightly and nodded slowly at that. He didn't care so much for bragging rights as these two were doing. What he'd done was save people, civilians and military, with his own ability. That's all that the kid ever wanted to do, really. He'd seen enough suffering among the civilians when Black Hole had been here. Their scientists had taken many of the civilians and soldiers that had survived their brutal attacks, and none were ever seen again. No one knew what happened to them, but all knew what happened to those who had fought against them in rebellion.
---
"All prisoners must now stand to receive judgment for their crimes." the monotone voice said, coming from a helmeted soldier of Black Hole. A woman had stood before the rest and spit at the Black Hole soldier, the projectile impacting the torso of the man in the armored suit. The soldier did not move, not making any motion as to wipe it off as it slowly slid downwards thanks to gravity. The woman stood defiant, and then all watched as a man came out from behind the door that the soldier had been standing beside.
He looked much like an old B-rated movie villain reject, wearing a dark helmet and suit of armor that covered his entire body. His breathing... wait, there was no sound of breath being drawn from the air. Was he breathing at all? Quite possibly not. He took one glance at the rebels that had been collected, and then he gazed about the small auditorium that the audience for this judgment had been gathered into. "Know that this is what awaits any that defies Black Hole's will and ways. Observe!" and then he raised his right hand slowly until it came to rest at eye level with the man.
His hand clenched, and then he quickly dropped it down. The soldiers that blocked the doors did not move as a scream broke out. The man was gone almost as soon as his hand had dropped. Arik had been one of the few who could guess what was about to happen, and he made his way to a vent as panic made itself known among the crowd. People started clawing at the guards, who simply took the butt of their weapons to their heads to knock them aside. There was an unearthly noise that erupted from above, and as Arik managed to squeeze through the vent just barely in time...
There was the sound of flames, a heat that was practically unbearable. He'd had to close his eyes to the horror, the screams of pain and death that lasted only a short moment before all was quiet after the explosion occured. He shuddered, burned badly. The wall that had contained him a moment before was gone completely, leaving him exposed to the heat and power that had been the result of a Meteor Strike. How exactly he had survived, even though he had managed to escape most of the attack, was beyond his understanding. Soldier and civilian alike perished in the hellish flames from beyond the atmosphere, yet he had remained alive.
---
It was those burns that he felt now. Along his arms and legs, scars from the burns he had felt that day made themselves known as heat came from them. The boy never knew cold from that day forward, save for when they had managed to get him to a field hospital and saved his life. He'd been a minor celebrity that day, having survived an attack that had killed many others. Most, however, held him in contempt- why had he lived, and their family or loved ones died? What made him special enough to live while the others did not?
The young man had had no answers for those questions. He didn't know, just knew that he should've died along with the others that day. The only thing that he could think that would have saved him was the fact that he had not panicked, unlike what so many others had done. Since then, he had devoted his life to the army, to protecting the families and homes of others... since he had neither left for himself. His own family had died during the Black Hole's original attack upon Silver Mountain.
The other two CO's were gone now, Sheila having given the young man a worried look as she walked with Net to the exit of the training facility. Now, he was alone, as he had been for quite some time. Perhaps it would always be this way? No, it was doubtful, for there was both dark and light in a day, so sometime he would actually be able to enjoy the light. Besides, there was a mission to do, that had been set before him. Orange Star awaited.
Elsewhere in Wars World ---
"Dang it! Max, you're cheating!" came the shrill voice of a young man who had just had the overwhelming desire to throw a controller at the nearest inconvenient wall. Too bad his skills as a mechanic didn't include working on game controllers, eh? With a grin, the large muscle man just sat back in the couch that was his alone- he was far too big to be able to share a normal sized couch with anyone other than the smallest people, after all.
"Ah, can it Andy. We both know that when it comes to direct combat, real life or in a game, I'm the king!" he taunted, and the young man sighed. Well, you had to give that much to Max. They were playing a fighting game, and now the muscle-bound freak had won over a dozen matches in a row! It was almost humiliating... except, they were playing a game that had come out years ago, possible before Andy had even been born. Damned Street Fighter 2, he thought. It was so slow and the controller was nearly unresponsive compared to the newer versions of the game.
They both heard a sigh come from behind them, and from couch and floor, the two stood up as the beaten up face of Guile flashed on the screen with a countdown beside it. "Come on you two, Nell's got news for us. Not to mention our old advisor's back, too. Let's go, it sounds important if they brought him back." came the redhead's voice. Sami, infantry specialist, had been watching the two as they finished up their last match. Little did they know that she was also a specialist when using Chun-Li, but she never did bother matching up against them- they'd never know what hit 'em, after all.
It took only a minute or two for them to walk down the hall from the rec room to the meeting room where Nell always called them to when she had news of an invasion, a new war, or just to tell them that their funding was being reduced again. Ever since the last black Hole war, the government had been steadily reducing the army's funds, instead rebuilding destroyed cities and such with the 'liberated' money. This time, they entered the room silently, though Andy was still fuming over losing to Max for so long, and Max smiling because he had beat the kid over a dozen times in a row. Sami at least was ready for the meeting, quiet because she had a hunch as to what was going on.
Nell turned from the advisor, who went to sit on a chair beside the projector that was being used for the briefing. "I trust you have all heard rumors that unidentified ships have been sighted in the eastern sea, haven't you?" she asked the three. Max and Andy blinked and stared blankly at Nell. The eastern Sea hadn't been traversed by anyone in recent memory, storms having formed almost constantly in the region had blocked that route for nearly a decade. Of course, those two didn't know that, but Sami did, and she nodded while the other two obviously looked as if they hadn't a clue as to any of this.
Which was par for the course, to be truthful. Andy was either playing games, at the military academy testing new students, or working on his troops' vehicles. Max was always playing war games with his troops. Only Sami ever really took the time to enjoy the peacetime, often away from Orange Star on presumably 'personal business.' Of course, Nell knew better, and even Andy knew better than that. Too bad the infantry specialist wouldn't confirm or deny their accusations, though the blush that developed on her cheeks when confronted about her time off usually tipped the two off. Max didn't care, as long as the young girl came back safely.
Nell sighed- the attractive blonde woman held up a clipboard and then read off from it. "There has been sightings of a fleet about two days away from the western coast of Orange Star. Both our troops and Blue Moon's troops under Colin's direction have seen this fleet. It is a large fleet- submarines are not among the fleet that we have seen, but they could be submerged. There is no island along the route that they have taken that possesses a naval base, so they must have some way of keeping supplied. There are different ships that have been sighted as well- not just battleships, cruisers, and landers, though there are several of each as well. There are two groups, and they are traveling with one another, not fighting against each other."
Andy smiled a little bit- new units? Maybe whoever it is would let him take a look inside them... if they were friendly, anyway. If not, well, maybe there'd be some way to get close enough to 'em to check them out from outside. Max was a bit more worried- ships usually meant indirect firing units. Tanks couldn't go out onto water, after all, and though he was good with bombers, cruisers easily dealt with 'em. Sami was worried as well- her hometown was on the west coast of Orange Star, and intelligence reports indicated that should the fleet attempt to land on the coast, they would likely wind up very close to her home.
"We cannot take this report lightly. I doubt that they are Black Hole in origin, but we cannot take any chances if Hawke has decided to return. Sonja has yet to find Black Hole's hidden base, but until then we still must take this very seriously. Sami, Andy, I want you two to take your divisions to the west coast and deploy defensively. If they are hostile, we do not want them gaining a hold on our beach. Max, you better stay back here." Nell said, and she set the clipboard down, pulling up projections for the supposed landing site that the naval force that had been spotted would attempt to land at.
"Set up around here. There are a few bases in the area, but remember that we have little money at the moment. Only mobilize what you must from the bases. You'll have to make do with what you have right now and work with that. Make sure that you have artillery and rocket launcher units available- if they do land, you should be able to heavily damage any units on the beach or on the water. Our navy is too far away from the landing site to be of any help. Good luck, you two." she told them. Andy and Sami nodded to their commanding officer and then stood up, walking to the door. Andy didn't seem all that excited in battle, for once. Sami thought that, perhaps, the last war had beat that excitement and intensity out of him. Hopefully, that was the case.
---
"Father! I've just received reports from Grit in Blue Moon of a fleet heading towards Orange Star." came a girl's voice. The older man, possibly in his forties, wore a yellow uniform and carried a katana at his side. He sat in his chair- peacetime was a chore for a modern-day samurai. His troops still trained and he trained with them, but all soldiers required a day off. And even the leader of the Yellow Comet forces was no exception. But when his beloved daughter, the raven haired girl that led the largest network of spies and intelligence operatives in the world, spoke, he always listened.
And, quite often, over-reacted. "A new fleet? Black hole! Kanbei will crush them this time, and they will know how a Samurai's rage knows no bounds!" he exclaimed, jumping out of his chair and to his feet. The two were at home, though it was most often used as his daughter's headquarters for their intelligence network. Sonja simply rolled her eyes and sighed. At least she hadn't told him that the dryer had eaten one of his socks again. He'd sliced up two dryers since the first time that had occurred.
"No, father. I don't believe that it is Black Hole. The ships aren't the same design or color, according to Grit. I want to go there and see for myself." she said, to which her father suddenly became defensive. His baby girl, go out and face a battle, alone? On another country's soil? Never! He had nearly lost her once before, but never again would it be allowed. Not even if it was Orange Star, the most peaceful country that Wars World had had in the past decade or so. The risk was too great, and his daughter was impetuous, though often right in all regards: battle, direction, intelligence gathering and the location of his sock drawer.
"Never! They do not pose an open threat to Yellow Comet, do they? We shall wait here. Yellow Comet does not begin battles- we defend our country with all our might and skill. The way of the samurai is not to rush into battle that we begin. Our country must be served better than that." the emporer of the country replied. It was time for Sonja to sigh softly- she couldn't simply tell him that she would go, with or without her father's permission. It was his stubbornness that she had inherited, as well as the will to defend her nation.
But her intelligence network spanned over all the continents of Wars World these days. Green Earth, Blue Moon, Orange Star... these were the only countries that she had ever known of. She had heard of rumors of other continents, ever peaceful ones, elsewhere beyond Green Earth and Orange Star, but never had there been sight of a fleet of ships other than Black Hole's before now that would come beyond their four country's borders. How could she simply leave the surveillance of the newcomers to their countries to her own operatives?
"However, do you not think that it would be wise to send her as long as she remained reasonably safe, Kanbei?" came the older CO's voice. Sensei was known as never having lost a single battle in his time, and that was still true even during the second Black Hole war. His ability at rallying troops had been invaluable, and had saved all three Yellow Comet CO's from a suicide bombing created by Black Hole. Both Sonja and Kanbei looked to the wizened old man, who was quite old but still in control of his own sanity, thankfully enough. A look of hope appeared on Sonja's face- with Sensei's help, she had often been able to do what Kanbei would otherwise not allow her to do.
"But... this is not a problem for Yellow Comet, Sensei. There is no fleet coming upon our borders yet, now is there?" was the reply that the stubborn Emporer of the country gave the old man. Sensei chuckled a little before nodding slightly, eyes not really opening as he looked from the Emporer, to his daughter, and then back to his student once more. Both Sensei and Sonja had caught what Kanbei had said.
"Not yet, perhaps, but it is always wise to remain prepared for if they do come, is it not?" the old man asked, and Kanbei blinked, considering this. Of course, it was wise, but was it wise to send Sonja out to reconnoiter when their intelligence operatives already knew of the sighting and were keeping watch? Then again... Sonja had said that their information came from Blue Moon's commander Grit. A good man, but Kanbei despised long distance fighting that Grit specialized in. With a sigh, he realized several things- he was being manipulated once again, and that Sonja had been right. She was obviously the one to go, for she could see things where other could not, and was still a very good CO in a battle.
"Very well. But I want you to stay out of sight and trouble, my daughter. Go to see Nell, and stay in the command center she has in Orange Star. I want a call every day!" he told his daughter, who just smiled and bowed to her father. Of course, she would not give him any undue reason to worry if she could help.
"Of course, Father." she said to him, and spared Sensei a glance so as to thank the old man, and then she was running down the hallway. There was no time to waste, if she were to arrive in Orange Star in time to keep watch personally upon the incoming fleet. She couldn't help but to wonder if Andy would be there as well? They both enjoyed a somewhat strained friendship, thanks to her father's disapproval of the boy. And he had been one of the CO's that had saved her, no less! There was little to be done in this world that could impress her father to the amount that he would approve of the boy, but Sonja hoped for some day that they could at least provide a vacation for the Orange Star CO's. They had done so much to help their country against Black Hole- it was the least that they could do.
Kanbei would never approve, but perhaps it would be possible... someday.
---
Author's Note: Well, I think that'll do it for a beginning chapter. I'll actually have more people coming in (the CO's of other countries, most notably) later on, but for now I just wanted to focus in on a few characters to see if I can get their attitudes down. Yeah, I was a little hard on Andy and Max, but I do like Andy. I think I may have changed his personality a little bit already, what do you think? Please leave a review!