Struggles

March 27, 1941

1pm

Outskirts of Abgala:

Looks like that fort was the only thing keeping us from the capital. Arrasian resistance was way weaker down the road. Either they put all their hopes on that one fort or they barricaded themselves inside the city.

Despite being technologically behind and even being known as the "sick man of Europa", Arras is no stranger to warfare nor are their soldiers inept. In fact, history and my own experiences say otherwise.

What started out as a small band of warring tribes in 1289, grew into a tiny principality 10 years later and after the conquest of Abgala in 1453, the foundation that would one day become the Arrasian Empire would be set.

For hundreds of years, many nations tried and failed to conquer the Arrasian capital. The city's 3 walls and divided districts made it difficult for any army to even maintain a foothold. Frankly, the city's layout reminds me of Randgriz or rather what Randgriz would look like with multiple walls. That coupled with the city being built near a cliff face, made it easier to form killzones and funnels to limit enemy troop movement, at least that was the common strategy used for hundreds of years. Today, we'll see whether or not modern weapons and tactics can overcome this impregnable city.

General Barredo ordered all units to get into formation. We'll be applying the same tactics we used to seize that fort with some modifications. We had to move fast as scout planes reported Imperial reinforcements enroute to the capital. The general said that if we take the capital before the Imperials could arrive, we could fortify ourselves into the city and hold off the Imperials long enough for more Federation reinforcements to arrive.

The plan was to have Federation planes and the 2 heavy cruisers from the beachhead bombard the enemy emplacements on all 3 walls. Once the first wall's cannons are neutralized, both tanks and half-tracks would break a hole through the enemy defensive line and divide the forces into several squads. One group will continue to the Arrasian's 2nd defensive line in the Merchant district while the others will neutralize the remaining Arrasian defenses in the residential area.

Me, General Barredo, Isaac, Franko, Roswell, and Abel were part of the assault on the Merchant district.

"Red 1" General Barredo said over the radio "We're ready. On your mark"

"Roger that, general" Sora replied "Commencing bombardment"

Within less than a minute, the seafires broke through the clouds and were immediately met with flak fire from the enemies below. The planes then split into 3 groups as each one bombards all 3 walls simultaneously. Meanwhile, the cruisers released their salvos on the walls facing the sea.

Many sections of these walls quickly crumble as the seafires' bombs rip through the ancient foundation. After more than 400 years, the ancient walls of Abgala finally kneeled before its invaders.

"The walls are crumbling!" General Barredo said "This city will fall!"

Our tanks and half-tracks immediately race through the open fields as the Arrasians desperately use everything they had left to hinder our progress to no avail. Small arms fire and a few lances weren't enough to stop an entire tank division.

Within minutes, my squad reached the Merchant district. The half-track stops near a bazaar or at least what's left of it.

We exited the vehicle as the Arrasians scatter around the area, attempting to flank us.

Me, Roswell, and Isaac engaged the enemies on the right while the others went for the enemies on the left.

The initial fighting wasn't too difficult. Our blitz strategy was too fast for them to be able to properly react. The combined might of armored vehicles and infantry made short work of the infantry lines.

Despite there still being pockets of Arrasian resistance in the Residential district, the plan dictates we press on to the Royal district where the palace is. Though it wasn't easy.

Our advance was halted by several anti-tank cannons and heavy fire from entrenched forces in and around the walls. We lost a few shermans and crusaders because of that, forcing me and a few others to take cover by a deep crater near one of the destroyed shermans.

This battlefield is very different from the one at the beach. On open terrain, our tanks could easily outrun the cannon fire but we're in a city this time. The rubble and tight spaces for vehicles proved to be fatal for many.

Seems the closer we got to the Royal district, the more ferocious the Arrasians became. I guess it's to be expected. Losing this city would be a huge blow to their morale even if the Royal family escapes.

"Red 1" General Barredo said on the radio "I need a strafing run on enemy positions on these coordinates!"

"Coordinates received, general" Sora replied as she and 2 other seafires turn towards their new destination "On our way"

At the general's order, all the surviving infantry hid in whatever cover was closest. For us, we hid deeper into the crater.

"Prep smoke!" the general commanded over the radio as the sound of plane engines start to echo in my ears

"We're coming in hot!" Sora announced as she and her 2 escorts open fire on the exposed enemy positions

Almost immediately after, the general ordered us to throw our smoke grenades. We complied and immediately fixed bayonets on our rifles.

Under the cover of smoke, both infantry and tanks charged towards the Arrasian positions, rifles and tank guns at the ready. The second I emerge from the smoke, I immediately open fire on the surviving enemy soldiers.

Sora's strafing run neutralized the gun crews but there were still quite the contingent of enemy soldiers left. While some of us continued the charge, me and a few others either crouched or went prone, providing cover fire to the advancing troops while trying to minimize the risk of being shot ourselves.I focused my shots on several Arrasian lancers as rockets and bombs exploded around me.

Eventually, we managed to push towards the Royal district and the Arrasians all retreated back to the palace. The area around the palace was heavily fortified. Between us and the palace was a large park. There was barely any cover in the middle and the enemy was well-prepared for this defense. Barricades, makeshift pillboxes, small trenches. The Arrasians placed every defensive tactic they could just to defend this one building and if the soldiers at the fort were any indication, every soldier here was ready to fight to the last man.

Me and the others positioned ourselves near this huge statue of what I'm assuming is a famous Arrasian figure. Enemy fire was heavy as bullets and explosives rained on our position. Returning fire was hard. The enemy planned their defenses well. The machine gun nests covered almost our entire position, the enemy grenadiers have us pinned down in whatever protection we could find… I gotta commend the Arrasians for their patriotism but this'll compromise the operation if the Imperials manage to reach the frontlines.

"Red 1!" General Barredo called "I need a bombing run by the enemy positions near the palace!"

"I think I'm gonna have to get back to you on that" Sora replied "We just spotted several bandits incoming"

"Shit!"

Our attack took too long. Imperial BF-109s were nearing the city, forcing our much needed air support to intercept them.

"Stay frosty, boys" Sora commanded as the seafires fly in formation "Let's show these Imperials who owns these skies!"

"There's as many of them as there are us" Wilson added

Within minutes, both Federation and Imperial planes break through each other's formation, scattering the planes as machine gun and cannon fire cover the skies above the capital.

Wilson targets the 109 just off the nose of his plane. The Imperial plane flies past the Federation pilot as he unleashes a barrage.

Trying to stay onto his target, Wilson makes a tight left turn. The enemy plane makes a hard right as Wilson's plane faces his target.

Acting quickly, Wilson opens fire, landing a direct hit on the plane. As smoke envelopes the enemy plane, the Imperial pilot opens the canopy and ejects from his plane.

Unable to savor his victory, Wilson notices another 109 shooting at an allied seafire. Wilson quickly turns and dives his plane towards his new target.

Noticing his presence, the 109 starts to swerve from side to side as it continues its onslaught on the seafire. Wilson fires several barrages but they seem to be ineffective at neutralziing the target. He then takes a deep breath and carefully calculates the bullet trajectory before unleashing another burst. This time, the enemy plane tumbles as smoke and fire envelope the plane.

In that instant, a 109 positions itself behind Wilson and opens fire. The bullets puncture holes on his wings as the Federation pilot attempts evasion maneuvers as the enemy plane continues putting pressure on him. In an instant, Sora flies from his right and fires a barrage, it was a direct hit to the pilot.

As the enemy plane falls from the sky, Sora is confronted by another 109 in front of her. It unleashes a burst of cannon fire, hitting her right wing.

Sora quickly makes a hard right, maintaining her sights on the enemy plane. She fires barrage after barrage on the 109 but the enemy plane doesn't go down and attempts a dive. Sora follows and dives as well.

Eventually, both Federation and Imperial pilot ended up circling each other as both compete on who could pull tighter. The Imperial was slowly winning the fight as it was inching closer to attack position.

Struggling, Sora looks around and spots a lone BF-109 in the distance. In a split second, the pilot quickly turns towards her new target as cannon fire flies past her, with some hitting her left wing. Luckily, another Federation plane engaged the 109 behind Sora, allowing her to focus on her new target.

She fires at the 109 as the plane dives towards the ground below. Instead of diving as well, Sora opted to slowly descend and carefully predict the 109's flight path. After several missed shots, her patience finally pays off as she correctly predicts the 109's path and fires a barrage just in front of it. The bullets directly hit the plane as it quickly catches fire and crashes on a nearby forest just outside the capital.

Back on the ground, the Arrasians still had us pinned down by heavy fire as a BF-109 crashed in the middle of the park. The crash reduced the amount of fire raining on us which gave us some much needed breathing room.

Seeing the opportunity, me, General Barredo, and a few others took cover by the crashed plane. The pilot was dead in the cockpit.

"Abel!" the general called "Prep the mortar! Fire on these coordinates!"

The general then climbs onto the plane's wing and hides just beside the dead pilot before relaying coordinates for the grenadier with his binoculars.

Abel quickly adjusts his mortar to the relayed coordinates before firing. The mortar lands on a group of enemies hiding behind some sandbags.

"Ok. Next!" the general said as he relays new coordinates to which Abel adjusts accordingly

This went on for a couple more minutes. Fortunately, Abel's mortar shots managed to soften the enemy defenses enough to allow the rest of the units to slowly advance. The Arrasians were slowly pulling back towards the palace.

It was only a matter of time until we overrun their position!

"Alright!" the general said as he grabs a smoke grenade "Prepare to pop smoke and-"

A very frantic voice echoes through our radios, interrupting the general. "General! Our position just outside the city has been compromised!"

"What?!"

"The rear guard has been decimated, sir! There are attempts to retake the position but they're facing heavy resistance from the enemy squad!"

"SHIT!"

Unbeknownst to us, an elite squad of Arrasian commandos traveled from Derft using small boats and climbed the cliff face towards our rear guard. They were very efficient as we had only noticed their infiltration when it was too late.

To make matters worse, Imperial submarines managed to catch our heavy cruisers by surprise and several Imperial Metallgetriebes (the walking tanks from before) arrived to reinforce the Arrasian defenses.

The enemy had us surrounded. Without the rear guard, we wouldn't be able to hold the capital, let alone the palace, for long. We could retake the rear guard but that would take time. Time that we don't have...

"What do we do?" Franko asked

"Goddamn it!" the general shouted as the enemy fire intensified "We're aborting the mission! Retreat!"

The siege was a failure… We took too long and gave the Imperial army enough time to arrive and reinforce the Arrasian defenses. Though a retreat was called, it wasn't going to be easy as the morale boost from the reinforcements emboldened the Arrasians and few Imperials there to pursue us.

Those of us by the crashed plane started running back towards our original position as one of the walking tanks suddenly landed in front of us. A few of us instinctively opened fire on it to little effect. Roswell then fires a lance rocket, hitting its legs. The legs quickly give way and the tank collapses to the ground.

"Move! Move!" the general shouted as more Metallgetriebes gave chase

The walking tanks rained machine gun fire on us, gunning a few of our men down. Seeing the casualties, I almost instinctively stopped to help them but the general quickly grabbed my arm.

"Oh no you don't!" he shouted as we contiuned running

We all quickly dove behind some sandbags as the machine gun fire pinned us down.

Just then, a few crusaders started engaging the Metallgetriebes, allowing us to continue our retreat though it wouldn't last long as those walking tanks also had anti-armor cannons and quickly made short work of the crusaders though the crusaders did take down of them.

"Red 1! Red 1!" the general called over the radio

"What is it, general?" Sora replied

"Mission's FUBAR! I've ordered a retreat! Switch priorities to providing air support to retreating forces!"

"Copy on those orders. Do you need assistance?"

"YES! We got those walking tanks on our tail and I could use some ordinance!"

"Acknowledged. I'm detaching a few fighters your way. Be advised, enemy aircraft aren't letting up so we're also just as tied"

"Roger that!"

The walking tanks quickly closed the distance on us as we all hid behind the nearest debris or rubble we could find before the machine guns started firing. Roswell loads another rocket on his lance and fires it but misses as the tank literally jumps out of the rocket's way. Luckily, the fighters Sora sent managed to neutralize the remaining Metallgetriebes, allowing us to retreat.

It wasn't easy running back to where we started. Pockets of Arrasian defenders were attacking us from every angle as they drove us back to the very outskirts of the city. Upon reaching the rear guard, the units that were attacking the residential district managed to neutralize the commandos, a few were even captured alive.

With no time to process prisoners, the general ordered a full retreat as the Imperial and Arrasian armies consolidated their hold over the Arrasian capital. I still remember hearing the echoes of their cheers later that night.

It didn't even take a day before the Arrasians and Imperials started their counterattack. General Barredo had us setup several defensive positions on the small villages and checkpoints we still had but the combined might of both armies and our dwindling numbers and supplies just wasn't enough to keep them away from the beachhead…

It only took them around a week to push us back to the fort at Cape Helles…

April 6, 1941

We've consolidated all of our defenses in the fort. It's dangerous but this fort is our last hope to keep the Imperials and Arrasians out of the beachhead. Good news is that the enemy knows this too so artillery and mortars aren't a problem and their planes are preoccupied with ours.

The general already requested an evac but command kept denying him, telling us to keep pressing on. Goddamn politicians! They're more willing to allow thousands of us to die just so they can have this shot at "glory"...

It's been about 2 days since we fell back here. We managed to hold off every attack so far but that's it. We're stuck here. I doubt we'll be able to advance beyond this fort though given command's reaction, I'd say more bodies will be sent to this grounder.

Fort Gulistan, Cape Helles

Imperial Side:

A female Imperial officer scans the dug-in Federation positions in and around the fort. She chuckles for a moment as an Imperial officer approaches her. The officer was wearing a much more regal attire when compared to the standard uniform and he exudes an aura of superiority.

"Well. Well" the man said in a low yet seemingly condescending tone "How goes the siege, General Tulius?"

"Oh it's going quite well" the general replied nonchalantly while continuing looking through her binoculars "To what honor do I owe this visit from Prof. Neil Schulte, the esteemed executive of the Ministry of Science?"

"Ha! Ever the cheeky response! You have a sense of humor unlike your father"

The Imperial general puts her binoculars down. "My question. You didn't answer. What brings you out here?"

"Well it seems you are having difficulties breaching the fort. Maybe I can offer you some of our experimental equipment to help alleviate the burden of your soldiers"

"I'm going to have to decline. I know what I'm doing"

"As you wish, general. Just know that the Ministry is more than happy to provide you and your men with ample equipment to complete missions for his highness"

"Yes quite… Now if you'll excuse me, I have a battle to win"

"Very well, general"

The regal man then leaves just as an Arrasian officer approaches the Imperial. Unlike the younger looking Imperial, the Arrasian looked like he was in his mid 40s though his face was clean of any facial hair.

"Well" the Arrasian said "That fellow was quite the character"

"Ignore him. He's just like all the others in the Ministry of Science. Only the results matter while everything else is either expendable or an experiment. Unlike them, I fight with honor"

"What is your plan to retake the fort?"

"Something bold… Prepare your forces for another attack"

"Very well"

Federation Side

An hour later:

It was around the afternoon now. There were no clouds in the sky and the sun was beating down on our heads. The atmosphere is really tense and the increasing temperature isn't helping with our already elevated heartbeats.

I was stationed just outside the gates facing the road headed to the Arrasian capital. Other than the numerous sandbags and machine gun nests, we stationed 2 Shermans on each side. We lost a majority of the tanks in the counterattack and the road inside the fort is narrow, forcing us to rely mostly on infantry and gun emplacements to keep the enemy at bay.

The heat was starting to get to me as not only was I wiping sweat off my face every few seconds, my vision was also getting a bit blurry the farther I looked but I couldn't keep my eyes away from the road ahead, nor could I take off my equipment to cool down.

"Hey" someone called tapping my shoulder

I jolted a bit as I felt the person's hand touch my right shoulder. "G-General? Ye-Yes?"

General Barredo then handed me a canteen bottle. "Drink some water. Wouldn't want you collapsing because of the heat"

There was really no reason to refuse so I took the canteen and took one big gulp. I didn't notice I was so thirsty since I drank almost half the canteen's water.

"Hey general" I asked without even thinking "What do we do now? Does command still expect us to keep going until we die?"

I don't know if it was because I was delirious from the heat or the situation was starting to get to me. I guess I desperately needed something to hold onto.

"Command sure as hell does" he replied "But I won't let that happen. I'll make sure we all get out of here…"

"Sir…?"

"CONTACT!" another Federation soldier shouted

Our full attention was then turned towards a group of Imperial Assault Tanks and BF-109s barreling down towards us at top speed.

"Seems the enemy is copying my tactics!" the general said "Take out those tanks!"

The fort's anti-tank and AA guns roar as shells rained on the Imperial tanks and flak covers the cloudless sky above.

"Roswell! Pietro!" the general continued "Prepare those lances!"

The anti-tank fire was barely effective as we only managed to destroy a few enemy tanks before they started striking us with tank shells. The shermans and lancers returned fire, destroying the surviving tanks.

Though their tanks failed to neutralize the fort's guns, this didn't stop the . 251s and motorcycles from advancing. While firing on the advancing enemies, several enemy planes conducted strafing runs on our positions, forcing us to duck deeper into cover a few times.

The strafing runs were enough to allow a few 251s and motorcycle units to reach our position. Several squads of Arrasian and Imperial infantry poured from the half-tracks. The combined arms of the enemy infantry and planes forced us to retreat back into the fort thus our first line was finally breached.

Though the enemy's air superiority didn't last long as our own planes quickly deployed to the area and engaged the 109s, giving us room to focus on the infantry literally knocking at our door.

Minutes of fighting go by. The enemy was still at our doorstep. They managed to destroy one of our anti-tank guns with a well-aimed lance rocket while the crew of the other gun was sniped by skilled Imperial snipers.

With both guns neutralized, the enemy intensified their attacks. It was getting harder and harder to pin the enemy down though they were no closer to the main gate either.

That all changed when parts of the ceiling above us collapsed all of a sudden. Within seconds, Imperial soldiers started rappelling down the holes, quickly flanking most of our positions. Many were gunned down before they even realized what was happening...

The blitz and the 109s were a distraction to allow the Imperial Ju 52s to unleash the infantry they were transporting on top of us. That's not to mention that the paratroopers were not your standard Imperial foot soldier.

The sudden appearance of these Imperials forced us to retreat back to our next line with enemy fire coming from many directions but one enemy squad blocked our retreat, forcing me, Aster, Franko, and Sonia to hide behind the nearest cover we could find as we returned fire on the enemy soldiers blocking our path.

"Emilia?!" he uttered, recognizing one of the Imperial soldiers blocking our path

"What?!" Sonia responded "Shit!"

I didn't hear what Aster or Sonia said as I prepared to throw a frag grenade. Seeing this, Aster quickly grabs my arm as I throw my grenade.

"No!" he shouted as I dropped the grenade on our feet

"Son of a bitch!" Franko shouted as he grabs the grenade and throws it on the enemies behind us

Just as the grenade detonates, I see a female Imperial soldier, probably Emilia, fire a shot, hitting me to the far left side of my torso. I dropped to the ground, writhing in pain as Aster uses his small ragnaid canister to heal my wound to little effect. I was still in a lot of pain and the wound didn't close up properly so I was still bleeding.

I lie against an overturned table. I realized too late it was made of wood as a rifle round pierces through it and hits my right shoulder. You cannot imagine the immense pain I was in as the shot forced me to go prone on the ground. Sonia quickly throws Aster her ragnaid to help with my injury but it only limited the bleeding. I needed a medic and fast.

"Sonia!" Franko shouted "Smoke!"

Sonia nodded as she followed her orders. Aster quickly lended me his shoulder as we pushed through the smoke towards the next line.

Doss was healing my injuries with his revival ragnaid as more Imperials blew more holes on the ceiling. The ragnaid was enough to finally close my wounds and stop the pain which allowed me back into the fight through the ever increasing number of Imperials flanking and surrounding us made the battle look bleaker and bleaker as the minutes went by.

"Evacuate the injured back to the beachhead!" the general ordered "Jane! Take the lead!"

"Right!" Jane replied

Jane, the medics, and a couple of other soldiers then begin organizing a retreat leaving only me, the general, Aster, Franko, Isaac, Luis, and a couple of other soldiers to hold the line.

We collapsed the other hallway while consolidating all our defenses on the remaining one. It was minutes of endless shooting with neither side budging an inch. Unbeknownst to me, Aster was aiming for one specific soldier among the enemy ranks.

"Emilia…" he muttered as he zeroes the Imperial officer in his sights "I'm sorry"

With a tear running down the side of his cheeks, the Federation conscript pulls the trigger, hitting the Imperial in the left shoulder though his target stubbornly stands back up.

"You never change" he muttered before firing another shot, this time hitting the Imperial's right shoulder.

An Imperial medic then arrives and extracts the injured soldier. Aster lets out a relieved sigh upon seeing this.

The fighting raged on for another half hour before Jane finally updated us on the situation.

"General!" she said over the radio "Everyone's successfully fallen back!"

"Copy!"

We wasted no time in retreating towards the hallway behind us but an Imperial paratrooper blew a hole from the ceiling, collapsing the hallway and cutting Franko and the general from us and the other side.

"General!" I shouted as he and Franko gun down the Imperial paratrooper above

"Damn it!" Franko said "Hallway's caved in! There's no getting around this!"

"What do we do?"

"Denzel! Take this flare gun" he said, handing the flare gun through a gap in the rubble "Once you're far away from the fort, fire it!"

"What?" I asked

"Take it! Me and Franko will get to the roof, hold them off, and rappel down once you fire the signal!"

"Th-Then why do you-"

"There's no time! Follow your goddamn orders! Am I understood?!"

"Y-Yes sir!"

What else was I supposed to do? The hallway collapsed and there was no way to clear it in time. So I took the flare gun and escaped the fort, hoping that the general would find a way out of this situation.

A few minutes later, we were far enough from the fort. I hesitated for a moment, hoping that I could see the general and Franko rappel down.

"Denzel?" Aster asked as the sound of gunfire continues to echo around the battlefield

I turned to the 3 soldiers who escaped with me. Their faces said it all. They were exhausted and worried but I had to follow orders. I looked at the flare gun and waited for a few minutes, hoping that I'd see either the general or Franko on my binoculars, Isaac even helped me look for them.

But it was futile… We couldn't find them and the sounds of gunfire were getting louder and louder. I was worried that they were pinned down but none of us could do anything from where we were. With a great amount of anxiety, I fired the flare gun.

For a few seconds, nothing changed. The sounds of battle were still echoing louder and louder and the 2 were nowhere to be found…

That was until we heard several loud bangs behind us. My heart sank and my eyes widened as we all looked behind us. It was at that moment that I realized the general's plan…

That flare wasn't a signal for him and Franko to evacuate. It was a signal for the battleships and cruisers to open fire on the fort. My eyes were glued to the sight of the ships' shells as they rained over the fort. I didn't blink, I didn't move… I simply stood there and stared at the fort as it crumbled after several salvos from our own ships…

The shock was so great that the others later told me that I was unresponsive for a few minutes. It took Aster grabbing my shoulder and slightly shaking me to bring me back to reality.

"Hey" he said "Let's get back to the others. We can't do anything here"

"Y-Yeah…" I replied

The next day, with the enemy still shocked over the destruction of the fort, Jane sent a small team to check for survivors in the fort's remains. Of course, I volunteered to join. We couldn't properly check the remains since the foundation was still somewhat unstable and could give way, not to mention that there were squads of Imperial and Arrasian snipers taking potshots at us.

We found a few bodies or at least what's left of them but none of them were the general's or Franko's. A part of me hopes that they survived the barrage and were captured by the Imperials but then I heard that Imperial POW camps are quite the hellhole...

With the general presumed KIA, Jane took command of the remaining forces. We started hastily setting up trenches and defensive positions all around the destroyed town and the beachhead while requesting evacuation from command. With the fort destroyed, there was no way to move any vehicles further into the country unless we secure another beachhead.

For the next few days, the enemy managed to send a few squads of infantry but our defenses were able to fend them off. The air force was also not much of an issue as our own planes made sure any threat from the skies doesn't reach us or at least that's how some of us see it. Not everyone had access to the radios and with most of the dogfights being fought above the clouds, rumors started circulating that command, and by extension the airforce, had abandoned us.

Needless to say, morale was at an all time low and to make matters worse, our supplies were dwindling...

April 9, 1941

Appledore, United Kingdom of Edinburgh:

Command received news of the skirmish days after the fact… Not to mention that newspapers started circulating about our failures and the constant success of the Arrasians.

Needless to say, the public was outraged. Calls for blame and accountability started echoing throughout the Federation territories as well as the demand to evacuate all the troops still fighting there.

For the politicians in Parliament, they lost all hope for the operation and, with mounting public pressure, called for a full retreat. Well almost everyone…

In the same war room in Parliament, Romel confronts the officer who called for the retreat, First Sea Lady Aileen Roberts.

"What is the meaning of this?" Romel said in an angry tone "I did not authorize a full retreat!"

"I did, sir" Roberts replied in a firm tone "The invasion has been deemed a failure and further losses would be unacceptable even if they are able to conduct another siege, they would-"

"I think you forget which one of us here holds a higher rank. I will say this again: I. Did not. Authorized. This"

"Yes you did not"

"Then we are in agreement. Rescind the order to retreat"

"Unfortunately you no longer have the authority to issue such an order"

"I what?"

"I see you have not been informed"

"Informed? What is the meaning of this?!"

"The Prime Minister had formed a new taskforce to relieve the Board of Admiralty of most of their responsibilities"

"What?!"

"One condition though was to have you relieved of your post"

"What?! Why did I not hear about this?!"

"It seems you have yet to receive your notice. Your failed operation cost the Federation too much. You are more of a liability now than an asset to this war room. Both Parliament and the people know it"

"They can not be serious!"

"Oh they are serious. It's over… Romel"

"The plan was sound!"

"Excuse me? Despite everything that has happened, you still cling to the fantasy that your little operation holds any hope of achieving its objectives, let alone having enough of an impact to turn the tide of the war?"

"What do you know of war? My family has served in this parliament and army for generations!"

"Clearly it seems you are the black sheep in the family. The road connecting the beachhead and the rest of the country has been destroyed. If several tank and infantry divisions could not take the capital, what more if it was only just infantry? And let us not forget that we lost quite the talented general in this operation as well"

"You…!"

"I think that is enough, Former First Lord. I suggest you leave peacefully and preserve whatever dignity you have left especially considering that you shall be held solely responsible for this failure"

Romel grunts before leaving the room.

Because of public outrage and pressure from his political opponents, Edinburgh's Prime Minister was forced to form a new task force composed of members from different political parties to oversee future military operations.

In order to preserve their reputations and limit war fatigue among the populace, all the blame for the failure of the operation was placed solely on Romel's hands. The people scorned him for the numerous lives that were lost, newspapers and radios ostracized the man, and the politicians who once stood by him now turn their backs on him and have since openly condemned his actions. For all intents and purposes, the politician's career and reputation were over.

April 11, 1941:

Inside one of the many pubs in Appledore, Romel downs a glass of whiskey. He lets out a frustrated sigh as he pours more whiskey onto his glass. "Bloody wankers…"

Just as he downs another glass, a man dressed in a brown trenchcoat and fedora approaches the disgraced politician.

"You" Romel said as he poured another round "What do you want?"

"The forces have mostly evacuated" the man replied

"Mostly?"

"With the chaos of the retreat and the lack of transports, there are still a considerable number of soldiers and equipment left behind"

"Do those blokes have any intention of rescuing them?"

"No. The threat of Imperial subs is too great and they have essentially abandoned those soldiers"

"How is that my problem? I'm no longer the First Lord. I have no power..."

"It's not but then you sent those same soldiers there in the first place. You know what will happen, right?"

"What do you want from me?"

"I just came here to tell you the ramifications of your actions. Whether or not it was fair to place all blame on you, I'm sure you have to accept responsibility for the consequences of your plan"

The man then leaves the pub as Romel stares at his whiskey glass. "Responsibility and consequences huh…"

He downs one more glass before going to the bartender and paying for his drink. Stepping outside, the weather turns sour as rain begins to pour.

Ignoring the rain soaking his clothes, the politician goes to a nearby phone booth. He takes a deep breath before dialing a number. "Hello? May I speak to the ambassador? Who am I? … A friend"

April 18, 1941

2pm

Cape Helles:

It's been a week since the order to retreat was given. Because of Imperial subs, we lost a lot of ships which meant that not everyone could be evacuated. Command promised to send more but it's been a week and still nothing. The aircraft carrier left this morning but Sora and Wilson opted to stay behind and fly over the beachhead until rescue arrives.

So it's come to this… Just a few squads of soldiers, a single 7TP tank, and 2 seafires. I wonder when rescue will arrive? We're running low on supplies and I doubt Sora & Wilson can keep flying for long.

"How're you two holding up?" I asked over the radio

"We're fine" Sora replied "Still got enough fuel to last us for about an hour or so"

"That's good…"

"How about you?"

"I.. I'm fine…"

"Hey... Listen. If you need to get something out of your chest, I'd be happy to-"

"Sora!" Wilson interjected "We got bandits!"

"Already? Shit! Alright let's do this Wil!"

I immediately hit the alarm as all 300 remaining Federation soldiers, including me, take up positions in the trenches and machine gun nests facing the destroyed fort. Just like with previous days, we were expecting another set of enemy squads. There would be some fighting but who controls which won't change.

Enemy squads poured from the fort's ruins. They deployed smoke grenades and obscured portions of the battlefield. We're all familiar with this tactic so we all raised our guns, ready to pull the trigger at any second.

For a few minutes, it was quiet to the point you could hear a pin drop but the silence was quickly broken as a bullet flew from the smoke and passed one of us. Needless to say, bullets started flying immediately after.

We unloaded everything we had on the smoke. After a few minutes of continuous fire, Jane ordered us to cease fire. Something's wrong… We all unloaded on the enemy but I don't think I noticed the enemy return fire on us.

Silence fills the battlefield once again. I slowly tilt my head a bit, hoping my right ear could hear anything from the smoke. I hear the faint sound of clanking metal. At first it was faint then it slowly got louder and louder.

Realizing what I'm hearing, I instinctively inhale before shouting: "TANKS!"

Seconds later, several tank shells emerge from the smoke, destroying our machine gun nest and anti-tank guns, before Imperial Metallgetriebes emerges from the smoke.

The walking tanks made short work of the soldiers in the front trenches, allowing enemy infantry to finally breach our trench lines.

I quickly rallied any surviving soldiers from the front in my side of the trench. My side of the trench could only be reached from 2 sides, minus above ground, so we formed 2 choke points to bottleneck the enemy infantry.

The defense held for some time but the walking tanks and several strafing runs from enemy BF-109s forced us to retreat further down the line.

I knew those Imperial tanks were something but I didn't expect them to be able to traverse the unstable terrain that was the fort's ruins.

We fought hard to defend whatever land we had left but in about an hour, we were forced back to the bunkers facing the beach. Sora and Wilson were having trouble dealing with the numerous enemy aircraft as well.

There was no rescue. No escape. There were only 2 ways to leave this beach: Death and Capture. All of us chose death over capture.

Eventually, most of us were down to our sidearms as we had run out of ammo. And yet, we continued fighting on top of that bunker, clinging to our pride and patriotism. Then, I saw several BF-109s diving towards our location.

I braced myself for another strafing run but as the BF-109s was about to fire a barrage, several Bell P-39 Airacobras emerged from the clouds above and shot down the enemy planes.

"Reinforcements?!" we all thought as the P-39s conducted strafing and bombing runs on the Imperials positions

I must say what happened felt like our guardian angels descended from the sky to protect us. To top it all off, we spotted several ships nearing the beach.

Jane then receives an incoming transmission from her radio. "Are you the commander?"

"Y-Yes!" Jane replied

"Pop smoke on all your positions!"

We immediately deployed colored smoke in our positions and seconds later, the ships unleash salvos onto the areas without the smoke, decimating the Imperial and Arrasian forces. Help had at last arrived! We were all so relieved that some of us finally collapsed to the ground exhausted while others started laughing and crying.

"WE'RE SAVED!" many of us shouted as cheers echoed around the beaches

Invigorated, we all picked up whatever enemy weapons we could find and pushed the enemy back to the fort.

After securing the beachhead, the ships finally docked and we could finally see the faces of our saviors while Sora and Wilson followed the P-39s to their aircraft carrier.

To our surprise, we weren't greeted by Federation soldiers, their uniform is nowhere near what the Federation fielded.

Their uniform looks almost akin to medieval armor though the helmet and armor designs seem to be customized for modern day and it doesn't cover their whole body like with standard Imperial armor. For a moment, I thought the Imperials lulled us into a false sense of security but seeing the flag hoisted on their ship was enough to ease my worries… a bit.

I am glad that we were rescued but… isn't Jutland supposed to be neutral in this war?