Alright everyone, I'm back again. Whew I'm glad this week is over, how about you all? Okay, enough with the foreword, let's get down to brass monkeys, or is it brass tacks? Er, anyway, on with the disclaimer. Wait a second, where'd that tank come from?! Duck! (explosion in background)

Once again, I came, I saw, I got blowed up...(falls over)

Initiate autotype sequence

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING IN THE SPYRO UNIVERSE, ONLY MY OCS.

Chapter 5: Task Force E-15 Deployed: 242, Scramble!

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James, Lysa, Spyro, Cynder, Ignitus, and Thera stood with the others as the crew of the newly repaired RNV Interceptor boarded the ship. In keeping with tradition, the NCOs were the first to board followed by the enlisted and lastly the officers. Before the group stood Joshua de Launces, dressed in his Navy blue officer's dress uniform. He stood before his mother and father for a moment before embracing Lysa and then saluting his father. As he dropped the salute, he smiled that boyish smile he always had when he was growing up.

"Don't either of you worry. From what our intelligence suggests, the Callinar forces are only attacking because they sense an opportunity. Once we arrive and set them straight, we should have no more problems from the west and can then head north to support Tellanos." James sighed.

"I do not doubt your optimism my son, but do not allow it to become overconfidence or arrogance." Josh nodded lightly, having heard this before.

"Alright Dad. Still, I suppose there is reason to be cautious. All of our intelligence is dated from the Callinar Incursion ten years ago. There is no telling what has happened since then. Don't fret Mom, I'll send a wire as often as I can." Lysa came forward and embraced Josh again.

"Just please don't do anything too reckless, I already have a son in the hospital and another on his way to a combat zone. I don't need one lost at sea." Josh laughed and returned the embrace before releasing Lysa and walking up the gangplank.

With mix of pride and concern, James watched his son climb the exterior ladder and take his position on the Interceptor's observation bridge.

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As Josh arrived on the bridge, his XO, Ensign Charles Walker, stepped forward and saluted him.

"Lieutenant. The Admiral has given us the honor of being first to depart. Once the rest of the fleet leaves port and steams to the rally point, we'll take up a position on the Crucible's port side as an anti-submarine escort." Josh returned the salute and turned to the bridge and began the process of leaving port. On the dock, the brass band began playing the anthem of the Royal Navy.

"Master Chief! Have the crew cast off all lines!" The deck crew rushed across the deck to the starboard side and began to cast off the lines. Josh then turned to the anchor crew.

"Hoist anchor!"

The anchor capstan began to turn, winding up the heavy steel chain that held the Interceptor's two heavy anchors.

"Docking crew, shove off!"

Ten teams of five large men with metal poles placed the pushers on the steel hull and began to shove. The Interceptor, no longer tied down by her anchors and mooring ropes, began drifting away from the dock. Josh mentally counted the feet between his ship and the dock until he reached twenty, then picked up the radio gave the order.

"All engines ahead one-third. Rudder fifteen degrees to starboard" The response was immediate.

"Engines ahead one-third, rudder fifteen starboard, aye sir!"

A vibrant bell sounded on the bridge and Josh saw the mini-telemotor needle click over to one-third. With a whoosh, steam began to rise from the funnels and with a sharp clang the funnel vents opened and grey smoke began to rise. A low thrumming was heard as the ships twin screws began rotating in the water, a slight wake forming as the Interceptor set sail. The ship began to straighten it's path as the rudder returned to midship. Walker turned to Josh and nodded.

"Approaching six knots sir." Josh spared a glance back at the dock and saw his family one more time, then cast a glance at the wreckage of the Prince Obël. He saw that crews were working to try and refloat her and nearby, then there was the wreckage of the destroyer that had taken a torpedo for them and further along, the capsized hull of the battleship Calmina, her hull full of holes from cutting torches. He gave a salute to the Prince Obël before turning away and gripping the radio.

(Captain, I will not waste the chance you bought for me. For you and those who died here, I will fight hard to avenge you all.)

"Sanijo Port Authority, this is RNV Interceptor requesting permission to depart."

After a moment of pause, the radio came to life again.

"Sanijo Port Authority to RNV Interceptor, permission granted. Fair winds and following seas to you all."

The resounding 'BOOM' of a salute gun rattled the harbor. The sounds of people cheering sounding louder as they departed port. Smiling slightly, Josh looked to his XO.

"Mr. Walker, let's take her out. Engines ahead standard, course two-four-seven." Walker smiled and nodded, picking up the bridge radio.

"All engines ahead Standard, course two-four-seven."

"Ahead Standard, aye sir! Course two-four-seven!"

Again the telemotor clicked over to midway where 'Standard' was written. Josh felt the ship begin to turn and watched the compass take on a heading of west-by-southwest.

"Mr. Walker, once we get clear of the port and reach our staging area, I'd like to run the ship through her paces. First, we test crew readiness at battlestations, then we push the engines, finally, we test damage control." Charles saluted.

"Very good sir, just what we need to make sure the crew works well together." Just then, the Master Chief, a grizzled veteran named Eric Barnes, came up to the bridge and saluted them.

"Lieutenant, Ensign, Master Chief Herman Barnes reporting as ordered sirs." Josh returned the salute.

"At ease Chief, I simply want to know how well the ship will work with the crew." Barnes nodded.

"To be perfectly honest sir, it could be better. The previous Captain, by my understanding, was a stickler for ship cleanliness during inspections but unfortuately not much else. We have several new arrivals and the veteran crewmen who need time to properly mesh together. Not to mention this is your first command sir? I guess that's why they dragged me out of retirement. I'll be helping you and the XO steady the crew for their duties." Josh nodded.

"Indeed, it is my first command. May I ask, who asked you to come out of retirement?" Barnes smiled as he watched the water change from a coastal blue-green to deep vibrant blue which meant the Interceptor had left the coastal waters and had entered into the open sea.

"That would be your Father, sir. I was a Maintenance chief on the Arkibus when I met him during her sea trials, I later served with Admiral Greagor on the Crusader and then served aboard the Ranger as an advisor during the Callinar Incursion. Your Father was most impressed with my service record and asked for me to help you transition from life as a deck officer to Captain. I wanted to get back on a fighting vessel once Sanijo was attacked and so I said yes to his offer. One thing though, don't let my age fool you, I may be nearing my seventies and may not be able to work on engines anymore, but I still know the basics of command and control. Now then, sir, I believe we are in open waters now and by my watch it will take the rest of the fleet forty-five minutes to an hour to get joined with us. We have some time to troubleshoot."

Josh took a deep breath and then nodded.

"Let's get started then. XO, sound general quarters." Walker nodded and picked up the radio.

"General Quarters! General Quarters! All hands to Action Stations!"

Immediately a bell sounded throughout the ship. Hatches on the foward and aft bridges were thrown open as gun crews ran for their cannons. On the bow, Josh watched grimly as one man, apparently one of the new crewmen, tripped over his feet. The man was then pulled up by another who then pushed him towards his designated AA gun. Josh took out his pocketwatch, looked at the second hand tick by and sighed.

Regulations for time stated that a destroyer of this size should be manned and ready within three minutes of the first bell. The minute hand clicked over the seventh minute and Josh had the bell turned off. He then faced the crew who looked towards the bridge.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I am your Captain, Josh de Launces. This has been a drill to see what exactly this crew is capable of. While the time of seven minutes is good if we were on a battleship, we are unfortunately on a destroyer, a vessel that is usually first and foremost to engage and be engaged in battle. Gun number one was the first and only of our five cannons manned within the allowed three minutes. During our voyage from Syllia to Callinar, we will be training and we will not stop until we are the best damned ship in Task Force Echo Fifteen."

The crew, obviously expecting rebuke, but instead recieving encouragement, cheered loudly. So loudly Josh almost didn't hear the radio come on.

"Captain! Sonar contact bearing three-zero-zero! I haven't heard anything like this one before sir!" Josh switched the radio to the Port Authority frequency.

"Sanijo Port Authority this is RNV Interceptor, do we have any submarines working in the area?"

There was a pause. Josh wondered if he was asking about nothing until the reply came.

"Interceptor, that is a negative we do NOT have any submarines this close to shore. All submarines are currently deployed to Callinar Islands for the current operation. Repeat: No subs in area."

"Copy that. RNV Interceptor is declaring hostile spotted. Engaging anti-submarine weapons."

Josh flipped the switch sounding the submarine horn. The crew looked at him for a moment before registering the worry on his face. Josh immediately got on the ship radio.

"Sonar detected hostile submarine bearing three-zero-zero. This is not a drill. Man the depth charges!"

The crew, now realizing the situation, ran to the guns. Walker meanwhile ran to the aft bridge to oversee the depth charges. Once there, he radioed Josh.

"Depth charges manned and ready Captain, give us the word."

Josh left the observation bridge and descended into the command deck. He was pleased to see the crew at their stations and looking alert. He turned to the sonar operator.

"Sonar contact still there?" The young seaman at the panel nodded.

"Aye sir, still holding three-zero-zero, depth estimate is seven-zero feet. Wait! We've been marked sir! He's going deep! Passing eight-zero feet!"

"All engines ahead flank! Radio any nearby destroyers to help us blanket the area!"

"Sir the only nearby ships are the Destroyer Escorts RNV Berkley and RNV Calloway! They've recieved our message and are coming to help. Sanijo Airfield is scrambling aircraft, harbor patrol has launched their P-27 flying boats!"

"Second sonar contact bearing two-nine-zero, depth is six-zero feet and rising, range is a quarter-mile. Range to first contact is one mile out! What the fuck?! Third contact bearing two-four-five, it's at periscope depth! Range is...Five-Hundred meters, we're in torpedo range!" Josh looked at the sonar operator.

"Anything else? What are they doing Sonar?!" The operator listened and dialed in the sonar array to listen, then paled.

"He's opening his outer doors and preparing to fire!"

At that moment, a low droning noise was heard. Josh looked out the window on the bridge to see a P-27, flying low, drop a series of depth charges onto the location of the sub that had opened its doors. A second later a series of explosions followed by a large fireball that bloomed from the water. Josh looked again to sonar who looked to be listening intently to something, then nodded.

"Hit confirmation! Enemy sub is breaking up. Captain, I would suggest asking for a salvage team to raise and investigate the sub."

"All in due time sailor, after we hit those last two subs."

"Aye sir! Still, I personally would like to buy that flight crew a round of drinks. Okay, both contacts still in range. First and closest contact is at three-zero-four, depth is estimated at seven-zero and going deeper, range is...Sir! We're right on top of them!

Josh grabbed the radio to the aft bridge and signalled for the bell rung.

"Drop charges now!"

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On the stern, sailors released the rolling clamps on the depth charge racks, often called ash cans, and let the charges begin rolling over the stern of the ship. Each charge had been set to detonate around one hundred and forty feet. The crew dropped thirteen charges over the suspected area and a moment later as the Interceptor was preparing another run, a similar, though smaller explosion, came to the surface. This time debris was brought up as well.

Seeing this Walker keyed the mike.

"Captain, enemy submarine successfully depth charged. We've got debris and fuel in the water."

"Copy that. All that's left is the lone submarine."

"Aye aye sir, we're reloading the racks now."

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As soon as Josh lowered the radio, he heard the sonar operator cry out and rip the headset from his ears.

"What happened?!" The operator looked at him with a pained expression.

"Bastards initiated an emergency blow. Underwater, the sound of escaping air is like an explosion. Upside is that they can't stop their assent, they'll be surfacing soon." Josh turned to the helmsman.

"What's our heading as compared to the enemy sub?"

"If we keep this pace we'll be kissing them as soon as they surface sir!"

"Hard a starboard, have all the guns cycle to starboard and ready torpedo launchers just in case."

Through the bridge window, Josh saw the 5 inch bow gun rotate to face the starboard side as the Interceptor began to turn. The sonar operator, now recovered, replaced his headset on and got a fix on the sub.

"Captain! We are now broadside to the enemy sub and they are at a quarter mile distance from us, preparing to surface, sir, what are your orders?"

Josh thought about what he could do in a situation like this. Naturally of course he could broadside the damned sub and that would be the end of it. Sinking it would be the more conventional thing but, he seemed to reason, when has anyone with the de Launces name been reasonal or original? He then remembered learning about his great-great grandfather, Geoffrey de Launces, who was a famous privateer in the age of sail.

In command of the frigate Dauntless, Geoffrey de Launces became one of the wealthiest privateers in Syllia and not just because of his skill at sailing. He had befriended a group of sea dragons who salvaged enemy shipwrecks for him in return for a small cut of the treasure for their services.

"Hold here, keep all guns trained on the sub. As soon as it surfaces, I want it raked with machinegun fire so they won't be able to man their deck gun. Chief! Get a boarding crew ready and launch one of the boats! Who knows what sort of intel may be aboard that sub! We've sunk two, let the last one be our prisoner." Barnes looked at Josh and nodded.

"Sir, it may as well be considered that there may be scuttling charges aboard." Josh nodded.

"It's a risk, however, if nothing is ventured, nothing is gained as Dad always says." Barnes nodded and went below.

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Barnes came through the hatch, slamming it behind him and getting the Marine's attention.

"Open the armory and break out the guns, Captain wants us to board an enemy sub when she surfaces."

A dozing Marine Lance Corporal did a double take and went wide-eyed.

"The hell'd you say Chief?" Barnes ignored the outburst and looked back, understanding the reaction.

"We've sunk two submarines, and there is a third that is surfacing, we are to get in a boat, go over to it, and take it and the crew prisoner. Any other questions?"

There was silence until the Gunnery Sergeant opened the lock on the Armory and whistled for the group.

"No questions? Good. Meet me on the deck in two minutes. Move out!"

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In the distance, Barnes could see 20mm machinegun rounds bouncing off the conning tower and forward deck of the enemy sub as Barnes and his group of twelve Marines came up on deck. As far as he could see, the guns were keeping the enemy gun crew pinned down and away from the large 5 inch deck gun on the stern section of the sub. True to form, the submarine was painted black, on the conning tower was painted the emblem of the Callinar National Navy along with the number '28' in stark white.

Barnes turned to another seaman mearby and motioned for him.

"Have guns ten, eleven, twelve, and thirteen cease fire. Prepare to lower the boat."

The seaman passed the word and then had the gunners help them swing the davits that held the longboat over the side.

The boat was a small fifty foot longboat with a small outboard motor and could accomodate thirty to forty men or in this case, one grizzled Master Chief, two young seamen, and a dozen heavily armed Marines, and a .50 caliber MG20H on the bow. Barnes himself and two Marines had grabbed S16 shotguns, seven Marines had MP20 submachineguns, the remaining three Marines had MR5 Assault Rifles.

Under cover fire from the machineguns on the Interceptor, Barnes and his Marines began crossing quarter-mile distance between the destroyer and the sub. As the report of more machineguns opened up, Barnes looked and saw the destroyer escorts had joined the cover fire. Barnes turned to his Marines.

"Captain wants the sub intact if possible for study. However, you see a Callinar sonuvabitch with a detonator or a scuttling charge in his hands, you blow him away and don't think twice about blasting the enemy. If possible, secure the officers, logbooks, maps, and communication logs. Also, as to no hateful intentions, no looting of personal effects or corpses for trophies. We may be at war, but that makes us enemies, it does not give us permission to become thieves. Not that I have to worry about Marines forsaking their honor, right?"

The Marines chuckled at the joke and then canned it as the hull of the sub loomed before them. As soon as the longboat came alongside the sub, the guns on the ships fell silent. Barnes and the Marines leapt aboard the sub as a sailor manned the .50 cal in the boat, the barrel aimed at the bridge. With a motion of his hand, Barnes sent four Marines towards the bridge. A moment later, the Marines stood at the top of the sub. A hatch opened and up came a stick with a piece of white cloth tied around it. Barnes nodded and the Marines helped the crew in the forward torpedo room out through the hatch. The officer of the torpedo room came forward and saluted Barnes, he spoke in broken Callinian, but was relieved when a Marine came up and spoke perfect Callinian. Barnes nodded to the Marine.

"You speak Callinian?" The Marine nodded.

"Yes Chief, my Mum's from Sinnica on Tora Island."

"Good. Ask this officer if any scuttling charges have been placed." The Marine nodded and spoke a string of odd sounding words. The officer shook his head, but then seemed to think of something and quickly spat out a string of words and pointed to the hatch at the stern of the sub.

"He says the bow crew didn't arm any charges, however, the stern officers might have!" Barnes nodded.

"You two stay here with me, the rest of you get to that aft hatch and get it open, again, you see a charge, disarm it. If a sailor has a weapon, engage." The Marines on the bridge descended into the conning tower and the group of Marines ran to the aft hatch and pried the it open.

Gunfire exploded from the aft hatch as the crew of the aft room opened fire up through the hatch. A Marine pulled a grenade from his belt and thought about throwing it down there until Barnes yelled at him.

"You toss a grenade down there, you'll detonate those torpedoes and we all get swimming lessons!"

Gunfire from inside the sub got the group's attention and a second later, a Marine came up the aft hatch and waved to Barnes.

"Stern charges disarmed Chief! Crew and intel is secured, no casualties on our end, five deaths for the enemy." Barnes thought of something and looked at him.

"Five deaths? What about the crew, the officers?"

"All dead Chief. Suicide." Barnes bit back a curse, then motioned for the Callinian speaking Marine, Lance Corporal Clark.

"Alright Clark, get these men into the longboat and take them to the Berkley, the Calloway will take care of towing the sub into port." At that moment, a Marine came up from the conning tower hatch with something in his hands.

"Chief, I think we may need to get this particular item to intelligence or to the Captain's father." Barnes took the cloth from over the device and whistled at what he saw.

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It seemed that no sooner had James turned from seeing Josh's ship round the bend and disappear from sight that sirens went off and P-27s began taking off from their docks. When he asked the nearby port officer what was going on, he replied simply:

"Interceptor spotted three subs in the area and has engaged them. Though how the devil they knew where to be is beyond me." James now looked out to sea worriedly after news that two submarines were sunk and another captured.

"Strike the enemy where they least expect it. Hmm...who would think of attacking a port after all the important capital ships have already deployed or been moved." The officer shrugged.

"Damned if I know sir, that's a question well above my pay grade." James went back to the group gathered. Lysa looked at him worriedly and Spyro was curious.

"James, what happened?"

"Josh's ship engaged three enemy submarines shortly after entering deep water. One was sunk by a P-27, the Interceptor depth charged another, and the third...well, the third sub has been captured intact. It seems the crew in the forward torpedo room had second thoughts about going down with the ship. The escort Berkley is bringing in the captured crew while the Calloway is towing the sub in. I guess there's really nothing left to worry about."

Lysa breathed a sigh of relief and then looked toward a P-27 returning. It looked to be going at full speed. The grandkids, having never seen a flying boat before, came forward to watch it land.

The P-27 landed smoothly in the water, yawed left and then stopped its engines. The plane coasted to a dock where a hatch was thrown open and out came a young man with the Royal Marine Naval Air Corps (RMNAC) and under an arm he carried a strange box. The man briskly walked down the pier and stopped before James and saluted and presented the box with a note. James returned the salute, took the package and read the note.

Father,

Our efforts to capture the enemy submarine, which I am told by the torpedo officer is called C-22, have turned up more than we have imagined. The charts recovered have been sent to the cruiser Crusible as part of our intel gathering objective. We also recovered this device which reminded one of the boarding crew, Master Chief Herman Barnes, of one of your old encoding devices. I know that since then they have fallen out of use but if Callinar is still using these relics perhaps you have the cipher code back at the workshop?

There appears to be several messages that are not decoded yet which I have enclosed with the machine itself. As Interceptor took no damage from the encounter, we have (finally) joined with the main fleet and are now en route. Tell Mom I'm sorry to have worried her and that again, as I said I will send a wire whenever I can.

Love always, Josh.

PS: Please send me the cipher for the machine ASAP. If we can crack the code early, we will have a bigger advantage over Callinar once they realize their ambush failed.

James looked back to Lysa and then to Spyro, Cynder, and the others and sighed.

"Spyro, Cynder, I know that you all just arrived here but I need to ask a favor of you. Take Thera and the grandkids back to Avalon." Lysa and Thera went wide-eyed at this and Thera even went so far as to begin to protest when a glance from her father silenced her.

"Thera, my daughter, I know what you want to say, but I have a feeling things in Syllia will get far worse before they get better. For my sake, as well as that of your mother's and brother's, take the kids back to a land that is at peace. They do not need to see war up close like we have. They do not deserve such horrors inflicted upon them." Thera paused for a moment, seeing genuine concern in her father's eyes. Thera might have said something if Kaia hadn't huffed in her child-like way.

"Grampa, this doesn't matter any. We're dragons, we can take down anything that stands against us. At least, that's what Daddy always says." Lysa couldn't help but chuckle as James looked at the now embarrassed Ignitus.

"Hmm...this from the dragon who when he first met your mother he stuttered and jumped at his own shadow?" Kaia's jaw dropped and her crystal blue eyes went wide in amazement as she looked to her daddy who was now an even brighter shade of red.

James chuckled as the other grandkids came up and embraced him. Sometimes he still couldn't believe he was a grandfather. Zafra, the eldest of them was a complete bookworm, yet, she was also a bit of a tomboy. Whereas dragonesses of her age spent their time in groups discussing males and other things, Zafra spent her time analyzing things such as architecture, literature, elemental magic, and above all else, machines. She had developed a rare elemental ability. Aside from being a natural at earth magic, she could draw metal out of the earth and forge things with it by simply willing them into existance. James still had the 1/1000th scale RNV Arkibus she had made him when she turned ten. In fact, if Thera had asked him to, he would have taken her on as an apprentice and a student.

Then there was Zane; cool, calm, always collected. Like his sister, he was always studying something but unlike her, he was always studying magical theory and the properties of magical crystals. He was a purple dragon like Spyro, only he had a rapier like tailblade (and he was well versed in using it), and instead of gold horns and belly scales, his were ivory white. He seemed to have a fascination with hybrid elements and also with unique abilities such as his sister's metal working ability and his own ability to use elemental crystals like his grandfather.

Next was the wild child, Ryu. The only shapeshifter in the brood, Ryu had an affinity for his human form but also enjoyed using his dragon form. He was truly 'wild' by Thera's account: always getting into fights, pulling pranks, and causing no end of mischief. The upside is that he has recently managed to focus some of that energy into classes that actually hold his attention such as fencing, athletics, and aerial maneuvers. He was almost always duelling with Zane and had apparently had the ability to use element crystals.

Finally, again, was Kaia, the youngest and the one most full of energy. No surprise since she had the element of lightning and had become friends with one of Volteer's great-grandchildren and also became friends with several other young dragonlings, she became twice the bundle of energy she already was. Due to her young age, she was not yet quite in control of her element and wa sprone to releasing little jolts when she was excited (which was about every minute of every hour, every day).

James knew that this war was not something he wanted these young ones, unscarred by conflict, to bear witness to. Avalon was a protectorate of Syllia but it was also an independant nation, more than capable of holding its own against any possible threats. Yet if something should happen to the Federation, the Blue Isles, or even Syllia itself, Avalon would be in range of the enemy. Spyro came up and looked at him.

"James, what is it you are truly afraid of?"

"War is always an uncertain thing my friend. In the past we knew our enemy, what they were capable of, and how to stop them. Sure there were some surprises but we managed to triumph regardless. For all my experience and knowledge, Rotiart invading Tellanos was unexpected to put it mildly. They are an unknown; a very dangerous unknown. What I fear is the kids being dragged into this. I cannot withdraw or recall my cjhildren nor can I say anything in regards to the grandkids. I know this is stupid to ask but, Spyro, will you and Cynder watch the grandkids where Lysa and I cannot? My efforts will be devoted entirely to assisting Syllia and Tellanos and I will not be able to shift my attentions anywhere else. If Rotiart or their allies move against Avalon, you, Cynder, Ignitus, and Thera will need to be there to stop them." Spyro looked at him with shock.

"James...Avalon is still woefully unprepared for a conflict of this scale. Apes, Pirates, and Mercenaries are one thing but a national army is something else entirely." James nodded.

"Noted. That's why I have enlisted the help of a friend. As you know, Syllia's Queen is the granddaughter of Praetoria's Empress. Though she is Syllian royalty, she still has a voice in Praetorian politics. In fact, her grandmother recently created a force known as the Queen's Brigade, a force dedicated to the Queen. In response to the situation, and with the permission of the Empress, the Queen's Brigade has been deployed to Warfang. They are a complete armored division with over three-thousand soldiers and five-hundred tanks. On top of that, I pulled a few strings with my student in Espan, Prince Roberto and got the Espan Royal Second Carrier Fleet and Fifteenth Battle Fleet transferred to patrols around Avalon and the surrounding islands. It's more than enough to give any military force pause and at the same time doesn't detract from any nation's military force." Spyro, though stunned at this new information, couldn't shake a feeling he had.

"Will it be enough?" James sighed and looked up towards the sky as if seeking an answer.

(We can only hope...although, given the reports, we need all the hope we can muster.)

His thoughts shifted automatically to Bertram and Josh, both of whom were now in harm's way.

(Be safe you two. If anything happened to either of you Lysa would never forgive me.)

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Bertram cursed as he scraped ice off the cowling of his plane. Somehow, Reyson had neglected to tell him that Chamberlain was in the midst of a sudden freak cold front. The planes could still take off and land, however, the Tellanos maintenance crews here were inexperienced in dealing with ice and snow. Thankfully Ivan taught the basics to the ground crews and pilots.

The first step was salt. Lots, and lots, of salt spread over the runway. Salt melted the snow and ice and allowed for it to be scraped and brushed away. The second was heat. Thanks to a wing from the 205th Dracocorps Wing from Headbashedin who were experienced in defrosting runways and planes, the planes from Tellanos and Syllia were able to take off much faster than Rotiart could anticipate. On the first day here, Bertram's squadron had scrambled three times before breakfast. Despite promising intelligence, Chamberlain was not as well defended as the reports suggested.

The majority of Tellanos planes here were obsolete PF16s, repurposed carrier-launched CF20s, a few modern PF31s, and obsolete PHB22s. Every day, fewer and fewer returned from sortie. Upon landing at the airfield, the base commander approached him, he was a mountain of a man that vaguely reminded him of Jonathan Havvers with the exception that he had a full head of brown hair and also had a thick beard and moustache. The commander had introduced himself as Colonel-General Mikhail Storovich, and he had only one piece of advice for the squadron.

"Don't bother making friends with the other pilots. Chances are they'll be dead within the week. You Syllians can retreat if things fall through, we on the other hand, have been ordered not to retreat upon pain of death. The Committee has issued a decree: 'Either we fight or we die'."

That was the first and only conversation, or anything near a conversation Bertram had had with any Tellanian soldier or pilot at that ice covered airfield. The only other conversations were actually morning briefings telling the squadron where they would fly, what the opposition looked like, what to expect, what to not expect, objectives, targets, and other high value targets on the ground or in the air.

According to the map, the frontline had stalled outside of Retorinc. The Rotarians had improvised airfields in place of those destroyed as the Tellanians were forced to retreat under the overwhelming assault. Most of what the squadron intercepted were bombers, fighter-bombers, and escort fighters. Word was that Rotiart had built massive artillery pieces that they fixed to train cars and used to rain shells down on the cities and towns. These so-called 'railguns' were listed as TDAAC, (Target: Destroy At All Costs). If you saw a railgun you bombed it, shot at it, pissed on it, spit at it, whatever you could do to knock it out of commission.

Bertram finished scraping ice off the wings and then headed back inside. By his watch, it was time for breakfast. Following that, if he managed to get what passed for breakfast down, he and his squadron would head for the briefing room.

As he opened the door, he heard a stuttering noise. Looking up, he saw a PF16 landing, its engine was spewing smoke. Bertram cringed as the pilot set the plane down hard, then watched as the landing gear buckled and the plane skidded down the runway and into a snowbank. Shaking his head, he went inside just as the chief mechanic began a tirade of Tellanian curses against the green and inexperienced pilot.

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In the mess hall, Bertram spotted Ayatane, Miller, and Kani sitting and trying to make heads or tails of the breakfast. Bertram got a bowl, walked over and sat down with them. Ayatane looked at him and shook his head.

"Cleaning the ice off again eh? Remind me the next time I see Reyson to drop a bucket full of snow on him. He should have told us about the weather." Miller huffed at this.

"Give it a rest Michijo, no one predicted this weather. Not even the Tellenians were prepared for it."

"Bah! It's only because of Ivan that we know what to do with ice. Most of the Tellanians just douse their planes with boiling water then wonder how the hell their wings ice up midflight! I envy Kani and Sahna though, their fur keeps them warm in this damn snow. All we have are these damn light coats we were issued for warm weather! I thought it was only the Royal Army that got their gear screwed up this bad." Bertram laughed as he sat down and took the first spoonful of what looked like (and what he hoped it was) oatmeal.

"Yeah Ayatane, just think, somewhere in the Army supplies is a box of goods labeled 'Ship to: Port Autre' and dated 1710." Kani looked up from her breakfast curiously.

"Port Autre? Where's that?" Bertram chuckled.

"Port Autre was a city built in 1560 on a small island in the Sohndarin Gulf. The Gulf is bordered by Schildhaven, Syllia, and Tellanos and was the sight of many naval battles during Tellanos and Syllia's bloody history as enemies. The city became a major port in 1700 due to it's closeness to Tellanos' trade routes to it's island colonies and was the 'gateway' to Syllia's ports. In 1705, Tellanos laid a naval blockade and was able to stop all Syllian attempts to end the siege. In the end Syllia stopped trying and instead sent a wing of earth dragons and a group of water dragons to the gulf. The water dragons created a storm which destroyed the entire Tellanian fleet and evacuated the townsfolk, then the earth dragons sank the island rendering it useless to the enemy. Funny thing is that earth dragons and researchers are, to this day, still searching for the ruins of the city and hoping to raise the island for study."

Kani looked at Bertram with wide eyes as if trying to contemplating sinking an island.

"You're wondering why sink an island? Heh, in war people do stupid and crazy things. For instance: the battle of Tondrieg in 1840 was won when the Tellanians burned the town and the crops. The Syllian advance stalled and they could no longer proceed against the enemy and was forced to withdraw. When men realize the thing they are after no longer exists, they cease fighting. The ruins of Tondrieg stand to this day, on the borders of both Syllia and Tellanos. The question is: what is Rotiart after?"

At that moment, a Tellanian pilot came running in. His head turned to looked at Bertram, then he came running over.

"Lieutenant de Launces? Your squadron is ordered to scramble at once. Scout planes saw a large number of enemy bombers heading towards Retorinc, by all accounts at least three-hundred bombers escorted by only a small number of fighters. If it lessens the shock, my squadron has been ordered up as well. You will hardly be alone up there." Kani looked at the young pilot and tilted her head to one side curiously.

"Forgive me but, aren't you a little young to be a squadron leader?" Much to her surprise, he nodded, although somewhat ruefully.

"I am but we have no choice. My squadron leader bought it in the last engagement. All the other veterans are assigned to other, more important, squadrons and my wing is made of completely of nuggets so because I actually got an enemy last time, they gave me the squadron. Now, if that's all for questions, we need to take off now!"

At that moment, the sirens began blaring. Pilots all across the mess hall leapt from their tables and ran to their planes. Much to the chagrin of the cook, many pilots simply (and literally) dropped everything and followed their comrades. Outside, Bertram found his squadron already starting their planes and the first squadrons were taking off.

Wasting no time, Bertram started his plane's engine, pushed the throttle to full power and gunned it down the runway, pulling up sharply into a steep take-off ascent. As he withdrew the landing gear, he keyed his mike.

"This is Paladin, I'm up. Two-Four-Two Squadron, link up with me and the other Tellanos wings and set course three-zero-zero, north-by-northwest. Destination: Retorinc!"

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Okay everyone! Here it is, the first branch in the story. Everyone, now is the time I ask you to PM me or state in your reviews which front you would like to see first:

Front Number 1: Tellanos Front: With Rotiart Air forces breathing down the neck of the Federation capital, and the front line growing ever closer to the besieged capital, Bertram and 242 Squadron now fly against an overwhelming enemy force. Is it to victory, or to defeat?

Front Number 2: Callinar Islands Front: While Rotiart focuses on the land invasion of Tellanos, their ally Callinar sails to conquer the islands south of the continent. To make matters worse, they have also sent a force to invade the Blue Isles. Josh de Launces, Commander of the RNV Interceptor, part of Task Force Echo 15, sails to reclaim the occupied islands and then sail to relieve the Federation forces besieged at Port Grand Vista. However, with only antiquated information about Callinar's military and next to nothing known about Rotiart's navy, is Josh sailing into a battle for the ages, or a trap?

Front Number 3: Avalon: With Spyro and his family safely back at Warfang, he finds himself occupied with helping the cheetahs, wolves, atlawa, and moles train alongside the Praetorian military. Yet when an unforeseen event threatens Warfang, can Ignitus rise to the challenge as the new Commander of the Avalon Dragonguard? Will Warfang remain the impregnable city fortress it has always been? Or is the city doomed to fall to an unforeseen enemy?

Well there it is...the three fronts all lined up for you all. A word of caution: Choose wisely, for in all wars, neglecting one front can spell disaster for the others. Translation: In keeping with the story flow, the fronts you do not choos will likewise advance. The advancement is minor so your really won't be missing anything. In the furture, these advancements will be restricted to minor operations taking place at the same time within the story.

Again, please let me know in PMs or reviews which front you wish to see first. Well, ya'll take care and enjoy the story! Visitor and random reviews are also welcome.

There is also a poll up now so if you do not wish to review but want to be heard, please go to my profile and choose your favorite.

FYI: I'm still working on Part 3 of the tech guide so it still needs a little polish. It'll be up as soon as I find the section in my book of tanks that discusses amphibious tanks.