Once again, I welcome you back in The Will of Revenge! Last time, we've seen the Falmartians and their allies spring to action with their ambitious plan to capture enemy Dreadnaught that has been harassing them since the very start of the invasion. Plan was set in motion and executed. We've also caught a glimpse of what was happening on Taurus III, with UTDF forces now preparing to stand against Sons of Sadera in possibly the final battle of the campaign on the planet. What will happen next? Read on and find out.
For now, let us begin this chapter.
Chapter 8
August 25, 2166
16:23
Nashinian System
The home system of the Nashini species was not a big one. In fact, it had only three planets, each separated from one another with asteroid belts. The star of the system, a G-class yellow subgiant, was extremely luminous and hot, what caused the planet closest to it to be a completely uninhabitable husk, Nashina itself being a rather tropical world and the third, farthest gas giant to receive one Earth-like moon and it's gasses to be relatively hot. This, of course, didn't stop civilization from not only developing, but prospering.
A hyperspace distortion appeared several million kilometers from Nashina. Soon, it turned into the UNSA Stealth Frigate San Antonio. The ship was here to, as always, deliver Special Operations Force to the operation area.
Since the speech made by Lioni, the Galactic Concordance once more started putting pressure on allied forces. And one of the biggest pressure points, was the Nashinian System, which was a battlefield since the start of the war, since enemy forces managed to sneak past the Unified Detection Grid, just like with Sol. And just like with Solar Corridor, the Concordance's path to Nashinian System was very heavily defended, what made it almost impossible to sever the supply line going from enemy territory to here.
But, seeing how the situation on the frontline became relatively stable, Nashini command came up with a plan aimed at pushing out, or at least forcing to surrender, all enemy forces in the system. For the past two weeks, they were assembling a fleet tasked with performing this operation, while at the same time, asking for help from allies. UNSA, to honor their over century old friendship with the Republic, immediately agreed and sent forces to reinforce the Nashini, while gradually, other allies did the same.
This is why, of course, SOF was also here.
In the hangar of the Frigate, all thousand operatives of the unit were preparing their gear and vehicles for the mission. Weapons were being loaded, gear was being checked and fuel tanks were being filled.
"I have a question to ask."Norrine said.
Together with Ester, they were carrying ammo crates that were meant to be loaded into dropships, that then had to deliver the ammo and other supplies to allied forces currently engaged in Hef'Adra.
Nashini capital city was progressively being razed with the ground by Concordance's forces by the last three months, what led to the biggest humanitarian crisis since the end of Great Galactic War. Thousands of people still in the city were suffering from the lack of all necessities. This is why allied forces had to deliver not only supplies for the still fighting soldiers, but humanitarian relief for civilians.
"Shoot."Ester said, as they settled the crate on top of others inside a dropship.
"If Nashini are able to mount such an offensive to push enemy out of their home system, then why can't we do the same with Sol?"Marine major asked.
"Unlike in Sol and Solar Corridor, enemy forces here are much less powerful. Remember that it's estimated, that nearly seventy percent of Laconian forces were engaged in fighting and defense of Solar Corridor."
Norrine couldn't stop herself from scoffing and smiling a bit. Laconians really bet everything on capturing Earth. Most of their forces were there, while only smaller forces were engaged on the main frontline. Laconia City decided to rely on military prowess of their allies to even the odds much more, same with formerly Holy Order military equipment and troops. They hoped that they will occupy and inflict casualties so high on allied forces, that when they capture all capital worlds, UNSA and allies will be forced to surrender.
Result?
While Solar Corridor held firmly, Earth and Sol were still fighting, same with the rest of allied forces, and most of GCs forces were exhausted. While at first, experts feared that this sudden, surprise counter attack might actually work in Concordance's favor, it was quickly becoming clear, that it was a stalling action. Now, both sides were regrouping and preparing to launch another round of attacks, if the intelligence was to be believed.
"Still, maybe when we're done here, we might do the same with Earth and Sol?"Norrine continued.
"Maybe. And I share your sentiment. I'd like to finally be back there…"Colonel sighed.
Norrine nodded.
"Your kids?"
"There is nothing that I'm scared of more than finding out something happened to them. If they…"Ester stopped, feeling chills going down her spine.
Major approached her and placed a hand on her arm.
"With a mother like you, I bet they can deal with anything."she said, a warm smile on her face.
"Thanks."Ester replied with the same."But now, let's focus on the mission. Gather everyone. We're gonna go over everything we know so far again."
"On it."
Ester watched Norrine walk away, while her thoughts were again dominated by the idea of what was happening to her children. Complete lack of information coming from Solar System, maybe except videos of fighting and atrocities committed by Laconian forces, made her stomach turn and she could barely sleep at night. Not to mention, that she was still worried about Dora, who was in Andromeda and couldn't get back, because the Concordance held the Intergalactic Gate. Reclaiming Angier and Sol were on the list of priorities of the allied forces, but it was still a long time before it could be done.
"There will be time for this."she thought."Let's focus on here and now."
SOF operatives were already gathered in one place. They were either sitting or standing, waiting for what Ester had to say. Norrine, Elsa and Delilah with her team stood to her left, at the very front of the whole crowd.
Standing before them, Ester activated the holographic projector in her hand terminal. The hologram shown presented the tactical map of the system, with forces, both friend and foe, marked in blue and red in numerous locations across the system. The most of them, however, were gathered in the areas near Nashina.
"As you probably know, we're here to take part in an operation planned by Nashini High Command, aimed at reclaiming the system from enemy hands."Ester begun."While the system isn't fully in enemy hands, Nakatan, Laconian, Varian and Maraqi presence tied large portions of Nashini forces here, making them unable to fight on the frontline. If the plan is successful, enemy will finally be out of the system, what will allow our other forces to eliminate the corridor leading from enemy territory to here."
Operatives sat there, listening carefully and studying the map she was showing them. Right then, the map zoomed to Nashina.
"We, however, are all going to Nashina. More precisely, to Hef'Adra. Since day one, the city found itself under constant assaults by enemy forces. You all know how the situation looks there."
Some Nashini operatives winced, but their faces quickly became stern and firm. For them, this was a matter of honor and duty to their people.
Right then, one of the Falmartian Fighter Infantry, a halfling, lifted his hand. He was standing at the front, so Ester noticed him.
"What is it?"she asked.
"Why are we even going there?"he asked."There is only a thousand of us. I doubt we'll be much of a help."
"You were saying the same before Shakaya and Chakdria, Nelv."an orc next to him said.
"Okay, maybe I was wrong above Chakdria, but on Shakaya, I bet Shakayans would do as well without us as they did with us."Nelv argued.
"It's always good to have some additional riffles, right?"Ester replied."Besides, we will also deliver the humanitarian aid and supplies for Nashini forces. Speaking of which…"
She looked at Delilah.
"We're splitting into two groups. Half of us will help in delivering and distributing the supplies. The other half will join the Nashini in their counter attack. Delilah will be in charge of the supply group. I will be in charge of the battle group, together with major Bauer, and I already got our orders and we're supposed to help the Nashini retake the Ivory Hill."
Ivory Hill was the seat of the President of Nashini Republic. Until recently, Nashini held the place, allowing President Qor'Protr to evacuate from the capital, which he refused since the very start of the conflict. Now, however, with Concordance's forces at his doorstep, he had no other choice but to comply with the demands of both his allies and advisers. It was said that the defense of the building and the hill it sat upon was so fierce, that both sides lost nearly three entire brigades during the fight.
"It won't be easy."Norrine said."From what I heard, Lacos and their buds already fortified this position. There are trenches running all around the hill."
"Still, Nashini want to reclaim it and don't allow the enemy to use it as a vantage point to fire upon the outskirts of the capital."colonel explained."Not to mention the symbolic meaning of the whole thing."
"What support can we count on?"one Chakdrik Fighter Infantry pilot asked.
"Whatever Nashini have in the city. We have to join their 76th Marine Battalion, which was tasked with this. Not to mention, that Nashini still have some maritime vessels in the Zafton Bay. So, if shit goes South, we can call in a missile strike from them."
Operatives nodded as they took in the info.
"These are our current directives."Ester finished."Now, go and take care of whatever else you need to do. We'll be there in three hours."
"Yes, ma'am."operatives replied and started dispersing.
As they all walked to make the last preparations, Delilah approached Ester.
"I hope you're not mad that I put you in charge of supply operations?"colonel asked with a slight smile.
"Nah, I actually could use some less stressful task."the Warrior Bunny replied."Emmy, on the other hand…"
"I bet."Ester giggled."Anyway, you need anything?"
"I just wanted to make one thing clear. After delivering the supplies, do we have to come and join you?"
Ester thought for a minute before shaking her head.
"No. You will support the defense of evacuation of civilians. You are to listen to orders given by the Nashini commanders and do as they say."
"Yes, ma'am."Delilah said, saluting.
Next, she turned on her heel and went to the rest of her troops, while Ester returned to supervising the preparations.
August 25
19:32
Nashina, en route to Hef'Adra
Upon reaching the orbit of the Nashini homeworld, the fleet of Nashini, Human and other allied ships quickly engaged the multiracial fleet of Galactic Concordance that formed a cordon around the planet. Surprised by this sudden attack, some parts of GC fleet were quickly dispatched, while others were a harder nut to crack. Still, it allowed numerous smaller craft carrying supplies to break through the blockade of the planet and were now on their way towards the planet.
Among them, were the dropships of SOF, which were accompanied by numerous other craft going towards the capital city of Hef'Adra and several other areas, where fighting was taking place. The machines were either carrying soldiers meant to join the frontline fighting, while some carried supplies and soldiers tasked with distributing them. Either way, both were a great help to the besieged world.
Ester sat in a dropship alongside Elsa and Norrine. The machine was shaking as it first flew through the battle, then tumbled through the atmosphere. As they passed by the fighting ships, Ester could observe some parts of the fight on the screen acting as a window on the side of the dropship's wall. At one point, the screen was turned almost completely white as one of enemy ships blew up in an impressive display of warfare. Not like she was impressed. She's seen numerous ships being destroyed in her lifetime.
After breaking through the atmosphere, the machines found themselves flying through the nigh sky of Nashina, towards Hef'Adra. The glow of fires devouring the city, explosions and fighting was visible from far away.
After ten minutes of flight, SOF and other forces accompanying them found themselves above the city. Camera mounted on the dropships started moving, showing the devastation of the city. Ester saw it on the screen in the troop compartment. Damage was so big, that it was no doubt it will take years to rebuild everything.
It kinda reminded her of how the city looked like after the uprising near the end of Great Galactic War. Holies didn't fuck around when it came to dealing with the freedom fighters. They used everything they could to stop the Nashini from liberating their home. From flamethrowers and tanks, to orbital bombardment. But the arrival of Resistance forces allowed the Nashini to liberate their homeworld from over a decade of occupation.
"This looks horrible…"Elsa said, looking at the screens.
"I've seen worse."Ester replied."But yeah. It is."
Right then, her communicator came to life.
"Ester, this is Delilah."the voice of the Warrior Bunny said."We're gonna split off here. See you after everything is done."
"See ya. Just be careful out there."Ester answered.
"You know us."
Soon, half of the dropships split off them the SOF flight. Dropships from other armies also split off from the main group and followed towards the Refugee Help and Evacuation Zone in the city. The rest continued to fly towards the frontline part, also slowly dispersing to join their assigned sectors.
"Seems like the offensive is already on."Norrine said, pouting."I feel kind of cheated. I thought we would get there before it begins!"
"The war doesn't wait for anyone."Ester replied."Nor does it work the way we would want it."
"You and your smart-ass phrases…"Norrine looked up.
"What can I say? This is how I am."
The dropships continued to fly. Around three times, they had to drop their counter measures, as they were targeted by enemy AA missiles from the ground, but they cleared the danger quickly. Finally, they arrived at the designated location, where the Nashini Marine Corp unit they had to join was stationed. They cleared a small area on a courtyard, large enough for two dropships to land beside each other. So, the machines started landing and soldiers started disembarking.
The one carrying Ester and Norrine was the first to land and once it did, soldiers and the two commanders quickly disembarked, while machine flew up to make place for the next one, after which it returned to the orbit and to San Antonio.
Quickly looking around, Ester saw numerous Nashini soldiers checking their equipment or simply guarding the location. She spotted a bunch of snipers in the windows, as well as soldiers wielding SAM launchers, in case any enemy machine got too close for comfort. Some armored vehicles stood to the side, with soldiers walking between them. All around, sounds of battle could be heard.
"This is a warzone, alright."she thought to herself.
She turned to Norrine.
"Let's look for someone in charge. We'll get some directives."she said.
"Right after you."Norrine replied.
They came up to a group of Nashin Marines that stood to the side and asked them about the location of someone in charge. One of them lazily pointed at a nearby building, a normal tenement, like many others surrounding them.
Ester always found it funny, how much Nashini architecture resembled Human. Buildings made of brick or metal, with pretty familiar shapes and proportions and even some elements she knew from school, when learning history. One building to her left had some statues resembling gargoyles. When she was little, she was always scared of these things. But she grew out of it. She even met some living gargoyles while in Flareian System. Pretty chill dudes they were. Still looking at the ones on the building, she thought how weird it was, that in a galaxy of billions of stars, some things end up pretty similar.
The two of them approached the building pointed to them and, after checking in with the guards at the door, they entered the residential building and after asking for a way again, they started climbing up to the last floor, where, according to the Marines, their colonel was located, alongside his staff.
"You noticed how they all looked?"Norrine asked.
"Tired, slightly out of morale and as if they wanted to just end it all?"Ester replied."Some of them, yes. They did look like that. But can we blame them? They've been fighting for this city since day one. I would be tired, too."
"Agreed. And somehow, they managed to not break, from what I know."Marine major said and shook her head."Nashini are just built different."
"Well, duh. They're aliens."
The climbed to the last floor and once there, they were met with a sight they didn't expect.
"Now that's some renovation."Norrine commented.
The walls separating the apartments from each other and the corridor disappeared completely. Now, there were cables on the ground, connecting all the various consoles and computers, as well as the holo-table the two could see far in one of the apartment living rooms. Analysts and soldiers walked from one end to the other, carrying datapads and simple pieces of paper with Nashini language written on them. While the battalion was not moving, it didn't mean te work stopped.
They quickly made the distance and approached the Nashini gathered behind the table. One of them was pointing something on the map. He had colonel insignias on his uniform, so Ester knew he was the commander.
"Special Operations Force repor…"Ester said, but stopped, when the colonel turned.
It might have been nearly two decades since she last saw him, but it didn't mean she didn't recognize him. Many people thought, that all Nashini looked the same and it was even hard to differentiate a male from female. But, if you served with one for long enough, it wasn't hard to actually recognize one's face.
"Lon?"she asked."Lon'Azaka?"
The Nashini colonel smiled as he recognized Ester.
"Ester Barkhorn."he said.
The two shook hands.
"You know each other?"Norrine asked, looking at them in confusion, just like Lon's officers.
"We go way back."Ester replied."Lon was part of Third Recon Team back in the early days of War of Flare Prime. He was with me and the rest of White Squadron during the toughest shit that happened back then, including Alantians. But back then, he was a captain."
Norrine shook her head.
"You know, I start to think that you have many more friends from back then than you let me know."she said.
"Yeah. And, from what I know, only the Chakdriks we had in Third Recon are not among us anymore."
"Third Recon all the way."Lon said, doing a high five with Ester.
"By the way."Ester said."When did you get promoted?"
"Shortly after the Campaigns."Nashini replied."Republic recognized some of my deeds and made me the commander of my old battalion."
"You lucky animal."Another high five.
Some Nashini officers at the table cleared their throats. Lon looked at them and cleared his throat, too.
"Anyway, good to have you here."he said."You know your directives, right?"
"Mostly. We have to help you in retaking the Ivory Hill."Ester replied.
"Exactly. Your troops will join mine during the assault."colonel continued."With our combined forces, we should manage."
"Will we?"Norrine asked."I heard that fighting in the area was fierce. You really think that two battalion sized forces will manage?"
In response, colonel turned to the table and pressed some buttons. Soon, the map of the city shown on the table zoomed to Ivory Hill. The 3D interpretation of the President's residence was pretty realistic and showed everything around the structure and hill it was standing on.
"This is updated live, thanks to footage from our drones."Lon started."From what we could notice, enemy retreated a lot of troops to support other axes of operations. Currently, they have around three hundred troops protecting it."
"Well, now that you mention it…"Norrine said, scratching her chin."It might not be as bad as I thought."
Next, he pressed some more buttons and several red dots were highlighted across the slopes of the hill.
"But, they do have some heavy artillery. Mainly tanks dug into the ground, but also some AT emplacements, not to mention snipers on the roof and minefields."he added.
Smile disappeared from Norrine's face.
"Nope, I was right. This won't be easy."she said.
"We never expected it to be."Ester stated."So, what plan do you have for this?"
The map zoomed out, showing the area between the building and their current location. Next, a red line started moving from there.
"Our plan is simple."Lon said."We still hold the Osu'Ham Bridge over the Weqqa River. We will cross it and after that, we will split into two groups."
Right as he said that, the line split into two, going down two separate routes.
"First group will be made up of my troops."colonel continued."We will occupy enemy defenses on the hill with fighting, so they couldn't move to reinforce other places. At the same time, we want you to flank the hill and approach it from behind, through the main road leading to the residence. Enemy keeps only small force there, as they do not expect an attack from this side. After all, they should have only their allies behind their backs."
Ester looked as the two lines snaked between the tight and compact build of the city, with one reaching the more fortified side of the Ivory Hill, while the other started making it's way up the snaky road leading to the building's main gate. She thought about the plan for a short minute, before nodding.
"Sounds good to me."she stated."Although, I think that I shouldn't take all my troops to flank the hill. It would be easier if I took…a hundred, or so? Rest would help you in the main assault."
Lon thought for a second and nodded.
"That could work."he admitted.
"Norrine, will you take care of the rest?"Colonel Barkhorn turned to the major.
"You got it."she replied.
Ester took one last look at the whole thing, before nodding.
"Alright, let's go."she said."Let's just be careful on the way."
Norrine nodded and the two left the room, contacting their soldiers on the way and telling them to gather in one place. Outside, they saw their five hundred operators already gathered in one place. They approached them and quickly explained the plan to them. After they confirmed everything with them, they contacted Lon. Nashini colonel confirmed everything, too and gave the order to move out.
Nashini Marines and SOF operators jumped into their vehicles and starting off the engines. Long column of Nashini armored vehicles quickly started leaving the area and going in the appointed direction.
As they were driving, Ester wondered, how is Delilah's half doing.
August 25
At the same time
Edge of the Refugee Help and Evacuation Zone, Hef'Adra, Nashina
"Fuck, fuck, fuck!"Delilah exclaimed, ducking down.
Her and her team were currently stationed in an abandoned apartment building. Above their heads flew a stream of plasma fired by Varian plasma spears. Fish-like aliens pushed down the wide street in front of the building, supported by two 12V21 tanks. The vehicles fired their guns at the surrounding buildings, where more defending Nashini soldiers were placed. It was a miracle, that only soldiers targeted them.
Emmy leaned from the cover again and sent a stream of bullets towards the Varians, putting some of them down. Next, she had to hide again.
"A normal supply run, huh?"she asked.
"That's what it was supposed to be!"Delilah replied."Besides, you're the one complaining?! I thought you love this shit!"
"Only when I have some kind of advantage!"her second-in-command replied.
"Oh, now you're just bullshitting it!"Macy stated.
When they came to deliver the supplies and humanitarian aid, everything seemed to be calm. They dropped off everything that was needed and went to do as they were ordered, so protect the civilians being evacuated. The calm time lasted only few minutes. After that, Varian soldiers appeared and started attacking. Now, they were trying to repel this relentless assault.
"I'm surprised they still have a fighting power!"Ves, said pressing something on her hand terminal.
"What the hell are you even doing there?!"Emmy exclaimed.
"This."
Saying that, Ves pressed the last button and before long, enemy tanks stopped firing. Then, much to Varians' surprise, their turrets lowered and started firing at their own. A chaos erupted within Varian ranks, as the soldiers tried fighting back against their rebelled, AI controlled vehicles. This gave the chance for other allied soldiers to leave their hiding and they quickly dispatched the remaining enemy troops and the tanks with well placed missiles.
Delilah sighed, when everything calmed down.
"Kenya, Heley, how is the situation on your end?"she asked in the radio.
The two Warrior Bunny snipers were sitting on the roof of the building. Not only with their sniper riffles, but also with missile launchers, which they had to use in more dire situations.
Like the one now.
"There are three dropships coming from the West."Heley said, putting down her riffle and grabbing the missile launcher.
Kenya quickly did the same and picked up the other missile launcher. Next, they looked in the direction of the three enemy dropships. They locked onto the Varian machines and quickly pulled the triggers, sending two missiles towards them. There were another two missiles coming from another roof, where another pair of snipers was placed. Varian machines clearly noticed them, as they started evading. Varians never used countermeasures, what caused them to often break into some wild maneuvers. However, most of the time, it didn't help them. Like now.
As the dropships fell to the ground, their mission to bomb the refugee area a failure, Heley activated her communicator.
"Dropships down. Refugees are safe."she said.
"For now."Delilah said."Keep your eyes peeled for more surprises. We can never be sure of what Lacos and their buddies will pull out of their asses next."
"You got it, Deli."Kenya confirmed.
Soon, a stream of confirmations came from the rest of their troops.
"Another day in paradise, huh?"Emmy asked, reloading her MG.
"Yeah."Delilah replied, leaning her head back."I just hope that Ester and Norrine are doing better than us."
August 25
21:11
Near the Ivory Hill
Norrine sat inside the Nashini Xadza 6x6 mine-resistant vehicle, as they were driving towards the Ivory Hill. The path took them nearly two hours, as they had to not only maneuver between wrecks and rubble that littered the streets, but also because there were so o many vehicles in their convoy.
As planned, they split after crossing the bridge. Ester and her group were making their way towards their goal, too, but probably they had it easier, considering there was less of them. Driving nearly a thousand soldiers through a war-torn city was not as easy as one could think. Maybe in games, or movies, it looked easy, but from Norrine's experience, this was much harder than media led to believe.
"How far before we reach it?"she asked the Nashini commander of their convoy through the radio.
"Just a few more minutes."the commander replied."So you can just sit back and relax."
"If only it was that easy."
She disconnected and looked at the operatives sitting with her in the APC. They all seemed to be bored, some of them even took off their helmets and started snoring. It's not like they were forbidden to do it, but she still thought, that they should be more careful. Maybe because the missions they were sent on sometimes were stressful enough, they learned to not be stressed and relax in a life-threatening situation? She could've asked about it, but she didn't think she would get a suitable answer.
Instead, she checked the ammo in her weapon's mag once more, to make sure no GC bastard would surprise her with pants down and shaft her. She smiled. In fact, she wouldn't mind repaying them for all the raping they did the same way.
"What is it, ma'am?"a Chakdrik operative asked.
"Nothing."Norrine replied."Just a funny thought, nothing you need to worry about."
"If you say so."He leaned back on the wall of the troop compartment.
They continued to drive for a few more minutes, before finally, the convoy came to a stop. Norrine quickly stood up.
"We're at place, people."the convoy commander said in their radios a few seconds later."Get ready."
"You heard him."major told the operatives."Move your asses and out of the ride. We have a hill to take."
Operatives started gathering their stuff and the door in the back of the APC opened. Norrine was the first to get out. Next, she ran up the length of the convoy towards the very front, where the commander was. Which, in her opinion, was a stupid idea. If they fell in some kind of ambush, then his vehicle would be the first to be destroyed. It was a standard tactic. Destroy the leading and closing vehicle and you basically trap the enemy convoy where you want them and then, you can destroy them. It was surprising that GC didn't think of doing so.
After a few minutes of run, she finally made it to the front. Nashini lieutenant colonel in charge was talking with some other officers and NCOs. He looked at Norrine.
"Sorry for the wait."she said."This convoy has nearly thirty kilometers, after all."
"It's not like we blame you, major."lieutenant colonel said."We actually waited for you to join us."
"Good to know I'm recognized."she said, resting her weapon on her arm."So, what's the exact plan?"
"Well, as our main role is to basically focus the enemy attention on us, to allow the other group to do their job, we will do just that. However, due to the environment we're in, we will not be able to attack the enemy with full force. Instead, we'll have to slowly work our way up."
Saying that, lieutenant colonel activated his hand terminal and hologram of the hill appeared in the air.
"Enemy dug several lines of trenches across the hill's slope. Each line of trenches is like a small fortress, but nothing we can't handle. Our plan is like this: we will be going in small waves, 150 soldiers each…"
"That doesn't seem like a small wave."Norrine stated, but was ignored.
"…tasked with securing the trench line. Once one line is secured, another wave comes in and joins the first. Both then march on the other line and so on, until we secure all the lines and reach the top, where, as we hope, second group will already be making themselves a nest in the building itself. What do you think?"
Officers and NCOs looked at each other and started murmuring. Finally, all them nodded, agreeing with the plan.
"And you, major?"lieutenant colonel asked, seeing how she didn't nod immediately.
Norrine closed her eyes for a second, thinking.
"I have some objections, when it comes to this plan."she finally said."It risks too high personnel and equipment losses. Besides, we won't be able to move quickly up the slope, considering there are mines everywhere."
"Oh, don't worry about mines."one of the officers, clearly and engineer, said.
Right then, some Nashini soldiers ran past them. They were carrying a mortar, which they quickly set up and loaded a long, slim shell into it. Next, they fired and the shell flew over the buildings. Few seconds later, a thundering explosion was heard from the direction of the Ivory Hill.
"What was that?"Norrine asked.
"Some of our new equipment."engineer said."Electromagnetic Discharge Shell, or EDS in short. It's a mortar shell that upon landing in a minefield, sends an electromagnetic pulse, which activates the fuses of all mines in a large area."
"In short, it's a de-mining device."lieutenant colonel said.
Norrine whistled.
"Alright, I guess that checks out."she said."Still, we have to worry about enemy AT emplacements and vehicles. They won't give us an easy time. Especially now, that we'll have to climb up a slope riddled with holes and devastated by explosions."
"Still, this is our best option. It's the second group's task to secure the hill. We only have to distract the majority of enemy forces."
Norrine nodded.
"Alright then. Let's get this thing done."she stated.
Lieutenant colonel nodded back and grabbed his radio. He quickly gave orders to his troops in Nashinian. Norrine quickly did the same, giving her operatives orders. Soon, first wave of the soldiers was prepared. Some SOF operatives found themselves in the wave, so she allowed herself to quickly connect to their helmet cameras to observe the assault. Vehicles and soldiers, by the order of lieutenant colonel, quickly left the cover and turned towards the slope of the hill.
Immediately, they were greeted with the rain of fire from the defenders. Intel said, that there were only two hundred enemies defending the whole area, with vehicles and AT emplacements. Both of which let themselves be known, when a tank shell barely missed one of Nashini armored cars.
Allied soldiers quickly returned fire, with APCs armed with AT guns quickly targeting the tanks and other vehicles. Two of them already were burning, same as several AT emplacements on the first and even second line. Nashini and SOF operatives pushed forward, going through the devastation caused by the detonation of the mines, but not stopping. At one point, the camera Norrine observed caught a glimpse of one of tank destroyers blowing up. Well, this shouldn't be a surprise, actually.
Even under the constant fire from all the lines above them, the first wave managed to reach the first line of the trenches, leaving behind some burning wrecks and several dead, but not as many as one would expect. Soldiers started jumping inside the trenches, getting into melee or simply shooting who they had in sight, clearing the trench as quickly as possible, until there were no enemies left.
"First line is ours."lieutenant colonel said."Second wave, get ready to move out."
"Sir."Norrine said, approaching him.
"What is it, major?"He turned to her.
"Requesting permission to join the second wave."
Lieutenant colonel looked at her for a second and nodded.
"Permission granted. Even though you didn't have to ask for one."he said.
"Really?"
"Yes. You are allowed to join any wave you want."
"Now you're telling me…"
She turned and quickly made her way towards the second wave, which was already preparing to leave. Some of SOF operatives present noticed her and smiled, but she didn't pay attention.
She made her way to the front of the assembled wave. She stood with several soldiers behind the first APC and soon, they were on the move.
"Just don't mess it up, Est."she thought.
It's not like she doubted Ester. She just had a feeling, that something bad was gonna happen. And she was never wrong before.
August 25
At the same time…
Opposite side of the hill
Ester sat inside of a Nashini APC with some of her operatives. The vehicles maneuvered between the rubble and wrecks littering the streets after months of constant fighting and shelling. They didn't meet any form of enemy resistance, which was a good sign. This either meant, that the enemy didn't expect a flanking maneuver…
…or that they expected it completely and were now setting up and ambush. She sure knew which option was better according to her.
"The attack on the hill is already underway, ma'am."a male Warrior Bunny operative sitting opposite to her reported.
She nodded.
"How are they doing?"
"They took the first enemy line and are assaulting the second. Major Bauer is leading the assault."
"As expected of Norrine."
"Cannot argue with that."
Ester then turned towards the driver's compartment, where a Nashini operative sat behind the driving wheel of the APC.
"How long until we reach the goal?"she asked.
"Just a minute."the driver replied.
"Got it."
She then turned on her radio.
"This is colonel Barkhorn to everyone. Get everything ready, we're about to reach the target. Understood?"she informed.
"Yes, ma'am!"the operatives replied.
Convoy continued to drive for the next few minutes, as they bypassed the destroyed buildings and vehicles. Looking through the small porthole on the side of the vehicle, Ester felt her heart sink. A large part of Earth looked pretty identical to this. She knew, that Nashini felt the same as most of Humans did after seeing their homeworld, the place they came from, treated like this. Anger. Sadness. Helplessness. But also hope. Hope, that everything will be better.
After all, for many, hope was all they had left.
Few minutes later, everyone felt as the vehicles stopped.
"What's happening?"Ester asked.
Driver turned back towards them.
"Nothing, we're just at the base of the hill."he replied."And we're waiting for orders. How do we approach this?"
Ester nodded, as she thought.
"Go slowly. Maybe, GC will think that we're reinforcements."she replied.
"Understood, ma'am."
Driver quickly relayed the orders to the remaining vehicles in the convoy. Soon, vehicles started driving up the spiral road that led to the top of the hill and the President's residence that stood atop it. Convoy was not interrupted while making it's way, which was a good sign already. Ester really hoped, that GC troops will actually think they were here to come and help.
At the same time, two guards stood by the gate leading into the Ivory Hill's courtyard and car park. They were listening to the sounds of battle that was happening literally a few meters to their right, as allied forces continued their climb towards the top of the hill, clearing line after line of trenches and destroying assets. And it seemed, that even with pretty high losses the attackers were sustaining, there was no stopping them from reaching the top.
"Hey, Zax."Varian guard said.
"What issss it?"Nakatan guard replied.
"How about we…you know…run?"
Nakatan looked at his guard companion with surprise in his eyes. He gave out an angry hiss, which sprayed the Varian with saliva.
"That'ssss treachery!"he stated.
"Come on, look at this."Varian continued."It doesn't matter how many we throw at them, they will still defend and counterattack. And we've almost completely run out of everything we have. I think it's clear to see we underestimated our opponents?"
"Thissss issss a minor ssssetback."
Varian tilted his head.
"Minor setback?"he asked."Look around! We've been here, fighting for this city, nearly four Human months! And they told us, that everything will be over within one month. I wanna go home already…"
"And what would you do then?"Nakatan asked."They would learn you desssserted. They would either court-martial you or execute at sssspot. Which one, in your opinion, issss better?"
Varian tried to argue, but he knew, that his companion was right. So he just resigned and stood there, listening to the nearby battle.
However, after a few seconds, his ears were reached by a sound, which managed to break through the cacophony of the battle raging all around the city. It started getting louder, so as he presumed, it was getting closer.
"Something's coming."he said, grabbing his plasma spear tighter.
"Relax. It musssst be ssssome reinforcementssss."Nakatan replied."They were ssssure to come ssssooner or later."
Varian frowned.
"But don't you think that it's a bit…too soon?"he asked.
"What do you mean?"
"I don't recall any bigger forces being in our close vicinity."
They looked at each other for few seconds, before looking down the road. Soon, a convoy of vehicles appeared, led by an APC. And while there was some captured or pre-war bought equipment from UNSA or it's allies in GC, this APC was certainly not anything that served in armies of Galactic Concordance.
It became especially certain, when the APC started spewing fire and before the guards could react, they were torn to shreds by the 22,4mm autocannon atop the Nashini APC's roof.
Vehicles then sped up and the leading one rammed into the gate, tearing it out of it's hinges, and driving into the courtyard, much to the surprise of GC soldiers that were stationed there. This moment of surprise allowed APCs and cars to quickly take care of the enemies and mowed them down in an instant.
"Move, move, move!"Ester exclaimed into the radio.
Soldiers started standing up from the benches they sat on and quickly jumped out of the vehicles. Soon, nearly a hundred Special Operations Force operatives gathered at the courtyard, searching for cover, which they found in form of either their vehicles or some emplacements set up by GC troops. At the same time, GI-J8 APCs and VXT armored cars turned their weapons towards the Ivory Hill. Next, they all started spewing fire, peppering the building and pinning down some of the enemies inside and killing others. Even snipers on the roofs were not saved from the fate of being turned into pulp.
"I guess collateral damage is inevitable."Nashini operative kneeling behind a cover next to Ester said.
"Yeah…"colonel agreed.
The firing continued for the next few seconds, before going silent, not to make soldiers on the slopes suspicious and wanting to check what was happening. After few more seconds, to make sure that no enemy would immediately fire at them, operatives climbed up to their feet and quickly approached the building.
"Elsa."Ester said, as her adjutant approached her.
"Yes, Ester?"Elsa asked.
"Fifty of us will stay here."colonel replied."You're in charge of them."
"Understood."
Ester quickly told the same to the rest of the operatives and they split into two groups. One group quickly lined up on both sides of the door leading into the President's residence. Meanwhile, the group Elsa commanded quickly approached the side of the courtyard facing the slope, alongside several armored vehicles, but not firing down at the enemies. From their position, they could clearly see allied forces moving up the slope, leaving behind a trail of burning vehicles and bodies.
"Seems like ours are moving forward quickly."Elsa reported."And I think I can see Norrine out there…"
"How?"Ester asked.
"I just saw a blast of blue flames in the trenches."
"Sounds about right."
"We'll make sure no enemy will get to you."
"I sure hope so, Els. I'll contact you once the building is ours."
"Understood. Over."
Ending the conversation, Ester turned to the operatives that were with her. Together with her, twenty operatives had to storm the building, with thirty acting as their support on the outside, both in the vehicles and outside. She turned to one of the Flareian operatives.
"Check what's behind the door."she ordered.
Dwarf nodded and pulled out a small camera on cable. He knelt in front of the door and slid it right under them. He then looked at his hand terminal.
"Hm."he murmured."I can see some barricades made out of furniture and sandbags. MG right in front of the door and another above it, on the stairs. Enemies are also hiding behind columns. I can see around thirty enemies, but there might be more. Wait, I also see some wielding missile launchers."
Ester analyzed his words. Her conclusion was simple: attack through the main entrance would be suicide. Even with vehicles. One well placed missile and a wreck will block the entrance, making them unable to push through. She bit her lip, thinking about any possible option. And after a few seconds, an idea popped in her head.
"Follow me."she said and started forward.
Soldiers looked at her for a few seconds before following. She approached a wall and looked through the window inside. There, she could see a large room with a long table in it. It was probably the dining room used by the President and his family. Additionally, to the side, she could see an entrance leading into the main hall.
"You said that collateral damage is inevitable?"Ester asked the same Nashini that spoke earlier.
He nodded.
"So you'll excuse me this behavior."she said.
Ester then activated her magical power and within seconds, she felt strength filling her body. Time spent with Norrine turned out to be pretty useful. Colonel took a swing and her fist slammed into the wall with so much force, that the bricks exploded inside, windows shattered and rubble flew in all directions. When she did it, a hole big enough for three people to run side by side inside appeared.
Without waiting, Ester exclaimed:
"Forward!"
Operatives didn't think twice and followed her through the hole. They made it through the dining room and towards the main hall. GC soldiers defending it didn't even realize what was happening, when twenty enemy soldiers ran out of the dining room and immediately opened fire. Machine gun operators tried turning their weapons in their directions, but they were some of the first to go down, as SOF operatives prioritized them. One operative additionally fired an anti-grav grenade from his under barrel grenade launcher at the MG emplacement on the stairs. Bubble of anti gravity lifted the enemies into the air, allowing SOF to eliminate them.
Ester led the charge, taking care of enemies with RPGs. As it turned out, her power didn't only increase her strength, but also agility, concentration and focus. This is why she was scoring headshot after headshot, taking down enemies with single shots.
But even though surprised, GC soldiers didn't stand idle. They returned fire, taking down several operatives. In one case, Ester noticed as a shot from Varian staff evaporates a Shakayan operative in a splash of red mist. She quickly took aim and sent the Varian to whatever afterlife they believed in.
While GC tried to hold the enemy off, there were dispatched completely after three minutes. When the firefight ended, an eerie silence, interrupted only by the sounds of fighting outside, hung in the air.
"Report."Ester ordered.
"Two dead, six wounded."Nashini operative said.
Ester winced. It was still too high for her liking. She finally looked at Nashini's badge and read his name.
"Corporal Sek'Alin, I want you to take six soldiers and take care of the wounded."she ordered."I will contact corporal Steier for reinforcements."
"Aye, aye, ma'am."Sek'Alin replied.
He turned and got six operatives to help him. Seconds later, they were moving the wounded out through the main entrance. Ester in the meantime turned around and activated her comms.
"Elsa?"she asked.
"Yes?"Elsa's voice replied.
"How does it look outside?"
"Our troops are still marching forward. They have taken third and fourth line already and are storming the fifth."
"Alright, observe the situation and intervene when necessary. Also, could you send us twelve troops? We need to refill our ranks."
"On it."
Elsa disconnected and while Ester and remaining six troops watched the area around them, awaiting any enemy still in the building to suddenly jump in on them, but nothing of that sort happened. Soon, twelve soldiers sent by Elsa joined them and Ester quickly went to explaining the plan.
"We split into two teams. We will both take one side of the building and clear it of any remaining enemies, room by room. Got it?"she asked.
"Yes, ma'am."the seventeen operatives replied.
"Good. Now let's go. Just stay on your toes and watch out for any booby traps and IEDs they could have left for us."
Suddenly, one of Human operatives giggled.
"What's so funny?"Ester asked him.
"You said 'booby'."he replied.
In response, a Dark Elf operative hit him in the back of the head.
"Grow up."he growled at him.
Colonel Barkhorn just shook her head. She appointed the eight troops to go with her and soon, the two teams were on their way.
August 25
21:24
Galactic Concordance's Command Point, Unity Square, Hef'Adra
General Malcolm McStorm of the Laconian Republic Army stood inside his command APC, watching the screens and listening to the reports flooding from the frontline. He was the commander of all GC forces in the system, so the reports were not only coming from the city and the planet itself. And most of them were not good. Enemy forces started their system-wide offensive in full swing. Moons of the gas giant were being slowly invaded and taken back. Of course, GC's forces stood their ground, but with their problems and pressure from the enemy, it was not certain for how long will it last.
Nashina didn't look better. After three months of what was supposed to be a few weeks, or even days, conflict, low morale of the troops was visible everywhere. Original plan was to take Hef'Adra withing a week or two. But the Nashini defenses turned out to be so strong, that they were grinding their way through the city at such a slow pace, that the price paid was much too high. McStorm had no doubts that Battle of Hef'Adra will be remembered as many things. The bloodiest, most brutal and longest battle of the war. A complete humanitarian crisis. Galactic Concordance's biggest humiliation. Well, maybe that last one was a bit of an exaggeration, considering how many times GC was humiliated, like on Shakaya and over Chakdria, but it was certainly on par with those two and several others.
"Sir, 73rd reports."one of the analysts said.
"What are they saying?"McStorm asked.
"Their advance was halted. Enemy resistance is too powerful."
General shook his head.
"Another day in the office, right?"he asked.
"Hallelujah, sir."analyst replied.
Not wanting to listen to the depressing reports anymore, general left his command vehicle and moved through the square, filled with numerous tents and vehicles. From what he heard, the Unity Square was a pretty important place for Nashini people. This was the place where Acts of Unification were signed, giving birth to the Nashini Republic. It was considered one of the most beautiful places in all of the Republic, with the Adra Tower, basically a Nashini equivalent of Eiffel Tower, stood. General could see it, twenty kilometers down the lengths of the square.
Now, whatever beauty there was was gone, replaced by military efficiency. Soldiers from several Concordance's member states were running errands around, making sure that the whole thing operated as HQ on Laconia expected them to. Like that meant anything, considering their current circumstances.
McStorm was honestly tired of this whole thing. All he wanted by this point, was to go back to his homeworld of Zendikar III and see his wife again. When he was leaving for the war, she was in the eight month's of pregnancy with their first child. Last time she called him, she told him she gave birth to a healthy baby girl. What would Malcom give up to hold her in his arms…
His thoughts were interrupted, when he saw his adjutant running up to him. Young man saluted, standing in front of McStorm.
"Sir!"
"At ease."Malcom ordered.
Adjutant did just that.
"I've been looking for you, sir."
"It's not that hard to find me. Now, why were you looking for me?"
"Admiral Goto requests to talk to you."
Admiral Haruki Goto was the commander of GC's fleet engaged in the orbit and across the system. And truth be told, he didn't really like her. She was moved here to replace previous commander, admiral Westlake. The reason? Official version was that Westlake turned out to be a pedo, jerking off to children. But Malcolm knew damn well the real reason. Westlake was one of Tekrionis' men. Meanwhile, Goto often hung out with Lioni. Typical post-power change charades. Everyone associated with the previous leader had to go, to make place for those that are chums with the new one. General McStorm was actually surprised, that he, as someone who also was from Tekrionis' school, was not yet replaced.
Now, what would Goto want from him? Every time they talked, it almost ended in a quarrel. Being from two different schools of doing things, it was as certain as snow in the summer on Laconia.
"Lead."Malcolm ordered.
"Follow me, sir."adjutant replied.
Of course, Malcolm knew where the communication center was, but he still decided to allow the adjutant to lead him there. He was a good kid, even though a bit too much of propaganda beaten into his head. He still believed the war will be won. That's what watching state-owned media does to a young mind.
Adjutant led him through the Unity Square, passing by ammo depots and soldiers killing time, until they reached one of the tents, more to the side of the whole thing. He entered inside and was greeted by numerous analysts saluting.
"At ease."he ordered.
He approached the holo-table, with a hologram already projected out of it. It showed a relatively young woman in her late 20s, dressed in Laconian Navy's admiral uniform. She had a smirk on her Asian face, which made McStorm almost immediately dislike her. He would do anything to wipe it off of her face.
"General McStorm."Goto said.
"Admiral Goto."McStorm replied."What do I owe the honor of being contacted by you?"
If she noticed the sarcasm in his words, she didn't show it. Instead, she replied calmly:
"Are you aware of our current situation?"
"Of course I am, you stupid bitch. We're getting annihilated on every possible front in the system."crossed McStorm's mind, but instead, he said simple:"I am, ma'am."
"Good. Because we just got new directives."
General held back a strong urge to roll his eyes.
"I'm all ears."
"Our forces in the system are being pushed back on almost all axes. Enemy forces sent to retake the moons of the gas giant are moving surprisingly quickly, even quicker than we originally expected. This is why, HQ in Laconia City, aware of our situation, decided to put everything on Hef'Adra and you, general."
"What is that supposed to mean, ma'am?"
He was a ware it was a bit out of the protocol, but he didn't really care.
"It means, that you are to capture the city as soon as possible. If we end up winning the war, we can use it as a bargaining chip, together with Earth. And if we'll be forced to retreat, we still can use it to negotiate a nice deal for us."
"But ma'am…We've been trying to take the city for three months. We barely reached the river and took Ivory Hill. And from what I've heard, enemy troops are already trying to retake the President's residence. How are we supposed to capture the city quickly? We're all exhausted and troop morale is not the highest…"
"Excuses, excuses."Admiral waved her hand."Don't you worry about that, general. We have a way to help you."
General risen an eyebrow.
"What are you talking about?"he asked.
Smirk on Goto's face turned into a wide smile.
"You'll see in due time, general."she said."Signing off."
And with that, admiral simply ended the call.
McStorm stood there for a few seconds, his eyes fixed on the place where the hologram used to be, before his face was twisted with rage and he slammed his fist onto the table.
"That stupid wretch!"he exclaimed."Who does she thing she is? Just because she's chums with Lioni and I am not, doesn't mean she don't have to tell me important, need-to-know information! How is this army supposed to operate?!"
Analysts and adjutant standing around didn't know how to respond. McStorm quickly regained his composure and turned to them.
"Inform the troops to be ready."he ordered.
"For what?"adjutant asked.
General looked at him sternly.
"For everything."
August 25
21:58
Ivory Hill
Norrine ran past the soldiers and tanks she followed, bullets, lasers and other types of projectiles flying over her head and jumped into the penultimate trench. Allied troops followed her and they soon found themselves in close proximity to GC's troops defending the hill. Like before, there were not many of them, but they were determined. Which still made them dangerous.
She barely evaded a strike with a Varian staff, She grabbed it and pulled it out of the fish-like alien's hands. Next, she launched a blast of flame at him, causing him to fall to the ground in great pain. Next, she rammed the staff into his face, at the same time breaking it. She quickly turned, using the part she held in hand as a projectile, throwing it and skewering another GC soldier in the chest with it. She also caught a glimpse of enemy soldiers fighting off sometimes even ten allied soldiers at a time. Concordance left a few troops, but the best they could find, except special forces.
Turning back to another soldier, she simply shot him in the face. Fourth soldier, which played dead, suddenly rose from the ground. He was a Nakatan, so he was a bit taller than her, but that didn't matter. Norrine just rushed at him, grabbing him in the waist with both her arms. Next, she activated her flames, which immediately covered her arms and caused the Nakatan to scream. He still screamed, when the flames burned through his skin and bones, effectively cutting him in half. He fell to the ground, his eyes wide open from shock.
Right as Norrine was going to turn and move on, she noticed something weird. The Nakatan she just killed suddenly started emanating a green, eerie glow. Before she realized what was happening, bodies of soldiers she killed stirred back to life, rose up and surrounded her.
"Great. Necromancer."she murmured.
Necromancy was pretty rare on Flare Prime, but still existed. Everyone thought this type of magic was eliminated completely on the planet following the Necromancer War of 2153, when a group of necromancers tried to use the chaos still harassing and take over. Fortunately, UNSA and allies were there to stop them. Delilah said, that it was her and her team who raided the castle of these necromancers and eliminated them.
Returning to the situation at hand, knowing that necromancy was a thing, it was certain, that someone in Milky Way also got it. But there were no sings of any necromancers being reported to any of the governments.
Until now.
"I killed you once, I can do it twice."Norrine stated.
Saying that, she activated her flames and started shooting gushes of them from her hands, setting the living dead on fire. Corpses whined as they burned, quickly turning to ash. Additionally, she stepped on the head of the one crawling towards her on the ground, crushing it.
"Listen, everyone."she said in her comms."We have a necromancer here. If enemy you killed starts glowing green, double tap them."
"Yes, ma'am!"soldiers clearing the trench and storming the hill with her replied.
Now, she just needed to find that necromancer. She climbed on top of some boxes next to her and looked over the edge of the trench towards the next one. She scanned the area, but…
There! She could see a faint green glow on a far end of the trench. As she suspected, such a valuable asset like someone with power to literally resurrect the dead would not be in any of the other trenches. Still, she frowned, wondering, why didn't he use his powers earlier, maybe even when they stormed the first trench? Maybe he didn't have enough power to reach it? That didn't matter.
Soldiers quickly came to a stop, as they finished clearing the trench. There were some other cases of attempted resurrection, but they were quickly thwarted. Soon, remaining troops from joined them.
Norrine didn't know how huge were their losses, but she was well aware, that there were not nine hundred men and women. She knew the direct assault on the hill will be bloody, but there was no other way to occupy the enemies, while Ester and the others reclaimed the residence. Not to mention, that all air forces over the capital were occupied with fighting off enemy fighters and dropships, so they couldn't ask for air support.
"Alright everyone."voice of the lieutenant colonel sounded in her ears."There is only one trench left and we're at the top. I also contacted our allies that are already there. They will give us support. So let's finish this."
A wave of confirmations came from the commanders of platoons and companies. Norrine quickly readied herself. She already knew, how soldiers in WW1 had to feel, waiting for order to go over the top and storm heavily defended enemy trenches. She really didn't envy them in the slightest.
"Move!"lieutenant colonel ordered.
Right as he said that, Norrine saw several flashes from the top of the hill. Lights flew up and after a while, they fell on enemy tanks and other vehicles which had their guns pointed at the storming troops. It must've been Ester's group. Not long after, allied vehicles and soldiers started going over the trenches and towards the last one.
Major quickly turned towards the place where she saw the green glow. If the necromancer was there, she had to take him down, or else there could be more trouble. And they didn't need more of that.
Fortunately for her, most enemies focused on the main assault group, not paying attention to a single figure running to the far end of the trench. She quickly made her way through the crater-riddled slope and reached the trench before the allied troops. She jumped over the edge and landed in the middle of a surprised group of enemy soldiers.
Her eyes quickly fell on the one that was not armed with any kind of weapon, but was wearing a long trenchcoat. He was a Human and was the first to regain his composure, as he aimed his hand at her and a green glow surrounded it. Norrine reacted as fast as lighting and grabbed his hand, moving it away from her. The green beam that then shot out of his palm his one of his, probably. Bodyguards. The man started screaming in agony, as his body dissolved into a disgusting green goo.
Her free hand erupted with flames and she sent fireballs at the two remaining bodyguards. They screamed in pain, as high temperature flames melted their helmets and faces. Necromancer, in the meantime, tried to use his second hand to again shoot the green beam at her, but she again grabbed it and moved aside. Next, her hands became as hot as possible, causing him to scream and beg for mercy.
Norrine was not gonna give him any of that. She squeezed her hands around his wrists, until the bones gave up and hands fell to the ground, burned off.
She then let go of the necromancer, making him fall to his knees.
"What did you do?!"he shouted, tears in his eyes."You Earthen bitch!"
"I'm not from Earth."Norrine replied with a smirk.
And then, she spun around, kicking the man's head so hard, that his neck snapped and he fell to the ground.
As this scuffle continued, allied soldiers reached the trench and started clearing it, with the covering fire from the top of the hill. After a few minutes, everything was done. The slope of the hill was clear of enemies.
"Last trench cleared."Norrine reported to the lieutenant colonel.
"Understood, major."lieutenant colonel replied."Great job."
"How is colonel Barkhorn doing?"
"She reported just a minute ago. They are preparing to clear the last room in Ivory Hill, the Presidential Office."
"Understood. I will go and join her group."
"Of course. We will take care of the dead and wounded."
Norrine terminated the call. She crawled out of the trench, while soldiers celebrated the successful mission. The battle of the city was not over yet, but retaking Ivory Hill so quickly after it was captured was a step in the right direction.
Meanwhile, in the residence itself, Ester led her team through the corridors of the building. There were two of them less than at the start, due to the fact that one soldier was injured and another had to take him to see the medic. From the reports, she was aware, that the other team was also nearing their final target.
The Presidential Office.
The soldiers made their way through the corridors, until they saw the door leading into the office. She quickly raised her fist to tell everyone to stop. Next, she showed them to stand on both sides of the door. Operatives performed the order, while Ester activated her comms.
"Team 2, how are you?"she asked.
"Already at the second entrance. You?"the Dark Elf in charge of the second team replied.
"At first entrance."Ester replied.
"How do we do it?"
Ester nodded at one of the operatives, who pulled out a camera cable from his terminal. He quickly placed it under the door and assessed the situation.
"Twelve enemies, one of them seems to be a commander."he reported."They seem to be in quite a panic and are scattered across the whole office. I don't think they are expecting us."
"The better for us."colonel smirked."We're storming the office at the same time."
"Copy. We're placing the breaching charges."Dark Elf reported.
"Same."
As she said that, another soldier pulled out a breaching charge from his backpack and placed it on the door, grabbing the detonator.
"On my mark…"Ester said, showing three fingers."3…2…1…Now!"
Soldier pressed the detonator.
Breaching charge exploded, turning the door into splinters, as operatives of SOF quickly poured inside from two sides. Enemy soldiers, filled with panic and shock, only stood there, as they were slaughtered by precise enemy fire. Even the commander was too shocked to throw any profanity or react, when Ester's bullet hit him straight in the face, sending him flying through the window. Within few seconds, remaining GC soldiers were eliminated and silence fell within the room, as SOF checked the status of enemies on the ground.
Ester approached the Dark Elf.
"Ma'am."he said, standing and saluting."All enemies within the building eliminated."
"Good."Colonel Barkhorn then activated her comms again."Elsa?"
"If you're asking about the storming of the slope, then it's over."Elsa replied."Norrine's standing right next to me, by the way."
"Okay, tell her I'll be there soon."
"Copy."
"You take care of the mess."she ordered the operatives.
"This is what we do."Dark Elf said and walked away.
Colonel then left the Presidential Office, passing by operatives who either decided to take a seat and rest or went to work on removing whatever was left of enemy soldiers. As she walked, she quickly contacted Lon.
"Lon, the building is secure. We took the Ivory Hill back."she reported.
"Great to hear. I got reports, that the other group eliminated all enemy presence on the hill as well."Lon replied.
"Do you know the losses?"
There was a moment of silence.
"Three hundred soldiers and nearly 25% of our vehicles."
Colonel sighed.
"I guess it was to be expected."she said.
"Unfortunately."Nashini colonel replied."Also, we got new orders."
"Listening."
"Command wants us to move forward."he said."Offensive in the city is in full swing. While there are places we still struggle, we started pushing the enemy back. HQ now wants us to take back the Unity Square, not only because of symbolic meaning, but because it was confirmed that enemy command is stationed there. And if we take it, it will be that much easier to take back the full city."
She nodded.
"Sounds reasonable to me."
"Also, I decided to move the staff closer to you. We'll be there in an hour, so wait for us."
"Solid copy. See you soon."
"See ya."
By the time she finished the conversation, she already reached the exit from the building. She quickly spotted Elsa and Norrine standing among the soldiers now clearing the dead GC soldiers, which were left undisturbed by the whole fight.
"How did you do?"Ester asked Norrine.
"Pretty good."Marines major replied."Could be better, in my opinion. But I got a kill on enemy necromancer."
By the sheer mention of this word, Ester shuddered.
"I never liked these creeps."she said."Delilah said, that just a short contact with them was like a nuclear hazard."
"Well, the one I fought with was certainly not the best at his job. He only started raising the dead once we reached the penultimate trench line. And when I got close to him, I could feel his power levels were miniscule at best."
"I have a feeling that GC is running out of good mages."Elsa said, shouldering her weapon.
"Probably."Ester nodded."Anyway, we have new orders. We have to retake the Unity Square now."
Norrine whistled.
"That's quite a bit from here."she said.
"But we'll manage. Also, Lon said he's coming here with the staff, to make it easier to command everything. He'll be here in an hour."
"Well, at least…"
Norrine's words were cut off by a blinding light which suddenly appeared in the sky, making the night turn into day for a few seconds. Everyone was forced to cover their eyes or look away to not lose their sight. The light lasted only for a few seconds, but that wasn't the end. After the light came a powerful shockwave, enough to knock some people off of their legs. It was large enough to cover the entire city and area thirty kilometers around it.
Everyone wondered about the source of this sudden occurrence, which was not as mysterious as people on the surface of the planet thought, and which was obvious for everyone in the orbit.
August 25
Few minutes earlier…
LNS Unyielding, orbit of Nashina
Admiral Haruki Goto sat peacefully in her chair on the bridge of her Snezhnyi-class Battleship, a calm, classical music coming out of the speakers. She was always a connoisseur of art, music and everything in between. Some people thought that middle of a battle was not a good time for listening to music, but she didn't care and sent these people to have a nice conversation with ship's security.
Reports she was getting were all the same. Enemy forces were pushing Concordance back out of most positions they controlled in the system. Even on the surface, McStorm was reporting that enemy started a series of counterattacks. Some of them failed, but most of them were able to set a stage for further offensive operations. The most reputation tarnishing loss was the loss of Ivory Hill so quickly after taking it.
But for Goto, it didn't really matter. What mattered was how much favors would she get from Lioni for what she was about to do.
"Is everything ready?"she asked.
"Everything's ready for the launch, admiral."weapon systems officer replied.
Goto smirked. They were going to use any means necessary to win on Nashina. Even if it meant leaving ground troops in the dark about what they were about to do and risking outrage from McStorm. Not like this mattered or anything.
"Launch ready."weapons systems operator reported.
"Fire."she ordered.
WSO nodded and turned to his console, writing the appropriate command. Soon, systems inside the ship started working, as they ignited the missile, which not long after left the missile tube and started flying towards the planet.
At the same time, radar officer on Nashini flagship in the orbit almost jumped out of her seat.
"Detecting launch from enemy flagship!"she exclaimed.
Nashini admiral quickly turned towards her.
"Is it directed towards us?"he asked.
"No, sir! It's a high energy emitting missile with unknown warhead! It's headed for the planet, sir!"
"Can you identify the warhead? Is it nuclear? Antimatter? Hydrogen?"
"The missile is going too fast for us to fully analyze it! It will…"
Before she finished, a blinding orb of light appeared in low orbit of Nashina, right over Hef'Adra. It subsided after a few seconds, leaving behind a powerful shockwave, which swept across a large swath of land around the capital. Not long after, all lights that were still somehow alight there went off.
"Sir, detecting high-power electromagnetic waves."radar officer reported.
"Any radiation?"admiral asked, worried.
"No, it was a clear EMP. But powerful. Entire Haf'Adra and area thirty kilometers around it is completely black. We're also detecting multiple small objects spreading across the whole area of EMP's reach."
"Can you determine what these are?"
"Of course."
There was a moment of silence, as analysis was being made.
"Sir, the objects are a snowflakes-sized pieces of aluminum. There are billions, even trillions of them."
"Why aluminum?"someone asked.
"Probably to block all radio communication in the area hit by the EMP, in case someone still had working equipment."radar officer replied."But that's just my guess."
"So you're saying, that our forces in Hef'Adra and in it's vicinity are basically cut off from everyone else?"
"Yes, sir."
Admiral looked at the capital city's area, thinking about possible options. They still had a contingent of dropships and Marines ready to go. But, in the environment with so much radio wave deflecting material, their radars would not work and machines would become easy picking for whatever enemy AA was present. There could also be ugly cases of friendly fire. Also, they had to keep enough firepower aboard the ship in case a boarding action would occur. So it seemed, that for now, allies in Hef'Adra were on their won.
"Damn it…"admiral thought, as his ship engaged with another GC destroyer."Contact HQ and tell them to send some scouts to Hef'Adra. They have to make contact with allied troops and coordinate the offensive operations."
"Yes, sir."the comms officer replied.
Admiral then again turned his gaze towards Hef'Adra, thinking about what's happening in the city.
XXX
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