Invasion of Kzarch (8 page)

Chapter Eight

Another week of missions and combat passed, without the balance between the guerrillas and pirates changing much. That, however, was something the guerrillas were looking to change.

“…so I think we have a good chance, sir, to strike a hard blow.”

“And perhaps erase your previous failure, eh?”

“…Yessir.” Captain Fil'dwis said noncommittally.

“Lieutenant?”

“I’m all for it, sir. I didn’t like having to retreat either. Besides, it’s one of the only places left where we can really hurt them.”

“True…” The general drummed his fingers on the table.

“All right,” he finally said. “I think it’s probably the best target we could go for. However, it’s going to take a major attack, as we know they’ve reinforced heavily. Aside from a gunboat, they also have nearly four hundred troops. In which case…” He considered, then nodded.

“Fil’dwis, I’m putting you in charge of the operation. You’re promoted to major, and being given the acting rank of colonel. Succeed, and the acting rank’s permanent.”

The new major, and prospective colonel, was stunned.

“But, I-” Frank elbowed him slightly. With a gulp, Tom managed to recover somewhat.

“I mean, thank you, sir!”

“Been meaning to promote you anyway,” the general grunted. “All right. I’ll assign you the men you’ll need to accomplish the mission. Lieutenant, I think it’s best,” he said reluctantly, by now aware how invaluable the Marines and their battlesuits were. “-that you assign two squads to go along.”

“Yes, sir.” Frank hesitated a moment before continuing. “…I would like to participate as well.”

“
No
, lieutenant.”

“Why not, general?” Frank asked, slightly annoyed.

“Because we
need
this attack to succeed-”

“So?”

“-Which means I want your platoon sergeant commanding your Marines. And since your second-in-command is going,
you
need to stay here.”

“…I see, sir.” Behind his mask of a face, Frank seethed. Okay, yes, McKain had seven or eight times his experience, and was probably the better choice, but
still
!

Although he knew he was being over-sensitive, Frank found he rather wished the general had put it a bit more subtly.

Captain –no,
Major, Acting Colonel
Fil’dwis glanced at him with an expression of sympathy, but a moment later his face returned to a neutral expression.

“Lieutenant, Colonel, you are dismissed.”

“Sir.”

“Yes, sir.” Both offering a salute, the two officers left the planning room.

Outside, Tom offered, “I would have liked to have you along.”

“And I, to come. But the general’s right,” the lieutenant admitted grudgingly. “McKain’ll do a better job.”

The major kept silent, unable to really disagree.

Frank to a deep breath.

“All right. I don’t know when you’re going to get the troops the general promised you, but I’ll have Sergeant Javer and Sergeant Von Hervitz report to you immediately. As well as Sergeant McKain.”

“Javer? I don’t know if I’m really going to need the… scout squad.” Tom had to think a moment before recalling the designation for the squad, the Kzarch military not having the concept.

“Maybe, but I think, considering how large your force is going to be, that you’ll want some good scouts. Still… tell you what, I’ll have half of one of the regular squads assigned to him, in exchange for half of
his
squad. That do?”

“Works for me. Javer may not be happy about it though.”

“Probably,” allowed Frank. “Okay, I’ll have them sent over. You’re still working out of Fifth Building?” The naming in the guerrilla camp had been
very
basic.

“Yeah. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

With a nod at each other, the two separated.

***

Everyone was celebrating. The mission had been successfully run, with the complete destruction of one of the pirate’s main compounds, as well as a gunboat and several hundred pirates.

Not that the guerrillas had gotten off scot-free. Nearly eighty had died, another fifty had been injured bad enough to require serious medical care, and two Marines had been killed, plus a third with ruined armor.

The victory had cost, but it was worth it.

In the planning room, the various commanders of the guerrilla forces were congratulating Colonel Fil’dwis.

“Well done, Colonel.”

“Wish I had been with you.”

“You should’ve been more careful; you lost too many men,” one grouched. Well, there were always critics.

“I would have preferred not to-” Tom began, a slight heat evident, but General Val’gor interrupted.

“Enough! Mal’vin, I’m sure Fil’dwis did his best. Fil’dwis, good job. Now, all of you, pay attention! We need to plan our next move. Lieutenant?”

“Yes, sir.” While the supply compound mission had been carried out, he and the general had been working on their next move; as well as what the pirates were likely to do in reaction to the strike.

“As you can see on this map of Newholm and surrounding environs, where the pirates are based, we’ve been steadily wearing away at them. Here,” the lieutenant pointed at a location with a large red ‘x’, “-is where the former supply compound was. With its destruction, they lost a large amount of their supplies and one of their most important bases. So, in the expectation that the pirates will try to strike back; we have put the defenses here in the camp on high alert.”

There were general murmurs of approval.

Ignoring them, Frank continued, “However, it is our hope and preference not to stand on the defense. To that end, General Val’gor, has devised a plan. General?”

Juan placed his finger on the map of Newholm, placing it on top of the star that marked the governor’s mansion.

“As you know, this is the pirates’ main base of operations, and where most of them are encamped.” This had surprised Frank when he first heard about it, as he hardly thought a governor’s mansion and lands could hold several thousand pirates, but it turned out the governor’s mansion was far closer in size and design to a castle, with a vast area of private and secure land around it.

“Further, this is where their ships are landed. They’re currently at the air-strip near the governor’s mansion, just a half mile away. If we could take all this out, despite the difficulties involved, the war would be pretty much over.” There was a moment of singing tension.

“But that’s not our aim, at this point.”

At least two of the commanders failed to hide expressions of relief.

“The idea is to feint at the mansion, then head
here
.” The general’s finger shifted to the side. “One of their remaining supply compounds, close to the governor’s mansion for extra protection. Which won’t help it in
this
case.” He gave a bloodthirsty smile, that was returned by many of the commanders.

“We have two objectives for this mission. One, quite obviously, is to destroy the supply compound. The other, is to get information on what exactly they have defending the governor’s mansion, and how they’ll use it.”

“We’re not planning on launching the strike just now; and, in fact, probably won’t try for it for another week. But this one’s going to take a lot of troops, probably a thousand or so in total, and a considerable amount of planning before we can try it. Any questions?”

“Who’s going to lead the mission?” one commander asked. General Juan rubbed his chin thoughtfully for a second, scanning the faces before him. Some were hopeful, others neutral. Then he smiled.

“Actually, I intend to take personal command of it.” There was an instant of sudden silence. Then the room erupted.

“Sir, you
can’t-
”

“But, general!”

“General, isn’t it-”

“SILENCE!” The room quieted.

“I have chosen to put myself in command, because this is going to be one of the most important campaigns we have run. Further, the testing of the governor’s mansion is best overseen by
me
, considering I know the land best, and how its former defenses had been laid out. Not to mention, I’m going to need the best, most direct information on the mansion’s defenses, so I can plan how we intend to attack it, and finally
rid
ourselves of the pirates!”

“Yes, b-”

“
No
. This may well be our
second to last
mission. If we complete it successfully, and gain the information on the governor’s mansion defenses, we may well be then in the position to take it out. I
need
to go. Is that
clear
?” It was a growled out inquiry, which wasn’t really a question, only demanding obedience.

“Yes, sir!” came back to him, a rumble from around the room.

“Good. Any
other
questions?”

There were, mostly about what forces would be assigned, exactly how many, what information the general had on the supply compound and the governor’s mansion, etc.

While General Val’gor was dealing with it all, Lieutenant Harsmith wandered over to Sergeant McKain, who had been standing quietly, listening.

“Thoughts, sergeant?” McKain frowned.

“I… don’t like it much, sir.”

“Oh?”

“It’s going to be dangerous, sir.”

“So is every mission,” said Frank, now frowning himself. He hardly thought his platoon sergeant had lost his nerve, so why…?

“If they catch us, we’ll be in a position to get a lot of our forces wiped out. And, considering where we’re going, there’s going to be a high chance of it.”

“Maybe so, but we need to take
some
risks.”

“Yes, sir. But all we’re going to get out of this one is a small supply dump, and maybe a bit on their defenses. To balance that, we have a chance of losing a half or more of our total forces. I’m just not sure the risks are justified, sir.”

Still frowning, Frank had to admit his sergeant was making a point. A
good
point. But even if he agreed with McKain, and he wasn’t all that sure he did, General Val’gor had already made his decision, and the lieutenant doubted he be able to change his mind.

“That may be, sarge, but remember that we
do
need to get information on the governor’s mansion’s defenses.” Even to him, it sounded a bit weak, and McKain just grunted and shrugged.

As he walked away, Frank decided he might as well apprise the general of the platoon sergeant’s concerns. Perhaps
he
could come up with a better answer to them…

***

“We need to keep pushing, lieutenant,” the general overly-patiently explained.

“I understand, sir. But is there really no where else we could strike? That isn’t as well protected?”

General Juan frowned.

“Lieutenant, you yourself know the situation. The pirates have holed up. They have only one or two small outposts left; none of which are really significant. When it comes right down to it, they aren’t currently worth the effort to get rid of, in of themselves. And we need to keep
pushing
the pirates. If they manage to catch us out-”

“Yes, but this situation offers them an excellent chance to catch
us
off-guard.”

“And so? You think
we can’t take risks
?!” the general nearly bellowed.

“No, sir!” Frank said, now kinda wishing he had never started the conversation.

“Good. This is a mission we
must
accomplish if we are to succeed, lieutenant.”

“Well, sir, reinforcements, from the Marines,
will
soon be here.” The general snorted.

“Even according to your own estimates, they might well end up taking another few months.”

“True, but considering that they haven’t had any contact from Kzarch for the last couple of weeks, and before that, that pirates had been seen, I think they’re fairly likely to be aware by now that something’s up.”

“Ah? I thought you said, when I asked you if reinforcements are on the way, that you had no idea when or even
if
they’d arrive…”

“Well,
yes
, sir. But Marine Command expects constant updates, and I haven’t been able to send one since I got here. By the book, they may already have a relief force well on the way.” Actually, Frank figured they probably would wait an extra week. There were always mistakes, accidents and the like when sending reports, so Marine Command probably wouldn’t take immediate action.