OP FIDELES
1st Plt, 12th Royal Lancers
Tattenhall Village - 2340 hrs
10km SWW of Vanderburg
Stevidian South GrealThe 12th Royal Lancers, otherwise known as the Twelfth, were heading Op Fideles to evacuate Vanderburg of allied forces in the midst of the enemy pushing into the city. They had stopped short of Vanderburg in Tattenhall Village, a small rural population centre with only a smattering of houses, a church but a lot of local farm buildings. The Army ‘commandeered’ it now, but in truth there was no one to commandeer it from. Most of the population around Vanderburg had heeded government and military advice to flee south from the fighting further north as the front line encroached ever further to the point it was starting to envelope the city itself. The Twelfth had paused in Tattenhall momentarily due to some minor delays in the supporting left flank held by the 18th Light Dragoons recon regiment some several kilometers north of their position. Supplies were in short order despite material support from Lamoni and Morrdh and now equipment was starting to break down through the wear and tear of war. But the Twelfth would not complain, they needed rest - every one fighting here did. They used the break to get some shut eye and scoff before the drive east into Vanderburg.
The 12th Royal Lancers were the heavy hitters of the two regiments deployed to bail out the beleaguered defenders of the city. They were made up of mostly Wolfhounds but had nearly thirty Vipers behind them with DAF and MAN transport trucks in reserve. They also had two Signal companies and one Intelligence Corps company to assist in fogging enemy comms. So far it has worked and reports coming out of the city were good - or as good as could be expected. Enemy movements were now encroaching into the city and observed to be moving steadily south, but the main effort was north and flushing out the resistance in the centre through increased bombardment. This was quite visible as in the horizon the glowing red and orange hue of destruction betrayed the city’s location and plight; accompanying it were steady dull thuds of naval cannon fire, artillery and cruise missile strikes. But given the density of the city, it was probable the defenders would hold a while yet. Their defences were extensive and efforts to keep important routes open were a top priority. The city had been well recced by the Army and obvious routes out of the city had been marked to be kept clear only to encourage enemy attacks. Less likely streets, avenues and routes were well kept but largely unmaintained to resemble the facade of destruction without giving the game away. Over forty routes were marked for use to evacuate out of the city and only four involved major streets out of the city. All units had been briefed on the locations and directions of the routes. Route-cards had been written, scrutinised, tested, rewritten, then tested again before distribution. Convoy heads, Movers and Military Police had been informed they had to know their routes (and several others just in case of diversion) by memory in case circumstances altered the plans. The Twelfth was the meet these staggered convoys 10km south by south west of Vanderburg at a large suburban district where rural lands met buildings.
Further north, the 18th Light Dragoons were to actively engage the enemy beginning their encirclement west of the city. For once, Stevid would have the element of surprise. The 18th would conduct hit and run attacks using their Viper IFVs and Rottweiler medium tanks. Deliberate defensive positions were hastily put together for infantry sections to retreat to in order to make the enemy believe that the Stevidian Army had actually moved in deep towards Vanderburg to counter attack and hold it. The Intelligence company with a company of Signals in the Twelfth were attached specifically to give this credibility. Once the 18th was ready for the advance again, the two companies would work together and deliberately increase the encrypted and decrypted comms traffic to give the illusion of a stronger power base some 40km closer to Vanderburg than Imbrinium command would have initially thought. The repercussions of this would probably never be known, whether or not the enemy would buy it and engage the 18th proper once their weaker left flank around Vanderburg was threatened, or call the bluff but left in confusion as to the thought process behind the move. Either way, there was to be enough confusion to allow the Twelfth to conduct their mission.
About 0015 hrs the Twelfth got the order to move at speed to Vanderburg. GHQ had given the go ahead to Vanderburg garrison at FOB Guardian to to begin the mass evacuation. The bombardment hadn’t stopped its relentless thudding but thicker explosions could now be heard as demolition charges across the city marked that the orders had been received. The 18th had surged ahead with recon units in Intruders and Land Rovers to observe potential enemies in the north that were too close, but reports came back negative as the enemy were focusing on tightening their grip on the city. The tanks of the 18th Light Dragoons followed and pushed steadily northwest while several sections of infantry disembarked at the defendable villages, farms and woodland that had been earmarked to act as the ‘Stevidian frontline’.
The spearhead of the Twelfth was made up of Wolfhounds, the rest and the odd Wolfhound and Rottweiler tank were intermixed throughout the column with specialised anti air and anti tank infantry squads and tracked anti-air guns and missiles. All made best effort to the rendezvous zone SSW of Vanderburg.
FOB Guardian
Vanderburg - 0020 hrsEvery single man and women was prepped and ready, from Privates, Sappers and Gunners, to platoon commanders and company commanders. All were dressed and ready for the occasion, not a single person was seen without their rifle or with it close to hand. The last of the heavy lift helicopters departed with what could not be physically moved via road and made their way south in the blackness of night, safe from all but the most determined of pilots flying AA sorties at the dead of night. Hundreds of trucks had been stocked to the rafters and been pushed south to their transport points (TP) prematurely to prevent traffic jams. A signals company working in tandem with no less than ten engineering sections remained on station giving live ‘traffic reports’ to the convoy elements as obstacles on the routes were discovered and reported. The movers were constantly mulling over other possible routes as freshly cleared obstacles opened new avenues for escape. The Royal Military Police manned the TP checkpoints and kept close watch for any potential enemy infiltration that had breached the line perimeter line of infantry on the left flank, their maps at the ready to help those lost in the maze of the city and its suburbs that the engineers had created.
It was quite likely the enemy had an inkling that an evacuation was to occur or was in the process of occurring, but nothing on this sort of magnitude. The plan was to completely bomburst from the defensive positions in Vanderburg and retreat in a lightning quick but orderly fashion. The first stage was to not give the enemy the impression that anything was different now than it was yesterday. Signals kept up the use of coded and decoded chatter and kept specifics short and sweet to prevent enemy SIGNIT catching on to planned evac. This work be concurrent with a spattering of offensive ambushes in the north and west of the city. In the centre itself, the final charges on large buildings would detonate blocking off all direct routes south and east while leaving indirect routes boobytrapped with anti-personnel mines and anti-tank mines. The port facilities were all rigged to blow and would produce one of the most fantastic explosions seen in the war; AA batteries had been deployed here initially due to enemy reluctance to destroy the important facilities. Once the go ahead for staggered mass withdrawal was given, the two attack helicopters left in the city would advance forward and harry the forward elements of the enemy’s vanguard force as they approached the denser parts of the city. As forces were to withdraw further south, the enemy would inevitably turn up the heat. One of the few surviving carriers from the east coast engagement with Imbrinium had sought shelter off the far south east coast of Stevidian South Greal. Seven aircraft, all Scorpions, had been kept safe and unused since the fleet’s defeat and only now were they to be utilised to support the evacuation. With enemy air superiority, the task of keeping air cover was nigh on impossible, but seven aircraft would be able to exact a total on an unexpectant enemy confident they already controlled the skies.
Once the order came through, the the forward TP points emptied and moved to the rendezvous position, the TP points behind also emptied and the convoys drove to the next TP, and so on until FOB Guardian itself emptied. All useful equipment gone or destroyed, all fortified positions rigged with AP mines, and as the final convoy rolled out of the FOB, the infantry sections collapsed in behind with forward elements ready to pounce in ambush on the unsuspecting enemy patrols. The only vehicles remaining in the city centre were Vipers and Intruders awaiting the infantry to return once the ambushes were complete.
2nd Tank Plt
18th Light Dragoons
West Vanderburg
0125 hrsThe five Rottweilers sat idle in light woodland facing towards Vanderburg. It wasn’t hard to spot, the city was engulfed with flames. But it was almost peaceful here as the platoon watched with glee as a small infantry platoon slept in a hardened ‘harbour area’ of buildings. Along the 2nd Tank Plt was a forward recce unit in a Land Rover who had been observing the enemy using thermal imaging and NVG for little over two hours. The tanks were in visible, unobstructed range but as far away as possible using range to their advantage. Once the platoon commander was happy with the wide spacing of the vehicles he gave the order to fire. This didn’t go quite to plan, the recce team failed to observe the enemy getting into position to defend the harbour - probably having heard the tanks approaching but unable to verify if they were friendly or not. This was confirmed when the 140mm shells starting pounding the harbour area. The Rottweiler was able to put down twenty rounds a minute and used this amount of physical firepower to good effect. The enemy had managed to fire back and an anti-tank missile crippled one of the medium tanks that then started to withdraw. The rest of the platoon followed suit while the recce Land Rover swung north to scope out any more units.
This type of hit and run continued throughout the night. Stevidian tanks engaged patrols of infantry and armour alike across the western flank of the Imbrinium Army’s attempt to surround the city. Self propelled artillery began shelling positions that had been engaged to give the impression whole batteries had been moved up to become involved with the ‘counter-attack’.
While the Stevidian Army engaged where they could despite the ruby darkness, the environment changed abruptly about 0130 hrs when the port facilities exploded as part of the retreat. The city was only a few kilometers away but a brilliant white flash of light marked the explosion - the skyscrapers silhouetted against the flash. This was followed by an almighty bang that actually shook the floor and scattered wildlife. It signaled the Army’s retreat from Vanderburg to the enemy - but by now the convoys would already be pouring out of the city.
South Central Vanderburg
0300 hrsThe explosions in the distance were furious. With thin streaks of light starting to appear of the hostile waters east, the enemy were hitting hard with artillery. The port explosion was wondrous, thousands of tonnes worth of natural gas up in flames, piers, cranes, buildings - all destroyed in a tremendous flash of white light. It had signalled Stevidian intent but only after nearly an hour and a half had passed since FOB Guardian had been evacuated. Now the tension was almost tangible as the enemy pushed onwards to capture the city and anyone still left inside. Their assaults were persistent and bloody and continually forced Stevidian infantry fighting sections back time and time again. The sections would collapse to pre prepared defences and trap enemy pursuers when they got too close using AP/AT mines and IEDs. But the comms channels started getting quieter as sections were either destroyed or captured as the enemy began flooding the northern districts with troops and armour. The east was faring better, the encirclement hadn’t been completed and their lines were stretched more thinly here hence why Imbrinium had stalled their overall advance to consolidate their position with reinforcements to take the city. The 16th Light Dragoons had punched into their Kingdom’s frontline but had made few inroads to strike deeper, resistance had been stiff. However their efforts had meant that the enemy would think Stevid was counter-attacking from the west to try lift the siege on Vanderburg; this meanwhile meant that with the frontline and rear echelons preoccupied with combat west of the city the infantry sections in the western districts would fair better than their northern compatriots.
2 Section
Alsace Platoon
Victor Company
12th Mech Inf Div (SGDF)Cpl Dennis Stanis of 2 Sec Alsace Plt curled his finger around the trigger of his M416 rifle and the rifleman to his left, Private Bennet, did the same. He sat half crouched behind a concrete wall-windowsill on the second floor of the block of flats that made up West-Central District 1 of Vanderburg. On the the opposite side of the road was another block of flats and on the second floor were two more riflemen, one with a LMG. Some 100 metres down the road on the opposite side to him was a three story building with four soldiers laying in wait - one a grenadier, a sniper and another rifleman also carrying a portable AT missile launcher. Below Cpl Stanis was a mobile mechanised foot patrol displaying the colours of the Royal Imbrinium Army, the infantry team were advancing with covering support from their APC, no doubt there were follow up patrols either not far behind them or travelling in an adjacent street; however Cpl Stanis had been ordered to sow confusion amongst the advancing enemy and engage in ambushes were appropriate and bring bloody urban CQC to the enemy.
Stanis peaked out over the windowsill to see that half the patrol had moved past them, they had only seconds before the enemy were midway between him and the four man fire team a short distance away. He glanced over the to his fellow rifleman with a small smile and a wink. Private Bennet nodded in acknowledgement so Stanis rose to a knee and pulled a laser pen from his pocket and flashed to his colleagues on the other building across from him and then to those positioned in the three story building down the street. From both combat team and fireteam, he received similar flashes - they awaited Cpl Stanis’ command. Stanis replaced the laser pen with a detonator from the top of his daysack and thumbed up the safety cap on the top. He paused a second, took a breath and mumbled a prayer before depressing the trigger button.
The first thing to detonate was an AT mine, only two metres in front of the APC itself. The tortured tarmac rose into the air with other filth and debris coating everyone and everything nearby. There were shouts of
"Contact!” from the troops below and hurried fire positions being adopted. The APC, undamaged by the explosion, fired its main gun towards the roof tops of the forward buildings in its arc of fire. The IEDs and AP mines rigged to the sides of the buildings between the fireteam detonated next; the explosions tore out at a 90 degree angle and killed whoever had decided the hardcover to the left and right of the street and been a good idea. This was then followed by eight (four on each side of the street), daisy chained IED explosions the ran between the buildings the fire teams were positioned in. Grey dust clouded everything and heavy masonry tumbled into the air and back down again on the unfortunate soldiers below. The IEDs that detonated in the middle of the daisy chain had several red smoke grenades attached as well, marking the centre of the patrol and aiding the Stevidian fire control orders.
Cpl Stanis unslung his rifle and brought it over the lip of the window and fired at a deliberate rate into the smoke. He heard his fellow soldiers opening fire too and the distinctive clatter of burst fire from the LMGs was very reassuring. The enemy were firing back but totally blind, but several stray shots peppered the window Stanis was firing from. The enemy wasn’t stupid, they knew it was an ambush and that Stevid controlled the high ground. All of a sudden there was an uncomfortable deep thudding noise as the main gun of the APC opened fire again.
“Chirst! That thing is still alive?” Bennet shouted above the din.
“Yh, Delta FT better deal with that pretty sharpish or this will only end badly.” Stanis admitted before clicking his radio on to life.
“Hello Delta this Charlie Alpha-one. Kill the tank! Kill the tank!”The was an echoing bang from the street below almost the exact second he’d finished talking as a friendly AT missile struck the front armour of the APC. The dumb missile defeated the ECM and it was to close for Cromwell to ID the target with the 100m distance, but the rigid front armour wasn’t defeated. The main gun had stopped firing though and Stanis concluded the explosion had rocked the crew and or destroyed the gun. The smoke and dust was starting to clear and now effective fire control orders were coming from the sniper down the road, kills were now being confirmed but the section’s approximate positions were being identified by the enemy. The LMG opposite Stanis was under effective fire and so was the fireteam down the street to the point they withdrew to re-engage on the second floor. Stanis tossed a grenade out the window for it to land directly beneath him to prevent enemy soldiers entering the building now their fire rate had fallen. Another pop and swoosh noise followed the launch of a ATM from the friendly fire team and Stanis saw this impact the right tread of the enemy APC.
“Right, let’s clear this mess up!” Stanis shouted tugging his rifleman along with him. He thumbed his radio again as the duo covered each other while running down the stairs.
“Charlie CT withdraw downstairs and re-engage at street level. Delta, provide cover and once finished regroup at the ‘Ironheart’ APC!”Stanis rounded a corner and heard muffled voices just outside the exit door to the mainstreet. He dropped to a knee and motioned to his oppo to roll a grenade outside. The rifleman stood a foot away from the unpinned an incendiary grenade, let go primer handle for a second before lightly tossing it round the corner. The explosion produced a bright orange flash and accompanying screams and Stanis took his cue. Both the soldiers rounded the corner one facing left the other right - back to back. Their weapons spraying rounds into anything that moved. Stanis spied two charred bodies on the floor and delivered a round each. The explosion hadn’t gone unnoticed and rounds started buzzing around his head and feet. He side-stepped behind a concrete door porch of the next building down, his fellow rifleman two doors behind.
“Cover!” Stanis yelled down the comms line. Behind him Bennet was lying in prone firing ahead towards to Imbrinium riflemen about forty metres away who had identified Stanis’ position. Across the street the second combat team of Charlie fire team had reached street level and began peppering a collection of soldiers huddled at the front of the APC using the crater from the AT mine strike as additional cover. Beyond was Delta fire team who were busy giving covering fire and fire control orders from their vantage point.
Once friendly suppressive fire started, Stanis unpinned his final grenade and tossed it towards the front of the tank. He heard the explosion but did not notice a dip in the enemy’s rate of fire indicating they had survived the grenade. Nonetheless he bolted for the rear of the immobilised APC and took a knee. He beckoned to his oppo who darted for Stanis’ position while Stanis himself leaned round the back of the tank and fired wildly with suppressive fire.
“Private…” He greeted the rifleman with a grin while changing his magazines.
“This is fun ain’t it?”“Strange definition of fun Corporal!” Bennet laughed softly.
“What’s the plan, mate?”Before Stanis could answer several loud thuds from the top of the vehicle rang out as the vehicle gunner had opened the top to use the vehicles machine gun against Delta fire team in the distance. “Man down, Charlie AT man down!” Came across the net. “Admin first aid now!”. Stanis frowned, at least his mucker wasn’t dead but the area was too hot for a full sitrep - details would have to wait. Atop the tank he was next to the pintle machine gun continued to fire, Stanis allowed a grin and looked at Bennet next to him.
“We kill that twat on top. Rather, you do… I’m all out!” Stanis said while tapping his grenade pouches.
“I’ll boost you up and you do the rest. Me and the rest of Charlie will keep the boys in the crater pinned down. Ready?”The rifleman nodded. He took a short run up and placed his boot in Stanis’ hand who then hurled him atop the APC. The bang of the impact startled the gunner who swivelled round to a soldier with a dirtied face and combats fumbling for his rifle. Precious seconds ticked by that felt like an eternity has both man panicked for their weapons. The gunner drew a pistol, Bennet his primary weapon. Both fired and the gun loosed two rounds with one missing and one catching the leg of Bennet. He fared better with a rifle on burst fire and scored several hits killing the gunner who collapsed back into the tank. There was a chorus of furious shouting from inside the vehicle and it was silenced with Bennet’s second incendiary grenade, flames and black smoke licked out of the vehicle’s top hatch as did horrible screams from the crew inside. By this point Delta fire team had moved to ground level to join up with Charlie fireteam, and now the enemy patrol was surrounded it wasn’t long before the survivors were helped along their way to the next world.
Cpl Stanis sighed deeply as the rigours of combat started to ache his muscles now the adrenaline was no longer flowing.
“Fucking hell.” He stated looking around at the devastation.
“That went well. Find a soldier, listen to his radio for ICOM chatter.”The section dispersed and for a few minutes they all grabbed radios and listened into the traffic. The messages were same throughout the Imbrinium local net, the attack had been successfully reported and was to be reinforced. Cpl Stanis bellowed a withdrawal command just as an enemy infanteer rounded a corner about 100 metres away from where the first patrol had come from. He fired rounds at 2 Section who now peeled back towards the flats Stanis had occupied earlier. One rifleman of 2 Sect returned fire and dropped the enemy soldier but by now three or four more had now joined the attack. 2 Section retreated through the interconnected maze of corridors and alleyways southwards towards their next combat zone some two kilometres away, but only too aware that their surroundings would be teaming with enemy patrols.