The Battle for Ground Zero

[Gman Russell]

I'm sending 1 marine division, 1 artillery battery, and 1 fighter squadron to attack the ISI's Ground Zero base on Yardistan Proper (see my OrBat here). The rest are sailing for Musica. Whoever is going to defend, please tell me when we can meet up and do this. Once we have the results, I can make a story out of it. Thanks.

[Allot]

Err...there's no one there... :S

[Gman Russell]

Then I claim automatic victory.

[Erik Mortis]

Go us!

[Gman Russell]

*WARNING: THIS STORY CONTAINS GRAPHIC VIOLENCE AND LANGUAGE!*

Please do not read if you are not into realistic violence. It is rated R, and is meant to show the horrors of war. If you have a weak stomach, do not read. This is simply the story of the taking of Ground Zero.









Outside Ground Zero
just before Dawn


IMEF Lt. General Alvin “Chipmunk” Tenby and 1st Marine Division Major General William Allese stood on a ridge nearby the ISI's Ground Zero Launch Facilities. The sun was shortly going to rise. It would be a red dawn. “Chipmunk... I think we're ready for the assault. We got the artillery regiment set on the south ridge protected by the 2nd marine regiment.” Alvin's eyes narrowed. “And what do the forward scouts report?” Will 'humphed' at the question, and crossed his arms. “They report that the site is only lightly guarded. Easy pickings... sir... should we give them a chance to surrender first?”

Alvin's eyes narrowed further. “No. Not yet. They need to understand that they were a part of a space program that killed thousands of Yardistani for a... test fire. Blood calls for blood Will. Start the shelling.” William nodded gravely and turned back towards the privates at the comm station. “Commence attack operations.”


---
Ground Zero
just before Dawn

Albert Moody was a Yardistani on his mothers side, and was Elwynnese on his fathers. He hated Yardistan. He hated it with every fiber of his being. They fancied themselves anarchic and mighty, the saviors of the wicked Elfinshi. They were only brainless barbarians, thoughtlessly roaring and beating their chest. He had been born in Negrixnaht, but had been raised in Eliria. His mother and father had tried to make it work, but the differences between the two cultures was simply too great. They split when he was thirteen years old, with his mother leaving for Amity, and taking him with her. He never forgot his homeland though, and was mercilessly teased by his classmates for it. He had several run-ins with the local elves, and had a fairly extensive record for a kid his age. When he turned eighteen, he found a way out. He got a job working for the ISI. They were recruiting locals for maintenance work. If they did a good job, they could be taken to Elwynn and put in an academy for higher work in the ISI.

He made sure he did his job well.

“Hey, Danny, you think you could hurry up with that pneumatic cylinder? I don't want to have to report you to the manager again.” Danny sneered, but hurried. He hated being on the maintenance team with Albert, but that was where he had been assigned, and it was either that or quit, and he needed the job to pay his bills. Like all the other Yardistani who worked at Ground Zero, he had been branded a traitor to his people. To work for the hated Elwynnese was an offense punishable by nightly beatings outside on the streets. He didn't want to work here, but Danny was a gambling addict. He loved to gamble. The thrill of the long shot did it for him in ways nothing else did. Only problem was, gamblers usually lost. Badly. Never mind the movies or the TV, you rarely won at a casino. And on the off chance you did, most of the people were too far gone to realize they should cut their losses and cash out. When he got in over his head, he had to take the first job that would take him, or face debtors prison. Luck would have it though, that the ISI was offering entry-level positions for big bucks. Probably because they were having trouble retaining a work force.

So here he was. Working at a job he hated, with people he hated, for a duchy that he hated. Ah well, at least the pay was good. “Look, Albert, no need to go blabbing to him again, OK? Just calm down and I'll hurry!” Albert flashed a shark smile. “Sure. I understand you're not as good a worker as I am, but you still have to try. We're going to make it big, you and I. Go off to Elwynn, become famous engineers, and live the good life in Eliria.” Danny nodded, and helped Albert push the cylinder into place. “I hear they got real nice gambling halls there-”


The ground shook with a massive explosion.

“WHAT THE BALGURD WAS THAT?!” Danny screamed, dropping the cylinder. “Balgurd if I know Danny! Let's get outside and see what caught fire!” Albert screamed. They picked themselves up from the ground, and left the cracked, forgotten cylinder behind. Another explosion shook the ground, and part of the roof gave way at the far end of the hanger. “SHIT DANNY, we aren't on fire, we're being bombed!” Danny flung open the side door, and they both rushed outside. The sun was just about to rise, but it couldn't obscure the muzzle flashes in the distance.

“Good gods, their shelling us. They're FUCKING shelling us!” Albert screamed, his mind working itself into a panic. Danny grabbed Albert's shoulder. “Who the hell is doing this?! Is it the marine corps?” Albert shook his head. “Yeah, who else would do this?! We don't have an army, why are they doing this?! Damned barbarian Yardistanis!”

Another explosion touched down nearby. Albert staggered but still stood, while Danny fell to the ground. Albert cursed again, and picked up Danny, and began half limping half running towards the inside of the hanger. There was an underground hanger just underneath, that was used for taking apart the more advanced vehicles. It was their only hope.

They ran faster than either man knew they could. It was only a hundred yards away. A hundred yards to safety. Only one hundred yards and-

Another explosion touched down beside the two men.


–
Outside Ground Zero
Dawn

Sergeant Jack “Black Heart” Bale was a marine. He had been a marine since he turned eighteen. Before that he had been in the Kaiser's Scouts. Before that, he had been the first boy brave enough to jump across the creek outside his school. His squad was standing by in their Expeditionary Combat Vehicle. They shared this vehicle with three other squads, and they were eager for the shelling to end, so they could ride in and secure the facility. Jack secretly hoped he would get to kill some folk today. He hated the Elwynnese, period. He'd shoot every last one if he could. His family had been taken out during the bombing of Amity several years ago. His wife and daughter died from nerve gas that day. He never forgot it.

“Sergeant... you think they'll be anything left for us to shoot when we get there” One of his squadmates asked. Black Heart nodded. “Shelling is never 100%. They're definitely be something left.” His fellow marine nodded, and nervously loaded and unloaded his BAR. “Good... I wanna get me one.” Black Heart nodded again. “We all lost family. We'll all get our revenge. We'll-

He was interrupted by the driver of the ECV. “Command's stopped shelling. They're ordering us in. Lock n'load marines!” Nervous energy exploded from the back of the ECV as the marines readied themselves for the fight.

-
Ground Zero
Just after Dawn


Albert's vision slowly came into focus again. He heard screaming in the background, but he couldn't quite make it out. He was splayed out on the ground. He could taste blood. He slowly moved his left hand to his mouth, and gingerly touched his forehead. It was bleeding. He probably had a concussion. He tried to speak, but he couldn't form the words. His vocal cords simply uttered guttural sounds. He rolled his head to the right, and began to look for his friend Danny.

“Uueeey...”

He still couldn't form words right. His eyes darted back and forth, until he finally spotted Danny a couple feet away. He cried out in pain, but managed to flip himself over onto his belly. With great care, he dragged himself over to Danny. He was a mess. His left leg was simply gone, as was most of his left side.

Words still failed him. His friend was dead. A bloody mess of carnage. He started crying. Those damned Yardistani shelled the facility with full knowledge that it was staffed with civilians. Never mind the fact it was a military facility, Danny was an innocent! Those bastards would pay, they would pay dearly.

It never occurred to him that just a few years ago, the people of Amity felt the same way about their family and friends.

He heard the sounds of running and shouting getting closer. He looked up and saw a guard rushing to their aid. In his hand was a first aid kit, and slung over his shoulder was an assault rifle. He quickly kneeled in front of Albert and turned him back over on his back. “Son, you're going to be all right son, we just have to get you to a hospital, OK?” He began to wrap his wounds with gauze, and produced a needle of morphine. “Just a quick jab and you'll feel all better, all right?” He jabbed it into Albert's vein in his right arm and sent the painkiller deep into his body.

Albert blacked out, with his last thoughts focused on revenge.


-
Ground Zero
Just after Dawn


Sergeant Jack “Black Heart” Bale was peering out of the front of the Expeditionary Combat Vehicle, and pointed slightly to the right. “There! A group of them!” The gunner of the 40mm cannon spoke up. “Let's wake 'em up.” He fired the gun at the makeshift foxhole, and blew it up completely. The marines inside cheered. The driver pointed to the left, in what looked like it used to be a hanger. The right side of it had collapsed, but the left side doggedly refused to collapse. Jack spotted something inside. “What the Balgurd is that?” the Co-Driver brought out his binoculars. “Looks like a guard with a medkit.” Jack cocked his gun. “Let's hope he don't surrender.”

The ECV stopped twenty yards away from the guard, and the two men sprawled on the ground. Jack opened the back hatch and three of his squadmates took positions behind the ECV.

“Hands up or we'll shoot!” Jack shouted. The guard sat back up straight, and turned around to look at the marines. His eyes looked hollow. He was clearly in shock, and slowly he brought his hands up above his head into the surrender position. Jack nodded and signaled his squadmates forward. They ran towards the guard, and quickly disarmed him, restraining him in the process. Jack slowly strutted his way to the guard. “You bastards killed my family.” He punched the guard in the face, knocking him back over. The guard spat blood to the ground, along with a few teeth.

Then he rasped.

“Then we're even... you just killed mine.”

Jack narrowed his eyes in confusion, then he darted his eyes back to Albert and Danny. Albert was NOT unconscious. He unfolded his hand from his chest, and revealed a grenade without its pin.

Albert smiled. He would do his part for the fatherland. He was loyal in life, and death.


-
Just outside Musica Harbor
IRS Hospital Ship- Mercy
24 hours later


Jack Bale opened his eyes, and was greeted by a steel ceiling. He groaned from the pain, then moved his head forward to survey his room. He was laying down in a hospital bed in a recovery ward with some twenty or more patients just like him. He breathed in deeply, and spoke with pained effort. “Nurse...”

The on-duty nurse turned around when she heard her voice, and quickly rushed over to Jack. “Shh. Save your energy. You are VERY lucky to be alive right now. Jack nodded lightly, and laid his head back down on the pillow. “What... happened?” The nurses eyes raised with pity, and she took his hand in hers. “Those people you captured? They had a grenade. It went off.” Jack's eyes glazed over as he flashed back to that moment.

“Then we're even... you just killed mine.”

And the explosion.

Jack focused back on the present. “My squad?” The nurse looked down and shook her head. “I'm sorry... I need to get back to work...” she turned away to leave when jack spoke up again. “Wait! Will I be ok? Will I get to fight again? I still have all my limbs!” The nurse halted, and turned back around. “Again.. you are very lucky. The grenade only gave you minor burns. You'll be back to blowing yourself up again in time for the assault.”

Jack's eyes narrows. “What assault?”

The nurse shifted her weight. “The march for Shirekeep.”




Summary: The Yardistani Marine Corps took Ground Zero with minimal losses. They are now at Musica (sans what I have at Ground Zero), and are preparing for an assault on Shirekeep.

[Leo Fenrir]

(Beautifully Written I'll get around to something like this in the near future. Ground Zero will be ours again )

[Gman Russell]

Bring it on!