Its 1937 and the Great War between the Ruskkie Empire and the Artian Collective has been waging for twenty-three years. The reasons why this war began have already been forgotten and so both sides are fighting a seemingly endless, but brutal and bloody trench war.
Whilst the armies of the two sides have dug-in and idly face each other across No Man’s Land waiting for the next offensive, the skies are contested every day by the aircraft and airships of the two nations. However the most active battles on the Eastern Front, (or ‘The Line’ as its been commonly referred to as), are those for the cities of Stommburg and Port Stormwell where the Ruskkie soldiers attempt to deny the Artians any chance of crossing the River Stomm, which more or less forms the frontline.
Both sides try to gain an advantage over the other which will allow them to win the war. But after twenty odd years of war, both sides are willing to try anything…
BUMP
More to come soon, just interested in comments on the beginning.
Fort Ragnar, Fern Island.
This centuries old fortress, located on a small island in the Artian Sea, has remained firmly in Ruskkie hands since the start of the war. The Artian Navy has repeated tried to capture this stronghold and ammunition store several times, the remains of which can be seen at low tide. Used as an alternative base to the one at Port Stormwell by the Ruskkie Imperial Navy, it is heavily defended by gun batteries and AA guns. With its expensive stores of both supplies and the foresaid ammunition, it can outlast any siege.
Its thick, weather beaten, stonewalls have survived numerous storms and everything the Artians have thrown at it, however the Artians have something which the fort’s builders never thought would exist…
Private Wyatt cursed as he patrolled Fort Ragnar’s battlements in the pouring rain. He looked out, but only saw the pitch black, night sky and the occasional flash of lighting. He was about resume his patrol when he saw a glimpse of something out in the distance; he saw it again during another flash of lighting. It appeared to be an old gasbag zeppelin…
Wyatt cursed and ran towards the nearest guardhouse, where he ran into Captain Abnett, his commanding officer. “Wyatt, what the frick are you playing at?”
The young Private stumbled back his reply. “S-sir, I saw something out to the north. A zeppelin I think, sir.”
“Damn, right show me where.” The Captain replied, picking up an old telescope of his desk.
“Just look to the north sir, you should see during the next flash.”
“Right.” Abnett said as he took a look through his telescope, trying to see anything at all in the pitch-black sky and the pouring rain.
He saw it.
An Artian zep half a mile out and closing with airship escorts. He cursed and ran back to the guardhouse where he hastily picked up the telephone on his desk and quickly said. “North batteries? Hostiles half mile out and closing. Single zep and airship escorts!”
Moments later Fort Ragnar’s northern gun batteries opened up with a roar and lit up the night sky with rapid flashes of light. Klaxons and alarms started to sound out across the entire fortress. Scores of troops rushed to man their battle positions on the fortress’ walls as gun batteries fired away.
A small explosion that lit up part of the northern sky, that signalled that the zep had been hit. A cheer went up from the fort’s defenders and the gun batteries ceased firing as the Artian airships turned and fled into the dark night sky. The cheering went on as the flaming wreckage of the zep crashed down onto the mud banks just short of the island’s shore.
However the cheering quickly faded as something moved in the wreckage, something big and metal. Groaning noises sounded as eight metal frame legs stretched outwards from the wreckage, then up rose the body of the strange metal beast like that of a giant metal spider.
“Crap!” Came Captain Abnett’s comment as the troops around made very similar comments as well, whilst the spider machine started to charge towards the fortress’ walls. The gun batteries once again opened up, with a large number of their shots going wild. Luckily a shell fired at almost point blank range smashed of one of its legs, coursing the metal beast to come crashing down into the fortress’ ancient walls, smashing apart centuries old stone blocks.
The Ruskkie troops slowly crept forwards, not knowing what to make of the strange assault had just befallen them. Captain Abnett, like most of the troops, he his weapons drawn ready to be used in case the machine’s crew decided to rush out of the hatches. Minutes passed and nothing happened.
Abnett ordered some of the assembled to enter the machine with him, in order to investigate further. As they opened one of the hatches in the side of the machine’s body, one of the troops asked. “Does anyone else hear a ticking noise?”
He never got a reply as the machine suddenly exploded, sending a fireball ripping through the rest of the fort. Less than a minute later, as the fireball reached the heart of the island, Fort Ragnar’s large ammunition store exploded destroying the rest of the fortress in one huge fireball that lit up the night sky.
Fort Ragnar had finally fallen.
Fort Hays Military Prison
It is the sound of the cell door being unlocked that wakes me, let alone the poorly oiled hinges which creak and moan as the heavy metal door is pushed open by a couple of grin faced provosts. They stand there waiting in the doorway, blocking most of the light from the brightly lit passageway outside. One of them sharply says. “Get up…you’re coming with us!”
Yawning as I get up from the somewhat woodworm ridden bench, which has been my bed for the past few months, I follow the two guards. Outside there are couple of other provosts, both armed with shotguns. I fall in between them as they exchange grunts, one of them pushes me in the back with the butt of the shotguns and snarls. “Move it.”
Remembering that a bunch of provosts like them put me in this hell hole in the first place, I just do as they say. I can tell that at the first sign of trouble they’ll quite happily open fire.
Besides, they don’t normally drag me out of my cell for no reason…