The noose had been tightened and the Empire choked. Any Imperial Forces and Insurrectionists left in the city had either gone underground or surrendered to the joint United Nations task force moving into the Saderan capital. Marines, VDV, US Army and NATO troops marched through the city's roads, sweeping the areas for IEDs and ambushes while lighter vehicles slowly rode on through, turrets on a swivel.
Overhead, Mi-28 Havocs and AH-64 Apaches flew alongside SDF Cobras, rotorblades chopping through the air as the troops advanced into town. A few Sangheili dropships moved in as well, scanning the rooftops with their turrets as the Elites deployed into the place. Advancing through the slums of the city with an ONI agent in tow, HITMAN-3 swept the area.
"These people propped open the doors for us when we started Operation Spearhead," The ONI Agent stated, looking at the kids around. Several crowded around him, smiles and laughter echoing as he handed them candy. He grinned and told Richard, "CIA, FSB and Chinese Intel, not to mention our boys, have basically dismantled any chance at resistance within various sectors of the city before you arrived through subterfuge, leaflets and a bunch of other shit."
"Psych Warfare really works, huh?" Torres spoke as he looked around at the slums. He saw some of the people present, kids included, staring at them with fear in their eyes. He smiled at them, stowing his rifle on his back, then looked ahead at the rest of the team. His Marines swept the rooftops with their guns, while Richard's troops kept their eyes on doors and windows and Itami's team was scanning through the alleys.
The Humvee behind them, its Mark 19 pointed at the sky, simply enjoyed the ride through the town. 'Enjoyed' meaning the gunner was handing out food, MREs and Candy. Hearts and minds still applied here, especially to people living beneath the two mountains that made up the upper echelons of the city:The rich peoples' quarters and the Palace and Senate.
The Senate building was visible from the street level, a domed structure with supporting marble columns. The palace was not far behind it, an imposing structure mixing gold and other construction materiel to match itself to Roman architecture, marble included. Temples resided in a nearby district, each presumably dedicated to one of the Gods of the place.
Tyuule spoke, "Indeed. Though it's quite easy to sway the poor and tired to one's side," as she looked at the people around. A Warrior Bunny Battalion had also been deployed with them to the city. They were the second unit in line, escorting Humvees, Warthogs and trucks full of supplies. When she saw people were looking at her, Tyuule chuckled and said, "Offer them a better deal than the current Overlord."
"Fair," Itami smiled as they walked. Rory chuckled a little at the little nugget of wisdom, only to note that people stared at her, too. She offered them kindness in the form of a smile and a wave, before casting a glance toward Emroy's temple. He looked at her and asked, "Looking to go visit your Patron soon?"
"Normally, yes, though I think it best if I do it with Blue Team. The Spartans can boast to him about defeating a fellow Apostle," She replied jokingly. She then added, "Were it not for me spending so much time with the UNSC, I would've thought them Apostles of their Sky Gods, too. Thankfully, we needed not meet on the field of battle."
"Heh. Ain't that the truth," Rosie chuckled, "You were about to cut Halsey's head off because she mouthed off to ya."
"I'll have you know, Sergeant, I can control my temper quite well," The woman offered, then mumbled, "And she made quite the persuasive argument in regards to not starting conflict through the use of one MAC round," and that got a few of the UNSC personnel and Warrior Bunnies to laugh. The SDF and US Troops laughed, too.
As the vehicles pulled up to the square of this district, Medical staff, Marines and more aid personnel dismounted, carrying medical supplies for the injured and food and water for the locals. The Outreach Program here could, thankfully for the ONI agents, finally begin in full. The ONI agent they were escorting met the staff of the FSB, CIA and ChiCom intel in the middle.
As the crews set up, Nanami sought to find her sis for a chat off the record. She could tell her apart from all the SDF guys and gals in a heartbeat, so she found her quite easily. She was staring at an alley, hand clasping her rifle loosely as it hanged by the strap around her shoulder. The younger Kuribayashi sister approached, then paused as she saw that Shino was… Pale…
Shino, to her credit, was keeping it steady. She was watching a few kids playing close to the square with what looked like a mockup of an early football made of leather. They wore no shoes and their ragged clothes and dirty faces marked them as local beggars that'd finally gotten a break. One of them had Elf ears and dark skin, too.
Her mind raced. It locked onto the kids, then remembered that one boy she had had to shoot and her hand was now trembling on the grip of her rifle. She looked down to make sure she'd set it to safe, then moved her hand away when it was confirmed she did. She didn't want an accidental trigger pull to either hit her in the foot, or…
She yelped as she felt a hand clasp her soldier and swiveled about, hand immediately wrapping around the grip of her pistol. Nanami raised her hands and yelled, "Shino, Shino! It's me!" as the brown-haired SDF soldier stared at her. The woman swallowed empty, moving her hand away from her pistol and turning away to rub her eyes, to which Nanami said, "I'm sorry! I didn't… You don't usually scare easily!"
"Yeah, well," Shino sighed deeply, then put her hands on her hips and offered a kind, if strained smile to her sister, "Was lost in my head again. Sorry for scarin' ya, Nana…" and, immediately, Nanami could tell something was wrong with Shino. She never usually apologized that fast for anything, even when they were kids or she was forced by dad.
"I-It's okay… Sorry I startled you, too…" Nanami spoke, then looked past her at the kids, remembering their previous chat. She asked, "D-Do you want to talk about it?" only to see Shino looking at the children again. Her older sister let out a deep, long sigh, then shook her head and offered her a smile. Though not as strained as the last one, it was still a means to hide something.
That felt more like Shino. The girl never talked about her problems… And Nanami never really tried to press on them either. She nodded and said, "O-Okay… If you do wanna talk, though, tell me and we'll find a nice place to do so-" before both of them heard Kaylee call out Nanami's name. Shino smiled and nodded reassuringly at her sis, then gave her a pat on the shoulder and let her off.
Letting out a grumble, the girl wiped her face with her gloved hands and whispered, "God, I hope she never has to see an ambush…"
"You know," A smoother, calm female voice echoed. She turned about and saw the black-haired Mari approaching with a reassuring smile. She said to the girl, "You really should talk about your problems. I know you won't do it with me or anyone in the squad, but your sister should be fine," only to see Shino frown. She asked, "Is this about the boy?"
"Yeah. Of course it is," Shino mumbled, "Doc… I…"
"I know, Shino," Mari spoke walking over to her and placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "You don't need to apologize for being this way. Nobody would be fine mentally after having to pull the trigger on somebody as young as that boy. Even telling Nanami doesn't do it justice. You're worried for her…"
"I've been fine so far," The girl mumbled, "Why now? Hell, I even told Nanami about it…"
"Because there's a higher likelihood of encountering more young men and women dragged from Rondel grows the deeper we drive into the Empire," Kurokawa replied as she shifted her own rifle onto her back. She put both hands on Shino's shoulders and said, "You're probably worried if you could pull the trigger again. Especially in front of her."
Shino scoffed, then sighed and nodded, "Guess so…" before grabbing her weapon and stating, "Let's just get back on patrol, doc. I don't wanna think about it too much," as they began to walk. She hummed, then asked, "How's Sergeant Tomita, by the way?" only to get a seemingly jovial Mari's smile. Shino sighed, relieved, then smiled a little, too.
The ONI Agent watched a blonde woman with angel's wings and clad in lingerie approaching. He greeted with a, "Salve," and a smile. She smiled and nodded in greeting, too, then took a puff of what looked like a pipe with some very powerful herbs within. He looked at Itami, Richard and Henry and said, "Gentlemen, this is Misari, the local chief escort and head of our snitches. Missy, these are Lieutenants Samuels of the UNSC marines, Torres of the US and Itami, JSDF."
"Good afternoon," She greeted in perfect English, holding her pipe in one hand. She added, "Amazing to see so many militaries united into one group just to take this pitiful Empire down a few pegs," with a smile, "They really must have angered all of you if the wounds I've seen on some of the Imperial soldiers returning here for recreation were anything to go by."
"You haven't the foggiest," Torres joked as he looked around, a bit concerned about possible snipers. He knew they had the area secure, though, and with additional defensive units entering the city, there was really no reason to worry about anything. He spoke, "I suppose having the Ladies of the Night as eyes and ears is…"
The ONI agent completed, "A fairly lucrative bit of business. We also provide the girls with necessary medical care in our clinics and they get out there and do the job. Get us info in the meantime for everything, too,"
The woman spoke, "It pays well."
"Damn, you girls got free dental, too?" Joked Shino. The others laughed, while Kaylee and Nanami were filming the place. The woman chuckled, too, then waved it off and looked at the Lieutenants. Shino, however, approached them and said, "Sorry to interrupt the ogling, sirs, but we have a new contact coming in, North."
The group turned their heads and saw a familiar curly-haired blonde approaching, a smile on her pretty face and armor on her frame gleaming gold and pearly white. She greeted, "Lieutenants Richard, Henry and Youji. Apologies for the intrusion, but I have orders from Her Highness to bring you all to the Palace while we wait for Doctor Halsey and General Mattis."
"The Princess wants us up there?" Richard asked, "Why?"
"And Lady Tyuule, as well," The woman replied, tilting her head toward Tyuule. She added, "It is really more her father's request. He asked to speak to the men that ensured his daughter's safety on the trip through the Gate and to Earth," before she looked around. She asked, "Uhm… Is… Sergeant Tomita here?" with a slight blush.
"He got injured when we were taking the city," Tyuule spoke, "He's currently being treated back in Italica," and she looked at the boys. The three of them nodded and ordered the squads to board the vehicles, head upstairs. They got approval over radio and went on, riding through from narrow streets out into the wider boulevards of the middle class and even wider ones of the high class, through to the Citadel.
Three gates passed through later with the security detail of the UNSC and UN sweeping the areas ahead, the teams moved uphill. From there, they could see distant battles still ongoing, tracers being exchanged at the outskirts of the city. Radio chatter reported about Innie troops trying to pull out from the cordon and two Mi-28 Havocs went on to reinforce, their unguided rockets striking targets the moment they were in visual range.
Across the city, smoke still rose high into the sky, but overall combat had pretty much ceased completely. Mostly because the highest-ranking of the officer cadre that was willing to resist an encirclement and siege that would starve them had fled the Empire's capital, probably with plans to take it back.
As they arrived at the Palace's walls, the teams dismounted and secured a perimeter with all available reinforcing elements, including the WB Battalion. Torres spoke, "Y'know, there's something strange about this whole shebang," and he slung his rifle onto his back, "Why just give up the city? They had proper defensive positions here. Could've bled us pretty good. Hell, they did while we were out."
"Besieging a city is less fun for the besieged," Tyuule spoke as they walked toward the Palace. She continued, "We would have starved them out of here and they knew that, so, they chose to do the sensible thing and withdraw to more tactically advantageous positions in the Deserts and the Northern Mountain Ranges. Guerrilla warfare. Spread the enemy thin and pick them off."
"Innie playbook," Dick quipped, "Sucks to be on the receiving end always…"
"I bet," Torres murmured, images of Afghan flashing in his mind. The Palace itself was as imposing as the mountain it was built on, a tall structure, beautiful, ornate and sprawling. As the team entered under Bozes's escort, the team was met by the rest of the Rose Knights, an entire battalion of well-equipped young women. They were on each side of the red carpet, with the two at the end bearing the Rose Knight banners in their arms.
They brought their fists up to their chests in salute as the group walked in, the team making sure the area was secured with their weapons at the ready. The place was massive, alright, their footsteps thundering against the marble floor and echoing across the massive arched hallways. The moment they passed by the banner-holders, the Knights formed up as an escort behind the soldiers and Lieutenants.
Servants greeted the people, bowing their heads the same way the maids in Italica did, showing the proper respect for house guests of the Imperial Royal Family. And first to meet the group was not Princess Piña, but rather an orange-haired young man clad in a dapper uniform with a cape over his left shoulder and a sword sheathed on his right.
He spoke, "Ah, Bozes. I see you brought our guests over," calm and relaxed. He looked at the three Lieutenants and spoke, "And you three gentlemen must be the ones who escorted her and Piña across the Holy Gate. Greetings. I am Diabo El Caesar, second son to Emperor Molt Sol Augustus and brother to Piña and, disappointingly enough, Zorzal."
"Your Highness," Richard greeted with a respectful nod.
Torres added, "It's good to know Zorzal's a freakin' outlier in terms of Imperial Royalty."
"Father's first pick for heir," Sighed Diabo, "Not his most inspired choice, but then again, even great men make mistakes," only to look at Bozes as the young woman stared at him with impassivity. He nodded and told her, "I merely came to say hello, Bozes. No need to glare at me. I will leave you all to meet Father and the Princess…"
"Alright," The Lieutenants all said in unison, watching the man depart. Torres mumbled, "High School jock douche, anyone?" which garnered a few quiet laughs and a lot of confused looks from the Rose Knights. The group advanced on toward the main hall of the Palace, only to find the sight of the ornate, stained glass windows, the rising pillars and the Royal Guards stifling laughs as Piña and Molt argued about something.
Shino whispered, "Seems like we caught daddy dearest and his sole daughter at a bad time," as the group stepped forward. Bozes called out in their language, which the translators picked up, obviously, and the two Royals ahead both turned to face their guests. Molt, elderly a man as he was, perked up at the sight of their new occupiers.
The Princess smiled a little, then looked at her father. She began, "By grace of Emperor Molt Sol Augustus of the Empire of Sadera, I thank you for agreeing to come to us as Humanity's first representatives from both beyond the Gate and from Above. I'm certain my father is glad to see no more bloodshed has to occur on our doorstep."
"Hm…" Molt hummed, then stood up and said, "Indeed…" as he descended down the steps. His Royal Guards and the Rose Knights immediately stood at attention, saluting, with HITMAN-3 doing the same out of a kind of respect. They were in the man's house, after all. He opened his arms and said, "... Though fires still rage in parts of the city, it is yours, warriors of the Sky and Beyond. I only ask that you do not harm the people. They've suffered enough."
"We thank you for not risking further lives or bloodshed, Emperor Molt," Richard spoke ahead of everyone else, well aware that the man was simply showing both humility and attempting to save face by not outright saying they're surrendering. The Princess, who was smiling behind him, must've asked him to do it this way.
Saving face for the people was important. Royalty liked being liked by their own people, so Molt quite literally becoming a puppet made more sense in this context. So, Richard decided it was best to accept the unspoken surrender cleanly and without causing further issues to Molt and the Princess. Molt nodded, breathed a sigh of relief and walked back up to his throne, taking a seat.
Piña walked down the stairs as well, smiling and stating, "I am happy to see you are all well, considering…"
"We'd have expected a lot more resistance in the city," Torres spoke, putting his hands in his pockets, "If anything, we're still not out of the woods quite yet. Plainclothes Insurgents are still possible, even here, so…" he shrugged, "We'll keep the city as safe as we can, but I'd be wary of anyone walking around even the Palace."
"My Knights will assist," She replied, "We're good at keeping the peace, after all."
"We could tell the moment we met in Italica," The man smiled, only to get a smile back from Piña. He looked at the other two Lieutenants and at Tyuule, all of whom were grinning, before mouthing a 'don't start' and tilting his head to Molt. The entire squad chuckled, while Richard gave the man a pat on the shoulder and Itami smiled.
Piña, though confused, seemed happy to be helping them as well. She looked to her father and asked in their native Latin, "Shall I take them on a tour of the rest of the grounds, Father?" only receiving a slow, respectful nod out of Molt. She nodded back, smiling, then showed the team to follow. Molt, meanwhile, breathed a shaky sigh of relief the moment they were out of sight.
They were unlike any other possible plundering army out there. Not taking any loot, or harming any of the women present. It was almost a relief to him that it was them occupying his land, not someone like Claudia, or her comrades in arms, the Insurrectionists. He leaned back in his throne and stared at the hall and at his Royal Guards, before pausing. He spoke to himself, "Best to cooperate. Severus," and he looked at the leader of his guard. The man straightened up, to which he ordered, "Go tell them of the slaves. Retrieve them and send them home…"
The man put his balled fist up to his chest and nodded, then departed to meet the team. The drone of engines followed, the stained glass windows behind Molt vibrating a little, to which he stood up. That must've been the commanders of the advance force. Indeed, moments later, under armed escort, two elderly folk approached.
One woman was in a white labcoat, turtleneck and pants, while the other man beside her was clad in a camouflage uniform not too different from that of the American Lieutenant. The two approached, bowed respectfully to the Emperor and the General spoke first, "Greetings, your Highness. I'm General Mattis of the US Marine Corps. This is Doctor Catherine Halsey, UNSC."
"A pleasure," The woman nodded.
"Welcome to Sadera," The Emperor offered, "We should find seating and discuss the matter of this city's occupation," then looked at the Spartans behind Halsey and said, "Perhaps we can even find seating for your… Ogres?" and noticing one of them quite literally only moved an inch, trying to stifle laughter.
"Spartans," Halsey snorted, a bit amused, "Please, lead the way."
… Back with the fireteam, in the garden of the Palace, Piña watched them staring at the sprawling grounds, surprised to find such an open area immediately behind the city. She told them, "This would be the Garden. It's a good place for when one wants to clear their head, though it… Obviously serves as a meeting point between royalty here, too."
Indeed, various structures ranging from a covered patio to a small Church of The Gods and even a Statue of the Mother Goddess sat in the place, the patio itself being placed over a bridge on a small lake. Torres spoke, "Y'know, I could get used to this. Open space, plenty of room… Hell, put a grill somewhere and I'm a happy man."
"How stereotypically Texan of ya, El-Tee," Shino chuckled as she sat down on the steps leading down. Overhead, two F35s and, surprisingly enough, a Russian Su-57 Felon, flew low and dumped flares. She hummed and murmured, "Show of force…?" only to pause as she saw a Jackhammer rocket streaking in from a distance and narrowly missing the Felon. She stood up.
"Relax," Richard spoke, "Check Radio. Friendly flight's dealing with a possible hostile force. Sporadic AAA at most."
Shino then asked, "We still tracking the General and Prince?" only to get a shake of the head. She paused and asked, "Drones lost sight of'em? This quick? You guys need to invest in better tech for the Wombats…" only to garner a few laughs out of the UNSC. Itami gave her a pat on the shoulder, to which she rolled her eyes.
"More like they were shot down," Ivanov replied as he checked the last footage from the tablets, "We lost'em at the crossroads between the Northern Desert and the Mountains, meaning they could be in hiding in the Sandbox or on top of some of the steepest fucking hills this side of the planet. Eitherway, when we're rotated out of here and back to the fighting, it's gonna be…"
"Afghan all over again," Torres joked, annoyed.
"Uhm," Bozes started. Torres looked back at her, to which she asked, "I apologize, but… What happened exactly to Sergeant Tomita?" which caused the entire team to look at one-another. Well, that made a few things clear. Bozes must've had a thing for the Sarge.
"He got sniped," Ikari spoke bluntly, "14,5mm round tore through is armor, but narrowly missed anything important. He's recovering back in Italica," and that caused Bozes to pale. She said, "Any idea who could've shot him?" while staring at the girl. Bozes, though she was slightly terrified, nodded.
"There was one known sniper with the Insurrectionists," Piña replied, "Captain Thompson. Camgirl is what they called her," and she paused as she saw Richard visibly pale. She asked, "Do you happen to know her…?" with a hint of concern. The US Marines and JSDF looked at the UNSC staff, all of whom seemed concerned.
"I do," He replied quietly, "We all do. We served together during the last few months of the war. Hell, I saved her life," only to pause and rub his face. He pulled up his com and said, "Command, this is HITMAN-3. Requesting information pertaining to Captain Iris Thompson's last known whereabouts. Possible Code Red…"
This just made things a bit more complicated…