After a day to get re-acclimatized with their old workplace, HITMAN-3 had started their new days on the job a little more refreshed. Lelei and Tuka both watched as the Marines all finally got back into their gear, with Richard and Lieutenant Torres boarding Itami's vehicle as per usual. Itami himself was a bit busy, what with miss Mercury being a bit miffed she didn't get to kill anything for the past few days.
It was moments later that FOB Alnus was behind them, the crew first rolling toward Italica in order to receive their resupply from their comrades in arms there. A tune played over the stereo that the soldiers had brought aboard, with Shino tapping her feet and tilting her head jovially as she listened to it. Tyuule herself sat, wearing a smile and cradling her MA40.
"Did you guys hear they already swept all the way North with the pushes?" Kurata inquired, shifting his Howa rifle onto his shoulder while he looked back at the others. He continued, "UN and UNSC are about done encircling the capital, but word is they got a few problems along the way with the Innies, so we're kinda just… There as support."
"Better to just be support," Richard nodded, "Beats being the Front-line and getting shot at all the time, honestly."
"Do you not like the thrill of battle anymore, Lieutenant?" Rory teased, smirking. He shot a glance back, to which she said, "I jest. I understand humanity's proclivities for peace. I was one of you myself nine hundred years ago, after all. Alas, let's not get complacent. The enemy may seem like they are on the brink of defeat, but…"
"The warnings the Princess gave us before she departed for the Capital ain't exactly the most pleasant," Torres replied as he looked out of the window. Rotor-blades chopped-chopped-chopped, three Apache gunships flying above the convoy, strapped with Hellfire missiles and loaded for bear. Seemed like the situation was still plenty hot at the front, though.
A new enemy general, combined with what the Ukrainians, Ivanov and the others had mentioned about two new Apostles arriving to challenge both sides meant things were moving fast now. It also meant that the UNSc and UN now had to work even more closely together, which would probably be a little tough, seeing as a few of Pomorenka's subordinates and the Chinese had basically put a hit on the gang.
As they rolled into Italica, they were rather surprised to see just how much the local area had developed into a supply hub for the UNSC and the UN. Both sides had arranged their specific areas to house their specific troops, including shielded fuel tanks, SHORAD, MRAD and LRAD systems. It was less a display of force and more a properly arrayed defense with no chinks.
Sure, they weren't facing any massive enemy force, just hostile rebels and a medieval army, but the display of might and cooperation between the two sides was something awesome to behold. They felt as much when they rolled past a Tunguska whose crew waved at them, then snorted as they saw the American gunships overhead swing in for landing.
As the vehicles entered Italica's now more open streets, they caught sight of a market where the troops stationed in the area were buying produce. Dismounting from their trucks, the Lieutenants turned to face everyone, with Richard starting, "We're gonna go get our exact mission from General Mattis, folks. Y'all gather supplies."
"Sirs!" The group chorused, smiling.
The three men departed, disappearing amidst the crowds of NATO, UN and UNSC troops, with Tyuule tapping a finger against the hilt of her own blade and smiling. She yelped as she felt a pair of hands wrap around her neck, then looked back as she heard, "What's up, Your Highness!" with a mirthful laugh echoing.
"Delilah," Snorted Tyuule. She breathed a sigh of relief, then said, "We just arrived."
"Perfect timing, then," The woman replied. She snapped a salute to everyone and asked, "Permission to tag back in?" while looking at the others. Lelei, Tuka and Rory gave their approval with nods of their heads, while Shino, Kurata, the rest of the SDF crew and the Marines and UNSC gave thumbs up almost in unison.
Tyuule looked back and smirked, then said, "Welcome back aboard HITMAN-3. Pack your bags and report to the trucks, we're going to be moving out within the next hour or so," before they saluted each-other again. Delilah walked away with some spring in her step toward her bunk area, where two other platoons of Whiskey Bravos were.
Tuka spoke, "I might attempt to seek out my father here, if that is fine with everyone. Doctor Halsey told me he and the rest of my village moved here to assist in mapping nearby forests, so I'd like to join him…"
"Be our guest," Tyuule nodded. She started leading the way, with Shino not far behind. She then asked, "So, Sergeant Kuribayashi? I don't suppose you've had a chance to ask for an autograph from the Arbiter, have you?" with a smirk, while Kurata and the others let out chuckles.
"Nope, but soon, maybe!" She beamed, remembering now that she had, in fact, met another of her heroes. Overhead, the hum of antigravity engines yet again droned and the squad craned their heads up. Three Phantoms belonging to the Swords of Sangheilios gently touched down at nearby landing pads and deployed Grunts, two pairs of Hunters and a squad of Elites led by one very familiar half-jaw.
"Please, don't faint again," Kurokawa requested as she saw Shino's eyes light up again, then looked at the hulking Hunters as they descended with their wards. Multiple times the size of even average soldiers, it seemed as though the Hunters had been deployed as a sort of honor guard for Shipmaster Rtas 'Vadum, the white-clad Sangheili who missed two of his four mandibles.
The Elite officer noticed Hitman-3 and put a balled fist up to his chest, bowing his head in greeting to them. Tyuule, Delilah and the others snapped crisp salutes, with Tomita stating, "And now we have aliens backing us up. You'd have thought the giant dragon would've been the craziest thing we see today…"
Ikari replied, "The Swords are pretty cool. Careful not to piss them off, though. Their bushido is a whole lot different to our own…" to that as she shifted her SRS-99 onto her back. The Elites and their escorting troops seemed to be marching toward the Palace of Italica, where the Command Center and the add-on research labs for the Italican artifacts had been set up.
The other Japanese staff laughed, while the UNSC Marine and her buddies chuckled a little at the quip. Rosie cast a glance at a nearby food stand, paused and plucked up an apple. She looked at the woman staffing it and saw she was an elderly beastwoman with cat features. Calmly, she pulled out a couple pieces of Gold she got off of a dead enemy soldier and handed them to her.
The woman, in her broken latin, beamed and started insisting that every man in the platoon take an apple. Confused, Rosie looked to Tyuule, who chuckled and told her, "She says each apple costs one copper a piece, since her orchard has had a very bountiful harvest this year. You just paid enough for the whole platoon to eat."
Rosie grinned, gave a thumbs up, then bit from the apple and visibly shivered, the sweet, honeyed taste overwhelming her for a moment. Mumbling, "Holy shit," she started handing the entire basket of apples out to the others and stating, "You have to fucking try this, guys and gals…" then tossing one to Tyuule and one to Delilah.
Tyuule looked to her fellow WB and whispered, "I see our platoons haven't changed much…"
"Heh," Delilah smiled, "No, they have not…" then she scratched her cheek. She told her, "By the way, Sarah is pining for a US Marine tank officer, so be wary of that if you see her and a man around," with a grin. Tyuule snorted, then nodded at Del, thanking her silently for raising awareness that another of her kin had fallen for a human male. Del, however, pressed a button by asking, "I also hear you and Dick finally did it… Nice work~."
That caused the Queen to grow flustered, her cheeks flush now.
… Rtas had to admit, humans remained a strange species to behold. Even after the near-decade since the War's End, he could never fully wrap his head around them. They were most certainly an intriguing species, still, but the fact that they'd added a whole new subgroup, a whole new subspecies, to their forces in the span of three years through nothing but kind words was stunning.
He had yet to properly meet any of these 'Warrior Bunnies', though going by the fact the flustered one had white hair and red eyes, it was safe to assume she was their Queen, per the description of various staff nearby, including Doctor Catherine Halsey. Alas, he was not quite here to meet her. No, he and his forces were here to coordinate with the UNSC and their UN allies, their predecessors historically, to know how to best combat the threat of the Sapien Sunrise.
Entering the palace and leaving his honor guard behind, Rtas pulled his cape over his right arm and his side, ensuring that he fully concealed his energy blade and plasma rifle, just in case someone were to misinterpret him as a threat. He was surprised to be greeted by more demi-humans, female maids with various animal traits, many of which smiled at him, though with a certain dangerous attitude hidden behind the kindness of their duty to serve the royalty here.
One of the maids, a cat-woman with glasses, bowed and said, "Apologies, Master, but do you seek someone in particular?" as she stepped in front of him.
The hunchback alien bowed his head, "I have been instructed to find General Mattis and the UNSC and UN staff here. I hope I am not causing your kin discomfort."
"Quite the contrary," She replied, smiling, "It isn't everyday we get to see a genuine, living, alien and sentient creature! In fact, I would say this marks a wonderful milestone," then she heard one of her fellow maids clear her throat. She winced, nodded and said, "If you would follow me to the Throne Room, Lady Myui, General Mattis and the other staff are meeting."
"My thanks," The Elite replied cordially. Walking through the strangely beautiful, large halls of the Palace, the man watched as the humans and their humanoid allies seemed to be getting along quite well. Some of the local soldiers, clad in plate armor and armed with old weapons with wood stocks, stood at attention by several doors.
The Head Maid, an elderly human woman, appeared from one of the doors and paused, letting out a gasp. She whispered, "A Dragonborn…?"
"Afraid not," Rtas spoke, then bowed his head, "Shipmaster Rtas 'Vadum, of the Sangheili. I am here to discuss the future operations we will be participating in," to which the woman grabbed the hem of her skirt and bowed her head. Wordlessly, she and the other maid showed him to follow and propped open the double doors to the throne room.
Sat in the corner, watching television, a young lady with ginger hair seemed enthralled. The adults, meanwhile, stood together in the middle of the room. The entire group turned to face him, with whom he believed to be general Mattis momentarily freezing at his sight. Though someone who did not freeze was the young girl, presumably lady Myui, who jumped to her feet and giddily ran up to the Sangheili… Then hugged his leg.
He looked down at the little human girl who barely reached his knee. She stared up at him with glimmering blue eyes and giddily bouncing as she said something about him that he didn't understand. Though confused, the Elite let out a hum and gently gave the girl a pat on her head, causing her to beam.
"Lil' Myui really knows how to make Tension go away, eh…?" Mattis joked, then turned to face Rtas and said, "You must be Shipmaster 'Vadum. Doc Halsey sent ahead about you getting here, so, welcome to join Forward Ops Base 'Italica'... Little miss currently hugging your leg is the queen of this former Imperial fiefdom."
"I see…" The Alien nodded, "A pleasure. Let us get to work, then."
Later on…
Sixty kilometers of travel later, HITMAN-3 had basically gone through the entire rearline of the joint task force currently trying to surround and choke out the Imperial Capital. Yet more allied aircraft flew above on bombing missions, CAS runs or scouting ops. Helicopters transporting fresh units and carrying out the wounded rotated to and fro.
"Lord almighty, they pushed far," Mumbled Itami as he held onto the wheel. They'd joined an advance convoy of units moving down the main highways across the outermost area of the Empire. To their right were tall mountains whose peaks were only visible past the cloud layer. To their left, hills and fields of crops and villages liberated by the allied task forces.
The convoy they were in was part of the Russian Contingent, a tactical group of four T80BVM Main Battle Tanks, six BMP-2s and a company's worth of infantry traveling on said BMP-2s. One of the T80s traversed its turret, the whir of the electric motors muffled by the truck. Shino watched the T80's gun track something, then yelped as it thundered. The tank rocked to the side and the HE-FRAG Shell arced in, detonating amidst a treeline.
The radio crackled to life, the Russian tank commander in charge stating rather quickly and calmly, "Moskva-3 to Hitman, apologies. Hostile targets appeared on Thermal with RPG Tubes. Had to deal with them before they shot at us." and they could hear cheering from the tank gunner and driver over the noises within the tank itself.
"Hitman copies," Richard spoke into the radio, slightly miffed and scratching his cheek, though thankful for his helmet's EARPRO, "If you could warn us ahead of time…" and he looked to the rest of the team. Delilah and Tyuule had managed to put on their own ear protection devices, but Kurata, Rory, Lelei and Tuka had been caught off-guard and were now covering their ears and repeatedly opening their mouths.
"They almost had us dead to rights. Looked like one of those stolen Jackhammer launchers the UNSC uses, too, so our Relikt would have been useless, blyadh."
"Heh," Torres snorted.
Richard smirked, "Sorry we make our gear too good, Moskva," and heard a laugh from the Ruskies over the com. He told them, "Good shooting. Keep us updated on whatever else you see. Hitman-3, out…" then he set the mic down and looked at Tuka. He asked the blonde elf, "How's your father doing, Tee!? Heard he's about to join our Scout units, too!"
"He is well!" She chuckled, trying to clean her ears, "And yes, the UN has been providing training to the Elves, Cait-Sith and a few other sentient Demi-Human species, too!" Then she clamped her nose and breathed really hard, before swallowing empty air. She let out a sigh of relief and mumbled, "Good to know that trick works…"
"I don't suppose the Russians would be keen on allowing me to understand how their weapons systems work, correct?" Lelei inquired, holding her staff close. The transports rumbled off the road now, following them into a wider field with beaten paths of dirt, while the others shook their heads. She sighed and said, "Oh, well."
As the transports reached the designated step-off point toward future scouting areas, they were greeted by two platoons of US Army and one of Romanian troops, holding position in the area of operations. The leading man of the combined unit, an American, waved the trucks down and showed the Russian troops to divvy up across the perimeter.
Dismounting from their trucks, the Lieutenants and Hitman-3 as a whole approached the man, weapons at the ready. He greeted them with nods and said, "HITMAN-3? Major Reynolds, US Army, 1st Armored. You folks came up just in time. We've got incoming according to the Wombat Drones overhead. Maybe one enemy Legion, plus armored backup."
The team's dismounts readied up, the armored vehicles already setting up into defensive positions, with Richard telling the man, "Don't worry, Major. We'll have this place locked down…" as he checked his rifle. Snipers set up in the trees, the riflemen dug quick foxholes and most of the tanks had dug their own hull-down positions, just in case. The T80s' turret motors whirred as they traversed.
Tyuule and Richard both jumped into the same foxhole next, aiming their weapons together, while Ikari, Ivanov and Stavrov stared with smirks on their faces, each in a different defensive position. They watched the enemy formation advancing toward the defensive positions. Why did the allied armies set up here, one might ask?
It was a crossroad of sorts, a checkpoint area where the two sides could help guide supplies to where they would be needed. With the mountains at their back, too, they would be safe from flanking attacks, meaning the only way the enemy could come at them was, much like right now, from the front. And a legion on horseback, charging alongside what few FAVs the enemy had was…
Well, pitiful. The Infantry basically took a backseat here. The tanks fired first, HEAT and HE-FRAG shells shattering the forward line of the enemy advance. The ka-thunk of ATGMs launching out of the tubes of the BMP-2Ms, followed by the snap-pop of motors igniting, shook some folks. A Stryker MGS fired its own gun at a stolen IFV of the enemy and basically turned it inside out.
The Cobras and Apaches overhead soon joined in, missiles and autocannons lighting up the area ahead. Return fire came in the form of Anti-Air missiles. Stingers and Igla systems captured from troops they managed to ambush along the way and retreat from after the air cover had been called in. 30mm fire rippled ahead and the soldiers could see the enemy basically vanish into nothingness.
Shino sighed and said, "Well, no fun for us, I guess…" though, deep down, she was glad they weren't gonna have to kill maybe more kids, more of Lelei's friends, even as the enemy fired and tracers arced into the heavens, narrowly missing the gunships that laid hell upon them. She shifted in her foxhole, hugged her rifle, then sighed deeply.
"Worried?" Rory asked from above, causing Shino to look up in pure surprise. The polearm-wielding lolita knelt in front of the girl and said, "I'm more disappointed. I've been itching for a good fight ever since those bastard mercenaries ran away from the Arbiter and his forces…" as she sat herself down in front of Shino.
"Yeah…" She replied, playing with a cartridge from her rifle.
Rory's expression, which showed just how annoyed she was, now softened a little, "Still facing nightmares of that young man?" before she climbed into the hole with the girl. Shino sighed and nodded, flicking the cartridge between her fingers, remembering the rounds she put into that kid. She pulled out the magazine she'd retrieved it from, slid the round back in, then leaned back, listening to their air cover laying into the Innies. Rory said, "I understand… Children being forced to fight and die for something they don't believe in. Emroy abhors such tactics, too…"
"Your God sure ain't taking a stance against it," Shino mumbled annoyed. She was probably gonna be on cleanup duty. Scraping the dead out of the field and whatnot. She sighed deeply, then looked at Rory, who stared back at her with seeming calm. She said, "Sorry. Considering the fact he hasn't brought down his wrath or something on us yet, I'm guessing he's cool."
"He is, I suppose," Rory chuckled dryly, then said, "He also chose to back out the moment the UNSC leveled a mountain three years ago, so…"
"They what-" Shino blanked. Rory snorted, amused at Shino's little pause, but the girl knew just how powerful UNSC gear was. They'd MACced a mountain to prove a point to Rory, then. Terrifying, honestly, but understandable if the 'God of War' threatened your people and the ones you defended after you came down peacefully… Right, 'child soldiers'.
The Spartans…
She sighed, wondering just how much of that part of the books was true. Doc Halsey had said that it was an inaccurate representation, if she recalled correctly, but who knew? Maybe she was covering her behind. Hell, the Spartans didn't much defend or deny the practice either when they went to the UN Assembly. Did they need to, though?
"You seem to really be in deep thought," Rory offered, "Do you wish for me to offer any advice, or should I remain quiet?"
"I'm just processing stuff again… About Halo being real and all," Shino shrugged, "It's great that I get to meet my heroes and all, hell, it's even funnier to know Sergeant-Major Avery J. Johnson decided to regale us with the admittedly-altered tale of how the Chief and his friends saved the Human Race," and she smiled a little, sad, "But that also implies a bunch of stuff that I… Probably shouldn't get into without Doc Halsey here."
"I see," Rory hummed, then asked, "When we return to base, may I read or see how these tales were represented by the Sergeant and those who worked at Bungie?"
"Sure," Shino nodded. She was a little surprised by what Rory had requested and also felt a little compelled to clarify, "Remember Doc Halsey said that some of the stuff in the books is inaccurate, so take it all with a grain of salt. The Sergeant-Major probably didn't know how the Spartans and stuff were made, so…"
Rory nodded, "Of course…" then she looked at Lelei, watching the girl reading through a tablet that a UNSC Marine had gifted her, while Tuka herself seemed to be training her archery skills. This place was their assigned 'patrol route', the area of the Main Supply Route they'd be advancing from and defending against enemy assaults.
She also paused, however, when she saw a new unit rolling up. With a strange black cross on the sides of their turrets, a platoon of soldiers clad in woodland camouflage, their IFVs and even a pair of weird, tiny light vehicles rolled forward. Most perplexing for Rory and Richard weren't the main battle tanks, the Leopard 2A6es of the German Bundeswehr.
It was the tiny tankettes. Tracked, tractor-like in appearance and lightly armored with sloped fronts, the 'Wiesel' 1A2s. Two of said combat vehicles were armed with light, fast-firing 20mm autocannons with what looked to be double feeding ports, while another two were armed with tube ATGM launchers, namely of the TOW variant.
"Wiesels…" Itami snorted.
Shino giggled, "Germany's gun tractors…" then she walked over toward the troop. She watched Richard shaking hands with the leading German soldier as the Leopards formed up with the US crews and the Marder IFV they'd come with disgorged an infantry platoon, asking one of the soldiers, "Did the Bundeswehr suddenly decide it was a good idea to send troops out?" in clear-cut German.
The man snorted at the Japanese accent, then replied, "UNSPECREG Phase 2 has approved the deployment of contingents from approximately three new NATO or NATO-allied nations to the Special Region. Expect South Korean and Italian military assets moving down the MSR to help enclose the pocket around the Capital. We would've normally stayed only with HUMAID, but General Staff wants us to gain some combat experience as the Wehr rebuilds."
"Fun," Shino grinned, noting the Flecktarn and heavily modernized G36 combat rifles. Nominally speaking, Germany was in a rough state militarily after 30 years of mismanagement since the fall of the Iron Curtain and their immediate downsizing, but their troops still wore the NATO badges they had with pride, clearly. Not to mention the SPECREG's emblems.
Though there were rumors that the Germans were rebuilding their military…
Well, the Ukrainians had also been deployed, so the Germans shouldn't have been a surprise. As night began to set, the crew could do little but watch the tracers dancing in the night. The sky above glowed with them and with the light of the stars. It was a strangely surreal, if beautiful sight, even as Apaches and Cobras continued to pound targets and as the radios sang to them.
A long night of waiting lay ahead for everyone there.