Chapter 11
To Gilda, the War Room in Aricia looked almost identical in the one on Arnau. It was an enclosed circular room, with banners representing Southern Colors hanging down at angles to form pseudo-walls, and windows only just big enough to let light in. Designed to allow the most privacy without the use of magic, the War Room was considered the safest place in a garrison from roaming eyes and ears.
Of course, the familiarity of it was more important for Gilda, as it was a small and much needed comfort for her, especially when she was given the responsibility of leading the current meeting. She tried to recall the times she had been present in any previous meetings, tried to remember how Captain Narada seemed to carry herself. Gilda went even deeper, recalling her time as a cub as she peeked through the crack of her father’s door as he, too, led a similar meeting.
She was just glad she didn’t flinch when the all of the centurions’ eyes were at her when she entered the room. She could hear Giraldi whisper a small praise of her acting professionally as he slowly and subtly led her forward. The centurions cleared the way as they reached them, making a path towards the center of the circular room, where she could see a raised rectangular platform filled with sand.
Behind where Aricia was supposed to be represented in the platform was Fillius, who was staring at Corporal Imlay, whose face seemed to be carved in stone. Giraldi gave her a sharp nod before he placed himself beside Imlay, while she situated between the First Spear and the Corporal.
“Is everyone present?” Gilda asked in Aeric. She looked around and saw all griffins nodding, except for Giraldi, who translated her words to Imlay.
“All centurions are accounted for, sir,” Fillius replied, looking at her for a moment before staring at Imlay. “Spear Centurion Giraldi insisted in bringing our… human guests to the meeting. He said you approved.”
“I did.”
“No offense intended, sir, but are you sure that’s wise?” Fillius asked. He looked at Imlay again. “This meeting is about planning our defensive strategies. The humans, I believe, are not yet our allies.”
There was a murmur amongst the centurions, agreeing with the First Spear. Gilda looked towards Imlay, who gave her a subtle nod and a small smile. She didn’t know whether to be glad or nervous that the Corporal was trusting her to represent him and his Marines to her people.
“While I appreciate your candor and vigilance,” she began, “you’re wrong, First Spear. The cloven have indiscriminately attacked them, bringing their non-combatants within our walls. Whether you like it or not, they are here to help. And considering the situation, I doubt they will betray us.”
Fillius frowned, only to nod a few moments later. “As you say, sir.”
“Good. Then, what’s the first step of our defenses?”
“We have to regroup our ranks,” Fillius replied. He nodded to a eagless centurion beside him, who handed him a rolled parchment. “As I said earlier, the initial attack had cost us all of our officers. Until the Captain returns, I suggest we temporarily assign centurions as acting Tribunes for Logistica, Tactica, Auxiliaris, and Medica.” Fillius handed her the parchment. “I recommend these centurions.”
“No Knight Tribune, or one for Strategica?” Gilda asked as she unrolled the document.
“The garrison doesn’t have a full legion, and our numbers are small enough that we don’t need Knight Tribunes. As for Strategica… well, there’s no need for any long-term strategies because if reinforcements don’t arrive before the month is over, I doubt we’ll still be standing.”
Gilda nodded as she continued to read the parchment. She recognized a few names. “Centurion Aelia.”
The eagless that handed the parchment to Fillius straightened. “Yes, sir?”
“If I remember correctly, your father is a tradesgriffin.”
“Yes, sir,” Aelia replied. “I have been taught early on how to assign supplies where needed. I am also familiar with the steadholders in Aricia.”
Gilda nodded. Aelia was a good choice for a Tribune Logistica. “I’m giving you authorization to handle the logistics that are needed for our defense. You are also assigned a maximum of two griffins to help you with your duties.”
Aelia nodded, saluting, leaving Gilda once more to look at the parchment. She read out an unfamiliar name. “Centurion Faustus?”
An older tiercel stepped up and saluted. “Sir,” he said, with a heavy accent that was common in the Southern Farmlands. Considering how muscled he was, he could have been a local earth-griffin. In addition, his age was obvious, and Gilda hoped that it translated to experience. He’d be good as a Tactica.
“You are assigned a maximum of one helper.”
“Yes, sir.”
The last two candidates as temporary Tribunes for Auxiliaris and Medica on the list were both centurions Gilda had known as well. Varinius was one of the centurions that commanded her and the rest of the Auxiliary Guards when she was assigned to the South. Looking at him, she said, “Centurion Varinius, you are assigned two helpers.”
When the tiercel nodded, Gilda looked at Floriana, the one suggested to take in as the Medica. Her family had been a long line of healers, even producing one or two mages who also concentrated on the healing arts. She was no different, with an intense interest in healing herbs, as well as being level-headed enough to lead. Turning to her, Gilda said, “You are assigned a maximum of five helpers.”
“Thank you, sir,” Floriana replied modestly.
Turning to the First Spear, Gilda had to admit that Fillius hadn’t lost his edge. The tinge of jealousy she experienced earlier had come back, but muted as she felt relief that she had griffins that were competent enough that in the case she made a mistake, it wasn’t going to kill them all. Rolling up the parchment once more, and handing it to him, she asked, “Alright, First Spear. What do we have?”
“Before Auxiliary Guard Gletscher had advised us of your situation, our scouts have been gathering information on Cloven Clusters that have been established before we could initiate scorching protocols,” Fillius replied, motioning towards Faustus.
The tiercel nodded, and with an extended claw, he began to mark the surface with a single digit. He began to draw circles a few paces away from Aricia, slowly fanning it farther away.
“With quick deployment, we were able to burn down the nearest steadholts to our location,” Faustus began, crossing out the nearby circles.
“Burn down?” Imlay asked Giraldi. “Why would you burn down steadholts?”
“Scorching protocols were laid down after our first fight with the cloven,” Giraldi explained. “Remember when I explained to you that they reproduce fast? They do so by by establishing Clusters in places where they can absorb sustenance from soil or plants. Steadholts are primary targets they will use to establish bases, so we burn down crops and salt the soil. We also poison the wells.”
Imlay nodded, but frowned at the same time. “That’s… a little self-destructive. But I think I understand.”
“Can we get on with it?” Fillius asked. Giraldi gave him a look and didn’t bother to translate what was said to Imlay.
“Continue,” Gilda replied calmly.
Faustus nodded. “However, we weren’t able to stop the cloven from establishing Clusters in these steadholts,” he said, pointing towards six circles, which formed a loose diamond shape. “These three”—he pointed towards the three nearest Clusters from Aricia—“are steadily producing cloven soldiers. We are unable to gather intelligence on the central Cluster, but we believe that this base may be holding the Overlord leading the cloven in this area.”
Gilda frowned. “And we’re sure that there won’t be any other cloven forces outside these four Clusters?”
“Ancestors, I hope not,” Varinius muttered. When she gave him a look, he immediately saluted, stepping forward. “Sir, to clarify, any outside cloven forces should be busy fighting other remnants of the Southern Legions.”
That was pretty much leaning on hope, but Gilda didn’t want to demoralize Aricia’s defenders, especially when she could only speculate. Maybe fortune would finally be on their side, and that any outside Cloven were too busy to get interested in them. Turning to Faustus, she asked, “So, what are our options in running a defensive campaign?”
Faustus began drawing the three-line symbol of a griffin claw in certain areas. “Our intended plan was to establish a five defensive lines. However, we don’t have enough soldiers to maintain something that long. We also lack enough Wind Knights to act as our flankers.” He then began to draw diamond shapes between the Clusters and the griffin claws. “Best I could come up with are traps meant to delay their arrival, weaken them before they arrive at our gates. If we also spread out the defensive lines enough, we can crush the first wave that passes through the traps, plant more, and wait for the second. That is, if they don’t overwhelm us on the first try.”
“There is also an alternative,” Imlay suddenly spoke up.
Gilda and Giraldi blinked, surprised enough that it took a while for the latter to translate what he just said for the rest of the griffins.
“What do you mean, Corporal Imlay?” Gilda asked in Aeric.
When Giraldi finished translating, Imlay replied, “Playing defensively when we have an opponent that could zerg-rush—”
“Wait, zerg-rush?” Giraldi asked.
“Overwhelm us in numbers,” Imlay clarified. “As I said, playing defensively against an opponent like that is tantamount to suicide.”
When the message was expressed in Aeric, Fillius looked at the Corporal. “And what would you suggest? To attack them?”
“Yes,” was the simple reply.
Fillius scoffed. He wasn’t the only griffin that did. The First Spear looked at Gilda for a moment, face in disbelief. “Sir, you didn’t tell me humans were stupid.”
“Don’t translate that, Giraldi,” Gilda declared quickly, earning her a look from the Spear Centurion, as if asking her if she thought of him stupid.
“He speaks madness, sir,” Fillius continued, shaking his head. “Why would he order an offensive campaign with our numbers with an opponent like the Cloven?”
That got translated. “It sounds crazy, yes,” Imlay replied, not looking remotely offended. “And understandable, considering how you guys fight.”
“And, pray tell, what do you mean by that?” Fillius asked.
“Your soldiers fight with tight formations, using discipline to stem tides, cutting down those in front of you with efficiency,” Imlay replied. “We fought like that, thousands of years ago. I will admit, it is, defensively, your biggest strengths. However, offensively, you still need numbers to keep switching those in front lines.” He looked at Gilda. “We don’t need numbers, and you can attest to this, ma’am.”
Fillius looked at Gilda for an explanation. “First Spear, the Marines fight quite differently from us.” She motioned towards the black rifle that Imlay was carrying. “That is a gun, their weapon. It is like a crossbow, except more powerful and can hit farther targets. They can also shoot out projectiles much faster.”
The tiercel looked at the tube-like weapon for a moment before shaking his head. “Is that true?”
“I have personally witnessed them stopping a group of charging grass lions. They died even before reaching us.”
Fillius looked thoughtful for a moment. “A powerful weapon… however, still, with a limited number, what hope could we achieve in taking an offensive role? We cannot eliminate the Clusters, especially in such short distances from each other. It’ll take too much time to raze one to the ground before we get surrounded.”
“You are under the impression that I’m suggesting on laying siege to their bases,” Imlay said, shaking his head. “While uncontested, my Marines could probably do that, what I’m proposing is to disrupt their movements.
“Like you, these cloven seem to fight in formations as well. They may not use phalanx tactics or shieldwalls, they still rely on their numbers to overwhelm. That takes planning and time.” Imlay extended his own finger, looking at Faustus. “May I?”
When the tiercel nodded, Imlay began to draw on the sand as well. “While we are of small numbers, we’re trained to cut through enemy lines and disrupt their plans.” He drew an arrow towards the east-most cluster. “We hit the Cluster, fast and hard enough to surprise them. Whether they can muster up a formation or not, we can cut down their numbers quickly and efficiently, even raze the ground until up to a certain point. And when that point is reached…” he then drew an arrow going away.
Fillius blinked, studying the plan. “You are applying Wind Knight flanking maneuvers. To hit something, creating a sort of weak spot. However, you are aware that they will cover it up immediately. The way the clusters are positioned, they will send reinforcements easily.”
“Yes,” Imlay nodded, then continuing from the arrow that moved away from the cluster, he then drew two arrows, both going to the nearby clusters. “Once the enemy is committed to defending that certain breach, we move to the next. We hit them again, hopefully on the Cluster that sent more troops, and do more damage.”
“If this can be done, I can see the merit of this tactic,” Faustus said. “It is like setting up mobile traps. This can weaken the enemy, delay them so they won’t overwhelm our defenses.”
“How many Clusters can you hit in a day, Corporal?” Gilda asked.
“It depends on the lay of the land, how fast the cloven can respond, and how big the area we’re talking about,” Imlay listed.
“This will take some doing,” Fillius muttered. “You will need a scouting party fast enough to warn you of the other Clusters’ movements.”
“I can take care of those details,” Imlay replied. “We have a means of communicating almost instantaneously.”
Fillius frowned. “Even so… I still can’t believe with small numbers we can cause enough damage to disrupt them.”
“True, griffins would not be able to do this,” the Corporal said neutrally. “However, we Marines are different. We’ll disrupt them enough that hopefully, they won’t mount an offensive long enough for us to get our reinforcements.”
The First Spear shook his head. Looking at Gilda, he gave her a inquiring look. She responded with a smile. Shaking his head, Fillius then said, “I shall leave the decision to you, sir.”
“We’ll see how it works out,” Gilda replied, “then we can expand on that proposal. However, I’d still like to hear your defensive plans.”
Faustus nodded. “Setting up defensive lines isn’t really a problem. While we haven’t fought in a real war for years, we have kept our training and made mock campaigns over the years. Our training is very much sufficient. It’s the numbers that will give us problems. That’s why we’re trying to set up traps. Unfortunately, that’s not going well on our end.”
“What do you mean?” Gilda asked.
“The traps we will need will be mostly magical in nature,” Fillius explained. “And we already have a limited amount of mages to work with.”
“We can try and make more conventional traps,” Faustus continued, “but they won’t be as effective.”
“Better than nothing,” Gilda replied. “Maybe we can deploy a mix of both, as not to tire out our mages.”
“Yes, sir,” Faustus said, nodding, before moving out of the way, thus ending his report. For a moment, Gilda silently wondered if the Marines were to enact their plans, would that give them more time to set up the traps?
Aelia came next. Standing forward, she bared her neck and saluted. “Sir, my report.”
“Go ahead.”
Handed a rolled parchment, Gilda immediately unrolled it and read. It was an enumeration of supplies, as well as number of workers, either blacksmiths or farmers. There was also a helpful summary after each group of related items. At first, Gilda worried that they hadn’t enough weapons for defending Aricia; it wasn’t the case. However…
“We can’t be that low on food,” Gilda said, disbelieving.
“Unfortunately, sir, we are,” Aelia replied. “Aricia hadn’t been slacking, but with the unexpected increase of refugees and the losses of our steadholts, our food supply won’t last for a month.”
Gilda frowned. “Was our presence also accounted here?”
Aelia nodded. “Yes, sir. Though Spear Centurion Giraldi informed me that the humans have their own food supplies with them.”
“I love Storage Gems,” Imlay commented. Giraldi chuckled, but stayed silent, opting not to translate what he said.
“So this is what you meant that we won’t last a month if the reinforcements don’t come,” Gilda asked Fillius, who only nodded in agreement. Sighing, she looked back at the list, and thanked the Ancestors that the city had two wells and a nearby stream for water.
Soldiers could survive weeks without food. They wouldn’t last days without water, though.
“We can try and organize a hunt for game meats nearby,” Aelia said. “However, I doubt we’d be be able to expand our food stores in a way that would be truly beneficial.”
“Every little bit helps,” Gilda said. “See if you can get that done without cutting efficiency, though. I’d rather not have our soldiers tired because they are playing both hunters and defenders.”
“Understood.”
Floriana stepped forward this time. “I’m happy to report that our stores of medical supplies are full,” she began. “We also have an adequate amount of apprentice mages to assist us. As per protocol, they are the ones that have yet to learn to summon elements.”
Gilda nodded. Mages were pretty valuable in any battle, but it took a certain skill level before they were Knighted and brought to the battlefield. Having potential mages safe and behind front lines while giving them training to use their magic was a good long-term plan of investment.
Varinius, the acting Auxiliaris, was the last to step forward. He gave Gilda a small grin as he saluted, probably a silent way of reminding her that he still had some good stories to tell the others if she went after him for any reason. The eagless just rolled her eyes, as if to tell him that he might have forgotten that she, too, had stories to tell about him. He wisely chose to just give his report.
“Auxiliary Guards are a working as temporary Peacekeepers as well as our secondary scouts. Noncombatants have all been relocated, even those that were displaced since our new additions. There were small, vocal protests, but nothing to worry about. However, sir, I’ve been approached by our Equestrian Liason, and the limited earth ponies we have want to help with the defense.”
Gilda frowned thoughtfully, then looked at Aelia. She stepped forward, and said, “Unfortunately, sir, our blacksmiths are already focused on working on shields and weapons. We do have some armor we can improvise to fit Ponies, but…” she trailed off, looking at Faustus.
“Incorporating them to our formations is risky,” the tiercel replied. “We have been making use of their talents, having them push carriages to help move old and injured refugees around, but from what I heard, they seem to want to get more involved.”
Varinius nodded. “I can vouch for that.”
Before Gilda could think or comment on that, Imlay spoke up once more. “That could be useful.”
Giraldi faced him. “What do you mean?” he asked.
“If these earth ponies want to get involved, I may have a plan.”
Okay, that got her attention. “What is it?” she asked, speaking in Equestrian.
“Maybe later, when this meeting is over,” Imlay replied. “I’m still working on it in my head.”
The eagless nodded and turned back towards the rest of the griffins. Fillius looked a little curious, but he didn’t say anything. Gilda then glanced at the acting officers and asked, “Any more to report?”
All of them shook of their heads. Nodding, she reviewed the whole meeting in her head, and realized that she had gotten through without any hiccups. Barring a few spoken words, everything was as professional as she’d imagined. Fillius was on top of things, and he wasn’t actively trying to defy her, which was good. There had been many examples of armies doing poorly if the Captain and First Spear were antagonistic to each other. She was also thankful for Imlay’s presence. His suggestions could potentially open a few options unavailable to them, and he was professional enough to not rise to open baits Fillius was leaving.
Hopefully, Fillius would learn to respect the Corporal as a fellow warrior. If not, well, she could make sure that they wouldn’t work together long enough to cause any friction.
The meeting ended with a small reverence towards the Ancestors before Fillius and the rest of the Centurions saluted to Gilda, baring their necks as well. Gilda returned the salute. Faustus and another centurion began to erase the drawings in the sand, then afterwards, the First Spear began to march the rest of the Centurions out.
“Sir?” Fillius asked when he noticed Gilda, Giraldi, and Imlay staying in their places.
“I need to speak with Corporal Imlay in regards to his plans,” Gilda replied.
“Shall we stay, then?”
Gilda shook her head. “Maybe another time, First Spear. I’ll have you briefed if we ever employ them.”
Fillius nodded, and soon enough, the room was empty save for the two griffins and one human. After a silent moment, Gilda looked towards Imlay, and said, “This plan of yours… will it work?”
“That really depends on how well we scout the area,” he replied, “and how fast we can get my Marines around. I meant it when I said that we don’t use tight formations, but we still need to create situations for crossfire.”
“Crossfire?” Giraldi asked.
Imlay pointed towards the sand. “May I?”
Gilda nodded, and the Corporal began to draw a circle.
“Crossfire is basically a situation where where we attack the opponent from two or more directions,” Imlay began. He drew a line south of the circle, then on the east. He began to draw arrows from those lines going towards the circle. “This is a basic scenario. Though we got enough practise to work on others, like this.” He then erased the two straight lines, and created two slanting lines, southeast and southwest of the circle. He too added arrows coming from the lines, pointing towards the circle. “There are many more, but you can understand where I’m going with this.”
Gilda nodded, the formation being somewhat similar to Wind Knight attack patterns using crossbows. The humans probably also had the same rule of not creating a situation where they’d shoot each other, more so when these guns are far more powerful than a crossbow, and with further reach.
“However, like I said earlier, we need to know the area,” Imlay continued. “We need to know what formations we can viably use, potential traps, and areas for ambushes.”
“We have maps that you can use,” Giraldi offered.
“Thanks,” the Corporal replied. “Depending on how you draw your maps, however, we’ll still have to check the area. That means we need to carry my Marines in place, like what we did back on that steadholt.”
Giraldi frowned. “That could prove more difficult in this situation. The area is much bigger than the steadholt. We haven’t even tested the tactic for long-distance scenarios. Carrying a Marine back and forth, while planning an attack on more than two places at once would be draining.”
“That’s why I think the earth pony contingent can help us,” Imlay said.
Gilda nodded, understanding. “Use them to transfer Marines from place to place.”
“This will keep griffins fresh just in case we need a quick evac, or to place Marines in hard-to-reach areas,” Imlay added.
“Okay, this may work,” Giraldi said, staring towards the drawings in the sand. “Scout the area, place the Marines, do this… crossfire, as you say? Then, what exactly? I’m still curious on what you have planned to work as an offense.”
“We’ll mostly start out with guerilla tactics,” Imlay replied.
“Guerrilla?” Gilda asked.
“Tactics which rely on ambushes, hit-and-run, and mobility. The idea is that if the army is larger than yours, then they are slower. More so since the Cloven still rely on formations,” Imlay replied. “The main objective is to delay the their big push—their big attack—and make them work on regrouping. We can do this by either attacking weak spots on their formations, or by incapacitating their supply lines, which is basically their bases.”
“The latter is what you suggested earlier, correct?” Gilda asked.
Imlay nodded. “I’d normally start by taking out the nearest Cloven forces marching here. This will give us a good test on how we could work together, especially with the pony transporters. On that point, I hope that whatever griffins assigned to us are the ones we fought with in the steadholt.”
“Makes sense,” Giraldi said, “especially since Fillius called you stupid and said your plans were madness.”
Gilda glared at the Spear Centurion. “Giraldi!”
At the same time, Imlay broke into an amused smile. “Really?”
“I’m sorry, sir, but it’s the truth,” Giraldi shrugged before looking at Imlay. “And yeah. Filius is very traditional. That’s what makes him as a very effective First Spear.”
“He actually said my plans were madness?” Imlay shook his head. “Don’t let Flip-Boy hear that. He’ll start quoting that movie.”
“What movie?” Gilda asked.
Imlay smiled. “Ask him when we’re back to… Arnau,” he replied, though the last word seem to sober him up, making the smile disappear. Shaking his head, he looked towards the sand, as if to remember what had been drawn there earlier.
Gilda understood. While he carried himself well, Imlay knew what lay ahead, and he was probably as nervous as she was. For a moment, there was a tense silence before the Corporal nodded towards Gilda.
“Ma’am, I’ll talk to my Marines,” he began, “and see who’s up for this. Though considering they just got a taste, they’ll want to be kept sated. We’re not going to have shortages here.”
“We’ll work the ponies and the griffins on our end,” Gilda replied, returning the nod. “Corporal Imlay, thank you for your assistance.”
“It was my genuine pleasure,” Imlay replied before making his way back towards the entrance. Gilda watched his back, green-patterned uniform moving slightly as he made his way outside, closing the door behind him.
“He’s nervous,” Gilda said, with a sigh.
“Of course he is,” Giraldi replied. “He’d be stupid to not be.”
“I thought he’d be implacable, like Filius.”
“Filius is nervous too,” Giraldi said. “He’d normally not shun any help, but losing his commanding officer, and not having the Captain present, he’s under a lot of pressure to keep everyone in line. Lashing out slightly to a convenient target was part of that.”
“Is that what it was, really?” Gilda asked.
“In my honest opinion,” Giraldi replied. “Thankfully, a replacement officer arrived, who was smart enough to realize the effectiveness of his suggestions. You let him do his job, when most hatchling officers would try to do everything themselves. You did good, sir.”
“Thanks,” Gilda said, though not honestly feeling she had done much. Still, if Giraldi thought so, then she’d continue on the way she did. Hopefully, they’d all make it out of this one alive.
Giraldi told her to get to rest, and this time, she wasn’t feeling restless anymore—just tired. Walking towards her room, she hung her armor on the stand, removing the command chain and placing it on a nearby stone table. She stared at it for a moment before turning towards the bed. Laying down, she closed her eyes. She could hear shouts of centurions and grunts of griffin soldiers in unison; she could hear the noise of metal hitting metal. The grunts of hard work, sweat, and blood created a cacophony of lives preparing for battle.
Staring at the ceiling, she remembered all the defensive plans their Tactica explained, the suggestions Imlay gave. They had a maximum of one month to hold down the fort, facing against an army of cloven coming their way. There weren’t guarantees that reinforcements would even arrive. Even if she led the Aricia defense perfectly, was she only condemning those under her to starvation and exhaustion?
In that moment, she decided to be there on the frontlines. She wouldn’t be an officer that would ask others what she would not dare to do. Whether leading the defenses with Filius, or even overseeing the Imlay and his Marines, she was going to see this through.
Her earlier conversation with Marco came up, almost as clear as day. She remembered his quiet confidence as he looked at her, smiling as he said those words.
“Lead the defenses, kick some insect ass, and bring us home.”
No one was around to see her nod, her claw clenched, ready. “Yes,” she whispered. “Yes, I will.”
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I already said this before, but this is a good chapter.
And as always, MOAR.
If you would kindly.
YYYYIIIIISSSSS
is the cloven like the void from that jim butcher book cause it does seem similar and there was even a grass lion
It's alive
If things go anywhere near according to plan, when news of this gets out to humanity and the gryphon kingdom I see a major uprising in opinions between the two races.
Imlay may very well kick good relations with the Griffons ahead at least ten years if he manages to pull this off. What has me concerned is that Marco and Gilda seem to be on the run judging from the prologue, indicating that even though Gilda fights with honor, she does something that disappoints the brass. I'm really liking this. I can't tell where it's going to go.
IT'S ALIVE!!!
wow why do i have pictures of gunwielding marines on griffins and ponys in mind ?
Woo a new chapter, good one too. Can't wait for more!
Less Human deaths mean less Political bullshit. I hope you remember that. Thankfully, there won't be that many.
Hundreds of thousands of years of continual conflict comes in real handy in this situation huh? I'm glad that the coming chapters aren't going to be written as a simple siege.
4394767
It's Vord, and yes, that's where the author's drawing inspiration from
Anyways; this was a good chapter and I'm looking forwards to watching the marines kick some bug ass. Maybe go Starship troopers on them?
On another note, I really wish there was a griffon version of Tavi...
Madness?
THIS.IS.ARICIA!
4394574
Thanks for the last-minute stuff.
4394630
Been waiting, eh?
4394767 4395282
Its a combination of Vord and Zerg. The distinction is kinda important. For example, the Vord has three very powerful Queens to direct them, numbering to overwhelm Alera. Nevermind the fact that the whole army could be lead by one Queen alone.
Cloven though don't have anything as powerful as that. A small area is led by an Overlord (which looks like a Hydralisk
), and Word of God, any bigger needs more Overlords to help control and lead them.
Not telling if Cloven have a Queen, though considering that they are the precursor of another species which is canon, you both can probably guess.
4394824
4394868
It seems to be building up to that, eh?
4394879
4394983
You mean gun-wielding humans riding ponies or griffins to battle? Well, probably because that happened in the last few chapters. XD
4395093
Thanks. XD And nice speech.
4395111
I was nervous I was taking it slowly. Glad you're still onboard.
4395116
I don't know. I'd think the image of Marines helping a potential allies while showing everyone in Tellus that the violent and war-like humans are willing give their lives to defend those that need help. This works pretty well with America's White-Knight that is undercurrent in their military.
4395144
While defense against unbeatable odds seems to be a good staple of a lot of war stories, Eratosthanes reminded me that the USMC are an offensive force. Hopefully, I'll be able to entertain you guys with Terran StarCraft tactics that won't feel too... impossible. XD
4395397
quotesworthrepeating.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/King-Leonidas-Quotes.jpg
This is getting to be like a cross between Zulu, Charge Of the Light Brigade, and Battle Of Goose Green.
I really hope some of those storage crystals have something very intresting in them. Or, failing that, the humans have found out how to give one of them to Vasquez.
Actually, when I first read "he speaks madness", I immediately thought of a different movie entirely (at the 0:45 mark):
And Imlay shows he knows well the purpose of a Marine Corps rifle squad: "To locate, close with, and destroy the enemy by fire and maneuver, or repel the enemy by fire and close combat."
Semper Fidelis. Can't wait to see what other surprises they may have in those storage gems. Kind of curious as well what's been happening with the other marines of their platoon. Didn't they come in with a full company?
All they need to do is get some o' dat Rainbow Power and they can squash the baddies in 10 seconds flat!
That's about all it took to stop Tirek...
4395636 4395810
Well, we know they brought their food and rations, for one. And a 50 Cal. And probably a few bullets and 40mm grenades. XD
As for coming with a full company, while humans did come with 200 plus strong, Imlay came with a small squad, mostly as protection detail for the civilians that came along.
4395811
One day, I'm going to catch up with the season finale.
4395859
I guess I'm a little confused. Fortrakt said in chapter 2: “They came in by force. I’m counting at least thirty non-uniformed humans. That’s about five soldiers assigned per human. Wow. Ponies send only what, fifteen guards for five diplomats?”
I interpreted that as saying they'd brought in 150 soldiers--about the strength of a slightly stripped-down Marine infantry company (Given they pulled out a .50, I'm guessing they didn't bring a heavy weapons platoon and instead spread it out among the three rifle platoons using the storage gems). Am I wrong or did I completely misread that?
4395983
Nah, you didn't. I was using the old numbers. Sometimes, I don't keep myself updated.
Yeah, its 150 Marines, give or take.
4395859 Basically, they could have skipped everything and just handed them the powers, then bitch-slapped Discord for being a total tool.
4394879
I didn't get the impression that they were on the run, although perhaps it's odd that they're camping out in the boonies. They mention that they're headed to Ponyville to "secure trade routes," so they may have moved on to civvie life.
Good work. Glad to see it back.
4395559
But again, political bullshit and Jargon considering they are in a foreign country that has not yet FULLY accepted the trade pact for resources. Meaning, if they die, the country WILL have to ask some reprieve or such for the loss of soldiers.
YAY new chapter.
A storm is coming. Bullets getting hot.
(try listen to the music instead of looking on the video, and its a pretty good song for the next fight
)
4396261
That's what was weird. Only just the two of them? And in some random cave instead of a wayside or encampment? Or even a hotel for the night? Something just feels off.
I never realized how long battles in a war like situation will last, but I didn't think it will take a month so they'll be occasionally engaging the enemy every now and then between the month to weaken them enough that they can finished them off with a well-timed strike. I wonder how does a battle work like that exactly? The only thing I can think about battles like that is when the huge army is a distraction while another team sneaks in takes what they need or kill the person they need to do and then they leave. But how does that leaving work exactly? Do you pretend to lose or something and give inexperience enemies some confidence? I don't remember how that works.
4395515 yeah ...
maybe some A-Team Tier earthpony vehicles ? (50 cals on chariots=puff the magic dragon)
also human boobietraps ... you know a granade here , sharp sticks there, i mean the US learned this stuff from the best (say hello vietnam)
i hope we don't have to wait so long for the next chapter!
Asymmetrical warfare (+Marines) versus massed infantry formations...
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There are several reasons why modern warriors call those formations "target practice"
Also, I'm impressed that someone actually knows real rifle terminology, knows proper radio etiquette, uses proper Marine slang, and how Marines interact with each other. I'm going to keep my eye on this.
After so much action, a breather is nice, and even the meeting managed to be an exciting affair. Good job, DEL.
Now to wait for Operation: Zig Zag to start.
4398041
The whole month angle was more on how long the griffins could hold out defensively. It's just a baseline they can follow, but not exactly an indication of how long the fighting will last. Anything can happen.
As for how the fight goes, it always depends. As of now, the Aricia defenders seem to have a few options, except for outright marching towards the enemy. That gives me a few good options on how to proceed.
4398844
I'm still debating whether the chariots are strong enough to mount a 50 cal, and be steady enough for continuous fire while at the same time. It is a viable option though.
4399493
I had good help from Eratosthanes. And given some good reference materials by Crazyman and boredhuman.
4399619
4398844
In 2972 the royal family was sent to prison during a military coup for a crime they didn't commit. These mares promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Pegasus underground. Today, still wanted by the crown, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire... the A-licorn Team.
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Why haven't the humans called in their big shit yet? Cruise missiles, fire bombers, tanks, and gunships!
4400342
Its a world/universe/galaxy away.
another amazing chapter please keep it up
i look forward to the next one
4400383 No it's a portal away!
4400342
Politics and geometry.
Edit: Explained by Marco in Chapter 7
4399687
You're starting to learn on your own. I didn't even have to yell at you for anything this time around.
Fake edit: Eratosthenes
4399687 Seemingly erratic movements that make it hard for someone who doesn't know about the pattern beforehand to pin down quickly. A description that also matches Imlay's combat plan.
You have captured my attention with this story and I am practically begging for there to be another chapter.
4401990 I'm thinking they will make an exception if US troops are in a full on war! THEY ARE IN A WAR!!!
Hmm, an interesting and well written story! Also, romance without mature! I'm enjoying your work.
The only thing that actually bugged me in this story is that several times, you said a character 'wore' something, when I think you actually meant they 'put it on' or perhaps 'donned' it. wore is the past tense of wear, which means to have something on; donned is the past tense of don, which means to put something on. (Sorry... I can see the mistake, but I'm poor at explaining.) It's not a big thing, but it was a little jarring from an otherwise very well crafted story.
I'm looking forward to what you do here, tactically; I love watching fantasy cultures encounter real weapons, and both the allies and enemies of the humans should be suitably impressed.
4398041
as i said, vietnam, irrgulare force win as long as they don't lose, meaning, they pick their battles, the place, the time and with what forces they attack, how long they attack, what their goals are.
they basicly hold all the aces as long as they can move unhindered through the country.
while the enemy is pushed in the defense and has to dug in again all the little strikes and beestings from all sides, all the time. and thats wearing him down.
regulare forces lose if they don't win... and as long as the bugs act like an old fashioned army, trying to besiege the griffons or get them out in an open all or nothing field battle, they will allways lose.
history teached this lesson time and time again.
4395397
NO! THIS IS PATRICK!!!
4408926
Not completely accurate. Vietnam War was lost mostly because the American people were getting disillusioned. A lot of data showed that they were winning the numbers game. But when the public began to protest, the government followed.
Guerilla tactics work depending on how pressure will be applied. Striking weak points, crippling supplies are winning moves because an army marches on its stomach. It also helps that the cloven are not familiar with tactics we use, combined with weapons and asymmetrical warfare, a smaller number can hold off against a larger force... up to a point. The numbers can still catch up with you.
War is a complicated business
Operational Directive: Resist the urge to squee at the adorable pony mounts during the cavalry charge. Those are Marines on top with guns and grenades and assorted other things to give evil bugs a bad day.
4411714
well every rebellion in the middle east works the same way ... and there is no government or backstabbing homefront.
i wonder what the cloven come up with ... they seem to be pretty smart when it comes to counter tech and tactics
4411947
XD Gun and Pony Porn?
4414581
Secret.