Emelia crept through the brush; her eyes wide as they searched all around. They’d seen nothing so far since they had been sent to guard the flank of the column. Which turned out to be driving well in front of it, dismounting and then walking in the forest next to the road and clearing it. They were still behind the proper scouts who were lurking about two miles away in ghillie suits apparently. That is, according to a random lance corporal from another squad who swore blind that was what was happening.
Either way, it was still tense, too tense for her liking. Every rustle of leaves seemed like it would lead to robin hood jumping out and impaling their eye with an arrow.
“Delta squad to company command, nothing yet.” Corporal Kenneth barked down his radio. His rough voice was one of the few things that would occasionally break the silence and rustling of leaves in the spring weather. “Yes, we’ll keep moving forwards, out.”
It was rather beautiful all things considered and reminded her of walks with her father in the forests of the lake district when they took a holiday there.
But those lands were far behind her, several thousand light years behind her.
And if she wanted to get back home in one piece she’d have to be in the here and now, doing her job. It was that simple.
She felt something on her shoulder, whipping around to find the bearded grenadier behind her. Zachary had his eyes locked with a tree In-front of the two and was gently pushing her down.
She knelt, very slowly, and very carefully with him, his low and raspy accent ladened voice simply whispering, “Just look at the tree over there lass, do you see that little brown bit?”
She saw it, a piece of brown fabric poking out from behind a tree, a discrepancy everyone in the section was noticing, Alexandra calling it in with the corporal as quietly as she could.
Emelia slowly raised her rifle, getting ready to fight as she felt her body tense up.
Then the arrow thwacked into Zachary’s arm.
He screamed, slumping against a tree at Emelia whipped her head around, diving at the same time to Zachary.
“What the fuck are you doing!” He yelled, pushing her away just as she hit the ground, “Fire!”
Her wild eyes kept searching the brush before seeing the glint of steel arrow heads readied on her.
She heaved her rifle around, her thumb flicking the fire selector to full auto and letting loose. The wild spray of bullets smacking into the ground and trees around the assailant, but two found their mark.
A red spray followed as the arrow they were drawing back flew off and thunked harmlessly into the space before her. The green clad soldier letting out a few half formed gurgles before dropping to the ground.
She was panting hard, her shoulder throbbing with pain but even through her surprised senses she could tell that it wasn’t the one scout they were fighting with. Luckily however Alexandra was faster than her.
A smoke grenade flew past her, filling the air in front of her and Zachary quickly.
“Get back you two!” She screamed and Zachary did not need anything else.
The wounded man tugged her along as he got behind the thick truck of the tree, unwrapping a pack of bandages and pressing them against his bleeding shoulder, grunting “You’ve got fucking shite reactions lass!”
Her heart was still pounding however as she brushed off the comment, gun aimed at obscured targets through the smoke.
Through her ears however she then finally heard to orders she needed, “Fire some bursts through that smoke screen Emelia! Keep them pinned!”
She hauled her rifle up to her shoulder again as she dumped several measured bursts into the smoke screen as through the corner of her eye, she saw her squamates lead by Alexandra start to flank the enemy.
They moved from tree to tree, eyes always alert as they peaked through the billowing white smoke.
From the other side she heard several screams and shouts before they were drowned out by the sound of small arms fire, then nothing.
Her blood started to cool, her body slumping against the tree.
Something slipped through the corner of her eye.
Her head snapped around to see a moving green thing in the distance.
She put the last two rounds into her magazine into it, one clipping it by the shoulder as it fell to the ground with a distant thud.
Her heart continued to pound after that, the lingering sense of danger not dissipating like before, especially not as a hand was placed onto her shoulder, causing her to whip around and point the assault rifle right at Zachary.
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“I was about to congratulate you on that nice shot, but I think you nearly shooting me now cancels that out a little lass.”
“Wha-“
“Now, could you help me out her with stopping the bleeding, I’m feeling a little light-headed and I don’t want to pass out before the ambulance arrives.”
Her mind finally focused on the blood trickling into the already blood-soaked bandage Zachary was holding against his arm.
She initially was about to pull the arrow out before remembering the operational training she had been given, her hand instead moving to pull out another set of bandages and a tourniquet.
“Zachary!” another voice yelled, Emelia’s slightly muddled mind finally connecting it with Alexandra, “Are you still conscious!?”
“I think I am ma’am, is the ambulance coming?”
“Yeah, got it called in mate, just- Just hang in there for ten more minutes.”
The grenadier let out a short, dry laugh, “Not the worst response time I’ve seen on them…”
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Nathaniel’s days had begun to fill with more and more stress. More and more soldiers kept pouring into the camp and he’d had to assign all of those groups, with the river now secured for about ten miles in each direction, every wooden foot crossing watched by groups of soldiers with runners to inform him of any attempted crossings.
But it hadn’t helped with the strain on the logistics, and if the enemy didn’t attack within two weeks he’d be done for. There was only so much food they could gather and transport, and no army can even stay together never mind fight on an empty stomach.
But luckily, but he correctly guessed the enemy had been on the move and had made with worrying speed towards the bridge. And now a single scout had managed to escape from the enemy’s patrols, with every other member of their unit killed. The news they brought was not good at all.
Each one of their soldiers, while possessing of no metal armour, had hand cannons of incredible accuracy that could fire multiple shots per second it seemed. Nathaniel simply couldn’t believe it. Such weapons should be impossible but the trusted scout’s words said otherwise, who apparently only survived by hiding in the brush a fair distance away from their compatriots who tried to ambush the daemons. The fools.
But there was no escaping from that information at all, but what was he to do with that? As soon as the enemy got in range and sight of their troops, they’d be dead! He could order them to dig trenches, it would at least give them something to hide in while the enemy advanced, if that would be something they’d even be willing to do before wiping his force out to the man.
And he had to hold the bridge, with no argument at all with it, it was his best shot of winning his gamble. The gamble of being a war hero like no other, one who’d gain all of the influence they’d ever want…
A thought passed through his mind.
The forces their scouts came across could be their elite vanguard troops, with them only having limited numbers of them. That would make the fight winnable and could lead to the enemy being outmatched in ranged firepower by his crossbowmen. After all they were still handguns and lacked indirect fire, range and even if these ones seemed to be accurate, surely, they’d be a limit of the accuracy you could have with those sorts of weapons? They are still handguns.
He shook his head, wiping his eyes as he looked up from his papers and out of the keep windows onto the massing troops. The sounds of sergeant’s orders audible even from up here as the troops did their daily drills.
Maybe he was just overthinking it all, but time would tell if he was a fool for not heeding it. Though there was always his ace…
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Edward stood by the command console in the CIC, the phone held against his head with one hand while another held a pen above a notebook, its page already a mess of scribbles.
“But general, did they think any of them got away?”
“Well, my men didn’t think so, but they seemed a little worked up so one of the fuckers might have wormed their way out.” Victor sniffed.
Edward sighed, “Well I guess we’ll only be able to tell if they know about our capabilities from if they’ve made any more moves when we next pass over.”
“So, you will.”
“And anyway, what do you have in mind for your assault, you’ve not ordained me with that exact knowledge yet even though I’m the one who control all the air assets.”
“Not all of them Eddy boy, I still have my drones and that’s all the air support I’ll need for this.”
“And keep low casualties, as well as keep the bridge intact?”
“Of course, all I need is an eye in the sky with a designator and I’ll be golden so don’t worry your knickers and I’ll have the federation that bridge. Those inbred fucks won’t know what hit them.”
“You’ll try to get their commander alive though?”
“If he’s not an idiot he’ll survive, and if he survives and is still in the general area, we’ll get him. If he doesn’t, well, we can at least count the enemy down one leader.”
“You keep worrying me by still not telling me what you intend to do however-”
“And you haven’t ordered me to tell you it, besides, I’m calling from an open command APC so call it operational security while also giving you a nice surprise.”
Then the phone turned to static as the Brigadier General cut the line.
“Blue balled you yet again?” David asked, a characteristic smirk across his face.
“I think I have found the reason why, even though he’s been in the service longer than me, he’s a lower rank.”
“And that is?”
“He can’t bloody cooperate with anyone unless you make him.”
“So, why don’t you?”
Edward sighed yet again, “Because I don’t actually need to know in this case.”
“I just call that being weak willed.”
“Of course you do.”
“Anyway, that’s the end of the day for you, isn’t it? So, we can all head down to the lounge, all four of us! Relax a little!”
“All four of us?”
“Yeah, because you’re all buddy buddy with Mr olive branch I have to include him! That and Alex apparently likes talking to him too. Though not in that way! I have ensured there are no threats to you at all with him other than me.”
“What a great wingman you are…”
“I joke, I joke!”
“I’m not too sure…” The admiral muttered as the two exited the CIC, coming face to face with Alex.
David chuckled “Ah, how convenient! Well, we can get going right away.”
“David,” Alex eyed a flask David started to bring out of his shirt’s breast pocket, “We’re still technically on duty for a few more moments, so is that regulation standard?”
“God, I hope not.”
Alex groaned, “So what on earth is in there as I’m guessing it isn’t water or coffee. Is it Vodka?”
“Oh no, how uncouth that would be!”
“So, again, what is it?”
“A double Cognac.”
Alex nearly spat at that “God you’re irresponsible.”
“I’m a maverick, I’ve got a reputation to uphold!”
“You’re not a maverick you’re a dickhead!”
“Oh, you hurt me! I thought you warmed up to me a little after the gin we had!”
“And I have a little, but I’m more a stickler for the regs than Edward and I like holding you responsible for your actions. Unlike Edward.”
Edward simply stared blankly at the both of them as they laughed. It’s all for morale he thought to himself. It’s all for morale and keeping their minds off what disasters may happen next.