Northern Ruskarkand - 6:44 AM, 18th November, 2015 - .9 Kilometers out from the Village of Tarbell
A violent growl rumbled through the air, the treads of a tank clicking ominously as it rolled along the ground. The day was young, and the T-34/85 tank moved through the bleak woods like a noisy phantom, but only to be cut short; the wheels screeching slightly as the tank came to a halt. Puffs of smoke came out from the engine grill and exhausts, as the hatch on the top of the turret made a distinct clunk, prior to being opened by a Human operator wearing a tank crewman's helmet. He appeared to be rather young, his facial features defined him as Slavic. He peered to his chest, before reaching a hand up and grasping at a set of binoculars.
In a swift movement, he lifted them to his eyes. He could see the lights of the Village ahead of him, and a cold sweat began to form on his brow. He hadn't hoped for this, he was clearly unsettled. Nobody deserves to foresee their own death. It's good to get them sleeping, so they don't suffer.
He lowered the binoculars. He knew that if he defied his superiors, a more loyal man would take up the job without so much as a second thought. It wasn't something he had an option in, he didn't wish to do it, but he had to.
The Commander looked down into the tank, before calling out "Stanislav, pass me the Designator. Need to laze our target for Hammer team, back at HQ." in a stern manner. No sooner than as he gave the order, a man presented a bulky looking device to the Commander, who in turn grabbed it, and lifted it through the hatch. It situated itself nicely on the turret, and the Human turned on the device, before beginning to adjust a few settings.
A single blip emitted from the device, and the radio inside the T-34/85 burst into life. "Coyote 4, this is Hammerhead. We've received the coordinates, at Bravo Juliet 059, 098, 038, degrees 170 meters. High Explosive and Incendiary ordinance deployed, Danger Close!"
Multiple distant pops were carried on the wind. The Commander breathed in deeply, looking to the cloudy sky above him. Incendiary Ordinance, white phosphorus no doubt, but against Dragons?
"Coyote 4, this is Hammerhead. Splash in Seven, over." the radio boomed out once more.
The Commander saw the streak of a Marker shot, the red colored flare shell. Behind it were the screeches of numerous more, except those ones carried the deadlier payload. He squinted slightly, as the first shell rammed into the distant village. And then, the High Explosive rounds hit. The closest house had the roof smashed through, before an entire section of the wall was blown out by the explosion inside of it. The distant booms seemed to mask the screams of the dying, but this was just the beginning of it all.
He firmly gripped the Designator, before pulling it into the tank with him as he ducked back inside. His hand poked out, before grasping the hatch and pulling it closed. A small thud was heard once more, whilst the engine of the tank seemed to cut off. Trees around the tank collapsed, as numerous other tanks and armored personnel carriers lined themselves up alongside the T-34/85. All of them bore a common insignia, each one waited for the bombings to halt, so they could storm the village, and take over what they believed to be theirs, the first step towards eradicating their biggest foe.
Eastern Ruskarkand - 7:35 AM, 18th November, 2015 - Hython Tower, 203rd floor. Military Deck, Marshal Office.
A grey Dragon, in what appeared to be an old Soviet officer's uniform, was sat behind a desk, the four walls of his office decorated with fine materials, with a number of flags belonging to Communist and Ex-Communist countries hung up on them. On his desk was a small laptop, which he seemed to be staring at with piercing eyes, through a set of spectacles. He seemed rather tired, and kept his focus on what he was typing on the keypad.
On the far side of the room was a metal door, with a small card reader and locking device next to it. The room was well illuminated, as quite a few ornate oil lamps filled the room with a peculiar, musky incense.
A loud whirring came from the door, before it divided itself in two, giving way to the Dragoon behind it. He seemed rather pale, devoid from what should have been a lush red. The face of the Dragoon displayed one of horror, and he stepped into the room quickly whilst barking out "Marshal, sir! We have a matter of urgency on our hands!" in a frustrated manner. The Dragon behind the desk quickly closed the laptop, tilting his head at the Dragoon in a somewhat surprised manner.
"What? What is it that's troubling you?" he retorted back, leaning forward into his desk and pressing his elbows into the surface. He remained calm and resolute, pondering what was wrong with the Dragonkinian infront of him. "Sir. It's the goddamn Human Resistance, those 'Knights!' They've destroyed the local village of Tarbell, and are using it as a forward operating base!" the Dragoon shouted once more.
The face of the Marshal slowly began to lose its color as well, he stood up from his chair, and looked dead on at the Dragoon. "..Pardon me, but did I just hear you say that the goddamn Humans have made a move, and destroyed one of Ruskarkand's villages? Do you know what's happened to the residents?" he spoke in a grim manner, but the Dragoon officer only shook his head. "No evidence of POWs reported, although there's plenty of reports of High Explosive Ordinance and Incendiary Ordinance being used. Survivors have shown some pretty grim wounds.. Our scales are supposed to be fireproof. That stuff just burns right through our flesh, it's horrifyi-."
"Ugh, please. That's enough." The Marshal interrupted. "Look, has the High Dragoness been informed? It's going to take a bit of time to mobilize our forces, and we've nothing to stop them from taking a few more villages, especially with their reported firepower. No amount of partisans we throw at them is going to halt their progress. I don't want to doubt our power, but we're unprepared right now. If we could advise the High Dragoness to get some assistance from another nation, I'm sure we could prevent further casualties until we get our forces ready. he explained. The Dragoon Officer stood still for a few moments, looking blank and blinking, before shaking his head. "Uninformed, sir. Shall I dispatch a message?" he asked.
"That's a no. This is a job for me to do. You're dismissed, I have some work to do now.." the Marshal answered, before sitting down at his desk and opening the laptop once more.
Eastern Ruskarkand - 8:57 AM, 18th November, 2015 - Hython Tower, 205rd floor. Offices Deck. High Dragoness' office.
The High Dragoness of Ruskarkand, Chloe Fydorovich, sat at a desk in a cold room, the obsidian-colored walls shining as white-neon lights ran down their metallic surfaces, refracting in such a way that it looked like the ripples of water. Her desk, and the rest of her office, was clear, which was unusual. The look on her face suggested immense stress, as she rocked back and forth on her chair, leaning quite far into it, with one of her feet on the desk. Both of her hands were on her abdomen, her elbows leaning against the plastic armrests of the chair.
She wore an elaborate black button-up shirt, albeit scruffily; with the collar unbuttoned and with the sleeves creased, she also wore trousers of a matching color. She reached one of her claws up, before plucking a pencil out of the breast pocket of the shirt, and began to chew on it slightly, her teeth boring into the wood with relative ease, and almost slicing through it entirely.
Her teal eyes looked up from their previous gaze into space, and focused on the door. It had cracked open, and the two halves slid to the side as the Marshal quickly walked into the office. "Chloe. We've an urgent matter on our hands. Are you available at the moment?" he asked, sounding somewhat out of breath. The High Dragoness stared at the Marshal, her eyes slit and bloodshot. "Go ahead. Confirm my fears. Are my people dying?" she said in a cold manner, one that matched her environment. The Marshal inhaled deeply, feeling a bitter shock run through him as she spoke.
He wasn't sure what to say, and receded back slightly. "I-.. I will regret to tell you this, but it's unfortunately true. However, I wouldn't recommend dwelling on the matter, lest more die. I've thought of a subtle plan that we can undertake in order to prevent more deaths, whilst we mobilize our military." the Marshal stated, putting on a bold tone as not to show his true feelings, and to mask his slight fear - He had never seen the High Dragoness like this before.
"Goddamn. I've been too soft on them. Now we're paying the price in full." The High Dragoness said, bowing her head slightly, averting her gaze from the Major. The Dragon tilted his head slightly, and took a step towards Chloe. "Ma'am, please. Listen; we need to contact other nations for support whilst we mobilize our forces. Assuming we can get enough help to hold them off for a few days, then we'll be able to push them back into the forest without any more villages falling to them." the Marshal said in a careful explanation, cautious as to not tip off or potentially aggravate the volatile-looking High Dragoness.
"..Fine. If it saves the lives of my people, then I'll send the word out. I also think that retribution is in order. They destroyed a Dragonkinian settlement, then we'll have to destroy a Human settlement." she replied, her voice beginning to grow hostile. "In the lower segments of Hython, I believe that there's a Human settlement there. I think that's a good option, wouldn't you agree?" she continued, the Marshal blinking once or twice in disbelief.
"B-But.. Ma'am, the Humans in that camp are Refugees from other nations, and fellow Communists like us! I simply can't d-" - "You will do it. I wasn't asking whether you would or you wouldn't I simply asked your opinion - Of which, I've noted. Now, get to it." she butted in, cutting off the Major's hoarse voice. Her eyes shifted back onto the Major once more, giving a piercing look. He squirmed slightly, before nodding once. "It will be done, Ma'am."
The Major turned around on the spot, and quickly walked out of the room, the door closing behind him. The High Dragoness leaned back into her chair once more, her gaze settling on her clawed fingers as they strummed across her abdomen.
Through Fire and Sword, Through Honor and Spirit!
From the central office of Hython Tower -/- Official Government message
Encryption: None
--
To: Any and all recieving non-Human nations.
CC: @######, @######, @######
BCC: [hidden]MSG: To anyone who receives this message. Our nation has come under attack from a large military group of Human Supremacists who refer to themselves as 'The Knights'. Their common goal is to eradicate Dragonkinian kind, and to take Ruskarkand for their own, on the grounds that they believe that it is theirs. They have already assaulted one of our local villages, and in doing so, have killed thousands of our kind in unspeakable manners. We have already documented the use of High Explosive and Incendiary Ordinance, both used against civilians.
These Monsters are attacking us, and without help, we will surely lose many thousands more before we can finally fight back. We are in dire need of help! I insist that you contact me back if you're able to provide any assistance whatsoever. We'll be grateful, and there is no doubt that a potential reward will be involved for anyone who does help. Together, we can take these Humans, and we WILL show them that their kind is not allowed to take whatever they like, whenever they like.
From: The High Dragoness of Ruskarkand, Chloe Fydorovich
On the blood of those who died, we will have revenge.
T-3441b Systems ltd. -/- [Insert Message Priority here]
Encryption: High.
--
To: Any and all receiving Human Nations
CC: @######,
BCC: [hidden]MSG: To every single Human nation out there, regardless of color, religion, nation, ideology or party. We desperately need your help. We assume that most nations will know of the crimes that have been committed by the Dragonkinians, but if you're unfamiliar, then we'll inform you. These cretins have committed genocide in cold blood, against the Human race. They take our land, and then deny us access, reaping everything for their own, and turning their back on everything else. It's despicable, and in direct violation of everything that sentient life should be. They care only for themselves, and do not nurture the development of others.
Even now, inside sources have revealed that they're going to be committing another extermination of our kind in the nation, and you know what? They can't even fight back. They're poor refugees that have fled to this nation, on risk of being killed and treated like shit, and they're going to be killed like dogs. Such putrid acts of violence, yet there is no justice. But we are there, we will always be there to avenge the fallen, and we will continue to kill the Dragonkinians wherever we go.
But, we need your help. We need assistance in our mission to avenge the many who have been killed in Cold Blood on this soil. Anything you can spare, troops to join our cause, firearms, vehicles, mentors and trainers for our soldiers.. anything you can spare. We'll vastly appreciate it, and you'll be doing justice for all of those who have fallen.
I wish that I could do more to repay any who assist us, but maybe in due time, we will be able to. For now, we can only hope that you will, in the name of what's right. Godspeed. Please, direct any messages back to me, and we'll see what we can do from there.
From: Knight Commander Nathaniel Lancaster
