TEP Chpt 15

=The Eagle's Perch=
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==Chapter 15 - Night Drop==
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===Fighting forces of League's Most Hated Person===
Regulus IV, Principality of Regulus
Free Worlds League
November 11th, 2732
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Elise Marik
<<"Anti-Orbital Installation 1, 3, 5, and 6 have been destroyed. Anti-Aerospace Emplacements 7-18 and 31-45 have been destroyed. Mobile anti-air battalions 1, 3, 4, and 9 have been destroyed. 3rd Regulan Hussars Brigade 'Soul Stealers' have suffered 21% mech casualties and are regrouping to merge with the 2nd Regulan Hussar Brigade…">>
 
It was a litany of woe, this black night.
A surprise attack on this scale hasn't happened since the Reunification War, especially not with such a lopsided aerospace count. It's like Boris stripped Oriente and his allies of every ASF they had and brought them with him as baying hounds, then unleashed them upon Regulus IV.
 
I don't think anyone has ever seen an aerospace campaign like this before. Using ASF and VTOLs to hunt and kill anti-air mechs and vehicle battalions. A day and a half of constant rolling aero strikes. Then followed finally by lightning tempo of precision strikes, carpet bombings, and VTOLs dropping mines and special forces seemingly at random. By last count, there were over three hundred ASF deployed.
 
Not a single mech was involved in those thirty-six hours. A nearly pure aerospace campaign. It was stunningly effective. The entire outer shell of Regulus City had been eaten away. The middle layer was frayed, but holding.
 
I would have delighted at Boris finally showing some Marik martial skill beyond his petty mercenary days, if he wasn't using it to ruin me.
 
Now, the centerpiece is gone. The DropPort is lost. The heart of Regulus City's anti-air defenses was no more. Our brave soldiers, for all their skill, could not aim at two places at once.
 
Neither could I.
I have been placed in the unenviable position of having to choose between prioritizing killing the heart of the rebellion or its brains.
 
I cruised my Stalker into the trunk of a broken arcology. "All brigade commands, this is Alpha Actual. Within the next two hours, we are going to surround the DropPort and attack from all cardinal directions."
I wanted so desperately to attack immediately with my mech brigades, but it would not have been wise. The rebels control the orbit and the sky. They can see and bomb everything in the open. To move, we had to resort to the underground network and fallen arcologies. A slow and circuitous method.
 
In the here and now, I have a slight advantage in mechs, and enough vees to have them be a problem. And I would need all of them. The DropPort of Regulus City was 200 km2 in size. Big enough for lesser province's capitals to fit inside. Big enough for six mech brigades to fight inside with room to maneuver.
 
"The 2nd Regulan Hussars will attack the main entrance in the East. The 3rd Marik Militia will take the Northern entrance, and the 6th Marik Militia will take the Southern entrance. 1st Regulan Hussars and the 1st Free World Guards will isolate the area from reinforcement by the 1st Oriente Fusiliers and the traitor 8th, and if the opportunity presents itself, destroy them." I cursed the necessity of leading from the front. A hundred more lives could have been saved with better orders from better facilities. Alas, it wasn't proper for the leader of a righteous cause to be unwilling to fight and die for it. "5th Tank Division, you have the Western entrance. Fight well."
 
"Yes, ma'am!" They roared.
 
Despite the beating we have received, morale was still high. This was the largest battle in the war, perhaps even the largest battle in the Sphere since the Reunification War. Six divisions worth of mechs fighting over a single city, and the fate of the second-largest province in the League. Whatever happens, win or lose, we would all be carving our names into the edifice of history.
 
There was still one last task to complete. "Central, this is Alpha Actual. Are there any other formations outside the city that may be of use? And what of the rest of the mobile air defense assets?"
 
"Negative, ma'am. All units outside the city are pinned down. The Marik Militias and Hussars caught outside have been shattered by orbital bombardment and are fighting holding actions within the smaller cities." I expected as much, but a woman could hope. "The 2nd, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th mobile anti-air battalions are still operational. However, they have nearly depleted all ammunition. They can fight off another sortie, but that's it." There it was. There was a hint of true fear in Aino's level voice.
 
My hands did not shake when I eased my Stalker out of the ruins, though my heart did drum faster.
 
The aerospace campaign had been relentless.
 
Not an hour passed without a bombing run or guided missile barrage. The drying of our ammo bins could attest to that. The depletion of our armor reserves could attest to that. The annihilation of the city could attest to that.
 
We have learned fear, and it is the coming of a dark shadow cast from the sky.
 
I swallowed my disquiet, and thought. The mobile AA battalions were functionally single use now. While the static defenses were ferocious, they couldn't follow the tanks and BattleMechs, and there were so few left we had gaping holes in our aero-defense net.
I could plug the gaps in the aero-defense net, and leave the battle for the DropPort relatively undefended. Plugging the gaps would lessen the effectiveness of the constant aero strikes. It would also better protect me and Sullivan, and I was most likely the rebel's primary target.
 
Protecting the tank and mech brigades as they attacked would deny immediate refuel and repair from the DropPort from sheer proximity. The aero attacks would hit with their full force, but would be significantly lesser in frequency once they've been forced to rebase. It would give us all the one thing denied since the battle began: room to breathe.
 
I checked the Strat Map again, and watched as my forces reoriented themselves. Two more vehicles divisions have joined from the South and East. At least two brigades would arrive from the North before the time was up. Roughly five divisions would be ready at the outset of the attack, against three of the rebels.
 
There were more vehicle divisions slowly regrouping within the city. The next closest were three hours away. The infantry weren't a concern, the fighting was too mobile for them and they were busy defending against sabotage by the rebel special forces.
 
It was a painful choice, but needs must. "Send the mobile AA battalions to plug the gaps. We can't let the enemy strike with their full force." If we can just hang on a little longer, we can be rescued by our reinforcements. The 4th Fleet was racing as fast as their Jump Drives could take them from Atreus.
 
A report pinged on the map, Boris Marik and the 8th were spotted moving due North. In the same direction, the Steel Hussars and the 1st Fusiliers were skirmishing, and three of the remaining static anti-air emplacements.
 
"Amazons, into the Saskatchewan Tunnels, we're heading North to the HSR station. 2nd, lead the way." There. That will give us a good central position to rapidly respond.
 
I could feel the collective sigh of relief. Underground, we were hidden away from the oppressive weight of anticipation. While the corpse of the city hid us well, it provided no protection. Above, death was random, and the smallest hole was enough for the traitors' bombs.
 
Boris has thankfully given up fighting to connect with the DropPort. That was one less mech brigade to entrench in that sprawling complex. But the 8th was still a highly mobile armored fist, and there were too many targets close by to predict their next actions.
 
A little while later, my comm unit lit up and Grayson, leader of my 2nd Regiment, spoke, "Ma'am, we need to reroute. The tunnels ahead has collapsed. We can't go through." He sounded as stressed as I was. The bombings were far more effective than they should be.
 
The Tac Map showed that further West was a ruined husk. Not much cover from aero strikes. The East nearer the DropPort was in better shape. The buildings were half standing, complicating flights in the area. But that meant it was more crowded.
 
"We'll go East, out the tunnels, and follow the spine of the fallen Merriot Arcology to the train station. With luck, we'll soon catch the traitors and force an engagement." The 8th fought savagely to get within 10 km of the DropPort. An entire division of vees were annihilated by their hands shortly before meeting my brigade. That meant they were heavily damaged and running low on ammo. Once we get close enough, whoever Boris strikes at, that will be his last move.
 
"Ma'am?" Grayson's voice was meek as he asked. I was briefly reminded of Berty during better times.
 
"Yes?"
 
"Are you sure it's wise to split our attention like this. Had we concentrated all our forces, we would have been able to take the DropPort quickly." Grayson observed. My second was sharp as always.
 
"That's a fair question," I allowed. "And, I commend you for putting your training to good use. To answer your question, I mean to end the war decisively."
 
Judging from his carefully blank face, I had lost him and needed to elaborate. "If Boris dies, the rebellion dies with him. I cannot leave the opportunity to immediately end the war untouched. And besides, outside what we're immediately committing, there are thirty-six more brigades of vehicles scattered across the city, converging on the DropPort. The rebel BattleMechs can't stop that. Not even with all six regiments of the rebel's air power." On that, I was confident. Even if Regulus City could unload entire divisions within hours, that was hours they didn't have, under fire and attack by five divisions worth of armor and mechs. We'd sacrifice the city's outer defenses, but that was nothing compared to losing the DropPort.
 
Dull thumping shook dust loose from the ceiling. That would be our artillery opening up. With the enemy finally pinned into one place, we could finally put our biggest guns to use. Now that we've lost the DropPort, there's no reason to keep it intact.
 
More thumping. Closer. That would be the enemy's counter battery fire.
 
"I see…" Grayson vocalized, "Thank you for your insight, ma'am." He closed the line, and I returned to keeping an eye on the two maps. Orders given and units moving, we now had to wait for the enemy to react.
We left the Saskatchewan Tunnels and reformed into three columns. The fallen arcology before us had become a pseudo arcade. This massive building, once home to hundreds, acted as a protective roof over our heads. The symbology wasn't lost on me when our march took us through an empty daycare.
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===Unexpected Company===
Two hours later, the attack began beneath a brightening sky.
 
Flashes of the outside vanished past us. The rising sun drew long shadows across the fallen home. The fire touched ferrocrete took an even darker black as we stomped through what was left.
 
In a mirror of what was happening below, the sky was slowly splitting in half between day and the last gasp of night.
 
The glimpses of beyond showed a dozen DropShips plunging towards the DropPort, highlighted by what remained of the night. A handful were rising away. Those must have belonged to the force sent to secure the port.
 
"Alpha Actual, this is Central. Be advised, a lance from the 8th has been identified approaching the 22nd AA emplacement. Out."
 
"Roger, Central. Lance from the 8th approaching the 22nd AA emplacement. Alpha Actual, out." Finally, he plays his hand. I pinged the Tac Map for my brigade and curtly ordered, "Amazons, we have our target, and a war to win. We'll take the next exit, go up the residences, and into the Massey Tunnels to link up with the 22nd AA."
 
A quick wheel right, through a hole the size of an entire block, took us beneath the open sky. 'The Ashoka Residential District' the HUD helpfully informed.
 
We flew into the remains of the district. The neatly spaced arcology trunks quickly gave way to artificial canyons of squat apartments and towering skyscrapers. It was suffocatingly claustrophobic as the boulevards became quadruple lane roads.
 
"Contact!" Someone shouted.
 
The buildings fell away as enemy mechs crashed through them. I threw my torso left and bathed an emerging Hunchback with all my medium lasers and SRMs.
The Hunchback barely paid heed before grabbing my closest lance mate and shoving their gun barrel into the cockpit.
 
Hannah was dead.
 
I fired my large lasers next, aimed at his back. But, he turned just fast enough before my lasers could burn through, and did a mech judo throw with Hannah's corpse, placing her between us. Popping up, he fired off a snapshot that smashed the ferrocrete between my legs.
 
I was forcibly kicked left as a hole tore into my right side from another Hunchback.
 
One more Hunchback.
 
Two more running into range.
 
My heart stopped.
 
LRMs rained down on them, and an explosion briefly lit the corner of my left eye.
 
The rest of my lance arrived, and discipline reasserted itself. Concentrated fire of medium lasers and SRMs ripped apart one of their number as they shot at us.
 
Tarly sprinted forward and took two hits meant for me. He barely wobbled despite losing his entire right side.
 
I side stepped to clear the firing lane. The next salvo killed another Hunchback just as they bombarded Ronan's torso.
 
Shit!
 
As we were about to finish off the last one, inferno SRMs splashed across my lance. The Hunchback died, but at this rate we were close behind.
 
<{***Warning! Shut down immediate!***}>
 
The heat exploded to a roiling broth!
 
I desperately gasped for air as I punched the manual override, and swung my torso around.
 
I was sweltering inside, but I still had the wherewithal to rake the battlefield beneath a medium laser. The infantry inside those apartments melted beneath the beam's heat.
 
A volley of LRMs smashed into a half standing skyscraper. I followed my lance mate's lead and did the same. It fell short, but that was enough.
 
The fighting ended for my lance. The Stalker's thick armor coming through once again.
 
Sweating like a pig, I checked my chronometer. Roughly two minutes had passed. My brigade on the Tac Map was a ragged mess. All regiments were caught in the ambush. By the looks of it, we tripped it early.
Hunchback ambush.
 
Jamming.
 
Inferno infantry.
This was prepared ground.
 
We'll win.
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===Night Falls===
Despite the surprise attack, the Amazons were fresh compared to the hard run traitor 8th. But we needed to regroup, before our victory turned Pyrrhic. I could see the 2nd fighting furiously on the Eastern flank, having smacked into the main body of mechs, infantry, and VTOLs.
 
The rest of my company wasn't doing much better, having been tackled by half a company of Hunchbacks inside a city. The rearguard of Icarus barely won their engagement thanks to their jump jets and were running towards us.
 
Quickly, I keyed my lance comms, "Follow me. We need to push forward. We need to rescue the rest of the—" A screeching came through the comm unit's radio. It was jammed. Whatever else I was about to say was cut off as a flurry of Inferno SRMs punched the ferrocrete around us.
I could see, further down the boulevard, a pair of Orions from my company. I switched off from radio to laser and hit everyone I could with a direct beam.
 
"We need to punch forward to get out of here. Heikki take care of the infantry."
 
The rear was almost certainly mined or trapped. Forward and through the enemy was the surest path to safety.
 
Data fed through the laser link. The Orions were giving us information on their ambushers.
 
"Lance! Data volley. Blind."
 
All three of my Stalkers fired off their LRMs into the sky, trusting the Orions to be accurate. Afterward, we hit flank speed and raced to link up with the Orions in the middle of our regiment's formation.
 
The screeching over the radio stopped, and reports began flooding in.
 
The 3rd has broken out.
 
We're winning.
 
Three Icarus IIs fell behind us and began firing, using the data we gave them to root out the infantry hidden around us.
 
When my lance arrived to where the Orions were, I saw the problem. A skyscraper fell atop a row of apartments, bombed to hell and back, turned into a pseudo bunker. A Hunchback traded shots with the Orions, supported by more infantry.
 
My lance slashed the infantries position with our large lasers, using the sheer heat of the beams to flash boil the flesh off bones.
 
The infantry taken care of, we turned our attention to the last Hunchback and began ripping apart the ferrocrete wall. A ping told me Heikki was finished on his end, and was moving to support.
 
Icarus fell from the sky. One fell short of crushing the rebel on landing, but was close enough to throw a haymaker, smashing the chest just enough to force a miss from the AC/20. The rest pumped the remaining rebel's rear full of shells. Somehow they missed the ammo bins, and only the engine and gyro were destroyed.
 
A brutal stomp on the cockpit finished the fight.
A quick check of my readouts told me how my company was doing. Three Stalkers, two Orions, and three Icarus IIs.
I lost 33% of my company.
 
I traded 33% of my company for half a company of Hunchbacks, two Rippers, and a maybe two platoons worth of infantry.
 
And there was still more fighting ahead.
 
"Alright, Heikki's lance take lead—"
 
"We found him!" Someone screamed on an open channel. "Boris Marik, is on the Eastern flank, he's fighting the 2nd. We've got them now!"
 
Looking at my map pings, I saw where he was referring to. "Ackno—"
 
"All commands! This is Central!" Again! I thought. "1400 conventional rebel birds are rising from the DropPort. I say again: One. Thousand. Four. Hundred. Are in the air, and rising! The DropShips were not loaded with tank brigades. They were loaded with aircraft!"
 
My heart stilled.
 
The effect was instantaneous. The 2nd broke like a twig. Already stretched out fighting the ambush's main body, they broke into a rout, heading West. Not one of them ceasing to help my own beleaguered companies.
 
They just kept running.
 
"Ma'am, what do we do?" Terra tearfully asked. Her Orion faced East. I followed her gaze and saw.
 
It wasn't an angry cloud that rose from the DropPort. It was too disciplined. Too orderly. The aircraft rose from the air as waves. So far away, the sight gave the illusion of watching the sea. Ripples spread out from the Eastern half of Regulus City, gently lapping the sky.
 
My eyes were briefly blinded by the sun breaking past the city's horizon before the polarization kicked in.
 
Ah.
 
I see.
The morning has come.12 November 2732 - Free Worlds LeagueThree hours until the Morning
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