Near Sanctuary, Border of the Sand Kingdom

Sergeant Jake Thompson looked out at the horizon. He was in charge of an AbramX, an honor considering how powerful and new they were. With him were specialist Lydia Ramirez the gunner and corporal Marcus Johnson the driver. He was perched on the roof of the turret eyeing the horizon for enemies. While the dragon's didn't realize it, the Sand and Ice Kingdoms were in the Red Legions territory. He had already seen bombers flying past him and had even got in a skirmish with two bmp-3s. Today though his mission was just surveying on the Nato side of the border. Right then he heard Lydia call his name and went back inside the tank. “What is it Lydia?” I asked her. “I spotted something with the thermal sight. Permission to investigate further?” Lydia asked. “Permission granted” I told her. I saw her go back to the screen showing the gun sight. On it I could make out what looked like a T-90M at rest. “Marcus, take us to that spot. I've marked it on your hud” I told him. “Roger that sir” Marcus responded before sending the tank into drive. UNlike previous Abram tanks this one used an electric engine making it much quieter and less expensive to recharge. After a minute they managed to reach the tank. It turned out to be nothing but some rocks. Right as Jake was about to order them to head back to their side an explosion impacted the side armor causing Jake to knock into Lydia. They quickly got into upright sitting form and Lydia started aiming the turret in the direction the shot came from. Meanwhile Marcus turned the tank so the front and most well armored part faced where the shot came from. “Target spotted, permission to shoot sir?” Lydia asked. “Don't ask me twice, just fire,” I told her. I heard the boom as the turret fired but was disappointed to see it ricocheted off the enemy tank's armor. “Fire 30mm gun and the main gun” I told Lydia. She just nodded and operated the turret until it faced the enemy tank. Then it began firing with all it's might. I saw most of the rounds bounce off the enemies armor but some managed to damage it. I saw the enemy tank fire its main gun again which hit a track. “Lydia, do you have any idea what that tank is?” I asked her. “My guess sir is a t-14 Armata” She responded. “Great the one tank I don't know a weakness of” I grumbled to myself. Right then Lydia fired another round at the T-14 hitting its cannon dead on. Miraculously the cannon didnt break but the T-14 went behind a boulder. “Lydia contact base and ask for reinforcements” I told her. “I cant sir the radio is dead” She told me. Right then another shell hit our side armor but this one came from a different direction. I looked to the south and saw it was another tank this time a T-90M. I heard Lydia fire the cannon again, this time at the T-90M. The armor piercing round pierced through and detonated the ammo. I saw the T-90Ms turret fly 20 feet into the air before falling back down. “Any idea where the Armata went?” I asked Lydia. Before she could respond, a large explosion that rocked the tank answered my question. “Fuck they got the tank sights and turret rotation.” Lydia cursed. “Try to move Marcus,” I told the driver. “No can do sir the tracks are broken as well. The T-90 disabled it.” Marcus replied. Before I could reply another explosion impacted the tank and everything went black.

Commander Ivan Petrov looked through the commander's view hatch at the burning wreck of the AbramX. The enemy crew had put up a good fight but thanks to the valiant sacrifice of the T-90 crew the T-14 had managed to deal a killing blow by piercing the turrets side and putting a hole in the blast door separating the crew from the ammo and detonating the shells. “Enemy target destroyed. Allied T-90M down, no other enemies sighted. We will continue to proceed en route to the village” Ivan radioed in. “Copy that comrade. Glory to the Red Legion.” Was the reply. “Glory to the Red Legion” Ivan replied. “Alexei take us to the village known as Sanctuary,” Ivan told his driver. “Roger that comrade,” Alexei replied before starting the tank. The crew had seen many battles and had used many parts to improve their armor. They had only taken some minor damage due to a unique engine modification. They had worked with the Legions engineers to design an engine just for going backward. This allowed them to go backwards and forwards at the same speed which had saved them many times. After about 10 minutes of driving they stopped at a hill overlooking sanctuary. They could see the newly built Nato Base. Ivan hopped out and used a modified rangefinder to get coordinates for an airstrike. While Nato might have pushed them out of Earth this world which the Red Legion labeled Arya after a god of life of theirs would not be lost as easily. Ivan looked to his gunner Dmitry who was sitting on the tank's turret smoking a cigar. RIght then the rangefinder beeped and showed a series of coordinates marking the spot. Ivan pressed a set of buttons that marked the target on the artillery operators on the digital war map they had which was much more efficient than giving them number coordinates which could be wrong. The digital war map took the artillery pieces range, angle, height and shell type and things like the weather and on the war map it marked where the shell would land. It was advanced enough to center on a tank and always hit. Su-25s were on standby along with Su-34s to escort the cas jets and fight any Nato planes sent to intercept. After the initial bombardment T-14s and T-90Ms would start advancing into the Nato base killing anyone still alive.

“Ivan, Hq has ordered us to proceed with the mission” Dmitry yelled from the tank. IVan packed up the target designator(I remembered what the thing I described as a modified rangefinder was actually called) and went back into his spot in the tank. He popped his head out so he could see the town not in front of a screen. Sure enough he heard the whistle of artillery cutting through the air and saw them hit the Nato base. He could see people running around and in the village soldiers rushed back to their stations and local dragon's and humans went every which way. He watched as one artillery piece hit a stationary f-16 preparing to take off. He saw the fighter detonate and send debris and shrapnel all over the airfield. Right then he heard a boom and saw a large plume of smoke rising into the air. It seems the artillery had hit an ammo storage depot.

He heard the distinct scream and saw the rockets from katyushas flying through the air. While not as accurate as modern artillery the Katyusha made up for that with all its rockets hitting the set area and around it leaving barely any spot untouched by its deadly weapons. He also could hear the roar of jet engines and watched them fly past heading straight to the base. He saw one German gepard start firing at the jets. The Su-25s and Su-34s broke formation to escape the spaa’s deadly grasp. He saw one Su-25 get shot down but not before it fired an atgm at the gepard. He saw the gepard detonate and watched the plumes of smoke rise from the wreck and into the air. He watched the other planes enter formation again and begin unleashing their payloads on the poor base. While the Su-25s didn't have as large a payload as the new Pak Da Stealth bomber the 1000 pound bombs could still do heavy damage. The intention was to defeat the defenders so they could use the base, not destroy it. Right then his radio buzzed signifying an incoming order. “Legion forces are en route to your location Ivan. Stay where you are” Hq ordered. “Roger that comrade” Ivan replied then he went back in the T-14. Outside he could hear the sound of guns firing at the Su-25s as they flew back to base. After a while though he could hear the rumbling of more tanks and saw some T-90Ms and T-14s joining him. I sent the order out to head to the Nato base and ordered my driver to start the engine. I felt the tank jump to life and the rumble of the tank beginning to drive down the hill. I looked out the commander's view and saw that the rest of the Nato troops were fleeing. I ordered the other tanks to not fire on the retreating enemy and to save ammo. I saw the dragon's watching us along with the locals. They seemed to have a mix of fear and curiosity on their faces but it was clear fear was the prevailing emotion. I felt the tank jump up and I ordered the driver to stop. I got out to see what we had run over and saw a man's corpse. At least I assumed he was a man he was too burned to check. His body was completely black with barely any skin showing. The skin that did peeled off like skin on a rotten fruit. That was when the smell hit me. It was the most foul thing I had ever smelled before. I had heard myths that humans smelled like steak but this definitely quelled any doubts about that thing's truthfulness. It smelled more like a rotten carcass of some cow than food. Something crunched under my boot and I looked down to see I had stepped on the person's skull crushing it. I vomited then and there for a good while. Eventually though I took some sips of vodka and went back into the tank and proceeded into the base. I saw burning vehicle wrecks everywhere, once mighty machines now a lump of metal with no use. When we reached an empty spot everyone hopped out and began setting up tents. Some troop trucks passed by and the soldiers hopped out and began clearing debris. I saw some gunships flying to the airfield which was mostly empty minus some wrecks of jets and a collapsed hangar. Most of the jets stationed here had been destroyed and the rest had been blown up by Nato so they wouldn't be in our grasp. I saw some jets take off and leave to some other Nato base so they would survive. Some had been shot down but a couple had escaped and left the extent of our radars. I looked around for the command center in this base. When I found it I walked up and went inside. The building had faced the least amount of damage from the bombs; the only thing broken was a lamp. I started clearing the desks and putting the papers on crates. We could still use the enemy's intel to change any of our plans so we would succeed in defeating them. I heard the door open and looked to see a general walk in. I quickly stood to attention and gave him a brisk salute. ¨Stand down comrade. You have done well today. You and your crew should get some rest, maybe talk with the locals” The general told me. ¨Very well general, what is your last name?”I asked him. “I am general Ivanvov”He told me. ¨Very well General Ivanov, I am commander Ivan.”I told him. “It is good to meet you Ivan. You are dismissed” He told me. I nodded before heading outside to gather my crew. “Comrades, you have all done well today. We have managed to rid the Nato forces from this territory. Today we shall celebrate. Tomorrow we head out to meet up with more troops to prepare for another attack. Go and have fun, my comrades.” I told them. They all just nodded and walked off to wherever. I watched some start heading to the village Sanctuary most likely to get drunk. The language barrier could prove a problem since most legion soldiers didn't know english which was the basic language for the people here but there were classes already available. Dragon on the other hand would prove much more difficult to learn. So far even with hundreds of hours teaching a select few the language only one was fluent while the rest could form some basic sentences. I didn't see the problem since there didn't seem to be a reason for any of us to learn Dragon but the command said it could prove helpful. The only real helpful thing with these beasts was a gun but we also couldn't kill a dragon unless it was self defense. I had conflicting opinions on that. On one hand it could anger the rest and they could start killing legion soldiers. On the other hand they could become frightened and not even be in the same forest as a legion soldier. Command believed they would more likely attack us instead of fearing us which was probably completely accurate. I sat down and thought about everything. Only a year ago I had graduated college hoping for a career designing weapons for the army. Then we finally learned of the Soviet Union's collapse. We had instructed our spies on Earth to lay low and not even contact us if there was trouble. After 39 years though we got concerned. The previous longest time with no contact was 30 years and those guys had been fine. The Legion had sent two guys in to see what was happening to the Soviet Union. After a day they had come back with dozens of books talking about how the Soviet Union collapsed. Once the Legion learned their puppet government failed they built an army and invaded. But that was some months ago and now Nato was in this world and making alliances. Now I was in charge of a tank and leading a spearhead into Nato lines.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

Near Talisman village, edge of the claws of the clouds mountains.

I think this was the most exciting I had ever seen Wren be. She had practically begged us to not take a break so we would reach her village. I had to make her see the common knowledge that the soldiers can't walk forever and even sky was getting tired. It was true the poor dragon looked like he might pass out soon. That got her attention and I saw Wren rush over to Sky and start checking up on him. “Where did you meet this girl again Alex?” A soldier I knew was named Ben asked me. “Eh we met when she introduced herself to the others at Sanctuary” I told Ben. “Interesting that there's a place where humans and dragon's cooperate. From what I heard humans fear dragon's” Ben told me. “Originally they were in a structure but after the dragon's met Wren they changed the rules now if Humans are willing they can live with the dragon’s.” I told him. “Cool, I wonder how they must feel,” He said. “Enough talking you two, were trying to sleep.” A soldier said. “Sorry” I apologized before getting in my tent and going to sleep. I noticed Wren was in there which surprised me as she usually sleeps next to or on Sky. I just grabbed an empty sleeping bag and went to sleep.

Morning

I woke up to someone roughly shaking my shoulders. I pushed them away and got up, rubbing the gunk out of my eyes trying to see who it was. Unsurprisingly it was Wren who had woken up and before I could talk she told me to be quiet. “Get up, I want to get to Talisman in a couple of hours and i'm not waiting any longer” She told me. “Alright, alright, just get out so I can change.” I told her. At that I saw her blush before rushing outside and zipping up the tent. It took a while but eventually I got dressed and packed up the tent. Before we left the cooks made everyone some coffee or if you wanted they made hot cocoa. Wren burned her tongue when she tried to take a big gulp of the cocoa and spat it out. She waited for it to cool down then started drinking it while we marched to Talisman. We marched for an hour before everyone swapped and we got the chance to hop into a humvee. Wren seemed a little scared in the humvee at first but eventually she got used to it. After maybe 1 hour some troop transport trucks joined up with us picking up the rest of the soldiers walking. After another hour of driving we reached the road leading to Talisman village. The convoy stopped and we all hopped out and left the forest, entering the village. I saw some humvees drive to an empty clearing and park before more troops hopped out. I saw the villagers looking at us with a mix of curiosity and wariness. I had never been to Talisman before, but Wren had told me all about it. I heard someone call Wren’s name and saw her run to a boy before giving him a hug. “Leaf it's so good to see you again.” I heard Wren tell him. “So this is the brother you've told me so much about Wren” I said. “Yes, Leaf, this is my friend Alex.” Wren introduced us. “Well it's nice to meet you Leaf” I told him. “It's nice to meet you too” Leaf said back. Right as I was about to respond I heard a commotion behind me. I turned around and saw some fighter jets roar right over the village heading to the sand kingdom. Before I even could lose sight of them I heard a roar and saw them separate and start releasing flares.

Skies above Talisman village, piloting an F-16

Pilot Jack Roberts immediately pushed to full throttle and started releasing flares and chaff to avoid the missile. His wingmate wasn't nearly so lucky and the missile hit the jet, detonating it and killing the pilot. Just then his panel beeped indicating another missile was heading to him. Jack released more flares and chaff and once seeing the missile hit his flares pulled his jet till it was facing where the missile came from. Up ahead he could see the enemy, a lone Mig-29 Fulcrum with 1 aatm left. Jack locked on the fulcrum and sent an aim-9 straight at the mig. He saw the pilot release their own flares before pulling up. Jack's missile hit the Migs flare and Jack sent another missile on its way. He immediately pulled up and almost passed out from the sudden increase in g-force on his body but managed to stay conscious. The Fulcrum again flared and again Jack's missile hit the flares. Jack sent a radar guided missile and saw it hit the Mig. Amazingly though the Mig was still flying but Jack sent out a burst from his vulcan machine gun and cut right through the middle of the jet killing the pilot and severing the right wing off.. Right as Jack went back to cruising altitude another missile was fired at him. Jack again released countermeasures and this time saw it was a su-34 who had shot at him. Jack immediately locked on the jet and sent a missile followed by a radar missile a couple of seconds later. Both were avoided by countermeasures from the Su-34 and Jack sent his last missile at it and it was defeated by countermeasures. Luckily Jack could see the missile fired by the Su-34 was it's last and Jack pulled to the right to avoid being directly in the Su-34s guns firezone. Jack still felt the jets engine take some hits but pull through. Right then the Su-34 went right behind Jack and fired at him. Jack saw his right wing tear off and he started freefalling. Jack pressed the eject button and felt his seat shoot up into the air and the parachute deploy. Right then the Su-34 roared past and turned till it was directly facing him. Then the jet opened fire and all he felt was a sudden impact before his whole world turned black.