AN:A rewritten chapter 26 as per the complaints of some of my closer friends/readers when it comes to how the battle within was portrayed.
... Also, lemme clarify one thing from the get-go to any reviewers, future and past who've read the first iteration of this chapter, no, there is no SPARTAN team with HITMAN-2. It's just a mix of Marines, PLA and RuAF travelling together down that one bad road some convoys travel... The only SPARTAN team currently on the planet is BLUE Team and it's away on its own mission near the Imperial capital, as Halsey will have stated in the story itself.
And to the guy who said that I "probably enjoy the show", if you're referring to the Paramount Halo show, first of all, no, second of all, because I didn't watch it. All my lore comes from the books and games, not Paramount's take.
With that little tidbit out of the way... Hope everyone enjoys the rewrite. Or at least finds it more agreeable than the original form.
"I am actively working on an explanation, Lord Hood, but until I can fully examine the Gate and the devices controlling it, I cannot do anything but speculate. An extra research team would be useful so I can rotate them in and out. The fact that our world seems to be known to millions of inhabitants of the Alternate Universe Earth on the other side of said Gate is inconclusive to the matter that all answers will come from the Gate itself," Halsey explained calmly, "Whether that means travelling through it to find the 'writers' and creators of the game series and books or not."
Lord Hood nodded, rubbing his chin. The wrinkles on the old officer's face grew more prominent as he frowned. He told the Doctor, "I appreciate your input, Doctor. The Government's Economics Board's keeping tabs on your mission, though. Expect some minor budget cuts, but nothing that can impede current or any future work... I'll try negotiating with them to redirect funds from other projects, like THESEUS and KILLIMANJARO, but I'm afraid that'll also be down to the UNSC's Procurement Office.."
Halsey sighed, pinching her brow in annoyance, "We've made several important discoveries on the planet over the span of the last three years and we are damn well on our way to acquiring a new planet for our people to settle on alongside the locals, not to mention the very importance of the Gate and what it could mean for relations with everyone. What more do the Senate and President want from us beyond that?" and she took a moment to think. She had met President Charet before their deployment to this operation and told her that the technologies they may discover here could help Earth further solidify its position. And she had proven that thee was something of importance here a dozen times over, what with the inhabitants, the technology and the Gate itself.
"I don't know, doctor, but it's going to be an interesting negotiation, I'll tell you that much... Issue is the UNSC is redirecting a lot of funds to combating a nascent Neo-Insurrectionist movement. Lots of ties to the Frieden movement from during the Rainforest Wars," Hood explained. He, himself, was aboard the command ship of a Battle Group belonging to the UNSC that was out hounding the Sapien Sunrise insurrection movement.
Halsey sighed, "Humanity, resorting to its old primal instinct of hating what is different," and she leaned back into her seat, "You have been getting our reports as well, haven't you, sir?"
"Yes. Very interesting reads, especially considering the presence of decommissioned UNSC Armaments among the Imperial Troops. Most recent report we received refers to the mixed team you and our alternate universe UN friends have set up encountering a weapon like that in the hands of a local... Magician..." Hood seemed to stifle a laugh. The man knew it was the truth. He had seen the combat footage from helmet cams and HUDs, but Halsey knew it seemed inconceivable, even with proof.
Halsey sighed, "Whatever these 'Magicians' wield, it is not magic. There must be a logical explanation for their pyrokinetic abilities."
"If there is one, Doctor, I'm sure you'll find it in due time. Just make sure to find something else to feed the hungry sharks over at the Senate in the meantime," Hood quipped. Halsey nodded and saluted, to which Hood said, "If that'll be all, doctor. We're about to arrive over Sagittarius-III, where ONI's prowlers reported there was a Sapien Sunrise base that'd been abandoned."
"You are in our galactic neighborhood, sir," Halsey replied jokingly, "Please, take care."
"We will... Just one more question. To sate my curiosity," He stated. Halsey nodded to him approvingly and he asked her directly, "How was I portrayed in the 'games'? I'd like to know just how alike to me the character was."
Halsey actually let out a short laugh at that, "Close enough to the real thing, sir. Enough so that I thought it was you reprising yourself."
Hood smiled wryly, then nodded. He saluted the doctor, then thumbed the communication device to off, to which Halsey sighed and stretched. Standing up, she marched out of the massive building which housed the Slipspace communications center and various other interstellar transmission stations. Above, she heard the roar of hydrogen jet engines and saw the Pelicans rolling out to the mustering area.
The last units that were preparing for the beginning of the assault against the Empire's territories. Meanwhile, command had established multiple scouting forces on this part of the continent as well, with all of them heading out to the North, East and South. To the East, to make the junction with the UN Squadrons belonging to the HITMAN designate of forces, the UN's own personal squadrons, a couple of which had UNSC personnel mixed in.
The UNSC had also set up a multitude of FOBs around the place, down the main MSR leading toward the Empire's hear and toward Italica. She hummed, then crossed her arms as she regarded the mustered force. Almost three thousand soldiers, five hundred fighting vehicles, hundreds of assorted transports and support vehicles and even a couple of squadrons of Gunships. It was, by all accounts, a Brigade Combat Team that was ready to go.
The rest of the units would advance behind them, with the supply train starting the moment the forces reached past Italica. There were several towns between here and there as well, which meant more targets for the UNSC to blow through and secure before moving onto their main objectives. After Italica, as per plans, came the assault toward the Capital and surrounding it on all sides.
It'd be an operation to behold, Halsey thought as she walked to the command center. She caught a glimpse of the Admiral and his escort of ODSTs walking out and simply saluted him, to which he replied in kind. The two stopped in the middle, with Halsey requesting, "Any news in regards to lieutenant Samuels and HITMAN-3?"
"They've arrived, as you know... But there's a complication," He answered.
"Oh?" She raised a brow. He handed her the most recent report, which she quickly skimmed. She hummed, "Oh..." before nodding and saying, "Redirect the 588th's Third Squadron after they've taken their payload of firebombs aboard, then prepare a reinforcing squadron. Looks like we'll have to teach another Imperial army the might of Napalm... Again..." and handed the report file back to him. He nodded, to which the doctor said, "I'll go try and get into contact with Richard and his men, then. The Master Chief and BLUE Team are currently engaged in a scouting operation nearby the Imperial Capital. I would have sent them, but it's important."
"Aye, ma'am," He nodded, "I'll take the next Pelican up to the fleet and be out of your hairs."
"We do like your presence, contrary to your own beliefs, Admiral," Halsey quipped, "But very well. Take care of yourself..."
The man smiled and nodded, then departed for the landing pads. After that, Halsey entered the command room, to see that the staff for the operation were running the last checks and communicating with the UN troops on the other side of the continent in preparation for the Offensive's beginning. The UNSC and UN would undertake one of the largest military operations to date for the UN, which involved the elimination and/or surrender of the Empire.
Eitherway, Halsey intended to send a message by slowly dismantling the Empire, piece by piece, from the periphery to the very heart, all while proving that they were a much better option to the embattled, tired and unable-to-ascend locals as the very world around the Imperial Royal Family crumbled... She let out a deep sigh, rubbing her face. She was not usually this vindictive. She had had her moments, but this was just a bit too much.
Certainly, she's lived long enough to abhor seeing her fellow citizens of the UEG get harmed or killed again. The UNSC had sworn a silent vow, all of them, that the unnecessary death of humans would never occur again by the hand of any enemy, foreign or domestic. Not without mass UNSC response of the highest order. Nor will they allow mass genocides to occur without counteracting them. That was part of the reason the Warrior Bunnies today were as closely allied with the UNSC as they were. Same for the Dragonborn.
Speaking of, "Miss Jeanne. Good to see you walking today," Halsey commented as she saw Jeanne surveying the area. The Dragonborn girl turned and smiled at the doctor, to which Halsey said, "Your physiology is by far one of the most interesting on this planet. To heal this fast from injuries is only a feat beaten by the Apostles' own, supposedly better healing factor."
"I have the UNSC's medical staff to thank, mostly," She replied, "And the prompt intervention of our countrymen."
"Indeed," Halsey nodded, remembering seeing the woman fly in so wounded that she didn't even manage to land on her feet. She was glad to know that she made it, but alas, some lives of the Dragon-Born had been lost during the raid. She spoke, "My condolences for your losses. Your people did not deserve that raid... Had we not been present-"
"Your people were there on the holy quest for knowledge, doctor," Jeanne shot back, "A quest which we share. It was we who should've helped conceal you better, rather than try and fight an Imperial raiding force Head-on, especially seeing as they had mages with them," And she turned to face the woman, the bandages surprisingly clean, rarely stained with specks of blood.
Halsey sighed, then said, "The Dragon-Born are welcome under the protection of the UNSC, as they have always been, madam."
"We are aware... And we will now take your offer with grace and dignity, considering the Empire has decided to make us its enemies," Jeanne smiled. The good doctor nodded, then hummed and looked over the Wombat displays, noting Italica, the city they were going to have to take, considering its tactical positioning as a crossroads, then she plucked a tablet with the latest reports and discussions between the officer cadre.
She sighed, making a mental note to visit the Gate and their researchers there as she looked at other Wombat drone feeds and bombing run feeds. Following that up, she looked at a drone feed from HITMAN-2, an operational team made up of UNSC, Chinese and Russian troops. It was an interesting thing to behold, watching the Eastern Armies cooperating with the UNSC forces.
A pair of KamaZ trucks, one carrying fuel and another, some troops, two Urals and a TIGR armored car travelled down the road, all bearing markings of the United Nations as well as national markings and combat camouflage. Behind and between, rolled four UNSC Warthogs and another UNSC HEMTT carrying UNSC Marines and UN Infantry to a nearby meeting point. The leading and rear vehicles of the formation were Russian BTR-80s with automated turrets that had a 30mm cannon, smoke launchers and even an ATGM tube mounted on the side.
A curious composition of vehicles, Halsey thought. Of course, the only ones to actually bring the heavy gear this time around were the United States, with a company of Abrams MBTs on-duty within the confines of the base and one tank partaking in HITMAN-3's little debacle. Halsey hummed as she read the reports from HITMAN-3 and frowned at the most recent. 'Mother Goddess'? Huh.
That warranted further investigation. As did the structure in the middle of the Formal mansion. She hummed as she noted HITMAN-2...
"I will take a Pelican to Alnus, see how our researchers are doing..." Halsey murmured as she slid her tablet into her pocket. There were some things that required answers, including specifically the statue and the little shrine in the middle of the city of Italica. Jeanne nodded, then turned back to continue watching the video feed with some slight degree of awe as the Doctor departed...
Lieutenant Lee kept her QBZ-95-1 AR close as she sat atop the lead BTR of HITMAN-2. Above them, a single Mi-35 Hind, the upgraded model of the armored attack and transport helicopter, colored in forest camouflage, flew low, the unguided missile pods visible on its four wing mounts as it moved with the Convoy. Up above, at a higher ceiling, a Wombat drone belonging to the UNSC flew overwatch for them, presumably with a direct link to both FOBs and the UNSC guys and girls in the Convoy.
The chop of the blades of the helicopter through the air echoed from a distance, muffled by the roar of the BTR's engine. Lee sighed, checking the magazine of the bullpup rifle, before slotting it back into place with a click. She leaned the rifle against her shoulder, muzzle pointing up into the sky, and her hands were away from the trigger. Weapon itself was also on safe, too. Two UNSC Marines beside her played rock-paper-scissors.
Around them, beside the road, stretched vast fields of greenery, crops and flat terrain that barely got into a bump near the horizon. Beyond the horizon rose the snow-capped peaks of the Northern Mountains, the 'Mountain Range of Ice and Snow'. It was, she recalled, a range that stretched across most of the Northern Continent as per orbital scans and reports.
She paused, taken out of her thoughts by a Marine bumping her on the shoulder and extending her a cigarette packet. He had one cigarette between his lips already and his helmet was off his head, MA5B assault rifle sitting pretty on his crossed legs. He shook the pack at her, the cigarettes clattering inside, to which she plucked one out and slid it between her lips. A Marine sat back to back with her lit it with her trench lighter, then stated, "For the boredom."
"Hope they don't have meth in them," Lee quipped.
"Just opium," Snorted the male Marine. Lee raised a brow, grinning, to which he shook his hands and said, "Nevermind. Just a bad joke," before leaning back and listening to the rumble of the transport's wheels against the hardened dirt. She chuckled, then took a puff of the cigarette, feeling the soothing, toxic warmth of the smoke permeate her lungs and calm her at her core.
She nodded to the Marine, lifting the Cigarette and smiling at him, "Good stuff," before sliding the cig back between her lips. A wireless speaker that a Russian soldier had pulled out of his chest rig began humming, the strum of a guitar and the thump of drums echoing rhythmically to a melancholic, if somewhat more friendly tune that Lee soon recognized as 'Soldat' by 'Lyube'. It was one of the better Russian songs about war, probably far less depressing, too, considering.
"Really feels like Chechnya," Quipped one of the elder Russian troops, an officer, as he leaned against the conical slant of the automated turret, clutching his AK-12 assault rifle close. It and the QBZ were both rifles born out of their regimes, with the Kalashnikov AK-12 being the latest and closest to somewhat successful attempt of upgrading the AK-74 and 74M series to have similar modularity to standard-issue NATO rifles. Lots of piccatini rails, lots of plastic and polymer, including on the numbered magazine. They were not battle-tested rifles.
Meanwhile, the UNSC rocked standard-issue MA5Bs, although rumor had it most of the Corps and Army had switched over to the MA40 assault rifle. Lee only knew the names through the games and books herself, as little access as she's had to them in the PRC. She blinked, rubbed her eyes, then looked around at the wide-open fields and noted, "How long have we been travelling now?"
"About the same amount of time as HITMAN-3 and -1, so almost a day and some," The Marine who gave her a cig replied, "Not sure on the exact amount, but the sun is setting..."
"Speaking of HITMAN-3, did you guys hear that their Convoy's currently dealing with defending that town we were supposed to take? Heard over Com that Richard called for air support in prep for some big Imperial army that's surrounding the town," Quipped another Marine, this one the Lieutenant, as he scanned the horizon with his binoculars. Lee sighed, then drew her own binocs and looked over toward the field.
"They'll be fine," A Russian quipped, "We have guns. These tin wearing morons have swords, bows and arrows."
"Wouldn't stake my life on it," The Marine lieutenant replied, "Some of'em are rumored to have been found with decommissioned UNSC kit in their belts. And no, before you ask, we ain't sent'em shit. They're enemies to us as much as they are to you," and he took a sip from his canteen. He hummed, then looked toward the forest at their immediate nine o'clock.
Lee looked back and asked, "What is it?" As she brought her binoculars to bear. She looked through, toward the distant forest that was the only landmark they had to go by. The UNSC Lieutenant pulled out his tablet, pointed at it and then down the road. She peered over his shoulder, to see the satellite images and the distant village or town that lay a few miles ahead. She chuckled, "God, it must be good to have satellite coverage."
"Some areas lack it," He nodded, "But our theater of operations has SPYSATS in the sky."
"Lucky," She quipped, then hummed and looked back toward the forest with her binoculars. She hummed along to the tune of 'Soldat', keeping her eyes peering down the scopes, then paused. She raised a brow, then elbowed the Lieutenant, who looked through his binoculars. Lee had spotted movement through the shrubs that made up the forest's edge.
"Thermals are picking up movement... And that forest's relatively close to us," The UNSC Lieutenant stated, grabbing his MA5. He turned on his radio and set it to Convoy-wide, then ordered, "All HITMAN-2 victors, this is 2-3. Halt. I want any vehicle with a turret that has thermals to scan our perimeter. 2-3 gunnery, sweep left toward the forest and give us a clear picture."
"Guess we're dismounting," Lee said, thumbing the safety off her rifle and jumping off the vehicle. The Marines and Russian troops followed suit, rifles at the ready just in case that was a hostile unit. Several took cover behind the defilade next to the Convoy, others hid behind the transports and Warthogs in hopes that the armor would keep'em safe from any possible threat.
Lee took cover in the irrigation ditch to their right alongside the COs and a platoon of Marines, Russian Infantry and some of her own. She took her binoculars out and kept her eyes locked onto the forest, her rifle leaning against the defilade's wall. She squinted, then murmured, "Can't see shit because of the shrubs... Aside from them moving..." to which a few Marines nodded in agreement.
"Should we get the vics into cover as well?" Inquired the Russian lieutenant, looking down the iron sights of his supposedly 'modern' rifle. He ranged it out toward the target and waited to hear his comrades' answer.
The UNSC Officer shrugged, trying to peer through the scopes again. He handed the tablet with the drone to Lee, who paused as the screen got staticky. She murmured, "We got static in the drone feed..." and it seemed to instantly disconnect. She swore, "Shit, drone feed's dead..." before scanning the skies for the aircraft. Up above, she saw the drone, still orbiting over them.
The UNSC Lieutenant pulled out his radio and spoke, "To either FOB Kingdom, or FOB Alnus, this is Simmons, HITMAN-2 lead. Do you copy?" and the radio flared with static and white noise. He swore to himself, then voiced again, "FOB KINGDOM, FOB ALNUS, this is HITMAN-2. We have lost drone feed on the ground. Give us a SITREP from above, over?"
A Russian soldier looked around, up at the sky, then asked, "Shit, has anyone seen Vostok-2?" before pulling up his radio and requesting, "Vostok-2, Vostok-2, this is HITMAN-2. Do you copy?" And he paused as static filtered into his com system, too. He swore, slamming a hand into the side of his RATNIK earmuffs, before demanding with panic in his voice, "Vostok-2, we might have contact, blyat, do you copy!?" and he saw a pillar of smoke out in the distance. He blinked, then said, "I can't get through to our chopper... Shit's fucked, brat'ya..."
"We're getting jammed," The UNSC Lieutenant, Simmons, voiced, annoyed. He hefted his MA5 and shouldered it, before scanning the treeline and stating, "I've seen this tactic before, once..." before speaking over convoy-wide, "All vehicles, retreat to the defilade, make sure you don't run us over! Form a perimeter... Infantry, full dismount and find cover!"
"Why does short-range work?" Lee inquired, shouldering her rifle and looking down the irons.
"Because what they're using to jam us was designed for broad-spectrum coms, but not for close. It was meant to disable enemy command-and-control, leave the troops without centralized command. You can be as good a Lieutenant as anyone, but without CENTCOM, you're doing things blind. Adaptability's necessary, but... Yeah..." Simmons replied, thumbing the safety of his weapon and squinting toward the treeline. He scowled, then ordered, "All vehicles, take cover behind the defilade..."
"They're setting something up," A Sniper commented, gazing down the scope of his weapon, "Can't tell what it is, though..."
"Switch to Thermals..." The Lieutenant ordered, "And be ready to fire... Lieutenant Lee?"
"Hm?" She asked, looking to him.
"Suggest you pick out a squad and prepare. We might have an incoming interception force at the front. I have zero doubts the assholes we're about to meet are an ambush unit..." He stated, then slid down behind the defilade and motioned to the BTRs. He made a forward-thrusting motion, then showed one finger and spun it around. The Crewman whose hatch was open nodded. He dipped back into the transport vehicle and, moments later, three smoke grenades flew from the sides of the turret and exploded on the road.
The second BTR followed suit, clouding the entire force in smoke. The first shot rang out in the blind above their heads, followed by the scream of an anti-tank missile. The rocket flew inches away from the BTR to Simmons, Lee's and the Russians' left. Simmons, a Marine by heart, knew the kind of ambush tactic that was being used here. For the love of God, he'd used it, too.
He barked over short-range, "BTRS! Light the Treeline up with 30mm fire, now!"
The reply came in the form of the jovial unloading of thirty-millimeter automatic fire. The thumping cannons swept the area ahead as the joint force reorganized. Lee nodded to Simmons, grabbing her advance force and pushing parallel to the road they were on with a squadron of Marines and Russian troopers. The young woman knew shit had hit the fan the moment the first missile flew over their heads.
She ducked, hearing the second rocket engine roaring above her as she took the safety off her gun. She peeked over the edge and chose not to make that mistake again as the soldier beside her lost his helmet and his head to a 14,7mm round. A Marine beside her swore, then returned fire with a burst from his rifle toward the tree-line. Lee hefted her own rifle over the edge and opened up as Simmons spoke to her over the Short-Range, "We're gonna need to make a push! These bastards are probably gonna be moving in!"
"Get a BTR to us and we'll try and push the assholes!" Lee replied, ducking as another round scraped the road ahead of them. They needed to have the initiative in an ambush. It didn't matter how, nor why, but they had armored vehicles. How had the locals begun using firearms, though? That didn't sit too well with Lee, honestly. And the young Chinese Lieutenant knew the feeling was shared among the convoy's ranks.
"Fuck!" The Sniper among Simmons's ranks swore as an explosion rumbled the area, followed by the husk of one of their vehicles rolling into the ditch, "They have an ATGM launcher! Unknown make! They just hit a 'Hog!"
Simmons himself sighed and ordered over short-range, "Take'em out if you can! HITMAN-2-4, 2-5 and 2-7 are to move in support of Lieutenant Lee's counter-push! Advance behind the defilade and cover each-other!" then watched two Warthogs roll back from the line, their guns spinning and spitting lead over the lip of their cover. Their drivers rolled them forward, next to the advancing BTR as it, too, kept a lock on the enemy position and fired its main gun. 30mm shells clanged against the armor plate of the armored personnel carrier belonging to the Russian military.
The Russian Lieutenant approached Simmons and fired from his AK-15 Battle Rifle, stating, "This is just like Chechnya!" with a mirthful laugh as the memories of his old time in service seemed to flood back, "I will send some of my boys to Lee, as well! She will need the backup!" then he turned to his boys and called out to them, "Stepanovich, Kirill, Semenov! Move forward and join the platoon that's pushing out! Keep your eyes peeled!"
"Tell'em to have their eyes on their right sides as well! The bastards are probably bulking up their second side and advancing to us as we speak from that direction!" Simmons barked, then reloaded his rifle. A bullet hit his helmet and pinged off, ringing his bell, but leaving him otherwise unharmed. He ducked and swore, "Motherfucker! My ears are gonna fucking ring for hours!"
"Depends on if we even make it that long!" The Russian replied as the smoke from the BTR grenades dissipated. Above their heads flew more bullets, these ones smaller in caliber than a normal sniper rifle's. Dirt and dust kicked up as some of the rounds hit the ground, sparks flew as others hit the armored vehicles. The thirty-millimeter on the rear BTR was the one to reply in kind with its main gun, keeping whatever moved pinned down.
Simmons peered through a pair of binoculars, keeping his head as low to the ground as possible so as to not get hit by enemy fire. Beside him, a Marine got what sounded like a designated marksman rifle's round through the face. His helmet got flung off his head, somewhat undamaged, sans a nasty 6,5mm bullet that had lodged into it and the blood and brain matter of the poor former user.
Following that, a Russian trooper that stood up too fast and attempted to fire back, but wound up lit up by automatic fire from somewhere close by within the corn fields. Simmons sighed, then said, "Keep your heads down! We need one Warthog to clamber up over this shit and start firing at the bastards in the corn fields! They're trying to get closer!"
A Warthog gladly obliged, its engine roaring as it hit maximum power and trundled up the steep incline of the defilade cover. It rolled down the road at maximum speed, its machine-gunner lighting the corn up with 50-cal BMG ammunition from the main gatling gun of the transport vehicle. First to hit it back were a couple of assault rifle rounds that pinged off the armor plates, both of the gun and of the Warthog.
Following that up, the Warthog braked hard, its disks screeching, as two rockets flew in front of it. The driver swore in German, before switching into reverse and looking back as he tried to get himself and his gunner out of there. He drew his pistol and fired into the corn fields as well, spent SAPHE bullets clinking against the floor. He spoke, "You still with me, Timur!?"
"Still rolling!" The gunner replied as fifty-cal casings piled up in the bed of the Warthog. The barrels of his gun started to glow a hot red. The thunderclap of another missile's engine filtered in and the gunner screamed, "FUCK-" just as it slammed into the vehicle's side, engulfing him and the driver in a fireball that flash-vaporized them and sent the Warthog tumbling over the side of the road.
Simmons swore... Another vic down.
Meanwhile, Lieutenant Lee maintained the advance of her platoon, which had now been reinforced by Russians, a pair of 'Hogs and the forward BTR of the convoy. The lattermost of the unit continued putting thirty-mike-mike rounds into the forest, so fast and hard that Lee could see the trees splintering from the impacts. Some leaves from the local shrubs were already stained red, too.
The Russians in the unit kept their eyes peeled to the right, expecting a strike from the side, from among the wheat. Lee's soldiers, meanwhile, fired alongside the line where the corn field ended, intercepting an enemy unit that was on the move. Lee scoped in a silhouette from among the corn and fired twice. One round hit the man in the chest, causing a flinch, but not much else. The second punched through the side of his head and the man crumpled like a crouton immediately after.
Return fire, however, was quick. And some times, quite fucking literal. Bullets pinged off the hulls of the combat vehicles reinforcing the counter-attack against the ambush. Tongues of fire also lashed out through the corn, burning away the crop and heating the space mere inches away from the faces of the PLA, Russian and UNSC soldiers. Some of the Russians spun about and opened fire, one of them carrying a DMR.
"Fucking mages!" A Marine manning a Gauss 'Hog swore, trying to utilize the thermal sights on his mini-coilgun. He squeezed the trigger and saw a fine red mist cloud rise into the sky and stain any corn that had not been burnt. He pumped his fist up and said, "Fuck you!" before swiveling about and firing again. The reply came in the form of a string of conical ice projectiles blanketing the line. They shattered against the hulls of the 'Hogs and BTR, with only two striking a PLA soldier. When they struck, however, they'd struck the soldier with enough force to slam him against the floor. One of them was stuck in his eye.
"Bring about the Warthogs!" Lee ordered, "Run the bastards in the Corn Field over!"
The two drivers gave nods, banking their heavy machines over into the corn field, flattening streaks of corn-stalks while their gunners tracked enemy movement and lit the sons-of-bitches up. Flame magic washed over their forward armor as Lee motioned for a chunk of her PLA and Marines to follow them along while she stuck with the BTR. She heard the wet crunch of thick, heavy wheels pressing down on bone and watched as a trail of red started following one of the two Warthogs.
The Marines and PLA soldiers beside the two vehicles pushed on, rifles ringing high in the sky. They stepped past the corpses of dead mages, each of them apparently wielding the old firearms with one hand. Some carried older UNSC kit, like MK50 Sidekick pistols and VK78 Commandos. Old equipment that had long ago been phased out for better armaments, though it still found some use in the hands of militias and planetary defense units in the farther reaches of the UEG's rebuilding empire.
A soldier appeared from the underbrush, right in front of one of the Marines. The knife he had in his hand glistened in the sunlight, freshly-sharpened, as he pounced up and stuck it into a Marine's face. Lee gasped, lifting her rifle and firing a burst toward him. The 5,8mm rounds fired as standard-issue by Chinese armaments barely scratched the armor of the man.
"MOTION TRACKER CONTACTS!" Cried out the gunner of the Gauss hogs, "The fuckers are in the corn!"
She now got a good look at the enemy commando that had killed one of the Marines and the units beside him. They were soldiers clad in older, heavy-duty battle plates resembling the UNSC kit she saw the Marines in. The Battle-Dress Uniforms were, however, modified, some bearing aftermarket plates, others, some English writing and various emblems and patches. The man in the front was a masked individual, wearing what looked to be a by-now-ancient GP-5 gas mask that he must've looted out of some museum. His muscular arms were in full view, tattooed from shoulder to wrist, hands covered by black reinforced gloves.
He drew his pistol and trained it on Lee, but was soon gunned down by the BTR crew. The two Warthogs and their surviving escorts began moving back, firing their weapons into the line as one of them cried out, "Fucking INNIES! WE HAVE INSURRECTION TROOPS! And these bastards are professionals!" before a lucky stray round from the enemy's main unit struck him in the neck.
He dropped to the floor, clutching the wound as PLA soldiers ran up to his side, firing bursts toward the bastards. Gargling blood, but with a fury in his eyes, he dragged his rifle off the floor and opened up on the Insurrectionists as well. The man that had shot him found himself filled full of 7,62 by 51mm AP rounds from the MA5 assault rifle, each round seemingly piercing the old battle plate. The Innie that'd shot him collapsed, dead, as did the mage behind him.
One of the two Warthogs, the one with the Gauss Gun, had its crew sniped out. The driver fell on the wheel, his brain matter painting the wall, while the gunner dropped onto the floor behind the machine gun-carrying Warthog. The gunner of that one, a female Marine, swiveled the gun about and squeezed the trigger, bursts of automatic fire washing over the gathered enemy elites. Fifty cals punched fist-sized holes through the armors and sent corpses onto the floor.
Commando rounds sparked off the twin armored plates on the Gun 'Hog's turret, which it replied to in kind while the BTR Brought its own gun about. The Russian soldiers also joined in, firing into the corn fields. Lee barked orders to her men, who were dragging the Marine with the neck wound out of the corn fields. She radioed in on short-range, "All UN soldiers, the enemy has heavier armor than our bullets can penetrate! Aim for exposed skin areas like the neck or face! Shoot to kill!" before she, herself, listened to her advice.
An Insurrectionist charged at them, just below the angle at which the 30mm autocannon of the BTR could be depressed. He got a face-full of 5,8mm rounds from the woman, his head being mashed by the rounds bouncing around inside the older helmet. A missile streaked in from the right, just above the last Warthog. Shrapnel washed over the driver, with a shard piercing through his forearm. He swore, then rolled the Warthog back onto the main road as fast as humanly possible as mages approached.
The mages fired from their MK50 Sidekicks toward the group, 10mm rounds ricocheting off the plates. They charged their spells, chanting in their Dog Latin, before sending forward a combined wave of fire that burned hot enough to give the gunner of the 'Hog a nice tan while he turned to light them up. The driver stopped in front of Lee, acting as cover, then called out to her, "We got incoming from the other side, as well! Motion trackers just pinged a group of'em coming through the fucking field, parallel to the main road!"
"I want the Russians and a pair of Marines to reposition and greet them! Lieutenant Simmons was right, they're trying to box us in here, so be ready to push out with the BTR!" She barked, then changed out the magazine of her weapon. 30mm rounds from the other BTR still flew into the forest where the enemy had come from. The one that had advanced with them, meanwhile, spun its main gun around to greet the incoming attackers on the right.
Grenades arched in among the ranks. Thankfully, the soldiery knew spacing and how to throw'em back. One of the Russians fished a grenade out of the dirt with his hand and immediately threw it back, before shouldering his rifle again and firing full bursts. Another one of theirs, carrying an RPK-16, dropped onto his stomach and set the bipod of the drum-fed weapon down, lighting up the stalks of grain and the space between them, green tracers flying after every fifth round.
The UNSC Marines, meanwhile, prepared incendiary weapons, with one of them grabbing a fragmentation grenade launcher off his back. He opened the weapon up, slid a firebomb in and fired into the area, before catching a bullet to the knee and one in the head for his troubles. As the field went up in flames, the crops that still stood being cut down by machine guns and assault rifles, the enemy squad came through.
One of them hefted a Jackhammer launcher and aimed, hidden by the smoke of the fire as it started to spread, then squeezed. One rocket flew out of the tube, toward the BTR. It flew high, however, exploding a few feet behind the vehicle. He aligned a second shot and, just as he was about to fire, he got lit the fuck up by the Russians and Marines. PLA troops also joined in, squeezing off shot after shot toward the enemy line.
Three PLA men got gunned down, however, the moment a modified enemy Warthog appeared from the crops, pushing through the fire and flames. Its fifty caliber twin MGs chugged away, links and casings dropping onto the floor at a lower rate. The rounds tore through the men, splitting some in half at the waist, while the rounds from the convoy's weapons pinged off the reinforced armor which had replaced the windshield.
The BTR took a few fifty-cal rounds as well while turning the turret to meet the new threat. The Warthog, however, sped away despite the extra weight placed upon it by the modifications, with thirty-mil rounds trailing behind. The Russian gunner on the BTR swore through his teeth as he tried to track the thing. He stopped, however, when he saw an enemy unit actually aiming a single-shot rocket launcher at him.
He gasped and squeezed the triggers on his weapons just a moment too late...
The tandem HEAT warhead of the missile slammed into the lower glacis of the BTR. A jet of liquid metal and superheated shrapnel gutted the crew inside and the vehicle itself from front to back, following up with the engine bursting into flames and the light detonation of a magazine of ammunition inside. The resulting shockwave stunned and staggered those around it enough for Lee to barely notice the enemy closing in at first.
The Chinese Lieutenant, however, shook the tinnitus away and grabbed the surviving soldiers, lifting several up and ordering, "Fall back! FALL BACK TO THE OTHERS!" before hefting the RPG off of a dead Russian and shouldering it. She watched the enemy Warthog rushing past them, then led the target. She screamed, "Clear backblast!" before squeezing the trigger. A puff of smoke left the cone on the rear of the AT launcher, followed by the scream of the HEAT rocket rushing toward its target and striking.
The entire front of the Insurrectionist Warthog was blown out, engine destroyed by the HEAT warhead. Lee dropped the tube and clambered aboard their last Warthog, grabbing the wounded and putting them into the back, before showing the troopers to start pulling back. There was risk of losing more than just the BTR and the Gauss Hog if they didn't.
Simmons watched the group of soldiers and the sole vehicle pulling back, then growled and slotted in a fresh mag into his rifle. He checked his wristwatch and murmured, "We're about five minutes overdue for the rendezvous..." as the Russian Lieutenant fired his rifle beside him. He spoke, "We should prep to leave the moment Lee arrives! We have to push through the ambush if we wanna live!"
"I wonder if the Warthog you sent out made it to the RV point!" The Russian replied, then swore to himself in his home language as he changed out a mag to his rifle, stating, "Down to two mags!" and ducking into cover. He slid down next to Simmons and said, "We could try and push them first? We have the BTR! And from what we just saw, Lee managed to take out their supporting combat vehicle!"
The surviving BTR rolled back into cover as the Russian troops dipped back into cover. Another Marine got his chest ventilated by three sniper shots striking him at once and sending him tumbling into the ditch. Simmons swore, then peeked up and out and fired more bursts as Lee and her boys jumped into the ditch. She spoke to Simmons, "They've got light AT gear! Looked like a single-shot launcher! Took out the BTR! Mages are here as well!
"Might be a cut down Jackhammer!" The man replied, "Heard Innies tend to pull that kind of shit!"
"The fuck are your Insurrectionists doing here!?" Lee demanded, reloading her rifle.
"Hell if I fucking know! I just hope command understands that this is a Code Red at this point!" He shot back, then stood up and opened fire into the corn. To their right, a pillar of black smoke rose into the sky as the wheat field burned away. He swept the area ahead with the rifle, bullets piercing armor and killing a group of Innies and mages. He ducked, checked the ammo counter, then said, "We gotta push'em back and then make a run for it through the flames! We're not getting outta here alive otherwise!"
"You shitting me!? We should run for the RV point!" Lee demanded, then swore as a shot struck the back of her shoulder. She spun about, lifting her assault rifle as she bled, but Simmons drew his pistol with incredible speed and fired, putting two 50 SAPHE rounds into the chest of the enemy that had shot her. It'd been a mage with a MK50 Sidekick pistol and zero armor. The rounds had blown the lungs out of his chest. She swore, biting down on a bandage's wrapping, ripping it open and stuffing it into her wound, before looking to Simmons and stating, "Fuck it! I'm with you! Tarkov!?"
"You'll hear no complaints from me about gutting these bastards!" The Ruski Lieutenant spoke as he fired his weapon on single-shot. He ducked and fixed a bayonet to his rifle, before flashing his two fellow Lieutenants a grin and stating, "A little comfort for CQC!" as he prepared himself. Lee snorted, then did the same, slotting in the QBZ-95's bayonet onto the front slot of the barrel.
The three Lieutenants gave the signal to their men and women and, before long, what was left of the Convoy in terms of vehicles, including the Warthog and BTR, pushed up over the lip and met a surprised squadron of Insurrectionists, Mages and even some Imperial troops with their own weapons. Close quarters fighting ensued, wherein Simmons socked a bastard in the face with the butt of his MA5 and put several rounds into his chest, before aiming for the next guy over.
A mage cast another ice shard spell and several of them flew into the line, striking the joined unit in exposed areas where their armor didn't hold. A Marine got one of the icicles in her thigh, collapsing to the ground and screaming as they bled from the femoral artery. That mage soon lost his head, his corpse falling next to the corpse of another insurrectionist soldier.
Lee came in next, firing her rifle on full-auto toward a pack of Innies and Mages. Beside her, PLA troopers and Russians did the same, while the BTR rolled forth and crushed a few enemies to death on the road. Its 30mm cannon continued rumbling and thundering angrily, washing the area ahead in explosions that lightly cratered the ground and tearing through the crops.
The troops and remaining combat-ready vehicles of the convoy pushed forward, through the destroyed field and into the enemy's lines, killing several Insurrectionists with extreme prejudice, hatred behind the UNSC Marines' attacks. Blow for blow, Simmons and his men went against the Insurrection and their magical Imp aides, tearing into them with bullets and rifle butts. Lee was almost stunned by the ferocity and hatred with which the Marines fought against this seemingly-familiar foe.
Lee's rifle clicked as a round jammed. She gasped, knelt and looked to the weapon's bolt, to see that a spent brass casing stuck out, the bolt having bitten down on it and bent it, stopping itself in place. She swore, trying to unjam the bolt and remove the stovepipe as an Insurrectionist aimed his VK-78 at her. She swore to herself, "Fucking Norinco piece of shit manufacturing, FUCK!" before deciding to charge. Standing to her feet, she pushed herself forward and aimed the bayonet for the Innie's exposed neck...
She felt two rounds tear through her body armor and looked to the left, to see a Mage, his pistol smoking and bloody. An M6 he'd grabbed from one of the dead UNSC Marines and had fired. She looked down at her hip, to see where the rounds had struck, then looked up to see the bastard with the Commando assault rifle slam the butt of the weapon square into her face.
Her ears rang loudly as she collapsed, feeling the blood running down her nose. Muffled were the noises of battle around her as her vision blurred. She saw the green-clad Ratnik kit of Tarkov, the Russian Lieutenant, as he rushed toward her. He killed the mage that had wounded her and snapped his rifle up to meet the insurrectionist that had nearly knocked her out with the blunt end of his rifle. A burst of rounds struck the Innie in the chest and neck, sending him collapsing to the floor in front of her.
Simmons joined the man, but stopped as the Russian took a sniper round to the face. Lee's vision grew all the more blurry as she tried to reach out for Simmons. The Innie troopers had gotten in close now, blades and pistols and shotguns tearing through allied troops. She felt her consciousness slipping away from her. Simmons approached and she felt his hands wrap around her, but the thunderclap of a pistol shot and the warmth of blood splattering across her face and clothes told her that the man had just been shot...
As she came to, blinking away the grinding migraine from the blunt trauma, she swore to herself, leaning her head back into the mud. Ah, yes, mud. It had started to rain, a cold, sweet rain that soothed her frayed nerves and allowed her to slowly regain everything, including her hearing. Her ears rang with the painful high-pitched screaming of tinnitus. Her nostrils felt the scent of drying blood, cordite and death. She blinked again as the veil slowly lifted from her eyes, turning to see that there were dozens of corpses to her left. Insurrectionists, Imperials and their own alike... Dead Russians, her own squad and...
... She could swear she saw movement from one of the Marines.
Distantly, she could hear the voices of the soldiers as she slowly came to... "... That's a bunch of new vics for our arsenal. Base's gonna be happy..."
"Yeah. The Prince ain't, though. He said he wanted at least a prisoner to make a point," Another soldier with a thicker, more rough voice replied, annoyed, "Fucking brat's starting to get on my nerves... We should just blast him and his entire fucking family and take over the Empire ourselves. We got the kit and we got the brains to do it... Might make for a nice little hideaway or front for our Ops against the UNSC and their new pets."
"Boss said he could be the useful dumbass for our takeover," Quipped a third voice, a female, "So, let's keep him happy, shall we? And don't talk aloud around the Imp mages, you shitheels. Ruin the whole thing, why don't'cha?" as Lee slowly came to. She found herself exactly where she'd been knocked out, feeling her head thumping. Slowly, she lifted her right hand up from under the Russian lieutenant's corpse and felt her head. Blood seeped between her fingers from a cracked right arcade. She blinked, her vision blurry, but she could see the soldiers ahead. Three of'em... The other soldiers and the Imperials were scouring the corpses for ammo.
She slowly tilted her head to the right, feeling the weight of another corpse on top of her. The UNSC Lieutenant had been piled on top of her. He still had his pistol in its holster, it seemed. The 50cal pistol could prove useful in this situation. She fiddled with getting her left hand out from under him as she brought her right over toward the holster. She undid the straps, licking her lips and tasting her own blood from the head injury, before managing to grab the pistol.
"Well, well," Chuckled the female voice. Lee gasped, turning to see the woman standing over her. The gas mask she wore obscured her features, but even through the visor, Lee could tell she was grinning, her deep blue eyes empty. She slammed her size ten boot into the girl's right arm, breaking it and causing her to scream in pain, before noting, "You left one alive, Stephen."
"Must've not cracked her skull hard enough," Replied the burlier, dark-skinned man behind her.
"PLA," The seeming commander of the unit quipped, taking a knee in front of her, "God, was it fun to hear tales about you assholes getting murked during the Rainforest Wars. Thought you were slick, supporting the Koslovics behind the UN's back..." and she chuckled, "I like that about you... Everything else, communism included? Not a big fan of it..."
"Fuck you..." Lee swore, defiant, then spat onto her mask.
The woman wiped the bloody spit off her mask, then chuckled and said, "She still has one hell of a fighting spirit," before standing up. She nodded to 'Stephen', then said, "I guess you 'not applying the whole ass to this endeavor', as one of our other prisoners-slash-slaves would put it, is good for us. It means we got a prisoner to soothe Zorzal's ego..." before turning to Lee and chuckling, "And a cute one, at that. He's gonna like her."
"Captain Thompson, ma'am," Started another soldier, "One Warthog's missing. It left tracks..."
"Fuck..." She sighed, "Alright, pack the prisoner, treat her and let's get the fuck out before we get an entire UNSC Garrison swinging down on our heads!"
She looked to Lee one last time, then chuckled and patted the antique camera on her hip, "Gonna take some pics for Zorzal back at base, kiddo... Enjoy your stay in Hotel Hell, Falmart... Enjoyable for only one of its inhabitants:The owner," then she let out a chilling laugh. With one motion of her hand, the soldiers she commanded lifted Lee by both arms and carried her toward one of the surviving transport vehicles, a KamaZ truck that already wore the group symbol. The crossed-out alien head.
... Fuck...