Chapter 4 – The Battle for Bruhl
The next 36 hours seemed to fly by for Edy, all things considered. Captain Varrot seemed somewhat surprised that the recently appointed Corporal had completed the selection process for her team a day early, but the candidates appeared sound enough and she informed Edy that she and her selections would be called in for a meeting the following day. The remainder of the day was business as usual; spent in the training field along with the other shocktroopers over the watchful eye of the Drill Instructor. After all, Tuesday was the mandatory day for shocktrooper exercises, Corporal or not. The evening consisted of Edy making the necessary alterations to her uniform to reflect her new rank. Gone was the crest-shaped patch with the triple segmented lines bordering top sides, the rank of Private, on the front right of the uniform jacket. In its place, the Corporal rank patch, similar to the Private's patch but with another line bordering the bottom and connecting the two lines on the side. It brought quite a bit of satisfaction to Edy, for now she was one step closer to claiming the spot of top trooper of Squad 7 from Rosie.
The next morning Edy was sitting in the barracks, brushing her hair, when she received the much anticipated message that Captain Varrot had finally summoned her. Clearly excited, Edy practically sprinted to Captain Varrot's office. After knocking on the Captain's door and receiving acknowledgment, Edy entered.
"Corporal Edy Nelson reporting Ma'am!" saluted Edy with a smile.
"At ease," nodded the Captain.
Doing so, Edy spotted all five members of Squad 7 that she had selected standing on the right side of Varrot's desk. As she joined them, Edy saw that on the left side stood Welkin and Alicia, which was somewhat unexpected.
"Well now that she's here, can someone, like, tell us what's going on?" asked Elysse, barely able to contain a yawn.
"Yeah, I'm getting kinda nervous," said Ted. "It's not everyday I get called to see the Captain."
"I've called you all in here today for two reasons," began Varrot, turning to Edy and the others. "First things first, the six of you have been chosen to form a team to perform special missions that either the Lieutenant or I deem necessary. Given her record of uncanny and...unorthodox results on the past few missions with Squad 7, I'm putting Corporal Nelson in charge of the team. If there are any objections, speak now."
"Special missions?" asked Ted, his face lighting up. "Like secret spy stuff? Sounds cool! Count me in Edy!"
"I don't mind, but...Ted?" sighed Marina, closing the one visible eye that wasn't covered by her dark hair. "I guess it can't be helped though. My skills are yours Edy."
"I practically owe you my life Edy," said Lynn. "Now maybe I can repay the debt."
"You already know my answer Miss Edy," stated Homer as he flashed her a thumbs up.
"Yeah. Sure," said Elysse in an almost uninterested tone. "Sounds fun."
"Now that we've gotten that out of the way, there is one remaining issue that needs addressing," continued the Captain. "You are all aware that the militia's next mission was to recapture a small border town called Bruhl. The original plan was for the regiment to surround the area and for your Squad to enter the town and clear it of enemy forces. However, the military has just learned that a large Imperial force was moving south of the town and all forces were diverted to intercepting it, meaning your squad would have to take the town with no backup, Lieutenant."
Alicia and Welkin exchanged worried glances as they received the bad news.
"Further complicating matters is a mortar battery that was discovered to be about a half mile north of Bruhl," added Varrot.
Welkin sighed. "That's not good at all. Not only would we be sitting ducks, but the town would be leveled as well."
"So does that mean the mission has been canceled?" asked Alicia, struggling to fight back tears.
"If this mission didn't involve your squad, that would be the case," admitted Varrot. "However, I have come up with a strategy that should allow the mission to be successful. And this is where your team comes in Corporal Nelson."
"I'm ready for anything!" said Edy, looking straight into the Captain's piercing green eyes.
"The plan is to have your team take out the mortar battery while the rest of Squad 7 liberates the town."
"Sound easy, actually," said Ted as he scratched his head.
"In theory, yes," agreed Varrot. "However timing is everything with this strategy. You must take out the battery as soon as the Lieutenant begins the attack on Bruhl."
"I see," sighed Welkin. "If they take it out too soon, the forces in Bruhl will know we're coming and will have plenty of time to set up a defense."
"And it's kind of obvious what will happen if we take it out too late," added Lynn.
"I wish I could offer more squads to assist, but my hands are tied I'm afraid," explained Captain Varrot.
"I'm confident we'll be fine," said a determined Welkin. "Squad 7 always gets the job done."
"Very well," nodded Varrot. "Have your squad ready to move out in 2 hours. And Corporal Nelson, report to the R & D building; I've had them prepare a few things for you. Dismissed."
"Yes, Ma'am!" The eight members of Squad 7 saluted the Captain and then left.
Once outside the office, Welkin and Alicia approached Edy.
"Mind if we walk with you to R & D Edy?" asked Welkin. "That's where the Edelweiss is, after all."
"Sure, I don't mind," said Edy. When the three exited the building a question suddenly popped into Edy's head.
"Um, Lieutenant, why are we going to all this trouble just to liberate a small, out of the way place like Bruhl?"
Welkin stopped and gazed upwards at the sky.
"You know that the morale of the squad has been very low since Isara passed away right?"
Edy nodded. "It's been three weeks since then. Anyone can tell that things just haven't been the same since."
"Bruhl is her hometown, as well as many of us in the squad. The Captain believes that by fighting together to reclaim Bruhl, it will help us move past her death and get us looking forward, rather than looking back."
"It guess it does make sense when you put it that way Welkin," said Edy. "I guess I just don't think about things as deeply as you."
"You're more of a spur-of-the-moment thinker," said Alicia. "Not that there's anything wrong with that of course."
"At any rate, we can't afford to fail this mission, otherwise the psychological impact would crush us," added Welkin. "That's why everyone needs to do their part when the battle begins."
"Well don't worry about me," said Edy, winking. "I won't let you down. I don't think Isara would forgive me if I messed this one up."
Finally arriving at the R & D armory building, Edy parted ways with Welkin and Alicia and made her way over to the mechanic on duty, Leon Schmidt.
"Ah there you are Edy!" Said Leon with his trademark enthusiastic attitude. "Captain Varrot had me prepare a few things for you with your promotion and all."
"That's what I was told," nodded Edy. "So whatcha got for me?"
"Well I guess it's best to start with the shocktrooper's best friend, the Military mAchine Gun Series firearm!"
Leon walked over to a workstation and retrieved a machine gun that looked like a larger version of Edy's standard issue Mags.
"Say hello to the Mags Mark Twenty, or MXX for short." Leon proudly displayed the weapon for Edy as he began to explain the features of it. When he was finished he handed it over to Edy.
"So basically it's a bigger, faster, stronger version of my old gun?" asked Edy.
"Well, yeah I guess that's pretty much it in a nutshell," admitted Leon as he ran his fingers through his hair. "It uses the same rounds and clips as the standard Mags model, so you won't have to worry about that."
"Also, there's this," Leon presented Edy with a small metal box.
Edy looked at the box with a smirk. "Uh, thanks but I already have a lunch box Leon."
"No, silly, it's a miniature wireless radio communicator," explained Leon. "It's only got a range of a mile but it's suitable for the type of stuff you'll be doing with your team. It has a private channel so you can issue orders and whatnot to your team and not have to worry about the enemy intercepting the signal."
"Well on second thought, maybe I could use a new lunch box then," Edy giggled as she took the device. "Anything else?"
"Well..."
Suddenly, an explosion nearby interrupted their conversation and the two looked over in time to see a pair of female bodies fly past them and into a shelf.
"Ow...Jeez Wendy I told you that was too much gunpowder!" moaned of them, struggling to pick herself up.
"Hee hee, oops. I didn't think it would be that big of a blast Ramsey," replied the other one, still sprawled on the ground.
"Hey are you guys okay?" asked Leon as he and Edy rushed up to them.
"Yeah, we'll live," groaned Ramsey Clement, who was an engineer from Squad 7.
"What were you guys doing?" asked Edy as she helped Wendy to her feet.
"Just trying to make a better grenade, that's all," answered Wendy as she adjusted the white wool cap on her head. "A bigger blast and more boom is all I wanted, honest!"
"Well I think you achieved that," said Leon. "But, the goal is to blow up the enemy, not yourselves..."
"Yeah, we're working on that," sighed Ramsey. "My bad..."
"Anyway, that's all I've got for you now Edy," said Leon. "I'll have some other things ready for you as time goes on, so don't forget to stop by every now and then."
"Sure thing," Edy nodded and gave Leon a smile. "Thanks for the stuff, I'm sure it'll help with the mission." On second thought I think I'll make sure Ramsey and Wendy aren't in on those days...
The staging point for the Bruhl mission was located a mile west of the town, and it was a long three hour trip for Edy, having to spend the entire trip crammed in a transport with twenty other squad mates. Upon reaching the destination, Welkin called over Edy and her team over to the Edelweiss for a final strategy meeting.
"Alright guys, listen up," said Welkin as he unfolded a map of Bruhl and the nearby area. "In exactly one hour we will begin the operation. The primary goal for the main force is to drive the Imperials out of the town. Edy, you and your team will have to make it to the mortar battery due north of us by foot. When I give the order, we will attack both the town and the battery at the same time. The Imperials won't be expecting us, so there should be a small window of time before the battery can be fired."
"How much time?" asked Ted.
"Maybe ten minutes at the most," said Alicia.
"That doesn't sound like a lot of time," said Elysse.
Welkin nodded. "It's not, which is why it's vital that you take it out as fast as you can. Taking them by surprise is your best option, so try to strike any forces there hard and fast."
"We won't let you down," Edy said, saluting.
"Good luck out there guys," said Alicia.
Using the nearby woods for cover, Edy and her team wasted no time reaching their destination, sighting it with thirty minutes to spare. The group decided to remain in the woods until Welkin gave the order to begin the attack.
"There it is," said Homer. "So what's the plan Miss Edy?"
"Ted, can you see how many Imperials there are?" Edy asked. "I hope it's not too many..."
Pulling his binoculars out, Ted surveyed the mortar battery and began reporting what he saw.
"I see ten soldiers near the big gun itself, all troopers," reported Ted. "There some scouts too, all behind sandbags."
"...I see four Gatling turrets, two on the left side, two on the right," added Marina, using the scope of her rifle to assist in the scouting process.
"Hey, now, I was getting to those Marina!" sighed Ted.
"If you say so..." muttered Marina.
"It doesn't look like we'll be able to take them all on without things getting ugly," noted Lynn.
"Yeah, they've got it defended, like, really well," said Elysse.
"We'll get shot to pieces if we charge at them Miss Edy," said Homer. "Since it's on top of a hill there's almost no way to get the jump on them."
This is just great, Edy thought as she took in the information. My first mission and things are already looking bad...
"Hey, look at that," said Lynn, pointing at an area just below the hill. "There's a large wheat field between us and the hill; do you think we can use that to our advantage?"
"If we use grenades and Elysse to make an initial attack, it just might work..." Edy said.
"Um...Mind if I stay back and cover you all from here?" asked Marina. "I'm allergic to wheat so..."
"That's fine," nodded Edy. "This way you can signal when we start the attack by firing the first shot."
"You need me as a spotter Marina?" asked Ted, grinning as he did so. "You know you do!"
Marina shot him an icy glance from her visible eye. "Don't make me answer that..."
"Yeesh fine, fine, I'll go with the others!" sighed Ted. Man, if looks could kill then that would have been the 50th time should woulda killed me.
A voice over the radio interrupted the pair's verbal exchange. "Edy, this Welkin, do you copy?"
"Loud and clear~" said Edy.
"We're in position for the attack, are you ready on your end?"
"Ready when you are Sir!"
"Alright, we'll reach Bruhl in five minutes; get ready to begin."
Turning to her group she relayed Welkin's message.
"Looks like it time for our performance darlings!" Edy said. "Let's go!"
Marina watched as the other five members exited the woods and disappeared into the adjacent wheat field. Picking up her rifle, she looked through the scope and watched as they made their way through the field. So far so good. The enemy hasn't noticed them yet... Suddenly the sounds of gunfire in the distance caught Marina's attention. The attack on Bruhl must have began...
"We're ready," said Edy over the radio. "We'll go after you take the first shot."
Marina scanned the mortar battery, searching for a suitable target. Spotting a scout sitting behind some sandbags on the opposite side that the team was approaching on, she decided that taking him down first would cause enough confusion and make the enemy investigate the wrong side. She closed her eyes for a moment and began to recall the lessons her late father had taught her. Breathe slowly. Focus on your target. Think of nothing else. Pull the trigger slowly to reduce accuracy loss. Crack. Her aim was perfect, and her target fell to the ground, having taken a bullet to the head.
"Charge!" shouted Edy as soon she heard the sniper rifle fire. Elysse fired a lancaar round in between the two Gatling turrets in front of her, taking both of them out. Homer stayed with her and loaded another round in her launcher. The other three each ran forward and lobbed a grenade behind the row of sandbags that took out the troops that had taken cover behind them. Lynn spotted a group of troopers that appeared from around the battery and subjected them to a hailstorm of bullets, putting them down in mere seconds. Then she along with Edy took cover behind another row of sandbags and began firing at another group of soldiers that had ducked behind some nearby crates. That cover didn't last long as Elysse blew apart the crates with another lancaar round, sending the soldiers behind it into a panic. They began firing wildly at Edy and Lynn's direction but the sandbags proved to be ample cover. A sniper round took one the soldiers out and a second later another. Within five minutes the Edy Detachment had cleared the mortar battery.
"Whew, good job everyone!" Edy beamed. "Those Imperials didn't know what hit em!"
As Homer began to place timed explosives around the mortar cannon Edy radioed to Welkin that her team was successful.
"That's good news Edy," replied Welkin, hearing the explosions of the now-detonated charges.
"What about you guys?" Edy asked. "You must be giving them a hard time with all that shelling I'm hearing!"
"It's not coming from us Edy," said Welkin. "They've got anti tank turrets lining the town square and snipers everywhere...Neither the Edelweiss nor the Shamrock are making much headway here..."
"Need us?" asked Edy as Marina rejoined the group.
"If you can somehow flank them and take out some of those turrets, it would be appreciated," Welkin admitted.
"Leave it to us, sir!" said Edy. Turning to her group she gave them all a determined look. "It looks like it's time for an encore everyone!"
"Oh, boy..." said Elysse. "Can't wait."
"Well, let's go then!" said Ted, pumping his fists.
"Less talking, more running guys!" said Edy as she took off in the direction of Bruhl.
"Agh wait for us Miss Edy!" shouted Homer as he and the rest of the team ran after her.
"Come on people, start taking those turrets out!" shouted Rosie as she fired at a group of Imperials from behind the corner of a burned out building.
"It's impossible Rosie," cried Alicia. "We can't even get our tanks close enough to give us any cover to make a run at them, and those snipers have already injured six of us!"
"They're dug in pretty tight," said Largo as he wiped a large amount of dirt and sweat from his face. "I know that Elle said this wouldn't be easy but this wasn't what I had in mind!"
The sudden appearance of Juno Coren didn't ease their concerns either.
"We're taking too much fire on the northern side," gasped Juno, her hair covered in dust and sans glasses due to a close call from an Imperial lancer shot. "We can't hold out much longer!"
"Come on Juno," fumed Alicia. "You've got to be kidding me; there's four scouts and five troopers helping you!"
"And half of them are out of ammunition Sergeant," countered Juno. "Either get us some relief or we have to fall back!"
"We'll send Dallas to resupply you then," said Alicia. "The Edelweiss will survive that long at least. I'll send a few scouts from the eastern line to help you guys...Oh my God Juno you're hurt!" She suddenly noticed a large red stain around the squad patch of Juno's BDU and a hole in the middle of it.
Juno nodded. "I took a bullet in my shoulder earlier and it hurts like hell, but I can still fight. Excuse me." She then ran off back in the direction of her previous post.
"We're gunna have to pull out soon Alicia," sighed Rosie. "We can't break their defenses like this..."
Alicia sighed and leaned on the building next to her. Pulling out would almost certainly spell disaster for squad. Not just now but in the future as well...
"I hate to say it, but it's gunna take a miracle to get us out of that one," said Largo.
As if on cue, an explosion near the town square caught the group's attention.
"What th-," stammered Rosie. "Something took out one of their anti-tank turrets!"
"How?" asked Alicia. "There's no way for any of us to get close enough for a shot at them!"
The reason for the explosion was due to the fact that Edy's team had snuck into the town via the river and successfully ambushed a turret crew.
"Nice shot Elysse!" said Ted. "Now let's get em guys!"
Homer loaded another round for Elysse and a few seconds later reduced a second turret to cinders.
Marina had elected to enter a house apart from the team. She knew that there snipers hiding in the area needed to be taken out and she was the only one able to do it. Finding a spot on the second floor near a broken window she began seeking targets. In a matter of seconds she spotted a sniper on a rooftop across the street, and just as quickly shot him dead. She spotted another on the rooftop adjacent to where the first sniper was. Five seconds later that sniper was dead. The Imperials here make for easy prey...they don't even hide.
Inside the Edelweiss, Welkin's mood quickly changed. Edy's team did it! "All units listen up! We attack the town square now! Don't stop attacking until its ours!"
Without any more anti-armor weaponry or sniper support, the Imperial forces fell fifteen minutes later.
"We've taken Bruhl!" shouted an exuberant Noce Wordsworth, as he and the rest of Squad 7 stood triumphantly in front the Sister Mills.
"We did it Isara," whispered Welkin as he watched Alicia lower the Imperial flag that had been flying on the town's flag pole and replace it with the Gallian flag. "We've taken back our home...You can rest easy now."