Part 33: Mission 34: The Long Haul

The war, up until now, had been a desperate struggle for survival, one in which the enemy had proven so overwhelming that at times it seemed a matter of when, rather than if, we would lose. Even when we repelled one advance at great cost, another would be on top of us before we had time to wipe the blood off our boots.

Our victory in Russia changed everything. Suddenly, we had the initiative. The Forces of Darkness had been sent running, and they didn't stop until they reached the Bloc of Free States, shedding orc deserters as they went, entrenching themselves behind borders guarded by traitors to humanity. Our enemy was now in a situation that was spiralling out of their control. Wherever they fled, our armies reclaimed. Their hellish temples were bombed, the castles where they drew their plans against us smashed to rubble. The refugee crisis finally began to ease; it was now possible to begin resettling them from the overcrowded camps into their former homes, wherever those cities and neighborhoods remained reasonably intact. For the first time since the war had begun, people were optimistic about its outcome.

We couldn't afford to get complacent, however. We still had no way of even guessing how many more reserves the Forces of Darkness had, or how long it would take them to mobilize. There was also the chance that they would start deploying more powerful weapons that they'd been holding in reserve, as they'd already done many times before. To that end, The Drunken Slavs' next assignment would be to finish what we started in Russia. Though their assault had failed, the enemy still held vast portions of the eastern part of the country.




Ahead of us, and all around us, was enemy-occupied territory. Our job was to punch as wide and as deep a hole as we could, before the enemy could recover.



Allied reserves and supply lines were still recovering from the massive losses incurred during the enemy's offensive, and we were at the very edge of their logistical network. We wouldn't be getting much in the way of reinforcements or new equipment for a while.




Luckily, I was able to get a handful of additional units added to The Drunken Slavs. A couple of Leopard 2A5 platoons would be a welcome addition to our tank battallions, along with a platoon of Roland surface-to-air missiles to bolster our air defense. We also ordered one of the new radar trucks, which would hopefully give us a relatively safe way to scout out the enemy.



I also had our existing Gepards replaced with Rolands. Intel had warned us about a new aerial weapon the enemy was using. Gigantic birds, with bombs strapped to their bellies, would dive into their targets in suicidal attacks. Whatever explosives they'd been given, they were far more potent than the cannonballs that Mechanical Towers had been armed with. Even a near-miss was often enough to destroy an IFV, and a direct hit was deadly even to a main battle tank.



We also now had access to M106 Paladin guns. We could only afford one platoon, which went to Anil's unit, since his unit had been with us since the beginning.



We'd also had a few close calls with UDES, and one of the platoons hadn't been upgraded yet, so we gave them the best armor and engines.



We couldn't spare many funds for our research division at the moment, but we had enough to get them started on the final development stages of the long-awaited infantry battlesuits. With the discovery of new alchemical metals allowing for lighter armor plates, the main remaining hurdles were in the target recognition and command and control software.



With China having defected, and Russia in the long process of rebuilding their infrastructure and army after large portions of both had been laid to waste by the Forces of Darkness, the United States had become the backbone of the Alliance armed forces. Because of this, they were able to contribute plenty of soldiers to the campaign.



Not a lot, though, and not their best. It was nice to have some emergency reserves in any case.




R&D was making its limited funding count.




We were also able to expand our officer roster once again. Our chain of command was solid enough now that everyone had at least company-level leadership.



We were ready - or at least, as ready as we could get with the time and funds available to us. Our first mission was to escort a convoy carrying supplies to a forward base. We'd been personally requested for this mission because previous supply convoys had all gone missing en route, along with their escorts. This was a crucial point in our logistical network, and we would need to keep it well-stocked to fuel our advance, and the enemy seemed to know this.

Mission 34: The Long Haul

Attending:
Lazarus (Forlorn Hope, Flamethrowers)
Habitually Red (Sane Max's Own, Flamethrowers)
Solrick Skaft (Scion of Emer, Flamethrowers)
T. Hinman (Ethereal Corps, Flamethrowers)
Logan "Hardtack" Smith (War Dogs, Paranormal Infantry)
Joe Moore (War Boys, Paranormal Infantry)
"Doctor" Snark (Mage Killers, Commandos)
Patrick Gallagher (Just In Time, Elmag 1)
Svetlana Aliyev (Rusalka, Elmag 1)
Mael Radec (Radec's Rhinos, M1 Abrams)
Erik Spanner (The Toolbox, M1 Abrams)
James "Griff" Griffin (Party Crashers, M1 Abrams)
Basil (Paladin, M1 Abrams)
Jorji Costava (Cobrastan's Best, M1 Abrams)
Isara Gunther (Edelweiss, M1 Abrams)
Reginald P. Linux (Doom Squad, Leopard 2A5)
SGT Turtle (Turtling Tanks, Leopard 2A5)
Aethereon Darkfyre (The Mary Sues, UDES)
Stephen Smith (The Counts of Monty Python, UDES)
Anil E. Hilated, Esq. (Polite Obliteration, M106)
Grand Inquisitor Solaus (Balkanian Inquisition, AMX-30)
Gregor (The Swell Swords, AMX-30)
Michael de Boulogne (Chivalric Order of Saint George, AMX-30)
Cholmondely Featherstonehaugh-Smythe (Sphinx Battery, Roland)
Billy John (The Truther Squad, Roland)
Sigrún Raske (Skysmasher Brigade, Roland)
Billy Mays (Infomercial Men, Humvees)
Atom ikk Rab (Those From the Depths, Universal 1R)

Escortees:

Chris Smith (Konvoy)
Karen Brown (Konvoy)




Hardtack: Looks like we've got a lot of ground to cover. Apparently there's a lot of snaking canyons we'll have to wind our way through.



Reginald P. Linux: We got bugs, too!
SGT Turtle: What the hell? The enemy wasn't supposed to have forces this far out!



Habitually Red: Regular spiders are bad enough! These things are the size of cars, and we don't know what they can do!
Svetlana Aliyev: Let's take 'em out before we have to find out, then. There's nothing between them and the convoys, which is the last thing we want.



Stephen Smith: Machine gun rounds chew 'em up, no problem! Let 'em have it!




Basil: Okay, we didn't immediately fuck up! Let's hope we can keep doing that.




Billy Mays: WE'VE GOT MAGOTARS RIGHT UP AHEAD, THE PERFECT THING TO TEST YOUR NEW ROLANDS ON!



Stephen Smith: Well, our UDES can't hit 'em. Not like they can hurt us either, though.



Stephen Smith: But those might be able to!




Aethereon Darkfyre: How much life must I extinguish before my tortured soul may finally find peace?



Billy Mays: THE FORCES OF DARKNESS HAVE YOU COVERED! IF YOU AREN'T SATISFIED WITH THE FIRST LIFE FORM YOU EXTERMINATE, THEY'LL THROW IN A FEW MILLION MORE FOR FREE!



Solaus: Don't bring a knife to a gun fight! Or pincers to an artillery fight.



Erik Spanner: Path's clear. Let's keep rolling 'til we hit whatever's next. Then roll right on over it.



Griff: Shit! Taking heavy rocket fire!
Gregor: Shen Tzu's men, here? Traitors get Gregor's steel!



Patrick Gallagher: Oh, shit! Those aren't Tzu's men, those are orcs!
Mael Radec: It was only a matter of time. A lot of weapons fell into the enemy's hands with the defection of China.



Habitually Red: Okay, just stay calm! A trog with an anti-tank missile is still a trog. Just take 'em out first, and we should be fine!



Anil E. Hilated: Sorry, I don't trust those damn ants. At least we know what the missiles do.




Erik Spanner: Didn't go down as easy as their ax-swinging cousins. Looks like someone's made modern body armor for them. Might've made more of a difference if we were still using small arms in any way!



Cholmondely: I saw some of those winged fellows flying into the woods. We should send them on their way before we get back to business.



Billy John: Sure you didn't just want to test out the new hardware?
Cholmondely: It may have had some factor in my decision, I confess.



Cholmondely: It appears we have some uninvited guests! I'd appreciate it if someone could show them the door before they put some holes in my Roland that aren't in the blueprints.



Isara Gunther: On it!



Isara Gunther: Oh Jesus!



Isara Gunther: I've been ambushed, I repeat, I've been ambushed! Bugs and orcs bearing down on me, need support!
Reginald P. Linux: More orcs with anti-tank missiles?



Isara Gunther: No, looks like these ones just have rifles. You guys can roll right on in.





Michael de Boulogne: They may have our guns, but they don't have our tactics. We've trained generations of soldiers on automatic rifles and anti-tank weapons!



SGT Turtle: More of 'em!



Isara Gunther: Luckily it doesn't take much to drop these ones.



Cholmondely: Right. Now we can do what we came here to do. I must say, these missiles are wonderful! Not a magotar left in the whole flock.



Billy John: That was a lot of trouble just to kill two mag squads.
Sigrún Raske: That'd only be an issue if we weren't killing them all anyway!
Billy John: But our mission's just to get these supplies to the base!
Sigrún Raske: Yes, and?



Karen Brown: Speaking of supplies, are you guys gonna leave us behind? I know you want to clear the way first, but we haven't fucking moved!
Mael Radec: Sure, come on up. We've torched everything that could possibly be a threat to you.



Stephen Smith: Natural bridge up ahead. We'll let you guys know if you find anything.



Solrick Skaft: Ow, shit! Be careful, Stephen, there's elves around here!




Solrick Skaft: Keeb bastards. That power armor can't come soon enough.



Aethereon Darkfyre: These woods are dark. Must I throw myself into the abyss, so that my comrades may continue?



Atom ikk Rab: The radar truck's tailor-made for this! I just wonder why they didn't want to give me an actual weapon.
Stephen Smith: Might be because of those weird robes you insist on wearing. Your calls at night for some unpronouncable thing to devour the Earth probably don't help either.
Atom ikk Rab: Don't those fuckers know religious discrimination's illegal?




Aethereon Darkfyre: If only the darkness in my soul could be banished so easily.
Stephen Smith: Looks like they were waiting for us! Let's call up the artillery.




Gregor: Curses! If Gregor aim just a little to the right, would not leave one standing!



Hardtack: Good thing we didn't skimp on firepower. Rab, you picking up anything else?
Atom ikk Rab: Nope. Nothing bigger than a squirrel's still moving.
Hardtack: Forward, then!



Stephen Smith: Are we going in a circle? I think we're going in a fucking circle.
Hardtack: Mountain trails tend to wind a bit. At least you're not walking. Let's call up the others.




Atom ikk Rab: I think we're getting there! According to the map, the base camp's just south of us!



Stephen Smith: It ain't a straight shot! No way our convoys can get through those woods, even if those bugs weren't there!




Svetlana Aliyev: Why'd you guys run back here? You could've handled those bugs on your own.



Billy Mays: WELL SVET, ONE OF THE AMAZING THINGS ABOUT FORESTS IS THAT YOU CAN'T SEE HOW MANY ENEMIES THERE ARE, SO YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN THE FUN WILL END!



Jorji Costava: Gun orcs! Joke on them, their guns not superior Cobrastan engineering!




Reginald P. Linux: Finally, I'm starting to feel like a real soldier!



Anil E. Hilated: God, I wish replacement parts were cross-compatible. I think this thing'll actually be worse than my old Nordia AMX 'til I get an upgrade again.



Hardtack: Still does its job well enough, doesn't it?
Anil E. Hilated: When it comes to artillery, there's no such thing as "good enough."



Griff: Looks like we've got some stragglers.



Aethereon Darkfyre: None can escape my wrath!



Atom ikk Rab: Let's see if anything else is lurking in there.




Atom ikk Rab: Woods are dense, but they're not very big.



Atom ikk Rab: I can actually see the corner of the base from here. Shame we can't bring in these supplies on foot.



Billy Mays: I GUARANTEE YOU'LL CHANGE YOUR MIND WHEN YOU SEE ALL THE SCENERY THIS ROUTE HAS TO OFFER!



Atom ikk Rab: More trees? Time to do my thing!



Atom ikk Rab: Clear. Let's move up!




Billy Mays: YOU'LL LOVE THE NEW AND IMPROVED ORCS! WE'RE PRACTICALLY GIVING THEM AWAY!
Stephen Smith: Alright, guys. You know what time it is?




Gregor: Is artillery time!




Michael de Boulogne: It's nice, after all this time, being able to see and hit the enemy first.
Solaus: Just as God intended.
Anil E. Hilated: I think that's the last one. Keep moving up!




Atom ikk Rab: Balloons!
Stephen Smith: Should we fall back?
Joe Moore: What're they gonna do, float menacingly at us?
Stephen Smith: We don't have much in the way of air defense, and even they would probably make pretty short work of our expensive new radar trucks. And Atom too, I guess.
Atom ikk Rab: Always good to know you put what really matters first, Stephen.



Joe Moore: Fuck it. Everyone behind us! It's gonna take more than a few flying targets to slow us down!



Joe Moore: Shit, those shells burn hot! Lucky their aim is terrible. Guess they haven't figured out aerial gunnery yet.




Hardtack: Speed bump's dealt with. Let's keep moving!



Joe Moore: Ow, shit!
Hardtack: Fall back! We'll lure 'em into artillery range!



Stephen Smith: Drawing their fire!



Hardtack: Okay, we're getting into pos-



Joe Moore: They're shooting fire at us! Oh God, why are we in the dead trees? That's the worst place to be!
Hardtack: Could be worse. At least we aren't in that Saudi oil field.




Joe Moore: Okay, that wasn't so bad!
Hardtack: Maybe not for you, but that's 'cause they all unloaded on me!



Gregor: Hardtack has found Gregor's foe!



Solaus: Alright. We clear?



Hardtack: FUCKING NOPE



Hardtack: Me and Joe're both wounded! The hell do we do about that balloon?
Michael de Boulogne: You know, we left an absolute shitload of tanks and stuff back there. Why are we doing this ourselves?



Cholmondely: "By yourselves"? Rather presumptuous, if I may say so.
Hardtack: Where the hell did you- I mean, thanks!
Solaus: We're calling the tanks in, right?



Billy Mays: OF COURSE NOT! WITH SCOUTS BACKED BY UDES AND ARTILLERY, YOU'LL NEVER HAVE TO WAIT FOR TANKS AGAIN!



Atom ikk Rab: Son of a bitch!



Atom ikk Rab: I'M BEING SHOT AT. I'M DRIVING A RADAR TRUCK. THOSE AREN'T SUPPOSED TO BE SHOT AT.



Atom ikk Rab: Fucking do something!
Hardtack: No better options than to do what we did last time!





Hardtack: Patched up now. Luckily, our wounds weren't too bad. 'cept the poor bastards who died.





Joe Moore: They just keep coming!



Solaus: Then we'll just keep killing.



Anil E. Hilated: Finally. Alright, new plan. UDES and 'vees, move up and keep scouting. We'll call up the others. If you find any more hostiles, lure 'em back to us and we'll blast 'em away. We've taken enough stupid risks in one day.



Aethereon Darkfyre: Contact! Stand back, Stephen, I'll draw their fire so you can-



Stephen Smith: Fuck that, we've got a schedule to keep.
Aethereon Darkfyre: But we were supposed to-
Stephen Smith: I won't tell anyone if you don't. Come on, let's see what else is out there.



Billy Mays: BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE!




Stephen Smith: Gonna be a bit of an anticlimax if all that's left are keebs. Unless they start using guns too.





Billy Mays: THE RESULTS SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES. TRY GUNS TODAY! IF YOU'RE AMERICAN, ALL YOU'VE GOTTA DO IS DRIVE ON DOWN TO YOUR LOCAL WAL-MART!



Aethereon Darkfyre: The terra firma is obsidian and dessicated here. What could have initiated this misfortune?



Aethereon Darkfyre: There! I see the pedestal!
Stephen Smith: The what? Oh. ...That's the base, Dark.
Aethereon Darkfyre: Base, pedestal, same thing.
Stephen Smith: What? No, that-
Aethereon Darkfyre: Look, you'd know these things if you got a thesaurus like me.



Billy Mays: HI EVERYONE, BILLY MAYS HERE TO TELL YOU ABOUT OUR WONDERFUL NEW SUPPLY PROGRAM! BULLETS, ROCKETS, DIESEL, RATIONS AND WATER! ALL DELIVERED FREE OF CHARGE AS PART OF THE ALLIANCE'S CUSTOMER LOYALTY PROGRAM!



Stephen Smith: Alright, guys. Path's clear, bring up the goods while I try to shut up Billy. As suspected, you'll have to drive in a big fucking spiral.



Chris Smith: You know, we could've saved a lot of trouble by just airdropping this shit.



Billy Mays: ...40MM MORTAR SHELLS GUARANTEED TO WOUND OR KILL ANY ENEMY INFANTRY IN ITS BLAST RADIUS, AND INFLICT HEAVY DAMAGE ON ANY UNARMORED VEHICLE ON A DIRECT HIT! WE'VE ALSO GOT-
Karen Brown: Yeah great. Alright, supplies are here! Let's get it unloaded.



It was a good start to the offensive. They base personnel had managed to rescue a few survivors from previously intercepted convoys, who all cited the same cause for the loss of their cargo: the giant, spiderlike creatures we'd encountered. The same creatures, apparently, were responsible for the patches of barren land and dead trees we'd seen on the way here - the ecosystem was quite healthy before they'd arrived.

It was strange that none of the survivors from the convoys had claimed to ever be attacked by anything other than the spiders. The orcs, now using modern weapons and tactics as we'd dreaded, should have been attacking our supply trucks to disrupt our logistics and replenish their own ammo stores. Discovering what was going on here, though, would have to wait. The enemy had rallied more quickly than we'd suspected, and their organization would only improve as time went by. We needed to push ahead.