13: Offensive
The city gates remained standing. Fires burned from the nearby guard tower, where several solid death glider cannon hits had demolished much of its top section. Calsharan gun emplacements rained down fire across the city's western approach, and the Jaffa warriors who pushed on towards it did so in a literal uphill battle. Calsharan plasma weapons were distinct from their Jaffa counterparts, often firing a blazing blue bolt of energy that, depending on the output of the weapon, tended to leave a quickly fading vapour trail in its wake. The gun emplacements upon the walls let fly with a veritable hail of these bolts, ripping through foliage and the scattered trees about the walls with ease. And such energy bolts cut through Jaffa armour with just as much ease, with each bodily impact sending forth a rush of flame and smoke as the flesh underneath was seared and charred.
Jaffa weapons utilised the familiar Goa'uld yellow, staff weapons and the like letting off shots at a slower rate of fire. And then there were the Jaffa armed with the Earth-made weapons, some having been supplied as far back as more than twenty years before. P90s and M4 carbines rattled amongst the Jaffa push as they closed in on the city walls.
The nearby main road was congested with a mix of Jaffa gun-craft and commandeered Calsharan armoured transports. Some burned, having been taken out early during the assault. Their smouldering, blackened hulks only blocked the still intact vehicles from approaching along the road, and many of those craft were now surging off-road and scattering. Under the morning sky, warriors were cut down.
Behind a small hill, John and the rest of the team took cover. Plasma bolts darted overhead, practically sizzling through the air. From the north, dark clouds moved in, signifying an oncoming rainfall. Bra'tac had gone somewhere further down the line to rally some of the warriors, and even amongst the noise of the incessant weapons fire John could just make out his voice, calling through the chaos. More bolts of energy skirted the top of the small hill, burning patches of the long grass. The air was thick with the smell of smoke and burning metal and even the hint of charred flesh. A Jaffa to their left was cut down as soon as he rose above the hill, twitching and jerking about slightly where he stood as each plasma bolt cut into him before he finally, and unceremoniously, crumpled backwards and tumbled back down into the ditch behind him.
"They were relying on those armoured cars to punch through the gates," Daniel said, raising his voice such that he sounded strained, all in an effort to be heard above the battle. John lay to his left, barely able to lift his head lest it be shot off. Aithris was further down the left, positioned by a boulder that had so far seen numerous chunks shot out of its forward-facing side. Aithris rattled off a volley of rifle fire towards the defenders up upon the city wall, but otherwise this did little but only draw further enemy fire towards him. There were three of the gun emplacements in the vicinity, and it seemed every time the operator of one was killed, he was quickly replaced by another Calsharan soldier.
"We'll need something heavier," John said. Somewhere further behind, he heard the tell-tale thump of a heavy rifle once again. Elsie had positioned herself on a higher point, concealed well enough that she was not an obvious target to those on the walls. Her Barrett rifle made her the perfect choice for picking off the gunners, and even her latest shot sent one of the Calsharans upon the tall stone walls falling. And yet, another soldier took his place almost immediately, working the four-barrelled and shielded gun emplacement with ease. The weapon's barrels fired rapidly, one after the other, superheated air escaping the vents upon each one in an effort to keep it cool. A blue-tinted energy shield protected the front of the weapon, shimmering slightly with each impact. Every so often, the weapon was turned enough to make the operator vulnerable from the other side, and it was these small windows of opportunity that Elsie made use of. They were few and far between, and not even the power of a fifty-calibre round could penetrate the energy shield effectively. Wearing it down would have been a waste of what little ammunition she had for the weapon. That was the duty of the Jaffa on the ground, yet too many of them were being felled by the enemy fire.
"Heavier?" John rolled onto his back, looking towards the clearing behind him and the forest even further back. More Jaffa warriors were storming out of the woods, and one of the Jaffa gun carriers appeared, a high-pitched whine sounding from its power source as it hovered a foot above the grassland. The oversized staff cannon on its rear fired up at the walls, blasting immense chunks from the top of it. One of the Calsharan guns were swept up in the fire, the weapon and its operator exploding in a spout of blue flame. Pieces of stonework fell away and cracks furthered their paths across the wall, yet the other two guns within range shifted their attention to the gun carrier and opened fire. The gun carrier, a simple and typically sleek Goa'uld design comprised of their favoured copper and bronze shades, practically crumpled under the withering hail. The engines died abruptly, the craft landing hard upon the ground whilst metal warped and fires erupted from its power source. The Jaffa manning the cannon leapt away from the gun carrier seconds before it exploded with a roar, fire blossoming forth and smouldering pieces of blackened metal raining down all around.
There came a Jaffa warrior storming across the clearing, specifically one who had a prototype plasma launcher slung about his shoulder. It was one of the guided launchers that SG-1 had brought along and the warrior was one John recognized, as having been seated around the fire with Elsie and some others the night before. Nevoc was his name, although it took John a moment to dig that information out of his memory.
"Hey, hey, you!" He shouted at the warrior, who had crouched by a fallen tree trunk. Plasma fire zipped by, scorching the rotting timber of the trunk. John waved at him, trying to get the young man's attention. Finally, Nevoc's eyes flitted towards the Colonel, who was a good ten metres ahead and sheltered just behind the rise of a short hill.
"I need that launcher!" John shouted, his voice sounding hoarse. More warriors crumpled under the enemy fire nearby. Aithris fired another volley past his boulder but was once again forced to throw himself to the ground.
Nevoc nodded his head, only to duck behind the fallen trunk as more enemy fire struck its face. John turned to Daniel and the others, motioning for the walls ahead.
"I need cover fire," he ordered. He sighted Elsie further back the way they had come, this time crouched amongst the brush at the tree line. She mounted the Barrett in the crook where a smaller branch came away from the tree at her left, before she peered down the scope of the rifle and fired. The round glanced off of the shield protecting one of the gun emplacements, causing it to flare brightly but otherwise remain in place.
Aithris reloaded his SCAR-H with a quick, experienced hand before he shouldered the weapon again and leaned just past the boulder before him. Daniel and Natalia rose to a crouch and opened fire at the soldiers upon the walls. John motioned for Nevoc to move their way, before he followed suit with Daniel and Natalia and opened fire with his M4.
Nevoc moved in a crouch towards them. Warriors charged all around, and some had reached the base of the wall. They were out of the line of fire of the gun emplacements, yet there was little they could do down there without the proper equipment. The city gates had taken a beating, yet at some point the Calsharans had placed an energy shield over them to further reinforce what was the most prominent weak point in the walls. Death gliders and Calsharan fighters darted about high above, exchanging fire in a chaotic dogfight. They would be little help, so preoccupied as they were. The troops on the ground would have to fight this battle themselves.
John ducked as soon as his carbine was empty. More blue plasma bolts blasted the dirt ahead of him. Behind him, Nevoc was running up the hill. He came upon a tree stump further left of Aithris' position, yet before he could do much else a volley of plasma fire tore his way. He ducked, splinters of wood flying all around as they struck the rotting, mossy tree stump. And suddenly, with a sickening abruptness, one of those bolts struck the top of his head and sent him falling into a lifeless heap. The plasma launcher was still strapped to his back, except now it was lying in a more exposed position.
"Aithris!" John called, and the Nomad turned to him, gave him a single nod, before he slung his own rifle about his shoulder. Natalia and Daniel opened fire again on the defenders upon the wall's top, now reduced with one of the gun emplacements gone. Aithris ran from cover and closed the short distance between him and the fallen Jaffa, doing so with a quickness no human could hope to match. He dived for Nevoc's body, before he fought with the strap keeping the launcher stuck to the dead Jaffa. With a huff, he pulled his combat knife and sliced the strap free, only to throw himself to the ground again as plasma fire tore into the dirt ahead of him. Some of the shots cut into the already dead Jaffa, and Aithris lay still behind the corpse with his eyes narrowed in a grimace. He had the launcher in hand, now he simply had to find an opportunity to use it.
"Aith!" Natalia called, seeing the Nomad's predicament. She sounded genuinely panicked, but the Nomad offered her a curt wave to show that he was all right. He had to keep low, but further fire from some of the nearby Jaffa caused the gun operator on the walls to shift his attention. Aithris, who had seen a demonstration of one of the guided plasma launchers in use, shouldered the weapon and activated its on-board computer.
He had to expose himself to fire it, and he did so carefully, pushing himself upon his knees slowly and only as far as was necessary to get a shot on the gun emplacement ahead. He had switched off the lock-on system, and so 'dumb fired' the weapon. As such, he did not need to wait for the weapon to lock-on; he simply put his finger to the trigger and pulled. A crackling bolt of blue energy darted forth, vapour trail thinning out quickly behind it. The swirling ball of energy struck the top of the wall right below the gun turret, and the entire weapon was enveloped in a flash of searing blue flame. Part of the wall gave way below it, masonry debris crumbling forth, smoke and dust blossoming outwards to envelop much of the approach ahead. Several Calsharan soldiers atop the wall were taken out by the blast, with more than a few simply being vaporised in the explosion.
A gaping hole was left in the wall ahead, opening the way onto the narrow, winding lanes that were the streets of the capital. Even before the dust had settled, warriors were storming through. The third gun emplacement had gone quiet as well, its operators moving to engage the Jaffa storming through the breach. Amongst the haze appeared Bra'tac, leading warriors into the charge. On Earth, the first soldiers to go through a breach in the old days of warfare were often known as a 'Forlorn Hope'. That was mostly down to the fact that so few would survive as part of the first wave. In this case, Bra'tac and his men surged through the breach cheering, and even as they met the first of the Calsharan defenders beyond the wall they kept up their battle cries.
A Calsharan soldier, that is the rank-and-file regular, was usually fitted in a set of black armour comprised of plating made from an alloy that was effective at absorbing not only ballistic weapons, but even some of the less powerful energy weapons as well. Those they could see beyond the breach was outfitted as such, although some had discarded their helmets or simply wore small visors that no doubt offered some form of heads-up display. Through their many interactions with the Calsharans, it had become apparent that these aliens had many different kinds of soldier at their disposal, with many branches and many specialised units that came with their own standard-issue equipment. From what Daniel could tell, they faced the regular ground infantry here, with a smattering of officers throughout their ranks. Of course, even if they were not 'specialised', they were certainly dangerous and, by and large, their weapons and armour was much superior to that of what the Jaffa had at their disposal. It was no wonder that the occupation had dragged on as long as it had, with the tide only turning once reinforcements from the rest of the Free Jaffa Nation had arrived in force.
Aithris put aside the plasma launcher and rose to his feet. John signalled the team ahead, and they moved in after the dozens of warriors who had gone charging ahead. A Calsharan soldier lay wounded just beyond the debris at the base of the breach; a Jaffa warrior shot him point blank with a staff weapon to end his cries, leaving little of his head but a charred, ragged stump. The houses beyond the wall were mostly two or three storey homes, mainly tightly packed narrow townhouses that made for dangerous vantage points for anyone attacking through the paved lanes that ran between them. More than a few Calsharan soldiers appeared at windows, weapons blazing. John ducked behind a column at the front of one such home as an enemy soldier let off a volley of plasma rifle fire in his direction, bolts scoring the stone pavement near his feet. It was Elsie who sent this gunman falling, his Barrett rifle thumping once and the Calsharan in question disappearing below the window with a gaping hole torn through his neck.
Fires burned about the city. Some of the civilians had taken up the fight, utilising whatever they could to attack the Calsharan occupiers. The warriors ahead came upon a main street that, further uphill, opened onto a plaza that contained a market. That market was mostly empty, the stalls in place but no goods on offer. One of the older and more important buildings was at the other end of the plaza, comprised of thick stone columns and intricately detailed arches. It had been a place of worship once; now much of it was a rubble-strewn wreck, columns fallen and part of its roof having collapsed under a barrage from above. The Calsharans had parked a stout and scuffed armoured vehicle in front of it, and the gun turret upon that vehicle opened fire as soon as the warriors started coming up the main road.
John directed the team to scatter amongst the market, the warriors around them doing similar. The Jaffa did not work on any real direction now, and instead simply pushed against the Calsharan positions. That meant an uphill battle all the way to the Great Temple, as that was situated much further up the hillslope in a place from which it could overlook the whole city. John and the others knew the way, for they had been there many months ago to rescue Teal'c. Now they would face a similar fight, with the entire Calsharan garrison working to stop them.
More breaches were made in the city walls and the shield protecting the gate dissipated. Jaffa were storming the capital from all sides now, joined by citizens armed with a mix of blades and clubs and the odd staff weapon.
John kept crouched behind the fountain in the centre of the plaza, the armoured transport's gun ripping into the market around him. More of the Jaffa were cut down, whilst staff weapon blasts glanced off of the transport's hull.
The transport itself had no infantry support. It was a well-known from wars on Earth that armour without infantry support in an urban environment was very vulnerable, regardless of how thick its plating was or its armaments. John peered about the fountain, trying to think of a way to approach the armoured transport, yet he need not have worried for Teal'c and two other Jaffa were already on its flank. Teal'c wore a somewhat dirtied beige robe now, and he clambered upon the transport with a small copper-toned sphere in one hand. He put it upon the vehicle's top-most hatch, jumped aside and ducked as the Jaffa grenade went off. The hatch was blasted away, a flash of yellow flame following it. And then the other two warriors with him took position at the vehicle's rear, where the back door opened and a pair of stunned Calsharan soldiers stumbled out. Both of the Jaffa cut them down with their staff weapons without mercy, and another cheer sounded amongst the warriors scattered nearby once this latest obstacle was removed.
"To the Temple!" Bra'tac called, and he stood at the front of the battle line with his staff weapon raised. John had to hand it to the man, he was the kind of leader one would follow into hell itself. And given the other enemy that had made itself known on the likes of Bedrosia and other far-flung worlds, John got the impression that hell itself could very well become a destination later down the line.
The Jaffa were rampaging through the city now. There was to be no mercy for the Calsharan occupiers, and any who were found were promptly blasted down, to the point that the defenders fell into a retreat back to the Great Temple. Few Calsharans attempted surrender, and Natalia got the impression that the Jaffa would not take prisoners anyway. It was a level of viciousness she had not seen before, and it startled her, even as someone who had fought and killed in the past. Even the city's inhabitants were getting in on the fight, and as she and the rest of the team made their way along the winding main road for the temple, a window ahead shattered. It was about three floors up, and a Calsharan officer came falling out, landing in a broken and bloodied heap upon the stone pavement whilst a triumphant-looking Jaffa woman stuck her head out of the window opening, her gaze going down to the broken body of her oppressor.
The team moved steadily, even if the Jaffa around them were far too caught up in their battle-rage that they simply charged on ahead. The Great Temple lay further along, tall and stalwart against the backdrop of the battle and the fires that raged throughout the city. Calsharan soldiers lined the ramparts and were positioned at windows and upon rooftops at the Temple itself, and the first of the Jaffa to reach its perimeter quickly found themselves under a withering hail of fire.
Natalia's father had been in the Russian Army and he had even fought in Afghanistan during the 1980s. He had told her of what that fight had been like, how the locals had been so determined to see the occupying forces out of their country that they had been more than willing to sacrifice themselves. It had been a long fight and, in the end, the war had gained her home country little but dead sons and brothers and husbands, not to mention economic strife. She thought she saw something similar here and now, with the Jaffa so determined to see the Calsharans off of their planet that they had practically cast aside their own self-preservation. They fought with a bloodlust that unnerved her, even if she could understand why they were so angered. And now many of those Jaffa converged upon the Great Temple, a place she could remember all too well from her last visit to Chulak.
The team stopped at one of the barricades the defenders had placed along the road some ways before the temple. The walls that ran about the temple's perimeter were still about forty metres ahead, and even after that there were some narrow streets winding amongst tightly packed houses that served as residences for those who worked in the temple. John signalled the team to stay low, no doubt considering their next course of action.
Before he had a chance to say anything, a thunderous rumble sounded from somewhere further back the way they had come. The ground shook underfoot, and a loud crash erupted from some distant part of the city. Looking back, Natalia saw the large stone structure they had passed by earlier being swallowed up by a brilliant spout of flame, dust and debris showering the area around it. Much of the plaza before it also went up in smoke, and further explosions rocked the city at various points. Clusters of townhouses were swallowed up, the charges razing entire blocks. Screams and shouts could be heard echoing from about the affected areas amongst the racket caused by the detonations and the collapses that followed. A row of buildings further back down the very road the team was on exploded suddenly, the concussive shockwave enough to buffet the group, kicking up dust from the road itself. Windows shattered all around and warriors nearby stumbled. Thick spouts of smoke poured from the affected districts.
Daniel, crouched behind the barricade, turned towards the destruction as did the others. He adjusted his glasses, his shocked expression giving way to one of disbelief.
"They're razing the city," he muttered. John frowned, watching the city below as another charge went off in a distant corner. An entire cluster of houses were swallowed up into the crater that opened beneath them, no doubt taking dozens of civilians with them as well.
"Looks like the Governor's a sore loser," he spat, disgust lacing his voice.
The Jaffa might very well claim the city, but they would be saddled with a massive reconstruction. Not to mention the sheer death toll, which would have been significant. Some of the nearby Jaffa appeared shocked, angered even. For a moment there, a lull had fallen over the fighting at the temple's perimeter. Even the Calsharan soldiers defending the Great Temple had seemed surprised, although the lull was fleeting and within moments the shooting started again. Now the Calsharans seemed to fight with increased ferocity, knowing full well that there would be no mercy for them if the Jaffa broke into the temple grounds. It did not take much more for that to occur, as this latest development seemed to drive the Jaffa assault into an all-out charge. Warriors were cut down, yet plenty more poured through the front gates of the temple and into the narrow lanes beyond. John and the team followed, weaving their way through the familiar narrow lanes and towards the temple itself.
The Calsharan defenders were on the ropes now, falling back into the temple itself. The team found Bra'tac, Teal'c and a group of warriors at the main entrance of the Great Temple. They stood off to the sides of the large double doors, whilst plasma fire cut through the timber and sent charred splinters of wood flying. Here, the team stopped, joining Bra'tac and Teal'c for what was to be the last push inside.
"They will pay for what they have done here today," Bra'tac said. He was bleeding from a small cut on his forehead, and his armour was dirtied and scuffed in places. Teal'c had shed his robe, leaving him in an Earth-made combat vest and SG-team cargo pants. His staff weapon was gone, and he had his MP7 submachine gun held at the ready. He gave John a curt nod as he approached. Beyond the double doors was the main hall, apparently crawling with enemy soldiers.
Natalia checked her rifle, before she looked to Aithris. His left sleeve was stained with blood and she went to say something, but the Nomad met her gaze and shook his head.
"It's just a cut, Natalia," he told her. "I'll be fine."
"You better," she muttered. One of the Jaffa nearby moved for the centre of the double doors, keeping low as the sporadic plasma fire cut through it above him. He stuck a block of C4 plastic explosive to the centre of the door, presumably part of the stocks sent to the Jaffa by the SGC over the past few months to assist them in their fight. Natalia had always found it odd how much the Jaffa had embraced Earth-made weapons, but she supposed they were the type of people who would embrace anything that made killing their enemies easier.
"Stand clear," Bra'tac ordered, and the group moved to either side of the door. The charge detonated with a crash, obliterating the ancient and heavy banded iron doors. Smoke filled the opening and the cries of wounded enemy soldiers beyond it became apparent. Bra'tac once again lead the charge, and Natalia was impressed with the way the old man seemed able to avoid every shot directed at him.
The hall beyond was large, with a high ceiling. Ancient Greek-styled columns and arches, intricately detailed with Goa'uld-themed designs, flanked them on both sides. A holdover from the time when the System Lord Cronus had ruled Chulak.
A corridor ahead went on towards the dining hall and living quarters. The Calsharans had hung flags at either side, their colours on full display for any visitors. The defenders within had scattered barricades throughout, felling statues and erecting metal barriers to provide cover. The Jaffa ran into the hall, lit up as it was by the sunlight that streamed in through the carefully placed skylights and the odd Calsharan-made light fitting. Natalia moved in with the rest of her team, plasma bolts zipping by as they spread out through the hall and opened fire upon the enemies ahead.
Natalia sent one Calsharan falling as she charged in. She hit the floor and allowed herself to slide some way before coming to a stop behind a fallen statue.
Plasma bolts and staff weapon blasts crisscrossed the hall ahead, bursts of fire and smoke erupting from each impact. Ballistic weapons rattled amongst the chaos. Elsie had slung her rifle aside and had pulled out a short pump-action shotgun instead. She blasted one Calsharan soldier with it, who had appeared from behind a column at her left. The soldier stumbled, his armour absorbing the brunt of the impact, before Elsie followed it with another shot that took away much of that soldier's face and sent his now lifeless body crumpling into a heap.
Natalia looked to John, who had crouched a few metres off to her left. Aithris was off to her right, and he had scaled the nearby column with the kind of agility only an enhanced Nomad could muster. Now he was upon the walkway above, and from there he laid into the Calsharan positions, downing one of their soldiers and sending a few others scattering. Natalia could not help but worry over him, but for the moment she put those thoughts aside and instead focused on how she might push the assault forwards.
The Calsharans were being forced further and further back, had been since the battle had started. This city was their last bastion on Chulak, and even now it seemed their will was not entirely in the fight. A civil war tore apart their empire, and many of those soldiers present on Chulak may very well have divided loyalties. It was no wonder, then, that the Calsharans had abandoned other worlds they had occupied. And yet, they remained on Chulak, presumably a result of their General and his desire for glory. It seemed wasteful, as was blowing up parts of the city in what Natalia would wager was the equivalent of a chess player sweeping all the pieces aside when defeat was imminent.
Aithris ducked behind the balustrade wall to reload, and as he did so a Calsharan soldier appeared in the doorway ahead of him along the walkway. Aithris slung the rifle aside and pulled his pistol, working the trigger quickly and sending a volley into the charging soldier. This one seemed intent on closing the distance, and within seconds he was grappling with the soldier, the pistol caught between them. Aithris' eyes narrowed with a look of exertion and deep determination, and suddenly he had swept one leg between the Calsharan's own, causing him to lose his balance. His opponent fell against the waist-high barrier at their left and Aithris, his gun-wielding hand now free, pressed the pistol against the Calsharan's head and fired. The soldier fell limp in his grasp, and with a shove Aithris threw the body over the barrier so that it fell hard upon the floor of the hall below.
The Nomad shoved his SIG-model pistol back into his waist holster and slammed a fresh magazine home into his rifle. He then started onwards, headed for the door from where the soldier had emerged. Natalia had been distracted with her own fight during Aithris' one, and so looked up then to see the Nomad disappear through an open doorway on the floor above. She frowned, feeling that deep worry for him again, but she was quickly brought back to her own problems by the plasma fire that scorched the top of the barricade near her head. She felt a few flecks of searing metal prick her cheek, and she rubbed at the affected area with a frown.
Another of the Calsharan defenders fell. The Jaffa attackers surged forwards, and a warrior passed by Natalia's right, only to crumple as a pair of plasma bolts slammed into his front. His traditional grey Jaffa armour did little to stop the bolts, and Natalia returned fire in response, aiming for the soldier further down who had fired the shots. She sent the Calsharan darting back into cover, bullets striking his black armour suit but otherwise failing to penetrate. It either took some carefully placed shots or concentrated fire to bring down a Calsharan, unless one was using one of their own plasma weapons. And even then, most of their weapons were fitted with 'lockout' devices that prevented any non-Calsharan from being able to fire them. To deactivate that took time and technical knowledge, something that was not immediately available in the current situation.
Below, the Jaffa and the rest of the team had scattered the few remaining defenders. Their path to the people in charge here was beginning to clear up, and as Natalia moved with the others, she reckoned that the Jaffa were going to have more than a few contentious questions to ask of the General and his cohorts.