The dust cleared, pebbles, fragments of rock fell like raindrops. The sky was gray. Captain Bennet blinked and spat grit from his mouth. He was alive, he wasn't in any pain. He tried to move his arms to lift himself up but they didn't respond. He suddenly became aware that he had none. The anti tank high explosive mine had vaporized them in a violent explosion. If he hadn't flipped the thing around, the thing no doubt would have scattered his insides across the street. Bennet wondered why the pain wasn't there and absentmindedly hoped he hadn't broken his spine. There was still screaming, and he could move his lower legs so he lifted himself upward. He looked to his left and right, both arms had been ripped out of their sockets by the force of the explosion. He could hear screaming, whimpering, gargling; someone, he couldn't identify the sex, was screaming for their mother. He suddenly felt very tired so he lay back down, noticing that the scratching cracked concrete below him felt rather comfortable. He closed his eyes and listened to the man or woman's scream crescendo into the evening air.

Major Veronica hopped out of her command tank and landed on something that made her stumble. She looked down to catch the offender to find she had stepped on someone's leg, the owner lay five meters away grasping at his stump. He whimpered, begged for it to stop, Veronica stalked over and stared into his blue eyes, they swam tears streaming out of them like a cascade of pain. She shot him twice, once in each eye so that she was not consumed by the same pain. Around her, the cracks of weapon discharges announced her order being carried out. She'd taken catastrophic losses, fifty proud tanks of Pegasus squadron of the 60th Scorpion Armored had been reduced to six in the blink of an eye. She checked her mood ring: red, anger. She shouldn't have had to check the ring though, the way her hand shook and how her right knuckles were right around the pistol's grip should have told her all she needed to know. She climbed back into the tank, snapped a crisp and loud order for the column to stop and to send for air and infantry support. It had arrived an hour later, venom's equipped with laser cannon screaming above her as she received support from over two hundred infantry (they brought sappers along, she wasn't going to fall for the same silly trick again) and two squadrons from her 50th armored broke off from their attacks on the flanks to support her in the center. Rejuvinated, the infantry went in first, she received the occasional reports, a bomb going off inside a building that killed a sapper, a trip wire that caused a broken leg, the odd GDI survivor in an entrenched position that mowed down an entire squad of her, no someone else's men. She quickly ordered that these people be taken alive but the scum had other ideas. They quickly committed suicide either charging her men with bayonets, knives and grenades or-

A scream broke out, an animal cry, she turned and saw a GDI white helmeted trooper leap out from behind a leaning column of concrete and charge the nearest Scorpion tank, a sonic charge strapped to his chest and another to his back. The pistol in his hand shot two of the guard infantry before Veronica could swing her own pistol to bear on the offending man. Her entire clip missed, understandable at this range, but the others had no excuse, miraculously or demonically, the shots ran around their target as if a demon coolly deflected the incoming shots. Finally, two meters away from the target, the man was hit in the leg and he tripped and fell. So close, yet so far. A sergeant called for a sapper but before one could be found, the sonic charges detonated. Veronica had earplugs but immediately crouched into the sound barriers of her tank as every trooper around her covered their bleeding ears.

The damage was negligible yet horrible. The charge had not even ripped through the armor as she had feared, yet had blown the right tracks clean off. That tank was dead in the water. Scoffing she ordered it moved out of the way. The delay went so long into the night, she ordered her tanks to hold their position and for the infantry to take up positions into the buildings. Most did not live to see morning. GDI snipers were busy that night.

"Order all of them to halt." Lord Caroth repeated at his command team. They quickly relayed his orders. He glared at the tactical display. Only the first day of fighting, and the GDI had cost him more men, machines and ammunition that he had expected to use in a week. At the very least 80% of his units had achieved their objective of the first day but if these losses continued, Caroth had no reason to expect victory would come quickly. Artillery support was rendered completely useless, Caroth, being more reliant on armored assault supported by air and infantry used relatively little artillery and GDI air strikes, despite the honeycombed buzzing swarm of anti air establishment around his lines had annihilated every piece and howitzer in his entire horde. Were the Firehawks running out of fuel? He had no reason to believe so, they had responded to every sortie opportunity, aggressively shielding their forces behind an impenetrable wall his own fighters and bombers could not enter. Still, it was odd that none of the other air assets had come into play yet. Or their artillery for that matter. But it was a city fight, more importantly, their city fight. This would be an infantry battle, not a clash of armor across open fields. Caroth understood that now.

"Bring the Infantry reserves forward, bring the tanks and walkers back. Provide the infantry with as much air support as needed but they are to hold the line for as long as they can." He told the officers of his command cadre. "We need to discuss a new strategy tomorrow."

The flat cracks of sniper rifles off in the distance lulled him to a peaceful sleep.

Two weeks later

"Message from ZOCOM sir." Colonel Varen's aide handed him a slip. Varen sipped his coffee, black, no sugar and a week old and scanned the paper. God be praised! He drained the last of his coffee grimacing as he did. Units in the local areas had repelled Nod forces and were converging on the 22nds position! The massed Nod force were now facing Zone Commands 12th Rapid Reaction battalion, and they were only two days away! He had done it against all odds!

The fighting for the past two weeks had been savage but his own beleaguered and outnumbered forces ground the Nod Advance to a stalemate on the, the disputed line rested where they had blunted the advance the first day. Something Varen had only prayed would happen, but it had. The enemy now were inclined to little prick attacks to test the GDI's solidified frontline and the sniping and firefights raged from building to building, street to street and frequently room to room. It had cost him a thousand brave men and women. But it had cost the enemy nearly three times as many. Their sacrifices were not any longer in vain as ZOCCOMS rapid reaction force charged across the plain at best speed to help Varen's forces. He didn't lie to himself, they were in desperate need of a rescue. But he had planned for it, despite the chastisement of his war council despite the admonishment of his own officers for wasting explosives but luck and fortune had been with him ever since that bloody first day. And now he was ready.

It was time to attack.

"Can I get a transmission through?" Nod forces had been jamming everything within a fifty kilometer radius, but slowly his own electronic support officers had managed to secure channels of communications.

"Yes sir, Sigma channel. I'll open a line to the 12th."

"CO 22nd to CO 12th how copy?" he said once he checked the channel was secure and that he was connected.

"CO 12th, Solid copy, send traffic. Varen, are you still alive?"

"Just barely." He managed a long laugh, something he hadn't managed in two weeks. He rubbed his chin and noticed he needed a shave. "My teeth and fingernails are bloody, all of my boys' fingernails and teeth in fact."

"Still the figurative speaker I see." An easy laugh on the other side responded.

"Dennings is that you?"

"Commander Dennings to you Varen." Another laugh that told Varen his old friend was joking again.

"Good to hear you."

"In a little soft spot I see, tell me what you've got."

"We're holding on just barely." Varen admitted and brought the tactical display online. His cadre circled around listening eagerly and gesturing at objects and units to remind Varen of their position; as though Varen had forgotten. "I've taken about twenty percent casualties these past two weeks, though none of our supplies is running low. This ain't no Stalingrad." He chose to omit the fact that it was much like Stalingrad, the city fight was down to guerilla warfare and Varen had lost track of several of his own units at times. Not to mention it was just as vicious and bloody.

"Sorry to hear. But what are the enemy's position and numbers? We have nothing confirmed on our side."

" Surrounding the city something along the lines of possibly several thousand armored cavalry of various types, and we haven't counted their infantry."

A quite curse on the other line. "air support?"

"Sent them to hell." Varen nodded at the Air wing Commanders in mute thanks.

"I see." He heard the scratch of a pencil in the background no doubt Dennings was sketching the positions out on paper, he had always felt the need to feel combat as though scrunching up the latest map made him able to control the battle with his own hands.

"We can swing around the eastern end of the city and create a five kilometer long line of advance. How soon can you support my own forces and punch a hole?"

"I can start in the morning." Varen said confidently. "We've been expecting you. I've got all my tanks itching to give Nod a bloody nose and ass."

Dennings whistled. "The sooner you can draw attention away from my advance the better. It'll be bloody but we'll get the most of your guys out and send the most of them to hell."

"Dennings," Varen laughed "You should know by now, bloody is what my men do best!"

"Good to hear from you again. Dennings out." The line shut. Varen took a deep breath and smoothed out his hair. He had outlined the contingency plan, the second phase to his defense several times to all of his captains, they were ready for this, mentally rehearsed for the past two weeks.

"Its time, prepare your forces for an assault at 0400. Air groups will support the eastern end but all units will be required to push outward. And tell the engineers to rig our little surprises."

It was time for the Defense Initiative to take the initiative and take the offense.