Malmund Forward Garrison
7th Reconnaissance Company, 7th Division, JGSDF
0225HR
The prickly sensation of grasses and the moistened feeling of the soil was something he had experienced too many times, a feeling ingrained into his body for years since he first started soldiering in the wilderness of Hokkaido. Yet, he felt something incredibly different today as he loosely sat in the shellscrape peering out of his muddy entrenchment. A foreboding feeling of anxiety and excitement swelled within his heart.
Lance Corporal Tanaka was trained to defend his country from a possible Chinese incursion, but he had never expected that he would be told to put his training into use against a technologically-backwards empire attempting to exert dominance in a new world. The soldier glanced into the darkened horizon beyond him. Faint silhouettes of low-rise buildings painted the landscape in front of him with only a couple of dazzling amber lights illuminating the little town. It was the town of Alue, a decently sized settlement laying on the border of the Superpower Mu, now under the occupation of a foreign enemy force hostile to Mu and Japan - the Gra Valkas Empire.
Ahead of the imprisoned settlement were the dozens of white lights belonging to the enemy garrison. He could sometimes spot a couple of silhouettes of their anti-aircraft guns. He didn't even need to use his night vision nodes to see Alue being used as a defensive strongpoint by the enemy.
And they were about to attack this strongpoint tonight.
"Hah..." Another sigh escaped from his mouth as he plopped back into his shellscrape with his rifle pointing out, the eternal torture of waiting gnawing into his mind.
"That's like the thirteenth time," a boisterous voice suddenly remarked, "are you secretly trying to jerk off or something?"
"What," Tanaka shifted his eyes to his compatriot, Corporal Yoshida, lying in another shellscrape beside his position, "does my moan excite you?"
"No." His companion retorted as a little smirk surfaced on his face. "I was having some orgasmic thought about a Murian chick until you started moaning obnoxiously."
"Screw off."
Tanaka merely coughed it off, but the gnawing feeling within his heart never went away. He continued staring at the faint amber lights in the darkened horizon as the silence screamed into his ears. That, and the annoying singing from the local cicadas.
"I don't understand," Yoshida suddenly talked, his eyes spying the horizon with his night vision nodes lowered, "with our superior weaponry, we should've driven the Valkies back to the sea by now. Why are we still here sitting out in the mud while they are having fun with the ladies over the other side?"
"Maybe because they decided to bring their entire navy to our shores," Tanaka replied, thinking back to the Division Commander's words a few months ago. "Diet got scared to shit, decided to halt operations and pull back half the air force here back to the mainland."
"What?" The tone of bewilderment slipped into Yoshida's voice as he scoffed at Tanaka's answer. "What are they going to do to us with their dingly guns and cars?"
"We brought the entire 1st Airborne and the 7th Division and curbstomped their entire ground forces, but suddenly we're ordered to stop our advance because the Valkies decided to bring 1000 of their rubber duckies to our waters?"
"Outdated as they may be," Tanaka reminded, "they're still guns. Kevlar could maybe stop their bullets, but it ain't going to do jack against a 47mm."
"And this is why we're sitting here like idiots," Yoshida joked as he raised his hand exaggeratedly, "with pussies like you being scared shitless by a caveman manning a 47mm peashooter even though they couldn't do jack to our Nana Yons."
Tanaka stayed silent for a while, looking at Yoshida as his mind contemplated over those words.
"Maybe." He answered a moment later. Then a little smile crept onto his face. "But this is why we're here tonight, Yoshi."
As if he was on cue, a reverberating sound echoed from the distance behind, drowning out his companion's words as the air whipped repetitively. Tanaka glanced behind to spot a formation of two AH-1 Cobras and one OH-1 Ninja flying line abreast, the rotorcrafts soaring over his head as they headed straight for the garrisons ahead of them.
The two men merely gazed at the flying machinations of 88kg of inevitable destruction.
"And so the great turkey shoot has begun."
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1st Anti-Tank Helicopter Battalion, 1st Squadron, Detachment "Attacker"
0226HR
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Flying merely 15 metres above the grassy plains, the formation of 3 helicopters made their way towards their objectives with the OH-1 reconnaissance helicopter guiding the AH-1Ss. They were one of the two detachments from Squadron 1 of the 1st Anti-Tank Helicopter Battalion deployed to take out two key radar installations on the enemies forward position. The other detachment, in a similar formation, was already flying towards the other objective 25km west of them.
Their objective was to blow their entire radar sites sky high and pave the way for the air force and the army to strike the enemy' garrisons unperturbed. An opening strike for a shock and awe operation, decapitating the enemy's ability to fight before they could even mobilise their strength. Even more ostentatious was that the Ground Component Command wanted to encircle and eradicate all Gra Valkas presence within Alue's Area of Operation so that Mu wouldn't have to deal with them again.
That was the plan on paper.
The formation of helicopters continued their course as they flew low over the grasslands, the task force attempting to sneak up onto their objectives. The pilots and their gunner kept their eyes peeled in their night vision sights, hoping to see something pop out in the middle of the vast plains.
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The helicopters tilted and swerved to the right, changing their course as they continued advancing towards the enemy encampment. Within minutes, the unmistakable forms of trenches, buildings and a huge radar tower could be seen emerging from the horizon. The large outpost was hidden under the covers of the night, but they were in plain view under the pilots' night vision and thermal sights.
"Hey," the pilot called out to his partner, "I'm seeing targets. Heads up at 2 o'clock."
Immediately, the gunner pulled down the visor of his helmet and gazed at the specified direction. From his night vision sights, he could see the unmistakable form of the radar in a tower of steel frames. Surrounding the radar station were an assortment of anti-aircraft guns and trenches. It was almost as if the radar site was made to be a defensive strongpoint along the front.
The three-barreled gun attached beneath the nose of the hovering cobra traversed to where the gunner was looking at. The cold, steely muzzles swerved and pointed directly at the unsuspecting encampment ahead.
"Damn, that's a lot of guns."
"Useless if they can't see us," the pilot remarked, "you see their generators yet?"
"Yeah," the gunner replied, "they are as bright as the Tokyo Tower in thermals."
The gunner gazed at the generators on the right, aligning his weapon sights on the brilliantly white generators under his thermals.
"Wait a minute, I'm seeing a couple more here. Intel said they only have two in each station."
"Just wreck them too," the pilot merely scoffed, "unless you're gonna kill exactly two and... win the hearts and minds of the others."
Subtle wheezing could be heard from behind the grinning pilot. "Aye aye, sir."
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The voice of Observer crackled within their headsets. The pilot swept a glance at the sleek reconnaissance helicopter hovering beside his cockpit as he replied.
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"Four generators," the pilot reaffirmed to his gunner, "located on the left of the radar. You see them?"
"Crystal. I'm already painting them."
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Both the pilot and gunner continued staring at the encampment as the speaker continued to crackle with Observer's voice, their enemies were still oblivious as to what was to come.
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The pilot glanced down to look at his watch. "2 minutes to H-hour."
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"The hell?" The gunner replied, his eyes already trailing the figures of Gra Valkas Imperial soldiers moving around the encampment. "Is command expecting us to sit and gawk at that big Valkie base for like 2 minutes?"
"Orders are orders," the pilot shrugged, "probably something to do with aligning with the timetables of the other units."
"I didn't just sign up to hover in front of the enemy for two minutes asking them to shoot me, did I?"
"Enough. Just keep an eye out on those Valkies, alright? Let them enjoy the last two minutes of their lives before we blow them to bits."
"I am, Captain." The gunner clicked his tongue as he continued to observe the radar station. Suddenly, he noticed a change in the soldiers' movements. They started running around the base hastily. Some made a dash for the gun pits, the others were bolting into various pillboxes and buildings.
"Skipper, are you seeing this?" The gunner exclaimed, a tinge of concern suddenly swelling within his heart. "They're manning their stations. We've been noticed."
It wasn't just them who were concerned over the sudden development. The radio crackled to life again as Observer began reporting back to command.
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"Oi oi oi!" The gunner wasn't very pleased with what he was hearing. "Now isn't the time for such bullshit!"
400 metres ahead of the Cobras, the soldiers were hastily rushing to their defensive positions. Men were hopping into trenches, dozens of rifles peeped above the walls of sandbags, and the glistening barrels whirred as the anti-aircraft gunners traversed the lethal 20mm flak towards the general direction of the whipping sound. Further towards the flanks of the encampment were the bigger guns that JSDF had never seen before, their long menacing barrels slowly swerving around to find their prey. Unbeknownst to the operators of the AH-1s, they were the 75mm anti-aircraft cannons recently developed by the Gra Valkas Imperial Army for expanding their anti-aircraft coverage.
The pilots didn't know what caliber those cannons were, but they knew that helicopters were not designed to tank a cannon fire. The pilot pushed down the microphone button hard.
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"How did they know we are here anyway?"
"It's the rotor sound," the pilot replied while he instinctively gripped hard on the flight stick, "probably because we're the only few living beings in the world that can operate one of the world's only helicopters."
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The command crackled loud and clear within their headsets. Immediately after, an electronic whirring droned in the cockpit. Within the gunner's sight, the brightly lit generators were locked on by the SACLOS guidance system.
"Tango-1 locked. Distance at 400m. Firing TOW."
Brilliant amber illuminated the darkness of the night. The crimson luminescence ignited beneath the wings of the hovering Cobras within a short second. From the ATGM launcher tubes, a volley of 2 fiery arrows of light burst forth and streaked onto the radar garrison like a comet, and behind its trailing wake came the deafening thunder of whizzing missiles. Unknown to the pilots, the soldiers on the ground screamed and hollered as they saw the crimson specks of light flying towards them.
In mere seconds, the TOW-2B anti-tank guided missiles slammed onto the generators and exploded. Fire and smoke immediately enveloped the entire facility as dirt and metallic debris whizzed around the compound. The explosive sound thundered across the encampment, drowning out the sounds of whipping rotor blades and the panicked cries for help.
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"Tango-2 locked. Firing TOW."
Radiant amber illuminated the wings of the helicopters once more as the Cobras launched their second salvo. The comets of explosives streaked towards the other sets of generators. Explosions rocked the shocked garrison as the compound got turned into a firestorm.
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"Tango-3 locked. Firing TOW."
And again, the Cobras fired their missiles.
<<2 Tangoes down. Last one.>>
"Tango-4 locked. Firing TOW."
And again, the Cobras fired their missiles.
The streaks of brilliant orange crashed onto the last generator, blowing up the transformers and incinerating the power supply. Left behind was a wake of fire and brimstone, the brilliant flames flickered and hungrily licked the air as it spread across the facilities. Black smoke billowed across the encampment. Any other lights in the garrison were abruptly shut off, leaving the enemy with only the burning flames to illuminate the site.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
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"Right," the gunner grinned as he lined his targets in his sights, "engaging hostiles."
Sparing no hesitation and mercy, the AH-1 Cobras unleashed their munitions upon the confused soldiers. A fiery barrage of Hydra 70 rockets whizzed through the night skies, the radiant ambers randomly plummeted into whatever remained in the facilities. Buildings exploded and collapsed under the searing heat. Bunkers and pillboxes shattered under the impact of the explosions. Trenches and foxholes were set ablaze from the barrage as the Imperial soldiers scampered away with charred skins and burning fleshes, their screams hollowed out by the deafening roars of the explosions and thundering cries of rockets streaking through the air.
Panicked, the men on the anti-aircraft guns began firing blindly into the dark. Brilliant streaks of yellow and orange lit up the night skies as the pounding gunfire reverberated. The heavier 75mm cannons were still traversing towards where the rocket came from. However, death came swiftly to them as the JSDF rotorcrafts unleashed another volley of fire. Gun pits were turned into smothering craters and the guns were wrecked and shattered.
The radar tower itself was encased in smoke and fire before a TOW-2B missile rammed against its steel frames. The structure folded from the impact and collapsed, the tower falling down into a sea of brilliant fire. Seeing the core of the garrison destroyed, the Imperial soldiers began beating a hasty retreat. Men scampered out of their foxholes and trenches, attempting to escape the burning compound and back to Alue itself.
The pilots saw all of these inside their cockpits, their eyes observing the hellfire 400 metres away with their night vision sights. It was almost hard to see the enemies inside the encampment with all the fire blinding their sights. Secondary explosions followed, rocking the burning facilities before something huge ignited.
The ground suddenly erupted, the buildings immediately vaporised and a wall of fire instantly consumed half the encampment. The shockwave followed, and the smothering black smoke flooded the compound. It was a large explosion that suddenly consumed half their enemies, and the shockwave that followed was able to cause some minor turbulence on the helicopters.
"Huuuu~" The gunner whistled as he readjusted his posture. "That's a big one."
"Must be their ammo dump." The pilot commented as he switched off his night vision sights for a while. Even without the assistance of infrared vision, he could see the brilliant luminescence of fire and brimstone 400 metres away. The ember raged on the ground beneath the citadel of black soot. "Speaking of which, how's our ammo?"
"Winchester on TOWs and rockets, but the 20mm is still fully loaded."
"So we're not done yet." The pilot smirked, his fingers danced on the throttle stick, and his co-pilot grinned in response.
"I never thought you'd get so trigger happy against a bunch of crying Valkies."
"I told you that they'd get to enjoy their last two minutes before we blow them up." The pilot replied as he switched his infrared visions back on. "I'm only keeping my word. Besides, this is the only time we get to shoot the Valkies."
"Don't remind me, skipper," the co-pilot complained, "those big Longbow boys get to hog all the fun later while we're stuck here with a little dingly tower."
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Without even waiting for affirmation, the pilot steered the helicopter forward. The Cobra dipped down as the noisy machination began flying towards the burning compound. The wingman Cobra followed behind, its 20mm gun whirling towards the hellfire.
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The radio crackled to their delights. Immediately, the AH-1s dipped their noses as they flew straight into the smothering garrison, their reverberating rotors dreadfully beating in the air, cutting apart the black smoke that billowed towards the night skies. To the soldiers of the once glorious Gra Valkas Empire, the whipping echoes had become the dreaded sounds of death. Some valiant soldiers staggered on their feet, gripping onto the searing hot steel of their anti-aircraft guns. They narrowed their eyes, attempting to find the JSDF helicopters in the dark horizons, but the last thing they ever saw was a glimpse of the steely pegasus hovering above the blazing generators, its drape olive illuminated by the red radiance of ember, and the menacing glint of 3 pronged barrels pointing towards them.
BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRT-
The defining roar of the 20mm chain gun filled the scorched air, drowning out the shrieks of men as they were shredded apart by the hail of bullets. The few surviving anti-aircraft emplacements were showered by the endless streams of orange and red, the helpless men struggled to run or hide in futility.
BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRT-
The roar of the gatling gun did not stop. The searing hot barrels continued to rotate relentlessly. Brilliant white repeatedly flashed on the muzzles. Torrents of streaking amber mercilessly rained upon the screaming troops of the Empire. They ran frantically, their shaky hands cupping their ears, their rifles laid abandoned on the scorched gravel. Nobody in their wildest dreams would ever imagine themselves scampering away from a sound they had never heard before.
They were after all soldiers of the Gra Valkas Empire - men who overcame the tumultuous training of the Imperial Army with discipline and professionalism ingrained in their mind. Against the armed inquisitors of Kain in Yugudo, they stood side-by-side to fight against the tide with valour and camaraderie. Against the superpowers of the new world, they marched forward with unity and bravery. Their wills were shaped and ironed by the values of the Imperial Army, their prowess forged with and in turn they became the unstoppable spear of the Empire. Never once had they been broken, and never once would they shatter.
The same brothers-in-arms, who once risked their lives to fight by their own comrades, were now screaming and pushing each other into the fire. Their minds were overwhelmed by the enemies lurking in the night skies unseen, with only the repetitive beating of rotors now pounding in their eardrums. Panicked comrades became enemies for survival. Men tugged and pulled each other's uniforms as they scampered into untouched bunkers and shelters. Brave warriors transformed into cowardly mice when they caught the darkened form of the flying steeled pegasuses, menacingly hovering over the burning radar with only the luminescence of the blaze to illuminate the birds of hell.
But to the pilots in the hunting Cobras, the bloody struggles of frightened men were simplified into white silhouettes in their thermal sights; they were but a bunch of highlighted dots moving around their displays - targets that they need to eliminate.
BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRT-
In the end, their struggles were fruitless and futile. What safe havens they perceived were but a mere illusion. The 20mm bullets ripped through the compound, killing the last remaining survivors of the garrison. Mere moments into the one-sided massacre, the gunfire had finally gone silent, and so did the cries of frightened men. Only the loud crackles of the flickering blaze and the whipping sounds of the rotors remained.
"I wonder what they actually think of us," the co-pilot commented as he swept his eyes across the displayed garrison for any more stragglers, "or the gun, at least."
"Probably calling us hackers or something," the pilot chuckled as he pulled the throttle. The Cobras finally veered away from the burning compound and the billowing smoke, leaving behind a sea of fire sizzling into the night.
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7th Reconnaissance Company, 7th Division, JGSDF
0230HR
Brilliant flashes of orange gleamed in the horizon like a shining beacon, the radiant hues of amber lighting up the darkness from afar. The dazzling white lights had disappeared suddenly, and the faint roar of explosion drifted into the ears of the busy soldiers.
"Hey Tanaka, are you seeing this?" Yoshida breathed out as he stared out from the gunner's cupola of the Komatsu LAV (Light Armoured Vehicle). "They just got lit up."
Tanaka heaved, shoving a field pack onto the canopy rack of the vehicle. He took a glance at the red glowing in the distance. "Must've been some pretty fireworks. The Valkies sure know how to party."
With the radar stations finally disabled, the entire forward garrison immediately became clattered and noisy. The radio chatter crackled everywhere, the soldiers hustled around moving their equipment onto the LAVs, and the camouflaged vehicles now roared into life. Then, the unmistakable shriek of fighter jets screamed overhead, their forms shrouded in the darkness of the night skies. Only the ominous flickers of red and green could be seen soaring towards the disturbed sleeping town.
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As the radio continued to buzz ceaselessly, the roar of diesel engines drowned out the military chatter. Dusty smoke emerged from the grassy wilderness beside the LAV as the company's Type 87 Armoured Reconnaissance Vehicle (ARV) swiftly rolled across the lushy plains. Tanaka quickly secured the field packs on the steel racks before he hopped into the LAV.
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"Oi," another one of his section mates, Private First Class Hanzo, called out as he watched the ARV drive past, "isn't that our PC (Platoon Commander)?"
"The hell? I've never seen him so eager to go before."
"The whole 7 Div is excited tonight," quipped Tanaka as he slammed the door shut, "everyone wants to light up the Valkies. Our commander's probably more interested in finding some cute girls in Alue to date though."
"Him? I thought he's still going on about his Ine-chan?"
"Nah," Yoshida replied as he got down from the cupola, weaving his way towards the driver's seat, "he got cucked by our dear division commander. Looks like the general still outranks the lieutenant even in romance."
"Heh," Hanzo promptly snorted, "imagine losing the girl of your dreams to a forty-year-old dude."
"Hey Yoshi," Tanaka cut in, his cheeky hand slapping the driver seat tauntingly, "last I checked, a lieutenant still outranks a corporal. He's gonna steal your 'orgasmic Murian chicks' next if he gets to Alue first."
"Screw you, that idiot doesn't deserve the ladies."
"Then you better stop gawking and start driving, Corporal." A bespectacled man abruptly retorted, hopping into the LAV at the commander's seat with his hand casually slapping onto Yoshida's thigh. "I don't want the CSM (Company Sergeant Major) to start screaming at us because some heartbroken idiot decided to leave us behind."
"I'm going, Sergeant, I'm going."
As soon as Yoshida cranked the engine, the LAV roared into life. The leaves netted on the bonnet and the sides of the vehicle rustled as the combat car began moving forward, its sturdy wheels trampling over the grassy plains, leaving behind a smokey wake of dirt and dust. Trailing behind were the rest of the platoon's LAVs similarly camouflaged with netted leaves on their bonnets. They formed a line of convoy, swiftly pushing through the thick sea of green under the cover of the night.
Accompanying the platoon by their side were the rest of 7th Recon, with the distinct figures of the ARVs leading the charge. The tranquility of the silent night was shattered by the cacophony of humming machinations. Beneath the faint glow of the moonlight and the distant ember, the silhouettes of a dozen armoured cars could be seen.
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"Roger that sir," Sergeant Takahashi responded to no one in particular, "you heard that, men? We're Oscar Mike to catch our PC's ass."
"Good thing we're attached to 71st, or we've been killed by his sheer stupidity."
Hearing Yoshida's comment, Tanaka promptly glanced out of the window on his left. He leaned closer towards the window, his hand pressing against the glass and pulled down his night vision node to get a clearer view. From the distance, he could make out the greenish silhouettes of the Type 90 tanks pushing through the grasslands.
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Then, the familiar reverberating whips of the rotor blade resounded from above, like a repetitive pounding beating onto their bodies. Both Tanaka and his sergeant unwinded the windows while Hanzo climbed up the cupola to get a better view. The resounding whips grew louder as the night breeze gushed into the LAV. They looked up at the night skies, spotting the ominous flickers of glowing red and green soaring overhead, the darkened forms of the helicopters barely noticeable under the faint glow of the moonlight.
<<...Splash in 10...9...8...7...>>
In their world of infrared green however, the 7th Division's march to Alue was a spectacle to behold. The full fleet of the AH-64DJPs majestically flew with all assortments of payloads attached to their wings. Beneath them lumbered the Army's largest formation of tanks, the apexes of steel beasts rolling forward with their engines thundering into the night. It was the march of Japan's most heavily armoured armada, a juggernaut steamrolling towards the unprepared forces of the Gra Valkas Empire.
<<...3...2...Impact... Now!>>
The crews in the LAV could barely hear the soft buzzing of their radio comms, but almost immediately startled by a wave of thunderous explosions popping in the horizon. Amber ignited among the darkened landscape; the flashes of orange illuminated away the shadows of the night in a series of explosions. The first volley of shells bombarded their destination and the screams of the JASDF's F-2 jets followed in the aftermath of the explosive barrage.
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"Ironic," the ever-talkative Yoshida remarked as he watched the spectacle of fiery amber igniting across the horizons, the fates of the Empire's soldiers unbeknownst to them, "that we're a 'self-defense force'. But here we are attacking a foreign army in a foreign land."
"They do say that offense is the best defense."
"Yeah? Look how well that turned out for us 70 years ago."
"Didn't you say we were pussies for not being aggressive against their 'dingly guns'? Are you being the pussy now?"
Yoshida briefly turned his head around, his eyes squinting as he tried to find the person who threw the insult at him. He found Hanzo grinning from the cupola.
"You got to make up your mind, Yoshi. Murian chicks don't like pussies."
"Screw you, Hanzo," the corporal blasted back as he refocused back on driving the vehicle, "I don't want to hear it from some bootleg samurai letdown who couldn't even IA a Minimi under 5 minutes."
"You think our PC might get one before Yoshi? Maybe he'd start spinning that 25mm gun again to flex."
Tanaka snickered upon hearing his sergeant's words, his mind seemingly recalled the Lieutenant's first attempt to seduce Ine a few years back. His suppressed laughter was audible enough for everyone to hear. Then everyone burst into laughter.
Uncaring, the men of the 7th Reconnaissance Company continued to joke and insult as the thunderous roars of explosions ahead marked the beginning of the end to this long, bloody war.
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When the Empire's Armada of a thousand strong ships was first discovered sailing towards the Rodenius Continent, the world began to watch in earnest. The Cabinet of the Diet nervously anticipated the arrival of the Empire's wrath. The Aristocrats of the Holy Mirishial Empire awaited the battle to unfold with intrigue and complacency. The Monarchs of Mu prayed for Japan for a glimmer of hope. And the Dictators of the Gra Valkas Empire cheered from their comfy seats with arrogance and pride. All of the world's eyes were on Japan, expecting a climatic turnout between the naval might of two emerging superpowers.
Nobody would have expected the JSDF to launch a silent crusade on Alue and Barkulus on the night of 7th November, 1643 CC.
Dubbed Operation Firestorm, it was JGSDF's first offensive onto Gra Valkas held territory under the command of the newly formed Japan-Mu Coalition Forces Ground Command (CFGC). Spearheaded by the 7th Division and supported by the 1st Airborne Brigade, the 5th Brigade, the 12th Air Assault Brigade, the 1st Anti-Tank Helicopter Unit and 3rd Air Wing of the JASDF, the offensive would become JSDF's largest yet and the first of the many challenges the fledgling CFGC had to overcome.
Sitting over the hilly plains behind CFGC base garrison, columns of Type 99 Self-Propelled Howitzers stoically laid among the swaying grasses, their 155mm cannons protruding towards the skies. In a harmony of gunfire, the howitzers trembled as brilliant flashes from their guns lit up the night, the resulting smoke and sulfur filling the transient air. The batteries fired again and again, opening the offensive with unrelenting barrages ahead of the spearheading forces. Further behind came the radiant streaks of orange and white, like brilliant stars dazzling the night skies. Dazzling as they might be, they were to be the advent of death – a cluster of searing comets in the form of 227mm cluster munitions fired from a battery of 4 M270 MLRS hidden further behind.
The night was shattered by the resounding rumbles of machines as hundreds of vehicles and armour rolled across the entire Malmund Grasslands, the entire 7th Division unleashed to break the Empire's stronghold in a daring three-pronged attack. As the flight of Cobras and Apaches boomed overhead, the fleet of Type 90 main battle tanks assailed the sea of green spearheading the charge. Trailing behind was the rest of the division – an armada of Type 89 IFVs, Type 96 APCs, Type 73 APCs and Chugata trucks on a lightning march. Hueys and Blackhawks weaved over the treelines ahead of the ground forces, ferrying the men of the 12th Air Assault Brigade to secure a foothold on the right flank first.
The offensive task force was split into three sections – the diversionary force comprising of the 72nd Tank Regiment was to assault the enemy strongpoint head-on and tie down the bulk of the Empire's forces. The strike force entailing the 71st Tank Regiment and components of the 12th and 5th Brigade was to swing around the right flank, break through the enemy's defenses, bypass the strongpoints and head straight for the Empire's base in the Barkulus Plains. The combat task force consisting of the 11th Infantry Regiment was assigned the important task of securing Alue itself, with the 73rd Tank Regiment, the 5th Brigade and the 1st Airborne supporting the attack.
A simultaneous attack on three sides. A massive combined arms operation utilizing all components of the JASDF and the JGSDF – it was an operation of shock and awe, the embodiment of maneuver warfare used and solidified by General Mattis from the US Marines. It looked good on paper and promised a swift and overwhelming victory for the JSDF if all went well.
A furrowed expression remained plastered onto the face of Lieutenant General Ouchida as he stared hard at the operation map. There were a lot of blue chips scattered across the area of Alue and Barkulus, and similarly a lot of red chips clustered around the areas they were about to attack.
Could this actually work?
That single line of thought worried him greatly. After all, this was the first time Japan has employed the concept of maneuver warfare on a strategic scale. A few years back, the JSDF doctrine was completely defensive in nature. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) and the JSDF simply thought of using Japan's geographical nature as an island nation to their advantage - create a massive navy, create a massive air force, create an army that could sink ships, and then sink as many enemy ships as they could before they even touch the shores. Much of the JGSDF forces never had a need to move about, and all they had to do was to figure out the intricacies of urban combat.
Now however, Japan was put in a position of power just like the United States had found itself in 70 years ago. They were able to thwart Gra Valkas' advance into Kielseki fairly easily because they were the defenders, and suddenly Japan found itself on the offensive against a modern enemy, an experience they had long forgotten for 70 years. Even worse, their experience with Louria and Palpadia did not mean much to the JSDF - all they ever did was steamroll their adversaries head-on while their enemies flabbered around with swords and muskets.
Contemplating through a series of possible problems in this offensive, Lt. General Ouchida closed his eyes as he inhaled deeply.
"This is so unlike you, Ouchida," a firm, unrefined voice suddenly commented on his deliberations. The commander of 7th Div opened his eyes to see a man in his informal wear - he wore a simple olive admin tee while adorning the usual military fatigue for his lower wear, his bagger trousers tucked into his boots. Despite his casual wear, Ouchida recognised the person immediately.
"Well, sir..." he gave a perplexed smile to the Commanding Officer of the newly formed CFCC, "... I might be getting too old for this."
"What nonsense do you speak of, Kazuki?" The man, General Yamazaki, strolled into the command tent and leaned on the makeshift table. "Only 40 years, plus a cute girlfriend waiting for you back in Maihark - you're still in the prime of youth."
The troubled commander only chuckled. "I lived long enough to see ourselves being on the offensive for the first time. Is that not sufficient, sir?"
"Well," the general took a moment to look over the complicated operation map once more, "Japan has got to take its first step somewhere. I rather it be on the Valkies than on the Chinese."
Both men promptly stared at each other in silence, with only the distant roars of the gunfire resounding behind their backs. Then, Ouchida Kazuki broke away, his eyes now gazing at the darkened horizon beyond the tent flaps, with radiant dazzles of explosion sometimes flickering across the landscape.
"Let's hope that this is the first step to a long peace, sir."