Chp. 8: Landfall!

January 24, 2005

Crowne Beach

Colonel Heikka accepted the tea from the orderly and took a long drink until his chest felt good and warm. He stood back up and set his binoculars on the lip of the bunker's viewport. Below him were elements of his regiment's 1st Battalion, positioned in three defensive lines. They intermingled with concrete bunkers housing anti-tank missile teams. Many were asleep, resting against the wooden walls of their trenches and cradling their rifles like pillows. A pair of heavy mortar pits had just gotten to eating breakfast if his nose wasn't failing him. Many, him included, were (probably) wishing they could have longer hair to keep some warmth. Heikka wasn't helped by the fact that he was losing his.

"Colonel, we just received a warning from two of the Kub batteries. It appears that a fresh wave of enemy aircraft are approaching the coast. Nearest contacts were last detected at 70 kilometers and closing from the east. No estimate on size at this time, but they've detected enemy EW aircraft." One of his radio operators relayed.

"Sound the air raid alarm." Heikka replied calmly.

It was the third one this morning, and most of his men were already sheltered in place. Most simply put their helmets back on.

"We just received additional information from one of our artillery radars. More enemy contacts at wavetop level, within 40 kilometers of our position. First wave is approaching fast…second wave is approaching much slower."

That caught his attention until he heard the sound of a rocket engine burning. He looked as far up as he could and saw a salvo of missiles traveling out to sea. He looked through his binoculars again, scanning the wavetops for any sign of movement. It took a minute, but he saw dots emerge from the horizon. When they were closer, he recognized them as missiles.

"Cruise missiles spotted on the horizon. Confirm with the artillery radar if that's the first wave." He shouted over his shoulder.

Heikka hurried over to the displays relaying what the SAMs' radars up and down the coast saw. The jamming sources had fallen into fixed orbits, and contacts were passing by them bound for the coast. It was confirmed that the cruise missiles were the initial wave; impact would occur in mere seconds. AA guns on the beach tried to respond to the salvo, radar guidance be damned. Nearly a dozen ZSUs closer to the beach engaged before reports of anti-radiation missiles were flowing in. Heikka clenched his teeth as one of the missiles landed on an artillery bunker nearby. Many of them went further back, striking the area his heavy artillery was in.

"What's the status of that air raid?!" He barked over the chaos.

"Enemy aircraft are pushing inland at high altitude. Far fewer than first detected." A young man called over his shoulder.

"Where are the others?"

"They appear to be orbiting off the coast, but the picture is incomplete at this time."

"How many radars do we have left?"

"Five, sir."

The Colonel went back to the viewport and scanned the horizon again. He knelt down so he could try and see into the sky, and only saw the clouds as they continued to cover the beach in a steady drizzle. He looked at the horizon again and saw more shapes. When they were close enough to see clearly, he realized why the second wave of contacts had been so slow. All across the horizon, it looked like he saw nothing but warships. He lifted his eyes from the binoculars and turned to his radio operators.

"Get me General Ikov, now! Sound the general alarm; enemy ships spotted approaching the coast! I want any remaining artillery and anti-ship batteries ready to fire on my command!" He roared.

The man turned back to the scene unfolding before him, still shouting orders. He shifted his view every second, trying to pick out ship types. He spotted one closing fast and recognized it as a Round Table-class amphibious were several others like it steaming towards him, guarded by surface combatants.

"I can't believe it, sir…there must be a million ships!" One of the younger observers gasped.

"Stay calm!" Heikka snapped. He turned to bark about the General, but the handset nearby buzzed.

"Go for Orao 1, Golman." Ikov declared.

"Orao 1, Golman 1 has spotted an enemy amphibious force approaching. I count several dozen ships, and they've been steadily bombarding us for the past several minutes."

"I'm aware of the bombardment and am sending reinforcements to their positions behind you. Be advised that I am getting several reports of the same nature on the other beaches. Repel anything they try to put ashore."

"Yes sir. How soon can we expect air support?"

"Soon."

"Understood, General. Talk to you when this is all ov-"

Naturally, his bunker had been near the top when it came to target priority. Ikov's conversation with the man was cut off when two 1000-pound JDAMs (Joint Direct Attack Munition) hit his bunker. The concussion did most of the occupants in before the roof collapsed…

The well dock of the Harry Smith was packed with AAV-7A1s wrapped in the standard green-tan-black camo scheme, all awaiting the order to deploy. Leonard and his command group were with the first two sections of the platoon, securing the final details of their equipment. Each man carried the standard load of ammunition and provisions: He generally kept to himself outside of responding to requests to help check gear or assuring his men they were as ready as could be. Trying to go in angry had ultimately failed, and already he could feel a sheen of sweat under his kevlar helmet. All thanks to the fact that this was his first amphibious assault in a unit famous for such operations. It would be a ways to the shore: about 3000 Meters. They'd be sitting ducks the entire time; the only safety was in numbers. He rested a forearm atop his webb gear's ammo pouches and adjusted the straps of his rucksack. All his equipment made him question why they'd even been issued life jackets.

He noted a new set of "hearts and bunnies" approaching and looked up to see the Major. Peterson approached the men gathered, but Leonard didn't even bother calling the men to attention. He knew the Major would wave off such a formality anyways.

"Good morning, boys. Just dropping by to make sure everyone has what they need." He announced to the soldiers.

"Some cold beers would be nice!" One of the Minimi gunners suggested.

"Promote that man to General this instant." Peterson replied, happy to go along with the joke. Even Leonard could smile at that.

"I think it'll be worth the wait to drink them in Los Canas, don't you all agree? Our country is really counting on us this time, so don't let 'em down." The Major added.

"No rest until sunset!" The other troopers replied, repeating 14th Infantry Regiment's motto.

The door on the ramp of their AAV opened and one of the crew beckoned them in. The twenty Diggers piled into the "Tub" and settled into the bucket seats. One of the sailors helping run the ship's well deck closed the door behind him, and one of the vehicle's crewmen made sure it was locked from the inside. Leonard let out a breath and adjusted until he was comfortable. Outside, all at once, the engines of each AAV-7A1 cranked to life. Over that chaos, he could just barely hear an alarm as the well deck was being flooded. He pulled out a stick of gum from one of his pouches and started chewing. He wasn't surprised when he still felt a bit woozy as the Tub rolled off the rear ramp of the ship and into the South Usean Sea. The AAV made a steady turn to the left, joining with others of its kind, and started the approach to the beach. Everything that happened from that point on was relayed secondhand by the crew shouting at one-another.

The gentle roll of the ocean was abruptly changed by incoming artillery. The Eruseans had every beach covered by several batteries of 2S7M Malka howitzers. The guns that were still operable could hurl 203mm shells almost 50 kilometers. Each time one of the shells exploded, its shockwave threatened to tip over the AAVs as they paddled towards the beach. Men inside held on for dear life or were thrown from their seats as the Eruseans tried desperately to thin out ISAF's numbers. Leonard grabbed whatever he could to keep from being flung about as it was like they'd been thrown into a clothes dryer. The front end of the AAV rose, then dropped down violently. Taps like gravel were thrown against the vehicle's skin, but the Corporal driving the machine was an ace at the wheel.

"Two minutes!" The commander yelled over the waves.

Leonard removed his life vest and tossed it aside as they braved another steep rise. He folded down the front grip of his F88 and looked towards the ramp.

"Two minutes!" He echoed.

The words went up and down the troop compartment in varying tones and volume levels. Everyone's life vests came off and found their way to the front of the compartment. The ride began to smooth out, but the artillery was replaced by small arms. Expecting to land right on top of the enemy, Leonard gave the order to fix bayonets. The vehicle commander swiveled his turret back and forth, burning through the ammo on his .50 caliber machine gun until they got close enough for his Mk.19 grenade launcher. He fired off some of the vehicle's smoke grenades before giving an update on their approach.

"One minute!"

The soldiers rose to their feet and held on tight as the AAV made the last desperate sprint to solid land. The crewman from before ran to the ramp, where two of Leonard's Minimi gunners were ready to go. The tub shuddered a little as it hit solid ground, then began to move faster.

"Thirty seconds!"

It was more like five to Leonard. The ramp lowered and the first men were down it as soon as it was flat enough. Leonard charged out of the back with the rest of the two rifle sections and turned to his right. He joined the others running to the side of the AAV as it laid down a barrage of 40mm grenades. The commander must've launched more smoke grenades as Leonard found himself in a grayish haze. The Lieutenant hit the sand and leveled his weapon in the direction of the enemy's fire. He fired two bursts, then rose to a crouch. The rain was steadily beating down the smoke screen.

"Move up, move up! Get to better cover!" He roared.

Corporal Olivia called out to his fellow Section Leader, Jerry Billips, and announced they were bounding forward. Leonard looked back and saw both AAVs had come ashore and were done unloading. Weapons and his second section were deploying when a mortar round landed among them. A second landed closer to his position. He heard the roar of a shoulder launched rocket and watched as the far AAV was hit dead center in the front. The explosion rained fire and shrapnel down on the men trying to move up. More mortar rounds muted the pained cries of death and mutilation.

"Bounding!"

Billips and his section moved forward, and Leonard was snapped back into the present. He hailed his command group to follow him and bolted forward. They had to secure the immediate area. The AAV had gotten them pretty far onto the sand, and the grass at the edge of the beach was in sight. Just before it was part of a trench, with an Erusean soldier swinging his Rk 95 at the Lieutenant. Leonard stopped to fire back from the hip, but the Erusean collapsed before he could. He noted Lance Corporal Gardener, his RTO, running forward and firing from the hip. Leonard kept moving, firing at other Eruseans that seemed to appear after their friend was dead.

"Trench spotted! Straight ahead; take it!" Leonard ordered.

"Trench ahead! Storm the trench!" Billips and Olivia shouted.

Leonard finally felt the primal anger return to him, and he screamed as he launched himself at the position. He came down atop an Erusean soldier who'd been reloading and drove his bayonet down towards the man's throat. The Erusean raised his weapon, only to have it pushed aside by Leonard's close proximity. He drove the business end of his blade into the man's collarbone, still yelling wildly. He yanked it out, then stabbed again until the enemy soldier stopped moving. His attention turned to the slope ahead, where more Erusean troops were firing on the advancing Aucklanders. The AAVs had retreated now, leaving the infantry to take up the fight alone. Leonard ducked down in the trench and rose to return fire with others around him. One of the grenadiers fired a round from his M203 at a KK62 nest, only to get shot down by a rifleman near it. Another grenadier did the same and managed to escape the same fate.

On Leonard's orders, fire was concentrated on the nearest bunker. It was their first objective and the launching point for breaching the barbed wire and minefield beyond. Once his troops were assembled, he organized an attack up the slope to take the emplacement and surrounding trench.

"Bravo 1-3, where are you and Bravo 1-4?" He radioed as he reloaded.

"Bravo 1 Actual, we've got several wounded and dead from that Tub's explosion. We've joined with Bravo 1-1." Corporal Tomas Hurei reported.

"Copy, break, Bravo 1-4 what's your remaining strength?"

"Bravo 1-4 has two MAG teams and Gustav team still able to fight."

"Alright, engage that bunker with the Gustav! Get your MAG teams distributed as needed to support the attack up the slope."

The tall grass ahead would allow them some concealment, but no cover. The bend of the slope allowed them to stay just outside the machine guns' engagement envelopes. When they tried to raise the weapon so they could fire down, Leonard's men forced them to abandon the idea. The Gustav team fired an anti-bunker munition at the fortification and managed to strike it near the viewport. They followed up with another and Leonard ordered his men forward. He climbed the trench wall and took off into the grass, weapon raised and firing it in bursts. He stopped and took a knee so the MAGs could be brought forward. One of his Minimi gunners stopped and ran a steady stream of fire over the trench flanking the bunker. He stopped it at the nearest KK62 nest and kept fighting while an infantryman moved up to lob a grenade. Leonard joined in the effort while Gardener and the platoon's medic, Corporal Ferrison, covered the opposite direction. The Digger hit the ground and rolled onto his back. His hand appeared for an instant as he lobbed an M67 at the MG nest.

"Frag out!" The man bellowed.

Following the explosion, Leonard and his command element closed in on the KK62 nest to root out anyone who might've survived. The second layer of Erusean defensive positions was there to greet them and accept the soldiers retreating from the crest of the rise. Leonard and others fell into the next trench or stayed behind the front end of the bunker. The advance had put them in range of two M55 anti-aircraft guns on a specialized mount. Leonard took cover as each fired its three 20mm cannons fired from behind their gunshields. Someone replied with an AT4, but the rocket bounced off the concrete base. The fire stopped only because the Eruseans were moving to retake the trench. The MAGs and Minimis took up the job of blunting their advance while they moved through the grass between trenches. Leonard fired off the last of his second magazine and dropped down to prepare a grenade. He came back up as the Eruseans hit the ground.

"Frag out!" He roared.

The explosion elicited a guttural cry of pain as Leonard kneeled down again. He fed his F88 a full magazine and rose up again to help keep up the fire. When he ducked down again, he looked to Gardener.

"Corporal, see if we can get some air fairies or naval gunfire to help suppress that AA position." He ordered before keying his individual radio.

"All Bravo 1 elements, stand your ground. That gun won't fire on us as long as they're trying to retake this trench."

"Bravo 1 Actual this is Bravo 1-1, I have eyes on enemy light armor moving towards those AA guns. Two Pasis, probably coming to drop off more infantry." Bilips yelled.

"Have the Gustav team engage them; we're trying to get fire support at this time.." Leonard snapped.

Unable to use the AA guns, the Eruseans resorted to indirect fire. The mortars from before were back in action, and, dropping right in front of the infantry they were supporting. Gardener shifted over to the Lieutenant to deliver some bad news: enemy aircraft were still a factor. That meant air support would be delayed. Leonard grabbed the handset and hit the transmit button.

"This is Bravo 1 Actual, where's our air support?" He exploded. It turned out that Gardener had been talking to an F/A-18D Hornet doing Forward Air Control (FAC).

"Bravo 1 Actual this is Arrow 47, we're working on it. Enemy aircraft are approaching the beach and we need to re-configure our plan of attack. Not the only one down there who needs CAS, mate."

"Listen here you cunt!…"

The Lieutenant caught himself and switched channels.

"Bravo 6 this is Bravo 1 Actual, where the hell are the air fairies? This isn't what we were promised!" He radioed.

"Friendly aircraft are inbound, Lieutenant! What's your situation?" Major Peterson snapped.

"Pinned down at the top of the slope leading to our objective. Need support if we're to move forward."

"Understood; retreat down the slope and fortify your position there. Tend to your wounded and keep your sectors secure. Reinforcements should be along shortly to help evacuate the wounded."

There was less than a second before Leonard's superior added something.

"I will inform you when air support is available."

Leonard acknowledged, somewhat embarrassed now, but soon distracted by the encroaching Erusean soldiers. He contacted his Section leaders to update them on their next course of action.

"Okay, Bravo 1-4 stay with Bravo 1-3 and maintain suppressing fire. Bravo 1-1 and 1-2 will deploy smoke and move down the slope to the first trench. I'll go with 1-3 and 1-4 once you've secured the trench. Bravo 1-3, knock out that KK62 before you leave." He outlined.

Billips and Olivia quickly acknowledged and Leonard rose up to start shooting again. One of the MAG teams moved their weapon closer to him so they could get a better field of fire. Gardener popped up and lobbed a smoke grenade into the grass, then ducked down to retrieve his rifle. Leonard waited until his magazine was empty, then threw another grenade to help build the shroud. The Eruseans had backed off a few meters, but weren't in full retreat. They seemed content to fire wildly into the smoke, even when the Aucklanders' MAGs were raking the entire area with fire. Billips went with his Section and Leonard mnoved down the trench towards the bunker. He pushed inside and checked to make sure its weapons weren't in usable condition. He threw in a frag grenade just to make sure.

The mortars engaged once more, but much in the same way as they had before. Olivia and his men went down, some tumbling when hit or after losing their footing on the damp sand. Leonard made the MAGs go first; they were too valuable to risk by having them go last. He hauled himself up over the lip of the trench and stumbled down the hill. Something grazed the top of his helmet and he had to make a controlled fall to the ground. One of the KK62s bounced by and stopped in a bush. He ignored the dirty weapon and crawled down the rest of the way. He rolled into the trench and rose to a seated position. He took the bayonet off his rifle and looked around for his radio operator. Gardener rolled into the trench and let out a breath. Leonard's platoon got themselves organized and ready to defend against the Eruseans. They came over the lip and were met by a fusillade of fire, which sent them back very quickly. Leonard and most of the others settled in and waited for the next attack, but nothing immediate came. He cautiously held out a hand for the radio's handset, then keyed it.

"Bravo 1 has fallen back to the first trench and is holding as ordered, 6." He reluctantly declared.

"Copy, reinforcements and air support are being routed to our sector." Peterson assured.

The Major raised his head and watched as the next wave of Tubs were swimming in. With them would be combat engineers and air defense troops. He ducked down and decided it was time to give the Colonel an update.

"This is Bravo 6, we're on the beach!"