The sound of drop ships was deafening. Lieutenant Callum was watched as another Valkyrie touched down on one of the landing pads and disgorged more troops for the next push. He was sitting with the remnants of his squad when the Captain’s adjutant approached him.
The Captain is holding a briefing for the officers and NCOs near pad three in ten minutes Lieutenant.
With his message delivered the adjutant moved on to the next squad who was resting next to its chimera. Callum stood and walked towards landing pad 3 and stood with the other assembled NCOs. Captain Lachlan walked over accompanied by another man who Callum had just seen get out of the last Valkyrie.
Everybody this is Lieutenant McClellan. McClellan will be leading first platoon. Now that the introductions are out of the way everybody circle up and take a knee.
The squad leaders formed a circle around Lachlan and kneeled. Lachlan spread a map on the ground and began his briefing.
Now that we have the space port the nearby city is ours for the taking but first we have to break it open. As you have noticed reinforcements have been shuttled down by the fistful so we will move out once we are back at full strength. When we move out our target is the gate at the south end of the city.
We will need to clear out any defenders and bust that gate open so that second wave troops can push into the city. As you can see there isn’t much cover so we will have to move fast and get in close before the enemy can bring their full strength to bear.
Lachlan finished hi briefing and Callum returned to his squad. There were a few new men standing nearby who he reorganized to fill his squad to full fighting strength and rebuild his wiped out second squad. Almost as soon as he was finished the order came through to move out and begin the assault on the hive. The drive took fifteen minutes and as soon as the first buildings came in sight the company reformed itself into a staggered line.
Lieutenant McClellan and his recon specialists took up cover positions and began their search for enemy units.
Captain we have located the enemy. Caution is advised there are three rouge PDF vanquishers in front of the gate supported by missile launcher teams.
Understood recon. Your first priority is suppression of those vanquishers, we can’t allow our assault to loose momentum. Everyone else form a staggered line and charge!
Desperate to close the gap all the chimeras sprint forwards. Callum raised a pair of magnoculars to his eyepieces and observed the buildings. Directing the fire of the PDF of forces was a man in officer dress on the top floor. The officer leaned over to a man with a map and complicated vox equipment and pointed at the cluster of chimeras. He spoke in a language unknown to Callum but he understood enough when the officer slammed a fist into his hand and the man next to him nodded.
This is Callum to all units. I need fire support on the nearby building. Top floor west side first window. Enemy forward artillery observer spotted.
Sunburn Swivled its turret and fired at the target window. The first two plasma blasts obliterated the window and the third landed right on the vox man obliterating him in the brilliance of a small sun.
The enemy officer didn’t stop to notice his now dead
FO and began directing his nearby missile launcher teams to fire on the approaching chimeras. Callum still standing in his chimera saw the approaching wall of missiles and dived out of the back. His veterans followed suit but some of the new men didn’t
understand what was going on and died with their chimera when the missiles made contact.
IS EVERY ONE OKAY?! SOUND OFF!
No sooner had he opened his mouth than a barrage of las fire from another unit in the ruins raked the position killing more of Callum’s men.
Lachland was on the vox requesting air support to help deal with enemy armor when his chimera was hit with a barrage of missiles exploding the chimera around him.
Several calls began to reach Lachlan over his vox as men requested a status report from him and began to move to help their commander
.
FORGET ME! DO NOT STOP MOVING WE HAVE TO TAKE OUT THAT GATE! MOVE!
Hearing the officer’s voice let the men know he was alive and the assault was put back on course.
Sergeant Macgregor remained oblivious as his chimera barreled straight towards the gate. He opened the hatch and pointed a laser designator at the rapidly approaching vanquishers. The requested vendetta support swoops in on his left lascannons hot and ready they unleashed a barrage which knocked out a vanquisher.
Right lads, we need to pin or take out that enemy officer so that we can throw their forces in disarray. Open fire and hit em hard!
Callum and his survivors riddled the windows with las and
plas bolts and when the smoke cleared Callum could see no movement.
An ominous shadow approached the unsuspecting company as an enemy airmobile detachment performed a flanking maneuver on the column. The leader of the force stood atop his vendetta screaming madly waving his sword.
The mad pilots and troops fired wildly and inaccurately doing little damage but it did attract the attention of most of the company.
MCCLELLAN GET ON THE HORN AND FIND OUT WHERE THE ENEMY AIRPOWER IS COMING FROM!
Yes sir, getting on the horn now sir… Command doesn’t know sir.
Of course they don’t.
After finally making it to the enemy positions it was 2nd squad of 2nd platoons turn to shine, their chimera drove right up to the ruins and fired its heavy flamer through the window while several men inside hit the area with a fusillade of las fire. The enemy sergeant fearing for his life broke and ran from the promethium death that had just drowned his position.
McGregor was determined to win the honor of being the one who took out the gate but first he had to remove the steel wall in front of him. He pointed his laser designator to his right and grabbed the meltagun from one of his men and fired it at the vanquisher. The melta seared through the frontal armor and detonated ammo stores within blowing the turret off and destroying the tank. The laser designator allowed the nearby vendetta to take out the other vanquisher.
Unable to stop the onslaught of enemy airpower the vendettas hover into position behind the demolishers and begin disgorging their troops. In one fatal blow the vendettas kill a demolisher while the fanatical melta toting PDF destroy the other demolisher and remove the chimera cusion from the nearby squads.
The enemy hydras which had been largely ineffective due to the ace skills of the navy pilots (or monkey antic like flying Callum could never tell which it was) finally find their mark and take down one of the vendettas.
Lachlan quickly ordered the surviving vendetta to engage the enemy squadron. The vendetta took the enemy fliers by surprise and explodes its engines with accurate lascannon fire. In a cataclysmic explosion most of the enemy troops are killed and several more are killed by fire from nearby squads directed by Lachlan and Callum
In a bid to get away from the enemy the heretic vendettas fire up the afterburners and boost away. They riddle McGregor’s chimera with las and destroy it. McGregor stood up in a daze as debris rained around him.
We need to dig in and hold this area in front of the gate. Get those e tools out boys and dig.
Still tracking the enemy fliers the vendetta engaged its hover thrusters and pivoted on the spot hitting one of the fleeing enemy fliers knocking it from the skies.
Confident in their small trench McGregor turned his borrowed meltagun on the gate. And melted the door.
This is McGregor, the gate is open repeat the gate is open.
Roger. All units move on the gate and dig in we have to hold and wait for reinforcements.
An hour later elements of the 52nd were moving through the gate as C company caught its breath and reorganized again as more reinforcements caught up. Reports of heavy house to house fighting were already filtering down the line. The enemy was not going to let go of the city easily. Even after it was cleared there would still be pockets of resistance for months to come. It filled Callum with a sense of dread knowing they were so involved in this city. Already C Company had done so much hand was only getting started. He felt a presence behind him and turned. It was the Captain’s adjutant. All he said was
Briefing in ten by the gate.
and walked off.
Callum approached the gaggle of officers and NCOs
Whats up Captain?
One last push Lieutenant.
