War Chief

The facility's largest tower jutted out compared to the rest of the facility. The highest point was built to command the entire facility and look upon it. The ceiling of the room was high above allowing for a wide open area with a wall of glass to look out upon the no man's land, the beach, and the ocean. One could even get a decent view of the skies above with how high the room's ceiling was.

Standing in front of the glass panes one man in an armored Thorakai watched the last of the small ships crash down to the ground. “Cades, where’s the ship I ordered to be shot down? We can’t risk the smallest possibility of a Trojan horse. I don’t run such a tight operation to just let something slip through the cracks.”

Cades stood behind him, gripping the left forearm of his Thorakai, twisting the gauntlet until it clicked. The dark metal of his armor didn’t reflect nicely off the shine of the rest of the shiny silver room. The upper body of his armor featured layers upon layers of armor plates similar to muscle. The armor only left crevices that showed the thinner armor beneath it.  His armor plating was rough and scratchy instead of smooth and finely made.

“Sir, the ship crashed in the western part of the facility…with your permission, I will resume my post on the Western wall.” From the man’s view, he could see the approaching Roman ground transports approaching. The tiny dots in his vision, although small were squads of approaching Romans

“Permission denied. I’m going to have you go and investigate the crash site. I don’t trust whatever random guards are there to deal with it. Depending on what's in that ship, you might have to capture or kill them. I trust you to make that judgment.” His steadfast gaze continued to look out at the incoming attack

“War Chief Pankraz if the Northern wall isn’t reinforced in time, we’ll have to direct troops to—”

“Silence!” Pankraz yelled out at the top of his lungs, “I didn't ask for your advice! This is my facility! My responsibility!” Turning away from the glass, Pankraz walked towards Cades, down the steps that separated them. Cades lowered his head. Pulling his fist back Pankraz slammed it into Cades' chin, whipping the man's head back before grabbing Cades' neck and constricting his grip. Pankraz swiped his subordinate's knee, sending Cades to one knee, “I am the War Chief of this facility, and I expect your complete and total cooperation!”

“I—”

“I didn't order you to speak! That disgusting mouth of yours butchers my language with every word you speak. Your parents disgust me for joining with the Roman scourge! All of you Erbachs are traitors!" Letting go of Cades' neck he punched the back of his helmet sending the man to the floor.  Cades had not struggled through the pain, letting himself go limp if anything. Besides a grunt from the pain of being thrown down, he was silent.

“You are a slave! Nothing more! My command decides your life and your death! Was it not me who saved you from the streets of that destroyed city? Was it not me who gave you that armor? Was it not me who gave you your status?” Pankraz screamed out, “I am in control of you! This facility, and every other soldier within it!” Cades slowly pushed himself back up until he was on one knee, before nodding once. Pankraz’s rapid deep breaths slowed before his gaze moved away from Cades, “Understood?”

“Understood,” Cades said, his voice husky and his shoulders slumped.

Pankraz smacked the back of his helmet, scratching the already scraped armor. “Good. Now go investigate the downed ship.”

“Yes…sir.” Cades said as his metallic fingers dug into his shaking palm. One day. I’ve told myself that for a decade now. One day, Cades thought to himself.

“Deliver the message on your way out. Do not direct troops from the other wall towards the Northern one. Direct guards and other personnel to the wall. I will not weaken our other defenses for the sake of the Northern wall.” Pankraz left it at that before walking back up the steps to gaze at no man's land.

At the crash site of the transport ship, Ajax stood up, rubble rolling off of him as he did so, “Eversor! Ayla! Where are you guys?” Ajax's eyes bolted around the rubble before he caught sight of Eversor. Ajax grunted rolling the debris off of his friend before pulling him out of the wreckage, his Thorakai scraping against the rubble noisily. The downed ship containing the three allies had crashed into one of the facility’s hallways, leaving the back of the transport ship open and exposed to anybody coming down the facility's hallways.

“Ughh.” A soft groan came from under the rubble.

“Eversor!” Digging into the rubble, Ajax tossed one of the large collapsed thrusters off of his friend to pull him out, “Get up, they could be coming at any moment…Ayla!” Tearing Eversor out of the rubble, he dragged him into the brightly lit corridor. The metallic stomps of approaching soldiers were followed by the bellowing sound of the facility's alarms. “Dammit.”

Looking down, he planned to search for Eversor's rifle, but it wasn't nearby. Under the helmet, his eyes went wide, without another second to think he reached for his submachine guns at his thighs.

Pointing them down the hallway that had a junction at the end where three hallways intersected. Behind them, the crashed ship blocked any exit. Ajax gasped before an explosive went off just feet away. The two Romans were thrown back against the rubble, Eversor's body slamming into one of the walls and Ajax’s against the rubble.

“Go! Go! Go!” The Germans yelled, pushing into the hallway, their guns raised. Groaning on the ground, Ajax tried to push himself up, but the rubble beneath him quickly gave way, making him slump back down to the ground. “A Roman!” One of the Germanics yelled as they all took aim, “Fi–”

A frantic burst of bullets came from the destroyed ship, bullets tore through the armor-clad enemies shredding their armor and bodies. After four seconds of nonstop fire, the gun went silent, and the Germans all lay dead on the floor. From above the destroyed wreck, Ayla stood holding Eversor’s rifle. The barrel glowed re,d and an empty magazine dropped from the rifle. Looking up from the rubble, Ajax grimaced, staring up at Ayla, “How the hell did you end up with his rifle?”

“The idiot dropped it in the crash…no thanks?” She asked as she slid down the rubble.

“I’ll thank you once I'm sure my friend didn’t die in the crash.”

“You're the one who crashed it.” She shot back.

“Shut up. Both of you.” Eversor groaned out, sitting up before falling back into the rubble.

“Let's get him out of here,” Ajax said, reaching down to help lift his friend up. Ayla joined him at Eversor’s side, putting his arm over her shoulder to help support his weight.

“How bad do you think it is?” She asked

“He’s talking, so at least he’s still with us. We have to get away from the wreck.” He said as they dragged the soldier on through the hallways.

“Let's find somewhere to get him back on his feet,” Ayla said as she looked between Eversor and Ajax.

Outside of the facility, the advancing Romans were advancing towards the facility. Mile after mile, more and more bodies lay strewn about the field. Each and every trench they came across began to be overrun. Flying through the air, the Thorakai equipped to fly soared over the trenches, firing down with grenade launchers while others dropped grenades and other explosives.

 The constant sound of firing plasma and machine guns continued to fill the battlefield. Regardless of the Romans' efficiency at clearing each trench, it cost them thousands to reach them.

“Charge!!! We can’t afford to slow down! Victory is right there! Just a few more trenches, and we’ll be climbing its walls!” Roark roared out as he raised his gladius from its sheath. The flashing lights of plasma soaring by illuminated the blade with a blue glint. Leading the charge of his men, he ran over corpses, barbed wire, and destroyed starships. Running on, he tripped over an unrecognizable destroyed Thorakai, its melted body making it look absurd that a soldier had ever been within it.

Falling into the muddy trench, he stood up to see Germans at his right and his left. The two men at his side froze before raising their weapons as fast as they could. Their momentary hesitation cost them their lives as Roark slashed the first throat before he turned around, raised his gladius, and stabbed the man behind him.

The line of men he had been leading caught up from behind, rushing the trench and overrunning the Germanics. Roark panted, embedding his sword into one of the injured Germanics, putting him out of his misery with his blade. Turning to his side, he saw a cowering young man slipping and sliding in the mud while the sounds of crying came from under his helmet. The soldier's attempts to stand only ended with him slipping back into the mud. Across his chest was a green marking, a dragon being the crest of his tribe.

“Kid. Stay out of this.” Roark said calmly before leaping out of the trench to continue on. The scared whimpers and fearful body language reminded him too much of the soldiers he had commanded. Stepping out of the trench he jumped into the mud to begin crawling under the heavy fire coming from the Hephaisteion. Where is Eversor and Ajax? They were there last night. I swore they were. Ayla was gone. Maybe she had something to do with it, Roark thought as he crawled in the mud, firing at the enemies in front of him. The Titanic ignis canons shot their bursts of fire towards the Romans. Ground transports exploded into flames killing anybody within the vehicle.

I don’t have time for that, he thought as Roark leaped from his position rushing forward. The flurry of flames and bullets tore through the men even more as they got closer and closer to the facility. The Roman advance slowed as they maneuvered around the barrage of plasma fire. The bodies piled upon each other as the last trench was right in front of him.

“Push!” Roark screamed out at the top of his lungs, but even then, it could barely be heard over the endless sound of firing guns. From his position on the ground, he knew he’d have to take yet another leap of faith into the very last and most well-defended trench. Glancing back, he expected to see a few men behind him to help assault it, but as he did, he saw nobody within even a hundred feet.

Rolling to the side, he took cover under some of the barbed wire, hiding as he watched every approaching man be cut down. Beneath the helmet, his jaw clenched, and his eyes stared out at the carnage. The rifle in his arms bent under the pressure of his Thorakai’s grip. Reaching for the under barrel of his rifle, he removed a covering to reveal an attachment that allowed a grenade to be fired from it. Reaching for the grenades attached to his belt, he loaded the launcher with three grenades.

His breathing sped up frantically, and his attempts to keep composed failed as he roared out. Rolling under the barbed wire, he aimed his rifle and fired it at the nearest turret. The turret exploded, its shrapnel and fuel exploding. Aiming upwards towards the facility’s walls, he fired again, taking out yet another turret. On top of the facility's wall, men were flung from their positions and down into the mud below.

Turning around as he lay on the ground, his gun went on top of his chest. With the gun angled sideways, he pulled the trigger, firing his last grenade at a third turret that was defending at the top of the wall. As the third turret went up in flames he heard what could only be described as a battle cry from the approaching Romans.

Their guttural roars sounded off throughout the battlefield and could be heard even over the endless gunfire. Roark ducked into the final trench, trying to prevent getting shot by the men lining the wall. The battle hadn’t died down in the slightest as the Hephaisteion continued to fire its canons, and the walls of the facility continued with constant gunfire. Taking a moment to breathe Roark relaxed against the trench wall.

“Roark!” One of the advancing Romans yelled. Hearing the cry of his name, Roark looked back in the direction he heard the voice. The fresh recruit in the golden squad had called out to Roark while running towards his superior, “You did it!” The young men called out loudly, almost happily. Beneath the helmet, he grinned ear to ear while kneeling next to Roark.

Roark looked towards the young man approaching him, grimacing as he saw the smile on his face. “What?”

“Were here on the enemy's doorstep, we might as well call this victory!” The young man exclaimed.

“Not yet, kid. All we’ve done is found a new place to be bogged down,” Roark said as he reloaded the grenade launcher attachment. The raging defense of the factory's defenses continued endlessly. The massive ignis cannons fired as close to the facility as they could, trying to pick off the Romans that continued to approach. In the skies above,e some fighters still scrambled in sporadic dogfights. Those who remained from the brief breakthrough.

From Roark's point of view, all he had done was gain ground, but Romans were still being slaughtered, running towards the facility. Across no man's land, he saw fires burning in the distance, each one a ground transport ship or an approaching tank that never even came close. The ground transports stood no chance. The tanks got bogged down in the mud, and the other transports were helpless against those canons, he thought.

“Sir, I have an idea. Maybe we can—”

“Quiet! Let me think!” Roark spat as he looked up at the wall they were so close to. Seeing the constant firing of the plasma and explosives being thrown, he groaned, bashing his fist against the trench wall.

“Where is everybody?” The young man asked as he looked out at the battlefield and trenches. From where they were they could see more and more approaching Romans, but barely any that were getting close. Most of the advancing Romans had ground to a halt in the trenches they had reached. “We need the siege ladders or ones with mobility gear…dammit, why didn’t they use paratroopers to…look!” The young man said, pointing towards the sky.

Roark's attention went to the sky above, seeing incoming Roman vessels flying out of the atmosphere. “Reinforcements… there's a few German vessels trying to deal with them, but it's reinforcements nonetheless…nice eye, kid. Kid?‘’ He looked back behind him.

The young man was dead in the mud. A bullet had torn through his helmet, right between the eye slits in the armor. Slowly Roark's head slowly turned to look in the direction the bullet had come from. Standing with a rifle in his arms was the Germanic with the green dragon across his chest.

In the blink of an eye, Roark raised his grenade launcher, firing one shot, and the German soldier exploded. The shrapnel of his armor went flying across the ground around him, scattering both armor and body into countless pieces.

Roark lowered his gun shakily as his panting and shaking returned. The soldier growled, dropping his gun to the ground before reaching for his helmet and trying to pull on it as if it could be taken off. “Dammit all! Dammit all to hell! Just let me die already! Why won’t you?” The man wailed as he grabbed onto his helmet with his armored gauntlets, desperately to drown out the roars of the Romans, who began advancing once more.

Ayla and Ajax grabbed the handle of one of the doors in the corridor. Tugging on the door it didn’t move even under the strength of her Thorakai. Looking at Ajax she gestured towards the door with a tilt of the head. Ajax nodded, grabbing the handle above her hand. Both of them pulled back on the handle. The door creaked and jittered, trying to shut itself back closed. The loud screeching of the door filled the hallways but could barely be heard over the already blaring alarms.

Both soldiers grunted, straining their muscles to slam the door open after the struggle. Lunging inside, the three fell to the ground in a heap. Behind them, the door slammed shut. The two soldiers looked between themselves and the unconscious Eversor. Staying silent, they listened as the stomping and yelling of the German soldiers rushed past the door.

“They’re going to the ship aren’t they?” Ajax asked as he looked around the room, it was blue with computers, desks, and a wall of screens. Overall it had a blue pallet all around with normal lighting that accentuated the blue hue.

“We made one hell of an entrance even after crashing into the facility…nice piloting.”

“Haha, very funny,” Ajax said while rolling his eyes.

“I’m serious, I couldn’t have gotten us here with everything that happened,” Ayla said as they lifted Everosr onto a table, laying him down.

“Thanks…and thank you for saving our asses…you're lucky Eversor seems to trust you. You couldn’t have convinced me to sneak you onto the ship, let alone make me pilot it…he seems to drag me into everything. It's what I get for helping him sign up.”

“You did what?” She asked.

“Yeah, back during the first sack of Praesidium we—”

The clamoring of objects falling around inside a nearby closet pulled both of their gazes toward it. Grabbing her pistol from her waist, Ayla raised her pistol, aiming at the closet while Ajax raised his own submachine gun.

“Out. Now.” Ayla commanded as she aimed steadily at the closet. A few rattles and the sound of scuffling came from the closet before a person, along with all the equipment within it, came tumbling out.

“Don’t shoot!” A woman yelled, not adorned in Thorakai armor. She raised her hands, quivering as she looked between the three guns that were pointed at her, “Please, I’m just a scientist!” The woman said as she showed off her access card to them.

“Where’s your armor?” Ajax asked as he lowered his weapon assuming she couldn’t be hiding anything strong enough to hurt them in their Thorakai.

“It’s in the closet behind me! I’m not supposed to be out of it, but you know how tiring these things can be…wait…are you a Roman?” The girl asked as she fixed her glasses gazing at Ajax’s armor. From any other perspective, he looked like a simple Roman soldier, but from hers, his suit might as well have been mythical. “I’ve never seen one before…beautiful.” She muttered as she stared at his suit with starry eyes. Ayla and Ajax looked on with confused gazes.