TBntG-3 Chpt 40

=The Bull and the Genie=
==Chapter 40 - Book III - The Clan Invasion==
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==The Invasion of Oshika: Part 3==
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===Resting before Action===
Oshika System, Draconis Combine
"Evidently not all of their ships were lost," The Snow Raven Liaison said. "Jumping in behind us. They're seeking to destroy our fleet."
 
"Yeah," Sandra said. The fleet that had jumped in behind them was purely civilian jumpers, and they'd be written off. There was no way her entire fleet would fall, and those ships would be blasted to oblivion.
 
But the nearly sixty DropShips burning in…
 
If we'd gone for a conventional attack, all those suicide fighters on planet would have been going for our fleet at the same time these guys popped up. 
 
As it was, the landing force was burning away from the world, leaving the first in units on their own, but blasting away at the pursuing fighters and whittling down their numbers. 
 
Refusing to abandon troops looked good on the Trid—but It took a lot less time to replace a soldier than it did a battleship. 
 
But now they were seeing at least five hundred bogies lifting off world.
 
"Small craft." The Flag Captain gestured at the sensors. "They're the only thing that has the range to get out here."
 
"Time for Intercept?"
 
"One day for the ones behind us, about half again that for the small craft." 
 
"Uhhh…" Sandra frowned. "Sloppy." Small craft are more durable. If they both arrived… "How many suicide sleds on that lot, do you think?"
 
"The Union that they used against the Ghost Bears had been torn down and modified for sled launch," the Snow Raven liaison said. "It carried about 40 sleds."
 
"So let's say a maximum of 3000 sleds. That is a lot." She shook her head. "If they mousetrap the fleet…"
 
"It takes a little time for us to make good our losses." Sims gestured at the big board, the flag captain shaking his head. "That's it. There isn't any strategy here, just hoping we'll go 'ow' and run away if they bloody our nose."
 
"Which isn't going to happen." 
 
"But it would be good to live to enjoy the victory, Quiaff?" The Clan guy's voice was amused. 
 
"Oh we are that." And then Sandra started to give orders.
 
Two smaller parasite warships burned away from the fleet, preparing to head for the Jumpships. Their orders were simple. If there were no escorts or danger, disable the ships, if there were, fire on them from long range with their nuclear payloads and destroy them. 
 
The rest of the fleet started to slow up. 
 
And Sandra's hopes were proven right. There was nobody in overall charge over there. The plan wasn't stupid. But when their fleet started to slow up, the bunch behind them didn't slow their acceleration. The first group would hit the fleet well before the gang from the world did. 
 
Orders given, Sandra gave one last order. 
 
"Chefs are to prepare whatever the crews want, and I want everyone who will be primary combat officers asleep no later than 1600 hours. Wouldn't want to be tired and cranky for our friends."
 
"And you?"
 
"I'm going to enjoy ignoring my paperwork tonight." 
 
Even the Snow Raven guy snorted at that. Some things were eternal.
 
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===Unpleasant Reality===
Improvised Base CampOshika, Draconis Combine
"You want the bad news or worse news, boss." 
 
"Both," Katherine muttered. 
"Okay, all those unarmored jobs are mostly carrying people with helmets, flack vests and not much else. We're gonna get human wave attacks and was it me, or were the engineers unable to account for all the big booms?"
 
"The second."
 
"Lovely. Also, they have mechs in the back. Mostly medium-heavy." 
 
"Well, if they're coming for us, they're not laying in wait for the main landing force."
 
"I am quivering in anticipation."
 
"Ha. Ha. Keep observing. When they get into the canyon, we'll blow the walls."
 
"Er… Why not before?"
 
"Because, lieutenant, our job isn't to keep ourselves safe, no matter the cost, but to wreck the enemy. We seal those mechs in, and even if they survive us, they're dead meat for the main landing force."
 
"Yes, Ma'am." 
 
Katherine looked up from the readout. The other landed units were doing well, except for the fifth regiment, which had managed to land in the middle of a concentration of hidden forces and had been chopped up pretty badly before they'd broken contact. The landing ships couldn't provide ortillary until they finished with the last of the suicide sleds and their stealthed THOR sats were few enough that you needed a damned good reason to call for a crowbar strike, as in something that could convince the commanding general.
 
Around them, they were working to dig in. Engineers were putting decoys in the camp housing, because hopefully someone would be dumb enough to think they'd actually try to use wood and plaster as hard cover and waste some fire. 
 
Around her area, the real fortifications were being tossed up, berms and trenches with top cover, command posts and fall back points, with fiber optic cables linking them. To her left a burro was helping the engineers, as they finished up a berm. Soil was fed into it, and the internal fusion plant, converted it to plasma that they played over the dirt, hardening into a ceramic covering that would soon be several inches thick. 
 
Not armor, nothing that'd stop a big gun, but more than enough for splinters and—
 
"Major!" Katherine looked to the side and there was the newbie Lt, his captain looking like he wanted to commit murder and Tiny…
 
And behind them was a band of women and what the fuck… 
 
"I retrieved the prisoners," he said. "We were going to just open the ah…" his helmet glanced to the side, "Cages, but they were afraid. The people in the village, well they're…"
 
"As far as they are concerned, the women were just whores," Tiny said, "But I suggested we provide them transport and a map to somewhere else instead of coming here."
 
"Bringing them here. God's blood," Katherine snarled. "You do know this is where all the bad shit is about to happen and the BDS will have one answer for anyone with us. The prison camp people don't have a choice but—"
 
And then a girl was on her hands and knees in front of Katherine and you could not pay her enough to deal with this shit but—
 
"Forgive me, Mistress!" she said in accented but passable English. "I am unworthy, but please do not punish this man for our—"
 
"Get up," Katherine said. The girl got up. "Look at me." She paused for a moment and then with some effort actually met Katherine's (actually the sensors on her helmet) gaze. "The Man is an officer and he can take his own punishments. A battle is about to start and you know what will happen. Hell this place is radioactive, especially if the dust gets knocked up…"
 
"It is better than that place. I am Ryoko," she said. "I… I have nobody to return to." 
 
"It was she who organized the others to come with us." Tiny said. "She is in charge." Katherine let her gaze wander over the gang of at least forty, a good chunk were younger than Ryoko and Christ she was fifteen if she was a day. 
 
"We can help with the prisoners!" Ryoko said. "I know many are feeble and weak. The… Men who used us talked about them. We are not." She glanced down again and pulled her kimono tight. "The soldiers enjoyed our womanly forms and so we were fed… so long as we worked. In school I learned first aid." 
 
Katherine had a brief image of a teacher seriously instructing a bunch of children that one day they might be sex slaves who had wandered into a radioactive combat zone and here was what you did, and would life please stop throwing goddamn complications at her. 
 
"Fine. You." She pointed to the lieutenant, "Prince Charming." 
 
Even through the suit, she thought she heard a gulp. 
 
"This isn't over, because after your captain gets done with you, I get a turn and then the general gets a turn. Take them to the medical bunker for the severe cases, and tell the medics to do something with them." She turned back to Ryoko. "You. You know what radioactivity is, right?"
 
"I was best in my classes!" 
 
Lovely, her teenaged snark has survived. Then Katherine shook her head. Maybe that teenaged snark had helped her survive. "And everyone else?"
 
"Many are uneducated…."
 
"Then let them know, the dirt, the ground is dangerous. Don't dig in it, try not to breath in too much dust. You will be given masks, don't take them off. The medics will wash y—women medics only!" Katherine said, "but you need to be washed and be given jumpsuits to protect you from the radiation. They will tell you more. Now get out of my face." 
 
"Yes, My Lady."
 
"Major. Ryoko. Major." 
 
"Yes, Major." 
 
Now that that is over… "Do we have our party favors ready?"
 
"Yes."
 
"Good. General frequency. The Dragons apparently are pissed that we've wrecked their party favors and they're coming here. Our job was to destroy the factory and recover the prisoners, but since the flyboys are busy, we're staying here. So I'm giving us another job. The only way the people trying to kill us leave this valley alive is as POWs. Understood?"
 
There was a rumble of agreement over the general frequency, and then they got to work.
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Book 3 - 40