Part 17: Mission 17: Oh Good Gravy, They Have Tanks!

With the losses we were sustaining against the enemy's new weapons, it was good to hear that our engineers and magicians had at least developed a new, high-density magical storage battery. It was small enough to be integrated into a design for a tank-mounted coilgun turret, which was pushed into the prototype phase without delay.



Unfortunately, it wouldn't be finished in time for our next mission - it was becoming painfully clear that Saudi Arabia had far too much that needed done yesterday. Scouts had spotted human military detachments that had turned traitor, operating with the Forces of Darkness. Based on their movements, it appeared they were preparing to withdraw from the area. We needed to prevent this for several reasons. They needed the same equipment, weapons, and supplies that we did, and defeating them would put those in Alliance hands; their insider knowledge of the enemy would make them good intelligence sources; and we would send a message that would make other potential defectors think twice. Beyond the strategic considerations, though, we needed to do this mission. These people had sold out the humanity to butchers, and they would answer for it.

Mission 17: Oh Good Gravy, They Have Tanks!

Attending:
Joe Moore (War Boys, Mortar Infantry)
Lazarus (Forlorn Hope, Flamethrowers)
Habitually Red (Sane Max's Own, Flamethrowers)
Bonaventura Ferrer (Confederacion, Heavy Infantry)
"Doctor" Snark (Mage Killers, Commandos)
Logan "Hardtack" Smith (War Dogs, Commandos)
Solrick Skaft (Scion of Emer, Commandos)
Amina (Les Amazones, Piranha)
Patrick Gallagher (Just In Time, Piranha)
Svetlana Aliyev (Rusalka, Piranha)
Erik Spanner (The Toolbox, Piranha)
James "Griff" Griffin (Party Crashers, TAM)
Mael Radec (Radec's Rhinos, TAM)
Basil (Paladin, STRV)
Anil E. Hilated, Esq. (Polite Obliteration, M106)
Grand Inquisitor Solaus (Balkanian Inquisition, M106)
Ash Kleef (Ashsavers, Humvee)
Catherine Ulysses (Smart Patrol, Humvee)



Ash Kleef: Looks like we've got a gorge here. Pick a direction, Cathy.
Catherine Ulysses: I'm heading right!



Catherine Ulysses: Welp. Bridge is out. Just as well, I'm down a vic anyway. I just hope there's another way across.



Solaus: So do we!



Patrick Gallagher: There is, but it's guarded! Trogs and elves sighted!



Mael Radec: Not just trogs and elves! We've got mri!



Griff: Fuuuuuuuck, golems too!



Anil E. Hilated: Doesn't look like there's a lot of them, though. Just concentrate fire on them, and we'll have this group mopped up in no time!




Griff: Mri are gone, and so's half our problem!



Amina: Bad news! There's more where they came from!



Anil E. Hilated: Leave the golems to us! Even if they're on higher ground, we should outrange them. Hopefully we can flush them out of cover!



Svetlana Aliyev: Got the bastards! They don't have the numbers they did last time. This shouldn't be difficult.



Svetlana Aliyev: Doesn't mean it won't be ANNOYING AS FUCK, though!



Basil: Bridge is clear!



Svetlana Aliyev: There's the last mri!



Amina: Path's clear!
Erik Spanner: Okay! Now let's sit back and let the artillery plug away at the cubes.



Griff: Damnit, they're running away!



Solaus: Not for long.



Solaus: What? No! Fuck!



Anil E. Hilated: Damn, I thought we were safe here! I need some cover while Solaus patches up!
Griff: Leave it to me!



Griff: Taking fire from the east! There's another golem!



Griff: Oh God, they're on either side of us!
Basil: Don't forget the ka-orcs!
Mael Radec: They are pretty forgettable.



Patrick Gallagher: Now there's a sight! Never thought I'd be so happy to see a cloud of vaporized shit.



Mael Radec: Golems down, we're free to advance! Everyone mop up the rabble.



Amina: Weren't there supposed to be traitors here? Where are they?
Svetlana Aliyev: I get the feeling we'll be running into them soon enough. Let's bring the infantry up and get a foothold on these hills. We'd better leave the M109s behind, though. They've already taken damage, and we don't need any more casualties.



Ash Kleef: Everyone up? Good. Heading southeast now. I'll keep an eye out.



Ash Kleef: Got visual on an old military base! I'll bet this is where the traitors are operating from!



Ash Kleef: Hey, you're not humans!



Habitually Red: Goddamn keebs, stop stinking up human buildings!
Joe Moore: I thought it was the trogs that stank.
Habitually Red: You gonna get close enough to prove me wrong?



Lazarus: Under fire, under fire!



Lazarus: Where the hell do these slippery bastards come from? I'm gonna pull back before they can adjust their aim!



Basil: Well, they're easy to deal with, at least.
"Doctor" Snark: That's 'cause they're using bows. At the end of the day, we have the tanks and guns, while all our enemies are stuck with Ye Olde Swordes.
Bonaventura Ferrer: Hey, uh, guys? I'm pretty sure that Piranha over there isn't one of ours.



Mael Radec: It isn't. We're supposed to be the only Alliance forces operating here. Everyone fire at will, those are traitor forces!



Griff: You picked the wrong team, guys!



Griff: Got 'em!
Solrick Skaft: Can't say I'm happy about this.
Erik Spanner: Fuck 'em, they're traitors!
Solrick Skaft: No, I mean the Piranhas. We're trashing perfectly good hardware!



Ash Kleef: Relax, Solrick! You can take out your frustration on these guys. They aren't carrying anything important.



Ash Kleef: Doesn't mean their guns don't hurt like shit, though! Help!



Lazarus: Damn. these flame guns were effective against the trogs, but that's nothing compared to what they do to people!



Erik Spanner: Just killed the ones with anti-tank missiles! They never got a chance to use 'em.



Habitually Red: You know, it's kind of scary that our easiest battle has been the one where we were fighting humans with normal weapons.
Svetlana Aliyev: On the plus side, it means the Alliance didn't lose anyone important.



Ash Kleef: Enemy base to the northeast. They've got an infantry company.
Patrick Gallagher: "An" infantry company? Please. That's barely a speed bump for-



Patrick Gallagher: Gaaaaah! Where'd they get all these rockets?
Erik Spanner: Seeing as how we're in Saudi Arabia, probably the corner store.



Bonaventura Ferrer: More creeping through the trees! They're flanking us!



Basil: No problem! We've got numbers on our side!
Hardtack: Bona got his start fighting trogs and keebs. He's not used to our enemies using actual tactics.



Solrick Skaft: Got 'em already! Bastards never knew what hit 'em.



Griff: Same here.
"Doctor" Snark: Let's keep pushing forward. No sense giving them a chance to put together an actual defense.



Ash Kleef: Too late! We've got some dug in on the hill over here. Looks like just a couple infantry companies, though.
Joe Moore: So we could just send a couple tanks in to mop them up.



Joe Moore: But hey, why take chances? Let's flush 'em out!




Joe Moore: Taking fire, taking fire! We've got Piranhas!



Amina: Oh, Jesus! They're throwing everything they have at us!



Griff: Everyone, focus on the Piranhas! If they all fire, we're in a world of shit!



Amina: It's like I told my ex: it ain't enough to have the equipment, you gotta know how to use it.



Erik Spanner: Wait, wait, hold the fucking phone! Is that...



Erik Spanner: Shiiiiiiiit!



Lazarus: ...Yeah. Yeah, it is.



Lazarus: Where in God's name did the rebels get M1 Abrams? We can't even fucking get M1 Abrams!



Griff: Doesn't matter where they got 'em! They're our problem now!



Mael Radec: We can do this! Hit the Piranhas and the infantry first. Once the M1s are alone, we can focus on them. Get in close, and try to hit them in the side or rear!
Basil: And don't forget, this time we're the ones with magic bullshit armor!



Svetlana Aliyev: That's the infantry neutered!




Svetlana Aliyev: God, those cannons hurt! Why can't Command just give us Piranha drivers Evadit armor too?



Griff: I've got a clear shot on the M1s! Two of 'em are already up in smoke!



Patrick Gallagher: Good job! Move in, you guys, we'll keep the Piranhas off you!



Solrick Skaft: I'll, uh, finish off the half-dead infantry I guess? I'm helping!



Basil: Thanks for drawing the enemy's fire, Svet! This'll let us rush 'em!
Svetlana Aliyev: I'M NOT FUCKING TRYING TO.



Amina: We've got 'em now! Pour everything you have on 'em 'til there's nothing left!




Amina: You're ruining the moment, Basil!
Basil: Eh, he was right there.



Mael Radec: All enemy M1s down! We got 'em! The base is ours!
Solaus: Actually, guys? We're under attack.
Svetlana Aliyev: Shit! Everyone, full speed toward the artillery. Solaus, what's the situation? Can you hold out?




Solaus: Dealt with. Come on, boys and girls. Let's have a look at the prize.




It was hard to feel good about the victory. In the course of the fighting, we'd destroyed a full four Piranha platoons, along with the unit of M1s. Enough tanks and IFVs to turn the tide of a battle, had they remained in Alliance hands, and now they were smoking wrecks.

The traitors themselves, we soon learned, weren't culled from the local population. Despite speculation that they were deserters from the Saudi army or Jihadis, captured documents revealed that they were a task force sent from the Bloc of Free States. The BFS was comprised of countries on or near the Malay Peninsula, which had been the target of especially brutal attacks by the Forces of Darkness from the earliest days of the war. With the Alliance not having yet been formed, the countries had no one to help them, and decided to surrender and become puppet states of the enemy rather than face certain and total destruction.

We hadn't been able to learn much about the BFS' activity before now, having had no opportunity to engage them with the Forces of Darkness already pushing Alliance forces to their limits. The documents we recovered didn't have any good news. First was the confirmation of our fears that traitors would teach the enemy how to use our weapons. The BFS had started a comprehensive program to do this weeks ago, training orcs in the use of everything from small arms to anti-tank missiles. It appeared that the compound we'd captured was their training ground for flamethrower weapons - we certainly captured a lot - so that, at least, was one less thing we had to worry about seeing turned against us.

What sent chills down my spine, though, was the revelation that not all of the defectors were in the BFS. Command had been compromised. There were traitors among us.