20. Chapter 19: Check

CHAPTER 19: CHECK

As the firing stopped, the air was filled with the sound of men and beasts alike fleeing for their lives, screaming in terror. That scene appeared on both sides the JSDF had been attacked. The smaller force on Hazama's side had been cut to half before they fled, but it had been a different matter on Colonel Kamo's side. With a force attacking them ten times the size, Kamo had to call in the twenty reserve tanks in addition to the already present ten tanks on his side to avoid unnecessary casualties.

Unfortunately, it didn't prevent the loss of three men, and seven more who had been hit by what appeared to be magic. Fireballs, beams of energy, flying stone spikes but that wasn't all. He had been surprised when suddenly a thunderstrike came out of nowhere and hit one of AA guns. The vehicle's targeting systems had been fried, but the crew was relatively fine and had immediately started replacing the broken parts.

Thankfully, what little magic users the medieval army could field were easy to spot, and even easier to shoot thanks to a few sniper teams, mortar fire and straight up massive machinegun fire until one of the bullets hit the magic caster. After being made aware of their threat, Kamo had ordered his troops to look out for those, and the magic users were quickly taken care of.

Now, all that was left was to thin out the enemy ranks until they understood they had no chance to get close. It didn't matter what the enemy launched at them.

Cavalry charges were cut down by machinegun fire. Infantry formations broken by grenades and mortar fire, then picked off by rifle bullets. War elephants, armored giants, any kind of beast with a thick armor or hide was blown to pieces by the tanks shooting their main gun. Massive hordes or flying humanoids, even pegasus riders and some kind of flying lizard riders were shot down thanks to the massive volume of AA fire, causing even more damage when the corpses fell on the infantry below.

All of this killing didn't leave the JSDF soldiers who never experienced war stone-faced. Quite a few both young and old soldiers had to stop shooting for a few minutes to relieve themselves of their stomach's content, horrified by what was happening.

The JSDF kept killing.

And the enemy soldiers kept coming.

They didn't understand. Why did they keep coming? Each assault left the earth with too much blood to absorb, and bodies ironically creating protections for the soldiers behind them.

Fortunately for them, sanity finally regained the feudal's minds, and a mass rout started when a particularly precise mortar shell struck a wizard casting a large fireball. The magic went haywire, turning into a tongue of flame immediately burning the nearby soldiers to cinders.

With Alnus Hill itself exploding in front of them, invisible projectiles cutting them by the hundreds every second and now mages turning against them, soldiers started to flee as fast as they could, the movement quickly spreading through the entirety of the soldiers assaulting this side of Alnus Hill. A few pockets of foolish resistance tried to go forward, but they were quickly shot down.

With the last enemies desperately running, Kamo ordered for the firing to stop. The deafening firepower left the atmosphere silent, the screams of terror of the surviving feudals strangely quiet on comparison.

Satisfied by the outcome, Kamo picked up the radio at his belt and picked the General's frequency.

"General Hazama? Colonel Kamo here. Over."

"What is it colonel? Over."

"The fighting on my side has been dealt with. Three casualties, seven wounded on our side. One AA gun disabled, currently being repaired. I'd say about thirty thousand casualties on the enemy side. Overwhelming victory. Over."

"These brave souls will be remembered. How much ammunition left? They still have troops which haven't engaged. Over."

Now that he wasn't focused on the enemy, Kamo took his binoculars and looked behind the retreating enemy. The fresh troops he had noticed earlier were still there, but he could see some of them retreating in proper order back to their camp, while some other were clearly struggling to maintain ranks despite the punishment dealt to their allies.

"Logistics are currently resupplying. Even if they have fresh troops, what we just did to them should prevent further attack, at least for some time. Although I have to say the science boys will be happy once the ground is cleared. Over."

"How so? Over."

"Magic sir. We've dropped quite a few of them, that means that there should be at least some survivors. I've sent teams to retrieve the bodies. And… Well, I know that sounds really unbelievable, but will you hear me sir? Over."

"I would have never believed that a Gate to another dimension would appear in Ginza, colonel, so yes I have to say I'm inclined to believe supernatural occurrences now. What is it? Over."

"Well, part of what attacked us were clearly samurais. I couldn't hear what they were shouting over the gunfire, but there's already rumors from the soldiers on the front that they may have been shouting words closely resembling ancient Japanese language."

There was a short silence over the radio.

"That's… Interesting indeed. But it's not our problem to deal with. See if you can make some prisoners for interrogation, we still need to know about this world. Over."

"Yes sir! Over."

Kamo put back the radio at his belt and as he was about to pass on some orders, a shout interrupted him.

"Hey, am I the only one hearing that?"

The colonel turned to face the soldiers who just spoke, a mortar crewman who was watching the sky with concentration on his face. As soldiers nearby strained their ear and did their best to avoid making any noise, a distinct noise could be heard over the distant screams of the fleeing enemies.

A roar. A roar filled with rage, followed by the rapidly closing whistling sound.

"What the…" whispered Kamo, before a soldier who sported his binoculars up in the sky screamed.

"DR… DRAGON!"

The flame dragon flew over the fleeing soldiers, breathing fire all the while. The devastating strafing run burned hundreds of men in an instant, and all semblance of order fell apart amidst the allied armies.

"RUN!" Shouted Duran. "RUN! YOU FOOLS! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!"

His soldiers didn't need his advice to do so, the order merely waking up some of the slow-minded ones.

To merely think about fighting the Flame Dragon was foolishness, and proof of an incredibly large ego. Fortunately, the monarchs of the allied nations weren't fools. For the most part, at least.

The number of soldiers didn't matter. The equipment didn't matter. The training didn't matter. The Flame Dragon was a force of nature, and one might as well try to drink the oceans with more success than fighting it.

Sure, Duran would most likely lose at least a fourth of his men by allowing this rout. But it was better than defying a being as ancient as time itself.

"IT'S… IT'S COMIIIIIIIING!"

The panicked shout was quickly followed by terrified shouts as foot soldiers pushed even stronger on their feet, and horsemen desperately spurred their horses forward. Duran looked back, and he watched, wide-eyed, the Flame Dragon quickly flying over in his direction.

The night sky contrasted greatly to the tongues of flame already escaping its snout, lighting its face in an ominous manner. It's red scales the colour of blood, and in its eye a primal hunger that would never appease. It cast a large shadow, hiding the moonlight like a dark omen of destruction.

It wasn't a symbol of death. It wasn't a symbol of chaos. It wasn't even a symbol of hate. Just pure primal rage and hunger, fuelled by an unending thirst for killing.

The beast flew over Duran, letting out a large tongue of flame eat up scores of men who died screaming, while the sheer blast of the flames hitting the ground threw Duran off his horse. The Lion of Elbe got up as fast as he could, lest he died trampled by his own men, and joined them in their run to… Wherever the Dragon wasn't.

"My lord! King Duran?! Has someone seen the king?!"

A familiar shout nearby caught Duran's attention, and he noticed his aide nearby, shouting to whoever would listen to him.

"Kelimel! Over here!"

Kelimel galloped to Duran with relief on his face, then slowed down, allowing his king to mount on his horse.

"Let's get out of here, my King!" shouted Kelimel, urging the soldiers out of the way as he forced his horse as fast as it could. Thankfully, the war horses of the Elbian army were trained to ignore fear, and their eyes were hidden so they couldn't see the Dragon. For that reason, most of the horses could still be controlled with relative ease.

As he left the killing field, Duran glanced one last time behind him. The Flame Dragon was lighting up another column of men, seemingly from Dagobert, the king of Esperia. Duran could only wish him the best, before focusing back to the escape.

"TAKE IT DOWN, TAKE IT DOWN!"

Hazama's voice screamed through every radio the JSDF had, but they didn't need his orders to shoot. The moment the reptile had showed up, every Japanese gun had lit up, letting out a deluge of lead on the beast.

Unfortunately, it was to little effect. The beast was flying fast, way too fast for any significant number of bullets to hit it at the same time to deal lasting damage. The tanks couldn't raise their main guns high enough to hit it, and the AA guns didn't seem to have any more effect than regular machinegun fire. Mortars and unguided rocket launchers were useless on such a mobile enemy, and they didn't have any air support. Even if they did, there wasn't any zone for any fighter jet to take off, and helicopters couldn't be taken through the Gate in one piece. And finally, any ground-to-air missile they could have was still on the other side of the Gate. High command didn't deem it necessary to send them in with the First combat Unit led by Kamo and Hazama.

They needed the beast closer to deal with it. But getting it closer meant risking a terrifying flame blast that could take tens of men in an instant. And they couldn't get it closer for the time being anyway. Each time it approached the JSDF positions, it merely flew away, seemingly only annoyed at the bullets striking its scales.

Simply put, they didn't have anything to strike it hard enough to floor it. Once it would be floored, then the tanks and the mortars would be put to good use. But until then…

Once the shock was passed after repelling the Dragon for the third time, Hazama observed the beast, looking for any weakness to capitalize upon.

The scales shrugged off rifle, heavy machinegun and AA fire alike. And they covered the beast in its entirety. The scales on the belly were lighter in color, maybe a potential target? Hazama kept that in mind, looking over the rest of the beast. The leathery wings seemed like a weak spot, but they moved way too quickly for anyone to lock on their aim long enough. Finally, was the head. The scales looked even thicker than on the rest of the body but if that beast followed reptile biology as the modern world knew it, then the brain should be there. Unfortunately, it was too small of a moving target to hit accurately.

Once more the Dragon tried to approach the JSDF, but a rain of lead fell upon the beast who roared before going back for the weaker prey that were the medieval armies who fled in a complete and utter rout.

Hazama and the entire JSDF staff simply weren't trained to deal with such a monster. The closest situation the General could think of would be engaging enemy helicopters without any AA capacity. Usually, the safest option would call for a retreat before waiting for reinforcements. Unfortunately, they couldn't, the Gate was too much of a bottleneck to retreat without casualties.

There weren't many other options. One could find a thick forest or a hiding place, then bait the enemy helicopters to approach close enough. But such a plan relied on taking the enemy by surprise. And, obviously, the Dragon was aware of the JSDF soldiers who repelled him every time it came close.

But as he thought about the idea, Hazama's expression lit up.

There was a way.

It looked upon its prey. Diving down, It contracted its muscles, breathing out the flaming liquid on another column of mortals, the screams of the dying sounding very pleasantly in It's ears.

However, once more It glanced at the green mortals on top of the hill. It wasn't that hungry, but It didn't appreciate the fact that they defied It.

After all, It had preyed upon the mortals for millennia. It feasted as much as it wanted, and the mortal feared It rightly so. It did whatever It wanted.

And then, here they were. Each time It approached, It's scales would be prickled unpleasantly, and It's wings would get a few holes. Nothing It couldn't heal. However, It's pride was hurt deeply. And each time It was forced to fly away, It resented the green mortals more and more.

And once more, It approached from a different angle, and this time he didn't feel the prickling feeling on It's skin. Did the mortal finally understand they couldn't do anything against It? Good. It flew in front of a large green beast with a straight snout, intent on killing it first in order to instil fear. It gathered the flaming liquid in It's throat.

And then all hell went loose.

"NOW!" Screamed Hazama. Immediately, a storm of lead fell upon the beast's wings. The orders were very clear after all.

Shoot everything that could be shot. The machine gunners shot their weapons in full auto, the riflemen emptied their rifles directly upon the leathery organs, the AA guns did what they were made for, and the results were quick to show. The sheer amount of lead tore through the leathery midsection of the wings, cutting apart large sections of skin that fell in a rain of blood and gore.

With its wings now virtually non-functional, the dragon got caught by gravity and came crashing on the ground with a mighty noise, letting out the flaming breath he was preparing all the while.

"Tank, retreat! Shoot every heavy weapon we have at that thing!"

The tank that had been chosen as a bait had its tracks bite into the earth, then retreated at full speed. Meanwhile, the remaining tanks sported their guns on the beasts and shot HE shells at the monster. Explosions rang out, raising clouds of dirt, dust and blood. Just a few seconds later, the whistling sound of mortar shells falling upon the beast raised even more dust.

The dragon couldn't even be seen anymore, but that didn't stop from the JSDF from unloading the heaviest they had at it. The chaos was worsened by the soldiers who picked up the rocket launchers, leaving a white trail behind every projectile sent at the beast.

It was a terrifying sight.

Mounds of dirt being raised high up in the sky, hiding anything inside. Yet, the flashes of the explosions flickering through the grey and brown screen, the occasional flame tongue casting ominous shadows, the roars of primal rage louder than all the gunfire directed at the beast…

The scene was terrifying in more than one mind.

However, their hearts rejoiced when after a full minute of hellish destruction, the roars finally died down after having lost in intensity slowly but surely.

"Stop firing, I repeat, STOP FIRING!"

It took a few seconds, but eventually the last mortar shell fell upon what Hazama hoped was a carcass by now. Everyone watched with anxious eyes, but nothing could be seen because of the thick dust and smoke cloud.

It took five more minutes for the smoke to clear out completely.

And when it did, a collective sigh of relief washed over the JSDF soldiers.

Of the body, little was left. The stomach was reduced to a gaping hole. The tail had flown off at least fifty meters away. The wings were no more. The chest was reduced to a mix of bones, blood and meat. The head was there, but the bottom jaw had disappeared somewhere, and the eyes had become two holes.

Sighs of relief turned into laughter. Laughter turned into victory shouts. And soon, the entirety of Alnus Hill was vibrating with a single world, repeated over and over.

"VICTORY!"

Molt sat in his tent, bored. It had been weeks. It had been weeks since he had sent the allied armies at Alnus Hill, and there was no news. Well, no particularly interesting news, at least.

But Molt Sol Augustus was a hunter. And any hunter knew that rushing over to a prey only made it more likely to escape.

So Molt waited, biding his time. He had a large supply for his army. All of them ready to move at any moment. The only thing he waited for was a particular message.

And his efforts paid off, as a messenger presented itself later today. He brought a scrolled piece of parchment, handed it to the guards then left. After passing through the hands of the court wizard to be sure it wasn't trapped.

Back on his campaign throne, a smaller than the one in Sadera but still impressive nonetheless, he unrolled the parchment and carefully studied its content. Once he understood the coded message, a rare smile formed on his lips.

"Laelius!"

A young boy, the Emperor's squire, hastily came at his liege's side.

"Bring in General Maximus, and tell him to order the soldiers to prepare to move out. We leave tomorrow morning."

The squire saluted the Emperor and left, while Molt raised from his chair towards his lectern. He picked up a feather, dipped it in a small bottle of ink, then started writing on a new parchment.

Pina Co Lada, my daughter…

Hello there, author here,

I have to say I'm pretty proud of how things are going. This story is kind of my "personal achievement in progress", to put it in words. So seeing that people like it... It's hard to describe how good it feels. Anyway, here's the reviews:

rmarcano321: why don't you ask me to tell you the whole plot while you're at it?

MadClawDragon: I wouldn't say I made magic more powerful. More like I made people more creative with it. People tend to forget how diverse magic can be, and how it can affect a society. Not saying I know exactly how it would be, but I like to imagine how it would change things.

DownTownAlpha: "Just imagine the dragon being a tank. A big, flying tank. Now, fire!"

EndimyonFromHyperion: Thank you! And well, they don't know it's a suicide rush until they've started being cut apart by firearms, right?

HyperionATLAS: Well, for your answer lel. But I'll just say that for the future, slaying a dragon can have very big consequences on the environment.And to be fair, I hesitated between letting the Dragon just wounded or killed, but then I remembered a single rocket from a rocket launcher took one of the dragon's arms. If that was enough to tear an arm, I couldn't see how the dragon could survive such a bombardment. I also think the dragon is too prideful of a beast to just ignore the JSDF and go away without getting wounded or hit somehow.

BrokenLifeCycle: Well, let's just say they didn't expect feckin' Smaug to appear all of a sudden. Also, the JSDF force sent in my story is only there to initiate contact and prepare the ground for the civilian scientists and diplomats that will come just after them.

Cooldude: It is, or at least it was before it was deleted. Thankfully, some songs remain on the platform.

Chara: If you don't have any empathy, then yes, I guess a massacre is funny.

Gilbert Gellones: Huh, well, that wasn't an information I expected to learn on this side but good to know! I'm not sure I'll use it however, but I'll keep it in mind if I happen to need to write a... "forceful" interrogation.

Well then, that will be all for today folks. Keep reviewing for the review god, and see you next week!