Hey, everybody. Back with another chapter.

Let's get to it.


Chapter 35- Scramble

(July 5, 2021, Norfolk, Virginia)

As the hours tick by towards morning, the moon is still shining bright over the port of Norfolk. On any other day, it would be a very peaceful night. Not tonight.

Despite the fact that its only 2 in the morning, the base is in complete uproar. Orders had been sent out the previous day from Admiral Grady, commander of United States Fleet Forces Command, regarding the situation in Arda, and ordered 26 ships to scramble to sea and make for the portal off the coast. This included 2 carrier strike groups, 2 amphibious assault ships, and several more destroyers and several support ships and transports.

Among the ships tied up to the docks at Norfolk that are being prepped to sail is the battleship Wisconsin. After the Wisconsin returned from her original deployment to Arda to support the landings in Nevrast and southern Beleriand in early April 2019, the decision had been made to maintain the Wisconsin in the fleet. Despite people in government and the Navy saying that the Wisconsin was no longer needed, Trump and the Secretary of the Navy both ordered that the Wisconsin be maintained in the fleet. There were several reasons for this. The first being that the war with Morgoth was far from over, and they wanted to keep the Wisconsin in service until the end of the war in case it was needed again. In addition, due to rising tensions with America's biggest adversaries, including China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran, Trump and individuals within the Navy were of the opinion that the Wisconsin would be a very useful addition to the Navy and serve as a deterrent, especially since it could outmatch almost anything out there and withstand heavy damage. With naval buildup among some of America's adversaries, the Wisconsin would be a vital asset.

Therefore, soon after its return from Arda, the Wisconsin went back into dry dock for a further overhaul and refit in June 2019. The refit replaced and updated systems and weapons that the first refit had not touched on. The refit was completed in June 2020, and the ship returned to service. Since then, the Wisconsin had conducted goodwill cruises around the world, conducted naval exercises with allied nations, and gone on two deployments: one to Korean waters to exercise with the South Koreans and send a message to the North, and the second a combat deployment to the Meditteranean in support of anti terrorist operations.

With the war expected to end soon, plans were being made for the Wisconsin to be decommissioned in December after a final deployment. However, now, the Wisconsin has been ordered back to Arda. Like the other ships marked for deployment, her crew is racing to get the battleship to sail. She will be sailing along with her battleship battle group, which includes the cruiser Vella Gulf and 3 destroyers.

Aboard the battleship, Captain Gerosa is keeping careful track of the preparations to sail. Admiral Grady had given a deadline 0630 for the fleet to sail. The battleship is almost ready to move. It's engines are almost fully warmed up to power the ship, and the last few supplies are being brought aboard.

Gerosa is feeling increasingly anxious. If the fleet can reach the waters off Nevrast fast enough, they might be able to save the 2nd Canadian Division and keep Nevrast safe. But it all depends upon speed. They can't afford to get behind schedule. Gerosa is just hoping everything goes according to plan.


(Valimar)

In the situation room in his HQ in Valimar, General Abrams is watching the screen displaying all reports coming in. This is the most stressful situation he's ever faced in his entire life, and he's even wondering if he can handle the stress. However, he knows his troops are counting on him, and he's been trying his best to remain calm.

The situation in Beleriand is getting worse. Casualties, although slowing down, are continuing to mount, and the planned air attack to counter the dragons is not yet ready. Several divisions are in serious trouble. The ones he's currently most worried about are the 6th infantry Division, the 77th Infantry Division, and the 10th Panzer Division.

However, top of his list of priorities is the situation in Nevrast. The orcs are continuing their march towards Nevrast, and the Canadians are trying to dig in.

All Abrams can do at this point is pray and put his faith in the 2nd Canadian Division.


(Nevrast)

Along the coast on Nevrast, the 2nd Canadian Division, under command of Brigadier General JRS Boivin, is desperately trying to prepare a defense. They know they have limited time to prepare the strongest defense they can.

General Boivin had ordered the division to set up near the Firth of Drengist, along one of the narrower parts of the pass leading down into Nevrast. Boivin was determined to turn this place into a wall against the Orc advance.

The Canadians were preparing a very sound defense. They used up every single land mine the Allies had available in Nevrast and made a wall of land mines across the pass. The mines were expected to claim at least a thousand Orcs, hopefully more, and disrupt their movements. They had also commandeered what little chemical weapons remained in Nevrast, which meant a few thousands artillery shells filled with mustard gas and sarin.

General Boivin had positioned his troops across the pass. The division only had 30 Leopard 2 tanks. All 30 tanks had been positioned in defensive holes dug specially for the tanks. These positions left the tanks completely free to fire all their weapons, but still totally covered and well camouflaged. Both in front of and behind the tanks, fortified trenches had been dug for the infantry. These trenches had pickets and barbed wire strung out in front of them, and multiple machine gun nests were set up. Far behind the lines, artillery pieces were well camouflaged to keep any dragons that might fly out this far from seeing them.

The division is dug in well, but the preparations for the coming attack are still ongoing. In his headquarters well within Nevrast and far from the expected battle site, General Boivin is keeping track of the situation, and waiting with great anxiety. He knows it will be at least another day and half before the Orcs arrive, and the wait is agonizing.


(Valinor Air Base)

On the flightline of the airbase in Valinor, Captain Gutierrez is leaning against the fuselage of his A-10 Warthog. Along with the rest of the Allied air forces in Arda, Gutierrez had taken part in the flight back to Valinor. Now, the airbase, which had been designed to regularly operate no more than 250 aircraft, is crowded with almost 1,500. Aircraft are parked on every bit of tarmac possible. Construction equipment is desperately trying to pave more tarmac to give the aircraft more room to park, especially since more jets are expected to arrive from more NATO members in the few days.

All aircraft are sitting on the tarmac fully armed, and fuelled. The aircraft are waiting for more NATO reinforcements to arrive while General Wolters is preparing plans for the attack against the dragons.

Having to wait here for the attack to be planned and ordered is agonizing for Gutierrez and all the other pilots. They want to be back in combat, but know that they can't yet. And being grounded for now is anxiety-inducing. They just want to be back in battle.

This war is changing by the minute, and all the pilots want is to be back in the middle of it. All they hope they can do is get back into action before its too late to stop the dragons.


And, I'll end the chapter there. Hope you liked this one.

Also, I posted my Fall of Gondolin story last week. It's called Glory and Destruction. Go check it out.

Next chapter will start the battle for Nevrast. Until it's up, please leave a review, and stay tuned!