Part 7: Mission 7: No, It Doesn't Have Hobbits

When I heard that our next assignment took us to northern England, I got a sense of just how much of an impression our successful campaign in eastern Europe had left on Command.



The United Kingdom was one of the major players in the war. While they didn't form the backbone of the Alliance forces like the Big Three - the United States, Russia, and China - the fact was, they had one of the largest, most well-equipped armed forces in the world. Between them, France, and Germany, it was estimated that they'd be able to meet or exceed the military strength of one of the Big Three.

That was probably why they'd been one of the first targets for the Forces of Darkness. Having been locked in a bitter struggle for survival since the beginning of the war, they were in no position to send any forces to help on other fronts - and the threat of being vulnerable to an attack if England fell had prevented much of western Europe from being able to completely commit to campaigns elsewhere. Driving the enemy out of the United Kingdom, in other words, would likely drastically improve the situation on the frontline.



Luckily, with higher stakes came better tools. My new promotion would give me the chance to expand our division to deal with the new threats we'd likely face.



I also got word that IFVs and air defenses would be available for this campaign. The anti-air guns were a precaution - British soldiers had unconfirmed sightings of a new type of enemy flyer, and they weren't sure how dangerous it was, so they were hedging their bets. The IFVs weren't perfect substitutes for tanks, but having seen how deadly the enemy's weapons were to infantry and light vehicles, the armor would still be quite welcome.



Command took a moment to catch its breath when I requested five piranha platoons in addition to two replacement humvee platoons and heavy weapons for Habitually Red's company, but they agreed. I had a feeling I'd burned most of my good will with them, but our division's firepower had easily just doubled - there'd be plenty of time to win back Command's favor with a force like this. I figured that anti-air guns could wait until we actually saw something that warranted their use.

They'd also sent us a few auxiliary troops - a couple heavy infantry companies and a rifle company. Hopefully we wouldn't incur enough losses to need them.

Auxiliaries are units that you get for free, but do not carry over between chapters and cannot be assigned officers. Since we want our core units to get as much experience as possible, we won't be using these unless there's room left after we've deployed all of our core units.



Most of the world had thrown itself into the war effort, and not just in terms of soldiers and weapons. The best scientists and engineers the world had to offer were working around the clock to hone our weapons technology and hopefully give us an edge over the Forces of Darkness. Repeated issues with our vehicles, particularly light vehicles, being damaged and destroyed because they were unable to outrun enemy heavy melee units were a particular concern. As a result, our current vehicle designs had been checked piece by piece for anything that could give us an edge in speed. Word was, our engineers would have a new kind of engine design soon.




And sure enough, by the time our new vehicles arrived, the first prototype of the KTU 3001 engine had been developed. Being still in the early trial stages, it wasn't available for use in the field yet, but initial reports were promising. It was apparently suitable for most IFVs, and streamlined and powerful enough to give them an extra kick without burning too much fuel.




It didn't take long before the KTUs were ready for their first trials in live combat. Their efficiency and output reports looked promising, and they could hook up to our Piranhas without much issue, so I was looking forward to giving them a try. Unfortunately, that wasn't an option for two reasons.



First was the pictures we got from recon planes indicating that the Forces of Darkness were getting ready for a major push. The last thing we needed was for them to catch us while the Piranhas were in the shop.



Second was that the Alliance had recently been forced to retreat from a nearby village in the face of an overwhelming enemy force. Given the usual MO for enemy forces, Command said that chances of finding survivors were low. But the longer we waited, the slimmer those odds became. Even the most optimistic estimates gave at most two days before everyone in the town was dead. The Alliance had already failed the people of this town once, and as long as the slightest chance remained, we wouldn't do so again.




Lt. Berger was reassigned to command four of the Piranha platoons. There were only so many officers to go around, and we needed to prioritize our hardest hitters. Once the arrangement was made, it was time to attack.

Mission 7: No, It Doesn't Have Hobbits

Attending:
Anil E. Hilated, Esq. (Polite Obliteration, Mortar Infantry)
Sersan (Anoa, Rangers)
Habitually Red (Sane Max's Own, Heavy Infantry)
Bonaventura Ferrer (Confederacion Internacional de Militadores, Heavy Infantry)
Logan "Hardtack" Smith (War Dogs, Commandos)
"Doctor" Snark (Mage Killers, Commandos)
Solrick Skaft (Scion of Emer, Commandos)
Mael Radec (Radec's Rhinos, Piranha)
Skull Face (XOF, Piranha)
Patrick Gallagher (Just In Time, Piranha)
Svetlana Aliyev (Rusalka, Piranha)
Erik Spanner (The Toolbox, Piranha)
Catherine Ulysses (Smart Patrol, Humvee)
Ash Kleef (Ash Savers, Humvee)



We were in luck. Not only were we able to confirm the presence of civilians, but most of the enemy forces had been redeployed elsewhere. This would be a good chance to test our new battle plan - and our new troops.



Hardtack: Alright, rookies, listen up! Here's the plan. Catherine, Ash, your job is to fan out and sweep the area for enemies. If you find something, get behind the piranhas. Piranhas, you follow behind them and kill whatever they find. If there's anything you can't handle, fall back to this position and we'll all hit it together.



Ash Kleef: Here's hoping we don't end up like Bill. God, I wish I hadn't listened to that tape.



Catherine Ulysses: Relax, Ash. Bill didn't have piranhas backing him up.



Svetlana Aliyev: Speaking of, we're right behind you.



Ash Kleef: Alright, uh, can you get these guys for me, then? Looks like wolf riders.



Skull Face: Gladly. Wow, look at 'em burn! These grenades really do the trick.



Erik Spanner: So, we all gonna take turns rolling into this alley and turning these things into hamburger? Works for me.



Patrick Gallagher: Okay, riders down! Just gotta pick off the wolves now!



Patrick Gallagher: NEVERMIND



Ash Kleef: That's not all! We've got a conga line of wolves to the south!



Svetlana Aliyev: No problem! Just focus on taking down the riders first! They're the only things that can seriously threaten us!



Erik Spanner: If I'd known it'd be this easy, I would've brought a beer!



Mael Radec: This is nothing compared to what we went through in Ukraine!



Mael Radec: Fuck your teeth, I've got composite armor!



Mael Radec: Those might be a little more of a problem. But only a little.



Skull Face: We're surrounded! I think they set up an ambush!



Svetlana Aliyev: Maybe they weren't expecting us to have armor? They sure aren't geared to deal with it.

MEANWHILE



Anil E. Hilated: This sucks. When do we get to kill something?



Solrick Skaft: Hey, monkeys!



"Doctor" Snark: Drop 'em!
Solrick Skaft: Fuck off, I saw 'em first!
Sersan: Hey, save some for me!
Habitually Red: FIrst come, first serve! You want 'em, you gotta shoot 'em!



Bonaventura Ferrer: Well done, everyone! We got to do something this mission!



Ash Kleef: 'fraid I'll have to pull back for a moment, guys. I don't have heavy armor like you do.



Anil E. Hilated: Ash, hey! So, the piranhas got into something they couldn't handle and need us to help light it up, right?
Ash Kleef: Nope, 'fraid I'm just here to pry the throwing stars out of my 'vees.
Hardtack: Damnit. Now what're we gonna do?
Sersan: Hey Hardtack! I'm thinking of a number between 1 and 100.
Hardtack: ...Okay, not that.



Patrick Gallagher: Okay, everyone! It looks like they're running out of steam!



Erik Spanner: You say that like they had any to begin with. Okay, last one's down. Ash, Cathy, more targets!



Catherine Ulysses: Looking, but I don't see any. I think if there's any left, they're in the outskirts of town or the surrounding hills.



Catherine Ulysses: Hang on a sec. I thought I saw something move inside the church. Hey, wait, someone's shining a flashlight at us from the window! I can see... we've got survivors, people!



Catherine Ulysses: That's the good news. The bad news is, we've got trogs too. I don't think they know about the people in the church though, otherwise they would've all been dead by now.
Mael Radec: We don't have time to waste. Panicked civilians could easily end up doing something that'd alert the enemy to their presence... or ours. Everyone, full speed ahead! Piranha parade go!



Catherine Ulysses: Alright. I'm gonna send someone to the church and tell them to lay low until we give them the all clear.



Svetlana Aliyev: Erik, you were supposed to stay right behind Skull Face! Now the parade is all fucked up!
Erik Spanner: Don't look at me! The guys in front of me got a paved road the whole way! I had to plow through a shitty muddy side street first!



Catherine Ulysses: Guys, shut up! I've got eyes on the enemy. Four trog companies and some riders. Shouldn't be anything you can't handle.



Svetlana Aliyev: Alright, we're in position. Waiting for you to draw 'em out.



Catherine Ulysses: So, uh, there might've been a couple I didn't see...




Svetlana Aliyev: Well, we just took care of the only real threat. Trogs're nothing but meat for our guns!



Patrick Gallagher: Did someone order an express delivery of DEATH?



Catherine Ulysses: Damn it! I think they realized they can't hurt your piranhas, they're all chasing me down!



Skull Face: Just sit tight, Catherine, we'll be right there!




Mael Radec: Dealt with.





Ash Kleef: I've been looking east of the town while you guys were taking care of that. I'll let you know if I find anything. Just a heads up, we've got a new kind of enemy weapon here, along with what looks like a battalion of mags.
Svetlana Aliyev: Got it. What's the new weapon we're we dealing with, Ash?



Ash Kleef: Some kind of vehicle, one platoon. It looks like the arrow throwers, but with one big-ass arrow instead of hundreds of small ones. The tip's glowing, too. Some kind of anti-armor variant of the throwers, if I had to guess.



Patrick Gallagher: That sounds a bit more dangerous than anything else we've been up against.
Erik Spanner: But it sounds like there's only one. Let's see if the trogs can beat five-to-one odds!



Skull Face: Shit, the mags are all over us!



Erik Spanner: Fuck the mags, take out the thrower!



Patrick Gallagher: Not armored any better than the anti-infantry throwers, is it?



Skull Face: Nice aim, Pat! Okay, who's ready for a turkey shoot?



Svetlana Aliyev: Sounds like a nice, relaxing way to cap off a mission, I think.



Erik Spanner: Done! Okay, who died? On our side, I mean.
Mael Radec: All my people are accounted for, as are everyone else's.
Patrick Gallagher: Wow! These piranhas really made all the difference, huh?
Skull Face: Looks that way. Let's take the time to enjoy it before we're inevitably ass-deep in magical anti-tank weapons.




About a thousand people had lived in the town before the invasion. About a hundred survivors were recovered, most of those from the church. With the town still close to the frontline, the obvious plan was to resettle them into one of Britain's quickly swelling refugee compounds. Some of them got to talking with us on the way back, and mentioned enemy soldiers matching the description of ka-orcs rounding people up and taking them on a forced march to the north. If they were being used for ritual sacrifice, as we suspected, then we now had another urgent mission... and a chance to save a few more people.