Chapter 04: Orange Sunset
Sami stood beneath an orange sky whose fringes were tinged with violet, watching as the setting sun disappeared beneath the sea in a blaze of fire. She stood with her arms crossed, clasped so tight against her slender frame the tone of her muscles stood out like chiselled rock. Behind her a vast array of tents, soldiers and vehicles were clustered around a small military base, its grounds ringed by a barbed wire fence. The base was only a small border outpost, home to little more than a hundred soldiers. It was only during the last week that it had become a major staging area for Orange Star's deployment of troops along the Blue Moon border, and only in direct response to increasing troop exercises on the other side. Troop exercises that provided a convenient cover story for preparations to invade.
Sami shivered as the cold evening breeze washed over her from the sea, sending a prickle of goosebumps across her bare arms. The darkening light glinted off her brown eyes as they stared across the ocean and past the sunset as if seeing some possible future beyond. Hold your position. For over a week now, that was the only order she'd been given. Apart from the brief flight back to the capital for the conference with the other COs, all she'd done was hold position. It wasn't the waiting that bothered her. Sami could have spent weeks enduring all manner of hardship without breaking a sweat. What made her skin crawl and stomach churn was the uncertainty. Not knowing what was coming did not sit well with her, and the fear that she might not be ready to face it lurked at the edge of her consciousness like a malevolent ghost.
She gritted her teeth. No matter what happened or what sprang at her from the darkness, failure was simply not an option.
"Commander Sami! There's a communique coming through from Commander Andy."
"What?" Sami's gaze locked onto to the soldier standing behind her. "Did he say what it was about?"
"No ma'am. The signal's only just come through."
"Understood. Thank you, private."
Sami pivoted about and set off up the gentle slope, sand and scrub grass crunching beneath her heavy boots. Her pace was swift but measured, and by the time she reached the command post at the southern edge of the camp, there was only the faintest hint of red to her cheeks.
The main computer at the command post was set to standby. With a flick of her finger Sami accepted the incoming transmission and leant over the screen as it flashed to life.
"What's the situation, Andy?"
The boy in question was staring straight ahead with a vacant light in his big eyes. "Huh? The situation?"
Sami closed her eyes and took a short breath. "What's this communication about, Andy? Why do you need to talk to me? Has something happened?"
His eyebrows rose. "Oh. Oh! Sure, I get what you mean. Well, I lost my toothbrush. That happened."
"You lost…" Sami found herself at a complete loss for words. Confusion, frustration and irritation all struggled to show themselves before she gave up and buried her face in her hands. She took several deep breaths to steady herself, making no attempt to hide the nascent scowl on her lips. "This isn't a joke, Andy! We're facing war with Blue Moon at a time when we can't afford –" She stopped as she realised Andy was watching her with a smirk plastered across his lips.
"Relax, Sami," he said with a roll of his eyes. "I know. I'm not that dumb."
Sami sighed and bowed her head, feeling suddenly very tired. "What is it you actually wanted, then?"
He shrugged. "I just wanted to talk. It's boring waiting out here."
"Oh."
"So have you heard anything from Max?" He asked.
Sami shook her head. "No. Why, have you?"
"Nope, just thought I'd ask. I can't believe he gets to blow up a Black Cannon while we just sit here doing nothing."
Sami didn't answer. Max's attack on the Black Hole outpost had been scheduled for that afternoon. There was no reason to think it hadn't gone according to plan, and certainly no reason he should have contacted them so soon. Max knew how to handle himself. Even so, the whole situation felt somehow… wrong. The past week was a blur of unexpected events. The past week, the last six months – hell, make that the last three years, Sami corrected herself. Ever since the beginning of Olaf's invasion it seemed like the whole world had gone mad. Who among them could even guess what might happen next?
Something flickered in Sami's eyes, and her brow creased. "Andy… don't you think this all seems a bit odd? That Black Hole's come back now, just as we're staring down Blue Moon?"
"I don't know." Andy's head tilted to one side. "I guess. What do you mean?"
"I'm not sure. The timing just seems a little suspicious."
"What, you think they're working together?" He frowned. "I thought the whole reason we're in this mess is because Olaf hates Black Hole so much."
Sami hesitated. "I know. It doesn't make sense. It just feels so wrong that all of this is happening at once. Doesn't this whole debacle feel wrong to you, Andy? After all we've been through, doesn't it bother you that we might go to war with Blue Moon?"
Another shrug. "Not really. It might be kind of fun."
"Fun?" Sami glared at him. "Andy, if this blows up, a lot of people are going to die. Our friends – on both sides – are going to be in danger! Don't you get that?"
"Well… yeah," he said, his voice falling quiet. "But it's not like I can fix things between Orange Star and Blue Moon. All we can do is make the most of it and try to save as many people as we can."
"I thought you could fix anything," Sami retorted, the sudden burst of anger still gnawing at her.
Andy grinned. "Yeah, things like cars and tanks and a washing machine that one time, not people being angry. I'm not one of those guys who makes countries get along."
"A diplomat?"
"A what?" Andy's lack of comprehension was written on his face plain as day.
Sami shook her head. It was the same story time and time again. Just when she started to think that her friend was actually wise beyond his years, he'd blurt out something incredibly stupid and ruin the moment.
"Never mind. I should go."
"Okay." Concern flickered in his eyes. "I didn't upset you, did I?"
Sami forced herself to smile. "No. If I'm upset… it's not because of you."
"Oh, cool. Bye then!"
And with that he was gone, perfectly at ease once again.
Sami stared into the black screen a moment longer, marvelling at how alien Andy's attitude seemed. She envied him sometimes. Not often, but sometimes. Andy could be airheaded, absent, ignorant, and about a hundred similar things, but he could also stumble out of bed at noon, blunder into a battle he knew nothing about, and immediately weave a strategy that would have made officers three times his age jealous. It wasn't training, knowledge, or practice that made Andy a great commander; it was pure instinct. Sami had asked him many times how he came up with his tactics, but he always gave the same answer: a sheepish grin, a scratch of his head, and the explanation that 'he just did'. Sami wondered if Andy had ever really doubted himself, if he had ever worried that he might not win a battle yet to come.
She was still standing lost in thought when one of the officers nearby turned directly towards her, his face shot through by a look of horror.
"Commander… we're picking up signals to the south."
Sami's eyes snapped to him. "What kind of signals, lieutenant?"
He swallowed. "Airborne, ma'am."
"What?" Sami was flooded with shock, but her expression didn't so much as waver. "How can that be possible?"
"I… I don't know, Commander."
Sami's brow creased as she crossed her arms over her chest. "How many signals are you getting?"
"Almost fifty, all airborne. It looks like a full aerial assault, Commander Sami – ma'am," the lieutenant answered, his eyes bulging as he said her name and just as quickly realised his gaffe.
He was nervous, Sami realised, and no wonder. This was completely unexpected. No, worse than that, it was something that shouldn't have even been possible. At the southern end of their shared border Blue Moon's territory was mountainous and rough. It was a region where rural towns were few and far between, let alone cities or airfields. They didn't have the facilities in range to support a major aerial offensive across the border. Aircraft carriers were a possibility, but Orange Star's intel had confirmed that all of Blue Moon's carriers were stationed on the longer northern coast, where most of their naval facilities were located, or abroad. This couldn't be an intelligence mishap like with the Black Cannon, either; Blue Moon's southwest coast was a tiny strip of land between Orange Star and Green Earth, and only contained a single major port. There was simply nowhere for them to hide a full assault fleet.
"How far away from us is the aerial force?" Sami asked. She wasn't going to solve the riddle, and there was certainly no point dwelling on it.
"Five… maybe ten minutes. We weren't prepared to scan for anything like this."
"I understand. Good work, lieutenant," she said, forcing a smile in an attempt to reassure him. "Listen up, everyone!" She shouted across the command post. "We've got a force of bogeys inbound. ETA in five to ten minutes. Given our position, I'm going to assume their intent is hostile and we're about to come under attack. Now we're not well equipped to handle an assault of this scale, so I'm ordering most of our troops to fall back. Our anti-air tanks and missile units will stay behind along with some foot soldiers. Oh, and put out a call for help. We're going to need support ASAP."
"What's your plan, Commander?" Another officer asked.
"Our anti-air units will stay behind to engage the foe. We're not going to win the battle, but we need to buy time for the rest of our forces to retreat and hopefully get out of the enemy's operational range. We need to keep these planes occupied as long as we can for that to happen, so we'll need infantry too. Their job is to run interference, provide cover and draw enemy fire away from our anti-air. Eight squads should be enough. Understood?"
"Understood, ma'am."
Her orders given, Sami could only watch as the army was galvanised into action. She felt a surge of pride alongside the cold anticipation of the battle to come. Even now, caught completely off guard, her troops reacted calmly and quickly, the emergency retreat carried out as if it had been planned. Sami might not have been able to spend as much time working with Special Forces as she would have liked, but even in an army this size her soldiers were drilled to be the best in Orange Star. She had every confidence that the men and women under her command were up to the challenge before them, no matter how outmatched they were.
Over the ocean a cluster of dark shapes was coming into view, a jagged tear of darkness against the fiery sunset. At their current distance the planes seemed so tiny they could have passed for a far off flock of birds, completely indistinguishable as individual shapes. That would change all too soon.
"ETA on the enemy air force?" She asked.
"Three minutes, ma'am."
"Get those missiles into the woods. They could use the cover." She frowned. "Any details on the enemy force's composition?"
"One moment, Commander… looks like a combination of bombers and fighters."
Interesting, Sami thought. Their enemy had deployed a mixed force for ground and air attack despite the fact that she didn't have any airborne assets under her command beyond the odd light copter. They didn't know what they were up against. They might have known exactly where to find her forces and been able to launch a surprise attack, but there were gaps in their intel. Sami's frown let up a little as she decided that the enemy seemed a little less threatening now.
Leaning forward, she activated the com. "All units, this is Commander Sami. The enemy force is comprised of fighters and bombers. Everyone, focus your fire on the enemy bombers. I repeat, focus on the bombers."
Sami looked up again to see that the vague shape of the enemy air force had grown, splitting like some malignant virus into individual cells, every one a weapon of war bent on raining destruction down upon Orange Star. They were close enough now for her to see that they were not Blue Moon aircraft like she had assumed. It wasn't the colour that gave them away. In the orange glow of the sunset blue and grey looked much alike. No, it was the strangely rounded noses and jutting, squared wings on the smaller fighters, features visibly distinct from the sharp, sleek lines of Blue Moon jets. She knew who the enemy was.
"Black Hole," someone breathed nearby.
"Black Hole," Sami agreed in a solemn voice. Then, with a single flick of her finger she activated the com again and leant forward to speak. "Everyone, this is Sami. Our enemy is Black Hole." She paused and felt a single heartbeat run through her like a shiver. "No mercy."
Sami's eyes roved over the beach as her troops rushed to prepare for the imminent attack, drinking in every detail. It was like she had never seen the terrain before. Just a few minutes ago it had been nothing but a quiet seaside sunset, the kind you might see on a postcard or in a sappy movie. Now it was the staging ground for a desperate battle. Every rise and fall in the landscape, every last scrap of cover could make the difference between life and death. Sami was under no illusions that she could win the one-sided struggle that was about to take place. This wasn't going to be a glorious triumph, only a frantic delaying action that just might buy the rest of her army time to get away. Sami steeled herself with that knowledge. She had her objective, and she'd damn well see it done.
Finally her gaze returned to the approaching air force. Sami's eyes were hard as flint as she stared down the jets as if she could turn them back with nothing but sheer force of will.
"Those missiles," she said, her voice low and terse. "Are they in position?"
"Yes ma'am."
"Right." Sami's eyes remained fixed on the enemy planes, waiting until they were well and truly in range. "Fire!"
The order was sent. A flurry of missiles shot out of the woods and lanced into the front of the enemy formation. Fireballs wracked the line of fighters and bombers as several of the planes were blasted apart or began to fall out of the sky. Sami found herself holding her breath as she waited to see how the foe would react. She didn't dare hope that they would break off the assault after just a bloody nose, but she fully expected them to begin evasive manoeuvres or even pull back to regroup.
They did neither. Some of the jets veered slightly, but they stayed together, hurtling towards the mainland in a screaming mass.
"Infantry, this is Sami. Prepare to run interference. Delta and Echo squads, move west. Charlie, Bravo, get their attention and draw them into the kill zone. Vulcans, standby to engage."
Sami had barely finished giving the orders when the jets crossed the divide between land and sea, and the whole world erupted into a cataclysm of fire and shaking ground.
"Anti-airs, go! Go!"
The anti-air units advanced from their concealed positions, cannons raised. The beach became a battlefield as Sami's troops began trading blows with the Black Hole air force. Sami's eyes darted around. The bombers were surging forward, dropping their payloads indiscriminately. There was no rhyme or reason to their attacks, no pattern or strategy. Not that it mattered. The enemy force was large enough to overwhelm her with nothing but brute force.
"Commander Sami, we're picking up new contacts on an approach vector!"
Sami's stomach lurched. "Let me guess. More planes?"
"No ma'am. Ships."
"What?"
Sami marched over to see the readout for herself. There, on the screen, was a growing cluster of contacts at the southern edge. Sami looked to the horizon. Sure enough, she could make out a dark smear sitting on the sea. She checked the configuration of the vessels. Landers. Suddenly the aimless aerial assault made sense. This wasn't about destroying her army, it was about providing cover for a full-blown invasion. The realisation gripped Sami like a metal vice, but it changed nothing. Even knowing that a landing fleet was bearing down on her position, the air force was the more immediate threat.
The world shook, and the acrid stench of burning grass filled Sami's nostrils. The bombers were moving further inland, closer to her command post. Sami's heartbeat grew faster as she scanned the skies. One of the bombers was heading straight for them.
"Take cover!" She yelled.
Sami sprinted towards the trees, desperately trying to stay aware of where the bombs were falling next. Explosions boomed out and she felt a wave of heat at her back. Then she was into the woods, and safe.
She came to a stop, taking a moment to catch her breath and let her eyes adjust to the gloom. A wall of tree trunks and thick brambles loomed before her, beyond which lurked several vague red shapes. Her missile trucks. Sami threaded her way through the shadows, pushing stray branches aside with her rifle.
"Status, soldier?" She asked, coming up to an infantryman by the missiles.
"We've taken out several bombers, ma'am. Doesn't look like they've spotted us yet."
"Good work. Keep firing for as long as you can. I'm going to get a closer look at things."
Sami kept moving, heading for the pinpricks of amber light out beyond the layers of forest. Driven from her command post she was practically blind; she needed to get a sense of the tactical situation and issue new orders. The trees were thinning when she heard the whine of a jet engine, followed a split second later by a roaring explosion and the smell of smoke. Sami whirled about, but could see nothing clear.
She swore as another blast rocked the woods, setting branches cracking and bathing the shadowed world in fire. The sounds of glass shattering and metal groaning rang out. Sami darted out beyond the edge of the trees, risking a glance upwards. The offending bomber was already coming around for a second pass. If her missiles weren't already destroyed, they soon would be.
"Everyone out of the woods," she screamed. "Now!"
Sprinting hard she raced down the slope to the beach and threw herself into a small ditch. The wind was knocked out of her by the hard landing, but at least she was safe and out of sight. Peeking out from the ditch Sami took in a quick snapshot of the ocean. The enemy boats were drawing closer. Another fifteen minutes and they'd start landing troops. She lifted her com.
"Radar, how many bombers are left?"
There was a spark of garbled static. "Commander Sami-" more static – "half of enemy bomber targets remaining."
Sami closed her eyes, shutting out the battle for one precious second. There was only one option left. They couldn't take out the bombers in time. Her troops had taken too many casualties already. And without getting rid of the bombers, there was no way she could recall the rest of her army to try and repulse the landing fleet. She was caught in an impossible bind. She had no choice but to fall back and hope they could still fight off the Black Hole force after it had entrenched itself on the beach.
Sami pulled herself out of the ditch and quickly surveyed the area. There were barely any of her units left. The scene was a hellish vision of smoke, spot fires and blackened craters. Sami's eyes were heavy with bitterness as she raised her com. She was about to give the order when another blast above made her duck for cover. Her head snapped upwards to see what had happened even as more and more explosions thundered out.
She couldn't help but gasp. The sky was filled with fighter jets in emerald livery, wreaking havoc amongst the unprepared Black Hole air force. For a moment Sami could only watch, stunned. Never, not in a million years, could she have anticipated the unlikely rescue, and yet somehow it seemed like the most natural thing in the world. She already knew who was behind the counterattack. Only one person could command air units like that: Eagle, the daring hero of Green Earth. Sami shook her head in disbelief. She hadn't heard from him in months and yet here he was in her hour of need. She felt an odd twinge as she watched the green fighters soaring through the sky, tearing into the enemy with ruthless precision. How, she wondered, would he explain the silence that had come between them since the end of the Omega War?
Sami scowled and dismissed the thought. She could worry about her personal life later. Instead she turned and jogged back over to the command post she had abandoned earlier. The bombs had scattered some of the equipment, but there were still a few consoles intact, if a little charred. Sami hoped the one she needed was still working. She was in luck; the scanning station was not only whole, but functional. Typing rapidly she brought up the data on the ships off the coast. A smile of pure relief broke across her face. They had stopped moving. Some of them had even begun to reverse course. Without the bombers to cover their approach, the landers were turning back.
There was a sudden ping at her back. Instinct kicked in and Sami whirled about, rifle raised, only to find herself threatening the communications console. There was an incoming transmission, that was all. She sighed and lowered her gun, suddenly very thankful that she was the only one at the command post. It seemed she was going to hear from Eagle at last. A strange, uneasy flutter passing through her heart, Sami answered the transmission.
It was not Eagle that greeted her. Sami found herself looking at a hulking giant who wore pair of red goggles and a dark metal helmet.
"Flak!"
A leering grin crossed his broad jaw. "Miss me?"
White hot fury flooded Sami, and she felt her fists clench. "Not a bit, you – you thug!"
"Hah! You missed me."
Bile rose in her throat as Sami fought back the urge to terminate the connection. She didn't want to look at Flak's face for another second. Didn't want to give him the satisfaction of taunting her. But he was the first concrete lead they had about who was behind this Black Hole resurgence, and she had a duty to learn everything she could. Setting her distaste to one side, she fixed the brutish man with her nastiest glare.
"So you were behind this?" She snorted. "I should have known. Only you would forget to check for enemy fighters before sending in your air force."
Flak's grin vanished, replaced by a volatile scowl. "That shouldn't have happened," he breathed. "We're in Orange Star! What's Green Earth doin' here?"
Sami rolled her eyes. Flak made Andy look like a genius. Maybe it was a waste of time trying to get any information out of him. No half-competent commander would expect him to keep any sensitive secrets.
"You think this matters, stopping us here today?" He spat, his gravelly voice barely intelligible. "It doesn't. You ain't won nothing. You got no idea what's coming. Your dumb country's gonna be history."
"That's what you said last time," she shot back. "Didn't quite work out, did it?"
"You got no idea." Flak laughed, a slow, drawn out chuckle that soon overstayed its welcome. "No idea. Be seein' you again soon, girlie. So long."
The screen went dark. Sami let out her breath and slapped the top of the console. He hadn't told her anything useful. Just empty boasting. She stepped back and tried to calm her nerves. They had a face to put to Black Hole now, and that was something. Anyone remotely intelligent would have kept their mouth shut and left her to wonder who had been behind the aborted landing.
Sami nodded to herself. It was a victory. A small one perhaps, but a victory nonetheless. She looked up at the skies, filled with green planes.
And now, at least they knew they weren't alone.
