ANVIL SUCCESSFUL, COMMENCE ASSAULT. Howe read the message that had just come in from the PEGASUS. Good, he thought, that meant that the marines would not have to fear that flying tank of a 'freighter', but still...
He tapped out a message on his keypad: SIX TO AVENGER, ASSAULT COMMENCING IN FIVE MINUTES, then sent it off. When he got the ACKNOWLEDGED reply back, he raided his signal lamp and flashed it seven times to both recon positions. The code was for Haig and March to send down most of their squads to support the weapons squad. He hoped that they would get here quickly. Regardless, the attack had to start. If the tinheads try to contact the 'freighter', they might get suspicious at a no-reply. Besides, the sooner they kept the initiative of surprise, the better the chance of salvaging the 'bait' (all that ore).
Up at the Squad one observation point, Haig un-slung his weapon and tapped Corporal Jones on the shoulder. Jones nodded. He had seen the signal from Howe and knew that it meant that the weapons team was about to attack and that support would be needed. Jones would stay up at the position with the monocular operator and the sniper while Haig would take the rest of the contingent down from the position to link up with the weapons squad.
While Haig was getting the marines alerted and ready to move, Corporal March was doing likewise with his squad. Leaving his sniper and monocular operator in position, he moved to get his people ready to head down to support Howe. As all of them knew that the target would be the massive gun emplacement, but March wondered if their weapons would be enough to disable it, given that they didn't foresee such a weapon existing. Still, March knew that the PEGASUS - as well as the GALACTICA - would be threatened unless it could be taken out.
Howe looked at his chronometer as it ticked down the minutes. As the chronometer reached the five minute mark, he reached for his communicator.
Just then, one of his marines tapped him on the shoulder and pointed. Coming over the horizon was a ship. He quickly realized that it was the peregrine! Howe's voice then sounded over the communicator for all the marines to hear: "Commencing attack!".
On the AVENGER, Hunter and Sims heard Howe's order. Sims called, "The target is acquired. I've got missile lock!".
"Fire titans!", Hunter ordered. Sims thumbed the firing control switch. The two massive air to surface missiles shot out of their mounts and headed towards the crater. Hunter made a mental note to buy Chief Krag a drink for having the foresight to equip the FLEET AVENGER with the titan missiles. Each of them packed a sizeable warhead, designed for armor piercing attack.
Down in the crater, the transmission from Howe had been detected. An alert was sent out to the centurions. The centurions started to un-sling their weapons while at the same time, the gun emplacement doors started to close, but before they could close, the titans slammed into the doors, causing them to jam and buckle. The titans had exposed the barrel of the rail gun to attack.
As Howe saw the impact of the two missiles, he shouted into his communicator, "All mortars, open fire on the emplacement!". The mortar teams fired their ordinance, lobbing their bombs into the crater at the still jammed half-open gun emplacement.
Howe noticed that the FLEET AVENGER was starting a strafing run with their forward guns. Several centurions were hit from the fire, though other centurions were starting to fire back at the peregrine.
At that moment, several smaller explosions started hitting in their vicinity. Howe saw on his screens that a number of centurions were heading in their direction, and were firing their weapons. They must have triangulated on the wireless transmission, he thought.
"Missile teams, you're cleared to fire!", Howe shouted. At that moment, the four marines who carried the shoulder launched missiles stood and fired their weapons. The missiles were proximity fused, fragmentation devices. As the missiles reached the vicinity of the approaching Cylons, the warheads detonated, carving a scythe through the approaching centurions. The marines quickly re-loaded their launchers as the centurions regrouped.
"Six, this is Nebula One", a new voice sounded. Nebula One was the call sign for the observer in Haig's and Jones' squad, "I'm seeing more bad guys emerging from a passageway near the gun emplacement and they're heading your way".
Howe quickly looked at the screen. Nebula One was aiming it at the location he had mentioned. At least another fifty first generation Cylon centurions had emerged already and were heading their way. They were all well armed with a variety of light and heavy ordinance.
"Frakk!", Howe said to himself. It must be either a hidden garrison or else it's the operation and support personnel for that gun, he thought. He keyed his mike.
"Nebula Three-a and Three-b" (the sniper's call signs), he communicated, "start taking them out". Haig knew that the snipers would not be able to get more than a few of them, but the odds were not starting to look good. Beyond the first fifty, other centurions were emerging and deploying.
"Nebula Six, this is AVENGER", Howe suddenly heard over his communicator, "We've communicated with Home Plate for support. We have no more titans and our ammo is starting to run low. We can give you two more passes before we have to break off our attack", Hunter reported.
Howe acknowledged by clicking his communicator twice. In order to get the maximum load from the PEGASUS to the asteroid without overloading the peregrine, it was only carrying a minimum weapons load. No other missiles apart from the two titans had been carried as a result of the weight constraints.
"Six, this is Nebula Five", Howe heard next. He looked over to see that Haig, Jones, and most of Squad one were loping over to join them. Howe gave them a thumbs up as the dozen marines moved to positions where they could fire down into the crater onto the approaching centurions.
"Don't forget Nebula Four", Corporal March said as his squad approached Howe. Howe was glad that the twenty five marines were here.
"We'll have to bug out before too long, Corporal", Howe said to March, "so have six of your squad secure a flat area for an LZ (landing zone)".
As March relayed Howe's order, Marconi suddenly announced, "It's Taggart!".
Looking to where Marconi was pointing, he could see that the landram was heading up to his position. Taggart had been listening in to the communications and figured that the light gauss-cannon on top of the landram would be needed. Howe agreed silently and made a note to thank Taggart for his initiative.
"Figured you'd need some more firepower, Six", Taggart communicated.
"You're right about that. Okay, Taggart, get that cannon to bear on the tinheads, we've got a lot of them coming this way!", Howe ordered. He looked back over the lip of the crater where more and more centurions were approaching. The AVENGER roared over the crater, laying down a concentration of gun fire. A lot of Cylons were blasted by the bursts. Just then, Howe saw a small explosion just beneath the nose of the peregrine.
"Frakk!", Hunter exclaimed as the AVENGER lurched from the explosion. An anti-spacecraft proximity shell fired from a Cylon had damaged the nose guns, knocking them out of operation.
"Six, this is AVENGER", Hunter communicated, "our forward guns have been disabled. We're heading down to pick you up. Give me a place to do so".
"We've secured an LZ about one hundred yards behind our position, AVENGER", Howe replied, "Head there'.
"The anti spacecraft fire is getting more intense, Six", Hunter said, "we'll have to take a circular route. Hang on in there".
As the AVENGER headed away from the shell fire in order to get to the LZ, Howe radioed, "All observers and snipers fall back to the LZ immediately". Howe saw that the number of centurions that were left would soon leave them all out of ammunition.
Just then, several explosions shook their vicinity. Just as a marine shouted, "Get down! The tin heads are using mobile mortars", another explosion hit near three marines. All three of them were thrown away from the explosion, their suits punctured by shrapnel.
"You'd better get down here fast, AVENGER', Howe shouted, "We're losing people here!".
"There's too many tin heads for a gun crew, Six", Haig exclaimed to Howe, "What have we stirred up?"
"If we manage to live through this, Sarge, we'll try and find out", Howe replied, "But for the moment, get everyone ready to fall back"
"Six!", Marconi called out,"AWe're at joker-level!". 'Joker' referred to the fact that their heavy munitions were just about exhausted. Howe saw that there were now over a hundred centurions advancing on their position. They were now climbing up the crater wall. The marines were firing their gauss-rifles down at them, but return fire was starting to find their mark. Two more marines were hit and killed as another mortar round impacted just in front of them, smashing their helmets and riddling their bodies with shrapnel.
Another mortar round smashed into the landram, knocking out the gauss cannon and killing Taggart. Things were now looking real grim for the marines. They had to get out fast! Just then, Hunter's voice came over the communicator.
"This is AVENGER", Hunter called Howe, "Keep your heads down, we've got incoming!".
The word 'Incoming' had barely left his lips as Black Knight Wing's supporting raptor came in, supported by two vipers.
"Here's a little gift from all of us, you tinheaded toasters!", the pilot, Lt. 'Dookie' Connor snarled into his communicator as his raptor fired two titan missiles. One missile landed right in the midst of the largest group of Cylons, wreaking havoc in their lines. The second titan went in the half opened revetment doors that exposed the super-rail gun.
A massive explosion shook the area as the titan detonated inside the emplacement. The Cylons in the crater were thrown to the ground as the explosion tore through the central area. Up on the crater rim, the marines were shook up some as the sub surface shockwave reached their position.
As more sub surface explosions rocked the crater, more vipers from Black Knight Wing headed in, making multiple strafing passes.
"Okay, Knights", Voight communicated to his pilots, "let's finish 'em off!".
The vipers laid waste to the complex and anything down there that was moving. After several minutes, Voight called out, "Looks like we got 'em. Break off and fly cover. We've got some people down there to pick up".
As Voight's squadrons discontinued their attack and started flying in a covering pattern over the complex, the marines moved back to the LZ. The AVENGER had just made it's landing. Hunter clicked his communicator.
"The Commander was kind enough to redirect them, once he heard what was happening", Hunter said to Howe.
"Good of the boss to do that", Howe agreed, "but we've got a couple of things to do yet before we leave, pilot. The marines don't leave anyone behind".
Hunter knew what Howe had meant. Six marines had been killed. Their remains would be brought back to the PEGASUS with them. They had won this battle, but the loss of life would not be forgotten in the light of victory.