Addendum to previous post - Firefly chapter will now release on Sunday · 12:35am Jan 24th, 2021
You know what? Forget next week. I got on a roll, worked all day today and thus completed the next Firefly chapter, which will have undergone all its prereads by Sunday. And that means the chapter can launch tomorrow!
A teaser? Sure, why not. Here's a preview of one of Rock Biter's sections:
Equestrian Army Encampment
Rear Gate
Twelve miles southwest of Maresk, astride the road to Detrot
September 4th, 1139 AC
2015 hours
“Sir, with all due respect, are you out of your mind?” Twas certain that First Lieutenant Gleaming Gladius, an earth pony mare who had some combat experience against gryphon raiders, had never been one not to speak her mind.
She’d only been elevated from company to battalion commander within the past day, given that her well-regarded superior, Captain Breakout, had been given a brevet rank of Lieutenant Colonel and moved up to be second in command of the brigade in the wake of the assassinations we suffered. I might have been far more annoyed at the blatant disrespect shown to me by giving him the post had I not been so used to it. “You want us to move west and retake Harness Hill?”
“Do you have a problem with that, Lieutenant?” I immediately challenged, even though I knew full well she had a point--’twas certain, after all, that I had severe problems with it, even though I knew it was necessary.
“How could I not? By your own admission, sir, we have no orders, no communications with brigade or division and no real understanding of the situation! The gryphons could strike at any time, and yet you want us to leave our lines, march eight miles with little cover and attack an enemy force of uncertain size and composition? And all on the basis of information you gleaned from a traumatized civilian?” she summarized, and put that way, ‘twas certain I was hard-pressed to disagree.
She wasn’t done yet, though. “If the gryphons are out there, we would be leaving our prepared defenses to make ourselves easy prey from the air! If an airborne force spots us, we could be slaughtered before even getting halfway there and worse, leave a hole in our lines the gryphons could then exploit! So what you suggest ‘tis sheer and utter insanity!”
Despite her aggressive and borderline insubordinate stance, methinks i was impressed--she had instantly and without prompting spotted every possible issue with my plan. ‘Twas certain to me that such quick thinking boded well for her as a future combat commander. Assuming we had a future, that was.
“With respect, methinks she’s right, sir,” my second, Major Wheat Thresher, added somewhat tentatively. He, too, was new to his post; I’d requested him as he’d worked with me in supply before and I found him quite competent and knowledgeable at his craft. Whether that would translate to combat command or not remained to be seen, but at least I trusted him to carry out my orders to the best of his abilities. “Methinks you are asking much of the regiment on the basis of very limited and fragmentary information. Such an action could unhinge the city’s entire rearward defense by leaving a gap in our lines just as the gryphons strike, and I do not like the idea of moving without orders.”
I forced some steel in my voice, knowing well that in order to get them to follow me, I could show no hesitation or weakness. I also had to come up with a rationale they could understand and accept. “Your concerns are noted, Major and First Lieutenant. ‘Tis certain they are valid. Unfortunately, ‘tis also certain they are irrelevant.”
I held up a hoof to forestall the fresh protests that erupted. “The fact of the matter is the city’s defenses are already unhinged! They’ve cut our lines of communication by taking Harness Hill, which means they’ve already enveloped us! Don’t you all understand? The entire Corps is now surrounded, and our only chance to escape this trap is to break their cordon before it’s reinforced! And the only way to do that is to strike west now, before they can get their heavy earth gryphon infantry in place!”
“But sir--” Gladius seemed to be slumping with every word I spoke.
“But nothing, First Lieutenant! If we do not reopen the retreat route quickly, then ‘tis not just the civilians that will suffer! ‘Tis certain they will capture or destroy both divisions and as well as the entire unevacuated population of Maresk! And every minute we stand bickering here is another moment in which those forces might arrive, at which point every soldier and civilian in the city is as good as dead!”
“Sir, I agree that we need to clear the hill and reestablish our supply lines, but why not wait for orders?” My fourth battalion commander, an earth pony stallion named Captain Heavy Halberd, tried next. “Given sufficient time, 5th Division would probably assign an entire brigade to the effort instead of just a single regiment! We could then organize and rehearse it properly and--”
“Organize and rehearse?” I cut him off hard, repeating the words in disbelief. “Are you listening to yourself, Captain? We have no means to communicate with the outside, no promises of reinforcement from the west, and a guarantee that with every passing minute our position is degrading further! By tomorrow morning, they will have dug in on that hill with a full millennium of earth gryphon Talons with sky gryphon support, at which point it could take the entire division to dislodge them--assuming we get the chance to even attempt it!”
Be assured, there's plenty more to the chapter than this. We won't get into the coming battle proper here, but I'm saving it all for the next chapter, so it can completely focus on combat. Trust me, that won't make this chapter any less suspenseful, as my prereaders have given this their blessing. Be looking for the new chapter either tomorrow afternoon or evening, US Eastern time.
I forgot to convert the double dashes to em-dashes. Noooooooooooooo!
I had one job!
It's obvious that Rock Biter has pointed out the only viable option they have.