WH40K In service to the Imperium: Episode 6 [IC]

[Carcharhinidae primari]

In Service to the Imperium: A Warhammer 40,000 Imperial Guard Roleplay

Episode Six: Lividivus Crusade to J897- I

[ooc]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory

Fresh from the conflict on Pan Arcadia the Segmentian 557th has spent much of the last two months in the warp. Almost immediately after having been rescued the regiment was quarantined until Colonel-Commissar Amsel managed to convince command of the regiment's loyalty. Within a week they were on a transport ship bound to a staging area for the Levidivus Crusade.

Whatever time for rest the regiment expected to have was quickly cut short, with several companies split of and sent back to whatever homeworld, and the remnants from the companies they lost folded into the survivors at break-neck speed before getting packed onto another transport, the Shining Glory. It was an ore scow, with it's cargo compartments hastily converted to mess rooms, bunks and the barest necessities for a guard regiment.
Now, 3 weeks out from your staging ground, the Shining Glory has just made the transition back to material space on the outskirts of J897. As the reinforced bulkheads shift from viewing ports all over the ship the harsh blue light from the system's sun shine through strongly even out here in the Halo zone. The senior officers of the regiment have just had a meeting with the captain on the bridge, a tradition of sorts on his vessel and the first contact you've had with the man since coming on board. After a celebratory drink to the navigator and Emperor for guiding the ship through the warp the huge shutters still shielding the bridge windows are rolled back; and through the thick smoked glass panes a softer light comes in.
Now you've returned to the officer's mess set aside for the regiment, a room with a similar smoked glass window towering along one side.

[Imperial City-States]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
82nd Vakarian Heavy Infantry , Echo Company
Officers Mess Hall


Klaus looked sadly around the officer's mess as he held a cup of recaff in his hands. So many good officers that he'd actually grown fairly fond of , had disappeared during their last campaign. So many dead , and now a horde of 'fresh' troops had been placed into the Regiment. Klaus was fairly certain that only one out of every ten of the new recruits would survive the first couple of weeks in the campaign. Klaus took a deep drink of the Recaff he held , his Fatigues felt strange , they'd been freshly washed and the familiar weight of his Carapace armor was strangely absent.

Klaus again looked around nervously , he always got the jitters when he wasn't deployed. It was a common affliction among the more veteran Guardsmen within the Regiment that they tended to be far more comfortable while in imminent danger than when in relative safety. Klaus exhaled loudly and took another deep drink from his Recaff. His itch for a fight was almost unbearable.

[Morrdh]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
Officer's Mess

Captain Artemis Stormwell, commander Segmentian 557th's fifth company and formerly of the 319th Battalion Morridane Deepwatch, walked into the officer's mess with a mug of recaff in one hand and a dataslate in the other. There were more reports from the ship's Chief Bosun, all of them complaints about his soldiers running about the ship's innards to keep their tunnelling skills sharp. He could see the man's argument as the ship was his domain and they were guests, but at the same time they were also soldiers of His Divine Majesty's Imperial Guard and they needed to be in top form to best the countless foes of the God-Emperor....even if the Captain himself wasn't a fire and brimstone fanatical follower of the Imperial Creed. Having sat through enough mandatory sermons delivered by Ministorum Priests a few phrases eventually stuck in his mind and proved useful as fodder to use in replies to folk getting uppy about his troops. So he sent one such response back to the Chief Bosun and took a sip from his mug, only to find much to his disgust that the recaf had gone cold.

"Oh, hey mate." Stormwell as as he spotted the Vakarian officer as he went to empty out his mug and get a fresh refill, taking the chance to light a lho-stick as he did so. "Soon be back in action eh?"

[Bredtonia]

Captain Leng Arnesen
Imperial System J897, Halo Zone
Chartered Transport Shining Glory
Regiment-Assigned Officer’s Mess

Sure that every squad under her command had their dice out and rolling as soon as she’d left, and not wanting to disrupt their well earned distraction with the presence of an Officer that should disapprove of such things, Capt. Arnesen had headed directly for the officers mess after the toast for a successful transit to their target system. As with a number of stations and transports, calling the room a mess was a great misnomer, the rooms appointments wouldn’t have been out of place as a gentleman’s club on any civilized world. Leng herself had claimed one of the large and comfortable velvet chairs half-way across the room and facing away from the window. Despite several deployments and transits, she hadn’t fully gotten over the cultural bias against leaving the planet’s surface and found she’d rather suffer the discomfort of months of enclosure then the disruption of staring into the open void.

The sound of the loud exhalation caused her to look up from the novel she’d been engrossing herself in to pass the time. The distraction and seeing Stromwell at the recaff machine reminded her of the sad state of affairs of her own drink. Sliding a painted leather bookmark between the pages, Leng stood up, laying the book on the plush chair’s arm. Retrieving her empty glass, she headed over to the bar on the far side of the room and unstoppered a bottle of rich gold amseac. Pouring herself a measure in the small liqueur glass, she ventured to add her own opinion into the conversation.

“I, for one, will be glad to have a real sky above my head again.”

[Segmentia]

Captain Karenth K’Svah
Chartered Transport Shining Glory
Imperial System J897, Halo Zone
Regimental Officers Mess

Karenth hesitantly walked into the officers mess, every instinct telling her to turn around and walk the other way, her body almost literally fighting itself. This felt so very very wrong. She had been a Regimental Staff Sergeant, and then overnight had been a captain. Sure, she had been studying and on her way to become a lieutenant, but finding herself suddenly thrust into command of an entire company was utterly unexpected. The losses from the last engagement of the 865th Segmentian Line Regiment had reduced it to a shell of its former self, with barley enough Guardsmen to pull into a company, along with what was left of their armored detachment. And thanks to a shortage of officers plauging Segmentian PDF and Imperial Guard regiments for the past few years there had been no one to insert into the company, and as per Segmentian regulations, a company had to be lead by a captain. Having been the senior NCO, that promotion fell onto Karenth.

It hadn't been all bad, of course. The men universally respected her, and she found that they were not only loyal to her, they remained as discipline as ever. She just hoped the other officers couldn't see that she wasn't quite a real officer. Some Segmentian units could have very snobbish officers, usually the high born bastards of the Founding Houses, always turning their noses up at enlisted men and women being promoted 'above their station'. Thankfully most Segmentian regiments lacked such officers, and those that did often had open officers positions. The tragic luck of the high born was quite well known, after all.

Karenth saw a few other officers in the mess already, so there was plenty of seats open. She found a seat away from the others and sat down, setting her small tray of rations down before her. That was one thing she liked, officers got pretty good rations, at least for as long as they were on the ship. K'Svah had been disappointed when her company had joined the regiment, thinking it would be another Segmentian one, as the name indicated, but that was not the case. A fold regiment from various regiments from various worlds, and had only been named the 557 Segmentian because the old First Company had been Segmentia, and then had been rotated back home. Lucky bastards.

Karenth glanced over at the few other officers, trying to gauge them from simple observation. It proved to be impossible, but from what she picked up these officers seemed to have at least a small amount. When another female captain spoke up about having a real sky about their heads again. Unable to help herself, Karenth nodded and spoke up.

"Damn right, ma'am." She said in the universal voice of pissed off sergeants everywhere before she could catch herself. She hid her blush of embarrassment well. "I mean captain."

[Imperial City-States]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
82nd Vakarian Heavy Infantry , Echo Company
Officers Mess Hall
Captain Klaus Schweitzer



Klaus smirked a bit at Captain Arnesen's comment and the ensuing response from an Officer who had the very characteristic look of a senior NCO about them.

"I think we'll all be happy to be on our feet again. I For one , can't wait to have my boots on solid ground. " Klaus responded.

Of course that couldn't be further from the truth. Klaus couldn't really care less about if his boots were on steel or soil. He , like many of the other Vakarians in his unit had since leaving Pan Arcadia , had an unquenchable thirst for battle. It was entirely inexplicable , it was almost as if during the very fight for the Regiment's survival on Pan Arcadia a switch had been flipped near instantaneously in the minds of everyone of the Vakarian survivors.

Klaus tried to clear his thoughts before they undoubtedly went to where his first suspicions were.


"Do we have any preliminary reports about Heretic forces planetside ?"




Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
82nd Vakarian Heavy Infantry , Echo Company
Temporary Barracks



Corporal Kleist smiled broadly as he spit a combination of blood and a few teeth out of his mouth onto the floor of the makeshift ring.

His opponent , Sergeant Lennox was smirking in a similar manner as his broken nose poured torrents of blood down the front of his face. The Cheers of the Vakarian's outside the ring made it almost impossible to think. Kleist had only a moment's respite before Lennox set upon him again. Blow after blow of the Sergeant's hammer like fists pounded into Kleist , who luckily , was able to bring his guard up just in time to deflect the majority of the blows.

As Lennox's cascade of punches ended Kleist immediately closed the distance. Leading with a Knee straight into Lennox's Solar Plexus , Kleist's blow was unsteadily blocked by the Sergeant throwing his hands down hastily. Kleist was unrelenting as he threw a torrent of elbows and punches into Sergeant Lennox who'd gone purely on the defensive at this point. There was a momentary break in the fighting as both Lennox and Kleist backed up for a few precious moments before diving back into the fray. Lennox , lead with punch that had his entire body weight behind it. Kleist , was fortunate and landed a spinning back kick into Lennox's head. The Ball of Kleist's foot connecting just a few inches south of Lennox's temple.

Kleist jumped back in Triumph as Sergeant Lennox came crashing down onto the floor of the ring. Kleist was actually ecstatic at this point despite his pain. Spitting out another mouthful of blood Kleist looked back at the other Vakarians.


"Who's Next!?"

[Drakulstan]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
Officers Mess Hall
Captain Anthony Nielsen of His Imperial Majesty's Calthian 42nd Armored Regiment

Anthony had felt remarkably uncomfortable during the entire proceeding of Warp travel. The creepy-crawling along one's skin was bad enough, and the nightmares came. The Glory's Astropath explained to him (in what she'd called "a rock layman's terms") that each person projected a small bubble in the warp when they had vivid dreams and that this was exacerbated during Warp travel. During that time, daemons had an easier time of causing trouble within a person's psyche. Ninety-nine point nine percent of the time, the person forgot what they were dreaming about as a defense. But others had worse fates, latent psykers especially.

And so it was with a certain amount of relief was felt by one Captain Nielsen when the ship was due to exit the Warp (or Great Ocean as the Astropath called it). Even then, the ceremony had the great social lubricant of alcohol added to the mix. Being only a senior officer as of VERY recently, Anthony had very little experience with the drug beyond the brew some of the men in the 42nd made on their own. And that was consumed at great risk to the drinker.

Perhaps the nervousness during the ceremony was because of Nielsen’s age. He was the youngest officer there (save for one man who was his age as well), with the rest of the Captains, Majors and Colonel in their late thirties and early forties. Anthony was barely twenty-five and with a Captain’s bars upon his shoulders. The ribbons and bits of tin upon his breast were impressive for one of his age (the golden bolt shell especially), although by no means the most extensive in the room. The scars were also mute testimony to any who would doubt his courage in battle. His glass trembled when he raised it for the toast and he drank quickly to steady himself and restore color to his face. Well, half his face anyway…

Within the Mess Hall (a luxuriously appointed one at that) the other officers gathered and Anthony followed them, with a feeling that he should follow along as well as not wanting to miss out on anything that he shouldn’t. The need to make a good impression with the new regiment (on a temporary basis the Munitorum clerk with a strange smirk had assured him) was especially strong. He had listened quietly to the conversation, himself to one side of the group that had formed. Socially, this put him nearby but definitely on the outside. Self-delivered exile as it were, or perhaps just unsure of his place. But as the sole Armor company in the regiment, he was certain that he would be called upon a great deal.

Klaus tried to clear his thoughts before they undoubtedly went to where his first suspicions were. "Do we have any preliminary reports about Heretic forces planetside ?"

”Traitors rebelling, unknown but large numbers. They have the terrain advantage with the planet’s daily rotation and close terrain within the hab-domes. Mining meltas pressed into service as anti-armor weapons have… proven successful as well.” Anthony said quietly, remembering what he did of the intelligence dataslate. ”Training level thus far unconfirmed.”

Realizing he had spoken out of turn, he lifted the glass of gold amasec to his mouth to cover the blush spreading across his face in embarrassment.

[Morrdh]

“I, for one, will be glad to have a real sky above my head again.”

Imperial system J897, Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
Officer's Mess
Captain Artemis Stormwell

"Always preferred having few thousand tons of solid rock above me head mamzel." Responded Stormwell as he took his lit lho-stick out of his mouth to take a sip of his mug of fresh recaff. "Granted it ain't much fun when tis a quake and ye gots a flimsy piece of plasteel protecting yer noggin'."

He overheard Klaus and the new Calthian officer talking about the enemy forces that the regiment would probably be facing. J897 was a mining world, much like the Morridane's own homeworld and no doubt honeycombed with tunnels. It was the ideal battleground for the Deepwatch and one where they could put their skills and experience as tunnel fighters to very good use. Given that the rebels were miners meant the Morridanes had a slight advantage in knowing likely tactics that the rebels would use. So Stormwell ventured his own thoughts on the matter. "Being miners I warrant they'll know their tunnels, weak points in the rockface to position explosives to cause cave-ins and what have ye."

"Reckon they'll have a few who know their explosives and have a few nasty surprise waiting fer us, half-decent sappers are going to be a boon fer us in this skirmish."

[Imperial City-States]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
82nd Vakarian Heavy Infantry , Echo Company
Officers Mess Hall

Klaus nodded slightly at Stormwell's remark.

"Miner's they may be , Soldier's they are not. Once we get past their tunnels and into their City's it will be a relatively settled endeavor. That is unless of course they have Traitor PDF regiments in their midst in which case they might put up at least some fight." Klaus responded , a audible lightening in his voice at the mention of battle.

Shifting slightly in his seat Klaus lit up an Iho stick and inhaled deeply.


Imperial System J897
Halo Zone
Chartered Transport Shining Glory
82nd Vakarian Heavy Infantry , Echo Company
Temporary Barracks


Staff Sergeant Robert Stone smiled softly as he walked past the make-shift arena that had been made. Currently two Privates were beating the living Warp out of each other. As Stone walked along the rows of makeshift bunks he eventually reached the area that his squad had taken residence in. Inside the rather modest accommodations several Troopers were making minor tweaks to their Hellgun's focusing crystals to allow for greater output per shot. Others were playing cards while some were making handloads for their Autopistols.

"Hey Sarge , any word on when we can get of this Emperor-Damned ship ? I'm getting sick and tired of having Nightmares every time i try for more than ten minutes of shuteye. " One of the Privates said looking up only for a moment from his Melta gun before continuing to clean it.

"I Haven't a clue Thompson. I would suspect that we'll be out of here before the end of the week. " Stone replied before sitting down heavily on his bunk. Exhaling loudly he withdrew his pump-shotgun that he kept in a leather case from underneath his Cot and withdrew the proper cleaning equipment before setting about the assorted prayers and litanies.

[Aelosia]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
Officers Mess Hall

The industrial heavy bulkhead that linked the Bridge to the regiment space opened with a hiss and the far away sound of incredibly massive cogs and wheels spinning inside the nearby walls, and a puff of pressurized steam was released through the opening gap as to equal the pressure on both sides of the ship by some sort of automatic and extremely outdated system common in vessels of this magnitudde and age.

Of course that the effect was unintended, but dramatic all the same. One second later, once the gap was wide enough as to let a couple of humans across the thick bulkhead gate, a humanoid figure entered the Mess Hall with a strange and uncharacteristic gait, yet easily recognizable by those already familiar with the character entering the place, which meant most of the officers present in the gathering room.

Captain Valerie Irvine was Colonel Vanhayn's aide-de-camp and her usual shadow during most of the time. The Thermidorian officer was diligent, assidious and proficient at her job, both as an artillery commander in the field and as a logistics coordinator outside it. The slim, unassuming Captain took a couple of awkward and unnatural steps inside the room and stood at the side of the door, adopting a seemingly uncomfortable formal stance, as if trying to click her heels together in the traditional Thermidorian military salute.

There were no heels to be clicked, of course, as the reason of both her strange gait and uncomfortable stance was clear for everyone to see. Captain Irvine's attire was flawlessly and meticulously arranged, as was custom for thermidorian officers, but it ended at her knees, as did her flesh and body. From the knees down, a couple of weird contraptions, made of some blackened steel and duralumin alloy and that hissed and creaked with every step, replaced the rest of her legs and feet. For those familiar with the woman, the outlandish prosthetics replaced both legs that the Captain had lost crushed by a spalled armour plate inside her Salamander vehicle during the last stages of the battle for Pan Arcadia, and even although time had passed, the thermidorian officer wasn't yet used to walk comfortably with them.

Even standing still seemed difficult, given the slight oscillation of her hips trying to maintain a perfect and yet impossible balance, although her face did not give any hints of outward discomfiture. Taking a deep breath beforehand, she issued the words that protocol demanded in the current situation.

"Colonel on deck!". Her voice was firm without being loud. Reliable but not thunderous or strident. Reaching but not raucous or blatant.

And a second later Colonel Victoria Vanhayn, commanding officer of the 557th entered the Officer's Mess Hall, with disciplined, marked steps. The late Colonel was a woman of many flaws and some virtues, and one of the most remarkable ones of the latter was her ability to make a good first impression. She was taller than even the male galactic standard, her long blonde tress somehow complimenting the aloof air of authority that came naturally to her features. Her steps and gestures were regal and statuesque, as if being a commanding officer was something fated for her and not something learned or trained. Her outfit of black polished knee-high boots, impeccable crimson frock coat and golden, tank shell-shaped epaulettes and her proven power saber at her hip enhanced and empowered her image of a strong, confident officer in command, and not at all by coincidence.

The absence of either her commissar-like cap or her tanker hat meant she hadn't come meaning business, at least not formally, even with Captain Irvine's introduction. Striding forward with large and elegant steps as a great fabled predator cat, the woman glanced around and smiled before finally talking.

"At ease, ladies and gentlemen", the Colonel said before anyone bothered to try to salute or drop whatever they were doing. "This is the Mess Hall, so it can stay a mess for now". She nodded to the known faces and smiled to the new ones, not overly familiar but courteous enough as to not be rude. Some people in this room she confided and trusted. Others, not so much. But war was a surefire way of testing everyone equally and rooting out any unworthy weeds quick enough. Of some she was suspicious, knowing there were too many short-circuits and flawed fuses with a loose screw to be weary around. A couple she quietly despised but recognized their utility as tools and means for His Will and the Will of Humankind.

Without breaking stride she went towards an empty seat and carefully posed herself on it, crossing her long boots one over the other. Reaching a pocket of her frock coat Vanhayn produced an ebony lho-inhaler from it and turned it on pressing a small lever, taking a long sip of her newly acquired vice. Releasing a vast puff of scented smoke, she took a look at those nearby her. She was satisfied that many of the company level officers were women. It wasn't a coincidence, she had pulled strings around the Munitorum to get most of those in her regiment.

Yet, her gaze went towards the familiar faces to give the newcomers some sense of true camaraderie. Vanhayn wasn't good at faking, so trying to act all friendly-like towards strangers wasn't her forte. "Is that caff any good, Artemis?", she asked to the Morridane Commander, a man whose simplicity and matter-of-fact nature she had come to value and respect a lot during the last campaign. He was trusty, dependable, and the opposite of the scheming bastards so common on the ranks of the guard. ""I might be tempted to try it, but I fear most of the caff aboard these ruinous transports is recycled from who-knows-what. I trust your word if you say it is edible, however", she said with an honest smile, knowing that Stormwell knew about recaff better than most. Those that had shared campaigns with Vanhayn knew that she could drink cold piss off a helmet without blinking if needed during battle, but that also she was a woman of refined tastes between theaters, as if she was trying to suck up as much luxury she could before going to crawl in the mud again.

[Great Houses of Xie]

Officer's Mess:

Captain Xie Guiren is not entirely happy about the upcoming campaign. As he strode with the other officers into the mess, he mulled over the situation and what role his company would play in it. The 2nd Mixed is a woefully small company, particularly when compared to the hundreds of troops composing the bulk of the other companies. Fortunately, that probably meant that the 2nd would not find itself on the front lines and would more likely be used in support of a line company. Let the other companies charge into the mines first; Guiren had no desire to die a claustrophobic death in some collapsed tunnel. With luck, his company will stay out of the mines entirely; with new trailers, the company has the mobility to move around quickly on the world's surface, during the night.

Upon accepting the offered food upon his tray, the captain sat near the other officers. Before sitting down, he pulls the curved longsword from his belt and leans it against the chair. Though gold braid is carefully tied to the polished, lacquered scabbard, it's clear that the gold braid is mostly decorative. Not an extrovert, Guiren won't say anything unless spoken to by one of the other officers. While some others may complain of being aboard a ship, having been aboard one for the better part of the last eleven years, he felt more at home on the ship than he had planetside.

[Drakulstan]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
Officers Mess Hall
Captain Anthony Nielsen of His Imperial Majesty's Calthian 42nd Armored Regiment

When the Captain made the announcement of the impending arrival of their commanding officer, Anthony shot to his feet and came to attention to render a salute. It would have been parade-ground perfect, were it not for the glass of amasec in his left hand. The faux pas it seemed had escaped the young Captain entirely.

When the Colonel came inside, Anthony once again felt incredibly under dressed. The Class A uniform was the best he had, as mess dress uniforms were not usually something deemed necessary of a first Lieutenant, which was what Anthony essentially was, just with Captain's bars and command attached. The Munitorum had, once again, not caught up to the realities of warfare and issued anything better than his current wear, which happened to be a clean set of trousers, dress shirt, peaked cap (a standard one, not the massive hat a Commissar would wear), a stitched cloak, plain black leather belt (which his bolt pistol hung from) and fresh polish had been applied to his service boots. In comparison to everyone (save perhaps the Morridane commander), he was the least well dressed.

When Vanhayn's gaze passed over him with the courteous nod and smile, Anthony's stomach did a small clench. This would be his first experience serving alongside any woman in uniform, being the relative rarity that it was to see such a thing. How his men were going to react if there were more women around made him shudder at the thought of any paperwork that he'd have to deal with, let alone if a Commissar had gotten involved. And he hadn't seen the unit's Commissar yet either... he had no idea what kind of man he was. The majority of Commissars he'd dealt with were his own regimental Commissars. They were unusally steady, but always at the head of a charge with cannons blazing and epithets spilling from their vox units, providing an example to the other tankers.

Anthony sat back down in his leather chair and tried not to obviously stare at the woman. She was incredibly striking, that was for sure. Undeniably attractive, but not quite in a classic beauty sense. So was her Captain, who... what the hell were those on her legs? And why by the Throne had the Mechanicus not issued a Captain with proper augmetics?

Anthony jerked his gaze away and turned back to his glass of amasec, taking another mouthful of the burning liquid, letting it blaze a trail of fire down to his belly.

[Morrdh]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
Officers Mess Hall

If the Calthian officer was concious of being the least well dressed, Stormwell could most certainly give the man a run for his money. Like the men under his command, Stormwell wore the characteristic Battledress uniform of the Morridanes with his captain's pips on the shoulders and an officer's cap that bore the cap badge of the Morridane Deepwatch. He was also far from being clean shaven his boots sported dusty patches and hadn't looked like they'd been properly polished for quite some time. Compared to the assembled officers he stuck out like a sore thumb, but then again the Morridanes' parade ground standards were often found lacking. The Morridane captain didn't particularly care as he sipped his fresh mug of recaff and listened to Klaus' comment before making a reply. "As I said, they'll know their tunnels and make good use of 'em."

"Once past their tunnels it'll still be close quarters by the look of things, but at least cityfight rules govern things...more or less." Stormwell added. "Least our tanker friends have a few inches of solid armour 'tween 'em and the outside world."

"Mam," He nodded as Vanhayn entered the Officer's Mess, though despite having fought effectively side-by-side on Pan Arcadia he still found it difficult to form an opinion on the Thermidorian Colonel. She was aloof and came from a much higher station in society that Stormwell could scarcely imagine, yet she didn't seem to let that go to her head and was trusted by the soldiers under her command unlike some officers that Stormwell had come across. When she prompted him about the recaff Stormwell answered, "Tis actually half-decent mam."

"Certainly ain't tried solidifying yet, suspect the ship's captain may have sourced a supply someplace."

[Aelosia]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
Officers Mess Hall

Vanhayn chuckled as Stormwell spoke about the Captain's hidden cache of foodstuffs and provisions. The man couldn't be more right about that. "I bet he does. All Captains do. All navy Captains that is. You guys don't have secret supplies lying somewhere?", asked Vanhayn with a smirk, knowing that most officers present for sure had a stack of either liquor, smokes, special food, or whatever was each one's fancy stacked somewhere secret and safe. It was almost a military custom.

"Will take your word on it, Artemis", said the Colonel as she stood and served herself a cup of the concoction herself. Resuming her seat, she looked at the gathering and arched an eyebrow, directing her words at the entire assembly. "Don't look at me like that, you lot. I didn't come here to socialize. Neither did any of you, you aren't the type. You were discussing tactics and ideas about tackling that forsaken rock down there", said the Colonel taking a sip of her caff, and making a slight gesture of "not bad" with her features.

"You all are military minds, as I am, so you all see this as a problem to be solved. An equation needing an answer. I have been running the numbers on my mind, but I need more data, and we need a plan, a really good one. Honestly, it is a hellhole we are sinking into. In comparison, I think Pan Arcadia was a walk in the park, and when I label a battle against corrupted Astartes as a walk in the park, go figure. This planet is toxic, and extremely hostile to life. At least Arcadian air was breathable", she issued with another sip. "So I want to hear every angle you have thought of, because I know you had, and you were discussing them. So make me proud, and share your ideas with me. Let's check them, discuss them, and apply those that seem viable for all. Aren't we paid for doing just that, lads and gents?", Vanhayn finished with an invitational gesture from her hand holding the lho-inhaler, trying to guess who was the one that would speak first.

[Bredtonia]

Captain Leng Arnesen
Imperial System J897, Halo Zone
Chartered Transport Shining Glory
Regiment-Assigned Officer’s Mess

Leng couldn't help but smile as Victoria entered the room, she looked every bit the part of an honorable and glorious leader of the Adeptus Millitarum, the Hammer of his Wrath. She had yet how well that image and though held up in actual battle, but from what little declassified information came out of Pan Arcadia most of it would. Plus, Leng thought, it was going to be nice serving under a women commander again, even if she was still dealing with male peers. Not that she minded the male colonel she'd been assigned to during the last year of her regiment's service on Saguenay. It was just that after serving with only women for her first twenty five years, she still wasn't quite used to it. Men were for the void.

Capt. Amesen stoppered the liqueur decanter she had poured from and picked up her glass, heading back for the chair she had previously occupied, one more fit for a smoking lounge than a mess hall. It stood in a roughly formed circle with a number of other similar leather-bound seats, including Col. Vanhayn's own. Setting the glass on the small table to the chair's side, she ventured to break the pause of silence and reply to the Colonel's question, starting with a recap of the problem.

"The planet consists solely of mining complexes, Ma'am. Each complex consists of a reinforced, radiation proof garage, landing pad, administration, etc. above, and a maze of mining tunnels following ore veins below. It seems like the Imperium just dropped fully independent complexes everywhere they saw good ore, so there is no connection between them – no tunnels, no highways, no trains. Each complex is its own fortified little bunker."

"Rebellion broke out and took over half the complexes – either they don't know why, or they're not sharing. The rest either suffered no rebellion, or quickly stamped it out. Once one side or the other completely secured a complex, it became a stronghold. Both sides have made repeated attempts to conquer a complex under the other's control with no success, leading to a watchful stalemate."

Leng took a sip of her drink while she composed her thoughts on the next section.

"The biggest curveball from normal operations is the planet's day – it'll fry anything, vehicle or man, not safe within a complex's shield. That means all movement and combat has to occur within a single night, with the attackers getting inside the enemy complex before daybreak. Even if they do get in, they have to hold for at least another day before reinforcements could arrive. It also means that unless you give your troops enough time to get back to their previous complex, each attack is a suicide run."

"Without the ability to make camp outside, traditional sieges are right out. If we take them, it'll be by some combination of infiltration and direct assault. Each mine is going to be a very tough nut to crack, and even when we get in, it'll be extensive tunnel fighting to clear out the guerilla fighters. Mining tools and home-crafted slug automatics will hold up surprisingly well in that kind of terrain, or so says the Tactica."

[Aelosia]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
Officers Mess Hall

Vanhayn quickly turned towards Captain Arnesen. She was one of the new promises that had been located by the Munitorum to the new 557th. She was surprised to watch her taking the first place in speaking, as she expected that one of the old guns would be first. However, Arnesen was, by the looks and reads of it, a tactical fiend like Vanhayn herself, so she would take the challenge upfront. Her files said she was an specialist in skirmishes and ambushes, a reputation that the Colonel was willing to test as soon as they landed in the planet.

The thermidorian listened to the Captain's exposition between sips of recaff and puffs from her inhaler. The analysis of the Viridian was sound, reaching the same conclusions Vanhayn and her own staff had achieved earlier on their own company level briefing of the campaign. Arnesen was earning points in Vanhayn's hierarchy as she spoke, and her suggestion of a combination of assault and infiltration tactics was the by-the-book approach advised to their current conditions. Vanhayn missed whatever a "curveball" was, but she supposed it was some sort of local metaphor, more likely related to some sport activity, that could mean "trick" or "trap".

As Arnesen finished, Vanhayn turned to gaze at her aide, who was now standing slightly behind and to the left of her own chair. Captain Irvine just slowly nodded to the Colonel in approval, showing her accord with everything that the Viridian had said. Vanhayn finished her cup with a long swallow and raised a finger to Arnesen, her answer ready after a couple of seconds of pondering. "I agree on your situation debriefing, Captain. Sound analysis there for starters", and here Vanhayn reclined on her seat. "Yet there is one part that I think can be better exploited. I don't think operations must be limited to the span of one night. I think infiltrators can permeate the enemy's defenses during a first direct assault and then remain as sleeper cells wreaking havoc during the day until the assault resumes the next day. We have an ample supply of troops able to conduct those operations, I think. I also agree that the infiltration missions will be key to our success, and I might have identified a couple of targets inside each complex that if saboutaged might means the immediate or eventual reduction of the enemy capabilities to nil".

Vanhayn raised an eyebrow here. "So we have two fronts that need to be covered. One is the infiltration front and another is the direct assault front. I might want to know now which companies want to volunteer to form one or the other group, and let's call them Corps. I plan to have officers from my company deployed to both Corps, but I want specialists running both shows. Direct assault might end just as a diversion for the infiltration team to deliver the coup de grace, or if that plan fails, to use brute force to crack the resistance as a last option. Now I want to know what Corps each one of you want your company assigned to".

[Segmentia]

Captain Karenth K’Svah
Chartered Transport Shining Glory
Imperial System J897, Halo Zone
Regimental Officers Mess

Karenth was glad for her years as an NCO when the colonel walked in, having been able to hold in a groan. The colonel was obviously High Born, and K'svah had had her share of such officers in the past. She would reserve judgement though, see what she was able to do first. She finished her meal and stood up, returning the tray to be cleaned. Having been able to read a little bit of the records for a few of the officers, K'svah offered an opinion once the colonel was done speaking.

"Risky business, infiltration is. Send in to large a force and they'll be discovered and overwhelmed before they can do any real damage, and by the looks of this regiment we can't exactly afford to lose that many specialists. Of course sending in to small a force means they could be overwhelmed even easier if found, and who knows what sort of alterations the rebels made to the insides of those facilities? Our intelligence could be woefully outdated by now." She said, leaning against a wall and folding her arms over her chest.

"As for volunteers, can't say I'll have any from my company. We're line infantry through and through. That and I don't see many of the lads wanting to abandon the company of our Baneblade." Karenth grinned a little. She had been amazed they had been allowed to keep their Mars-pattern Baneblade, but morale was all the better for it. And then Karenth offered her last advice.

"Now, I apologize for even suggesting this, but I've heard a few of you have served under good old Lividivus before, yes? I'd suggest you lean on him a little, if you all parted on good relations and all. Being a friend of the commander of a bloody crusade has to have some perks. I'm sure if requested he could send us a few of his elite squads to help out. It'll take time for them to get here, but it'll be well worth it. Lividivus has to realize how important this world is for supplying his crusade, so he'll want it back badly enough to throw us a bone or two." Karenth said and immediately berated herself. Should have just kept her mouth shut. This officer crap was not for her, and she'd probably have an appointment with the commissar before to long. Hopefully before any regimental dinners.

[Aelosia]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
Officers Mess Hall

To perhaps K'Svah's surprise, Vanhayn seemed more pleased than affronted by her statements. The Colonel gave the Segmentian commander a rather warm, if somewhat resigned smile as she finished, dragging her hand along the table to fetch one of the half empty bottles of amasec remaining on it, and pouring a relatively generous amount of the spirits, what in Thermidor was called a "double", on the same cup she had used for the finished recaff.

"Spoken as a true Segmentian", started the Colonel nodding and taking the first sip from the drink before releasing a relief sigh. "We commanders can always trust in your honesty. You make a couple of points in your assessment, which make sense from your point of view. I served under General Lividivus, I trust him and I respect him more than most of the Imperial commanding chain in the entire sector. Did you know he was the one who gave me my first field promotion?", said Vanhayn with a nostalgic smile. "But I digress. Captain, this is the Imperial Guard and this is a mesh regiment. Calls for support and reinforcements are always in route, but sometimes the Munitorum see fit to asnwer them properly, sometimes improperly and sometimes not at all. I called the High Command to be reinforced with a full strength Siege Regiment to be sent to this campaign to aid us...Do you know what I got for that?".

Those officers familiar with the Munitorum procedures could almost finish the line. It was a sector-wide joke, with punchlines ranging from the usual "nothing" to crazy ones like "a shipment of wrong sized artic condition fur-lined underwear" or "ten containers of Ephidian shatrose-flavored yoghurt-butter". After a second for dramatic pause, however, Vanhayn delivered a surprise. "I got you. You and your company. General Lividivus sent you and your lads and lasses to me. And your Baneblade, of course. Why do you think a backwater hellhole front like this one has a Baneblade and an assorted Segmentian Company in all its glory? You are the bone he tossed here, to crack this thing, his donation to us. We have our orders, and the briefing states that we have to achieve the objectives within the timeframe with the forces available to us. If said Siege Regiment arrive, then it will be easier. If it doesn't, then we keep on anyway".

"Regarding the Corps, well...", she paused as with a clanking noise her own aide took a step forwards and slipped a couple of brown folders in front of the Colonel's seat. "I expected you would spearhead the direct assault one. Baneblade upfront, with our rest of armoured vehicles, including my own command company and the Calth Armoured. You will without doubt be assigned to that scenario".

Vanhayn did not even open any of the folders, but protectively placed a hand upon the pile. "Regarding the infiltration risks and procedures, I do doubt your expertise on the matter only slightly less than I doubt my own. And as neither of us is an expert on the matter, I did bring an specialist who will advise us all regarding the possibilities of infiltration and what troops can assist him, as another bone that the General threw to us. I am still waiting for him to speak, of course...", with those words, Vanhayn reclined on her seat, but kept tapping nervously her fingers over the files, producing a characteristically drumming sound and speeding gradually the rhythm, pretty close to mimicking a dramatic entrance snare drum.

[Morrdh]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
Officer's Mess

"Mam," Stormwell said. "Couple o' questions spring to mind; What sort o' distances 'tween the complexes are we talking and how much time do we have?"

"Gaining access to the rebel held complexes is gonna be kacking tricky, they're alone are effectively fortified strongholds even if we discounted the particulars of his world." He stated, pausing to take a sip of his recaff before pressing on again. "The rebels have the home turf advantage, they know the ground here and I bet a month's wages that they're probably busy expanding their network o' tunnels to link up the complexes under their control. Tis probably reasonable to presume that they're looking to use tunnels to literally undermine the loyalist held ones."

"The existing workings o' the loyalist held complexes could be adapted for our use, I'll need a map o' the known tunnels and relative positions o' the other complexes. Then use a Hades Breaching Drill to extend one o' the workings as an assault tunnel, but stop just short o' the nearest rebel held workings and then dig the last bit by hand to reduce the chances o' being discovered."

"That way we can get some infiltrators in and lay the groundwork fer an assault, the flyboys can be our reinforcements."

[Persica Prime]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
Officers Mess Hall

[Stamp of commitment - now I MUST post]

[Slorch]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
Officers Mess Hall

Robert had come into the mess a little bit before the Colonel, and had contented himself with a mug of recaff which by all accounts and standards wasn't so bad. When the Colonel had decided to saunter in he raised his mug in a toast to her. Hey, it was obviously an informal meeting and he wasn't big on formalities anyway. Then she had gotten down to business. Although he had read up on some of the specifics of the upcoming campaign it was still good to hear them again and have them confirmed. Things had then moved on to tactics and it was here that Robert spoke up "I volunteer my company for the direct assault Corps. Our mechanization and climate training will prove helpful and we can push up in-front of the 865th to act as scouts."

[Imperial City-States]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
82nd Vakarian Heavy Infantry , Echo Company
Officers Mess Hall



Klaus leaned back heavily in his chair as the conversation swept around the room. Slowly he drank deeply from his mug before inputting his opinion.

"Regardless of the distance , at least this time around we'll have stable supply lines and won't have to worry about fuel or ammunition." Klaus commented referring to the unit's prior station on Pan Arcadia where they literally fought for their lives in enemy territory.

"But what Stormwell says is true , We will need to now the relative distances between the complex's as well as inquire with local authorities on how long the enemy could have expanded in the time that they've had. Really , we'd have to find a way to open up multiple tunnels in order to have a multi-prong assault while airborne forces drop from above." Klaus finished as he took a deep drag of his Iho stick.

"Another consideration is that the 'Loyalist' Forces may decide they're not so Loyal once we get boots on the ground." Klaus added , his memory jumping back in near perfect detail to the initial ambush he had faced on Pan Arcadia when PDF forces betrayed the local Imperial Units.

[Bone Fort]

A first impression was everything. And so, when the eccentric Stormtroopers from Nichts Geheimnis Hier found themselves working alongside others, it was practically a tradition to throw a curveball when making introduction. Its purpose was twofold. One, it allowed them to find out how their new allies reacted to new and unusual circumstances being thrust upon them, how they handle under pressure, how they handle fear. A potential glimpse of their true colors, if you will. Two, it created a hell of a reputation, something they always found useful. The fact that they also took sadistic pleasure in doing so went unsaid. Now, the method in which one introduced him-or-herself varied from person to person. Some merely snuck up on their unwary prey, while others used more extreme measures, such as flashbangs or tranquilizer darts. But Babadook needn't resort to such crude methods. Not to say that they weren't effective, they were. But it was just one thing for someone to just creep up behind you. It was quite another thing for a Blank to do the same. And a hell of a first impression he would make, as he had not been present at the meeting with the captain and had actively avoided meeting with the rest of the regiment.

It wouldn't exactly be clear to the others when or how Babadook arrived in the room, only that he was sitting on a table in the corner of the room, slightly isolated from everyone else. With his head bent slightly forward his face was obscured beneath the rim of his hat. For all intents and purposes it was as if he had simply materialized out of thin air when no one was looking. In all likelihood, he had probably used the distraction caused by the Colonel's entry to sneak in unseen, possibly via the air vents. At any rate, he was unlikely to have been noticed until he began to speak.

"It would be quite contrived for Loyalist forces, having held out for several years, to suddenly turn Traitor immediately upon our arrival."

He had a monotone voice, so completely devoid of any emotion one could swear they could feel a slight pull from the vacuum created. A sudden chill could be felt, as if his voice was so cold it drained the warmth from the room. Not even the Fabricator-General of Mars himself could speak in a voice so flat.

"Not to say that we should let our guard down, if you'll pardon the pun. One should always be wary for traitors in their midst. But for the the Loyalist forces to have held out for so long, against such terrible odds, to suddenly turn Traitor right as we arrive as opposed to any point before would imply a trap. Such a complicated trap would not be set for just any random responding Guard force, and so would require motivation to target specifically us as well as considerable power and resources to pull it off, in which case we'd have far more problems then more traitors PDF and rebels. The plan regarding infiltrators paving the way for a more dedicated assault is a sound one, though one mustn't be afraid to dream big. Infiltrators shouldn't require a distraction as grandiose as a full on assault to gain them entry behind enemy lines. Not competent ones, at least. While the current layout of the battlefield may be most disadvantageous to armor and infantry tactics, the cover of the night and the darkness of the tunnels will be most favorable to all manner of matters most discreet. With the sun out to protect them, the enemy in all likelihood will let their guard down, believing themselves immune to attack. Such hubris will be just as great an ally as the confusion caused by our sneak attacks."

He lifted his head to view the room, revealing his face- or rather, his lack of one. In lieu of any sort of recognizable facial features there was only a dark blankness, as black as the void of space.

"They dug those tunnels. It is fitting that they be buried in them."

[Aelosia]

Imperial system J897
Halo zone
Chartered transport Shining Glory
Officers Mess Hall

Vanhayn had learned to lead a regiment from some of the best, most inspired and charismatic leaders of men on the Segmentum. Marki, Hess, Amsel, and even Crusader Lord General Lividivus himself. She knew she wasn't an inspiring or imposing presence as most of those were, but her advantage was a clear mind. She had seen their tricks of the trade and had assimilated many of them into her own leading style. As her first time in front of a regiment, she wasn't going to let a campaign fail on her watch.

And one of the most important tricks was to listen. To listen was to compare her subordinates and equals points of view, to check for possible cracks in a plan and to review every angle. Each of the men and women across the table was one of the best expert on their field in the entire sector. Each of them had a perspective of their own, and each of them had a level of expertise in a certain particular that Vanhaynb herself lacked. They might lack the broad view of the entire picture, but each of their words held years of fighting experience and wisdom in them.

So she listened between tiny sips of amasec as they exchanged points of view. "Trusty" Stormwell was cautious but inventive as he had proved to be in Pan Arcadia with both his questions and propositions. The Hive Captain from the Cyclopean Cluster seemed eager to send his men to die, but then again that's what line infantry signs up for. Klaus was brutal and beware of betrayal, as his lack of trust and direct style fitted him, after all a seasoned assault commander. And finally, the Stormtrooper Commander, the Stranger in Vanhayn's carefully arranged deck of cards, had spoken about his view.

She had requestered their presence and help to the Powers That Lie In Shadows herself, but each time she was in the presence of this particular man, and that had happened only a couple of times since they arrived, she felt an increasing wave of unease. However, Vanhayn was not the naive commander that had once served as a Gunnery Major on the 1162nd Cadian. Whatever the man did to create this aura of disgust would work tenfold against the enemies on this theatre. For that, Vanhayn was glad and happy to suffer any further discomfort.

Once the cadre made a pause, Vanhayn decided to intervene and offer her own opinion. "You will have coordinates in your debriefing sent to you by infoslate. I have chosen to land in a peripheral loyalist stronghold and attack the smallest enemy controlled one, far from the main line. We need the huge morale victory that means to take a stronghold to resonate across the entire planet. They say that since the beginning of this war, no stronghold, loyalist or traitor, has fallen in the hands of invaders. We are supposed to change that, and quickly. It doesn't matter that it is the smallest and least important stronghold, the important part is that we are going to teach these miners what means to fight with and against the Imperial Guard, and that strongholds can, and will, fall".

Vanhayn took another sip of her drink as she got into her main point. "That fact alone, the fall of one stronghold, will break the lockdown and change the game. We will seize the initiative and send the enemy reeling, wondering what happened. I will time our push with a massed attack that the High Command planned against the main enemy strongholds, a push that most likely will fail as all those that have been attempted earlier, but that will lockdown both enemy attention, resources and reinforcements away from our forsaken and remote target. We will land and attack the same night we are deployed, so no time to plan, rest or prepare once we reach the ground. we must preserve the factor of surprise and deny the enemy time for intelligence gathering and further preparation. From the dropships into a forced march, officers, I want all of you to pass that on your men".

Now that she had relayed the broad plan, she got into the particulars. First she turned to the Morridane chief, "My aide will supply you with maps of the loyalist controlled tunnels located in our landing stronghold, Artemis, and the best we can find about the enemy controlled ones, but be aware the info of the latter will be untrustworthy and most likely outdated. Thanks for volunteering for the underground incursion, as I know you have both the hardware and the expertise needed. If you need squads from other companies to reinforce your incursion just let me know and you will get it, and perhaps we will able to get you a couple of local engineers as guides. You get in, and start spreading mischief around while pushing and tying enemy forces in the tunnels. You will have to prepare for a quick retreat, however, and a way to seal the tunnels. You will see soon why".

Then the Colonel addressed the Cyclopean next. "Lieutenant Lee. My pleasure to have you with us. Your unit will roll alongside the Segmentians and our armor column and will deploy accordingly in a wedge assault formation standard. Your men will assault the walls while my company and the segmentians support you. I plan to let the scouting to Arnesen, and use you as my teeth to bite the doors of that stronghold as hard as we can. We need to keep the enemy present there so our underground incursion is not overwhelmed by superior numbers. If you crush them and take the walls then even better. You will have ample armor and artillery support in that front, all what the regiment can muster".

And then it was Klaus' turn. The grizzled assault commander was going to be a hard bone to chew on, Vanhayn knew, but his contribution to the regiment was invaluable. "We might or we might not trust the locals, but this assault will involve our regiment only. I don't want any local force blowing the plan off because of incompetence. More than betrayal, I fear the militia lack of specialized training will hinder our efforts in a worse shape than any treason. If the locals insist on joining in, then they will be welcome to send a human wave ahead of our forces against the walls upfront and meatshield our men. But as I said, all local forces will be launching assaults against other targets at that time. We have permission from theatre command to go solo only once, and that took a lot of boot licking and string pulling courtesy of your dear Colonel, so we better make it count. If we fail, be welcome to trench grinding for the rest of the campaign, and as far as I know of the current deadlock, the rest of the campaign might mean the rest of our lives".

She knew the heavy infantry honcho needed further explanations, so she decided to provide them. "If we get this right we will get reinforcements from Lividivus for sure, and the locals will adore us because we managed the impossible. Destroying this stronghold fast is vital for the rest of the campaign. I know you people would like further preparation on the ground, but each minute you prepare the enemy prepares twice, and they know the terrain and have the proper resources, which we lack. I will give you freedom to assign your units to wherever you think proper, Klaus. Your troopers will be needed on the wall assault, in the tunnels either as Stormwell reinforce or as a new underground front, and as infiltration escort. Your choice on where you want to deploy them. I'd advise splitting squads to reinforce multiple pushes, but it's your call. I trust your judgment on this, just let me know what you decide to adapt the rest of the companies to your choice". As she said those words, Vanhayn gave Klaus a long look full of sincerity. He already knew she didn't like him and she knew he didn't like her, but in her words and on her face he could read a large ton of respect. He was being given full control on his company actions, something not even the other company commanders had. It was a vouch of trust and hope from the Colonel.

And then only Babadook was left. The Stranger on the Deck. "And you. You are right in everything you said. You said the layout favors competent infiltrators. You are supposed to be one of those. And also, you are supposed to win this battle for us as long as the rest of us do our parts", she let those words hang as to let the gathering to weight the meaning of them.

"Buried in them seems a nice prospect, but I would prefer the term drown in them", Vanhayn said, and for the first time since she started to speak she was showing a genuine smirk. "There's another reason I chose this stronghold for our assault. It sits on top of one of the few phreatic reservoirs on the planet. In layman's terms, it is built above one of the rock's largest aquifers. Many tunneling projects in the area met tragedy in the past because the underground reservoir exploded into the tunnels. The loyalist use a system of bulwarks in their tunnels to prevent a catastrophic flooding should a tunnel collapse, so I imagine the traitors use a similar solution. It is a system that can be, and will be, saboutaged. Think about it. When you have to kill the ants inside their nest what do you do? You flood them out".

Vanhayn pushed a folder towards the Babadook. "Here you have blueprints from the loyalist system of bulwarks and geological information from the mechanicus first echolocating surveys about the size and position of the phreatic aquifer. I leave you and Stormwell to think about the particulars, and you can choose the timing and the mode or modes of insertion, airborne, underground or otherwise, you are the expert, but I want you to follow my target and to flood those ants from my anthill. If properly done, the pressurized, overheated water will turn the stronghold into a nice stew of traitors. And before any of you...", she interrupted herself here turning to the rest of the gathering with a finger raised, not really to the Babadook, as she knew this wasn't an issue to that....thing, "raise the issue of absolute civilian casualties, well, I say they should had thought better before turning traitors. I want to see a nice geyser from outside the walls meanwhile we assault them. If that don't crack this, nothing will".

"That's the broad plan, people. We land, and immediately the Underground Corps go to the tunnels and find a way in while the Assault Corps proceed to the walls, and the Infiltration Corps find a way in. Once we engage the enemy on the surface and tie forces on the ramparts and the tunnels, infiltration will get both main targets, the bulwark system and the phreatic layer, and then we all wait to watch the waterworks. Questions?", she said as she rose from the table, fixed the wrinkles on her crimson frock coat, and tucked her lho inhaler inside her pocket, with an eyebrow raised expectantly.

[Great Houses of Xie]

The Colonel had a seemingly airtight plan. Just to stay on the safe side, he speaks up to confirm his company's role in the assault.

"Unless the Navy's decided to help us, I imagine my company's Vendettas will be heavily tasked? As for the rest of the company, it can provide fire support, but that support certainly won't be as substantial as the armored company or even the various stormtrooper companies' Chimeras." He didn't elaborate on what gunnery is available to his company; the captain is fairly certain Vanhayn remembers what the Xie have.