077, Titan-kun? On the good way, a big drop is good! (c)

[Screeches, echoing like birdsong, ring from all around you.]

[A dozen hulking, green-skinned Kroot flesh-eaters with dense black feathers sprouting from the backs of their heads charge forward, wielding crude double-bladed scythes.]

[You face them without fear.]

[Your Akatran assault shotgun erupts with deafening blasts.]

[The Kroot flesh-eaters and hounds who can't dodge in time are torn to pieces by your rounds.]

[In moments, you've single-handedly pinned down the enemy's ambush.]

[The rest of your squad alternates between firing laser rifles and swiftly setting up a mortar.]

[They begin bombarding the thick walls of the target structure in an unrelenting assault.]

[The walls shudder and crack, and soon, after all the mortar rounds are spent, a human-sized breach opens up.]

["Grenades to clear the way! Flamethrowers! Everyone, charge!" You raise your shotgun with one hand, issuing the command.]

[You reload quickly, the chamber empty.]

[At that moment, a Kroot flesh-eater missing only one arm lets out a shriek and lunges at you.]

[With a mighty swing, its jagged scythe hurtles down toward you with a whistling rush.]

[No time to fire—you swing your shotgun at its beak.]

[The creature cries out in pain.]

[Using the armor shell on your shoulder, you absorb the blunt force of its weapon.]

[Then you aim the barrel of your shotgun at its head and pull the trigger.]

[Hot, fetid blood sprays across your shell armor and helmet.]

[You scan your surroundings, then turn toward the breach in the target building.]

[Meanwhile, as your squad storms inside, explosions ripple through the complex.]

[The feigned attack on the front line intensifies, turning into a long-held ferocious assault.]

[On the third day, your platoon secures the target building completely.]

[The entire Dawnwater Plant falls under the paratroopers' control.]

[Only sporadic gunfire remains in isolated pockets.]

[One of your arms is wrapped in white bandages as you rest in the platoon's camp.]

[Your ten-person squad is down to five.]

[Three have fallen, two are critically wounded.]

[For the results of the assault, this is a cost worth bearing.]

[Your bravery earns high praise from the platoon leader.]

[You decline the field promotion he offers.]

[Instead, he gives you a cherished power sword and promises to divide the honors evenly with your squad.]

[On the fourth day, while the paratroopers rest, bad news arrives.]

[Your capture of the Dawnwater Plant has drawn the attention of the T'au Empire's main force.]

[A swift, fierce counterattack is imminent.]

[The Imperial Navy can provide no support due to the enemy's air force.]

[The 23rd Elysian Drop Troop Regiment, your unit, must hold alone.]

[You go straight to the platoon leader.]

[Given the current firepower, you tell him, holding back the T'au Empire's forces is nearly impossible.]

[The platoon leader, still sour over your seizing of the power sword, grows even more agitated under the looming pressure.]

[He tugs at the few remaining hairs on his head and berates you furiously.]

[Unbothered, you propose a modest idea.]

[Have the entire regiment dig trench fortifications and underground passageways.]

[Using Elysian mobility tactics, you suggest that they wage a guerrilla warfare campaign throughout the industrial zone against the T'au.]

[Besides, if Dawnwater Plant matters to the T'au, they'll hesitate to destroy it carelessly.]

[The platoon leader calms as he hears your suggestion.]

[After considering it, he agrees to report it immediately.]

[The platoon leader takes you to meet General Saekawa, the paratroopers' commander.]

[Once more, you outline your proposal for General Saekawa.]

[Your suggestion earns high commendation from him.]

[On the fifth day, a feverish digging campaign sweeps through the Dawnwater Plant.]

[You and your squad run between platoons, sharing concise instructions on how to dig the trenches.]

[Yet with the Elysians' poor digging skills and lack of proper tools, progress is slow.]

[Frustration gnaws at you too.]

[Before long, with help from "Big Head," you discover the plant's water pipes.]

[These massive pipes, big enough for a person to crouch through, spark an idea.]

[You order soldiers to dismantle the pipes and bury them underground as tunnels.]

[Meanwhile, some of the trench work continues smoothly.]

[After a week, only a third of your trench plan has been completed before the attack halts it.]

[T'au reinforcements arrive at the outskirts of Dawnwater Plant.]

[Devilfish armored transports crafted by Earth Caste engineers advance in a vicious assault, flanked by battlesuit squads.]

[All paratroopers dig into the trenches while the few Tauros assault vehicles weave through factory structures.]

[They try to bait the T'au vanguard into an ambush.]

[But Pathfinders on Vespid bikes swarm the Tauros, using superior speed to encircle and divide them, pulsing energy bolts cutting off escape routes.]

[The chance for an ideal strike slips by.]

[With General Saekawa's command, mortars whistle from the trenches, raining down on the Devilfish transports.]

[They land in clusters above the transports.]

[Battlesuits quickly raise pulse rifles, and drones shoot down unexploded rounds.]

[Yet a few Devilfish transports explode, shredding the Fire Warriors inside.]

[Before more mortars can be fired, the remaining Devilfish transports abruptly retreat.]

[Blasts of laser fire streak from the trenches and buildings, taking down many retreating Vespid bikes.]

[Crouched in the trench, you scan the battlefield, frowning slightly but exhaling a sigh of relief.]

[Your tactics have managed to achieve an element of surprise.]

[With trenches and tunnels, you think you may hold out until Imperial Navy support arrives.]

[But suddenly, twenty T'au Barracuda fighters swoop over Dawnwater Plant.]

[Their rapid-firing pulse guns and drones incinerate the Tauros vehicles in fiery blasts.]

[Then heavily armed Hammerhead gunships close in on the plant.]

[Their terrifying plasma firepower suppresses your defensive positions.]

[For the paratroopers, nearly weaponless against heavy firepower, this is a disaster beyond survival.]

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