So here we are, the second half of the Italica shit show.
I had to redo this chapter at least four times, and that's not including the fact that I had to go through my entire story with Grammarly, there were some serious issues in early chapters. Which is why it took me so long to get this chapter out, I won't even get started on my newest story I'm working on the side.
Trying to incorporate tanks and making them be the main focus was a task I knew from the beginning was going to be tough. In a chapter such as this? Doubly so, I didn't want the story to be a stomp. Hence the magic barriers and comms jamming, which has by the way actually been met with pretty good feedback.
*update*-Had to doctor up the ending to this chapter, it felt rushed and was missing some character interaction to be honest. Also, the review system seems to be down, if you have any comments etc. Just PM me and I'll address them that way.
Also to the guest Mrlzers (I hope I got your name right)-Don't be sorry, in fact I apologize to YOU and anyone else who has a good bond with their religion. I got so tied up in trying to make this gate seem like a powerful event that I tried to hit all the "wickets". I should have done my research more thoroughly. So thank you for the heads up, in fact I went back and took that portion out altogether.
Chapter 12: Reap What You Sow
"To our Marines fell the most difficult and dangerous portion of the defense by the reason of our proximity to the great city wall and the great city gate...The Marines acquitted themselves quite nobly"
U.S. Foreign Minister Edwin H. Conger, Peking, Boxer Rebellion, 1900
ONE MONTH SINCE INITIAL INCURSION, 0200 HOURS, SOUTHERN APPROACH TO ITALICA
The battlefield is an unpredictable place, in the blink of an eye, even the most well laid out plan can fall apart. It's moments like these that define a military, would its leaders panic and lose all sense of control? Or would they salvage the situation and take control? Thankfully such a question didn't need to be asked of the Marines of Horsemen platoon, especially not Aldritch.
Clear communication was the life blood of any successful operation, to cut that off could spell disaster and throw personnel into disarray. Fortunately for all parties involved at Italica, if there was one thing Marines always trained for, it was disaster. Alrditch already knew the bigger picture; he had two tanks at the eastern approach to Italica. One was stuck but still functional, and the other was mobile and more than capable of defending both itself and its wingman. Comms were being jammed and currently there was a wave of bandits crashing against the eastern wall.
To make matters worse Aldrtich's gunner had already begun seeing thermal shapes moving down the southern approach. Italica was about to be encircled and overrun if the situation wasn't salvaged. Looking through his own sights, Aldritch keyed his comm helmet to the rear.
"Walker talk to me, what do we got?"
Not removing his face from his sights. Corporal Michael Walker continued to shift zoom magnifications as he traversed from left to right.
"I'm seeing a lot of foot mobiles moving down the southern avenue of approach and..." Suddenly the turret jerked hard as something attracted its attention.
"Oh fuck...boss I think they're setting up artillery...looks like catapults!"
Aldritch looked through his sights as five large thermal signatures began to be wheeled in atop a distant hill. Aldritch began to feel his heart rate skyrocket. Nonexplosive or not, artillery was still artillery. A large boulder could just as easily bend a gun tube or give the crew a major concussion. Now their fate was sealed, Aldritch's section could not break off or even spare one tank to help accompany the M88 in recovering the stuck tank.
In truth, he also didn't trust Itami's team to be able to hold the wall on their own, guns or not everyone has their limits. They'd need the tanks there to be the rock the enemy wave would break against. Suddenly Aldritch remembered something, Hitman could be the key to their salvation.
In truth, he wasn't sure who Hitman was or what they were even packing, but with a call sign like Hitman, they had to be the real deal. The only problem was, he had no idea where they were.
He wouldn't have to look for long. Hitman found him.
In moments a series of dull knocks came from the top of his hatch, Aldritch had almost tensed up before his driver, Lance Corporal Tanner Reeve's voice came over the internal net.
"Sir? There's some guys standing around the front slope..."
Aldritch's eyes suddenly went wide at this statement as he began to look through his periscopes. Sure enough, he could just barely make out a few robed figures standing around the tank. Clenching his fists, he keyed his comm helmet to the rear to berate his crew.
"What the fuck Reeves! Jesus, has anyone been keeping eyes on our flanks?!"
Before Aldritch could continue, Reeves's voice came back over the internal net, still as calm as ever.
"Sir, they have firearms...I'm pretty sure they're not the enemy."
Meanwhile, Walker proceeded to piggyback off what Reeves had said, his voice did little to hide his irritation. Meanwhile, the boot stomps continued atop Aldritch's hatch.
"Sir, they also made their way past Three, I'm pretty sure if they were hostile they'd already be dead."
Looking over to his left, Aldritch could see Moores sitting there in his loader's seat. With a look of confusion on his face, Moores merely shrugged. He of all people had absolutely no way of knowing what was going on outside the tank, after all, he was ordered to button up.
Realizing how much of an asshole he had just made himself out to be, Aldritch rubbed his face in frustration. After several moments, the boot stomps continued, this time, they had a real sense of urgency to them. Shaking his head, Aldritch unlocked his hatch and raised it open, locking it to the rear. The sight that awaited him atop his turret was one he hadn't been expecting.
In the blue glow of the turret's dome lights, a robed figured stood atop the turret looking down at Aldritch. Behind a balaclava, Aldritch could just barely make out the figure's dark skin. Had it not been for the obvious helmet, slung carbine, and semi-exposed MARPAT FROG suit, Aldritch might have mistaken the figure for a wraith. Seeing the look of confusion on Aldritch's face, the figure shook his head and removed the lower portion of its balaclava as it began to yelll over the sound of the engine.
"You Lieutenant Aldritch?!"
Aldritch merely nodded as the figure continued. "Well that's fucking terrific, your other tank's tank commander told us this was your hog! Lieutenant Kristian Emerson, MARSOC, Bravo Company Team Two, callsign Hitman! I'd love to exchange pleasantries some more, but right now we're knee-deep in bullshit if you haven't been aware!"
Aldritch partially climbed out of his hatch to converse with Emerson, having a team of Raiders on his side would be the salvation he'd need to fix this clusterfuck.
"I'm aware Emerson! I don't know if you're aware, but right now we have another wave coming up the southern road! I'd love to break my section off and get the Mike eighty-eight over to my other section, but between you and I? I don't think Itami's team is gonna be up to snuff to hold this wall down on their own!"
As if to confirm Aldritch's statement, a bright flash followed by an earth-shaking roar got the attention of both the officers. Southern Belle had just sent a round down the road at the incoming bandit horde. A loud thump followed by the distant screams of men followed, a long burst of machine gun fire followed as the tank's turret began to aggressively traverse left and right.
The time to act was now, turning to face Aldritch Emerson lifted his NVGs up and yelled over the roar of the other tank's onslaught.
"You pulled us out of the fire, let us do the same for you! My team can escort your eighty-eight over to the tanks, once it's there it better work fast. Call it a hunch, but I'm pretty sure the Eastern wall is already being overrun! If we don't get your two tanks inside this whole damn place is going to turn into a fucking bloodbath! I have a hunch as to what's jamming our comms too, once we unfuck the comm problem we'll send the call up to Alnus."
Aldritch watched as Southern Belle's .50 cal and coax let out a chorus of lead filled death as they began to pour everything they had down the road, tracer rounds darted across the darkness and with them the screams of men being cut down followed.
"Okay! The eighty-eight is inside the eastern gate's courtyard, its vehicle commander is Sergeant Muldoon! You let him know I sent you and what your plan is!"
Emerson merely nodded and went to disembark, before he made it down the turret, Aldritch called out to him one final time.
"Emerson! Good hunting, you make those bastards hurt, got it!?"
Emerson turned around and smiled before he lifted his balaclava up and lowered his NVGs down over his eyes."Just save some for us!"With that, Emerson rejoined his team and darted like shadows towards the eastern gate.
Adlrtich waited for the operators to be at a safe distance before he retreated back into the armored safety of his turret, closing his hatch and locking it firmly he addressed his crew.
"Alright boys, MARSOC's here to clean this mess up. Once they're done, they're gonna call in some extra hurt. In the meantime, we can't let Southern Belle have all the fun now can we?"
Evil chuckles echoed from the mouths of every crew member inside the tank, they lived for chaos. Death was the business that tankers dealt in, and right now business was looking very good. Giving Walker a pat on the back, Aldritch looked through his sights and gave a thumbs up to Moores.
"Now then...lets see what we can't do about that artillery eh? Moores give me a HEAT."
Aldritch heard the sounds of the hydraulically powered ammo door open and the breach being dropped as Moores quickly loaded a round. Meanwhile, Walker began to laze the catapults and feed ranges to the tank's fire control systems.
"Got em at 1,000 meters boss."
The lieutenant smirked as he felt the tank traverse to line one up in its sights, "Good...Fire!"
"On the way!"
Aldritch watched with satisfaction as one of the catapults disappeared in a dust cloud, pieces of its wooden framework flying every which way. Suddenly another catapult suffered the same fate, no doubt Southern Belle's doing.
Alpha Section was in the fight now.
Itami watched atop the southern wall as the two tanks below began to send death towards unseen targets in the distance. Night turned into day as their main gun muzzles lit up from their large caliber rounds. Meanwhile, tracer rounds zipped and darted through the darkness, where those went only the screams of the dead and the dying could be heard.
The members of RCT3 were no strangers to working with tanks, having done so with the crew of Here We Go Again. But to hear the sounds of multiple tanks constantly unleashing their fury, to say it was unnerving was an understatement. Itami watched as his men looked at the battle unfold with mouths agape, they knew that somewhere beyond the range of their NVGs, large groups of men were dying. There was nothing the enemy could do, nowhere to hide, and no one to help them.
Itami rubbed his face in frustration, how had it come to this? He had an entire platoon of tanks seemingly doing whatever they wanted, and he had absolutely no way of communicating with them. Meanwhile, the Eastern wall was probably compromised and no one had even bothered to come to him or his men for help. He had no control of the situation, and for the first time, Itami felt utterly helpless.
To make matters worse, Rory was going absolutely ballistic. She wouldn't respond to anyone and to the horror of everyone present, she had actually begun to pleasure sat there screaming and drooling, occasionally moaning the names of every one of the Marine tankers. As much as Itami wanted to let her loose, he couldn't. There was simply no telling just how unhinged she would become once she joined the fight.
Itami's men were being mentally stretched to their limits, he could see it in their eyes. Meanwhile, the light of distant fires began to grow at the Eastern Wall, casting a hellish orange glow in the night sky. Itami felt his mind begin to race, he was starting to lose it. Suddenly a firm hand grasped his shoulder, it was Kuwahara.
"Sir? Itami? We should split some of our team off to aid in the defense of the Eastern Gate. The two tanks and some of our men should be sufficient enough to hold this area."
Itami slowly turned around and regarded the older soldier with fatigue strained eyes. "We can't, our orders were to hold this wall. Nobody has come to us, so we have to assume they have the situation under control."
Kuwahara sighed as he released his grip. "Sir, that princess is just a young girl. She knows nothing of war or the tactics needed to effectively wage one. There are two tanks possibly being overrun as well. You heard their last transmissions, they need help."
Itami looked back at the two tanks as they continued their onslaught below. "They know what they're doing Sergeant Major, we have to assume Aldritch has some sort of plan already set in motion. For now all we can do is-"
Suddenly Kurokawa interrupted Itami mid-sentence, she had just overheard her superiors conversation and had left tending to Rory to join them. Her irritation was present in her every word. "What if they don't sir!? They're only men! Tankers or not they're not perfect, nobody is!"
Itami faced her, irritation and fatigue in his eyes. "I understand that Sergeant! They're going to be fine! You've heard the stories, you know their reputation! They thrive in this! But I will not help a ship sink any further than it needs to!"
Kuwahara stood in between the two, his rifle slung as he looked at either. "That's enough! Both of you! These are trying times for all of us, but the last thing we need to do is start fighting!"
Itami turned around and looked at the faces of each and every one of his team members from Shino's battle ready face to Kurata's calm demeanor, they were all looking up to him. They trusted him, and he wouldn't let them down.
"You're right Sergeant Major, men, I apologize for my lapse in focus. I need your help though, do you have any ideas?"
Looking at Itami with a smile, Kuwahara pat his shoulder firmly. "Now that's the Itami I know, and yes I do have an idea. If we could send a small team to accompany their eighty-eight, perhaps that would be enough to keep everyone well reinforced. It may not be a tank, but it has enough armor to not be in any danger. We can use the LAV, that should be enough to keep our own guys safe.
Itami nodded, for now, that was their best option. Before he could say anything else, a voice came from below the wall. "Hey! Can someone open this goddamn door?! We're on a bit of a tight schedule and we have a date with disaster!"
All the members of RCT3 including Lelei and Tuka looked down below, what they saw had not only surprised them but gave them hope too. A small team of cloaked Marines stood there, everything about their appearance screamed Special Forces.
Itami looked at the lead Marine as he waved his hands in the air. "Hello?! Domo Arigatou Mr. Roboto?! Open the fucking door! We need to get the eighty-eight started!"
Itami shook the confusion from his head and promptly made his way down to the gate with Kuwahara via a small series of stone stairs. Lifting the heavy iron bar, they pushed on the large door with all their might. Once it was finally open, a series of armed and hooded figures darted inside and towards the large recovery vehicle in the courtyard. Meanwhile, the one that had addressed Itami made his way over to him and Kuwahara.
Had Itami not seen the helmet, concealed gear, and dark skin, he would've mistaken the man for a local.
"Jesus, took you long enough, Lieutenant Kristian Emerson, MARSOC Team Two, Callsign Hitman. We were sent here by Aldritch to accompany the eighty-eight, we're gonna help get that other tank unstuck."
Itami did a double take at Kuwahara and then back at Emerson. It was like as if fate itself had dropped these Marines before them, fate or not Itami was thankful.
"Well that's a coincidence, we were about to do the same. Is there anything we can do to assist you?"
Emerson looked over at the eighty-eight, Masterson had made his way aboard and was conversing with Muldoon. In moments, the mechanic yelled at his crew and the eighty-eight's diesel engine roared to life. Meanwhile, the rest of team two began to clamber aboard and take up positions across its back deck. Returning his gaze back to Itami he nodded.
"Yeah, lend us use your gun truck. This operation calls for speed and precision. No offense, but we have that in spades your boys would just get in the way. Once we get those tanks unstuck, we're gonna support them at the eastern gate."
Itami merely nodded, he had never heard of MARSOC before, but he had a feeling they were as good as they were cocky. "Right then, it's yours, but you are aware that comms are still down right?"
Emerson was just about to give his theory as to the cause of that when Lelei beat him to the punch. Atop the wall, she called down to Itami. "Itami, I'm sensing a magical presence accompanying the bandits. If you can subdue that presence, your "comms" will probably work again."
The MARSOC offier looked up at Lelei, then back at Itami. "Well there you have it, we'll neutralize it and..."
Itami promptly cut him off. "Emerson, perhaps it would be best if we try to subdue it? We could get valuable information out of it...whatever it is."
Emerson sighed and rubbed his forehead. Captures were always a pain in the ass, but Itami had a point. Taking a quick drag from his E-cig, he went back to looking at the Japanese officer.
"Fine, but if it gives us a problem? We're destroying it, picking up what I'm putting down?"
Itami nodded and looked over at Kuwahara. "Let the men know what's going on, I'll be back up in a few minutes." The sergeant major merely nodded and made his way back up to the wall. Meanwhile, Emerson lowered his NVGs and pulled his balaclava back up, his voice sounding muffled and sinister against the fabric.
"Itami, when the comms go back up, make whatever calls you need to make. We're gonna need all the firepower we can get."
Before Itami could respond, he felt a presence drop in from above. Looking up he saw a small figure drop down, a massive halberd in its grasp, It was Rory. Dropping down between the two men, she looked at Emerson with a stern face.
"If you're going to join the chariots, Take me with you...now."
Emerson had already jumped back and raised his carbine. "Who the fuck are you?!"
Rory giggled and hefted her halberd over her shoulder. "I am Rory Mercury, apostle of Emroy."
Itami couldn't see it in the darkness, but Emerson had just thumbed the safety off his carbine. Before the situation could further deteriorate, Itami stepped between the two.
"Emerson, it's okay she's with us! She's not hostile!"
Emerson knew damn well who she was, he just had to confirm it with his own eyes and ears. He slightly lowered his carbine, he had only been moments away from unloading on her. "Well, next time keep your pet on a leash."
Rory was just about to discipline Emerson for his insult when Itami grabbed her by the shoulder and shook his head. The apostle giggled and slightly relaxed, meanwhile, Emerson slightly lowered his carbine further.
"Well, Rory, fortunately for you, we've heard about some of your...escapades. If you're as good as the rumors say you are, sure you can come with us."
Rory giggled and licked her lips, "Then let us not keep my riders waiting."
Emerson shot a glare at Itami and began to make his way over towards the rest of his team and the eighty-eight, Rory following him closely. Itami watched as Rory clambered aboard the eighty-eight and stood triumphantly behind its center mounted .50 cal. Meanwhile, Emerson's team hopped off the eighty-eight and piled into the LAV.
In moments, the two vehicles gunned it out the gate and into the maelstrom of battle beyond.
"That's right, run you little chicken shits!"
Elton watched through his sights as Kincaid sent another HEAT round at a group of bandits trying to flee from the tank's tracks. In an effort to conserve ammo, every so often Elton would have the tank drive forward and crush over any bandits that failed to run. He could almost hear their screams as they disappeared under the chassis or were partially crushed and left to slowly die on the battlefield.
At one point in an act of sadistic shock and awe, Kincaid had bisected a bandit's legs with the coax. Left to crawl, Elton had commanded Benitez to have the tank slowly creep up on him as he tried to drag himself away. His was a slow and terrifying death. As wrong as it was, it had sent a very clear message to the rest of the hordes, if they even so much as dared come any closer to the tanks, they too would suffer the same fate.
Kincaid gritted his teeth as he brought the turret hard left to engage another advancing horde, its servos whining as they were pushed to their limit. His job had been the most stressful. Between occasionally having to gun down large groups of boarders trying to make their way to Cry Sum Moar and trying to harass the rest of the horde advancing on Italica.
He was beginning to lose his patience.
In fact, everyone in the crew was losing their patience, for all the fury and firepower they unleashed on the hordes the bandits just wouldn't stop. They fought like possessed animals, they were determined in taking Italica.
Completing its ammo conserving lap, Here We Go Again returned to its original position beside Cry Sum Moar, meanwhile, Kincaid returned to engaging targets. Wilkes slammed his fist on the ammo door in frustration, all he could do was continue to make sure Kincaid had the ammo he needed to continue engaging. A while ago he had attempted to use his own 240 to take the burden off Kincaid and Elton. That was a short-lived moment as not even minutes after he had opened his hatch, a flurry of arrows came at him. So by group decision, the crew decided to keep the hatches buttoned up.
Elton vowed that as soon as the situation had developed for the better, he would personally make sure that each and every bandit suffered a gruesome death. Looking through his .50 cal's sights, he let another salvo off at a few bandits that had tried to sneak up on Cry Sum Moar. Slamming his fist on his hatch, he voiced his irritation.
"Christ why don't they give up?! And where the fuck is everyone else?"
Not looking away from his sights, Kincaid continued to engage bandits, yelling through his headset all the while.
"Fuck man I don't know! Maybe they're busy too?!"
Not even seconds after Kincaid had said that he did a double take through his sights. A group of bandits had been torn in half by large caliber rounds, Elton hadn't fired and Cry Sum Moar was too busy engaging bandits off to its right. Suddenly he found the answer he was looking for.
The white thermal image of a Komatsu LAV quickly slid into his sights, its gunner engaging bandits every which way. Just as soon as it had appeared, the LAV promptly went across the road and barreled into a group of bandits, bodies flying every which way. Wherever it was going, it seemed like as if something had caught its attention.
"Yo! You see that shit? I think Itami's boys just entered the fight!"
Elton had been looking through his rear periscopes with a smile on his face. "They're not the only ones, the fucking eighty-eight is here!"
Kincaid traversed the turret hard right, sure enough, he could see the large recovery vehicle gunning its way over towards Cry Sum Moar. As its .50cal let loose salvos at any nearby bandits, it began to make its way over towards the front of the stuck tank. Kincaid could see the hatches on the tank begin to open up as Parker and his crew hopped out to prep the tank for recovery options.
Now came the job of simply defending the two vehicles. Before Elton could give the order for Benitez to move the tank closer towards the two, a series of knocks rang out atop his hatch. Elton merely tapped Kincaid on the back and did a spinning motion with his finger. "We got boarders, give em some whirlybirds."
Kincaid merely nodded and gave the turret max power as he traversed the turret hard left, anyone who was on top of the turret would be promptly thrown off by the sheer speed and momentum of the turret's traversal. After a few seconds, Kincaid let go of his controls causing the turret to jerk to a stop violently.
Satisfied, Elton went back to attempting to give the order to move when Kincaid suddenly jumped back in his seat. Elton's eyes went wide as he addressed the problem.
"Bro, What's wrong?!"
Kincaid merely pointed at his sights and looked back at Elton with a look of confusion. "It's...Rory."
Meanwhile, Wilkes and Benitez groaned over the internal net, they were anything but thrilled.
Elton promptly looked through his sights and sure enough, he could see her face looking back at him, or rather a giant green thermal blob. Sighing and shaking his head he opened his hatch and stuck his head out into the night's air. Before he could even say anything Rory sprung atop the turret and gave him a tight hug.
"Elton! I've come to fight by your side! Let us claim this battlefield in Emroy's name and show these fools the folly of their transgressions!"
Elton struggled for a moment before breaking her grip, a look of visible disappointment on his face. "I don't have time for this bullshit! Look if you're gonna stay, make yourself useful and don't get in the way!"
Rory smiled and gave a mock salute. "But of course, good sir knight!"
Elton merely shook his head and began to direct Benitez to drive over towards the recovery operation, meanwhile, Rory took her place behind his cupola, her halberd raised high and triumphant.
"Onward Riders of Emroy! To battle!"
XXXXXXX
Doc opened his passenger door's window as he let off a burst of fire at some bandits that had been missed by Emerson's driving.
"Jay-Kay, This is a bad idea!"
"Doc, please spare me your belly aching! Unless you have the thing's goddamn cell phone number, this is the only way we're gonna find it!"
Over the roar of the engine and sounds of the .50 cal going off, Emerson yelled as he drove the truck into another group of bandits. The vehicle jerked as men were sent over the hood and sucked under its heavy tires. Meanwhile, Nutt casually chucked grenades out the back of the vehicle's open doors, Loke and Doc just did their best to hold on and fire at what targets they could.
"Cam, see any magicians yet!?"
Masteron chuckled as he sent another burst of heavy rounds into a group of bandits that were attempting to find cover in some bushes before he responded.
"Naw nothing yet! But god damn is this fun!"
The vehicle strained as its shock absorbers took another impact from bandits getting sucked under the tires as it swerved every which way. Meanwhile, arrows bounced harmlessly off the vehicle's heavy duty armor and bullet proof windshields.
Hitman was effectively on a scavenger hunt, a very big angry scavenger hunt. They had no idea what the "magician" looked like, or even if it was a magician at all. For now all they could do was cause chaos as the tanks worked on making their way back to the southern gate.
Finally, something must have caught Masterson's eyes as he had promptly stopped firing. "Bingo! What do we have here!? Two o clock, some sort of uh...bird girl! She's got her hands in the air!"
Emerson promptly turned the wheel hard right and the vehicle gunned its way over in the general direction Masteron had directed earlier. After some more bandit collisions, the vehicle's high beams finally shone their light on a small girl. With her short green hair, bird-like legs, and elaborate looking attire, she was definitely the odd looking one out of the bunch.
As the vehicle skidded to a hard stop, she covered her eyes with her hands. Not wasting any time, Emerson looked back at Loke and Nutt.
"Loke, Nutt! Detain her!"
In seconds, the pair had jumped out of the back of the vehicle, ran ahead, and tackled the girl. Meanwhile, Masterson provided covering fire with the .50 as the two raiders bound and gagged the girl. Nutt promptly put the girl into a fireman's carry and brought her back alongside Loke as they piled into the back of the vehicle.
As the two shut the heavy doors behind them, Nutt yelled as he got a better look at her. "Jesus, she's just a child!"
Emerson floored the pedal to the deck and put the vehicle into a U-turn as they made their way back to the tanks. Turning a few nobs and grabbing a handheld from the center console, Emerson took a deep breath.
"Alright now to test a theory! Any station this net, any station this net, this is Hitman Actual! Radio check, over!"
For a few moments silence reigned supreme on the net, Doc looked over at Emerson with a sullen face. Suddenly the net came alive with chatter.
"Holy shit! They actually did it! Good shit Hitman!"
"Aww, I was just getting used the peace and quiet!"
Emerson slammed his fist on the dashboard in triumph, meanwhile, the rest of the team hooped and hollered. Once again MARSOC operators had achieved the impossible and emerged against all odds. Not skipping a beat, Emerson changed the frequency and yelled into the handset.
"Alnus Main, Alnus Main, this is Hitman Actual! Be advised we are currently engaged at Italica! Massive enemy force numbering in the thousands! We need reinforcements now!"
For a few moments, all was quiet until a man's voice came over the net, it was Kane.
By some stroke of luck, Kane had been in the operation's room the whole time. Hours of radio silence from Italica had already put most of the base's QRF teams on high alert.
"Solid copy on all Hitman, this is Overlord. Hang tight son, help is on the way. Just give us an hour tops."
Emerson held back tears of joy as he radioed back, "That's an affirm Overlord! We'll try to save some for you, Hitman out!"
Returning the radio back to its cradle, Emerson yelled back at his team as he drove the truck through another group of bandits.
"Hear that boys?! Help is on the way!"
A series of chuckles and thumbs up followed, meanwhile, Nutt lowered his face to the girl's.
"Your bandit buddies are so fucked..."
The girl merely lay there motionless as tears streamed down her fear filled eyes.
Finally after what had felt like an eternity, Elton watched as Cry Sum Moar was finally pulled out of the ditch it had gotten stuck in. With a whine of satisfaction, its turbine engine went full throttle as it crested up the small hill the two tanks had been near. Elton listened in as Parker's voice came over the net.
"Shit thanks eighty-eight, you're a goddamn life safer."
In moments Muldoon's voice came over the net, chuckling all the while.
"Yeah, yeah we get it. We're gonna go ahead and head back to Alpha section, you boys don't get anymore tanks stuck know ya hear?"
With that, the recovery vehicle lumbered its way back towards the battle going down at the southern entrance.
Parker and Elton laughed as their tanks turned to face Italica's southern entrance, meanwhile, Hitman's newly acquired LAV drove up besides them.
"You can thank us later, now then I know how you tankers roll! How's about we give the eastern gate a friendly welcome?"
Although the tankers had been expecting Itami's men to be crewing the LAV, their moods were raised considerably upon learning that Hitman had commandeered the vehicle. The crews on both tanks laughed mischievously, they knew what the plan was. Elton keyed out over the net as he addressed the other two vehicles.
"Yo Three, ready for some gangster shit?"
"Well...I'm down for some cowboy shit, but sure thing. On your lead Four."
With that the three vehicles gunned it towards the Italica's southern gate, meanwhile, Rory laughed maniacally all the while atop her iron perch. The thrill of the coming battle had turned her on and made her blood rush.
From behind a makeshift barricade, Pina watched in horror as the bandits began to flood the courtyard, moments earlier she had watched as Norma was cut down atop the wall and cast down on the other side. The militia accompanying him had put up a valiant effort, but against the bandits onslaught, their efforts were for naught. With no real threat to oppose them, the bandits had an easy go at breaking through the gate.
How had it came to this? Where were the iron chariots and the men in green? Had they abandoned them?
All was lost, Italica was doomed. There was nothing to stop the bandits at this point, Pina drew her sword as she glanced at Hamilton and Grey. They nodded in kind as they prepared themselves for battle.
Then a noise began to grow, faint at first it grew closer and closer. It sounded like the gales of a powerful storm, meanwhile, the bandits stopped in their tracks, their eyes grew wide with fear. They had known what the noise was, many of them had just barely made it past the ones who it originated from.
Then, chaos reigned.
In moments, one of the large iron chariots came crashing through the entrance, its head facing backward as men were crushed or tossed aside like dolls. As it made its way into the courtyard it took its place to left of the barricade, but it wasn't alone. Perched atop it, Rory Mercury laughed and giggled as she tossed her halberd at a group of bandits that had survived the initial charge.
Soon another iron chariot charged through and made its way to the right side of the barricade. Like its companion, it too began to traverse its large head towards the front as it began to slay bandits. Shortly after, one of the smaller iron wagons from before screeched to a halt and took up place between the two chariots.
From the moment they had entered, to the time they had begun firing, bandits were dropping like flies before a sharp wind. Meanwhile, Rory killed and dismembered bandits wholesale as her lithe form darted to and fro in the courtyard.
"My Riders of Emroy come for your souls! Run all you want, you'll find no salvation or mercy anywhere!"
Hamilton approached Pina and mirrored her superior's face as she watched the bloodbath begin anew.
"Rory...commands the iron chariots?"
Pina watched as the two behemoths let loose with a chorus of sparks and crackles as their strange weapons began to send death at the bandits. Atop the walls, below the walls, piling through the gate, it didn't matter. They all died the same, but they would not relent.
Every so often they would let loose their mighty cannons, the earth shook and left the defenders tone deaf as they sent their fury through the gate's entrance.
"I-I think she does."
0400 HOURS, ALNUS AIRFIELD, CAMP ALNUS
Van Hauser and the rest of his company ran across the tarmac as they made their way to the waiting choppers. The dull orange glow of the rising sun illuminating their outlines, meanwhile JSDF infantry teams scrambled to their choppers as well.
The lieutenant looked up and saw a pair of Harriers screech overhead as they made their way to the distant battle.
Just fifty minutes prior, he had been spending time with Felicia when he got the call on his radio. He had to get his platoon prepped and ready for dust off ASAP. Felicia had been anything but thrilled, her cat ears drooping in sadness at the news. He merely ran a hand through her hair, promising he'd be back in no time, and with that he left her at the refugee zone.
He had no idea what the mission was, in fact very few did. All they knew was that whatever it was it was going to be big, big enough to warrant a whole flight's worth of attack and transport choppers. Van Hauser led his platoon into the waiting mouth of one of the CH-53's. As he stood at the open ramp, he directed them in.
"Go! Go! Go! Let's move it people!"
Before he followed them inside he noticed two Huey Venom transport helicopters take off, but it wasn't the helicopters themselves that caught his eyes. It was what was on them. On each helicopter's tail was a name, one was called Beethoven, the other Wagner. Though their names were different, their load outs were very much the same.
Inside each of their troop bays were two large sets of speakers on either side, Van Hauser quickly deduced what they were the moment their speakers began to play.
Psyops Choppers.
Wagner and Beethoven's Album of Awesome
Track 16: Johnny Cash "The Man Comes Around"
Play?
"There's a man going around taking names, and he decides who to free and who to blame. Everybody won't be treated all the same, there'll be a golden ladder reaching down. When the man comes around."
As Van Hauser took up his seat next to one of the privates, he heard Boyd's voice yell out over the chopper's rotors.
"Aww hell yeah! That's some good listening there! We're off to kill with the man himself! Johnny mother fuckin Cash!"
Van Hauser merely shook his head as he smiled. "Fucking southern boy."
Suddenly the chopper began to lift off the ground, the Marines began to ready up. Weapons were racked, gear checked, comms adjusted, meanwhile the door gunners took up their positions behind their weapon mounts.
As the chopper began to bank left and fly over the base, Van Hauser looked out back behind the chopper.
As far as the eye could see, choppers of various types flew in formation, meanwhile both Marine and Japanese Cobra attack helicopters stayed on the outsides protecting the transport choppers. It was quite a sight, like vengeful eagles riding through the sky they would come and strike down those who incurred their wrath.
Suddenly Van Hauser's company, commander Major Joyce, came over the net. "Alright Marines listen up, we're about to head into the shit! At approximately twenty-four hundred hours, some of our boys over at Italica came under attack by a large enemy force numbering in the thousands. Italica is a strategic location gentlemen, if we control this area, we'll control one of the largest trading hubs in the region. This is a high stakes operation gentlemen, once we touch down I want aggressive action by the numbers. Check your targets and for god's sake don't get swarmed. Rah?"
A series of yells and war cries rang out in the chopper's troop bay as the Marines got amped for the fight ahead.
"Good hunting."
Van Hauser watched the special region countryside pass by as he looked out the back ramp, pulling up his skull faced balaclava, he got himself psyched for the battle ahead.
To the bandit hordes, the battle was hardly in their favor from the moment they had begun their attack. From specters in the forests darting through the trees and hitting them unseen to the large iron chariots thought only to be a myth destroying entire legions. They were pressed on all sides, they had almost made their way inside the city too, only to be thwarted by the chariots and Rory Mercury of all people.
This was not war, not as they knew it. War was about getting in close and destroying the enemy, to see the look of defeat on their face as you ran them through and took what was yours.
These monsters were disgraceful to that very way of life, a mockery to their god Emroy and everything honor stood for. They hid behind metal shells and threw fire and brimstone at them outside of their range. Now with the bandits' siren gone, there was nothing that could stop the iron beasts.
As the sun began to rise over the battlefield, they began to see what their actions had brought upon themselves. Fields of the dead and dying littered the ground, vultures had begun to fly overhead and congregate over the bountiful feast below. Meanwhile, the sounds of rage and fury could be heard all around Italica, to them their chance for an orgy of bloodshed had turned into a nightmare.
A nightmare that was from over, as the sun rose higher a sound could be heard. It was faint, but it grew louder and louder until it turned into an unbearable shriek. Sky banshees had come for them, but not the kind from the legends. No, these banshees were very tangible and very deadly. What lucky few got a look at them saw giant angular gray dagger-like shapes dart to and fro in the sky.
Every pass the banshees made spelled death for any in their path. Large fireballs sent chunks of earth and screaming men into the air at the banshees every pass, those had been the lucky ones. The unlucky ones were chewed up by invisible forces that carved paths through the dirt towards them, a large roar in the sky that preceded their arrival. There was nothing the bandits could do to fight back, only run or attempt to hide.
Then just as quickly as they had come, the banshees left. Their screams fading away into the distance as they had claimed enough souls. For those men who had survived, they felt as though they were lucky. They very quickly realized just how wrong they were.
From out of the sun, new horrors began to appear. These ones were noisy. They came in all shapes and sizes, but all of them seemed to carry the same men that crewed the iron chariots. Strange blades atop them whooped and made thumping noises as they flew around.
As they grew closer, a song began to play, a song unlike any they had ever heard before. It terrified the hordes, for soon they had understood what it was.
It was their funeral dirge.
Beethoven and Wagner's Album of Awesome
Track 17: Dead Kennedy's "Holiday in Cambodia" (Original studio version)
Play?
As soon as the dirge started, so did the killing. These new winged chariots began to rain death just as terrible as the banshees had, and worse, they were almost better at it.
"So you been to school
For a year or two
And you know you've seen it all
In daddy's car
Thinkin' you'll go far
Back east your type don't crawl!"
All cohesion had been lost at that point, some of the men were hardened veterans, conquerors of long battles past. They too had dropped their weapons and tried to run, all their efforts were futile. At one point a group of cavalry had tried to flee the battle over a hill, one of the smaller chariots promptly broke off and chased after them with a relentless fury, its strange magic blowing them away wholesale.
The bandits had came there to plunder and sow terror.
Instead, terror had found them.
"It's a holiday in Cambodia
It's tough, kid, but it's life
It's a holiday in Cambodia
Don't forget to pack a wife!"
To the tankers and any other Marines, the music had had quite the opposite effect. It whipped them into a battle frenzy making them fight with renewed vigor. At one point Alpha section had actually pushed up from their position and with the help of a few Cobra's had pushed an entire horde back into a waiting treeline filled with weapon emplacements courtesy of a few inserted infantry teams.
Hueys of both Japanese and American make conducted circling runs, their door guns corralling the bandits and denying their escape. Meanwhile, the Cobras continued to hunt down any targets of opportunity.
It was a turkey shoot, a large glorified turkey shoot.
Marine and JSDF infantry fast-roped from their transport choppers onto Italica's walls. Some set up heavy weapons along the wall and continued to repel the hordes from elevated positions. Others were dropped into the heart of the city and began to clear every alley and every street for any enemy that had somehow leaked through.
For the tankers of Bravo section, however, their battle had been brutal from start to finish. Between Rory's mad laughter as she hacked men to pieces and the arrival of RCT3, it had been close up close and personal.
At one point Here We Go Again had finally expended all its ammunition, leaving it one last option. With mighty yells, a whole tank crew opened their hatches and began to fight from atop their tank. With their personal weapons, they defended their home and themselves like madmen.
For Benitez, it had been an exhilarating new experience. For the rest of the crew, it had been a painful flashback to old battles; Benitez, Kincaid, Elton, and Wilkes fought shoulder to shoulder atop the turret as they fended bandits off their tank. When they ran out of ammunition for their personal weapons, they switched to bayonets and anything they could get their hands on.
This had only enticed Rory as she promptly boarded the tank and fought by their side.
Meanwhile, Hitman worked with the same cold precision they were known for, no shot was wasted as they put rounds into targets.
The killing went on for hours until finally the last bandit had been killed or otherwise incapacitated. Against a fully risen sun, the defenders of Italica stood triumphantly, meanwhile, the helicopters continued to make their passes ensuring everything was clear.
The only message anyone had received to stand down was simple, it came across all frequencies loud enough for everyone to hear.
"All enemies neutralize, stand down and stand by for further instructions."
0600 HOURS, ITALICA'S EASTERN WALL
As Pina made her way to the top of the Eastern wall, she began to hear a song coming from two of the sky chariots.
Wagner and Beethoven's Album of Awesome
Track 18: Animals as Leaders "New Year"
Play?
The two chariots banked and danced through the air as they continued to fly around Italica. For all their brutality they had displayed, there was sort of elegance to them. At one point one of them had noticed her and had actually flown low enough for her to get a good look at it. Hovering across from her, she could just barely make out two men sitting in some sort of cabin, they waved at her for a while and promptly took back off into the sky to join the others.
Pina stood there petrified, this was the power that the "Allies" brought. The power to defy the gods themselves. Turning around she looked down at the two bloodstained iron chariots and their crews as they sat there in the middle of the courtyard.
King Duran was right, there was nothing the Empire could do to stop them, and Pina had no intention of being destroyed.
So as the strange music continued from the heavens, Pina thought long and hard about what her next move would be, what the Empire's would be.
What the strange armies' would be.
XXXXXXX
Kincaid sat atop the tank's blood-stained front slope and listened to the music as he promptly lit two cigarettes at once, with a thousand-yard stare he sat there and took a deep drag as he let the music overtake him.
In a way, it perfectly captured what they had just gone through, something familiar with something not so familiar. The music was calming to say the least, it brought him back to the old days.
Back when all one had to do was crank something over the net and fight the enemy.
Meanwhile, the rest of the crew sat quietly around the top of the bloodstained turret, try as they might they couldn't find a spot that wasn't a complete mess. They sat there smoking their cigarettes and trying to catch their breathes. To fight in a tank for hours on end was a stressful matter, but to fight on top of it and face to face with the enemy was another matter altogether.
Elton pat the top of the GoPro he had mounted earlier, his voice devoid of any emotion. "Well...I got all of that on camera."
Meanwhile, Wilkes looked at his bloodstained FROG sleeves and sighed. "Yeah and I got all of that on me."
With a shaking hand, Kincaid reached into his cargo pocket and pulled out a Rockstar. Fumbling with the tab, he promptly opened it and took a deep drink. Looking around, he took in the scene that unfolded in front of him. Marine and Japanese infantry moved around with stretchers or tarps. They tried their best to cover up the bodies or tend to the wounded, but there was just so many of them.
At one point Kincaid had spotted an exhausted Kurokawa helping a few Corpsmen with some wounded. Her face lacked the usual spark of life it always had, but when she looked up and just so happened to see Kincaid staring at her. Her face lit up into one of joy and she waved at him. Kincaid merely smiled and waved back.
Meanwhile, Alpha section's tanks slowly rumbled into the courtyard. Troops and civilians alike gave them a wide berth as they took up whatever space they could find to park. Looking across the courtyard, Kincaid could see Itami and the rest of his team conversing with one of their superiors. They looked just as worn out as the tankers did.
Kincaid slowly sighed and looked down at his bloodstained trousers.
Why didn't they just give up?
Suddenly his train of thought was interrupted by a familiar voice. "Well well, look who it is."
Kincaid looked up at the source of the voice and gave a weak smile, Emerson had made his way over towards the front of the tank. Setting his Kevlar down on the front slope and reaching under his cloak, he took out his E-cig and took a small drag.
"Didn't think we'd be dancing to this tune again, where's your butt buddy Wilkes at?"
Kincaid gave a weak laugh and took another drag from his pair of cigarettes holding them side by side all the while.
"If by dancing you mean fighting and by tune you mean together, then yeah I gotta admit I'm a little surprised myself, sir. As for my "butt buddy," he's up top probably trying to get some sleep. I'll be sure to let him know you paid us a visit."
Emerson chuckled and unslung his carbine, setting it down by his Kevlar. "Jesus man I told you before, call me Jay-Kay. Anyways what was it, two years ago? Operation Hammerdown?"
Kincaid chuckled as he took another sip from his beverage. "Yeah, I remember that I also remember you guys almost getting smoked by us. Friendly fire isn't fun you know, for both parties involved."
Emerson shook his head and took another drag. "Yeah? I remember you guys needing us to clear out some AT positions in a few buildings so you could advance too. Give some take some Kincaid, we wouldn't have been in the line of fire if we didn't have to be there in the first place."
"Touché."
The two laughed as the reminisced on the mission they had first worked together. Old and new stories were exchanged as they took their time to relax, just happy to be alive.
"So, what was jamming our comms?" Kincaid finished the last gulp of his drink and crushed the can against the front slope. Looking at Emerson with a raised eyebrow all the while.
Emerson let another puff of smoke out before he glanced over at the rest of his team huddled around the LAV. They formed a protecting ring around the prisoner, more for her safety than anything else.
"Well, to be honest, it was a girl, or rather some sort of bird girl. Some of the locals called her a Siren, so we're just going with that. As for how she was doing it? You got me, she's too damn terrified to talk."
Kincaid took his now dirty glasses off and stored them inside one of his cargo pockets, rubbing his tired eyes with his wrist.
Sirens, what's next? Cat girls?
The pair's moment of relaxation was promptly cut short as a familiar giggle cut through the peace and quiet. In moments, Rory had somehow snuck up on the two and had firmly attached herself to Kincaid's arm rubbing her head against his shoulder all the while. Emerson had quickly put his hand near his sidearm, meanwhile, Kincaid merely sat there and shook his head. He was too tired to really care at this point.
Rory giggled and ran her bloodstained hands up and down Kincaid's arm. "Jasper, that was an amazing fight was it not?"
Before Kincaid could say anything he watched as Emerson muttered something into his helmet's boom mic. In seconds, his entire team was looking over at the tank with suspicious eyes and readied weapons. Kincaid merely sighed and went to light another cigarette.
"No, it wasn't. That wasn't a fight, that was a massacre."
Before Rory could respond Emerson had taken a step forward and was eyeing her with suspicious eyes. "What kind of "god" commands entire legions of men to run into a fight they know they can't win?
Kincaid merely shook his head and looked at Emerson. "Relax, she's just a pain in the ass. I'm not in the mood for back and forth bullshit right now."
Meanwhile, the rest of the crew was now looking down at the scene unfolding in front of the tank. As much as they wanted to intervene, they really weren't in the mood either. Rory merely giggled and slowly turned her gaze to the MARSOC officer, a sly smile on her lips.
"Oh? Are you jealous? Would you rather me be attached to you? As for those "Men", there can be no greater service than to die in service to Emroy. They died as warriors."
At this point Emerson was really trying his best to keep his composure, Kincaid could see it and once again he tried to defuse the situation.
"Ugh just let it go, you remember how the Afghanis were. They had their way of life and their religion, these people obviously have theirs. Even if it means the concept of human life here is a fleeting one."
Emerson merely took another drag and pointed at Rory. "There's really something wrong with you people."
Rory merely smiled in response and clung tighter to Kincaid's arm. Closing her eyes, she responded with a smile. "Oh, you'll understand someday, all of you will."
Throughout the conversation, Kincaid and Emerson had both noticed that villagers had been wandering a little too close to the tank. In fact, they had begun to notice it taking place at the other tanks too. At first, they had just brushed it off as just child-like curiosity, but soon more and more began to arrive.
They started to come closer to the tank, touching it and muttering all sorts of strange words. Soon an entire crowd began to form around not only Here We go Again, but the other tanks as well. The villagers began to drop to their knees in worship, extending their arms in praise. Some had even tried to rub the blood off the road wheels and side skirts, offering it up to the tankers.
"Praise be to the riders of Emroy..."
That had been the final straw for the allied forces present. Soon infantry teams began to try and dispel the crowds with the usual rough persuasion. When that didn't work they switched over to a tactic that did.
In moments, the sounds of weapons discharging into the air broke out and the crowds began to dissipate. One-sided fight or not, the men were wired and didn't have time for this. That was all it took for the crowds to dissipate.
Clearly, the "Riders of Emroy" and their fellows weren't in the mood for worship.
Meanwhile, Kincaid and Emerson had made their way to the top of the turret with a now laughing Rory. They both looked at her with looks of utter confusion.
"What the hell is wrong with you people?"
Now the first thing I know I'm gonna hear is, "Where's Ride of The Valkyries?"
I'll be dead honest, out of all the Psyops songs to be likely played by Marines? That's probably the lowest on the list, nobody likes a "Motard" hah.
I wanted the song to be something that would really just fuck with the minds of the bandits.