War Core 2, Chapters 38 and 39.

Two chapters today since chapter 38 is just a short transitional chapter.

Chapter 38.

“Admiral, the decision should be coming down any minute, they’re taking the vote now,” The Secretary of Defense (SecDef), Miles Jordan, advised. Admiral Nix had no idea what the world would decide, he was focused on the effect it would have on Hugh and the other cores, not that he had any way to contact them until the campaign was complete and Hugh returned home.

“Thank you, sir, we’ll await the decision. Any further updates from the GCA on this?” Nix asked.

“No, they are being as vague and evasive as ever. I shouldn’t admit this, but I do find it amusing how upset the politicians get when the GCA doesn’t respond to their direct inquiries. They can’t seem to comprehend that they aren’t as important in the eyes of the arbiters of the universe as they believe themselves to be. I’ll let you know once I hear something,” Miles said.

Hours before, the UN group coordinating the war effort had received a notice from the GCA. It appeared that things were going badly on the battle for the Krixnas homeworld and the Ssath were offering a deal that the GCA seemed willing to broker for some unknown reason. If Earth and the Krixnas people gave up all their influence points, Mars would be terraformed to support life, and the Krixnas surviving the final battle would be transported there safely.

The nations were arguing over several issues, not the least of which was whether or not they wanted a previously hostile race to be housed nearby on Mars. Admiral Nix’s concern was for Major Hugh Larson and the troops that were still there fighting. They had already lost one human core but, so far, Hugh seemed to still be in the fight. Others were confused over why the Ssath would offer such a lifeline to the Krixnas when they had previously stated they wanted the Krixnas home to be used as a hunting preserve for their people.

Nix was confused as well, at least until he and the other advisors had discussed the somewhat bizarre offer. The Ssath were playing the long game, they were betting that by using up all our influence points, they would cripple our war effort, preventing us from hiring mercenaries, or purchasing other upgrades. Nix was convinced they were betting on humanity and the Krixnas taking the deal and leaving us all that much weaker against the inevitable campaign to conquer Earth. It would be a big bonus for the Ssath to conquer Earth and have two races to hunt in the same system.

What would he pick if the choice was his? Would he doom an entire race to improve the chance for humanity’s survival? Nix didn’t think he could, but then again, the image of dinosaur-like aliens hunting down his grandchildren pushed him toward saying “screw you” to the Krixnas, leaving them to their fate and using all the influence points they had gathered to improve Earth’s chances in the coming campaign. The ringing phone startled him back from his thoughts.

“Miles, did they reach a decision already?” Nix asked the SecDef before he could even say hello, forgetting to even use “sir” in his haste.

“Yes, they’re going to save the Krixnas. I don’t know how I feel about it, the details were even worse than we thought. The Krixnas take Mars as their habitat and they’re going to be saddled with some heavy restrictions. They won’t have any war cores and cannot contribute to the war against the Ssath in any way, shape, or form. All of our influence points aren’t just going to be wiped out, they’re being given to the Ssath. Save an entire species in exchange for helping to fund the enemy’s war against us both. I’m not sure what kinds of advantages or disadvantages they can buy with our points, but I do know it won’t be good for us,” Miles said.

“Any news on our cores that are still in the fight?” Nix asked.

“Not much, only that they are still participating in the battle and may or may not return depending on their performance. The negotiators did get us a couple of concessions, we get access to the data and video feeds from all the battles for the current campaign. Those should be coming in soon, and once they do; I’ll forward a copy over for your team to review,” Miles said.

“Thank you, sir, send over the data and we’ll dig into it. It’ll give us a real chance to see how the Krixnas fight against the human mechs, and I’m sure we’ll come up with something to help give our cores an advantage,” Nix said.

“I know you will,” Miles replied, ending the call.

Admiral Nix sat in his office for a time, trying to sort out his feelings on the whole matter. In the end, his feelings didn’t matter, they wouldn’t help Earth win, but doing his job might.

“All command personnel and advisors report to the conference room, we’ve got a lot of work ahead of us,” Nix called out, transmitting to every loudspeaker on the base. Hugh might not return from this fight, but if he did, they’d be ready to give him the tools and tactics he needed to win.

Chapter 39.

You are approaching the location of your next battle. The Ssath have pushed the allied forces back and now stand at the gates of the Krixnas capital. Hold back the tide of enemy forces to allow the final evacuation to complete. Once you arrive at the capital, you will have an extended opportunity to prepare your forces and gather reinforcements. Use your time wisely, the casualty rates for this battle are greatly enhanced.

“Stephan, Mike, did you two just get an announcement about the next battle?” Hugh asked.

“Yes, it appears that my people have been offered sanctuary by humanity and we need to hold the city long enough for them to flee,” Mike said.

“I don’t know anything about evacuations and sanctuary, but I received a rather generic notice we are supposed to cover the final evacuation,” Stephan replied.

“Me too, Stephan, I suppose we’ll get more information when we arrive at our destination. Mike, while we’re stuck in these transports, feel free to ask any questions. I know your training was pretty much non-existent, but you do have two experienced cores ready to help,” Hugh offered.

Mike took them up on the offer, asking various questions about how best to use his core in a fight. They kept things centered on the fight awaiting them, a holding action against a known opponent. Despite his earlier reluctance to interact, the Krixnas seemed to open up more. Perhaps they were just like humans in that war bonded soldiers together. Eventually, Mike’s questions tapered off, the Krixnas processing all the advice he had just received.

“How old are you, Hugh?” Stephan asked. It seemed an odd question at first until you considered that war cores have been in existence for decades and some of the first would be pretty ancient if they were still in their physical body.

“I was born in 1971, how about you? I know you were one of the first cores,” Hugh replied.

“I was born in 1919, and yes, I was part of the first batch of cores. That was a crazy time, our world was thrown into turmoil and yet, we hid most of what was happening. For all the chaos, I found I didn’t mind my new existence very much. I was a soldier; it was all I knew and all I was ever suited for. Becoming a core meant I wasn’t forced to serve some evil dictator or a chaotic newly formed democracy, no, this time I could serve humanity, all of it,” Stephan replied.

“You said earlier that your commanders were different for this battle, why is that?” Hugh asked.

“I knew this would be a difficult battle, and my forces were gathered with that in mind,” Stephan replied.

In the distance, the familiar shape of a Krixnas city began to take shape, the cores halting their conversations as the others linked into the comm channel. Once again, all the human cores could communicate.

“Hugh, Stephan, it is good to you see you two have returned. I believe you’re the last ones to the party,” Valery called out. His boisterous voice always seemed to lift Hugh’s mood.

“Good to see you too, Valery, what’s the situation here?” Hugh asked.

“Ah, it is not good, but we’re not beat yet. It seems that we did well enough, but the Ssath were too numerous, and our allies were saddled with several new and inexperienced cores. You should get an update from the GCA once you land, it’s probably best you review that, and then we’ll all have some planning to do,” Valery advised. The remaining flight was quick enough, but Hugh still had enough time to view the Krixnas capital before they landed.

The capital was composed of six rings, and like the previous city where he had fought alongside David, each ring was separated by a large open area. Hugh could see that the buildings had the same strange organic construction feel to them that all Krixnas structures seemed to follow. The height of the buildings seemed to reveal a pattern as well, the outer ring had smaller structures, like the Krixnas version of single-family homes in the suburbs. The closer you got to the center ring, the larger and more closely packed the buildings became, with the center ring comprised of skyscraper-sized structures.

In the open space of the center ring, a huge metallic framework was being constructed. It was essentially a large arch that was swarming with Krixnas working at a furious pace to build it. Outside the eastern edge of the city, Hugh could see the various defenders assembling, a mixture of human and Krixnas units. Given that his transport was dropping toward that area, Hugh assumed that it was their assembly area. As the transport touched down, Valery sent over a nav point for all his forces to follow, bringing them to their assigned assembly area while he reviewed the system information that began to populate his interface once he stepped his avatar out of the transport.

You have entered the battlefield for the final stage of the fight between the Ssath and the combined Krixnas and human defenders. Your opponents have overrun the planet and are even now closing in on the Krixnas capital to complete their victory. Negotiations between the Ssath and allied forces have been resolved, granting your allies a chance at survival.

Defend the city as the civilian population evacuates into the portal being constructed. The longer you can hold out, the more Krixnas will survive to populate the new world given to them by their allies. Each ring of the city must be defended by a maximum of a single core, with the human core possessing the weakest army allowed to defend at any location they choose. Once the battle commences, the casualty rate will increase as each successive ring is conquered. A reprieve will be granted, and your forces will be allowed safe passage to the portal once you have held your assigned ring of the city for the required time.

Each ring will house a small factory that will build reinforcements and process upgrades for your troops. A trickle of resources will continue to flow into each factory, the amount of which will increase each time a ring is successfully defended. Fixed defenses may also be constructed, and each ring will have a small force of Krixnas infantry available to assist in any construction, repair, or gathering of salvage.

Once you have selected a ring to defend, your core will be granted time to repair and upgrade your units. Your forces may not leave your assigned ring until the retreat timer counts down to zero. If your forces violate this restriction and leave their assigned ring before the appropriate time, an increased casualty rate penalty will apply. The time for upgrades and preparation is generous but limited, use it wisely as the Ssath attack is imminent.

It should be noted that the enhanced casualty rate will be increased as each ring falls to the Ssath. The base casualty rates are as follows, the percentage of casualties will be modified by the normal end of campaign bonuses, penalties, and core upgrades. Holding a ring for the required time will reduce the remaining rings’ casualty rate by 5%. The two surviving Krixnas cores will be automatically assigned to rings 2 and 4. Human cores may choose from among themselves which ring to defend, but if a decision is not made by the assigned time limit, defense locations will be randomly assigned, and the casualty rate will increase by 5% for every core.

City defense additional casualty rates:

Ring 1: 15%.

Ring 2: 25%.

Ring 3: 35%.

Ring 4: 45%.

Ring 5: 55%.

Ring 6: 90%.

The casualty rate penalty for leaving the ring you are defending before the approved time is 25%.

“What’s going on with those casualty rates?” Hugh asked. It was insane, whoever defended the last ring would have most of their combat pod operators die if their mechs were destroyed in the battle. Sure, he had suffered casualties in the other battles, but never to anywhere near this extent. It was going to be a bloodbath, and even if they won, the units involved would be hollow shells of what they were at the beginning of the campaign.

“The GCA wants their entertainment, and I think whoever they are entertaining wants some blood on this one,” Valery confirmed, and like the rest of them, was no longer concerned over insulting their overlords.

“So, what do we do about it? We can do nothing except to win and keep our losses as low as possible. Perhaps, if we can hold back the enemy long enough at the outer rings, the defenders at the inner rings might not even need to fight,” Stephan offered.

“Something tells me the Ssath aren’t going to make this easy for us, and our time is limited, how do you propose we assign the rings to defend? We voted you as our leader Valery, so the decision is yours,” Hugh asked. He was furious but refused to give the GCA the satisfaction of seeing him lose control.

“I can’t make this decision on my own, everyone, give me some suggestions, I won’t doom one of you on a whim,” Valery said.

“Well, mate, I suppose the only fair thing to do would be to draw lots for our positions? I feel a bit guilty to suggest anything, though, it looks like the GCA has rated my army as the weakest, so I’ll be floating around between the different rings of the city,” Tucker offered.

“Drawing lots seems the fairest way to me,” Jiro replied, supporting Tucker’s suggestion.

“If there are no objections, that is what we’ll do,” Valery confirmed. Neither Hugh nor Stephan had a problem with that. He had one of Jiro’s infantry mark up four stones to represent each of them, handing the four stones to a nearby Krixnas infantry mech, ordering it to place the stones on the ground one at a time. All the avatars crowded around the Krixnas as it laid down the first stone.

“First off, in ring one, we have, Valery,” Tucker called out, appointed by the group as the judge since he was the only one that wasn’t going to be assigned a ring to defend.

“No, I cannot have that, I’ll take another pick,” Valery offered, not wishing to take the best slot.

“Take it, Valery, you’ve got the heaviest hitters out of all of our armies. You have the best chance to defend the outer ring long enough to make the rest of our jobs easier,” Hugh countered. Despite all the battles, Valery still had the largest force, and it included more heavy and medium mechs than the other cores combined. Seeing the other cores agreed with Hugh, Valery relented.

“Okay, ring two is for one of the Krixnas cores, for ring three, we have Jiro,” Tucker announced as the Krixnas laid down the next marker. With nobody commenting, Tucker motioned for the Krixnas to lay down the next one.

“Fifth ring goes to Stephan, sorry Hugh, you get the short end of the stick this time,” Tucker said.

“No! My soldiers will take the center ring, and I will have no arguments to the contrary. We are wasting time, and all my men and commanders have already agreed to this. Now, we need to get on with planning our defense. I suggest we head to our assigned positions and begin upgrading and building replacements. Time is short and we have a hard fight ahead of us. Let’s get to work,” Stephan demanded.

“That’s not what we agreed to,” Hugh started to argue before being cut off.

“Nein!” I will take the final ring, waste no more time Hugh, I will not be dissuaded and every moment you waste here is one we could be using to prepare for the Ssath,” Stephan barked. The sharp retort revealing the command presence of an officer that had served for longer than Hugh had been alive.

“It is his decision Hugh, let Stephan do what he wishes,” Valery told Hugh. The others agreed, and after hearing the steel in Stephan’s voice, they knew the German core was set in his decision. The avatars gathered up their troops, marching into the city they were risking their lives to defend.

“Can you at least tell me why?” Hugh asked Stephan over private comms. He felt horrible, letting the man take the most dangerous slot, but he also felt relief and more than a little guilt that the soldiers under his command would have a better chance at life at the expense of the German troops.

“Not now, we both have work to do and a defense to focus on,” Stephan replied, his voice softening a bit.

Hugh moved deeper into the city, heading toward the fifth ring, and his assigned area to defend. A pair of Krixnas infantry appeared, guiding his troops toward where the factory was located in that section of the city. He would start there, going through his upgrades and replacements, using the time that took to look over the portion of the city that he was responsible to defend. There had to be some way to hold it long enough to buy the time needed for the evacuation to complete.

Thinking about the evacuation, Hugh looked toward the city center, the large structure the Krixnas were racing to complete was going to represent a portal of some type, the last chance for the civilians to escape. Where they were escaping to was still a mystery, but at least the interface would be able to provide Hugh with some information on their progress.

Krixnas Capital City Evacuation Progress:

Portal Functionality: N/A, the structure is under construction.

Ring 1: 0%.

Ring 2: 0%.

Ring 3: 0%.

Ring 4: 0%.

Ring 5: 0%.

Ring 6: 0%

There was a countdown timer for the estimated Ssath arrival next to the evacuation progress meter, but for now, it was blank. Hugh needed to work fast, that timer wasn’t going to stay blank for long.