Ukraine Crisis [IC] [Sign-up 1st] (MT)

[Luhanskaya]

Senior Sergeant Vladimir "Vova" Yurchak
OP Wolverine《Rosamakha》 37К ГВ 1522 9037
37км West of Donetsk, Near Selydove
2nd Squad, 4th Company, 87th Seperate Motor Rifle Brigade, В/Ч 22874
Ukrainian ATO Forces, Task Force "Pekelnybog"

"Sonyachniy zakhid (сонячний захід)" responded Fedya over the radio confirming they changed to the alternate channel to continue communications.

"Fedya begin heading back to us. We'll explain once you return" whispered Fixa over the hand mic.

"Tak Tochno, heading back now"

After a minute of delay a response came over the main radio.

“Please stay on the channel Mr. Yurchak. I’ll be right back with some new info.”

Vova looked towards Fixa anxiously awaiting a response. His heart pounding out of his chest. For all he knew this could be the DPR gathering intelligence, the attack being so recent it was almost to convenient to him that he recieved friendly communication right after the fire fight.

“Mr. Yurchak I’m back. I’m here to notify you that the EFF has sent a small squadron of transport helicopters to your position. They’ll have friendly platoons to reinforce your position and to bring your squad back to FOB Frederick. Do you copy?”

Quickly grabbing the headset from Fixa, Vova held down the PTT.

"And what of the boys in the 109th? Are other artillery units replcaing them, or are they to stay put?

Could they really be getting off the frontlines? he thought. Vova looked down at his scraped, calloused, bloodied and bruised hands. The hands that once held his wife and child were no longer recognizable. Looking up he scanned Fixa. His hair strewn about in all directions, dusty and disheveled curling at the ends. His face covered with dust and small cuts. The uniform he wore no longer bared any resemblance to the multicam it once had, but was now a flat muddy brown and faded beyond recognition. It hit Vova at that moment just how long these young boys had been fighting at the frontlines. Fixa was 19 when he first arrived to 4th company but he was now 22. Vova was an empty shell of his former self. he left his wife, child, family and friends at 21 to come fight in this war. He witnessed atrocities not even seen in movies. Clearing villages only to find mass graves. Artillery tearing tanks to shreds like they were toys, followed by the crew rolling out burning alive if they were unlucky enough to survive the initial explosion. You'd run over to put the fire out but as you grabbed them to pull them to safety, their skin would slide off the bone. The screams echoed in his thoughts.

"You think they'll have running water there?" prodded Fixa, this snapped Vova out of his hallucination

"Hopefully, hopefully..." muttered Vova almost to quiet to hear

[Vangaziland]

The Vannish operatives were being kept in the dark. They stayed in their small FOB with the Ukrainian BMPs, which had been repainted to look like Russian vehicles. All the operatives knew was that they were going behind enemy lines to gather first hand intelligence. A lot of resources were being put into play for this. Surely more would come out about the plan.

The Vangazi made their home here, moving into two large structures where they spread themselves out. The vehicles were kept hidden in large bays. The operatives spent much of the day and night training. They practiced their movements and even hand-to-hand drills. They worked out hard and kept mentally active.

They were waiting for details on the mission. They were waiting for the day when they would be called into action. They set up targets in a remote area of the base and backed away 50 meters. There were many drills they could do, including line drills where they shot inches away from each other in moving formations.

The team was ready for the next step, getting plenty of sleep to pass the days and rest up for what could be a long mission away from any base.

[Cosparia]

Fort Bannister, Cosparia
Several weeks ago

"... heavy fighting continues into the new year in the Donetsk region of Ukraine, where a joint task force consisting of troops and light armor from the United Nations of Europa, Vangaziland, and our own Cosparia, among other nations, are busy providing military and humanitarian aid to the local population, demoralized by years of fighting..." The TV in Colonel George Lawrence's office sounded off international news in the early morning of January 1st, 2018. A couple of months before, he had authorized one of the battalions in his regiment to assist in providing aid and security to a refugee and medical station, which the politicians described as "a gesture of goodwill to the international community". However, for official reasons, only part of the battalion was sent in at first--just one company of infantry, to provide security for the medical detachment. Col. Lawrence knew this to be a mistake, as he had been paying close attention to the situation overseas, and he could tell that they simply could not remain non-combatants forever. He saw the separatists as insurgents, and he knew insurgents liked to target non-combat personnel. The senior officer wanted to send the entire battalion at once, but red tape simply prevented him from doing so.

At least, until now.

The phone on his desk rang. Col. Lawrence picked it up and answered, fully expecting some elected bonehead on the other end.

"Hello, this is Colonel George Lawrence of the Third Mechanized... Is that so? Alright. Well, I've kept them at constant readiness..." The senior officer glanced out the window, looking at the rest of the assigned battalion waiting for deployment. "... but we all know what 'soon' means to the politicians. ... Okay. I'll let everyone know, run it by the DND guys, and the first plane should be on the ground there within 48 hours. ... Not a problem, Tremblay. Goodbye." The colonel took a breath, then phoned the people in charge at the Department of National Defense.

---

Outside Pervomais'ke, Ukraine
FOB Nightstick
4 miles from the outskirts of Donetsk
Present day

There was a feeling of tension among the soldiers at FOB Nightstick, given their proximity to the heaviest of fighting. Unlike Yukon, Nightstick was purely a military affair. With the line having moved further westward, Cosparian forces needed troops to follow UNE forces, and especially to get into the city of Donetsk. Nightstick was established largely to have some extra eyes looking at the city, which was bristling with "fun" activity; every once in a while, an observation team would report a small force of separatists forming an attack group on technicals, which Cosparian mortars would promptly disperse with a couple rounds of high-explosive.

Today, though, people were a little bit more tense than usual. Over the past few days, platoon and squad leaders were regularly briefed about operations that were scheduled to begin within the next week or two. Offensive operations. The troops were trained for that sort of thing, but very few of them have actually seen combat outside of training exercises and wargames. Today's briefing talked heavily about expected enemy resistance in and around the city, equipment used by the separatists, and particularly dwelling upon positively IDing combatants versus civilians in an urban environment. "Winning hearts and minds" was the name of the game. While some grew tired of hearing it, the Cosparian deployment was still a humanitarian mission just as much as it was a military one, and opening fire on unarmed civilians is an easy way to lose local, home, and international support. With word about Vannish special forces now in the area, PID was especially stressed in the brief.

Lieutenant Colonel Tremblay was in the command center, going through a slideshow with company and platoon leadership elements.

"Now normally, we'd want to avoid prolonged engagements in urban areas as much as possible. Unfortunately, we can't just wheel around this one. Due to the importance of Donetsk, eventually, we're gonna have to start kickin' doors down like a few of us did in Iraq. And just like then, positive identification, or PID, is very important. Today, I'm going to go over our latest knowledge of equipment and uniforms used by the enemy..." The senior officer began almost a college-like lecture, and the briefing dragged on for about an hour. Mostly Eastern Bloc small arms and vehicles, mismatched Soviet-era camouflage, and some captured Ukrainian military hardware.

"... and even though their politicians will deny it, there have been reports of Russian troops crossing the border and joining the separatist ranks. Usually they're away from the lines training separatist guerrillas, but given the size of Donetsk, expect anything. Oh, and one more thing..." Lt/Col Tremblay halted his troops before finishing. "... supposedly, the Vangazi have brought some of their special forces into the area. Now, us being line infantry, we're typically not privy to that sort of information. That said, word of mouth does get around. From what I've heard, they're going to be operating behind enemy lines, so when things kick off, be especially careful about who you and your troops shooting at. Remember PID. Dismissed."

[The United Nations Of Europa]

Jerek Novak
FOB Frederick Hulyaipole, Ukraine
ATOC Center
Anti-Terrorist Operation Communications Center

Jerek ran as fast as he could to section F of the HQ. With finding Yurchak's squad so recently, he had to act fast before something happened to them. As he entered the building, people inside stared at the man running full speed towards the back. Security stood in front of the entrance and halted Jerek's sprint inside.

"Halt, identification sir."

Jerek reached into his pocket and pulled his ID car. It had a barcode on the back that had a special marking for access to the section F room. The security guard took the card from his hand and scanned it. A few seconds later a beep came from the scanner, giving Jerek clearance to enter.

"Go ahead sir."

Jerek quickly entered the room after, "Col. Adams I need you now!"
Adams looked at him with surprise," Jerek can't you see i'm briefing the new ops!"
"It's Yurchak...we found him."
"Wait you actually found him?'
"Yes but we need to act fast before something bad happens."
''Alright so what do you want me to do?"

Jerek took out the document from earlier and slammed it on the desk, "Here's his location. His squad has been defending this line the line near Selyove so we think there are still enemies nearby. I want 4 transport choppers at his location with reinforcements to help in case of an attack."

Adams nodded his head and grabbed the radio on the desk, "Sgt.Colbert get 4 Vipers ready and spinning up. We need you to extract a friendly squad. Coordinates are being sent to you right now. There is a friendly Ukrainian ATO squad at that location that you need to extract. Once you get close to the LZ, have Sergeant Nilsson contact the ATO personnel. He’ll be able to talk to them since he speaks Ukrainian. I’m sending four squads for you to take. They’ll be stationed at that location until further reinforcements are sent. Secure the area around the LZ and bring back the friendly Ukrainian forces."

Adams hung up the phone and looked back at Jerek, "Alright now get back to the ATOC Center, stay updated on Yurchak's status."

Sgt. Colbert
EFF Air Force/ French Corps
FOB Frederick Hulyaipole, Ukraine


Sgt. Colbert had been in Ukraine since the beginning. Flying platoons in and out from Frederick and Donetsk was his main routine. He commanded one of the first response squadrons that consisted of Viper helicopters. They were always ready for take off and were responsible for extractions and transportation of troops and civilians. Many regarded his squadron as the “Guardians of Ukraine”. Dozens of people around the base were alive thanks to his squad.

Colbert was back at the airfield with his squadron, waiting for a call to action. The airfield was surprisingly quiet today. With the fighting in Donetsk decreasing less aircraft were leaving the airfield, with only a small amount taking off for air support. Armand, Colbert’s best friend, was in the cockpit checking the gun systems. He was the gunner of Colbert’s Viper. The two had known each other since the beginning of training. With some luck in their life they ended up assigned to the same helicopter. Armand finished checking the gun systems and was about to leave when Colbert came up behind him.

“Is everything good?”

“Everything is running okay.”

“Great. What’s the status on all the others”

“All the others chopper systems are running correctly. So do we have any ope-”

Armand stopped in the middle of his sentence, looking at a group of jeeps heading towards them. All of them filled with equipped with fully equipped soldiers. Colbert’s radio rang shortly after, taking their attention away from the jeeps.

“Sgt. Colbert speaking.”

"It’s Col. Adams, Colbert get 4 Vipers ready and spinning up. We need you to extract a friendly squad. Coordinates are being sent to you right now. There is a friendly Ukrainian ATO squad at that location that you need to extract. I’m sending you their channel info. Once you get close to the LZ, have Sergeant Nilsson contact the ATO personnel. He’ll be able to talk to them since he speaks Ukrainian. I’m sending four squads for you to take. They’ll be stationed at that location until further reinforcements are sent. Secure the area around the LZ and bring back the friendly Ukrainian forces.”

“Roger that sir”

Colbert quickly put his personal radio away and grabbed the main radio in the cockpit.
“Everyone get your choppers running! We’re taking these men with us.”

All of the helicopter crews immediately entered their helicopters, starting the engines and performing their pre flight checkups. As they were doing this, the soldiers from the jeeps started to enter the helicopters and loaded in equipment they were taking along. The soldiers strapped into their seats once they were done while their squad leader strapped on a communications helmet to talk to Colbert.

“This is Sgt. Colbert, requesting clearance for takeoff.” Colbert waited for a response from the ATC tower shortly after.

“Colbert you’re cleared for takeoff.” Colbert gave a nod to his gunner and flipped a switch that sent an alert to the other pilots in his squad that they were cleared for takeoff. The engineers on the airfield finished their last check ups on the helicopters and the air marshals started to signal Colbert’s squad that they were ready for takeoff. One by one the helicopters started to hover before finally taking off. They would arrive at the LZ in about 30 minutes.


Sgt. Colbert
EFF Air Force/ French Corps
Near Selydove
ETA minutes

For 20 minutes straight, the squad of helicopters flew to the LZ. It was a calm flight for the most part, yet there was some tension as many on board knew they would be nearing an area where a lot of combat took place. Colbert turned on his mic, ready to alert the soldiers on board, “We’ll be nearing the LZ very soon. Get your gear ready because we have to act quick on this.”

Their squad leader took notice of this and responded back to him,” Roger that. Alright men, as soon as we land I want everyone to get off first and quickly get our gear off. Helicopters will take off as soon as we extract the Ukrainian ATO personnel. Keep your eyes open as we don’t know if there will be an enemy prese-.”
The squad leader’s radio interrupted him as he was about to finish his debrief. He quickly answered it and was surprised to hear Col. Adams on the other end.

“Sergeant Nilsson speaking.”
“Nilsson have you arrived at the LZ yet?”
“No sir.”

There was a short silence following his response which caused some unrest in Nilsson’s mind. Col. Adams came back after what was a strange silence, “Oh shit, alright surveillance teams contacted us saying there was an enemy presence near the LZ. We think they’re going to launch an attack on the ATO’s line. Get your asses there quick, we don’t know how much longer it’ll be before they do.”

“We’re on it sir.” Nilsson put down the radio and turned his mic on to communicate with Colbert.

“Colbert I just got a call from Adams. He said they found an enemy presence near the LZ. We need to get there quick.”

“Will do Sergeant.”

Nilsson pulled out his radio and a paper from his bag. The paper had information such as Yurchak’s radio channel on it. He read the channel number and continued to change his radio channel to his. Once he did so he started to speak into his radio, trying to contact him.

“Sergeant Yurchak, Sergeant Yurchak check in. This is Sergeant Nilsson from the EFF. I’m one of the squad leaders who will be extracting your squad. We will be approaching your location in three minutes. We’ve recently been notified that an enemy force may be approaching your location. Stay alert and keep watch for any hostiles. Once the helicopters land we will secure the area and you’ll get on them. Our squads will take your place in the Selydove line.”

The other soldiers in Nilsson’s squad looked at him with confusion as none could understand what he was saying. Once the conversation ended, Nilsson put his radio away once more and looked at his squad members giving them a quick nod. The 4 helicopters were now in sight of the LZ where friendly Ukrainian forces could see them from above. The helicopters slowed down and started their descent on an open area about 200 yards away. The trenches where Yurchak would be at could be seen from a distance. Once the helicopters touched down, all the personnel aboard the helicopters quickly exited, taking any gear along with them. The helicopters took off once again and flew 1000 yards away where they would wait until the area was secured. Once it was they would fly back and extract Yurchak’s squad back to FOB Frederick.


Sgt. Nelsson
EFF Army/ Swedish Corps
Near Selydove

32 men had just been dropped off at their LZ and with a quick pace they made their way to Yurchack's line. After a half hour helicopter ride, the 4 squads that Adams sent had finally made it to their destination. Once they reached the trenches, soldiers in the other squads quickly positioned themselves while the others set up equipment they brought along. Nelsson made his way to a group of Ukainian soldiers standing near a Humvee, hoping one of them would be Yurchak.

"Де я можу знайти Vladimir Yurchak?"
(Where can I find Vladimir Yurchak?"

[Luhanskaya]

Senior Sergeant Vladimir "Vova" Yurchak
OP Wolverine《Rosamakha》 37К ГВ 1522 9037
37км West of Donetsk, Near Selydove
2nd Squad, 4th Company, 87th Seperate Motor Rifle Brigade, В/Ч 22874
Ukrainian ATO Forces, Task Force "Pekelnybog"

Vova threw the hand mic to Fixa.

"Get you're bag ready, if they radio back ask about the 109th, and what we're to do with the BMD."

Grabbing his rifle and helmet he ran out of the tent towards the front lines of the trenches.

"Chetvertaya rota (Fourth Company), pull off the line in one at a time and ready your gear to leave! We're being relieved. Double time, let's move, davai, davai!" Shouted Vova as he ran to his fighting position his feet sticking in the mud with each step.

The men got in pairs of two, one of the two would pull off the line and run to their position and pack, after they were done they'd run back to their buddy so they could do the same.

Vova grabbed his ruck with one hand throwing it up onto his shoulder and ran towards the BMD-4.

"Stage your bags behind "Boksr" so we can file out of the trench quickly when the birds arrive!"

The soldiers followed in behind him throwing their bags down in an organized formation and immediatley ran back to the line. The men remained disciplined as they got back to their posts, knowing that the DPR forces could have easily intercepted the transmissions. The Humvee pulled off the highway onto the dirt road making it's way to the OP. Pulling into it's fighting position Kasper shook around in the turret holding on to the NSV as they drove over ruts, his dog Boevik lay up in the turret ring with him. Babnik pulled in and turned the vehicle off. Fedya swung the door open and jumped out.

"What the fuck is going on? First the locals don't show to deliver supplies to the 109th and then you have us race back here?" asked Fedya as he slammed the door behind him.

"We're being relieved hurry up and get your bags." Vova said kicking the caked mud off his boots

"What? By who?


"Some of the foreigners, EFF boys, now hurry up. Babnik, grab Kasper's things, bring your bags over behind the "bakha" (BMD series vehicle) when you're done"

There was absolutely now way they could bring everything with them. Hell, half of the trench walls had shelves cut into them that housed ammo crates and loaded magazines, RPG-18's littered the trench, grenades lay in boxes at all of the positions. Belts were linked together by the thousands at the "bunkers" where the PK variants were emplaced. Vova sat on the back of the Humvee, looking back into the trench at all of his men.

Command Tent at OP Wolverine

“Sergeant Yurchak, Sergeant Yurchak check in. This is Sergeant Nilsson from the EFF. I’m one of the squad leaders who will be extracting your squad. We will be approaching your location in three minutes. We’ve recently been notified that an enemy force may be approaching your location. Stay alert and keep watch for any hostiles. Once the helicopters land we will secure the area and you’ll get on them. Our squads will take your place in the Selydove line.”

"Tak tochno, this is fourth company, I read you. Do we have a size and direction on that element? Secondly we never got a reply on our boys in the 109th, they're back down the road a few KM's. What are they to do? Thirdly we have a BMD here, if the vehicle is not to come back with us, what of the crew?" Fixa rapped quickly over the mic while he poked his head out of the tent. "Vova! There's a Sergeant Nilsson checking in, ETA 3 minutes. He said there was a possible enemy element moving towards our location. No word on the 109th yet. "

"Tracking" shouted Vova from where he sat. The birds could be heard in the distance.

Trenches, OP Wolverine

Back in the mortar pit Cherniy grabbed his "podnos" and threw it up onto his shoulder. Looking at all the crates of mortar rounds he could only shake his head and laugh. "Yeah, fuck that." he muttered to himself leaving the crates where they lay. He brought the mortar over behind the BMD to the staging area and set it down on his bag. His hand shook as he reached under his body armor in to his left breast pocket pulling out a cigarette. Approaching the driver hatch of the BMD he gave the side of the vehicle a few lazy knocks with the muzzle of his rifle while holding it around the handguard in one hand. The driver, "Traktorist", opened the hatch stretching as he extended his torso out of the hole.

"You got a light?" Cherniy asked with the cigarette hanging in his lips.

Traktorist dropped back down into the hatch. Shouting could be heard humming unintelligibly back and fourth, the sound being drowned out by the steel hull. Then the turret hatch popped open and the commander, Troyka stuck his head out. He was the oldest of everyone at the age of 31. He'd seen some of the heaviest fighting out of everyone and fought head on against the "Polite People" in the far east at the beginning of the war. He was the only surviving member of his old crew. A few months in to the war, outside of Ilovaisk, a missile from a "DPR" Kornet system shredded his BMP-2 like a tin can. He was the only survivor as he crawled out of the hatch. Immediately upon exposing him self heavy incoming fire began ricocheting of the hull. He fell to the ground. His arm had caught fire, he tried putting it out while crawling for safety around to the other side of the vehicle. Suddenly he was grabbed and pulled to safety. It had been Yurchak that grabbed him and drug him behind the burnt out BMP. From that moment forward Troyka had fought alongside of the men in 4th Company.

"You got one for me?" Troyka asked in his deep, raw almost dead sounding voice. The voice made you uncomfortable just hearing it. He stuck his arm out with the lighter. His arm baring the scars from when he had caught fire.

Cherniy took the lighter, while handing him the pack of cigarettes. Both of them watching as the helicopters landed in the field no further than 200 meters away. Around 30-40 men disembarked from the birds and double timed to the line. Cherniy took a puff of his cigarette, pointing towards the correct path to take in order to start filling in the line. The ATO soldiers now shared their positions waiting for the order to break off towards the staging area. A few men bypassed him and went straight towards the humvee. The sergeant from the EFF came up looking like like he was out of a ghost recon game with his high tech equipment.

"Де я можу знайти Vladimir Yurchak?" he asked in a decent Ukrainian accent while approaching the humvee's fighting position.

"Я Юрчак" Said Vova as he jumped off the back of the humvee.
("I'm Yurchak")

[The United Nations Of Europa]

Chancellor Linda Schulte
Copenhagen, Denmark, UNE

“You have to be kidding me General. I mean seriously, have you seen the news.”

(news video I made)
https://vimeo.com/281019760

“I’m sorry Madam Chancellor but the Russians are gathering more and more at the border. In their current position they’re stating that this is just an act of defense and they will only have them guard their border.”

There was a brief pause after the general's statement with a sigh released from the chancellor, “We went from having conferences with them in Berlin to now this. Look as we both know, Russia is not stupid enough to go and start an all-out war with us. But we can’t let them continuously escalate things with us or have them making our allies think we're going to start another world war.’’

“I understand your frustration chancellor but we shouldn’t let Russia deter us from our main mission.”
“And how’s our main mission going general?”

“As of now, it’s going just as planned. Our forces have pushed the separatists out of Donetsk, forcing them to retreat towards Luhansk.”
“What about the civilians in the area?”
“What about them?”

“How are they taking in us being in Donetsk.”
“Well as of now it’s very mixed. People in the city are thanking us for pushing the separatists out and others are...not doing that. Considering the amount of propaganda they were exposed to under separatist control, i’m not surprised.”

“How much longer do you think it will take for Donetsk to be taken?”
“At our current rate I’d say by the end of the month.”
“What’s the status on the border.”
“There are pockets of pro-Ukraine forces that are along the border region but we’re not sure if they’ll be able to hold until we get there. Not only that but many of them still don’t have communication with us.”

“What about the volunteer groups? Do we have any idea what their position is on us?”
The general leaned back in his chair and let out a small laugh. “I’ll tell you one thing about them, trying to work with some of them is harder than talking to a teenage girl sometimes.”
“How so?”

“All of the volunteers want nothing but glory for Ukraine yet there is still a lot of them that don't want to work with us. They see us as imperialists, globalists, yadda yadda yadda the usual crazy shit.”
“So what's your opinion on the situation?”

The general stood up out of his chair and proceeded towards a map of Ukraine on the wall. “Well as of now we should focus our resources on controlling major roads, reinforcing Ukrainian forces and getting control of the border. Lastly, if we take control of the E50, E40, and E105, then separatists resupply routes will be greatly disrupted.”
“Well general, it seems that you have everything under control.”
Schulte then turned over to her secretary, “Uhh Klara, please take my letter and have the staff send it out if you would.”

“Will do Linda.”




Sgt. Nelsson
EFF Army/ Swedish Corps
Near Selydove

“Я Юрчак.”
(I'm Yurchak)
One of the Ukrainian ATO jumped off a Humvee and, lo and behold, it was the man that command had been looking for a while.
“So you're the man they've been bugging me about. My name is Sgt. Nelsson, EFF Army/Swedish Corps. Sorry I couldn't respond to your questions but we had to be quick. Now I'd love to sit down, have some tea and explain everything but our recon drones spotted separatist forces 2 clicks away. So the short story is that we'll be reinforcing your position and new troops will come in tomorrow to support the 109th. Any military hardware that you will be leaving behind is to stay. We'll have transport vehicles to take it back where it'll be redistributed to other Ukrainian forces. Any questions?”

Captain Wiktor “Petro” Nowak
20 minutes away from
JW GROM

“Obudź się. Wiktor, Obudź się!”
(Wake up. Wiktor, wake up!”
Wiktor slowly woke up from his rough sleep, shuffling around in the cramped BTR 80. “Ah kurwa, I’m starting to miss my cot now.”
“Tell me about it. This BTR is one of the most uncomfortable things I’ve ridden on.”
“What was the first thing Jakub, a mans cock?” Aleksy, one of the JW GROM operators tasked to the mission, burst into laughter. Some of the operators in the back cracked a smile and eventually joined in on the laugh.

“Aleksy, you keep talking shit and I’m going to kick your ass.”
“Whatever you say Jakub.” Aleksy said while letting out a small snicker. “Anyways when are we going to meet up with these Vanish troops.”
“Just hold on Aleksy, we’ll be there in 20 minutes.”

After fully waking up from his sleep, Wiktor took a look around the cramped crew compartment of the BTR. He stared at his fellow team members and let out a small chuckle, “You guys all look like a bunch of armed homeless men with that gear on. I have to admit I never thought that I’d end up being dressed like a separatist.”
“I just hope this uniform wasn’t from a dead body.” Aleksy commented.
“10 minutes till we arrive!” yelled Otto who was driving the BTR-80.
“Do they know we’re coming?” Jakub asked.

“Of course they do. Our plans have already been discussed with Vanish forces.” Wiktor answered.
The vehicle finally reached the small reclusive FOB. It would be temporary as the joint forces would be leaving it behind very soon. The two BTR’s pulled up to the large two buildings and the men inside slowly emptied out. Some of them were anxious about the reclusive area, thinking separatists could be in the area.

[Smaze]

Captain Patrick "Paddy" McMarren
Kramators'k Airport
"Dakar" Paraborne Company
SEEF

Captain McMarren looked over to his troops. Their flight had been long, longer than 17 hours to be precise, and they were all very tired. The government had hired loyalist locals to transport the goods that the troops brought with them, and to properly outfit the barracks for them to sleep in. They depended on federalist supply lines, and the only supplying of their own was airborne, which was risky, because the only proper air support that they had could only be done by multirole fighters. The young captain was suspicious of the plan, and had been semi-opposed to sending troops to Ukraine in the first place.

The troops leaving the airplanes looked zombie-like. A bunch of horribly tired teenagers wearing red berets. He was very happy the people at home didn't see this, especially because the "Red berets" were considered to be elite.

"The Ukraine conflict should better bring Smaze some big advantages, because the longer these troubled teenagers that call themselves men march around this forsaken country, the slimmer the chance of them leaving them leaving this nation unscathed", he thought to himself.

McMarren was seriously concerned for the lives of his men, and he was the only person in his united who was disappointed that they had to go. He didn't reveal this publicly, though. Saving face and coming over as strong as humanly possible was important in the military, and this is exactly what they needed: toughness and strength to get through this conflict, in this far-away nation.

[Cosparia]

Congressional Chambers
New Birmingham, Cosparia
Safely in the opposite hemisphere

"This operation has been carrying on for several months now, and with what appreciable gains? Russia is sending more troops towards the border, and massing of a force that large has only led to a considerably worse outcome in the past. If anything, this situation is only worsening." Senator Marcus Davison voices his party's opposition to the continued Cosparian involvement in Ukraine.

"Davison, things were bad back in 2014 when this whole thing kicked off, and it could only have gone in this direction whether anyone intervened or not." Senator Lillian Halberton retorted. "As for our gains, do you even know what we are actually doing over there? We are providing hundreds of displaced people food and shelter. We are providing security and aid to those caught in the crossfire. We are doing our best to help innocent people get back what they lost."

"With an entire infantry battalion?" Chimed in yet another politician. "Infantry are trained to do one thing; fight. A rifle won't rebuild a house, or purify water."

The halls echoed with the typical political bickering between elected officials, until the Chambers were silenced by the Speaker of the Halls.

While home support of the operation is tenuous at best, with the Daily Press reporting 52% public support, the situation as being discussed in the Halls of Congress would be quite a different thing for the men on the ground.

---

OP Blackjack
Donetsk International Airport

2/Lt. Philip Harrison and his 2nd Platoon of A Company, 8th Motorized Infantry Battalion were dug in around some of the remains of the terminal building of Donetsk International Airport. While the building itself was mostly trashed, the leftover pieces were enough for a friendly engineering unit to set up a decent outpost large enough for roughly a company of infantrymen. Some of Harrison's men, afterward, had taken the time to graffiti a large Ace of Clubs near the entrance area, as a reference to the name of their location.

Lt. Col. Tremblay was hesitant to move an entire FOB into the area, because intelligence was reporting several large pockets of resistance in the nearby suburb of Avdiivka, about three miles due north of the airport. Thus, OP Blackjack was established as an outpost for combat patrols to cycle through. Tremblay had wanted another section of the airport set up as a FARP for the mechanized unit, but such a task would further stretch the already-thin logistical elements at his disposal. He would have to coordinate with a European Federal logistics unit for refueling.

Harrison was getting ready to lead his platoon out to join the rest of A Company at the staging area in a nearby railyard. They had been given orders to rally with B Coy. and the tank company, along with some other friendly combat units, to make a large push into Avdiivka and either force a rout in or completely destroy any separatist forces in the city. As ugly as it would be, it was explained that taking that city would be vital to disrupt separatist supply lines, as it was right next to Ukrainian Highway H20--sometimes referred to as "the river" by Cosparian troops, due to its designation, and its use as an enemy supply route.

"Alright gentlemen, I think your sergeants told you the plan, but I'm just gonna run through it one last time. We're going to Point Fusion to join B and the rest of A company, and continue on through Points Taurus and Mustang as we make our way into the city." Harrison pointed at his map at each respective point, tracing their planned route with his bayonet. "Any hostile contact is to be engaged and neutralized, and any neutral contact is to be reported. Make sure your PRRs are tuned correctly. Remember that a good chunk of the city is a residential area, so once we get there, don't let yourselves get separated, and for God's sake, check your targets. Any questions?" He looked at his men. Nobody's hands went up.

"Excellent. Now since we're expecting heavy contact, we've been allowed an equally-heavy ammo load. Every man will carry at least 12 mags for yourself, and 300 linked rounds for the auto-riflemen. This is going to be a long operation, so load up on water, and function-check all of your electronics at Fusion. Grab your patrol packs, and let's mount up.

---

Point Fusion
Donets'k-Pivnichnyi Rail Station
2 miles south-southeast of Avdiivka

Private James McDermid sat nervously in the back of his platoon's APC as they slowly lurched to a halt at Point Fusion. It had been many months since he had arrived in Ukraine, and while he had adjusted, he still had bouts of homesickness. He removed his left combat glove and rubbed the silver band around his ring finger, before closing his eyes, and placing his glove back on. The young Private reached into one of his utility pouches and removed a stick of gum, unwrapping it and quickly popping it into his mouth. This is for real, he thought, not just a war game. He took a deep breath through his nose as the APC's ramp lowered, and dismounted with his squad.

A Company's commander had noted to 2nd Lieutenant Harrison that his platoon was three minutes late. He had prepared to receive a verbal reprimand from the commander, but the officer stated that they couldn't waste any more time with it.

"I'll assume you made sure everyone had the stated ammunition load, and nothing that wasn't necessary?"
"Yes sir. If it's not mission-essential, it's back at Nightstick."
"Good. I know the extra ammo will weigh them down, but I don't want men dying because they ran dry."
"Understood, sir."
"Thank you, Lieutenant. Have your platoon do a last-minute functions check. We're moving out in five." The junior officer saluted and rejoined his platoon.

[Vangaziland]

10th Airborne Cav Staging Area

"Man, can you believe we're finally doing this?" A staff sergeant with red hair stood around the rear hatch of a BTR-80. With him were three other soldiers. In his hand was an MRE, chicken parmesan.

"I know", said a 1st Lt. This man was a dark golden, light black complexion, with curly black hair. "The higher ups had a tougher time procuring these vehicles than expected."

"I think the mission planners assumed we had BTR's. I could see why. We use the BMD-4, the BMPT and the T90. We don't usually mess with Russian APCs, though."

"It must look bad", said a third man. A corporal. "They must think we brought these from Russia. No way. Our supplier has a license to produce Russian vehicles, but they're not affiliated with the Russian CIS at all. They opposed them too."

"I'm sure our allies know that", said the Lt. "Just know, they requested SF for this assignment. All they got was the Airborne Cav."

The Sergeant laughed heartily. "Well, we are the Empire's shock troops. This is the perfect mission for a Cav scout. Recon is our name."

"You meant game", said the Corporal in a rude correction.

"Do pushups", said the Sergeant, half smiling. He wasn't going to smoke the guy, he just wanted to reinforce order. You don't just correct a Sergeant in the Army like that.

"Roger, Sergeant." The corporal was also half smiling. He didn't mind a bit of a workout to start the day. Alongside the soldiers were three BTR-80s. They had been painted in the colors of the local forces. They had even trained in how to mimic Russian convoy tactics and driving styles. Their goal would be to record coordinates for future airstrikes and get a groud level view of several interesting sites satellites picked up. It was not a neccesity to use ground troops to find targets. Not with drones and satellites. But refining that data and building a better understanding could be achieved with this risky mission.

The EFF vehicles rolled into the small FOB as the sergeant told the Corporal to get back up. He tucked his meal back inside of the vehicle. The Lieutenant motioned for the vehicles to pull up to the left of the three Vannish trucks. Another officer crawled out of the back of the BTR next to where the EFF trucks would pull up.

Her skin was also the golden brown color of Vangaziland's mixed races. A blonde sergeant crawled out after her. They approached the convoy. Captain Andreson spoke over a handheld MBITR radio which was attached to her vest. The trio outside the middle vehicle couldn't hear what she said over the engines of the arriving trucks.

Smiling, she and her attache stood waiting to greet the allied forces. "Finally about to get this done, huh?" She tried to shout over the engines.

[Cosparia]

Breckenridge International Airport
Breckenridge, Cosparia

Colonel George Lawrence stood in one of the men's restrooms at the airport, finely adjusting elements of his olive-drab dress uniform in the mirror--making sure his tie is straight, that his service ribbons are lined up, his rifle-green infantry beret is still shaped, and so forth. Around his waist sat a leather belt and holster in a ceremonial shade of white, the holster containing a special officer-issue variant of the P-35 service pistol; he opened the holster and withdrew the handgun, its deep blued finish reflecting the light, the dark walnut grips contrasting nicely with the metal. The senior officer looked briefly at the other side, before shaking his head and sliding the polished weapon back into its holster.

About the same time, Cosparia's most senior officer, Field Marshal William Howard Ross, had entered the restroom to do much the same thing; adjust the smaller details in the mirror. His bright royal blue beret contrasted with Col. Lawrence's rifle green, indicating that the older officer had served in one of Cosparia's airborne units. Lawrence saluted his superior officer.

"Sir."
"At ease, Colonel." Ross's voice had an almost satisfying quality to it, like that of one's grandfather. At 63 years of age, he certainly looks the part, too.

"You just don't know when to quit, do you, sir?" Lawrence smiled and asked.
"I've served my country for 45 years, George. The day I stop serving is the day I stop breathing." The elder officer smiled back, addressing the Colonel with friendly familiarity.
"Heh. The more we change, the more we stay the same."

Field Marshal Ross had finished adjusting his uniform, and like his junior, opened his holster. Unlike the Colonel's finely-finished automatic, the Marshal's weapon was different--a revolver, marred with scratches and age, quite an anachronism in the age of guided missiles and pocket-sized drones. The senior officer unlatched the frame and ejected the ammunition into his hand, dropping the loose rounds into his pocket, before gently locking the weapon closed and lowering the weapon to his hip. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, then opened his eyes and snapped the weapon upwards, pointing it at the mirror and firing off three, unchambered, shots. Click click click, went the old sidearm.

"Reliving your youth, sir?" Lawrence snarked.
"Sometimes I'd wish I could."
"Y'know, folks in the UNE don't exactly take kindly to gunplay, especially not the Danes."
"Feh. The older you get, the less you care." Ross opened his revolver again, putting the loose rounds back into the chambers and holstering his war-weary sidearm.
"You really are a crazy old man, Bill."
"Had to be crazy to jump out of planes, George."

After a couple of minutes, the two officers' commander-in-chief, President Samuel Harrison, entered the restroom as well. They quickly saluted him.

"At ease, gentlemen." The President took only a few seconds to adjust his tie and hair. "Our flight to Copenhagen leaves in about an hour, so I'll assume you took care of other business."
"Yes, Mr. President," both military men responded.
"Excellent. Well then, if everything else is in order, let's get a quick lunch before we hit the plane. I dunno about you fellas, but I'm not a huge fan of airplane food." President Harrison turned his nose at the thought.
"Not much difference between it and Army food, sir," Colonel Lawrence joked.
"That's kinda my point, Colonel," the President said as he snickered. "Let's get going. Wouldn't want to be late," he said with a sarcastic tone.

---

A few minutes later...

The three Cosparian men sat around a table, with the President's secretary between himself and the Colonel. They had settled on some Subway, over which they discussed the travel to the UNE conference in Copenhagen. Each man had accompanying them a two-man security detail, bearing the same olive-drab dress uniform and white belts, and the dark maroon beret of the Cosparian Special Forces. Ultimately, they would be dismissed at their hotel, as the UNE invite explicitly requested that personal security not be inside during the conference.

"With all due respect, Mr. President, I don't trust anyone to protect me but myself," Field Marshal Ross spoke of the request.
"Yeah well, sometimes you've got to play by the house rules," replied President Harrison.
"Throw 'em a bone here, Ross. GROM is basically the Polish SEALs, so I wouldn't get too worried," Colonel Lawrence chimed in.
"Either way, our security won't be able to remain with us, so we'll have to send them back to the hotel or something," said the President. "But like the Colonel said, GROM is the best Special Forces unit that side of Europe. I'm pretty confident in them."

One of the CSF guards in their security detail gently cleared his throat.

"With respect, sir, we're right here."
"Rest assured, Color Sergeant, the Special Operations Brigade is the best SF unit this side of North America." President Harrison attempted to reassure his own troops about their abilities. "Besides, if you're on my security, you know you're the best of the best." The Color Sergeant smirked and gently nodded.
"Hoorah, sir."

The Cosparian delegation continued to discuss plans of travel, lodging, and transportation as they waited for their flight. This being Cosparia's first major international action since the First Gulf War, things were bound to be interesting at the Copenhagen Conference.

[Vangaziland]

"Right this way, your highness." A group of 3 Vangazi had arrived in the town holding the conference. They were instructed not to bring security. Some brought security anyway and kept them out of the motorcade. The Vannish delegation only arrived with a driver, a diplomat/attaché and Prince Fritjof Vang. A summit was taking place on the Ukrainian situation.

Fritz entered the car as the driver held the door open. He gave the man a nod as he sat and buckled up. The vehicle was a Vannish Motors Roland, Vangaziland's top luxury sedan. The vehicle was black with gold rims. Black covers tinted the headlights, something street legal in Vangaziland. The diplomat sat after him. Her name was Anna Seattsen. She was just over 30, with freckled skin and dark red hair. She was an up and coming politician in the Vannish political scene.

"Okay, we should be at the motorcade staging area shortly", Anna said as she looked to Prince Fritz with a smile.

"I'm looking forward to waving to some crowds", Fritz chirped in. He lowered the tinted window so he could see and be seen. He wasn't worried about any threats. Protected by Vangaziland's nuclear first strike policy, Prince Vang never felt the need for security. If anything ever happened to him, he'd be a martyr. He also felt confident Vannish Intelligence would find the nation of the offender and conduct the First Strike policy on their homeland. There were many crazy people in the world, but none seemed to be crazy enough to draw that kind of wrath.

Fritz leaned back in the soft leather of the cooled car seat. The car had been running and took off quickly. It made its way through the tight roads which led from the diplomatic quarters to the staging area. The group made small talk about the sights they saw. They didn't get into the topic of the meeting yet, almost as if they were avoiding it.

Soon the Vannish car pulled up behind a vehicle from another country. Not wanting to wait inside the Roland, Fritz opened the door and stood outside of the Vannish sedan. He leaned back against the vehicle and looked down along the convoy of vehicles. Anna soon stood next to him, manilla folders in hand.

[The United Nations Of Europa]

“This is going to be a long day Klara.” Schulte stood in front of a mirror in her bedroom, putting the last parts of her outfit on.

“Well seeing everything that is going into this summit I can tell.”

“No kidding. Having all the allied leaders in our nation puts all eyes on us.” Schulte finished buttoning her shirt and turned around to face Klara, “In the end though this will pay off.”

“Well we've dealt with these type of summits before, I’m sure this will be no different.”

“I’m just worried about what they’ll think about the whole situation. Many people are losing support of our actions and I’m not sure about how they feel about it either.”

“Schulte, even if they want to drop out we still have thousands of brave and willing men and women that will finish the job.”

The two gathered their belongings and Schulte grabbed a suitcase with document inside. They made their way to the front room and awaited for a signal to leave. Shortly after a knock came from the door, followed by a voice from the hallway. “Chancellor Schulte, the motorcade is outside waiting for you.”

Klara looked over at Schulte and gave a smile, “Shall we?”

“We shall”, Schulte responded while letting out a small laugh.

As they opened the door, the captain of the security forces greeted them with a quick handshake.

“Captain Wójcik, it’s great to see you.”

“The same can be said to you, madam chancellor.”

“A lot is on the line Captain, we’re counting on you and your men today.”

“I understand madam chancellor, we will not let you down.” Wójcik then led the two women to the front of the building where the motorcade was awaiting them. The captain opened the door and the three entered shortly after. Once they entered, the motorcade took off. A large amount of security escorts drove beside the motorcade as they escorted the vehicles. Security forces could be seen everywhere in Copenhagen. With the importance of the guests arriving, there would be no risks taken regarding their safety. The motorcade eventually reached the hotel where the President of Cosparia was awaiting them. The long line of vehicles stopped, and a group of security forces walked to the front door where they awaited the President.

“This will be the first time I’ve even met the man. I’ve only seen him on pictures and the media.”

“The president?” Klara asked.

“I’m afraid so. The only official that’s attending that I’ve actually met is Prince Fritz.”

“Prince Fritz? I thought his name was Fritjof.”

“Well I call him Fritz. Him and I are very close.”

“I see.”

Schulte looked over at the window and saw the president exit out of the front doors. He was being escorted along by a security group as they led him to his vehicle in the motorcade. As he entered his vehicles Schulte could see one of the security force members wave the motorcade along. After the motorcade was signaled along, the group of vehicles took off again to their next destination.

Klara looked over at Schulte while handing over some documents she was taking to the summit. “So who are we picking up next?”

“We’re picking up Prince Fritz next. He’s waiting for us at the motorcade staging area.”

The motorcade drove along the streets of Copenhagen as they made their way to the staging area. Hundreds of people lined up on the streets to catch a glimpse of the motorcade. Many were cheering and waving flags, with some even waving flags that belonged to the attendees nations.

“It looks like many still have faith in us.”

“I guess so Klara.”

After a 15 minute drive the motorcade reached the staging area where Prince Fritjof was waiting. The captain of the security forces looked out the window with astonishment. “Is the man crazy! Does he not know how dangerous it is to be out like that!”

He then turned to look at Schulte with a confused face, “Is he alway like this?”

“He is a crazy man isn’t he.” Schulte responded.

The three watched as security personnel escorted him to his vehicle. They acted quickly and shortly after the motorcade took off once more as they headed to the UNE parliament building where the summit would take place.



Soon after the motorcade stopped in front of the UNE parliament building. Hundreds of people were around the area waiting for the chancellor and the attendees to show up.

Schulte was looking out the window, staring at the large crowds that came to see the leaders. The leaders were to exit their vehicles and line side by side where the flags were raised.

There the national anthems of the attendees' nations and the UNE were to be played. After they were played, the officials were to enter the building where they would make their way to the summit room where the summit would start.

“Chancellor Schulte it’s time to go.” Captain Wójcik then exited the vehicle and held the door open for Schulte and her advisor, Klara. Over at the other vehicles, the same procedure was being taken for the officials attending the summit.

[Cosparia]

Hotel D'Angleterre
Copenhagen, Denmark, UNE

President Samuel Harrison spent the last several minutes making sure everything was absolutely perfect. The eyes of the whole world would be on him, after all, and he would be meeting with a number of other world leaders who would be paying attention to detail. His dark grey suit was finely pressed, such that there were no creases, wrinkles, or anything else out of place. His navy-blue tie was straightened, and his hair was neatly combed. To many, President Harrison bears a rather uncanny resemblance to Tom Cruise; his close friends would describe him as a more level-headed--and taller--version of the actor, yet with none of the screen credits or celebrity gossip.

Someone knocked on his room door.

"Mr. President, the motorcade will be here in five minutes."
"Thank you." Five minutes my ass, the President thought to himself as he finished tidying up his appearance.

--

In the next hotel room, Colonel George Lawrence once again was finely adjusting the various elements of his dress greens. The white leather Sam Browne belt stood out on his otherwise drab dress uniform. After finishing with his uniform and donning his rifle-green beret, the Colonel opened a black briefcase, containing copies of troop movements, progress reports, and all other documents sent to him by Lieutenant Colonel Tremblay from Ukraine. Several documents have listed thousands of civilians provided with shelter and supplies, and many hundreds of UNE and other troops given medical aid. This, he hoped, would help increase public support for the operation in both a military and humanitarian sense.

On Lawrence's bed lay his white leather holster, his polished officer's Browning P-35 contained within. While he certainly enjoyed his service, he never really cared for carrying a special officer-issue weapon, and wasted no time removing it from his belt.

--

Outside both men's rooms stood the Field Marshal, William Ross. Having been the first to finish--straightening a couple of his medals, reshaping his airborne beret--he waited for the other two. In contrast to his subordinate, Ross was less than pleased at leaving his sidearm behind, but begrudgingly accepted it considering the circumstances. After a minute or so, the President exited his room to greet the senior-most officer, who saluted him. President Harrison returned the salute. Shortly thereafter, Colonel Lawrence exited his room, and the three exchanged the gesture briefly, before heading down to the lobby.

--

About 5 minutes later...

The Cosparian delegation's Special Forces guards had escorted the three men down to the lobby of the hotel, where a team of JW GROM operators were waiting. The Cosparian SF men exchanged salutes with their Polish counterparts, before the delegation proceeded outside.

Shortly thereafter, the summit's motorcade had arrived, with one car sporting miniature Cosparian flags stopping in front of the curb. A security officer had opened the rear doors for the Cosparian men to enter, and the three men sat down in the vehicle. The door was closed, and the motorcade began moving.

"That car in front of ours must be the Chancellor," said Col. Lawrence.
"Never met the woman," replied President Harrison. "Then again, I haven't met any of these folks yet."
"Hope you're in a social mood today, sir, 'cuz you'll be meeting them pretty soon." Ross chimed in.
"Pf. Isn't that the truth," said the President.

Some time later, the motorcade stopped again, this time in front of the staging area. A rather luxurious-looking sedan was waiting there, with a sharply-dressed young man leaning against it. The Polish guard in the Cosparian vehicle looked outside at the man, and simply shook his head.

"Is that the Vannish prince?" asked Harrison.
"It's gotta be. Just look at that car," replied Ross.
"Just look at how he's standing. Never seen a president or prime minister do that," remarked Lawrence.
"The guy's confident, I'll give him that much." Harrison again.
"Well, again, the city's crawling with GROM. Maybe that's just how much he trusts them." Ross.

Shortly after the motorcade arrived, security escorted what had to be the Vannish delegation into the convoy, which once again took off, with the luxury car behind the simpler Cosparian one. On the way to the UNE parliament building, the 3 men made small talk about the city, the accommodations, the travel, and various other topics. As they approached, they saw hundreds of citizens waving flags, and were pleasantly surprised to see a few Cosparian flags among the mix.

"Looks like some folks are still on our side," noted the Field Marshal.
"Yeah. At least we look good to the international community," replied the President, referencing declining public support from the home front.

After several more minutes of driving, the convoy slowly came to a halt in front of the UNE parliament. The various national anthems of attending countries were played as the respective leaders exited their vehicles. As the Cosparian anthem began playing, the three men were escorted from their vehicle and stood, President Harrison flanked by the two officers, who saluted as the anthem played. When the anthem finished, and their flag flying, the men began walking towards the building to begin the summit.

[Vangaziland]

"Oh, sir! The cars are here." Anna looked excited and nervous as the pair seemed to be caught off guard. She rushed quickly to her side of the car and sat inside. Fritz was more calm in his movements. He turned and waved to the motorcade. He had no idea how reckless he was being seen as. Fritz entered the Roland and buckled up.

"No worries", Fritz sad slyly. "We'll still be on time. Just had a bit of fresh air. That's all." Prince Vang wore a grayish-blue suit that was almost the color of a shark. A matching tie also contained diagonal bright blue stripes. The material had a slight shimmer to it, giving it an almost iridescent glare. Fritz had a fresh fade haircut, low to his scalp.

Fritz had the window of his sedan down. As they began to pass crowds on the official path, Fritz waved to the onlookers. Again, the thought of his own safety escaped him. All he wanted to do was interact with the crowd. His arm hung out the window, raised and waving.

"Your highness, this is really unorthodox", said Anna.

"Stop calling me that", said Fritz. "Besides, I'm just waving."

Anna looked like she wanted to laugh. "I'm just saying. No other car is doing this." She looked out of her own closed window. "You know, the whole 'protected by the Army thing' is overrated. What if a random crazy person just takes a potshot. You can't punish the country then."

"Then I'd bring awareness to mental health issues, wouldn't I?"

"Your highness!" Anna was angry that he would say something so reckless. He wasn't the Prime Minister of Vangaziland. He also wasn't the Emperor, a spot which his father still held. But Fritz was Vangaziland's most important diplomat. He was the heir to the throne. That was one of the central roles of a Prince in Vangaziland. While waiting to inherit the throne and title of Emperor, a Prince should complete military service, compete in sports and forge diplomatic ties.

Fritjof served as an Army officer for almost 9 years, right after University. He returned from a deployment to Al-Khalifiya in 2016. He was promoted from company commander to battalion intel chief in the hopes that it would keep him from the front lines. Of course, Fritz forced his way onto missions under the guise of observation. Twice, the sector's top general had to issue Prince Vang warnings, or threaten to outright order him into staying on base. The order never came because no general would want to risk their career over a spat with Vannish Imperial Royalty.

Every Vannish Royal has served some time in the military, though most do a fewer years than Fritz. Now Fritz is an honorary commander for a territorial guard unit. He still puts the uniform on and trains with his soldiers several times a year. He has separated from active duty service however.

Sports are also an important part of Vannish life. Fritz took part in an international sailing competition and even represented Vangaziland in the Olympiad. He failed to win a medal in either competition, but won a few races and was a top 5 athlete. Maybe if he had competed while he was younger, he might have had better chances.

The Olympiad was on his mind when he saw the crowds lined down the street. It reminded him of carrying the torch for the opening march of the games.

It wasn't long until the car pulled up at the UNE Parliament Building. Fritz was the third official to exit as the security gathered outside of his car. They opened the door as Fritz began to climb out. "Hey. Stay here and guard the car while I walk up", Fritz told them.

"That's foolish, we have to escort you", said the security staff.

"Look. If you're going to walk with me, stay a few steps back. Don't crowd me up." The guards were reluctant, but they weren't going to wait by the car. Fritz really wanted them to, but he couldn't control them. As he started walking, he looked over his shoulder. "Back more." The security lead just shook his head and gave Fritz a little space. He made it to the area where everyone lined up for the anthems.

After the ceremony, the leaders entered the building.

Fritz had a big smile across his face as he finally made his way into the building. Security did not look happy with him. "What?" He asked innocently. Fritz was glad to be back within the UNE. He had visited several times to meet with Chancellor Schulte. The two had been getting to know each other for some time now. Fritz hoped to invite her to Vangaziland for a trip that was not neccesarily based on diplomacy. Still, it could prove important for Vangaziland.

The first thing Prince Fritz saw on the morning of the summit was a news article about him and the Chancellor. It was one of the stories on the cover of the morning paper, though not the headline. It speculated on what could happen if the pair became married. With the way Vannish Royalty worked, the Prince's wife would gain the title of Princess. When Fritz becomes the Emperor, her title would change to Crown Princess. If they had a child, the kid would become the next Emperor or Empress decades down the line. Fritjof had been taking his time with selection, it seemed.

There were still a lot of unknowns. Would she move to Vangaziland after such a promising early career in politics? Fritz had more freedom to move around the world. He could probably live somewhere in Europe for awhile.

The media would be watching. Fritz and Anna entered the building and everything fell silent. "Well, we made it", Fritz joked. Anna shook her head before rifling through one of her folders. The Prince sure seemed to know how to make things agonizing for security.

[The United Nations Of Europa]

Euro News
https://vimeo.com/285943976


Captain Wiktor “Petro” Nowak
Staging Area

“Finally about to get this done, huh?”

A pair of Vanish soldiers stood by their vehicles, waiting for the EFF SF personnel to arrive. One seemed to be yelling at them, but was slightly muffled by the engines. Yet Wiktor was still able to make out was she was trying to say. He walked up to the pair to greet them.

“I’ve been waiting for this to happen for a while.” Wiktor extended his arm and shook hands with the female Vanish operator.

“My name is Capt. Nowak from the EFF special forces, but until we finish our mission my name will be Petro Kushnir, volunteer fighter from the DPR.”

Wiktor turned around to face his men exiting the BTR’s. “Bring out the supplies! We’re going to need them!”

“We also brought some food for everyone before we leave. It’s going to be a while until we get a good meal to eat. And I’m pretty sure there are no fast food places where we’re going.”

Wiktor looked at the uniforms the Vanish were wearing and turned around once more, “Jacob, bring out the boxes on top of the BTR.

“I would've never thought I’d say this but we’re going to have to play a little dress up.”


UNE Parliament Building
Copenhagen, Denmark, UNE
WIth the ceremony ending, the leaders entered the parliament building with their escorts by their side. The escorts were very cautious with their procedure due to the importance of the summit. Schulte looked over at Fritz and let out a small laugh after seeing the tough time he was giving his escort.

“He never changes.” She thought to herself.

Schulte suddenly felt a tap on her shoulder and when she looked over, Klara was holding out a newspaper for her to take.

“What is this?”

“Read it later.” Klara responded.



Media crews followed the group inside as they made their way to the summit room. Questions were being asked repeatedly and flashes from cameras were rapid. The small group finally made it into the room and some journalists were allowed in at a time. Security would only allow journalists in for a small amount of time so that the summit could start. Journalists were questioning the leaders and their fellow diplomats. Questions were going around until a journalist finally came to questioning Schulte.

“Chancellor Schulte, do you think that this crisis could’ve been dealt with without the UNE intervening with force?”

“To be honest I don’t think so. As we’ve seen in the past with the Minsk Peace Agreement, the conflict went on as normal even with discussions. Separatists forces and volunteer groups refused to cooperate with the agreements and as we also saw Russia also didn’t fully cooperate with the agreement. So the only real option to take to potentially end the conflict was to take Ukrainian matters in our own hands.”

As the time passed, the journalists who came to the summit were able to get their questions in before the summit started. After the last questions were asked, security escorted the journalists out of the summit room and the summit finally started. Chancellor Schulte shuffled some documents that she brought along and set them down.

She looked around the room once more, “Well now that that’s all out of the way, shall we get started?”

[Vangaziland]

10th Airborne Cav Staging Area

Captain Andreson did not look excited about what the officer seemed to be suggesting. The Vangazi were not expecting to go completely undercover. What they were proposing was extremely dangerous. Sure the teams were able to procure Russian vehicles. It was still a tricky proposition to have Vangazi go undercover posing as Russians. For one, they looked different. Even the Caucasian Vangazi didn't look Russian.

"Hold on, Captain Nowak. You're not suggesting that we're going fully undercover outside of the truck? I get that we're driving behind lines. We've got a radio to conduct checks. That means we have a translator monitoring it. Maybe two or three others here speak Russian. Some have Vannish accents on it though. Listen. This might get really dangerous." She shifted on her feet, a look of worry in her eye. Her AK-47, brought specifically for this mission, was slung over her shoulder.

"Vannish high command is wondering what we expect to accomplish that drones cannot. This is a big risk trucking high profile forces behind enemy lines just for a look around. I want to know what the intent of this mission is. What do we hope to accomplish?"

The sergeant began helping with the boxes. He would hand the gear out to the Vangazi. They would be able to cover their faces with balaclavas and masks. Captain Andreson would have to try and hide the fact that she was a woman. The black officers would have to ride inside the vehicle, letting certain NCOs or others take spots.

The Vannish Army did not have special forces available for this mission. They were soon to deploy tier 1 forces of the VSF in the Russian sector. They would be preparing for outright assaults behind red lines. They would not risk being spotted scouting. The Airborne Cav could do that. Vannish satellites had been mapping positions. High flying drones refined the images and data. Some of the remote operated aircraft were even shot down. Most flights were successful though.

Vangaziland was not going to remain on the sidelines for much longer. Soon an offensive would hit the Russians hard. The intel section has been developing a picture of their target areas for months now. They even had people behind the scenes working to infiltrate the separatist ranks. There were saboteurs waiting to disrupt enemy lines.

At the moment, Captain Andreson searched for reassurance that this mission would prove fruitful. There needed to be set conditions defined. They would not leave until the Captain could tell her superiors that she was comfortable with the mission. The EFF forces had kept things a bit murky for tactical security. She wanted to make sure the EFF didn't plan to dismount and hang out around Russian camps. They need to stay moving and must keep a low profile. Any grandiose interaction plans would make the Vangazi hesitant to undertake the assignment.

The Vannish Army thrived because each soldier knew their officer had the welfare of the troops as a number one priority. Sometimes the needs of the many would outweigh those of the few. Sometimes there would be sacrifices. But it was all for the greater good. When a mission idea comes up, every officer must evaluate the risks for their soldiers and the mission's contribution to the greater good.

Soldiers began to dismount from the Vannish vehicles. They began picking up new gear from the boxes. The gas masks might come in handy for those who needed disguises. Certain units rolled with masks on, so this could fit Russian 'standard operating procedure'.

UNE Parliament Building
Copenhagen, Denmark, UNE

Prince Vang entered the Summit Room. Even with all the bright flashes in the confined space, he did not blink or look uncomfortable. He tried to put on his most serious face. It was still clear that he was relaxed and in a good mood. Here he was to talk about war, yet he looked as calm as if he were about to sail one of his boats.

"Prince Vang, do you think the coalition has done enough to deter the Russians?" One of the journalists asked Fritz a question just as a camera snapped a photo of the two. The crisp flash seemed to hang in the air.

"I think we can do a lot more", said Fritz. "We plan to amp things up here shortly." Fritz was speaking in guarded terms. His attache told Fritz to avoid saying phrases like 'bring the fight'. That's where the whole 'amp' phrase came from. She had to often coach the Prince on being more political. She didn't want him to stir Russia up too much at this summit. She also didn't want Prince Fritz to have a 'smoke 'em out' moment similar to George W. Bush.

"We are going to see a wider variety of Vannish units deployed soon, as well." The phrase could have meant anything. Fritz was hinting at special forces, specifically VSF-1. This was classified though. In both cases, Russia would likely get the hint. This would put pressure on them in a covert way. It doesn't look as if Fritz was saying anything incinderary, yet he is actually dropping provacative hints.

"Do you plan to have talks with Russia? A sit down with Putin or his diplomats?"

"Vangaziland has tried to maintain ties with Russia. The events of the past few years have hurt that relationship. Russia is not making things easy with this clear territorial aggression into the Ukraine. We've tried to exchange points of view, but they don't seem to understand that we will not stand for this."

Fritz seemed to tactfully swat away the possibility of a talk. The truth was that diplomats were in the process of talking with their Russian counterparts. There didn't seem to be enough chance of a change to warrant a high profile meeting with the Kremlin. Fritz looked around the room as other leaders were being questioned.

[The United Nations Of Europa]

Chancellor Linda Schulte, State Advisor Klara Sandberg, General Brewer
UNE Parliament Building
Copenhagen, Denmark, UNE


“I'd like to thank you all for attending today's summit. You all have our undying gratitude for the work your nation's have done in Ukraine. We can never fully thank you for what you've all done. To begin the summi-”

Schulte was cut off from speaking as Klara nudged her leg, reminding her about one thing she had forgotten.

“Oh yes, I almost forgot. A promise is a promise and like the invitation said, we are providing food throughout the whole summit. There are multiple covered plates and drinks on the table and on the table in the back. If you’d like something else than wine and water to drink then just let the staff know and they’ll bring it. Now that that's out of the way, we can finally start.”

With the summit taking place in Copenhagen, the food was mainly Dannish cuisines and desert with some other foods from neighboring states like France and Germany. The drinks provided was water and fine wines from around the nation.

With the chancellor finally done welcoming everyone to the summit, she pointed towards General Brewer who then turned on a large screen on the wall, displaying a map of friendly movements. He then turned to everyone as he would start to speak on military progress in Ukraine.

“In these past few months, we have made a large amount of progress in Eastern Ukraine with a lot of help from your forces that are present. Recently our coalition was able to push the main separatist forces out of the Donetsk area, which has been a huge goal of ours for a while. With Donetsk finally under our control, we have a large amount of access to highway H20. Now that we have access to it, we will be able to cut off a large number of supplies being sent to separatists around Donetsk.

The only problem we have now is that there are still large pockets of separatists. With us pushing them out of Donetsk, they have gathered in the cities of Avdiivka, Makiivka, and Horlivka. Good thing though is that with us cutting their access to highway H20 from Donetsk, they’ll have to go a longer way to resupply. Our intelligence says that it’ll probably be around 4 weeks later until they can resupply their forces in those three cities.”

Chancellor Schulte straightened herself in her chair, confused with what the General was proposing. “General, what are you trying to propose here?”

“I’m proposing that we set up defensive lines along H20, H21 and E50. We can set up checkpoints to allow civilians to leave the area safely.”

“And what about the three cities?”

“Well as intelligence said, we have about 4 weeks until their forces will be resupplied. What I’d like to do is get one week to scout the area with drones. We knocked out a lot of their AA in Donetsk but we want to make sure they didn’t move any into those cities before we send in any aerial teams. We’ll also have to scout the area for civilians. Our use of artillery and air strikes are going to be limited in the area until we can confirm that there aren’t a large number of civilians still stuck in these cities.

Once our week of reconnaissance is over, we’ll move in with ground and air forces and encircle the cities. The faster we encircle them, the faster we can reach the highways that feed into the cities and block them. Once we do that, we’ll send in our forces and start the attacks on the cities, destroying their largest forces in the Donetsk Oblast. What we’d like is if you could supply medical assistance or possibly ground or air forces to assist in the attacks on the cities.”



Captain Wiktor “Petro” Nowak
Staging Area

The female captain looked concerned about what Nowak had said earlier.

"Hold on, Captain Nowak. You're not suggesting that we're going fully undercover outside of the truck? I get that we're driving behind lines. We've got a radio to conduct checks. That means we have a translator monitoring it. Maybe two or three others here speak Russian. Some have Vannish accents on it though. Listen. This might get really dangerous."

The captain’s body language was very unsettling but Nowak could understand where she was coming from. Many of the Vannish troops present didn’t look like the separatists they were facing.

“I see where you’re coming from captain, but please be assured that we are prepared for this. All of our operators speak Russian, which we will distribute in all the groups to make sure someone can speak if the need comes. As for the skin color of some of your troops...they’re going to have to act as other races.”

Nowak’s friend, Jacub, walked up to the group wanting to know what they were talking about.

“Is everything alright Wiktor?”

“We’re going to have to deal with some of their troops' skin color. They don’t look Ukrainian or Russian.”

“Ah I see.”

Nowak dug his feet in the ground for a bit before looking back at Jacub.

“Didn’t the other SF team come across some people that looked foreign?”

“Uh yeah. Said they came across some Serbs and Chechens. Antoni said they saw some prayer rugs left behind by a group of Muslim guys. HQ said there were Muslim groups that lived in the area. I’d say the lighter skin ones can go as Chechens and Serbs. Saw a report saying there were Turks in Donetsk so the darker ones can go as Afro Turks.”

“Well, I guess that can work for now.” Nowak looked back at the female captain, “Just let our men do the talking when the need comes. As for your darker skin skinned men, they’ll have to grab some head wraps or shemaghs. We’re going to have to say they’re Afro Turks for the duration of the mission. For the most part, we won’t be exiting the vehicles much but they should still keep their head wraps or shemaghs on.

The Vannish captain still looked unsure of the mission and with her body language, Nowak knew he would have to persuade her if they were going to leave.

"Vannish high command is wondering what we expect to accomplish that drones cannot. This is a big risk trucking high profile forces behind enemy lines just for a look around. I want to know what the intent of this mission is. What do we hope to accomplish?"

Nowak took a deep breath while pulling out a tablet from his bag. He turned it on and pulled up a map of the route they would be taking.



“There are 3 main things that we’re trying to accomplish in Amvrosiivka. The first thing is that there are 3 HVT’s that we’re looking for in the city. We have an informant there that has been working with the separatists and “helping” them with their movements. He has reports on the 3 HVT’s that will allow us to get them. One of them is a journalist who had been reporting on the separatist forces. News is that he got word of something the separatists didn’t want him to know. Thing is that we want to know what he knows. The two other HVT’s are high valued separatist commanders that will be arriving in the city soon. They’re going to be brought there soon to retrieve that journalist. Our informant is going to get us assigned to their convoy when the two leave with the journalist. Once that happens, we go along with their convoy. Once we reach this red dot on the map we'll take out any other personnel that are in the convoy and grab the 3 HVT's. We'll grab them and head out on this route until we reach the green dot. That'll be our LZ where we'll destroy the vehicles and be picked up by helicopters.

We’re going to be in Amvrosiivka for 5 days before we head out with the convoy. In the meantime, we’re going to be conducting some undercover reconnaissance in the city, something I’m sure your group is familiar with. Our informant has documents with the details on vehicles and weapons that have been sent to the city. He said there are some IFV’s and a couple of tanks that were sent there a while back. We’re going to take those documents and try to take some pictures of the vehicles and weapons. A lot of the vehicles that our boys have been fighting against are from, I sure you guessed it, Russia. Since they’re from Russia a lot of them still have their marking from their factories. If we can get pictures and documents that match each other then it’ll be pretty hard for Russia to deny anything later on.

Finally, there is an arms depot in the city that we’re going to take care of before we leave. We could’ve had drones take care of it but the separatists have it located by a lot of civilians so we can’t take the risk. Not only that but I’d like to have some fun before we leave.”

[Vangaziland]

Staging Area
Captain Andreson

"Ah, interesting. Good point", said Captain Andreson. It was a good idea. She hadn't thought of it, but it could work. Many of her veteran troops had deployed to Al-Khalifiya two years ago. Some even knew Arabic. They could all learn the basic greetings and be briefed on Arabic habits by those who deployed to Vangaziland's former desert war. She had to admit, she could feel her concerns starting to sway.

She began thinking about ways she could get head wraps and was already coming up with a few ideas. They had to continue to move through friendly territory. She thought about the matter further. Another joined the group and was brought up to speed. She thought about the mission. It shouldn't be too hard to pose as a man with the way the Russian-issue vest hid her chest. All she needed was a balaclava and goggles.

She still had to make sure the mission had a dedicated focus besides information gathering. Information had been kept compartmentalized. She asked a question and got the answer. Captain Andreson realized why things were kept secretive. SF HVT missions were top priority. The only reason the 10th Cav even got this mission was likely because VSF-1 hasn't arrived in Ukraine yet. This would be a very important mission.

As the description went on, it was clear that the mission was perfectly targeted to an elite Cav force. The literal focus of modern cavalry is this type of smash and grab, recon assignment.

"Okay", said Captain Andreson. "Sorry for my hesitation. This is definitely a mission of importance." She paused for a moment as she gathered some thoughts. "Before we leave friendly territory here", she pointed to a spot within the red bordered area along the road. "We have a refueling convoy meeting us. We'll top off so that we have as much fuel as possible once we leave. This will include extra fuel cans. I'll radio ahead and tell them to bring some headwraps and stuff."

The blonde sergeant returned and stood with the group. Andreson turned to him. "Sarge, it's a go. Tell people to start suiting up. We'll leave as soon as our guests are ready." The sergeant nodded with wide eyes. He backed away from the group and rushed to the closest truck. He shouted in through the rear swing door. He went down the line of Vannish BTR's.

"What do you say?" The Captain turned back to her SF guests. "How soon will you be ready to leave?"

After getting the answer, she added, "Got it. Oh! You should know my observers will have close air support on standby. We assume engagement rules will keep it out of play. In case of emergency, they'll be ready."

---------------------
UNE Parliament Building
Copenhagen, Denmark, UNE
Prince Fritjof Vang

The Vannish Prince was visibly excited once dinner was being served. He was having one of his favorites. He was having karbonader with potatoes. They were served with peas and carrots. The dish was often served in Vangaziland, just with different spices. It featured a breaded pork patty. He enjoyed having the more authentic version, especially by some of the best chefs in Copenhagen. At least that's what Prince Fritz assumed. He washed every few bites down with wine, which he kept flowing.

He listened to the briefing with interest. The truth was that he wished Vangaziland could have done more. He knew this was a delicate game both sides were trying to stop from spilling into total war. The safety of the civilians was above all else.

As talk went on about drones doing recon, he knew of a Special Forces/10th Cav mission taking place in a smaller town. The net of reconnasiance was spread across Eastern Ukraine. Prince Fritz was part of a territorial guard unit of recon soldiers. There was a part of him that was itching to deploy with his unit for a quick 3 month rotation. he knew his girlfriend would probably not approve. She was a very powerful woman and although she enjoyed Fritz and his risks, she wouldn't want him to go to war. How he longed to travel there, rifle in hand. He would have to take a trip with her first.

As the call came out for aid, Fritz quickly spoke. "We have forces on hand that can pick up first aid duties. Our medics can be on stanby. Each platoon also has a certain number of people qualified as combat lifesavers. We also have a certain number of ambulances in theater."

He looked over his notes, flipping to his theatre aircraft roster. "We can also divert a majority of our aircraft to air support stand by. That can include patrol escort, as well as runway standby. We don't have a ton of aircraft in theatre, but we have enough to move around."

He looked up to the General and Chancellor Schulte. "And if there are ground operations, Vannish troops definitely hope to be involved. Assign us a sector please." It was not lightly that Fritz said these words. He knew he could be committing men and women to combat. It was a cause he thought was more than worthy. Russia had to be confronted.

[The United Nations Of Europa]

Captain Wiktor “Petro” Nowak
Staging Area

"Ah, interesting. Good point", said Captain Andreson. The Vanish captain looked more comfortable with the plan now that it was thoroughly explained to her.

"Okay", said Captain Andreson. "Sorry for my hesitation.

“It’s no problem captain.”

This is definitely a mission of importance." She paused for a moment as she gathered some thoughts. "Before we leave friendly territory here", she pointed to a spot within the red bordered area along the road. "We have a refueling convoy meeting us. We'll top off so that we have as much fuel as possible once we leave. This will include extra fuel cans. I'll radio ahead and tell them to bring some headwraps and stuff."

“That sounds good. We’ll unload whatever is left and pack up when we’re ready.”

"What do you say?" she said as she turned around again. "How soon will you be ready to leave?"

“Give us twenty minutes to get everything ready. We also want to load some weapons just in case we meet some resistance.”

"Got it. Oh! You should know my observers will have close air support on standby. We assume engagement rules will keep it out of play. In case of emergency, they'll be ready."

“Close air support huh. Guess we weren’t the only ones thinking about that.”

Wiktor and his group went back to their vehicles. They were going to pass around any equipment that was left and pack up everything else. Wiktor wanted to also get the anti-tank weapons ready. Not only could they run into separatists but any friendly forces or even volunteer forces could end up firing on them.

“Jakub, get a radio check with the Vannish. We need to have full communications with them.”

Jakub went through a quick radio check to make sure all comms were up and ready. He turned back to Wiktor after he was done.

“Nice, give me the radio real quick.”

Wiktor reached for the radio and looked towards a group of his men, “This is Cpt. Wiktor, I’m sending a group of my men to travel with you. They’ll divide themselves up so that you all have someone in your groups that can speak with any separatists or natives.” Wiktor pointed at the group and motioned for them to go to the Vannish.

“Once they do that we’ll be ready to leave. We’ll follow behind you guys since we’re refueling.”

Wiktor’s squad waited for the Vannish vehicles to exit the base. As soon as the last Vannish vehicle left, Wiktor’s BTR soon followed. Soon enough there was a long convoy of separatist marked vehicles, all making their way to Amvrosiivka.

“I want to remind everyone that until we reach the town that we are open targets for any Ukrainian, EFF, or volunteer groups that could be in the area. Try not to engage them if you can but if the time comes then don’t be reluctant. Once we reach the city, all of our names are to be no longer used in public. Everyone’s uniform has a patch on with a new name on it, don’t forget them. Our languages are to no longer be used in public also, and if the separatists or any local hear you speak your native language...then I hope you can fight well until we reach you.”



Chancellor Linda Schulte, State Advisor Klara Sandberg, General Brewer
UNE Parliament Building
Copenhagen, Denmark, UNE


“What we’d like is if you could supply medical assistance or possibly ground or air forces to assist in the attacks on the cities.”

After Brewer laid out the main plan of the offensive, he asked for aid from the attending leaders. Fritz was surprisingly fast to make on offer. Maybe it was from his business savvy personality that he was so fast. Yet it was very nice to see him be very cooperative with the UNE.

“What kind of aid are you proposing Fritzjof?” Brewer asked.

"We have forces on hand that can pick up first aid duties. Our medics can be on standby. Each platoon also has a certain number of people qualified as combat lifesavers. We also have a certain number of ambulances in theater."

Fritz pulled his notes out and started flipping through them, "We can also divert a majority of our aircraft to air support standby. That can include patrol escort, as well as runway standby. We don't have a ton of aircraft in theatre, but we have enough to move around."

"And if there are ground operations, Vannish troops definitely hope to be involved. Assign us a sector please."

Brewer looked back at his laptop and pulled up a different version of the map he showed previously. This time it displayed EFF and Ukrainian movements and also the ORBAT that the EFF was planning on.




“As of now, we will be deploying 9,000 EFF troops which we will divide up into four groups since the offensive is on the three cities. Around 2,000 Ukrainian troops will be joining us during the mission.

The main chunk of our forces will be going to Avdiivka and Horlivka. There was heavy fighting in these cities before we came and we suspect it’ll happen again. Ukrainian forces have already had experience fighting in these cities so they’re going to mainly focused there with our forces. Makiivka, on the other hand, is a different story.

There hasn’t been as much fighting in Makiivka but that’s for a good reason. A lot of higher end Russian equipment have been stationed in the city. The separatists are most likely going to keep any supplies they have left in Makiivka but that also means that they’re going to have their defenses tight in the city.

We’re not exactly sure what equipment they’ll be using in Makiivka but they will most likely have Russian AA systems, heavy artillery, tanks, and armored vehicles. We’ll be sending in ground troops alongside tank platoons to take out any AA they have so close air support can move in. We’d like it if you send ground forces to go with ours to Makiivka. Tanks or ground troops would do.

I also heard both of your nations brought reconnaissance vehicles along if that’s correct. We going to be stationing some tank destroyer platoons to watch the outskirts of the cities. If you could send some recon vehicles to go with these tank platoons then they could help gather info for them and any of our other forces such as artillery or CAS.”

[Vangaziland]

JW Grom-10th AC
BTR 80 - "Vic Three-One"

Third platoon, first squad rode along with Captain Andreson. She sat up front next to the driver. The BTR had two hatches up front. The commander sat alongside the driver. She could have had an NCO act as 'tank commander' and focus on guiding the driver. She wanted the head on view. Her head was covered in a balaclava. Her figure was hidden by her vest. She looked like just another male separatist when she popped up.

The squad's RTO received the radio check through a headset worn over his helmet. Once Captain Wiktor transmitted, CPT Andreson hopped onto the net through her own headset. "Roger that. This is Indigo Six." The voice was clearly recognizable as the female captain. She was using her callsign for the operation. "We should be leaving in five Mikes." She gave the code for minutes.

The four Vannish vehicles idled, waiting for the next person to lead. The Grom soldiers would sit closest to the vehicle's side doors, making it easier and natural for them to speak to any encountered locals. Next to Janice Andreson was one of the black soldiers who would be driving. The vehicle was simple enough to drive, with a big steering wheel and a window-like hatch which opens up front. CPT Andreson sat next to him like a passenger in a car.

A squad of 7 soldiers rode in the back, along with the Grom soldier. The vehicle was packed to its 10 person capacity. The black 1LT who was speaking with some of the soldiers earlier usually rides with 1st Squad. Now he was riding with 3rd squad, which was the last vehicle. The unit never drove in platoon order. It wasn't long before the Grom soldiers loaded up.

A final set of radio checks came up through the net, along with a "blue three green" report. Every vehicle had to call in and say they were 'up' on supplies and personnel. The Vannish vehicles all called it as 'up on boys and toys'.

Second Squad, or Vic Three-Two was the first to creep forward onto the dusty road. Behind them was Andreson and 1st Squad. Fourth Squad followed them, led by the platoon sergeant, a grumpy old soldier. Third squad brought up the rear of the Vannish section, commanded by the black 1LT.

Just as the vehcles hit the road, the platoon sergeant came over the Vannish vehicles through a net just for their four trucks. Each vehicle had two radios, one was tuned to a private Vannish channel. "If any of you fire on any Ukrainian or EFF forces, I'm going to file your court martial papers myself." His truck's Grom soldier just told him that they should expect to fire back. "We're not going that daggone far to get undercover." The platoon sergeant would not bear the thought of laying a friendly soldier down to rest for this.

If any Vangazi died, it would be on the hands of the EFF. Andreson could have overriden him at any point. So could the 1LT. Neither did, knowing that they could have. The soldiers trusted their platoon sergeant. They accepted it. The trucks would push through just as they would for any ambush. You hit the gas and keep driving. If people take shots at a convoy, it normally doesn't stop (unless Iraq-style hunter rules are in effect).

If they came across a checkpoint, the TC would have to either talk to them or die trying. Luckily, they had plotted checkpoints on the map from the blue force tracker before they left. It would be important to keep that map hidden, but not impossible. The trucks were full. The Russians may peek in or occasionaly sit in them. But it was too full to accept seperatists for 'ride alongs'. They wouldn't be digging around in the Vannish BTR-80's.

"All vehicles, this is Indigo Five." It was the Vannish lieutenant. "ETA to reful point is 40 Mikes." It would be about a forty minute drive to the refuel point. The point was to make sure all vehicles were equal in terms of fuel. The Grom vehicles just drove from a location, as did the Vannish. They could set fuel up down the road and fill all trucks up at once. The fuelers could have met at the same point, except that was a classified location. It also made sense to burn a bit more fuel driving down the road, before filling up.

The engines of the BTR were mounted in the rear of each vehicle. They howled loud enough so the two up front couldn't speak to the rest of the vehicle, except over the headset. The RTO popped out of a rear hatch. He was low enough so his head was barely outside. If there was shooting, he would have to drop down. His life was still at risk. It was a risk that had to be taken.

[Luhanskaya]

Senior Sergeant Vladimir "Vova" Yurchak
FOB Frederick "БПР Фредерик"
2nd Squad, 4th Company, 87th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade, В/Ч 22874
Ukrainian ATO Forces, Task Force "Pekelnybog"

The 19 men arrived at FOB Frederick a mere day ago, this place was far more hospitable than the trenches at "Rosomakha". Here the men finally got a much needed rest. However many questions were still up in the air, no one had an answer for what their next mission would be. The rumors of upcoming assaults on Avdiivka, Horlivka, and Makiivka were just that, rumors. If Avdiivka were in the talks though, then the most recent operations in the area by the VSU must have gone awry. This would strike close to home for Danil Babynchuk or "Babnik". He was born and raised in the city. If Avdiivka were to be the next mission Vova knew well that the losses for both sides would be severe. This city had been an absolute war from the start. Dismissing these thoughts Vova sat up in his bunk, this had been his first real bed in what felt like forever. He looked around the room that housed his men. They all slept heavily under their covers. He ran the fingers and palms of his hands up his face and pushed his hair over to the side. Standing up he made his way to the door, grabbing his jacket off the hook as he passed by.

Exiting the building he was met with darkness, as the sun had just begun to creep up in the distance. It was early, but he set out to find anyone in the VSU that could provide him with info, or help him get needed equipment distributed to his men. Passing by soldiers of unknown origin Vova tried communicating but to no avail there conversation ended in shrugged shoulders and shaking of their heads as neither one understood. In the distance cadence of his native tongue could faintly be heard. Heading towards the small building two men sat outside of the building smoking. Vova couldn't make out their ranks, but both were in brand new VSU digital uniforms. One was a shorter, overweight man with gray hair that had begun to bald on the top. The man next to him was tall but lanky. This man had black hair that was faded on the sides but longer on the top, he kept it combed up and over to the left.

"Fucking Officers" Vova thought to himself as he approached the men, the uniforms and careless behavior made it all to obvious. The last Platoon commander the men had was killed 2 months ago while on a patrol near Selydove. He was good for nothing and had left a soiled reputation of officers on all of the men.

"Excuse me, my men and I just returned from "Rosomakha", could you point me to supply or the headquarters for the VSU on the FOB?" Vova asked

Both men turned, the fatter one gave him a look of disgust before blowing smoke towards him. The look of disgust turned to one of anger. "This is how we address officers now?" The man shouted while looking at the other officer, he had begun to laugh as if he were in disbelief that Vova had just tried to talk to him. The fat officer turned again. "And that uniform, is filthy" At this point the fatter officer now able to be identified as a Colonel, and he continued to rip into Vova. Nearly face to face and spitting when he talked. Grabbing Vova's chin with his hand, he began to turn his head left and right. "That hair is a shaggy, disheveled mess Senior Sergeant" The ending was said in a sarcastic tone as if he were mocking his rank. He continued to berate him with no opportunity for him to explain himself. The Colonel removed his hand from Vova's chin and gave him a light smack on the cheek. The officers put out their cigarettes, the Colonel turned, waving his hand for Vova to leave. "Dismissed" he said disgustedly as both officers made their way inside. The door closed and the locking latch could be heard from inside. Faint chatter and laughter resumed in the building.

Vova was stunned. He had no idea how to respond to this. These officers had never fought on the front, and this FOB was the closest they would ever get to it. Turning to continue his search, he began walking past other building reading the signs for any info, the sun had now began to shine faintly on the FOB. Soon it would be light and hopefully Vova could get assistance from someone around here.

[Malden Republic]

4th Mechanized Division, 1st Company Infantry/5th Company Armored, Alpha Combat Team
Commandant Xavier Laurens, Just outside Poltava, on the M03 Highway enroute to staging point.

"Alpha 6-6, this is Alpha 1-6, turn up ahead says, Karlivka, I think this is the route to Krasnohrad, Over" the radio crackled. Cmdt Xavier Laurens frowned and opened the commanders hatch on his AWFV-59 Command and Control Vehicle, located in the turret he was able to get a wide unobstructed view of the area around him. In front of him he could see the combat teams AMFV-34: Formation Reconnaissance Overwatch Vehicle with its state of the art optic's and UAV launcher replacing the MRLP "Spear" missile rack that was on his own vehicle. Just in front of that was Alpha 1-1, First Platoon of Mechanized Infantry mounted on their AWFV-59 Armoured Personnel Carrier's their were five of them in the platoon with the veteran officer running Alpha 1-1: Lt. Geoffrey Cartier, located in the center of his platoon two IFV's back from the leader. He was also turned out with his gunner, who was also looking at a map. Xavier looked at the map in front of him, on the command and control variant of the AWFV an old improvement from 1943 stuck around: A map board, the map board activated to his touch. A map of Ukraine opened up in front of him it was just like looking at google maps, He could see all allied positions on this map as well as the front, the front which he would like to avoid as much as possible. He was in no mood on dealing with enemy combatants until they had a place to set up. Looking along the route he had been given by UNE as well as the location of the Malden Islands Defense Forces FOB, Calsign FOB: Gibraltar.

"1-6," Xavier said in a Maldian accent which sounded like he was like an unskilled american speaking french for the first time, "6-6, your correct Geoff that's the turn, Lets keep it going were almost there, Out!"

Xavier looked up to see the Lieutenant Cartier give a thumbs up of approval to back to him. Xavier couldn't help but laugh. They had been on the road for almost the full day, and as much as we all liked their new tanks it was gruelling to stay in them for that length of time. He shook his head and looked down at his map again. A few more kilometers and they would be at the FOB might as well check in with theater command. His AWFV-59 among other things had a huge upgrade in terms of command and control, this included a massive boost to his range on his radios, however they were located below with his team. His Command team sat below in stations, His Adjutant, Sergeant Major Joséphine Baillieu kept the NCO's of his Command group focused and assisted with getting everything in order for him. His Intelligence Officer, Lieutenant Dan Millson, busy with speaking with the Signals Officer, 3rd Lieutenant Alex Coburn, There were two soldiers also there Senior Specialist Tim Voortman and Enlistee Garth Vaughn. the Senior Specialist handled radio communication with 3rdLt. Coburn and and Enl. Garth Vaughn was a medic. Xavier climbed down and called out.

"3rd L-T," Xavier started over the crew net which got her attention, "Can you get a hold of the ISA Command?"

"Sure thing sir," Pulling the laptop she had out closer to her, "Give me a few moments."

"Echo Uniform Delta One One, This is Alpha 6-3, Alpha 6-6. Message, over" 3rdLt. Coburn started, "I say again Echo Uniform Delta One One, This is the Maldan Islands Defense Forces, Alpha Combat Team en-route to FOB: Gibraltar, Message for you, Over"

[The United Nations Of Europa]

Col. Adams
Hulyaipole, Ukraine
FOB Frederick
EFF Army / Danish Corps
5 weeks before Operation Cyclone

Adams had been sitting in his office watching videos of previous fighting in Avdiivka. The videos he saw worried him greatly. Intense skirmishes were rampant in the footage. The screams of the injured and dying from the videos were ingrained in Adams mind. He couldn’t get them out of his head. Adams quickly grabbed the remote and turned off his TV. Letting out a sigh he couldn’t help but think about the previous fighting in the three cities.

“God damn. This is going to be hell.”

Everyone knew just how bad the fighting had gotten before. When the Ukrainians previously fought the separatists in Avdiivka it was regarded as some of the worst fighting that had been seen in Ukraine. Adams knew that even with all the advantages they had, the separatists wouldn’t give up easily.

He took a deep breath and looked around his office. This had been the same room he had been in for months. Adams longed for the day he would get to go back. He wanted to get back to his home. Something in the corner of his eye caught his attention. It was a new calendar he received that he hadn’t put up yet. Adams grabbed the calendar along with a pen from his desk. He started to flip through it until he reached December 25.

“Christmas day. I’ll be home by then….I hope.”
Adams circled the date and hung up the calendar.

Someone started to knock on his office door as he hung up the calendar.

“Come in.”

The door opened with Jerek entering the room.

“You come to visit Jerek or do you have something to tell me.”

“Yurchak’s squad is here. They just came in yesterday.”

“Great. Now this damn goose chase is over. Where are they now?”

“Probably sleeping right now. Those men were in total hell so I’m sure they’re trying to get as much rest as possible.”

“I’m sure they are but I want to speak to Yurchak himself. I need to brief him on what’s going on before the next mission.”

“So the next mission is a sure thing huh?”

“As much as I don’t want it to be, but yes it’s a go. It was inevitable that we would go into these 3 cities. I just wasn’t expecting these defenses.”

“What kind of defenses?”

“Well a large amount of separatists from surrounding towns and Donetsk were called back. Now they’re all gathered together and lucky for them it seems they got some nice hardware with them.”

Jerek chuckled at the news he was hearing, “Fuck me. Looks like you guys are going to have a lot of fun out there.”

“Tell me about it. It’s going to be hell out there.”

“Well I’m going to go to the front and call Yurchak up. He should be here soon.”

“Alright. I’ll talk to you later Jerek.”

Jerek left Adams office and headed to the front desk. There he would call Yurchak up to the building. Jerek weaved through the crowded hallways until he reached the desk. He grabbed the phone and connected to the intercom system, “Senior Sergeant Vladimir Yurchak, please make your to the main office.”

[Luhanskaya]

Senior Sergeant Vladimir "Vova" Yurchak
FOB Frederick "БПР Фредерик"
2nd Squad, 3rd Platoon, 4th Company, 87th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade, В/Ч 22874
Ukrainian ATO Forces, Task Force "Pekelnybog"


Vova wandered back to the building his squad was staying at as the sun crested over the base. He carefully opened the door while wind from outside whistled it's way into the building. The room was dimly lit by a single light. The light swung back and fourth as the wind made contact with it, causing shadows to dance around the room. Vova sat on his bed, sinking his face into the palms of his hands.


"Ay, Vova, you think we could inquire about a new radio? Or at least try and contact higher and trade in some of our other equipment?" Fixa said as he approached Vova while wearing a dimly lit headlamp.


"I'll ask about the radio as it's a necessity, but based on the officers I just met, I don't think we'll be getting any thing."


"Jackals, all of them. The officer corps of this army is rotting. Remember Teremenko?"

All of the platoon remembered Teremenko. He led them into an ambush outside of Selydove despite what the Platoon Sergeant had said. Teremenko argued with him all morning prior to going on the patrol. Oleksandr Kurgan who had been the platoon sergeant knew this patrol route was along a perfect ambush point, but it was out of his control. Right as they hit the crossing point over the stream the 1st squad point man stepped on a land mine. Immediately afterwards, machine guns and small arms opened up. The platoon was bogged down and unable to move. The enemy had high ground and plenty of standoff. The platoon was nearly decimated within a few moments. Over a half hour later the platoon was running low on ammo, and had taken over 20 casualties.

"How could I forget."

The two of them sat silently. A beep could be heard followed by a transmission over the intercom system.

“Senior Sergeant Vladimir Yurchak, please make your to the main office.”

Vova got up patting Fixa on the shoulder as he passed by. "I'll ask about the radio, get some rest"

Reaching the main office Vova entered the building checking in with the front desk.

[The United Nations Of Europa]

Col. Adams
Hulyaipole, Ukraine
FOB Frederick
EFF Army / Danish Corps
5 weeks before Operation Cyclone


Adams was sifting through documents that he was preparing for Yurchak. As the EFF was moving forward, Ukrainian forces were being brought back for retraining, resupplying or just to be sent home. This process though was only for members of the Ukrainian armed forces. With the media putting all eyes and ears on the UNE, they had to be careful with who they were helping out. That meant no helping volunteer groups or militias that were also fighting the separatists. Many of them had gained negative attention over the past few years and the EFF wanted to stay out of that spotlight.

One of the clerks from the front knocked on Adams's door and entered his office, "Col. Adams, Senior Sergeant Vladimir Yurchak is here."

"Bring him in please."

"Will do sir."

The clerk went back out in the hallway and came back with Yurchak.

Adams got up from his desk and reached over to shake hands with Yurchak, "We've been looking for you guys for a while now. It's been a busy week here at the base for us."

Adams sat back down and grabbed a file box from under his desk. "Now I'm not sure how well you were briefed when we picked you up but I'm going to quickly explain things to be sure."

"I don't know if you heard about it but recently the EFF was successful in taking the city of Donetsk. With that, we now have a lot of control of the supply routes that the separatists were using. WIth the DPR losing Donetsk, they have now moved their largest forces into Avdiivka, Makiivka, and Horlivka and are going to attempt a last stand for the Donetsk Oblast. And this is where you guys come in. Donetsk itself was total hell to take over. And with us going on take these three cities, we expect to see much more resistance. We're bringing in Ukrainian forces to help with the offensive. You guys know the area better than us so it'll help out a lot to have your forces with us. We'd like to avoid having our own "Battle of Grozny" if you know what I mean.

Speaking of joining us. Your squad will be assigned to work with the EFF / Polish Corps 17th Mechanized Brigade 12th Company. The 12th company was recently formed with Ukrainian speaking troops so that we can work alongside you guys with ease."

Adams took the file box and handed it over to Yurchak, "Now this is the fun part for you guys. In there are forms that you guys need to fill out with things such as height and where you were assigned to. There are also forms that you need to fill out that'll ask you about the equipment you were using. We're trying to get rid of the equipment that you guys were using and are modernizing it or just replacing it. Weapons like your AK-74 are being modernized so we can put optics on them for you.

Anyways, just list what equipment you were using and then list whatever equipment you guys are wanting. Once you're done with them, you will go to the armory where they'll look at the forms and hand you a new combat uniform, helmet, boots, armor, etc. I'm going to need you guys to fill these out by today. Oh, and you guys will also need these."

Adams reached into his desk drawer and pulled out a small pack.

"These are your new patches. Hand them out to your squad when you can. You guys will take one of each patch. One patch is your Ukraine flag and the other is the UNE flag. These will go onto your new uniforms once you get them."

"Any questions?"