After the Battle of Alnus Hill secured the task force sole access to the Gate, construction of the base and research facility began. One week later, more civilian contractors, construction drones, vehicles and supplies were sent over to help speed up the process. Within two months, Camp Alnus was operational although it was comparable to a small compound but the base itself was still undergoing expansion. The research facility, the Gate and it's immediate area was also walled off from the rest of the base in it's own little compound. The construction workers were currently in the middle of establishing the rest of the base as well as suitable housings for the first batch of colonists.
Perhaps it was too early to start construction of civilian housing but two consecutive victories against the Saderan Empire was proof enough for the United Americas congress, Three World Empire parliament and Weyland-Yutani's board of directors that Falmart was theirs for the taking and approved early construction. They were confident the task force would easily steamroll through whatever the Empire threw at them. Regardless of the losses. The military and the task force, however, had a different opinion on the matter.
Lieutenant Generals Glenn Marlow and Koichiro Hazama knew that despite the victories they achieved, they can't ignore the fact that the task force took heavy losses from their enemy. They requested for reinforcements to the other side and weeks later, reinforcements arrived from the United Americas Colonial Army in the form of Charlie Co., 1st Battalion, 91st (Canadian) Regiment and Hunter Co., 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment while the Colonial Marine Corps sent Echo Co., 2/33 Marines; Bravo Co., 1/42 Marines; the rest of 1/38 Marines, two VMLA squadrons and several logistic and support units. Meanwhile, the JSDF were able to pull units from different brigades to form the 70th Infantry Regiment and spare an artillery battery, an anti-air battalion and an aviation squadron which were delegated to base defense.
Marlow and Hazama had hoped for more but recent developments back on the other side of the Gate forced both the United Americas and the Three World Empire to reallocate much of their time and resources elsewhere. Mainly on suppressing the violent uprisings that started popping up in the outlying colonies belonging to both the United Americas and Three World Empire as well as the looming threat of an all-out war with the Union of Progressive Peoples.
(Line Break)
2199 CE
Camp Alnus, Falmart
Two months had passed since the Battle of Alnus Hill and not much had happened since then. Despite the fact that they were currently in the backyard of their enemy, many of the task force's personnel were treating the operation like a vacation. Especially the Marines. To them, it was nice to not fight Xenomorphs on a monthly basis for once. They can take in the beautiful scenery of a planet without having to worry about a Xeno stalking them from the shadows or some other freaky alien bullshit. Of course this left many of the Marines bored and they'd do whatever they can to stave off their boredom.
"Come on, guys. This isn't funny!"
Bella and O'Neal were holding a struggling and fully-armored Keyes in place while Tequila picked up a rock the size of a fist from the ground.
"We're just gonna test out how strong the crotch piece is, kid." Bella stated.
"Testing for what?!"
"For science." Tequila replied with a shrug. "Now hold still, Keyes."
"Wait! Wait! Wait! Wait!"
"Oh don't be such a pussy. This won't hurt a bit." O'Neal joked while keeping his grip on the Grenadier firm.
With a mischievous grin, Tequila threw the rock right at Keyes' crotch piece. The Grenadier screamed in pain when it made contact and his legs gave out. Bella and O'Neal released his arms and started laughing their asses off along with Rhino 2-1's new Squad Leader.
On the ground, Keyes glared at Tequila and flipped her off.
"That fucking hurt!"
Keyes attempted to stand up but ended up falling back to his knees. O'Neal wiped a tear from his eye and grabbed the Grenadier before helping him up his feet.
"Come on, kid. It's not that bad."
"Fuck you too, man." Keyes groaned.
While Rhino 2-1 had their fun, Rhino Two's newly promoted Platoon Sergeant and Rhino 2-1's former Squad Leader, Winter, was off to the side playing poker with Polonski, Santos and a recovered Lasco.
Most of the Marines of Rhino Two were bored and doing what they can to entertain themselves. Some of the JSDF personnel gave them odd looks while others watched the bored Marines with amusement. More than a few would actually join them as they too were bored themselves.
"Full house."
Winter showed his hand and Polonski scoffed before throwing his cards on the barrel they were using as a makeshift table. Lasco and Santos folded as well and Winter proceeded to collect his winnings.
"That's two games in a row, boys and girls." Winter stated. "I think I'm gonna head on over to the range."
"Come on, Staff Sergeant. One more game?" Polonski asked.
"Nah, man. I know when to quit while I'm ahead."
"Alright. Alright. See ya later, Staff Sergeant."
Winter bid them goodbye and moved to leave for the range though he thought about buying something in the base's 7-11 first. It wasn't actually a 7-11 but rather it was the base's MCX. The Americans called it 7-11 because it was comparable to a convenience store. Much smaller than the MCX buildings back in Camp Smedley D. Butler which looked more like shopping malls. It was also the only PX in the base so it was not uncommon to see Three World Empire goods being sold there as well. There were plans to expand it but said plans were held off due to the situation back on Earth.
Whatever plans Winter had, however, were cancelled when he saw several M580 APCs and an unarmed M11B "Swan" Ground Mobility Vehicle driven by Rhino Two's new Platoon Leader, Ramon Edwards, with Captain Jeremy Cruz riding passenger seat. Winter narrowed his eyes before turning to the platoon and ordering them to form up. He turned around just as the Captain approached him. He took note that Cruz was already in his gear and carrying a Pulse Rifle in hand.
The grim look on his face sent a bad feeling in Winter's gut. Still. The Staff Sergeant saluted his Company Commander once he was close.
"At ease, Winter." Cruz waved him off. "I'll cut right to the chase. The base is being mobilized. Your gear's already in the Swan. The rest of your platoon's gear are in the 580s. Shit's about to hit the fan, Staff Sergeant. Now come on. You're riding with me."
Winter turned around and ordered Rhino Two to get in the APCs before walking next to the Captain as they made their way over to the Swan.
"What's happening, Captain?"
"Aerial recon drones spotted three hundred thousand plus foot mobiles marching for Camp Alnus."
Winter's eyes widened at that.
"Jesus Christ."
"Reports say they got all kinds of crap." Cruz continued and began to list off some of the units the enemy has within their ranks.
"Wyvern riders, War Elephants, Orcs, Ogres, Centaurs and a bunch of other crap mixed in. Artillery batteries are already in position and forward observers have been deployed further out to spot targets for the 1/38's howitzers. Rhino Company will be joined by an infantry company from the JSDF's 70th Infantry and Hunter Two from Hunter Company Rangers."
"That's it? Just us?" Winter asked as he hopped in at the Swan's troop compartment in the vehicle's back.
"Just us." The Captain confirmed and entered the passenger seat. "This is by far the largest force we have ever encountered. They outnumber the army we faced when we crossed the Gate and the army that invaded Ginza combined. Let's go, Edwards."
"Yes sir."
The Swan rolled out and was followed moments later by the APCs. Winter began putting on his armor.
"Recon drones spotted them setting up wooden forts just outside the range of our artilleries. We'll set up shop on the north of the base. That's where they will most likely attack from. Machine guns, automated sentries, mortars, mines, barbed wire, sharp sticks. Everything. We'll be at the front line trench so we get the first piece of the pie. Tanks from Anvil Company have already hulled-in and Samsons and Scorpions from Vanguard Squadron are on standby to provide close air-support. We'll hold these bastards off with what we got. I wanna see them either running with their tails between their legs or dead across the field. Anyone in your platoon AMP Suit qualified?"
"Polonski, Fischer and myself, Captain."
"Then it's your lucky day. I'm putting the three of you in AMP Suits. Finally time to put those damn things to good use other than hauling ordnance."
"What about Hunter, Bravo, Charlie and Echo Company, Captain?"
The Staff Sergeant finished putting his armor on as well as his ammo and grenades before grabbing his Pulse Rifle and loading a fresh mag in. The ammo indicator on the mag well came to life.
"They're stationed further in the back. Manning their own trench and defensive positions. The rest of Hunter Company are on standby as reinforcements. They're there to clean up the mess in case we shit the bed." The Captain answered before looking over his shoulder. "Are we gonna shit the bed on this one, Staff Sergeant?"
Winter racked the charging handle and shook his head at Cruz. His lips forming into a grin.
"Hell no, Captain."
(Line Break)
Command Center, Camp Alnus
Lieutenant General Glenn Marlow stared at the large holoscreen showing a live feed of the front line trench as their troops set up their defenses agains the enemy. The Colonial Marine General wore the Colonial Marine Combat Utility Uniform and had rolled the sleeves of his blouse to his biceps. An old M4A3 Service Pistol was secured in a thigh holster around his right leg.
In all his years in the Colonial Marines, not once did he think he'd have to fight armies that can only be found in history and fantasy media. Well. Smother him in gravy. Here he is now. Doing just that. In fact, they're about to face off against three hundred thousand of them. Ain't that a bitch, huh?
"Get me a visual on the hostiles." Marlow ordered. "Let's see if they're getting ready to move out."
The large holoscreen switched from the live feed of their front line trench to a live feed of Recon Drone 7 which was observing the enemy's forts along with other recon drones.
"No movement yet, General Marlow." First Lieutenant Akira Yanagida reported. "Looks like they're gonna be inside their forts for the night."
"Switch to thermal."
Standing beside Taylor was Lieutenant General Hazama. The JSDF General wore his combat uniform but had rolled the sleeves up to his elbows. He too was armed but with a VP70MA6 Pistol rather than a service pistol. A thoughtful expression was on the man's face as he looked at the holoscreen.
"See if they sent an advance force." Hazama ordered.
The view changed from normal to thermal in a moment and the drone surveyed the area before spotting something.
"Eight signatures had just exited the fort and are spotted heading towards Alnus. Possibly a scouting party, General Hazama." Drone Operator 7 replied.
"What do you think, Hazama?" Marlow asked. "Do we take 'em out?"
"Do we have snipers in the field?"
"No." Marlow shook his head. "But we do have Rangers. Actually. Now that I think about it. We'll have one of the drones tail these scouts. Deploy the Rangers when these guys are close enough. Yeah. Yeah. Bag 'em and drag 'em. See what we can find out about our enemy."
An attendant approached the Colonial Marine General and handed him a freshly brewed mug of coffee.
"Thank you." He nodded to the attendant and took a small sip before looking back at the holoscreen.
"Get me a line to Hunter 2-1." Marlow ordered.
The Colonial Marine General waited for a few moments before someone informed him that they were connected.
"Hunter 2-1, this is Overlord. Do you read? Over."
[Hunter 2-1 Actual to Overlord, I read you. Send traffic. Over.]
"We have a visual of a hostile scouting party heading for Alnus. I want your squad to move in and take 'em out. Bring at least three or four back alive for interrogation."
[Copy, Overlord. Do we head out now?]
"Negative, 2-1 Actual. We have a drone tailing them now. Wait for my green light before you move in."
[Understood, Overlord. Hunter 2-1 will be on standby in the meantime. 2-1 Actual, out.]
Marlow took a seat on his chair and leaned back on it before taking another sip from his mug. He offered some to Hazama but the man declined just as Yanagida arrived and handed him a mug of coffee.
After what felt like hours, the enemy scouting party stopped moving as they arrived at their destination. A hundred meters from the mine field.
"Alright."
Marlow clapped his hands and stood up from his chair. Hazama following suit. Their mugs empty.
"Showtime, people. Hunter 2-1, green light. You are good to go. Try and keep things quiet, Foley. We don't wanna wake up our guests."
[Roger that, Overlord. Hunter 2-1 is Oscar Mike. Ramirez, take point.]
"Have one of our drones tail, Hunter 2-1. I wanna see this."
Recon Drone 5 took the job and followed after the Ranger squad as they made their way to the hostile scouting party on foot. It would take the Rangers a while considering how big the mine field was and that they had to circle around to avoid detection but they'll get there.
"Generals." One of the Drone Operators called out. "Recon Drone 8 just detected thirty plus hostiles approaching from the northeast of the enemy forts. Fast. They... They just passed through the mountains, Generals!"
"Get me eyes on those hostiles. Now."
The holoscreen changed to Recon Drone 8's live feed which showed at least twenty five or so Wyvern Riders.
"Son of a bitch." Marlow muttered.
"Something's different." Hazama stated. "Zoom in on that banner."
The drone operator did as the JSDF General requested and zoomed in on the banner.
"That's not a Saderan flag. In fact, this entire army doesn't match the description of Imperials. Reports from Ginza didn't mention anything about war elephants. None of their banners and equipment match anything from the ones that attacked Ginza either. This is a different army, Marlow, or rather armies. I see a lot of different banners down there.
"Be that as it may, it doesn't change the fact that they're heading for an Alnus Hill with a massive army. Now I don't know about you but it looks to me that they're not here to sell us some girl scout cookies." Marlow replied as he crossed his arms.
"Generals, Recon Drone 6 have detected twenty plus hostiles coming from the northwest of the enemy's position."
"You gotta be shittin' me. Eyes on it. Now."
The feed shifted to Recon Drone 6 and just as he expected. More Wyvern Riders. Marlow rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration.
"Great. That's about fifty wyverns and we can't shelf the possibility that more are on their way. Somebody get me our best interrogators. Ones that can speak the local language. Once Hunter 2-1 gets back with their POWs, find out all we can about these people. Tactics, leaders, battle plans, policies and all that crap."
"I'm going to send in the 1st Anti-Aircraft Battalion to support our men in the front." Hazama stated and looked at Marlow.
"I know your Marines have anti-air weapons but it's better to be safe than sorry."
"That would be much appreciated, Hazama. Thank you."
[Overlord, this is Hunter 2-1 Actual. We have detained three hostiles and eliminated the rest. Over.]
"Well that was fast." The Colonial Marine General muttered. "Alright, 2-1 Actual. We'll send in a bird to pick you up. Bring them in. Even the bodies."
[Understood, Overlord. 2-1 Actual, out.]
(Line Break)
Front Line Trench, Camp Alnus
'...I breathe in the atmosphere
Let it wash over my fear
Of these heights as I transcend
And become whole again
I breathe in the atmosphere
Let it take me out of here
I won't live life in the rain
Waiting on the sky to change...'
From inside his AMP Suit, Winter listened to some music while keeping his attention back at the mine field. Checking every now and then his AMP Suit's motion tracker. Should anyone call him through the suit's comms then the music would automatically cut before playing once more once they were done. Convenient, right? If only the damned thing had a seat then he could sit back and nod off for a bit.
Over the years, the Amplified Mobility Platform or AMP Suit had undergone a variety of upgrades to overcome it's previous flaws. The latest version of the AMP Suit now featured a reinforced canopy and roll cage that could withstand attacks from Xenomorphs. Exposed joints were now protected. Control of the suit remained the same as previous models, however, and the operator had to wear a special helmet linked to the AMP Suit.
Standing at 4.9 meters, the MK-11 AMP Suit was taller than previous models which stood at 4.2 and 4.3 meters. They were armed with an M480E6 that fires 25mm Armor Piercing (AP) Rounds in a 100-round box magazine. Spare magazines were attached to hardpoints on the "chest" and legs. They were also fitted with a shoulder-mounted lamp similar to the TNR Shoulder Lamps used by the Marines.
It's been hours since the Rangers came back with their POWs and said POWs' interrogation. It turns out that the army or rather armies they were fighting belonged to the 21 or so vassal states of the Saderan Empire. Furthermore, the POWs told them that Imperial troops that had been scheduled to join them days ago had never arrived. This was confirmed as not a single Imperial banner was spotted in the forts.
[All stations. All stations. This is Overlord, hostile forces are mobilizing. I say again. Hostile forces are mobilizing. Ready up, boys and girls. It's showtime.]
'Finally.'
[Vikings, on me. Form a firing line!] The voice of Viking Company's CO, Captain Patricia Callard, sounded through their suit's speakers.
The AMP Troopers made their way to the front and formed a firing line near the edge of the mine field. Forming a wall of AMP Suits with their weapons pointed down at the direction of where the enemy would come from.
[Pick your targets and make every shot count. If you see any Wyver Ryders, take them out as soon as possible.]
[Wyverns? Too bad these suits don't have rocket launchers. Right, Staff Sergeant?]
Winte recognized the voice as belonging to Private First Class Wataru Katsumoto.
The ad hoc AMP Trooper company was formed from mixed units originating from the Marines, Army and JGSDF. Viking Two consisted of Winter, Fischer and Polonski from the UACM and Katsumoto from the JSDF. Pretty solid guy. The man got along well with his Marines.
"Yeah. Rocket launchers would be great but I don't think the brass wants Marines running around in AMP Suits and carrying rocket launchers. They're scared that we might just blow shit up for no reason other than we're bored." Winter shrugged even though he knew no one could see it. "I wouldn't put it past someone to actually do something like that. They'll get smoked for it sure but they would still do it anyway."
He heard Katsumoto laugh on the other end.
[You Marines are crazy.]
"You have no idea, man. Never underestimate what a bored Marine can do."
[2-1. 2-4. Cut the chatter.] Captain Callard cut in. [Hostiles approaching. Nine hundred meters.]
Winter could see them in the distance. Marching towards the front line in checkered formations. The cavalry in the wings of the formation and war elephants leading the charge.
Meanwhile, a Forward Observer (FO) Marines was hidden further out and were already spotting targets for the artillery. Sergeant Vincent Freeman focused his attention on one of the cohorts and contacted Battery B.
"Hammer, this is Raven 3-1. Requesting fire mission on grid: PU 109 832. Over."
[Hammer to 3-1. Grid: PU 109 832. Out.]
"One thousand plus foot mobiles, three hundred plus cavalry and twenty war elephants in the open. Over."
[One thousand plus foot mobiles, three hundred plus cavalry and twenty war elephants in the open. Out.]
[R, B, HE in effect. 5 rounds. Over.] The Fire Direction Centre (FDC) called over the comms.
"R, B, HE in effect. 5 rounds. Out." Freeman replied.
The Forward Observer Marine waited and kept his eyes on the enemy approaching the mine field. After a few moments, he heard the sound of artillery guns firing.
[Shot. Over.]
"Shot. Out."
Moments later, the FDC spoke up again.
[Splash. Over.]
"Splash. Out."
The FO Marine watched closely as the spotting rounds struck dead on over the target area and Freeman immediately contacted the FDC.
"Fire for effect. Over."
[Fire for effect. Out.]
Back to the front line, Winter watched the artillery strike bear down on the hostiles in the distance. He could hear the other AMP Troopers in Viking Company cheer through his speakers.
[That's right. Suck it, ya bastards!]
[That's Marine artillery for you, baby! Woo!]
The forward observers continued spotting targets for the artillery who kept pounding the enemy again and again. Eventually, the army began their retreat after sustaining ten thousand or so casualties. Those in the front line trench didn't even get to fire a single shot. They and the AMP Troopers just stood back and enjoyed the show as VMLA-627 "Vanguard" flew over the front line and started chasing after the retreating hostiles.
(Line Break)
"Get some! You like that? Yeah. Get some!"
Lieutenant Blake Gallardo glanced over her shoulder at Lance Corporal Wayne Redding who grinned like a maniac as he rained 7.62x51mm FMJ rounds at the hostile ground forces with the pintle-mounted M60UA General-Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG).
"Grayston, keep an eye on Redding." She ordered. "Make sure he doesn't fall off the damn chopper."
"We're fine, Blake. We're stupid but not that much stupid."
"Well. Don't blame me if any of you idiots falls off."
"Yeah. Yeah. Whatever."
Lance Corporal Corey Grayston waved her off and resumed shooting at the enemy infantry below. Links and bullet casings littered the floor or rolled off the Samson. Vanguard 9-1's door gunners were having the time of their lives. Even Blake and her co-pilot, Lieutenant Ricky Creman, was joining in on the fun. Taking turns in firing Hornet missiles down at the enemy. The other Samsons of Vanguard were doing the same with Vanguard's Scorpions going to town as well.
Unfortunately, their fun was short-lived as more than fifty Wyvern Riders descended from the sky and attacked the Vanguard Tiltrotors in groups of two. Unlike the Wyverns in the First Battle of Alnus, these beasts were smaller in size but were still as deadly as the ones before. Their riders were also armed with crossbows. A pair of Wyverns attacked Vanguard 9-1 and latched on to either side of the chopper.
"What the fuc- AAAGGGHHH!!"
One of the Wyvern's clamped it's jaws on Redding's midsection and removed itself from the chopper. Taking the Port Side Door Gunner with it. It flinged Redding up into the air before another Wyvern swooped in and caught him in it's mouth then proceeded to take him away.
Meanwhile, Grayston quickly acted and detached the AVR-60 from it's mount then sent a hail of rounds at the other Wyvern's head while backing away. The Wyvern's rider kept his head down to avoid getting shot and let his mount take all the damage before popping out and shooting the Starboard Side Door Gunner with a crossbow bolt. Grayston fell back to the seats in the center of the chopper's troop compartment and retaliated by putting more than a dozen holes in the Wyvern Rider before spending the remaining bullets in the Wyvern's head.
"Fuck you!"
The now dead Wyvern slid out of the chopper and fell hundreds of feet from the air. Grayston let out a sigh of relief before wincing when he felt pain on his arm and looked to see a crossbow bolt sticking out.
"Oh fucking hell, man."
Just as he grabbed hold of the bolt's shaft, a third Wyvern slammed into the chopper and Grayston flew off the seat and out the Samson. Falling to his doom. His screams were cut off when another Wyvern caught his upper half between it's mouth jaws then another came in to grab hold of his legs with it's mouth then proceeded to fight over his body until they tore him in two.
Back in the Samson, Gallardo was calling for her door gunners but neither of them answered her.
"Grayston? Redding?"
The Samson Pilot looked over her shoulder and saw that her door gunners were gone and an AVR-60 was lying on the floor of the chopper.
"What the hell?"
"LOOK OUT! LOOK OUT! LOOK OUT!"
Creman's panicked shouting got her attention back to the cockpit and Gallardo barely managed to avoid slamming into a Scorpion that had been grabbed by the tail and flung towards their direction.
[Vanguard, this is Overlord. We are seeing several downed birds in the mine field. Get them out of there now. Over.]
[Vanguard 9-1, this is Vanguard Actual. You're closest to Vanguard 2-3's crash site. Head on over and retrieve 2-3's pilot. Dead or alive. To all remaining Scorpions. Give the Samsons some cover while they retrieve our guys down there.]
Gallardo turned to her co-pilot. "Ricky."
"I'm on it."
Creman removed himself from the co-pilot's chair and grabbed the M41A3 Burst Rifle stowed in the weapons rack behind them before heading over to the troop compartment. He loaded a fresh mag into his burst rifle as Gallardo maneuvered the Samson back around and headed for the downed Scorpion. The Samson stopped a couple of feet away from the crash site before making it's descent. A Scorpion flew by and fired 25mm rounds as it chased after a Wyvern before it could touch their Samson.
[Go! Go! Go!] Gallardo yelled over the comms.
Creman hopped out of the Samson when it was only a couple of feet from the ground and made a beeline for the downed Scorpion. The Co-pilot quickened his pace as he approached the downed bird when he saw a wyvern pass by overhead. Inside the pilot seat was Lieutenant William Daniels who was holding a WASP Autorevolver in hand.
"Hey. You alright, Billy?"
"It's my leg. It's broken." Daniels replied. "Help me outta here, man."
Creman proceeded to do just that and helped the Scorpion Pilot out of the rotorcraft.
"Susmaryosep. What the fuck have you been eating, man?"
"Just shut up and move, short shit."
The two made their way to the Samson as fast as they can with a Scorpion passing by once more to chase away any Wyverns that got close. They eventually reached the chopper and Creman helped Daniels inside before climbing in himself and manned the remaining door gun.
A Wyvern suddenly landed right in front of Creman and the man didn't hesitate to riddle the beast with bullets. Daniels, on the other hand, took out his VP70MA6 side arm and fired the pistol at the Wyvern Rider. One of his bullets managed to hit the rider right in the neck and he fell off the creature just as Creman killed the Wyvern itself. With the beast and rider dead, Creman turned his head towards the cockpit.
"We're clear!" He yelled at Gallardo. "Let's go! Let's go! Let's go!"
[Alright. Strap yourselves in.]
Vanguard 9-1 lifted off the ground and the Samson regrouped with the remaining birds of their squadron. All downed birds had been abandoned while their crew, dead or alive, had been airlifted out of the area. Wyverns chased after them only to be shot down from the sky by Viking Company and the 1st Anti-Aircraft Battalion who provided them with cover fire. Allowing Vanguard Squadron to retreat to safety.
(Line Break)
Inside the AMP Suit, Winter grit his teeth as he held the Wyvern back by it's mouth. It had swooped down and attempted to grab him with it's talons but he managed to dodge out of the way before it could. It jumped at him and he managed to grab it in it's jaws at the last second. The Staff Sergeant wrestled the beast for control before taking a risk and released the grip of the suit's right hand to deliver a blow into the side of the beast's head. The punch left the Wyvern in a daze and allowed him to slam the beast's head into the ground. He quickly grabbed his M480E6 from the ground and fired a burst of rounds into it's head before it could recover. Killing the Wyvern. He then fired one round at the Wyvern Rider who attempted to flee and killed the man instantly. Putting a massive hole in his torso.
Winter saw on his motion tracker that a hostile was about to flank him from the left and turned to face them just as a second Wyvern lunged at him. In response, Winter shoved the M480E6 inside the beast's mouth and squeezed the trigger. Blowing the Wyvern's brains out. It's rider shot a crossbow bolt at Winter but it bounced harmlessly off the reinforced canopy, much to the Wyvern Rider's horror. With a smirk on his face, Winter reached out with his free hand and yanked the rider off the dead Wyvern before squeezing hard and crushing the man to death. He released the corpse and pulled the M480E6 out of the dead Wyvern's mouth before aiming the weapon at the sky and opened fire at the Wyverns that crossed his vision.
Wyverns fell from the sky as the combined firepower of their anti-air units, Viking Company and the remaining Scorpions of VMLA-627 started turning the tide of battle back to the task force. Still. The momentary distraction the Wyvern Riders provided and the urgings of their glory-seeking commanders saw the infantry and cavalry make a charge for the front line. It didn't help that seeing the task force's birds get brought down by the Wyverns boosted the enemy's morale. This morale boost didn't last long as the army reached the mine field.
The mine field did it's job and decimated the enemy's remaining cavalry who had charged ahead of the infantry. Despite seeing the cavalry get annihilated, the infantry pushed through the mine field. Making a beeline for the trench. Unfortunately for them, they entered the range of the automated sentry gun nests which unleashed a storm of 10x28mm Caseless rounds at their targets. Causing bodies to drop all over the field. Some bodies even fell right on top of a mine and set them off. Unintentionally taking out their comrades who were within the mine's blast radius.
Around this time, Rhino Company's M41E4 Heavy Pulse Rifles and the JSDF Alpha Company's RMC F893WE Machine Gun teams opened fire and sent a storm of bullets across the field. Dropping hostiles left and right in a matter of seconds. The infantry in the trench joined in as well. Finally getting the chance to shoot their weapons. Had they tried shooting the Wyverns with small arms, they would have achieved nothing but waste ammunition. Rhino Company had learned their lesson from the First Battle of Alnus Hill. Even Anvil Company joined in the fun and their M83A4 Main Battle Tanks fired their 125mm M270A1 Smoothbore Gun.
The enemy came at them in droves. Their demi-human auxiliaries dropped like flies. Even the towering Ogres were no much for the task force's superior firepower nor were they a match for the AMP Troopers who made short work of them before they could even reach Viking Company. At this point, the battle became more like a slaughter fest as the enemy threw themselves at the front line. Still maintaining the notion that they would be able to use their numerical superiority to achieve victory. In addition to not showing up, the Imperials seemed to have neglected informing their vassals what the task force was capable of.
The front line was soon joined by the JSDF 12th Aviation Squadron and VMLA-915 "Stinger". Their arrival saw the enemy's air units wiped out. With the Wyverns gone, Viking Company shifted their focus back on the enemy. Regrouping to form a firing line once more and gave the hostile infantry hell.
After losing more than 20,000 men in their first assault, the enemy commanders ordered a full retreat back to their forts. Unfortunately for them, 12th Aviation Squadron and VMLA-915 "Stinger" moved to pursue. Their Scorpions unleashed salvos of TK-411 Wrap-around Fin Aerial Rockets (WAFARs) that decimated scores of packed infantry while Samson door gunners rained bullets on anyone unfortunate enough to be on their sights. Some even took to dropping grenades down on the retreating enemy.
When the enemy was out of sight, Winter's AMP Suit knelt down and the Staff Sergeant removed the servo gloves from his hands before opening the canopy and looked out the field. The sight of thousands of corpses reminded him of the First Battle of Alnus Hill's aftermath only this time the bodies were not Imperials and there was a lot more dead Wyverns. There were also a couple of downed Samsons and Scorpions here and there. It wasn't as bad as the last battle. At least he liked to think so. He won't know until this whole shit was cleaned up. For now though, he needed a smoke.
Winter took out the cigarette he had tucked between his ear and placed it between his lips before placing two fingers on his earpiece.
"Polonski, you got a light?" He asked.
[Yeah, Staff Sergeant.]
Viking Two regrouped around Winter and Polonski opened the canopy of his AMP Suit then threw his lighter at the Staff Sergeant who proceeded to light his cigarette and threw the lighter back to Polonski. Winter then looked over at Katsumoto.
"You smoke?"
The JSDF Infantryman shook his head 'No' so Winter turned to Lance Corporal Amber Fischer.
"What about you, Fischer?"
"No thanks, Staff Sergeant."
"Suit yourself."
Winter hopped out of the AMP Suit and crossed his arms before leaning on the leg of his AMP Suit. Even from afar, he could still hear the explosions in the distance. From the corner of his eye, he saw Fischer approach him.
"Staff Sergeant."
"Yeah?"
"Do you think they'll give up this time?" Fischer inquired.
Winter thought about it for the moment and looked back at corpses strewn about in the field. He sighed and took a drag from his cigarette before answering.
"To be perfectly honest. I don't know, Fischer. We're in their turf. Their backyard. We can take 'em on now but for how long? These guys would adapt and they have numbers on their side. We have problems on the other side of the Gate that's limiting our operations here. Let's face it. We're gonna be here for a long time."
Fischer didn't say another word and simply joined the Staff Sergeant in looking out into the field. She had hoped that this wouldn't take long and that she'd be home by Thanksgiving. Might as well call her family when they get back to Camp Alnus and tell them she might miss the holidays this year.
AN: My headcanon is that Saderan Wyverns are larger than the ones bred by their vassal states. Saderan Wyverns are about the size of the Fellbeasts in the LOTR film series while the vassal state Wyverns are about the size of Mountain Banshees from Avatar. Still pretty big.
The MK-11 AMP Suits are basically the Cyclops from Halo Wars 2 in appearance but without the wrist-mounted autocannons. It's also five-fingered like the Avatar AMP Suits.
The M480E6 the AMP Troopers use is basically an upscaled version of the BANISHER III variant of the M60 in Avatar: The Game. Just remove the optics.
The F893WE looks like the Mk 48 from Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. The one with the futuristic shell and barrel shroud. I always thought that the weapons in that movie looked cool when I first saw them.
The M60UA is visually the same as the one Jake uses in Avatar.