It has been 3 days since Aurora was nuked.

...Since then, we moved onwards to Ìrota, rounding up people, ignoring the slowly emerging signs of societal collapse in the Arcologies.

Without the power base in Aurora, we have no viable way left to keep the revolution going.

Right now. There is only one thing we can do.

...Know we won't have the troops, but fucking do it anyways.

“.... =.=... “

...Shut up.

“Hey! I didn't even say anything!”

Doesn't matter. Your eyes did.

“ :/ ”

Back on topic. With Aurora, we lost the entire command structure of C&C, and by hands of radiation, we lost the able minded and/or bodied folk in the facilities around Aurora. Not to even mention the impact on morale…

So yeah. There is no longer any way to amass the necessary troops to take the Vat city on time.

“-And that is why we must do this.”

“We must fight.”

“Not for our own sake.”

“Not for the sake of our families”

‘

“BUT! For the sake of SHOWING the entire world.”

“...That humanity can still rise.”

I finish the speech I was giving whilst Idly thinking of other things.

I take another glance at the now cheering force of fanaticized followers in front of me.

In front of me, was an armada. 600 Walkers. All armed to teeth with heavy weaponry.

I had also brought over and set into positions on a cliff nearly on the other side of the city 150 artillery weapons mounted on half-track vehicles, 200 ground mounted artillery weapons.

And a sizable force of some 1200 loyal citizens, armed with various heavy-end handheld weapons, like rocket launchers,  heavy rifles, ground-mounted heavy rail guns, etc. as well as 10 Keelbacks full of spare ammunition.

We were currently very close to the Vat city, there it was, looming in the horizon.

Even more so than an Arcology, a Vat city is truly awe inspiring,

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Where an Arcology was built onto the ruins of destroyed Old cities… A vat city is a neigh-untouched ruined city… The difference? We dismantled thousands of skyscrapers around the location of an arcology for the construction materials, a vat city has them all still standing…

...Yes. What in front of us, was a gigantic metropolis, The size that I had not seen in almost a hundred years. Inside that place, Old Beasts, in numbers unimaginable resided.. And we were going to siege it.

It was a painstaking effort to round up the forces here…10 days of carefully amassing forces, moving them into position, setting down down defences around their positions…

I had to close the long distance comms, the Arcologies that we took over kept requesting support after having been left for dead…

“...It is too late to turn back now.”

Yeah. all we can do now, is to bring it to the end.

A closing act.

So we began the siege.

It all began with the choir.

350 Artillery cannons, all firing in unison. Looking from here It was like the mountain they were settled on had erupted into a roar.

And then, came the rain.

Numerous artillery shells descended into the Vat city, forming a scene all too familiar from the old war. In less than a moment, the city came alive, as if the beehive had been batted.

Numerous Lesser Old Beasts. Like ants of an ant hive, swarming towards the mountain, with just as many Heavy and Medium Old Beasts…

Jesus Christ…. In terms of offensive strength that is several fold more than the army of a small nation…

That was to be expected though…

Second choir joined in, the Old Beasts with artillery began firing back.

2 Layer choir.. Majestic.

But as said, expected.

The artillery kept firing as the old beast horde rose to the challenge, taking to the mountain in less than 10 minutes. Blasting through the defences on the mountain easily.

But soon they saw their mistake.

Third choir joined in. Raining destruction upon the mountaintop.

The halftrack loaded artillery.

You see, that mountain with its cliffside was chosen for a reason, it is an entrance to the underground train track network. Allowing for our foot soldiers and the rest to start escaping into the tunnels, pulling the Old Beasts with them,

...The halftracks began relocating a minute after the volley.

…The Old Beasts started rushing into the tunnels soon after the new location of the halftracks.

..And so, we started a game of cat and mouse.

As soon as most of the enemy horde had moved, we took off as well, using another entrance to the old train network. While the majority of our forces distract the horde, the rest of us will get into the city, and take the vats down.

“...Why do you know the local train networks so well?”

...You can't remember?...

...This city is it you know?

...The city where I was made.

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“Great work as always MU-33, by bringing us those insurgents, you have truly made things easier for us. The data extracted alone has been enough to root out a dozen insurgent hideouts.”

… Apparently they were relevant, as far as targets go at least..

“...I think you deserve a reward! I am charting you into the new Walker pilot programme, Let's take you to Engineering and get you the necessary uplink ports.

Tomorrow, I am going to give you a Walker of your own!”

...A strange feeling, I think I have never seen him so chipper… well, I suppose I really did good job…

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