NationStates Jolt Archive

0500 hours (-9 Alfegan Standard Time)
Outpost 29
The Northern Border of Neo'los

Deep shadows pooled around the feet of Sao'li as he looked out down the dirt track past a striped wooden pole. In the distance, the forest closed in as the road petered out, disappearing within the dense green foliage. Birds decorated with gaudy plumage flew overhead in formation as he inhaled thick cigarette smoke, the fumes mingling with the morning mist that rolled in from the nearby river. This area was lucky for its density of wildlife, part of a tongue of vegetation stretching through the northern desert from the central continental range down to the ecliptic mountains. Most parts only had grid numbers for names, being untouched by the Alfegan power that had landed years ago down in the south. From there, rolling inland from the capital of Neo'vi, they had crossed the northern Ecliptic mountains before leaving their borders on the other side, to the west and east the borders being shared with neutral colonial powers.
The interior remained quiet for the most part, being almost exclusively inhabited by the native peoples from centuries ago. The survivors of the culture shock and the war that had waged between the other colonial powers had left the central area depleted, to be spilt by tribal war into three large states that governed the interior. Living from Alfegan supplies as well as their own produce, the immigration and population boom meant that the population had recovered, leaving a new generation to feel the anger of their forebears against the unrighteous taking of their land, and the tapping of their resources. The most angry of these, happening to be the one that shared a border with Alfegos, was the Free Hurgat State.
These times had meant that the border patrols had been heightened along the northern border that stretched 280 kilometres. At every 8 kilometres, a small defensive outpost meant that this grey area could be kept under watch, the original automated systems now manned in anticipation of dissent. And Sao'li was one of the men drafted in from the colonial army to patrol the outpost. One of only eight men at this point, he had the reassurance of a quick response by the rest of the armed forces in case worst came to worst, and the perimeter defences of a sadistic designer meant that anyone coming to attack would have to be mental.

Sao'il hit a small alert signal as he heard an engine rumble coming from the other side of the border line, emanating from behind the wall of foliage. This was an unscheduled crossing, and as such those arriving would need to explain themselves and be checked thoroughly. As three more men arrived from the outpost compound a few hundred metres down the road, he finally laid eyes on the thing. A battered white pick-up truck obviously on its last legs coughed as it heaved its frame up a small bump before passing onto the more solid dirt track and speeding up. Rolling to a halt at the large pole, Sao'li walked to the driver's side of the vehicle with the interpreter as the other two moved to the front and began checking the vehicle over. Starting with the light assembly, the men moved over to the now silent bonnet which they passed for the time being as they moved to check on the underside.

"Good morning sir. As I'm sure you know, this is the border area, beyond which you cannot proceed without appropriate paperwork. Please can you step out of the vehicle with your passes, along with any of your passengers."
The small, dark man opened the door as he took a wad of papers from the glove compartment, nodding is understanding from the garbled tongue of the interpreter. Following him from the back seat were two similar men, both shivering in the cold morning air.
"Thankyou. Now, can you please pass me your papers for checking and then open all doors on the vehicle? That way, I will be able to complete this process much faster."
The driver nodded, this time more reluctantly, before walking over to the back and opening the lift-gate. Inside, a pile of blankets and a few bags lay amongst drifts of litter and rust.

The first thing that alerted Sao'il to something fishy was the date stamp on the forms they had picked up: they were years out of date. Whilst all other information for the passengers appeared to be correct, the forms were identified as being issued 15 years previously. As he signalled for the driver to come over, he heard a shout he had only heard once before in his career. As one of the searchers underneath the pickup illuminated with a pen torch a trail of wire leading to a water bottle held in place behind the front axle by a thick wad of duct tape, one of the group of travellers made a move towards the vehicle. The cry of "Bomb!" echoed across the area as two shots rang out from Sao'ils' rifle, the cracks roaring around and disturbing the surrounding birds as the breakaway target leapt into the vehicle. Slamming into his spine, the lumps of copper-plated lead were nearly instant in their aim of killing the man. A body slumped down suddenly limp, blood now oozing from the two circular wounds as a clenched hand dropped from the steering column, hitting the rear window de-mist button on the side panel on its passage down. A charge passed from the battery to the correct destination, having first entered an igniter inside the bottle. A small primary explosion from the detonator passed into the surrounding RDX mixture, igniting the high-velocity explosive that then went on to ignite the fuel tank.

A massive cloud of smoke hung over the outpost as the klaxons began sounding, the four inside the compound rushing out armed to the welcome of gunfire from the forest. A few spears even arched from the deep green sheets of cover to the area the group of men were pinned down by the outpost wall, any fire they could give to the invisible enemy unnoticed. Running back inside behind the wire fence for cover, the group retreated to the main outpost bunker. The bunker faced outwards and sidewards, able to provide arcs of fire across the road, surrounding jungle and border. As the men inside passed a collapsed table holding their quick snack and reached the main firing gallery, another explosion rocked the area as an RPG-7 round careened into the concrete face, shrapnel impacting against the mesh window covers. Whilst these were designed to stop any grenades coming in, they did let the bullets from the Alfegan defenders exit. Now able to see figures exiting cover to take up positions further down the path, they let rip with their assault rifles. The effect was to make the targets dive down where they were standing as the retaliation began. In one of the corners a man slammed the bolt of a GPMG home, resting the bipod against the inside of the firing slot as he began pouring rounds from large metal crate into the surrounding area, rapidly quietening down the enemy. A second rocket detonated nearby as it hit the perimeter fence, blasting a hole in the taught chicken-wire and shaking the razor-wire coils atop the obstacle.

As a group of men tried to cross over into the compound through the fence breech, they encountered the anti-personnel minefield that graced the exterior of the fence. Small pebble-sized units buried just under the surface thrust sods of dirt into the air as the shrapnel began to fly. Most of the group had collapsed in various levels of injury in the centre of the field as the few still walking passed through the gap and into the cover of the anti-vehicle concrete edifices angled to rip a tank's underside to pieces. Even though the five-or-so survivors had passed through hell to get to a small area of peace, it was alas too late for them. The cloud of smoke from the vehicle fire was blown aside as three Sledgehammer cruise missiles cut across the landscape. Splitting as they passed the border road junction a few hundred metres from the outpost, the casings rent apart to reveal hundreds of chemical bomblets. Concealed inside these was a potent mix of tear gas, designed to provide incapacitation over a wide area. The sound of a series of pops, not unlike that of someone walking over bubble-wrap, heralded the end of the battle. Within seconds great gouts of dyed smoke had entered the air, drifting around the area to choke those nearby. The men inside the bunker rapidly pulled face masks over their heads and fitted in new gas filters as the fumes permeated into the building.

0900 hours

The camp was a mess, now over-run with the rapid-reaction forces. IFVs cruised along paths run through the surrounding jungle as a small airship overhead tracked the movements of any survivors not bagged yet. Nineteen men lay in their custody, locked inside the backs of two lorries awaiting official questioning. The weapons confiscated from the aggressors lay in a long line by the side of the road, along with the bodies of eleven men. Sao'li watched the proceedings from the back of a field ambulance as the military police clashed with a pack of journalists trying to get access to the area past a vehicle cordon. The news they were trying to get was that of the aggressors, who had been identified from the remaining scraps of paper from the suicide bombers: they were Hurgat citizens. Hazy footage of the unprovoked attack found its way rapidly onto the internet, and from there to an emergency senate meeting.


1830 hours (Alfegan Standard Time)
The Alfegan Senate
New Zevkhay
Mainland Alfegos


Around the cavernous dome-like chamber the roars of senators enraged by the footage shown before them resonated along with continual calls for order. Standing in the centre of the hall, the Minister for War stood in ceremonial robes as he awaited silence. As the Internal Ministry agents began walking along the rows of seats around the hall, silence began to fall as the yelling men quietened.
"Thank you. Now, as you are all aware, the Free Hurgat State has for sometime been a threat to Neo'los. I first alerted the senate to that matter on the twentieth of November last year, when I called for a pre-emptive strike on their military assets amassing on the border. Then I alerted you mere weeks ago to the news from the Orange Service of them being provided with armaments from an unknown buyer, in our own country. Now this! An attack that could've succeeded in breaking through into our colony, and causing untold damage. Whilst I agree that the response to it so far has been appropriate, I would like to put before the senate this proposition: what if that car had managed to have passed the security point? Might we be talking about three hundred deaths instead of three?
This is why, to the senate assembled before me, I wish to make a proposition."

He turned his head to the President, who sat behind him. After a few seconds of thought, there came a response. Mr A. Darrel knew from his experience what the man wanted to propose, and did not want to put the scourge of democracy in his way. He knew the result that the senate would come to just as the Consul did. A brief, deliberate nod, followed by a sigh of relief from the Minister.
"I propose that the People's Republic of Alfegos, in light of events in the Free Hurgat state that have lead to an unprecedented and unprovoked attack by that power against Alfegan interests, has sufficient reason to declare a state of war between itself and that power. If this vote is won, I can assure all here that we will not have a repeat of the Se'los crisis: we will, this time, truly eliminate a threat to both our assets in the region and to all other colonial powers in that area."

2000 hours (AST)
ANN News
Address by the President

"To the citizens of Alfegos, and all of its colonies; tonight I must bring you most terrible news that I have not wanted to bring to you since that last great conflict of our nation. At around two pm local time, the men stationed at Outpost 29 of the colony of Neo'los were subjected to an unprovoked attack by forces from across the border. These men were representing the Free Hurgat State, and their attack resulted in the loss of the lives of three men, and the severe wounding of another. These men, whose families have been informed, are not the first who may suffer at the hands of the barbaric attack upon their outpost.
To add insult to this injustice, when we attempted to contact the government of the Free Hurgat State in response to this incident, we were told we would not be responded to by their authorities since they do not recognise the existence of our nation.

As such, after deliberation over information presented in senate, I have to announce the results of the vote that saw information from up to a year previous to this attack, which showed build up of forces in the region with hostile intent towards both the colony and its citizens. With 96 senators voting, the final result comes back as 85 - 11 supporting the motion put forth in front of Alfegan senate.

From this moment forth, a state of war exists between the People's Nation of Alfegos and the Free Hurgat State."

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Official Greal Statement
Ministry of Foreign Affairs

To: Alfegos
Level of Encryption: High
Subject: State of War

Greal has heard of your declaration of war on Free Hurgat state. We condemn the Free Hurgat attack on Outpost 29 of the Alfegan colony of Neo'los. We wish to offer the families of the soldiers that died bravely our condolences. Greal offers five battalions of the Greal army to Alfegos to support them in this war.

Signed,

Martin Watson
President of Greal
Imperial Republic of Greal

1530 hours (-9AST)
Neo'vi Garrison
Neo'los

Mobilisation for the war ahead was beginning. Most evident was at the central military base of the colony, in Neo'vi. Peering behind 6 metre earthen mounds topped with concrete walls, a hive of activity could be seen as the army prepared its ground forces. The colonial division that was stationed in Neo'los was coming to life. In this central base, the home of the 1st Colonial Mechanised Infantry, vehicles were lined up across the asphalt parade grounds with sections standing in front, grouping now equipment had been collected. Hundreds of rounds were run from the magazine buried underground to the men on the surface amidst the thick air of anticipation as all looked on nervous, waiting for orders. So far, they had been told that they would be moving out to strategic gathering points near the border, joining up with elements of the 2nd Mechanised Infantry and the 5th Armoured.

In the main base control bunker, Major-General Xha'so was busy in a meeting with his senior members of staff as they looked over the final arrangements sent to them from Alfegan High Command. With him, the Sector Commander for the Air force was busy checking the attack rota being given to them for their assault. Across the map displayed of both their nation and that of the Free Hurgat State, markers indicating priority targets pulsated as the men deliberated.
"I honestly cant expect why we need to mobilise this soon. For a start, we've been told that ground force incursions will start at minimum within 72 hours. Yes I know that we have the problems with them possibly retaliating, but can they do any damage at all if they got past the border?"
"The answer to that question Major is that it can happen. The city of Pa'vi, with a population of 88 000, is only 21 kilometres from the border. That means it is well within range of a rocket attack if, god forbid, the enemy have such weaponry. In addition, we have the danger of an outpost being over-run by another attack, and elements of the aggressor finding their way safely into Neo'los. The military will provide part of the patrolling power as well as re-enforcing key outposts in preparation for a ground attack."
"I see: it's just that the battle plan so far has been focused on the air force tactical bombing campaign of the enemy. We have recent stratellite footage of military camps near the border, which need to be disassembled to cut down the risk of any mass attack."

At the other side of the room, a young colonel spoke up, coughing to dislodge grit from his lungs before continuing.
"We have to consider the Greali intervention. They have pledged to send forces to the theatre, and so far we have only been told to receive them at Neo'vi here, and then assume we'll figure out the rest. What are they going to help do?"
"We need the Greali battalions they have sent for the primary incursion into the Free Hurgat State. I have decided that we will use two of their battalions alongside three of the 1st Mechanised battalions in the eastern assault, another of their two in the western assault, and then the final one to act along the central front. Remember that all settlements we know about are along the two main rivers, with some I believe up in the far mountains. The central attack will seek to stop any forces going through the desert, and will mainly be based around elements of the Fifth Armoured, alongside most of the Third Light Infantry regiment who will be arriving from Alfegos."
"Thankyou sir."

_____________________________________________________

Intelligence Regarding the Theatre
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Neo'vi
2:45 PM

Colonel Williams was in charge of the five battalions that had arrived here the previous evening. He gave his men a good night's sleep, then he held a short meeting with all the senior officers. Lieutenant Colonel Hanks, who lead the 4th battalion, was worried and asked why there aren't more Greal troops coming from Greal. The Greal army promised five more battalions, but that was only if the Greal battalions suffered a crushing defeat. Later after the meeting, Colonel Williams and his staff officers visited some Greal company owned shops around the city. This was the last place where he would expect a Look Inc. electronics store. Colonel Williams had spent most of his life in the military. He remembered the spectacular charge that he led against the Red Skull, which utterly failed and he had lost all his men in the charge. But that defeat was erased when he took the city of New Klim. But he was still a Colonel. As he thought through his memories, he watched his men unload supplies that had arrived from Greal.

His staff officers had been asking the Alfegans where they were to be positioned, but so far, they told the Greal battalions to stay put in the city.

1630 hours
In Free Hurgat State Airspace


Five ground-attack planes shot over the land close to the ground, arching as they passed the border near Pa'vi towards the right, and following the border line. Here was where their primary targets had been identified: enemy militants gathering for war. So far, five camps had been located, the first of which was about to receive Alfegan retribution.

On the ground, a group of around eighty men lay concealed in a forest clearing, dirty canvas providing makeshift shelters above the ground level. A few unmarked wooden crates spilled out from the rear of a of an HGV, most opened to revel weaponry and ammunition. All had a variety of firearms that had been provided to them, varying from obsolete AF-67 assault rifles to the newest L85A2s. All had heard the news of war being declared, and were restless in wanting to get on with the attack, before their position was found. Groups were busy rolling up shelters and moving them into the back of the HGV or onto horseback, checking they left no trace. As it was though, their worst fears were about to be realised.
A shout came from a sentry in one of the trees that the enemy had been sighted: enemy aircraft in formation, coming low over the area. With seconds spare, the men panicked and sprinted away towards whatever shelter they could find. Hastily dug shell scrapes around thick tree roots found themselves filled as the bombs began hitting. What appeared to be a shower of hand grenades fell down, a deafening series of explosions ripping the jungle into splinters as shrapnel whistled around. As the dust settled, the flight arced around overhead, coming down even lower. Those still dazed from the first attack and trying to drunkenly move to better cover found themselves the target of ferocious autocannon bursts, the HE rounds throwing up massive clumps of earth as they ripped across the forest floor to hit anything moving. The battered HGV exploded in a cloud of flames as a round hit its fuel tank, a louder secondary explosion throwing up another cloud of smoke as the ammunition went up.

As the aeroplanes departed back to Pa'vi airstrip, the left behind a scene of devastation. Mutilated bodies lay scattered across the smoking clearing, the few dazed survivors crawling away into the forest back towards civilisation.

1640 hours
Neo'vi Garrison

"Heads up lads! Let's get moving!"
Vehicle after vehicle began rolling out onto the closed streets as the regiment started to move out. Swarms of Ironheart IFVs trailed down the straight roads, accompanying variants and support trucks following closely as the groups began splitting up to their various staging points. Following them were the orders to the Greali contingent in the town. Having contacted the commander, the orders had been sorted out. Two batallions were to be sent to Lo'vi, two to Pa'vi, and the other to Outpost 17, halfway between Pa'vi and Outpost 29.
Within 6 hours, they would be all at their separate assembly points, only needing to wait for the order to attack once preliminary bombardment ceased, and the airships had arrived.
_____________________________

Intelligence on the Enemy

Total Population: 2 780 000 (estimate)
Total Militant Presence: 51 000 (estimate)
Total Potential Manpower: 980 000 (estimate)
Air Defence: Gun units clustered around cities. Suspected missile units in some areas. Air force negligible (16 prop-driven Mustangs).

On the move....

Colonel Williams was excited. He accompanied his old battalion to Lo'vi on a Humvee. He watched the Wolfhound Main Battle Tanks drive down the roads with IFVs following. Greal Anaconda Attack Helicopters and F-44s flew over the Greal convoy, making sure they were safe. Some of the Greal troops were asking their officers what their enemy would be like. Clearly, Williams thought, they were not like the Red Skull. He had looked at the Alfegan reports on the emey, they barely had an airforce, their army was average size, but it wouldn't be able to resist the Alfegan-Greal armies.

1730 hours

As the enemy camps along the border began to feel the wrath of the Alfegan air force, the commanding officers moved their sights in further towards the final objective: the capital city. The strings of cities and towns following the rivers soon came under the close scrutiny of the observers, looking for military installations.

In Tekanav, the militant group stationed there were uneasy. Three-and-a-half thousand men scattered around the village in shared accomodation with the citizenry were a formidiable town garrision, yet had fears. Few had experienced an air attack before, and the stories only just now leaking back of attacks on the border were lowering morale. As the story-tellers were disciplined for spreading false rumours, the rest helped move the arms that had arrived on the back of a few goods lorries into safehouses, and from there to the men themselves. Whilst the others ahd quickly left, one lorry remained. Underneath the camoflauge of the canvas sides were hidden factory-fresh units of a RADAR-guided aircraft interception unit. The Rapier II was a bizarre system to the natives, who only knew of guns and RPGs being able to kill. It's air of mystery was kept even more so by the strange language all the labels around it were written in, and the fact only a group fo six operators were allowed anywhere near it.
Even though it lay concealed by canvas, and concealed to the stratellite units, they had found it. The loud signal it broadcast as it actively searched for aircraft was easily audible to the signal controllers in Lo'vi, soon marking it out as a target for attack.

Floating above Lo'vi, a large Consul-class airship left a shadow across the city. Accompanied by two smaller airships, it was one of the prime components in the tactic the land-assault had as its goal: that to strike fear into the heart of the enemy who had no experience of the weapons it wielded. As well as its tactical role in this theatre of acting as an air-support vehicle, it also had the ability to provide long-range missile strikes on targets designated by GPS. As the orders came in from the main base, the controllers aboard the airship located in the ship's vast missile gondola the missile they required, before the firing signal was given.

As the sledgehammer cruise missile burst in a furious cloud of flames from the side of the airship, a patrol in the centre of Tekanav calmly paced along the streets sipping coca-cola. They had for now no fears, being inland, at least eight hours drive on the poor quality tracks along the river. For now, they could keep calm, ignoring the stories of attacks from the sky. As it was though, they were mistaken. The group head idly swung a belt of 7.62mm NATO rounds slung over his shoulder as he cradled the FN MAG machinegun in his arms, smiling to anyone else in the street. He had got his hands on the biggest gun first, and had found on a small test range that it was exactly what he needed to satiate his desire for a big gun. So far, he had wanted everyone to know about the size of his gun, and how inferior they were to him.
He was suddenly removed from his ego-trip as he saw something in the distance. In a second, the missile had shot past him, mere metres above the reed rooftops of the town, leaving behind a loud roar. As he whipped around, a fist of air slammed into him and tackled him to the ground as the lorry in the centre of the town went up in flames. Dazed and confused, he used a nearby wall to lift himself back up as he blinked the dust out of his eyes. Where the truck had once been, there now was only a burning crater, wreckage strewn around the centre. As he blindly ran into the cover of a nearby doorway, the gun he was coddling seemed completely useless in face of what had just happened. Were these enemies the gods, punishing them for crimes?


1820 hours

Out of range of the cruise missiles, the capital so far was unaffected. That soon changed as the central RADAR station began picking up signs of a potential threat in the distance. The capital was one of a few areas which had power, a complex of coal-fired stations around the city edges providing all they needed. Around them, hastily-built factories huddled for energy as they spilled out cheap produce the new nation needed.
On the city edge, RADAR guided gun batteries lay clustered around these positions, relics of a past era. The mix of L4060 Bofors guns, HMGs and Stinger platforms served to protect this heart of Progress from outsiders. As it was though, they had rarely been used.

As sirens on a dirt airstrip started up, alerting pilots to run across to earth bunkers concealing their antique fighter planes, the Alfegan air attack met a wall of AA fire. Normally, a single gun was known to have little if any effect. But the culmination of at least a hundred mixed gun platforms scattered around the city, combined with the occasional missile threat, was enough to easily make the inbound flight nervous. Eight B-1B 'Lancer' bombers armed with payloads of 500lb HE bombs met a wall of fire as they came into visible view a few kilometres above the city outskirts. As countermeasure systems began deploying in attempt to ward off attack, the bombs began dropping. Below, clouds of smoke rose as the bombs began smashing holes in target buildings below. The power stations and RADAR station were primary targets, along with the governmental headquarters and any military-identifed locations.

As the bombers switched to supersonic speed to escape, they left behind a scene of terror on the ground, and the fighters that hadn't been able to keep up, even when the bombers were at subsonic speeds. Whilst the enemy was primitive however, the attack had been fraught with danger. One aircraft trailed an unhealthy cloud of smoke as it moved back towards base, whilst others showed signs of the close engagement. All were trying to speed as best they could away from the area, knowing in fifteen minutes they would be back at base.
This was not true for the damaged bomber. Slowing down as warning lights indicated overheating of the left engine, the wings swung to subsonic settings as it let the others speed on. This suddenly translated to the four crew members as engine failure. Shutting the second engine down as the aircraft performed a steep turn leftwards, the pilot found himself facing a predicament: what were they to do? With a glide ratio of 20:1, they would be able to travel 130 kilometres before hitting the ground, with friendly land a lot further away. As his co-pilot furiously tried to get the other engine to restart,the pilot turned on the emergancy beacon, before looking at a map he had been given. Following the river, they would be able to touch down near Kesoav, and from there either attempt to make it back to friendly lines or await rescue.

1847 hours

Outside the village of Kesoav, a man sat in a pickup truck driving along a bumpy path. The suspension screached in protest to its treatment as it moved over the uneven surface, shaking both the driver and the boxes of supplies in the back. He was a salesmen, making use of the new age of demand to sell little trinkets from outside to the people of the nation. Plastc icons of strange foreign characters and items, which the locals relished. Along with the boxes of rubbish as it was for the children, for the more educated there were proper supplies that were rare: pesticides and high-power cleaning chemicals, with a few boxes of cooking utensils and propane bottles.

He stopped the car as he heard a noise louder than the car's stubborn engine outside, his hand moving to an AK-74 on the nearby seat. Peering out of the window, he saw a dark object in the distance moving rapidly towards him. With it came a characteristic screeching sound he knew from his experience as that of an aircraft. While they normally flew much higher than the one coming in now, he was not concerned: his stay in Lo'vi when he collected more goods had been right next to Runway 1 of Lo'vi aerodrome.
However, he quickly restarted the car as he noticed it wasn't pulling up, and was coming straight towards him. While it had slowed down, it still was moving at a high speed towards the ground, landing gear extended in some hope of a soft landing. The driver ducked as a set of wheels came mere inches awayf rom the top of his pickup truck, shaking it as it moved away. A second later, it hit the ground in a nearby field, the landing gear ripping off nearly instantly as i came into contact with the soft ground. A hideous series of groans and cracks came as the body hit the ground and continued onwards, eventually stopping in the middle of the field. Behind it, a deep furrow showed ripped up wheat in a distorted manner, pieces of landing gear and aircraft strewn in its wake.

The man lept from hiding in his car and ran over to the aircraft, looking for survivors and parts. He could make a lot of money from the men inside, and whatever he could find from it.

The Greal battalions had reached their designated positions. Many of the soldiers watched the cruise missiles fly off to bombard the enemy. As they were doing that, Colonel Williams organized the attack. Each battalion had sixty tanks and seventy IFVs. He also had one hundred Greal aircraft under his control. His men were being outfitted with combat gear, Lyran Ballistic Armor, the usual. He sent a message to Alfegan command and asked if they were to attack yet.

1848
Near Kesoav

Inside the cockpit, there came the sound of numerous alarms along with the occasional crunch of metal as the pilot blew the doors open. Toppling out, he collapsed onto the warm ground around the aircraft wreckage. He propped himself up with the Mac-10 machinepistol he kept as side armament ,before flicking off the safety as he saw a man approaching through the smoke of the now-burning engine. The fire was rapidly spreading, catching onto the wing as the rest of the crew quickly moved themselves away from the aircraft. Luckily, there were no live munitions aboard, all since dropped on the capital. However, there still was a large amount of kerosene in the fuel tanks, over which the flames were enroaching. It wouldn't be long until the fireproofing failed.

The group dizzily walked away as the pilot kept his eyes on the figure which the smoke had now revealed: a small dark-skinned man toting an AK-74, seemingly made smaller by the massive craft he stood next to.
"Quick, the militia arrive soon. Not idea to stay around."
The man gestured with his gun barrel at a vehicle on the road in the distance. Even though it was battered and old, the pilot had no time to consider aesthetics as he took the invitation to sprint over towards the vehicle, followed by the rest of the crew. The man followed, hefting a unit obviously ripped from the fuselage over his shoulder. A large glass dome on its nose gave in insight into a hardly helpful interior: darkness distorted by lenses, mounted on curving machinery. Even if it didn't work and he didn't know what it was, he could sell it for a large amount. He reached the road and threw it into the back of the vehicle, shaking the thing on its suspension. Noticing the crew cowering behind the vehicle, he was just in time realising what was about to happen as to throw himself into the relative cover offered by the vehicle.

Seconds later, a massive explosion erupted from the aircraft, lobbing pieces of shrapnel all around. There came a few metallic crunches as the pickup truck took the shrapnel and burning fuel on its side, sheltering those on the other. A few pieces of plastic dropped down from the massive cloud as the men dived inside the vehicle, squashing up in the rear seats. Behind them in the back of the truck, the object rattled as the driver hit the accelerator, moving the truck onwards at high speed away from the village. As it disappeared into a wooded patch, the trucks of the local militia arrived, men jumping out to survey the wreckage strewn across the area, gawping at the intense fire.


1920 hours
The Lo'vi Staging Area

In the forward command centre, the head of the eastern attack turned away from the revised battleplan sent to him. They had a new objective, absolutely vital to fufil, for which the Greali group would come in perfect. And they had a new time for the assault. He moved out from the fortified shelter, accompanied by the rest of his officers as he reached the Greali command post for the contingent deployed in the area. He saluted as he greeted the man, before coming on with the new tactic.

"This is classified information, which you should not speak to anyone other than myself or officers with a rank higher than Captain. An aircraft we sent on a bombing mission has failed to return, with an SOS beacon being deployed a while ago. The final position of their craft, where it came to a rest, was at a site near the town of Kesoav. This is deep within enemy territory, and it won't come as a surprise to you that the four men who came down with the aircraft are highly valuable. As well as being able to give them exact specifications of the bomber craft we use, modified B-1B Lancers, they also are worth a large amount to us in monetary terms. We need to find them, and get them out.
In addition, the bomber was part of a squadron fitted with an advanced laser guidance system for bombing raids. This unit, if it falls into the wrong hands, could have catastrophic results on any precision raids. Details as to what the unit looks like, along with pilot photographs, are included in the envelope I am holding.

How do you fit into this? You will be acting as a major assault force back up our attack upon Kesoav. Whilst the main eastern Alfegan force will roll in up the river through Tekanav, you will pass across the desert, before attack the town from its flank. You will be providing both cover, support and evacuation services to the Commando team who will be posted with you.

You shall be moving out to the border within four hours, under cover of heavy air and mortar bombardment of their border camps. The Alfegan force will hit the border two hours after you cross. At the same time, the rest of the attacks on the central and western areas will be brought forward to co-incide with the eastern attack. By the time the Alfegan force has cleared Tekanav, expected 50 hours after your attack, you should be in position to start the assault on Kesoav. The Commandos will liberate the pilots from wherever they are, currently with stratellite footage around the wreck site being reviewed to place them currently, and bring them back to your lines. From there, you will continue with your attack, merging with the Alfegan force when they finally reach you. You must provide fire to wherever they want when requested, and expect suicide attacks from the enemy. From their first major attack on Outpost 29, we know they aren't here to play silly buggers.

Any questions?"

The Lo'vi Staging Area

Colonel Williams listened to the plan carefully, pretty soon he would to revise his previous orders. It certainly was a surprising change to the plans. Greal soldiers nearby tried to listen to the conservation, but the senior officers moved them away. The enemy clearly was not very bright if it launched suicide attacks instead of "normal" attacks. Within four hours, Greal will launch its first operation involving Alfegos since the Alfegian civil war. Williams had a few questions.

"Will we expect any other enemy forces besides suicide attacks?"

1925 hours
Lo'vi Staging Area

"The enemy you will be facing will present themselves in a varied way. Whilst most indicators are lightly armed militia along with some suicide personnel, we must emphasise that you be careful. Intelligence suggests that they may have about eight armoured fighting vehicles in the area, though those are likely to be forty-year old relics. What you must worry about though are what we have detected near the capital.

The enemy have posession of some advanced surface-to-air systems, most of which have been hit. However, this does not mean that they don't have surface-to-surface systems. This may to the form of small rocket artillery units, or even heavy guided missiles. What it does mean is that your men must take every precaution not to provide to large a target, and be prepared for such attacks in addition to more standard artillery attacks when moving close to the area.
Another thing we must warn you of are IEDs: Improvised Explosive Devices. If the enemy feels ready to deploy suicide bombers, then it is highly likely they will plant roadside bombs, mines and other such devices. In the urban areas, be extremely careful.

Finally, whilst you have access to precision missile strikes and airstrikes, you must only attack armed militants and buildings that are definately home to militants and can not be stormed without large numbers of casualties.

Any more questions officer?"

_____________________________________________________
1928 hours
Approaching Lo'vi

Three LY219 Ironheart IFVs and a pair of LS-V lorries threw up a large dust cloud as they rolled down the road at high speed. Being a typical colonial road, it had been built rapidly during the third phase of colonisation, made from sheets of wired heavy fabrics, sprayed with rapid-setting concrete and sand to form a smooth road surface. Now many years old, it was starting to show signs of its age: the surface was gradually becoming smoother, with the occasional new patch where a pothole had been filled by the Road Maintenance Department of the Transport ministry. Whilst traction left something to be desired on the surface, the ride was still much faster and smoother than the men could've expected. The motorcade had passed onto the P5 after leaving Neo'vi, following an almost perfectly-straight road towards Lo'vi. Many hundreds of kilometres long, the quick-built road was surprising in that it had only been built in a few months, the old dirt track alongside used occasionally when traffic levels were too high near the cities, or an accident occured. Following the route was a wide-gauge railway line, electric cables rocking in the wind above the tracks.

Inside the IFVs, twenty-four army commandos sat waiting to arrive. Whilst the NBC warfare system offered unsurpassed air-con, they still had no view to the outside, the only natural light provided by the opened gun ports to the rear of the vehicle. The natural-light electric bulbs illuminated a crew who were obviously hardened soldiers: all bore scars of former conflicts, or extensive tatooes on their shoulders. The rifles they used also signified their elite status: each was an AF-07P Para assult rifle, using a larger calibre round and folding skeleton stock. All were hanging from a rack on the door alongside Para Minimis as they sat talking, drinking from bottles of coca-cola they had stored in the refrigerated ammunition cupboard, there being vast amounts of space as they were to pick up their munitions once they arrived at Lo'vi.

The head of the platoon, Major Xha'li, sat up front with the driver of the first vehicle, his rifle beside his seat as he gazed across the bright desert through the tinted windscreen. In the distance, he could make out the junction with the P8 route that followed the river down to the coast. That meant they were about thrity kilometres from Lo'vi. Almost there. He sat reviewing stratellite photography with his RSM, showing the crash site on impact. The main image of interest though was a few minutes after the crash.
"I think we've found our marks now: the aircraft crew were picked up by this man, who we will refer to as the Samaritan. He returns with the crew to the vehicle, and drives off after the explosion."
He moved through the photographs until he found what he was looking for.
"These photographs were taken every twenty seconds. In this one, see what the Samaritan is carrying."
He indicated a large unit which the man was carrying, trailing just behind the rest of the group. Smoke obscured parts of the image, but not badly.
"Command tells us this one of our secondary objectives. The targeting unit. Whilst we need to make sure that nobody else on the crash site managed to smuggle away any sensitive equipment, that is unlikely after this."
He moved to one where the entire shot was covered with smoke. Along with it was a near infra-red shot, showing through the now transparent smoke an area covered in bright material.
"The thing blew up. Luckily, by that time the pickup truck has left the scene, so the crew were saved from that. However, we know nothing of the Samaritan's intentions. We continued following the truck to the edge of the kilometre-radius the stratellite was phtographing, from where it disappeared. Intelligence are currently pouring over photographs shot around the rest of the area, but they can't have gone too far. Hopefully by the time of arrival, we will be able to roll in and take care of them.

Now to our other primary objective. The bunker in this city has been identified as potentially being a stockpile for chemical agents. Whilst Section 1 will deal with finding the crew, Sections 2 and 3 will be led by me to that bunker. The Greali soldiers have not been told yet, and hopefully will not have to be told. We've been assured they won't roll in until we tell them, but we can not take full assurance from that. We'll be using EMOE, and once inside will plant the disposal device carried in the back of the second truck to clear the bunker completely. We will need to recover information of the weapons, so whilst Section 2 guard the entrance with the engineer setting up the bomb, Section 3 will sweep the bunker for information and any men worth capturing. The bunker is supposedly small, entirely taken up with chemical mortar bombs and missiles. The rocket artillery units in the area have been dealt with already, so they are sending trucks down from the capital to empty the bunker. They hopefully will be intercepted by our air force, so should be of little problem.

We've got NBC units packed as standard, so we should be perfectly safe should there eb an accidental or purposeful release. Is that alright?"
"I should think so, sir." The RSM didn't talk much, agreeing all the time with his officers. However, he did dislike what he was doing.
"I think, sir, we should tell the Greali forces about that objective. It doesn't seem right."
"Don't you worry: the chances of them being subject to an NBC attack is minimal. The whizzes back at HQ have told us that they only have the chemical weapons there, at Losav and in Hurgat city. They arrived in advance of the actual artillery platforms, so we can expect that they have been manufacturing these weapons back in Hurgat City. The factory strikes should hopefully have disposed of the threat there, but we need to make sure we know what we're dealing with. Whether it is long-range missiles or short-range mortars. Whether they could threated and of the border towns. The airforce have taken care of the bunkers in the other two locations with bunker busters, but they often leave not much in the way of evidence. This raid will hopefully allow us to see the exact extent of the threat."
"So, can you over the overall objectives again, sir?"
"Alright. Primary are the recovery of the crew, and the destruction of the bunker. Secondary are the collection of information from the bunker and the recovery of the guidance unit. The tertiary objective, which we might just leave to the Greali forces, are to raid the militia headquarters in the town and see whether they found anything from the plane crash."
"Excellent sir. We'll have time for a rebrief in one of the vehicle bays there, before we start on the raid. Each man's been detailed with 300 rounds in magazines for carrying, extra for heavy kit we're getting over there. The trucks'll be carrying an extra sixteen-thousand rounds. No pistols in this operation. The rest of the kit will be standard, save for the special weapons: we've got one Minimi to every section. Section 2 will be getting an AAT-87 with four missiles, whilst Sections 1 and 3 will be getting FN MAGs and a couple thousand rounds for them. There'll be two men to each section with under-barrel designators for the Greali strikes from their vehicles on the city edge, and the rest will have a mix of under-barrel shotguns or grenade launchers."
"I agree with you on the pistols entirely. Maybe go for two Frags and two HEAT for the AAT-87, so we can get both targets?"
"No, sir. Go for three HEAT and an Anti-bunker. The UGLs will take care of infantry."

The conversation carried on as they passed the road checkpoint, before entering Lo'vi.

1925 hours
Lo'vi Staging Area

"The enemy you will be facing will present themselves in a varied way. Whilst most indicators are lightly armed militia along with some suicide personnel, we must emphasise that you be careful. Intelligence suggests that they may have about eight armoured fighting vehicles in the area, though those are likely to be forty-year old relics. What you must worry about though are what we have detected near the capital.

The enemy have posession of some advanced surface-to-air systems, most of which have been hit. However, this does not mean that they don't have surface-to-surface systems. This may to the form of small rocket artillery units, or even heavy guided missiles. What it does mean is that your men must take every precaution not to provide to large a target, and be prepared for such attacks in addition to more standard artillery attacks when moving close to the area.
Another thing we must warn you of are IEDs: Improvised Explosive Devices. If the enemy feels ready to deploy suicide bombers, then it is highly likely they will plant roadside bombs, mines and other such devices. In the urban areas, be extremely careful.

Finally, whilst you have access to precision missile strikes and airstrikes, you must only attack armed militants and buildings that are definately home to militants and can not be stormed without large numbers of casualties.

Any more questions officer?"

_____________________________________________________
1928 hours
Approaching Lo'vi

Three LY219 Ironheart IFVs and a pair of LS-V lorries threw up a large dust cloud as they rolled down the road at high speed. Being a typical colonial road, it had been built rapidly during the third phase of colonisation, made from sheets of wired heavy fabrics, sprayed with rapid-setting concrete and sand to form a smooth road surface. Now many years old, it was starting to show signs of its age: the surface was gradually becoming smoother, with the occasional new patch where a pothole had been filled by the Road Maintenance Department of the Transport ministry. Whilst traction left something to be desired on the surface, the ride was still much faster and smoother than the men could've expected. The motorcade had passed onto the P5 after leaving Neo'vi, following an almost perfectly-straight road towards Lo'vi. Many hundreds of kilometres long, the quick-built road was surprising in that it had only been built in a few months, the old dirt track alongside used occasionally when traffic levels were too high near the cities, or an accident occured. Following the route was a wide-gauge railway line, electric cables rocking in the wind above the tracks.

Inside the IFVs, twenty-four army commandos sat waiting to arrive. Whilst the NBC warfare system offered unsurpassed air-con, they still had no view to the outside, the only natural light provided by the opened gun ports to the rear of the vehicle. The natural-light electric bulbs illuminated a crew who were obviously hardened soldiers: all bore scars of former conflicts, or extensive tatooes on their shoulders. The rifles they used also signified their elite status: each was an AF-07P Para assult rifle, using a larger calibre round and folding skeleton stock. All were hanging from a rack on the door alongside Para Minimis as they sat talking, drinking from bottles of coca-cola they had stored in the refrigerated ammunition cupboard, there being vast amounts of space as they were to pick up their munitions once they arrived at Lo'vi.

The head of the platoon, Major Xha'li, sat up front with the driver of the first vehicle, his rifle beside his seat as he gazed across the bright desert through the tinted windscreen. In the distance, he could make out the junction with the P8 route that followed the river down to the coast. That meant they were about thrity kilometres from Lo'vi. Almost there. He sat reviewing stratellite photography with his RSM, showing the crash site on impact. The main image of interest though was a few minutes after the crash.
"I think we've found our marks now: the aircraft crew were picked up by this man, who we will refer to as the Samaritan. He returns with the crew to the vehicle, and drives off after the explosion."
He moved through the photographs until he found what he was looking for.
"These photographs were taken every twenty seconds. In this one, see what the Samaritan is carrying."
He indicated a large unit which the man was carrying, trailing just behind the rest of the group. Smoke obscured parts of the image, but not badly.
"Command tells us this one of our secondary objectives. The targeting unit. Whilst we need to make sure that nobody else on the crash site managed to smuggle away any sensitive equipment, that is unlikely after this."
He moved to one where the entire shot was covered with smoke. Along with it was a near infra-red shot, showing through the now transparent smoke an area covered in bright material.
"The thing blew up. Luckily, by that time the pickup truck has left the scene, so the crew were saved from that. However, we know nothing of the Samaritan's intentions. We continued following the truck to the edge of the kilometre-radius the stratellite was phtographing, from where it disappeared. Intelligence are currently pouring over photographs shot around the rest of the area, but they can't have gone too far. Hopefully by the time of arrival, we will be able to roll in and take care of them.

Now to our other primary objective. The bunker in this city has been identified as potentially being a stockpile for chemical agents. Whilst Section 1 will deal with finding the crew, Sections 2 and 3 will be led by me to that bunker. The Greali soldiers have not been told yet, and hopefully will not have to be told. We've been assured they won't roll in until we tell them, but we can not take full assurance from that. We'll be using EMOE, and once inside will plant the disposal device carried in the back of the second truck to clear the bunker completely. We will need to recover information of the weapons, so whilst Section 2 guard the entrance with the engineer setting up the bomb, Section 3 will sweep the bunker for information and any men worth capturing. The bunker is supposedly small, entirely taken up with chemical mortar bombs and missiles. The rocket artillery units in the area have been dealt with already, so they are sending trucks down from the capital to empty the bunker. They hopefully will be intercepted by our air force, so should be of little problem.

We've got NBC units packed as standard, so we should be perfectly safe should there eb an accidental or purposeful release. Is that alright?"
"I should think so, sir." The RSM didn't talk much, agreeing all the time with his officers. However, he did dislike what he was doing.
"I think, sir, we should tell the Greali forces about that objective. It doesn't seem right."
"Don't you worry: the chances of them being subject to an NBC attack is minimal. The whizzes back at HQ have told us that they only have the chemical weapons there, at Losav and in Hurgat city. They arrived in advance of the actual artillery platforms, so we can expect that they have been manufacturing these weapons back in Hurgat City. The factory strikes should hopefully have disposed of the threat there, but we need to make sure we know what we're dealing with. Whether it is long-range missiles or short-range mortars. Whether they could threated and of the border towns. The airforce have taken care of the bunkers in the other two locations with bunker busters, but they often leave not much in the way of evidence. This raid will hopefully allow us to see the exact extent of the threat."
"So, can you over the overall objectives again, sir?"
"Alright. Primary are the recovery of the crew, and the destruction of the bunker. Secondary are the collection of information from the bunker and the recovery of the guidance unit. The tertiary objective, which we might just leave to the Greali forces, are to raid the militia headquarters in the town and see whether they found anything from the plane crash."
"Excellent sir. We'll have time for a rebrief in one of the vehicle bays there, before we start on the raid. Each man's been detailed with 300 rounds in magazines for carrying, extra for heavy kit we're getting over there. The trucks'll be carrying an extra sixteen-thousand rounds. No pistols in this operation. The rest of the kit will be standard, save for the special weapons: we've got one Minimi to every section. Section 2 will be getting an AAT-87 with four missiles, whilst Sections 1 and 3 will be getting FN MAGs and a couple thousand rounds for them. There'll be two men to each section with under-barrel designators for the Greali strikes from their vehicles on the city edge, and the rest will have a mix of under-barrel shotguns or grenade launchers."
"I agree with you on the pistols entirely. Maybe go for two Frags and two HEAT for the AAT-87, so we can get both targets?"
"No, sir. Go for three HEAT and an Anti-bunker. The UGLs will take care of infantry."

The conversation carried on as they passed the road checkpoint, before entering Lo'vi.

"I have no further questions, officer." said Colonel Williams.

1940 hours
Lo'vi Staging Area

Lieutenant Rems watched the sky turn darker and dark as the sun was setting. After watching the sky for a few minutes, he walked back to inspect the Greal vehicles. He had heard for his senior officers that the invasion would began in a few hours. That would explain why the tank crews were arming their LY4A1 Wolfhound MBTs for battle. Rems did expect much fighting thought, he had heard their new enemy was nothing like the "normal" armies the Greal military fought. He watched the guards, who were sweating in their body armor, patrol around the tanks. There was no telling when a suicide bomber could suddenly break into the building and blow the place apart. He went back to the officers quarters to be briefed about the invasion. The details were brief and Rems got no other information except where thyw ere supposed to attack. He went back to the tanks he commanded and gave them their orders. The invasion would began in three hours.

2030
Lo'vi Staging Area

The commandos sat inside a large vehicle garage, doors closed and lcoked. outside, the logistics team loaded up the vehicles with weaponry, ammunition and final supplies. Once the RSM had finished signing for the equipment and supplies, he came back through into the garage, resealing the door behind him. Around the centre of the hanger, the twenty-four soldiers sat around a large map drawn with mine tape. One part showed the town, whilst the other showed the bunker itself. Red markers were dotted around the map.

"The Greali forces will be positioned here, five kilometres from the town centre on the hillside here. We will move in along the right hand side, using this road to enter the town. Section One will split off here, and Waypoint Alpha, and proceed to Bravo here at the forested patch. From there, they will continue along to the identified location of the Samaritan, which when found will be Waypoint Charlie. Once done, they will move to the FRV here, where they will meet up with the Greali forces on the hillside. The ERV for Section 1 is Waypoint Bravo.

Sections Two and Three will follow this back road to Waypoint Delta, then to Echo. When they reach the bunker, Waypoint Foxtrot, they will disembark and raid the bunker. The two IFVs will move to Waypoint Golf, from where they will provide defensive fire from the patch of trees. Once the men are finished, the IFVs will return, and move onto Waypoint Hotel, which will take them onto another road out of town. We've decided to eliminate the Milita HQ via a missile strike from the AAS Mokastana, which will be advancing along the river from Tekanav with the main Alfegan force. FRV is at the bottom of the hillside for Two and Three, whilst ERV is Waypoint Delta.

Any questions?"

________________________________________

2045
The Border North of Lo'vi

In a thicket one kilometre south of the border, there came a metallic whine as what appeared to be patches of foliage began to move. On closer inspection, the strange devices revealed themselves to be LY300 Manticore MLRS systems. Five units, all modifed to be armed with Longbow IV artillery missiles. Cluster munitions, able to clear large swathes of enemy troops dug into ground. In a central communications trailer, the Battery Commander looked at footage from the Stratellite of the target area, targets from command super-imposed in red over the terrain.
"Prepare to fire."
The came a hum as lights started up, notifying the commander the battery had removed safety systems from operation. He began counting under his breath.
"On target one, commence fire!"
There came an enourmous roar as missiles began bursting from their cells in the artillery units, clouds of smoke and flame swirling around as they shot off into the dusk sky. The barrage continued for a minute, until it silenced. In the distance, ther could be heard more such roars as artillery units fired into the border area.

Behind the border itself, a convoy of four trucks were moving along a forest road towards the main road. Unbeknownst to them, they had been picked up heading towards the border road, and had immediately been labelled as a threat. As the lorries stopped at the junction, the men disembarked, all heavily armed. A few seconds later, they were rushing to cover as tiny explosions lit up high above them. Within another few seconds, what appeared to be a rain of hand grenades came plummeting from the sky, ripping the surrounding area up. The ear-splitting din could be just heard form the artillery position as they watched smoke rising in the distance. What they couldn't see where what became of the targets, ripped to pieces in the sub-munition shower.

Further along the border, more conventional artillery pieces let out timed thuds as they threw shells over towards their targets. Most were self-propelled 'Slinger' Howitzers, based on the M1A4 Warhound that was so often confused with the LY4 just over name. One unit that showed absolute age was a railway artillery piece: a 450mm cannon shipped to the training area in Neo'los as merely a curiousity and training that now served in throwing shells of hell far away to Tekanav. Within the two hours till the attack, it would be able to throw twenty-four shells into the far distance, each ending with the same massive explosion.

____________________________________

2050
Lo'vi Staging Area

"Presents.....Arms!" shouted a voice.
One thousand Greal troops of the third battalion moved in perfect formation and halted then held up their foreign made R1 Advanced Combat Rifles. Some of the men forgot to grab their helmets in the confusion, and they were punished severely. Behind the Greal troops were Ironhearts IFVs and twenty LY4A1 Wolfhound tanks. M200 Desolator Systems were brought up. They were to also bombard the enemy. The Greal troops had 'Mamba' Tactical Boots and 'Blacktalon' Combat Gloves that were bought recently by Greal from Lyran Arms. Colonel Williams stepped out of the outpost to inspect the Greal battalions, with his staff officers following. Lieutenant Rems nearby with his battalion was sure he heard artillery fire to the north. The battle was already going on.

Though, the Greal main assault force was supposed to go after Tekanav's flank, Williams was worried it may turn into a urban warfare nightmare. Last year, Williams lead his battalion through New Klim, the battles were fierce and men died for every yard they took. He would need all his battalions for the assault. He would make sure they would provide support to the Alfegian main assault force attacking Tekanav itself. He went back into the outpost and prepared himself for the assault. He could hear the boots of the Greal army marching by.

There was less then two hours to go.

2130
Lo'vi Staging Area

The commandos left the vehicle garage, before walking over to their LY219s. All were painted in four-shade Desert DPM, a small logo painted near the front showing it to be 2nd Battalion, Commando Regiment. By now, the logistics personnel mounted aboard the two L-SV logistics trucks had finished loading up ammunition into all the vehicles, and were now distributing clips to all the men as they passed the back of the first lorry, followed by special ammunition for the heavier weapons. All the men were kitted out in four-shade Desert DPM, the pattern covering both their helmets, body armour, combat trousers and gloves. The AF-07P assault rifles they carried were quickly loaded up with ammunition: one tracer to three ball rounds. The rounds were of 6.3mm AF calibre, a much heavier round than the standard 5.56mm NATO round used. The specially adapted Para Minimis were also adapted for the heavier calibre, allowing for rifle ammunition to be used if the machine guns ran dry. In addition, they received secondary ammunition: a mix of smoke and frag grenades to carry on their person, with a side helping of ammo for their underbarrel guns: 12 gauge shotgun cartridges and standard 40mm launcher grenades. A few flares were handed out to the section commanders.
They also each picked up two 24-hour ration packs, quickly emptied and secreted around their webbing and patrol packs. Waiting behind at the second vehicle, a few demolition specialists received their devices: long reels of Detcord for taking out doors and thin walls, and mousehole charges for blasting through any walls.
The final item loaded up onto Section 2's IFV was a large suitcase-sized unit, painted black with a large lock on the front. A single symbol on the casing showed it was an explosive device, a string of numbers showing to those with the knowledge that it was thermobaric in nature.

After fifteen minutes, the men were all ready to board, equipment properly packed in anticipation of the attack. They began moving to their vehicles as orders were given out over the PA system and radio network of the joint taskforce: they were to move out to the border area, in preparation of the assault. The engines were gunned as the vehicle moved out, past the extensive security and onto the main road. From here, it was a twenty minute drive to their final waiting zone, before they moved into enemy terrain. Now though they were all on full alert: an attack could happen at any time, even if the border area was currently undergoing extremely heavy shelling. The command radio network opened up as the Alfegan commandos finished the standard encryption key, allowing them to talk to the Greali men.

"Right then: we'll be moving as fast as we can in diamond formation, once we've crossed into the desert. Armour around the flanks, IFVs at the front and rear, and logistics in the centre. We'll be at the front of the formation, so follow our lead. From the intelligence we have, there are no roads on the route we are taking through the desert, so I hope these vehicles will hold up in those conditions. It will be a twelve hour drive to our destination on the hillside by Kesoav, so make sure you get a watch system up so everyone is ready for the main battle. Don't get lost, keep your eyes open, and if you get stuck try and get moving as quickly as possible.
I've got my trust in you, Greali commanders. Don't let me down."
The major cut the transmission as he took a swig from a water bottle. One of the logistics lorries had been loaded up with 1500 litres of water, enough to see them all through ten days drinking. Hopefully the Grealis had made the same preparations. Up ahead, the road forked, splitting off to follow the border one mile behind it. Here, they passed mobile artillery and anti-missile units, patrolling IFVs and armour moving past the opposite way as they searched for even the tiniest suspicious activity. As they pulled up in the compound of Outpost 32, they were greeted by a group of officer staff.

"Good news to the Greali group: high command have mobilised a little helping hand to this operation. Look over there."

On the other side of the compound, four large tanks stood waiting. Despite their length of 12 metres, nearly twice that of an LY4, they were lower in profile, and mounted a much more powerful engine.

"Xha'noa assault tanks. These are the ones that will be going into city proper when you get the signal to start the attack. They are able to keep up with the rest of you lot, should have no problem with the sand with their extra-wide tracks, and are almost impervious to all weapons. The main weapon, a good big 160mm cannon, has an extremely high elevation and the power to take out a group of APCs. They'll be the foreguard of your attack, and should provide a useful resource. They are completely under Greali command unless told by high command otherwise, so should fit in well with you lot."

2150
Lo'vi Staging Area

"Colonel?" said Lieutenant Rems
"Yes, Lieutenant?" asked Williams startled
"Sir, the Alfegians have granted to our command, Xha'noa assault tanks."
"Alright get me their commander names and their radio frequencies."
Rems nodded and walked off. Williams then entered an IFV that he would use as the command post for the invasion. There was a lot to still do even though the attack began in ten minutes. Logistics vehicles were moving up behind the Greal tanks and IFVs that were ready to cross the border. The desert would certainly cause problems. He made sure plenty of water and rations were brought along.

"Right then: we'll be moving as fast as we can in diamond formation, once we've crossed into the desert. Armour around the flanks, IFVs at the front and rear, and logistics in the centre. We'll be at the front of the formation, so follow our lead. From the intelligence we have, there are no roads on the route we are taking through the desert, so I hope these vehicles will hold up in those conditions. It will be a twelve hour drive to our destination on the hillside by Kesoav, so make sure you get a watch system up so everyone is ready for the main battle. Don't get lost, keep your eyes open, and if you get stuck try and get moving as quickly as possible.
I've got my trust in you, Greali commanders. Don't let me down."

Williams listened to the transmission and responded simply, "We won't let you down. Good luck to everyone." He clicked off.

Greal tanks

"Striker 5, do you copy, over."
"Roger, Buster 3, this is Striker 5 what seems to be the problem, over."
"Buster, you are right on the border, over."
"Striker, our location is not on the border, over."
"Buster, our readings show that you are across the border by a long way. Pull back until the attack begins, over."
The LYA1 pulled back until it was behind the border. Striker's tank commander was afraid that the enemy may have noticed a Greal tank on their land. He heard the sound of artillery fire to the north.

2200 hours

On the northern edge of the large compound the task force were waiting in, there came a loud shout followed by a deafening klaxon. Over the radio, the loud cry came out:
"Contact, four hundred northern fence, approximately platoon-sized group. Bastards much have got past the main outpost."
The men outside their IFVs rapidly scrambled back in, as the perimeter fence machine guns started up. An extremely long series of bursts that left the gunner with ringing ears saw whatever was out of cover to be shredded by the 7.62mm rounds. A couple seconds later, as a grenade arched over the fence towards the enemy, there came a sudden whistling. Artillery fire began raining down on the position, apparently from nowhere. The visible enemy quickly disappeared into what cover they had as the source was revealed to be the Xha'noa assault tanks.
"Greali infantry, prepare to storm their position. You've got as much covering fire as you need."

2200 Hours

Lieutenant Rems led his platoon along with several other squads. They were to assault the enemy position at all costs. He grabbed his R1 Advanced Combat Rifle, kissed his son's picture and went up to lead his men. His men were watching for any enemy snipers as Rems came up to them.
"Ok boys. Let get the enemy."
There were a few murmurs, Rems ignored them and placed his men in position for attack. Rems yelled....
"Lets go!"

The three commando IFVs rolled out to provide cover to the Greali platoon, guns swivelling to the enemy position. Switching to Infra-red views provided as night vision and adjusting the brightness, the enemy troops soon appeared as bright figures behind darker foliage.
"They're organised into four-man teams. All seem to be armed with assault rifles or machine guns... shit! One guy's got a missile launcher!"
The IFVs opened up, guns providing a loud thumping rhythm as they shredded the cover the enemy had taken. A missile arched from a patch of bushes, flying towards one of the IFVs that had taken up a firing position. Almost instantly, one of the Hailstorm units mounted on the IFV opened up, throwing shrapnel at the hostile projectile. It exploded in mid air, showering pieces across the field.

"Greali men, here's your cover: use it!"
The commandos rapidly disembarked from the rear of the IFVs, taking shelter behind. Looking up and around the sides, they all prepared their rifles. As the Greali men sprinted towards cover by the enemy, all opened up in a single resounding burst of fire as 6.3mm rounds arched over into the enemy position. Most weren't aimed to hit: rather, they were aimed to keep their heads down and stop them shooting. The fire continued as the Greali men sought refuge in the foliage to the other side fo the road, a couple hundred metres from the enemy.

The three commando IFVs rolled out to provide cover to the Greali platoon, guns swivelling to the enemy position. Switching to Infra-red views provided as night vision and adjusting the brightness, the enemy troops soon appeared as bright figures behind darker foliage.
"They're organised into four-man teams. All seem to be armed with assault rifles or machine guns... shit! One guy's got a missile launcher!"
The IFVs opened up, guns providing a loud thumping rhythm as they shredded the cover the enemy had taken. A missile arched from a patch of bushes, flying towards one of the IFVs that had taken up a firing position. Almost instantly, one of the Hailstorm units mounted on the IFV opened up, throwing shrapnel at the hostile projectile. It exploded in mid air, showering pieces across the field.

"Greali men, here's your cover: use it!"
The commandos rapidly disembarked from the rear of the IFVs, taking shelter behind. Looking up and around the sides, they all prepared their rifles. As the Greali men sprinted towards cover by the enemy, all opened up in a single resounding burst of fire as 6.3mm rounds arched over into the enemy position. Most weren't aimed to hit: rather, they were aimed to keep their heads down and stop them shooting. The fire continued as the Greali men sought refuge in the foliage to the other side fo the road, a couple hundred metres from the enemy.

Rems had lost one man, but he had to ignore him and get to the foliage. He ran at lighting speeds trying to get there. Good thing the commandos were keeping the enemy distracted. After the rest of the platoon gathered up there, they hit the flank of the enemy positions. Grenades were showering the enemy. A Greal IFV came through the area to provide some kind of refuge. The IFV opened up its main gun to keep the enemy pinned down.

In the dense cover of tangled vines, bushes and trees, the group of Hurgatans lay deep into small scrapes they had rapidly dug, hiding themselves deep within cover. For now, bullets whipped randomly over their heads as one occasionally let off a rare shot towards the IFV group. So far, all seemed good.

The rain of hand grenades that began to fall brought them to the reality that the enemy had hit their flank. The shell scrapes offered little protection now to the explosive shower around them. In a panic, the groups began to crawl away, standing up in some cases to try and flee the storm of projectiles coming their way. Scrambling away, most ended up as targets to a burst of fire from a 40mm grenade launcher mounted on the main outpost tower.

Within minutes, only a few men remained to face out the Greali assault, letting rip with what remaining ammunition they had before running out in a head-on suicide charge. Most fell to the Greali responding fire, allowing the Alfegan commando IFVs to calmly roll in to follow the observed enemy line of retreat, checking for ambushes or IEDs before calling a CAZAM check.

"Greali forces: report in casualties. We have two hours until our assault begins proper, and I doubt we can delay it any further. A medevac craft has been called in to recover any men injured."

(OOC: Sorry for rubbish post - it's 11-27pm here!)

In the dense cover of tangled vines, bushes and trees, the group of Hurgatans lay deep into small scrapes they had rapidly dug, hiding themselves deep within cover. For now, bullets whipped randomly over their heads as one occasionally let off a rare shot towards the IFV group. So far, all seemed good.

The rain of hand grenades that began to fall brought them to the reality that the enemy had hit their flank. The shell scrapes offered little protection now to the explosive shower around them. In a panic, the groups began to crawl away, standing up in some cases to try and flee the storm of projectiles coming their way. Scrambling away, most ended up as targets to a burst of fire from a 40mm grenade launcher mounted on the main outpost tower.

Within minutes, only a few men remained to face out the Greali assault, letting rip with what remaining ammunition they had before running out in a head-on suicide charge. Most fell to the Greali responding fire, allowing the Alfegan commando IFVs to calmly roll in to follow the observed enemy line of retreat, checking for ambushes or IEDs before calling a CAZAM check.

"Greali forces: report in casualties. We have two hours until our assault begins proper, and I doubt we can delay it any further. A medevac craft has been called in to recover any men injured."

(OOC: Sorry for rubbish post - it's 11-27pm here!)

Rems congratulated everyone for the small victory. It was a victory. Rems checked his platoon for casualties. One man was killed from friendly fire, and two men were injured from enemy bullets. Colonel Williams later arrived and informed Rems to rest his men for an hour and prepare for the invasion. REms nodded and walked off. Williams then drove over to the Greal air base to see how their things were going.

2230 hours

The commandos lay completely uninjured around their vehicles, resting in preparation for the main action. To the sides, the vehicle crew had quickly started painting over the metal hull where any dents were left from enemy fire, as well as reloading the hailstorm unit with a few ball bearings and more charge. Whilst the commandos had noticed looks from the Greali men as they reloaded with ammunition, what the Greali men didn't know was what lay in store when they got out into the desert, and carried out their mission. It would be one hell of a battle.

Meanwhile, five logistics trucks had pulled in, the support vehicles for the Xha'noa tanks. Two were basic logistics vehicles, holding ammunition and the like. Two were heavy recovery trucks, large winches able to shift up to a hundred tonnes of vehicle. The final one was large fuel tanker, carrying 20 000l of diesel. As well as supplying the IFVs, it would be a main source of energy for the Xha'noa tanks until they were either caught up by the main Alfegan advance or were air dropped fuel.

The commando leader sat in the head IFV of the commandos, undergoing debrief from high command. The bodies had been searched to show absolutely nothing of value, save for ammunition and weapons. The men had obviously been sent on a suicide mission as it were. The way they had got in was found to be past a faulty automated observation turret, which had had a tree fall on it, acting as their way in. As for survivors, there had only been one. He was currently awaiting questioning by the Intelligence Corps, whose helicopter had just arrived on the heli-pad. A black helicopter, with grim looking men dressed in jungle DPM uniforms leaving to enter the garage he was being held in.

An hour until they crossed the border.

2230 hours

The commandos lay completely uninjured around their vehicles, resting in preparation for the main action. To the sides, the vehicle crew had quickly started painting over the metal hull where any dents were left from enemy fire, as well as reloading the hailstorm unit with a few ball bearings and more charge. Whilst the commandos had noticed looks from the Greali men as they reloaded with ammunition, what the Greali men didn't know was what lay in store when they got out into the desert, and carried out their mission. It would be one hell of a battle.

Meanwhile, five logistics trucks had pulled in, the support vehicles for the Xha'noa tanks. Two were basic logistics vehicles, holding ammunition and the like. Two were heavy recovery trucks, large winches able to shift up to a hundred tonnes of vehicle. The final one was large fuel tanker, carrying 20 000l of diesel. As well as supplying the IFVs, it would be a main source of energy for the Xha'noa tanks until they were either caught up by the main Alfegan advance or were air dropped fuel.

The commando leader sat in the head IFV of the commandos, undergoing debrief from high command. The bodies had been searched to show absolutely nothing of value, save for ammunition and weapons. The men had obviously been sent on a suicide mission as it were. The way they had got in was found to be past a faulty automated observation turret, which had had a tree fall on it, acting as their way in. As for survivors, there had only been one. He was currently awaiting questioning by the Intelligence Corps, whose helicopter had just arrived on the heli-pad. A black helicopter, with grim looking men dressed in jungle DPM uniforms leaving to enter the garage he was being held in.

An hour until they crossed the border.

2340 hours

The Greal five battalions begin crossing the border ten minutes later. Lieutenant Rems and his men sat in several IFVs as the Greal convoys moved on. above the Convoy, Anaconda Attack Helicopters and F-44 Interceptor fighters flew over the area, in support of the Greal convoy. The fighters were hoping to see some action, but their superiors were more worried about SAMs then fighters. Logistics vehicles plus Greal combat vehicles number around thousand. They needed as much mobility and protection as they could. Colonel Williams sat in his IFV, giving out orders and waiting for something to happen.

(OOC: Oh dear... at this point of the border crossing, there is only one Greali battalion going. The others for now are going to move when the main assault starts. Plus, with the single battalion who are advancing with the commandos, they are trying to be stealthy so they don't get rumbled. Thanks!)