Chapter 28: The Far East (Alliances III)
Part 1: Port of Embarkation
TIME: 07:30 Equestrian Eastern Standard Time
DATE: War Day 237/31 Solarius, 1002 C.S.
LOCATION: Baleston Naval Yard, Baleston, Maresechusetts - Deck of HMS Unicorn
I was arriving aboard the HMS Unicorn - one of the Bellerophon-class Frigates, and the ship that would serve as my flagship for this expedition. I was carrying a large sea bag, an-
Pinkie Pie: "SEA VOYAGE! YIPPIE!" She bounced across the gangplank and on to the deck.
-oh, yeah, Pinkie was back to her old self again, and as far as the girls and I were concerned, we would never discuss Hayseed or her family ever again. Except Spunky. He was with my daughter, Starlight Mint, back at the palace. His official protector.
Twilight Sparkle: "Calm down, Pinkie. Really. It's like you've never been on a sea voyage before."
Pinkie Pie: "Not like this!" She had a comically oversized bag with her, labelled 'PARTY SUPPLIES.'
Thirty days since the NEIGHTO Standardization Agreemnts started taking effect. I could already see the change on deck. More organization, more order. New weapons. The Bradley, for one, was standard issue for everyone on the expedition that rated a rifle. The new Abrams Machine Gun that replaced the Pershing. The Ridgway Sub-Machine Gun to replace the stalwart Zhukov. All new. Including the Morgan pistol.
The Bradley looked like a Pony version of the AR-15, but in reality, it used a long stroke gas system. The over all length of the weapon was 78 centimeters or 30.7 inches. It could also adapt the Gavin Grenade Launcher, which was a side-opening grenade launcher adapted from the Knox, firing impact-fused or timing-fuse grenades. I didn't have the technical expertise to develop a twist-based arming system. Stocks were made of a high grade aluminum. Ponies could not into advanced polymers.
The Abrams machine gun was basically an FN Minimi (actually a Mk. 48) that fired from a steel non-disintegrating linked belt, shrunk down for pony-sized operations and to take advantage of local materials. As I said, no advanced polymers. That and a short barrel - it was the same size as an M-16A1 rifle, and certainly a bit light-
Derpy: "Excuse me!" She was close to her delivery date. War Day 320, and it was looking more and more likely that she'd deliver during the war. Today, she and her husband were bringing us muffins.
-lighter than the Mk. 48 on which it was based. Both fired the new 7x40mm NEIGHTO round. Since I knew from my own small arms research that the old .280 British (7.2x43mm) round was VERY close to the "ideal" battle rifle round (and its intent and purpose replicated recently with the 6.8 SPC round), I basically recreated it. This, though, due to what was available in this world, was an exactly 7mm diameter projectile of 6.5 grams, traveling at 802.5 meters-per-second from a 14.2-inch barrel, for 2100 joules of muzzle energy. Armor piercing ammunition could penetrate 2cm of armor plate at 50 meters. This a massive step up from the 9x35mm Sherman and 6.5x30mm Patton rounds at 1400 joules.
The Ridgway SMG was another open-bolt design similar to the Zhukov, but with the caliber changed to 9x23mm NEIGHTO and with a few cosmetic alterations to make it easier to handle. Not that it wasn't already a favourite among troops.
Of course, with no such silliness as a Hauge Convention, I was free to use whatever bullets I wanted. I developed a semi-jacketed hollow point of 130-grains (8.425 grams) and with the new powder capabilities, it travelled a respectable 355 meters-per-second from the Morgan's 4-inch (102mm) barrel for 533 joules of muzzle energy. From the Ridgway's 8-inch (205mm) barrel, it went up to 425 meters-per-second for 763 joules of muzzle energy. This is WAY up from the old Lee pistol's 383 joules, or the Zhukov's 630 joules.
It was, in essence, a "modern" .38 Super Automatic load - at least in as far as Colonel Williams' reloading manual from 1985 was concerned.
The last development was the Mark III Super Sherman. Since we had so many Sherman frames laying around, produced from three different Arsenals, I decided to take the old, and make it new. By, more or less, chambering it in .35 Remington - here, designated 9x48mm. This was a more aerodynamic, longer 210gr/13.6g bullet launched at a respectable 680 m/s, for 3154 joules of muzzle energy. With Armor-Penetrating ammo, the round could pierce about 2.5cm of armor plate, or a Duregar APC, out to 100 meters. Rarity loved it.
We had just enough of the new weapons to arm everyone on the expedition. Loaded in the holds of the warships coming with us were 8,000 firearms (4,000 each for South Cowrea and Neighpon), several tens of thousands of rounds of small arms ammunition, 24 field artillery pieces (2 Batteries each for Neighpon and South Cowrea), and more, including plans on how to manufacture the Bradley 'Series' of NEIGHTO-compliant firearms.
Coming with us-
Cheerilee: "Coming through, here, people!" A large crate on her back. Mac was helping her.
-As I was saying. Coming with us was the entire 1st Royal Rangers. Except Derpy. She was going nuts with cabin fever, and knowing that the war was going on without her. That her friends were getting killed, and she was knocked up and helpless. Gilda was coming with us as well. Major Forest Spirit insisted on coming - as Acting Commandant of the Royal Marines, it was his right to insist. After all, the Marines aboard HMS Unicorn, HMS Pegasus and HMS Terra were almost all new, untested recruits.
All but one.
Lt. Tankette Blinda: "General K! Major Forest Spirit! Lieutenant Tankette Blinda, Commander, HMS Unicorn Marine Detachment reporting for duty, sirs." A green pegasus pony, female, about Fluttershy's age.
Tankette Blinda's life was an interesting tale all in its own. At the outbreak of the war, the Paddock County Committee of Safety initially dragged its feet on forming a militia, so, Tankette left for Canternooga County, and joined their Militia regiment with authorization from the Paddock County Committee of Safety to stay and evaluate the Militia concept. She'd trained with Valencio Orange and the Manehattan Volunteer Cavalry, with Lieutenant Dex Runner and the Paddock County Rangers, and with Captain Norfy Loconsole and the Detrot Militia Infantry. During her tenure with the Canternooga County Militia, she was among the forces that fought at the Battle of Canternooga Springs. By the time she managed to get back to Fillydelphia, the Committee of Safety didn't really need her, just her notes. So, she joined the Marines. She'd been at 2nd Ponyville, but we hadn't met.
She had experience, and more cross training than any other pony in the Equestrian Military that wasn't under my direct and personal command, like the girls were.
Last on the list..
Major Norfy Loconsole: "Keep up you two."
Major Lidless Gaze: "Aye, aye, cut meh some slack, Mate!"
Major Cosmic Plane: "I'm coming - these artillery charts aren't exactly compact."
K: "GUYS!" I cheered at seeing them. "Report to Major Forest Spirit, Lieutenant - and nice to meet you. I'll inspect the Marines once we're squared away. Have them lend a hand with loading, wuld you?" I ran over to Norfy, Lidless and Cosmic. "Hey, you jerks! I haven't seen you in ages! I'm glad you got my invitations."
Norfy: "Of course, K. It's not every day you get invited to join the General Staff as expert coordinators in your respective fields of expertise." He indicated his red-backed shoulderboard.
Yes. In recognition for their service, I'd comissioned Norfy, Gaze, and Cosmic into the General Staff as Majors in the Royal Army.
Gaze: "Aye, I'm kinda 'xcited aboot it. This mean we're gonna get dragged long fer all yer adventures?"
Cosmic: "And probably be injured in the process." He hefted the artillery charts on his back.
K: "Alright, you guys, get squared away. You'll be sharing quarters. Sorry, this is a Frigate, not a luxury liner." I shrugged.
Gaze: "Och's fine wi' me." He gave a glance over to Lyra. "Jes' fine."
K: "When's the wedding?" I asked offhand. I knew they'd been dating since they met, just about, and I knew they were serious.
Gaze: "Ah! Ah-heh.. uhm.. we decided to get married when the war is over."
Norfy: "Which hasn't stopped them from making a terrible mess of his bedroom whenever they meet up." He playfully nudged Gaze.
Gaze: "Oi! You promised not ta' talk 'bout that!" He feigned butthurt.
K: "Enough, guys. We'll have dinner together later." I nodded. "Go on, get your stuff in order."
I supervised the loading of the Unicorn. Most of the command staff would be aboard her, and she carried zero cargo. Her and Alarm would be the screening force for the fleet. Pegasus, Terra and Bellerophon would carry the equipment and arms. HMS Moonlight was carrying the majority of the Expert Trainers and some technical experts that would assist Neighpon and South Cowrea in building factories. Being overseas, we couldn't simply send all this by railroad like we could with the other NEIGHTO partners.
Captain Horatio Horsefeathers: "General K?" He was the commander of the HMS Unicorn.
K: "Captain. Fine ship you've got here." I nodded to it.
Unicorn and Alarm had another reason why they were designated the screening force. Alarm and Unicorn were both all-steam, no rigging. The Unicorn was simply completed along updated lines, while Alarm was modified while in dry dock. We found that the Alarm had an all-wood hull, along the old lines of wooden sheathing on the outside of the hull, making it far less resistant to marine parasites than our copper-hulled ships. Which of course meant a major overhaul anyway, so it was decided that Alarm would be outfitted for steam power only. After sea trials, Unicorn was ordered completed with steam only as well, since it worked so well on HMS Alarm. After this voyage, as each ship was brought in for maintenance, they would also be reconfigured for steam-only.
Coal wasn't a huge issue any longer - coaling stations had been set up along the most-travelled routes along Equestria's coast, and we had a Coiller (coal fuel carrier) scheduled to meet us at sea halfway between Neighpon and here. Now, the distance involved is the interesting part. If I recalled my geography correctly (one of my favourite subjects) the rough distance across the Atlantic Ocean was somewhere in the neighborhood of 3000 nautical miles (5556 kilometers). Crossing the Southern Seas was about that distance (2500 nmi) and that was what I was told to account for in Bellerophon's design (which, I should add, provided that most of the holds were being used as coal bunkers - basically, all fuel, no cargo, everything packed completely full).
Neighpon was in the North-East Sea, and about 2000 nmi away from Baleston. With an average fuel load, the Bellerophons were lucky to get 1000 nmi at five knots. Add a day for refuelling under way, and a couple more to account for weather, and this trip would take twenty days just to get to Neighpon in the first place. We scheduled a stay of another 20 days, and another 20 days back - we'd be gone for two months (War Day 297 or so).
Capt. Horsefeathers: "I'm quite proud of her. Commodore Saletine says the Bellerophons are the finest ships Equestria has ever made." He gave a small grin. "We'll be ready to leave port around noon, General."
K: "They are if I have anything to say in the matter, Captain." I shrugged. "If you'll excuse me a minute, I have to see my family."
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Oh! I didn't realise, sir." He bowed out of the way.
Horsefeathers was a Griffon, actually, and an odd case in himself. He was raised by Ponies in Fillydelphia - apparently, he was abandoned as a chick for reasons he never understood. He looked plenty healthy to me. I had quite a few Griffons as naval officers - as I mentioned some time ago, we recruited from the Griffon fishing communities in Equestria. Commodore Saletine was one of our lucky hires.
I disemarked the ship at this juncture, having handed my bags off to someone else. I had one more job before I went to sea. Princess Luna's carriage was parked at the dock. My Royal Mare was standing next to it, her hair lazily flowing in the wind. She was tired - it was after sunup, after all.
Princess Luna: "My General." She nuzzled me as soon as I got on the pier.
K: "General-Field Marshal." I corrected her. "I now bear your symbol." My rank pin had been updated to a Sun and Moon. I suppose that made me hers as much as anyone's.
Princess Luna: "Come, my dear." She settled on that. "Our dear daughter wishes to play in the park before your departure." She gave me a telekinetic tug. *Seductively* "..and so do we."
Applejack: "Hot damn! About time!" She popped her head out of Luna's carriage.
TIME: 11:37 EEST
Well, yes, you can imagine what happend at the park. In fact, I'm going to make you imagine it, because I don't keep track of every single 'interaction' I have with Applejack and Luna.. even if it is at the same time.. yeah, you sick freaks, I had a threesome, and I'm not going into details. This time... eh, maybe later. And? It was glorious. So there.
On the other hand, I did get to spend some time with my daughter. Starlight was, of course, very sad that Daddy was going away for a couple months, but she asked for the usual. Snow globes. I'd have to remember to pick some up. I'd miss her, really, but the war waits for no man. Or pony. I helped with the last few bits of cargo, and Twilight was on deck, calculating each gram and kilogram of weight, to keep us under our maximum displacement.
Twilight Sparkle: "We're about ready, K."
K: "Good. Forest Spirit?"
Forest Spirit: "Lieutenant Blinda is waiting." He nodded to her.
Lieutenant Blinda had the Unicorn's Marine Detachment standing at attention on the forecastle (fo'c'sle). She was beaming with pride - and I could see why as I walked up.
Lt. Blinda: "HMS Unicorn Marine Detachment ready for pre-voyage inspection, General K." She snapped to attention.
K: "At-ease, Lieutenant." I saluted her as I walked past and inspected her unit. Not bad - good spit-and-polish, but more importantly, they looked ready. Ready to fight. And that was what I was after. I walked up to a familiar face, wearing the rank of Gunnery Sergeant. "Gunny. Looking good."
Gy.Sgt. Sigmask: "Always, General." He stiffened up a little.
K: "Sigmask is about the finest Marine NCO you could ask for, Lieutenant. Pay attention to his instincts." I reminded her.
Lt. Blinda: "Of course, General."
I recognised a couple of other faces from 2nd Ponyville. Honestly, I'd broken away from the main unit so quickly to get a hold of the situation, that I hadn't paid much attention to everything and everyone.
K: "Your Marines look squared away, Lieutenant." I nodded to her. "Keep up the good work." And off I went, to the bridge.
Capt. Horsefeathers: "We're ready to depart, General." He nodded to the pilot ship. "The pilot is awaiting the go-ahead."
K: "Permission to disembark granted, Captain. Let's get this show on the road."
Capt. Horsefeathers: "All hands! Prepare to leave port!"
Mstr. Wall Eye: "Cast off lines! Raise the gangplank! Pilot, we are ready to disembark."
And with that, we set sail for a foreign land. There wasn't a pony on board that had been to the Far East, and I was eager to see it myself. I'm no Weeaboo, honestly, but the chance to see a completely foreign culture excited me. That and I had a feeling that Tirek wasn't going to make things easy on me. Here was another chance for him to decapitate Equestria's military leadership - and to be honest, I knew it. We were part bait, part bear trap, and I was hoping he'd stick his hoof right into it.
{End of Part 1}
Part 2: High Seas Engagement
TIME: 14:37 Equestria Royal Standard Time (Equestria Military Time)/16:37 Local Time
DATE: War Day 247/9 Lunarius, 1002 C.S.
LOCATION: Deck of HMS Unicorn, Sporkley Islands Region
This world was interesting in that it was a directional shift from Earth. Sure, a lot of easily recognisable cultures were around, but their locations were different. Neighpon and South Cowrea, as well as Formoserow, were to the east of Equestria (towards where Europe would be if one were in the United States). And Equestria, the basic equivalent of a fantasy United States, was on the same land mass as what were traditionally European nations, while the "middle east" was actually south, across the seas. A big jumble.
We'd been at sea for ten days, about halfway through our trip. I was on the main deck with Gaze and Lyra. They were being flirty, of course. Lyra carried one of the new Bradley/Gavin combos on her back, while Gaze had a Ridgway. I insisted that everyone that wasn't deck crew, carry a long arm and pistol if they rated one, when they were on deck. Just in case - Tirek had surprised us in the past, and I wasn't about to get caught with my people.. uh, ponies.. unarmed.
The Expedition of Discovery was on my mind. We'd had to call it off so suddenly, with the Battle of Chowsin Ridge. The Kiangese hadn't taken well to our new NEIGHTO alliance. They warned us that we'd best not interfere with their business because, despite our alliance, they were still larger and more powerful than we were.
Basically, the meeting with the Kiangese representative hadn't gone well. They accused us of building up military forces to attack them again, of developing technology designed purely to slay them. I'd gotten fed up and accused them of espionage - a charge, of course, they denied. Still, the meeting ended with our warning. Even Princess Escargot of Prance told them that her nation would back Equestria if attacked. I think that got their attention - apparently, Prance and Kianga had gotten into a little war about 70 years ago, and Prance won handily, even if they were a very peace-loving nation.
Lookout: "General! Sail 'ho!" She called out from the Crow's Nest - the main mast of the Unicorn had been retained specifically for this purpose.
Gaze: "Wunn'er who that could be?" He gave me a look.
Lyra: "Dunno! The Sporkleys are Formoseroan territory, tho'."
I looked up to the Lookout.
K: "Can you identify them!?" I called.
Lookout: "Negative! Request permission for a closer look!" She was a Pegasus Pony, so...
K: "Denied!" I called up. "Gaze, go get Gilda and Dash - full battle rattle, Scouting load." I nodded.
The Bradley Carbine was a wonderful piece - unlike the old Mitchell Carbines, which had to have a special strut-stock to be handled by airborne troops, the Bradley (and even the Ridgway) was small enough to carry across the chest with the stock folded. The Bradley was a true 'rifle' (for Ponies), while the Ridgway was a close range bullet hose. Both were accurate within their range, just, the Bradley was more so. A "Scout Load" is a long arm, pistol if so rated, three rifle magazines (held to the central magazine by leather straps), three pistol magazines, and a close-fitting steel helmet that was also used by Paratroopers.
Yeah, I had late 20th century small arms, but basically World War II-era personal protective equipment. Even the combat uniforms were similar to World War II G.I. uniforms. I had exactly one "bomb suit" that Rarity made, out of a dense nylon-like material, but it was simply too heavy to be practical. It was in the Ponyville Gendarmerie's inventory.
Gilda and Dash came up - their faces were a bit flushed, and Gaze was positively red. They had their gear on. Fortunately, the smell of the sea in my nose prevented me from smelling anything ELSE fishy...
K: "We have a ship on the horizon. This isn't anywhere near a normal shipping route. Go take a look - identify it and come back. Be careful."
Gilda: "Right." She nodded and took to the air, Dash right behind her.
I waited on the deck. I started pacing, looking through a pair of binoculars that Gaze handed me, nervously. Something wasn't right here, I was sure of it. Then again, even I would admit that I had bouts of paranoia. Side effect of the drugs shovelled into me in Middle School by various doctors. It usually only acted up when I was on my meds and coming off of them, but it led me to a sort of apparent timidness and unwillingness to 'rock the boat' - yet at the same time, that 'head down, nose up' sort of paranoia helped me avoid all kinds of real problems.. and to take advantage of the failings of others. Yes, I was a sneaky, stealthy little ass that would gleefully avenge wrongs done on me, upon my enemies, the moment they stumbled and left themselves open to looking bad in the eyes of those superior to them.
What, you expected a Hercules type with daring and cunning? Fuck no, I'm just a very brave coward.
And here, that feeling was telling me to get the hell out of here.
So, I did the opposite.
K: "Gaze, tell the Captain to beat General Quarters. Have Alarm come up to starboard, and beat to G-Q as well. I have a bad feeling. Have Bellerophon take the lead of the reserve ships and plot a course towards open sea at an angle away from us, ready to break off at a moment's notice. We've got good winds, so have them shut off their engines - both for stealth and to conserve fuel. Set up an R-V point. Find a friendly or empty island in the area. If we have to break off, I want to be able to find each other, later."
Gaze: "Aye." And off he went.
Lyra: "Bad feelin'?" She started.
K: "Bad feeling. This reminds me of the time I ran around my school trying to avoid {REDACTED}. He was a Social Worker for {REDACTED} Department of Special Education. He used to make me run laps around the gym whenever I did something he didn't like. Push me and yell at me, too. Took my lunch away from me every day." I frowned.
Lyra: "That's awful." She didn't seem to understand fully, but she knew it was painful from the look on my face.
K: "Institutionalized abuse from the school system. My childhood was absolute hell." I shrugged. "Whatever, I've moved on. Still, that's what this reminds me of - I'm certain that ship isn't friendly, but I have no proof. Not yet."
Lyra: "Ye aren't wrong very often - and ye usually catch yerself b'fore anything bad happens." She patted me on the shoulder.
K: "Bullshit. Gloom Mountain was a slaughter, Chowsin Ridge was stupid and could have been avoided, and 2nd Ponyville was a barbecue I could have avoided if I'd stayed in command there instead of personally trying to go check on Katrina."
An honest analysis of my own failures. I'd had a few, I admit. The only reason I looked so good in the field is because no one else understood what it meant to command like I did - and that only because I obsessed over military history. I was sure that people - ponies - like Forest Spirit and Harv would eventually adapt and outshine me. To the point where I could do what I did best - organizing - and perhaps stick to commanding small units. I seemed pretty good at that. I'd made blunders before, and while I'd do everything I could to win this war, I couldn't wait for competent command officers to get competent enough to take some of the weight off. I was waiting for that moment when one of them would correct me, see my shortcomings and stop it, or make up for it.
Okay, so I'm the main character of this documentary, and I'm not perfect. I admit it. But people looked up to me, and they put me on a giant ivory pedestal in their minds, so.. I'd end up as one of those generals that was famous far beyond their actual abilities. That was fine. Every war needed a face on it, the face of the winning side. I'd be that face, that idol that everyone gets inspired by - and I'd help the real people winning this war, like Lyra and Gaze and the ponies working in the factories, do what was needed. I'd lead. It was what I did, it was what made people fight their hardest to win, simply because I was there.
After all, I had something to fight for here. I had a family. And I'd sooner die than let them down.
I watched as GQ was called, ponies taking their stations at the deck gun, setting up Abrams machine guns along the sides, and trucking belts of machine gun ammunition over. Others pulling shells out for the deck guns, getting them loaded and ready.
Gilda and Dash came back, their Bradleys trailing a bit of smoke. It was all the proof I needed. I yelled back towards the bridge..
K: "BREAK THE FLEET! COME ABOUT AND PREPARE TO ENGAGE!" They were after us. I just knew it.
Gilda landed in front of me, and hobbled a little. Her arm was trailing blood. Dash landed next to her, and seemed to just realize Gilda was wounded. She grabbed the wound and put pressure on it.
K: "NEED A MEDIC OUT HERE!" I nodded to them. "How bad is it?"
Gilda: *Gh* "Three enemy ships. One Ship-of-the-Line the size of the Moonlight, two Pinnaces the size of the Alarm. They're bearing down on us, General."
K: "Still wind-powered?"
Gilda: "They look like exact duplicates of the Moonlight and the Alarm looked when we first captured them." She shrugged. "No changes."
K: "Excellent." I looked at Lyra. "Going to the Bridge. Get the Rangers ready to help repel boarders. We're going to dance with them."
Lyra: "Aye!" And off she went as a Naval Medical Corpsman came up and tended to Gilda.
I went for the bridge. One advantage we had was Morse Code and signal lamps. Climbing the stairs and ladders, I got to the bridge area.
K: "Captain Horsefeathers." I nodded. "Signal Alarm. Let them know they're going to screen us from the smaller ships. I want us to concentrate fire on one ship at a time. If we try to take all three on at once, we'll lose." Battle of the River Plate. We were in the same position as the Graff Spee. I intended to win, though, I remebered Hans Langsdorff's mistakes.
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Understood." He nodded to Master Wall Eye. "Make it happen." My catch phrase was catching on. "Instructions?"
K: "Close distance. Let's see who gets close to us first. I'm hoping we can isolate the Pinnaces and take them one at a time. The Ship-of-the-Line? Well, unless we get a lucky hit and blow her magazine or something, our only real chance is to board her. Even with the better technology of our naval rifles, we don't have enough weight-of-shell to overpower her in a distance engagement." I shrugged. This was two 1850's-grade ships versus three 1650's-grade ships, but besides the better artillery technology, the differences weren't huge.
Capt. Horsefeathers: "We're ready. Helmsman, bring us about. Let's take this by the numbers, people." A fair-headed commander. A bit of a change from Commodore Saletine.
Unicorn came about, with Alarm on her starboard stern, and we broke away from the main fleet body. The ships carrying cargo all diverted course, cut their engines, and made full sail with the weather gauge away from the engagmenet zone. Alarm was modified with a single 205mm pivot gun when she went into port for modifications - she had, at least, some ability to fire forwards and at any angle. Her eight cannon lower gun deck was replaced with four 75mm guns in sponsons (cut-down 75mm artillery guns), two on each side. Unicorn was armed the same as the other Bellerophons - she merely had her masts removed, save the main mast.
Unicorn made full steam towards the enemy, with Alarm outpacing us. Alarm could go about 4 kts faster, given her smaller size. As we came into visual range, I could see that the enemy ships had the same arrangement - their small ships were ahead of their large one, and moving up quickly. This played well into my hands..
K: "Signal Alarm. Have her try to carve the two smaller ships from the pack. Isolate them from the Ship-of-the-Line." I nodded to Wall Eye.
Mstr. Wall Eye: "Aye-Aye!"
I watched as Alarm made full steam and moved ahead of us smartly. As we started to get closer, she started her turn, to drive herself between the Ship-of-the-Line and the two smaller ships. This would take some time, given the speed on both sides..
Mstr. Wall Eye: "Range.. five-seven-five hundred." 5,750 meters. Just beyond the range of our guns. Both the 205 and 255's had a maximum range of 5,500 meters. The 75's on Alarm had a range of about 2km.
K: "Captain, once we're in range, start firing on the lead Pinnace." I nodded. "See if we can take her out from long range." The weight of shell from a 255mm naval rifle is pretty big (400 lbs) - a couple good hits should be all we needed.
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Aye, General." A nod to Master Wall Eye. "Ready the forward guns. Engage in ranging fire once we approach another 250 meters."
Mstr. Wall Eye: "Aye-Aye, Captain." He went to the sound-powered phone. "Attention forward guns - ranging fire on the lead Pinnace, on my mark." We would be waiting about five minutes.
Naval battles before the 20th century were slow affairs - maneuvering a ship at ranges like this (both forces were roughly 6km apart) with slow engines and wind power meant that the combined speed of both sides was often less than 20 knots (37 kph/23 mph). This meant things happened slowly, at first, until you got into range, or the enemy ducked out of range.
Twilight Sparkle came up on the bridge, she had a Chaffee shotgun across her back.
Twilight Sparkle: "All non-deck crew are armed and ready to board or repel boarders, K." She nodded to me. "Gilda's alright - it looked a lot worse than it was. She's ready to fight."
K: "Good. It'll be a few minutes until we're in range.. a bit longer if they decide to angle off on us." I turned to the Captain. "Signal Alarm to fire on the lead Pinnace as soon as they're in range."
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Aye-aye." He nodded to Master Wall Eye, who made it happen.
And after a couple minutes..
Mstr. Wall Eye: "Captain, Enemy Pinnace is approaching Alarm. Range.. five-five zero hundred!"
Alarm fired her single forward 205. I watched the shot arc across the sea through binoculars. It landed about 200m short and 400m to the left of the enemy vessel.
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Range, Master Wall Eye?"
Mstr. Wall Eye: "Five-Five-five hundred. We will be in range in thirty seconds." He paused a moment and went to the sound-powered telephone. "Forward guns, open fire on the lead Pinnace!" And his guess on time delay was nothing short of perfect.
Alarm fired again, as did Unicorn. Three shells across the open sea, two of them missed wide. The third one was close, and it was Alarm's. I watched Alarm heave over hard, suddenly, and myself and the Captain looked over to see why.
There was a trail of white coming up in the water towards Alarm, from the second Pinnace, which was 5,600 meters distant..
K: "TORPEDO! HARD RIGHT RUDDER, NOW!" How in the world was Tirek DOING THIS?!
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Torpedo!?"
Helmsman Cal Amari: "AYE! HARD'A RIGHT RUDDER!" He was from Roam.. yeah.
HMS Unicorn heaved over with all her might, going at perhaps a third of the speed of the Torpedo headed towards us. If I was right, we were at almost its absolute maximum range. Late Victorian-era Torpedos had about 2-3km range, while earlier ones were lucky to get 1km. We were at nearly 6km, which is about the expected range of an early 20th century Torpedo. We barely missed the torpedo, and I was thankful that it wasn't magically-guided. That might have been a one-shot kill.
K: "Torpedoes are basically self-propelled under water explosives. Just one of them, if they're a decent size, could blow us in half!" I nodded to the leading Pinnace which was trying to heave over into retreat. "Fire on them! Get me lookouts on the bridge wings - one trace of a trail in the water, and we heave over towards it, got it? You turn INTO a Torpedo's path, and try to get it to slide along side you."
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Understood!" He nodded to a couple of Bridge personnel. "Get out there!"
K: "Twilight, you, too." I nodded to the port wing. "You've got binoculars."
Twilight Sparkle: "Right."
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Get me fire on that Pinnace!" He looked through his binoculars. "Get us back on course with them - we're at five-six-hundred again!" He growled a little - sounded like a small lion.
K: "This is insane.." I snorted. "If Tirek wants to play that game, fine. I've got games I can play, too. Remember the plan, Captain!" And back out of the Bridge I went. Down the superstructure, and over to the main deck. "DASH!"
Rainbow Dash: "What?!"
K: "EVERY FLYER ON THIS SHIP! GIVE THEM GRENADE LAUNCHERS AND IMPACT GRENADES!" I was about to turn HMS Unicorn into a Pegasus Carrier. If Tirek wanted to play Tech Hopping, I'd play that game, too. "GET THEM READY TO FLY! YOU'RE LEADING THEM!"
Rainbow Dash: "On it!" And off she galloped, to get them ready.
Meanwhile, Alarm cut in on the lead Pinnace's turn, and fired her main gun again. I watched a shell splash land close to the enemy ship through my binoculars. Finally, we got into range, but I felt us make a hard turn again. Another Torpedo. The second Pinnace was deliberately keeping us off balance. Any longer, and we'd have to tangle with the Ship-of-the-Line..
Dash assembled everyone on the ship that could fly, and they were all armed with Bradley-Gavin combos, or Knoxes. Each had a brace of grenades on bandoliers over their chests.
K: "Listen up! We're going to try something stupid! All of you, take off. Tankette, take half of them, get to a safe altitude over the second Pinnace and rain Grenades down on top of their heads. Dash, take the other half, fly at sea-skimming height, and fire grenades at their waterline from no greater than fifty meters distance! Once your group fires their grenade launchers, break off fast and hard, regroup, and do it again from the other side. Speed! We need speed for this! Now, go!" I pointed, and off they flew. All except Derpy. She gave me a sad puppy look.
Derpy: "If only I wasn't knocked up!" *Whine*
K: "You should've slept with me, instead, Derpy." I shrugged. "I can't leave buns in the oven - all those other women can't be wrong!"
Doctor Whooves: "Bad taste!" He snorted with a smirk.
I turned and watched the flight of Pegasus ponies make a bee-line for the enemy Pinnace. It didn't take them very long - Fluttershy, the 'weakest' of the group, was still travelling at a good 80 knots. Their travel time was about seven minutes. I watched through binoculars as Tankette's group went high and started 'laying eggs' on the enemy ships. Dash's group came up low, and fired at about the same time. They made a sort of star-burst pattern as they broke away, going left and right around the enemy ship. They were busy, now, and Unicorn was in range of the lead Pinnace, handily, despite them trying to flee.
Unicorn's main guns opened up at a slight angle - enough of an angle for the starboard bow sponson gun to fire as well. I watched the shells arc across the sea, and land in a nice pattern around the Pinnace - one of the shells ripped a hole in the sail, as well. That cut their speed a bit. Enough that we started gaining ground on them. My attention was in two places at once. Firstly with the second Pinnace and my Pegasus Ponies (as well as a few Griffons) bombing the shit out of it, and second on the lead Pinnace, that we were bracketing with fire. Finally, the gun crew found the range, and I saw a shell land square on the Pinnace's forward deck, plunge through, and blow up on the inside. Unicorn came about, and presented her broadside to the smaller ship. All port-side guns fired, as well as the deck Pivot Guns, and in a large spray of wood, water and flame, the Pinnace was obliterated at 2,000 meters.
Now, we had to deal with the Ship-of-the-Line...
{End of Part 2}
Part 3: Flight of the Intruders
TIME: 15:22 Equestria Royal Standard Time (Equestria Military Time)/17:22 Local Time
DATE: War Day 247
LOCATION: Deck of HMS Unicorn, Sporkley Islands Region
I was back up on the bridge in a flash, as I saw Dash and her flyers heading back. The second enemy Pinnace was a smoking wreck, with her rigging aflame and her decks a mess. I had no idea how bad the structural damage was, but I knew the second Pinnace was out of the fight for good. As soon as I got up on the bridge, and scanned for the Ship-of-the-Line, I could see her executing a turn at about 4,000 meters..
K: "Captain.." I started.
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Hard left rudder, bring us about to zero three five degrees." He instructed calmly. "Prepare to present broadside. All guns ready."
K: "We're going to catch a broadside." I stated.
Capt. Horsefeathers: "At this range, we should be alright, General. Calculated risk." He nodded.
K: "Alright, Captain." I nodded slowly.
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Prepare to fire broadside - calibrate for between three-nine-hunded and four-one-hundred meters. Fifteen-meter increments per gun."
Mstr. Wall Eye: "Aye-aye." He relayed the message to the gun crews through the sound-powered phones.
Helmsman Cal Amari: "Turn'a complete!"
Capt. Horsefeathers: "FIRE!"
Mstr. Wall Eye: "ALL GUNS, FIRE!"
The ripping boom sound of all of our guns, and all of the enemy ship's cannons firing at the same time, echoed across the seas. As Captain Horsefeathers guessed, we were at the absolute maximum range of their heaviest guns and the lighter ones would fall short. Shell splashes cascaded all around us - not one actually impacted the deck, but if we'd had rigging up, we would have had our sails shot completely through. I did feel an impact, though.
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Damage report!" He called out.
Cdr. Wide Berth: "Enemy cannon ball blew a hole straight through our 'stack, sir. Minimal damage, no damage to engines."
Mstr. Wall Eye: "Enemy Ship hit eight times. Two gun decks severely damaged and on fire. I see a gaping hole at the water line. She's hit bad, sir.." He paused. "She's trying to come about and present her undamaged side!"
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Just like the Moonlight! Get on her Stern and STAY there! Get us close!" He commanded. "Signal Alarm to get up on her port stern, we'll try to take the starboard!" He looked at me with a satisfied grin. "So far so good."
K: "Uh-huh. Bellerophon didn't take any damage on her first battle - you're sloppy, Captain." I chided him.
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Perhaps, General, but Bellerophon didn't have to face torpedoes." He replied in an equally chiding voice.
Unicorn started moving in, maneuvering to stay on the absolute rear of the enemy ship. Alarm did as well. Every turn they made lazily with their sails, we made smartly with our engines.
Mstr. Wall Eye: "Alarm is signalling - requesting permission to fire on the stern of the enemy ship."
K: "Granted. Anything to take the fight out of them - we might even hit the rudder and really knock them down."
Unicorn and Alarm both opened up on the enemy ship's stern. Range was easy to estimate except when they made turns - even then, the guns pivoted, giving them the ability to angle shots during the turns. I watched the stern of the enemy ship get chewed up pretty good. Big chunks taken out of the back of the ship.. but there was a LOT of ship there, so, I was pretty sure we weren't doing all that much actual damage to her fighting ability.
We got close. Alarm got there first, and they took the undamaged side of the ship - which was perfect, as Alarm had a low freeboard and the way they locked up, not even the lowest gun deck on the Ship-of-the-Line could touch her. I watched her Marines and sailors pour fire on the enemy, boarding ropes firing and Marines assaulting the enemy deck.
I dashed out to the main deck of the Unicorn and shouted to Dash and her assembled flying ponies. A few were wounded and being tended to by the medics.
K: "TAKE OFF AND HELP THE ALARM! WATCH OUT FOR ANTI-AIR FIRE!" I waved at them to take flight. We'd smother them, plain and simple.
Dash: "Got it!" And off she went.
I'll give her this - she's eager.
It took us another minute or two, but we managed to get close enough to the enemy ship to initiate boarding. Lt. Blinda stayed behind, specifically to lead her Marines in their boarding action. She had them assembled, with ropes and hooks, ready to launch the attack. Norfy, Gaze and Cosmic were right by me, with Twilight and Rarity up on the bridge providing over watch with an Abrams (Twilight) and a Super Sherman (Rarity).
K: "Alright guys, let's do this." I nodded.
Gaze: "AYE, LADS! LET'S GIV'UM A BLOODY LIP!" He had two Ridgways. One in each arm.
Norfy: *Flatly* "Gee, Gaze, how come your mother lets you have TWO Ridgways?"
Gaze: "BECAUSE AH'M AWESOME!" He blasted, with a bellowing laugh you'd only hear from a Scotsman.. scotspony.. whatever.
Cosmic: "And I signed up for this.." He was hefting a Chaffee.
Norfy: "You volunteered. We all did." He gave a small grin - he had a regular Bradley, as did I.
Tankette Blinda: "ROPES READY!" She called.
The ships crashed together, but their ship took the worst of it. We were jammed up on them pretty hard.
Tankette Blinda: "BOARDING ROPES - GO!" And up they flew.
I tossed one myself - I had thumbs, after all, it was easier for me. It still took me a bit to climb it, though. It was more violent than the capture of the Moonlight - the seas were bucking like Applejack in bed when I go in dry, and the ships were erratically slamming into each other, grinding wood on wood like some really horrible Braeburn/Mac Rule 34 docking fetish.
But, I was charged up. I got to the top of the deck about the same time Gaze did. He layed down an impressive burst of fire from his twin sub-machine guns, mowing down five, while I took a few accurate, precise shots with the Bradley at a couple of Raptorians - yes, they were Raptorians - and downed them. Cosmic and Norfy were right behind me. Norfy generated an Ice Shield to protect our left flank, and summoned some sea spray-generated Ice Daggers to compliment his accurate rifle fire. He got six at one go.
K: "MOVE IT UP! MOVE IT UP! COMING THROUGH!"
Gaze: "COMING THROOOUGHHH!" He screamed.
He seemed to be enjoying this. I ended up with him and Lyra advancing with me, while Norfy, Cosmic and Blinda covered us. We moved to the stairs leading up to the navigation deck where the ship's wheel was. We then took cover position and fired up the stairs. Wood exploded around us as rounds from our own weapons and the enemy's hit everywhere. I heard a Super Sherman bark from the Unicorn, and twitched over quick enough to see Rarity grin as a Raptorian fell near us.
Norfy: "COMING THROUGH!" He announced in a commanding voice.
Him, Blinda and Cosmic moved up while we provided cover. They mounted the stairs and managd to sweep the navigation deck with blistering fire. I got a shower of hot brass from Norfy's rifle, but none of it got in my clothes, thankfully. I pulled myself up a little, and nodded. They had the deck covered. Time to secure it.
K: "COMING THROUGH!"
I shouted, my hands shaking as I mounted the stairs. Lyra was right by me, Gaze to my rear. We got up on deck just as the ship lurched hard to the side, knocking us all over on our sides. I rolled to prone to scan for targets. Lyra was on my back, and Gaze was over my legs.
K: "What am I? Sandbags?! Move it!" I snorted at them with a touch of humor.
Gaze: "Nope! Meat shield!"
He clambered over me and got to the stairwell that led down to the lower deck. He hosed it down with two full mags. Lyra backed him up with her Chaffee - she'd traded out so the Pegasus Ponies and Griffons would have grenade launchers - and dumped a full magazine of buck shot into the stairwell. They both reloaded while I provided cover.
K: "NORFY! GET THE OTHER STAIRS! DIVIDE AND CONQUER!" I shouted across the deck to him.
Norfy: "GOT IT!"
I reloaded out of habit. I'd lost track of the number of rounds I'd fired, but I was better safe than sorry.
K: "Lyra, point. Gaze, second." I took the rear.
Lyra: "Aye!"
Gaze: "Arr!"
And down the stairs we went. I was facing the rear, covering us, with Lyra in the lead. We cleared the first deck area, and passed waves to Norfy and his team. Lower deck next. We were joined by Gunny Sigmask and his squad.
K: "Squad Up!" I called. Norfy and his fire team joined us. "Gunny, take the portside stairs. We got starboard."
Gy.Sgt. Sigmask: "Aye-aye." He nodded to one of his team with a Chaffee and they took point.
K: "Alright. Lyra, Gaze, Norf, me, Cosmic, Blinda." I nodded to the stairs leading to the top gun deck. "Watch for the powder barrels, I'd rather not get cooked."
Lyra: "A'course!" She nodded and headed for the stairs.
Blinda: "No problem." She took rear, with a Bradley in her arms.
We moved down the stairs carefully, in time with Sigmask's Squad. Once down the stairs, the pointmen hosed around the corners and reloaded while the Number Two ponies moved to their sectors, crossing to the near corner of the room. Number three ponies moved to the other nearest corner, providing a wedge of fire straight into the room. Number four ponies straight up the line, engaging enemy gun crews (which were unarmed save for tools) up the gallery. Number Five moved to the far corner in mirror with Number Four. Number Six and Number One covered the rear or were ready to assist as needed.
We swept the gun deck with fire, killing everything we saw. I had my Bradley on three-round burst, but I was taking single shots with it. I'd stopped worrying about making special versions for myself for the moment, so my Bradley was a standard version. It was.. hard to break the single finger habit, but I did it. I actually found it a bit more natural to squeeze my entire hand around the trigger when my adrenaline was rushing.
Gy.Sgt. Sigmask: "UPPER GUN DECK CLEAR!" He called. "Orders?"
K: "Take the second gun deck. Then the bottom one." I nodded.
We moved to the second gun deck next. Same pattern, same movements, same stacks. I was Number Four on my stack, and that meant I moved up with Cosmic. As we got to the middle of the second gun deck, one of the Raptorians came at me with a sword. I blocked with my Bradley, and rolled backwards, flipping him halfway over me. He flapped his wings once, to get some altitude, but he was cut down by Blinda (Number Six) before he could manage to do anything else. I rolled up, let my Bradley go on its sling, and drew my side arm - a Morgan. Weaver stance, I popped two rounds into the next Raptorian to pop its head up, two in the next, and onwards.
We reached the end of the second gun deck, and approached the stairs to the bottom one. We could hear the water sloshing around on the bottom gun deck as two more squads broke through the forward 2nd level gun deck, and reached the doors. Applejack and Fluttershy were leading them, with Pinkie and Dash backing them up. When they opened the door, I saw Gilda beating the beak of one Raptorian rather viciously.
K: "Need a hand?" I asked, swiftly reloading my Morgan. I let the magazine clatter to the deck.
Gilda: *CRUNCH!* "Nope." *CRACK!* That was the neck.
Fluttershy: "Uhm.. the lower gun deck sppears to be flooded and the water seems to be rising. I think the ship is sinking, K." She nodded a little.
K: "Alright. Let's get up top, then. Stagger the squads - Sigmask, Dash, me, Fluttershy." I nodded to the central stairwell that divided the two gun deck sections fore and aft.
Gy.Sgt. Sigmask: "On it." He moved to the door leading to the central stair well, and with all the squads stacked, opened it.
A raptorian fell at our feet. Dead as a doornail. Nurse Redheart and Forest Spirit were in there with a squad of Cheerilee, Bon-Bon, Octavia and Scratch.
Forest Spirit: "General?"
K: "Status."
Forest Spirit: "Top decks are clear. If you got the Gun Decks, then the ship should be secure." He nodded, and no-look hoof-punched a Raptorian that stood up at the wrong moment. Octavia and Scratch bayonetted it to death in an orgy of stabbing.
K: "Excellent, let's get topside. She's going under, and I want anything of value looted from her in a hurry."
Forest Spirit: "Roger."
Up to the main deck, and just as with the Moonlight, we'd won a big victory. But, again, I passed the accolades to everyone else. The squad leaders had perfomed expertly, and the individual troops had kicked massive ass. We had 23 wounded, but that was it. No dead. And every Raptorian on the ship was dead.
K: "Alright! Recovery party! Marines!" I called attention. "Gather everything of value! Gunpowder, shot, weapons, ammo, food, whatever! Personal items are loot - first come, first serve. I want the Captain's sword! Get moving!"
The Marines dispersed as Sea Swirl and Deep Blue took charge of clean-up - gathering the wounded, and getting them to the appropriate ships. Dr. Allcome, who was aboard Alarm, was seeing to Triage with the nurses from Ponyville.
K: "Sea Swirl! Fantastic sea-pony-ship there." I nodded to her. "I'm going to recommend you for a commendation."
Mstrs. Sea Swirl: "Oh! K! Uh.. well, thanks! I couldn't have done it without my crew, though!" She squee'd a little. "We really won, didn't we?"
K: "That we did. And a good victory it was - even if Tirek developed Torpedoes somehow. What made you heave over hard like that?" I shrugged.
Sea Swirl: "I saw something coming toward us in the water at high speed - I knew it couldn't be good, but I didn't know what it was, so I decided it was better to avoid it." She shrugged.
K: "Alright. Get back to work - and keep being awesome." I nodded to her and off she went.
We secured the ship and made off with some booty. Some personal effects like watches and the like, some kegs of powder, plenty of rations (Raptorians ate a balanced diet, oddly enough, and I took note of this), and a couple of maps. Plus, the Captain's Sword. I presented this prize to Captain Horsefeathers.
K: "Captain, let me present you with the enemy captain's sword." I handed it to him as I got back on the Unicorn.
Capt. Horsefeathers: "I'm honored, General." He bowed his head as he accepted it.
K: "We won today because of teamwork. We did it - all of us. Now, let's get away from her before she goes down completely, and get back on track."
A victory won, we would be on our way. Now, we just had to get to Neighpon in one piece. I hoped we had enough coal to do this - of course, if necessary, I could run the other ships under sail for a few days and transfer coal to the Unicorn and Alarm. I took a seat on a pile of canvas taken from the enemy ship, looking out at the sea, with a bit of a grin. No matter what Tirek threw at us, his minor victories were always short-lived...
..or so I thought.
{End of Part 3}
Part 4: Shores of Neighpon, They Call To Us
TIME: 03:45 Neighpon Royal Western Time/15:45 Equestria Royal Standard Time
DATE: War Day 258 (Local)/War Day 257 (Equestria)/19 Lunarius, 1003 C.S.
LOCATION: Coast of Okinumnah, Reinyuku Islands - Near the Prefectural capital of Neigha
The rest of the trip was relatively uneventful. Although Gaze ended up interrupting something he shouldn't have, more than once. We always seemed to know when someone was having a little frolic with their significant others, as Gaze seemed to interrupt them at the worst times. I think the most humiliating one was when I asked him to get Forest Spirit for me, and he came back with eyes the size of pinheads, and a streak of white right between the eyes, going up his forehead.
Forest Spirit's reaction? 'I'm a Marine! All Marines are Marksponies!'
Yeah, Gaze got the butt end of a few jokes, but on the other hand, if he got some with Lyra, no one ever caught them. Though I did see Lyra with a flushed face a few times in passing, so one can only guess that they did get some action.
Actually, much of the trip was like that. I took to calling the Unicorn 'The Love Boat' - and of course, it was only hilarious to me. Whatever, right? At least Applejack was happy with the peace and quiet (except that one time that Gaze walked in on us, and I pretended not to notice him - she didn't have her mind together to really object, though). Cosmic kept to himself for most of the trip, though he worked on a lot of the stuff we brought back from the enemy ship-of-the-line, with Norfy.
The Raptorians all had Mark I Shermans, Lees, and Zhukovs. Rather, they had copies of them. What struck me was Cosmic's report on the quality of the copies. They'd originally captured weapons that were among the first batches of rifles to come off the production lines, so the metallurgy on them wasn't as high of quality as, say, the Bradleys. Yet, Tirek's copies of our weapons had metallurgical quality that was at least equal to our current technology, if not better. The alloys were more precisely combined, the durability was excellent. And the ammunition? Better than the stuff we used back at the beginning of the war, but perhaps not quite as good as the stuff we had now. It was, though, on par with what the Kiangese were using.
It made me wonder if Tirek was using the Kiangese, or vice-versa, or what.
I was sitting in mine and Applejack's cabin, naked, with her across my hips, mostly asleep as I worked on the latest jump in technology that I'd be making. "Ironclads" - all-steel-hulled warships. I'd have to have our Ships-of-the-Line cease construction when we got back. They would be complete soon, and I wanted them rebuilt. Expensive? Yes. Necessary? Yes. Tirek was demonstrating increasing capability, and it scared me that he might overtake us on technology.
Ah, the warmth of my special somepony.. not that we hadn't just finished, but-
*Knock-Knock*
K: "Come in, Gaze." I knew who it was. "Don't move, hon, or he'll get a show."
Applejack: *Mhmmmmm* She opened one eye lazily as Gaze entered.
Gaze: *Groan* "Not again!" At least he was over the whole red-faced, humiliated, lowered-head, 'hide-my-virgin-eyes' thing.
K: "What's up, Gaze?" I didn't look up from my sketches.
Gaze: "Uhm.. well, we're nearing Neigha." He shrugged.
K: "Oh! Good!" I popped up, and remembered to adjust Applejack's head so it still covered my parts. "Formal uniform time! Get everyone spiffed up. I want us to sail in, in style." I nodded.
Gaze: "Right'o, suh!" That satisfied him. Off he went.
K: "Come on, honey, time to look pretty." I moved her a bit. Or tried to. She resisted.
Applejack: *Mmhm* "Right. Sure." Those lips of hers found their mark. And I don't mean MY lips..
About.. oh, ten minutes later, Applejack and I were dressed, and exiting our cabin. It was a very small cabin that had originally stored extra timber linkages and things - it barely had room for a bed that fit me, and our things. Up to the deck, and we were joined by the girls and the lads. Me, leading my General Staff, as we approached the harbour..
..and I smelled smoke.
K: "What in the..?"
It was still dark, but the horizon was bright. In the wrong direction. We were approaching Neigha from the south - and the north horizon was glowing. The sun rises in the EAST...
Lookout: "CAPTAIN! GENERAL! THE CITY OF NEIGHA IS ON FIRE!" She called down from the Crow's Nest.
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Dear Celestia..!" He profaned. I think.
K: "Captain.." I started. "..put us back in combat formation. Beat General Quarters, all ships prepare for action."
Capt. Horsefeathers: "Aye, General!"
K: "And prepare to transfer me and my party to the Alarm - I'm going in for a closer look. Blinda! Forest Spirit!" I yelled.
Blinda: "Yes, General?"
Forest Spirit: "Aye, K?"
K: "Get the Marines ready for a forced landing." I said, tersely. "Just in case. I don't think this is a natural disaster."
Forest Spirit: "I can feel it in my eye, sir. The bad one. This is Tirek." He snorted, and nodded to the Marines. "Get ready for a landing invasion. Full battle gear, full field packs, turn out and be ready in ten minutes! MOVE IT!" He barked.
Blinda: "Sweet Celestia!" She snarled. "This is unforgivable! YOU HEARD THE MAJOR! MOVE YOUR FLANKS!" She snapped at her Detachment as she moved to get below decks, already pulling at her shirt.
The girls, the lads, and I, transferred to the Alarm. On Alarm's bridge deck, I paced back and forth. I was nervous. Worried. Something was going wrong here. The closer we got to shore, the more screams I could hear. Terrified screams. Pained screams. This place was getting sacked.
Gaze: "This is bad." He frowned.
K: "No kidding. Sea Swirl, order the longboat readied. Rarity, Fluttershy? Bradleys for everyone." I noted. "Rarity, get a scope on yours, Twilight's, Gaze, Cosmic and Norfy's. Gavins for me, Pinkie, Cosmic, Fluttershy and Dash."
Rarity: "Of course, K, darling." There was fear in her voice as she ran for Alarm's armory with Fluttershy.
Mstrs Sea Swirl: "This is horrible.." She shook her head, putting a leg around Deep Blue.
Cdr. Deep Blue: "What do we do?" She shook her head a little.
K: "Do what we do best." I said, taking a Bradley/Gavin from Rarity as she came back and handed weapons out. I put a magazine in and ran the bolt. "Kill, liberate, and win."
Spike: "Should I tell Princess Celestia about this? I-I think I'd be able to send it this far."
K: "We need to assess what's going on over there. I don't want her to fret over this being a bigger problem than it actually is. But send her a preliminary report that the Port of Neigha is on fire and we're going to investigate. Oh, and you're staying here."
Spike: "Awww!"
K: "If somethig happens to us on shore, you need to be here to send Celestia a message."
Spike: "Okay, good point there."
TIME: 04:47 NRWT
LOCATION: Longboat of HMS Alarm, heading to shore
Me, Norfy, Gaze, Cosmic, and the girls were heading to shore with Alarm's longboat, driven by Deep Blue and the ship's senior Bosun, MCPO Salt Spray. The longboat was just large enough for us and the four-pony crew. It also sported a Pershing Mark III on the bow gunnel (gunwale - the upper edge of the side of the boat - in this case on the very front) in a spray-protected mount. The Mark III Pershing is a Mark II with navalized adjustments and a much smaller barrel jacket, meant to be permanently fixed to a mounting, not carried.
Norfy: "This is crazy."
Applejack: "Ya mean this's par fer th' course!" She nudged me hard. "Yer nuts!"
K: "And you're mad, why?" I retorted.
Applejack: "T'ani't mad, Honeybun, jes' sayin' - y'all's crazy. Un'for'chu'nat'ly fer us both, ah likes crazy." She snorted a bit.
Pinkie: "That's why we're friends!" She hugged Applejack - perhaps intentionally missing the point.
Rarity: "Really, darling!" A bemused smirk.
Twilight Sparkle: "How's the radio coming, Cosmic?" She turned to him as he was assembling the radio.
Radios had to be left partally disassembled when not in use aboard ship, because of the volatile batteries the new ones used. It gave great battery life, but the contacts corroded in sea air, so the batteries were left wrapped in waxed paper with Rock Salt as a dessicant.
Cosmic: "Alright, radio's working. I can call fire from the fleet." He checked his Gavin, making sure a flare was loaded.
K: "Good. Bo'sun, pull us in close to that low dock off to the side of the town, there. Looks like a small rowboat landing. We'll put off there. Blue? Inform Commodore Saletine that he's in command of the fleet until I return with an assessment. We'll check in every hour. If we miss two checkins, send in the Marines."
Cdr. Deep Blue: "You got it, K. Be careful!" She implored.
K: "Yeah, if I don't make it back, who's going to unclog your drain?" I smirked.
Cdr. Deep Blue: "OH!" She blushed.
We got off of the longboat and moved up - I was doing a squad and change, so I mixed up the order a little. Applejack, Gaze, Rarity and Cosmic with me, Norfy with Twilight, Fluttershy, Pinkie, and Dash.
K: "Okay, Norfy. Stay in radio contact. Check in at the top of the hour."
Norfy: "No problem." He nodded.
K: "Head up that way - the Prefecture Palace is over there. See if you can contact the local governor. If you can, call for extraction and get the Governor and anyone you can, out of there. If not, just observe and evaluate. After that, if you have time, skirt along the docks here and see if we can make a dock landing, or if it's too fortified." I pointed up the path that he was to go along.
Norfy: "Got it. And your mission?"
K: "Deep penetration - evaluate enemy numbers, forces, and equipment."
Norfy: "What if it's Duregars, again?" He shrugged a little.
K: "We have Gavins. They should be able to pierce their armor from any angle. Now, get going and good luck." I motioned. "Alright. Stack like this - me, Gaze, Applejack, Cosmic, Rarity. Move on my rear." I pulled the stock of the Bradley to my shoulder and started moving along the foot path.
Rarity: *Silently* "Five moving." That told me we were all in motion.
We moved up the path - it was lined with bamboo pants and beautiful trees. Pinkie snapped a bamboo stalk off and chewed on it a little, making *Mmm!* noises. Hey, bamboo was tasty when prepared right - I preferred mine thoroughly cooked, though. We reached the stone and inlaid rock path that led towards the settled areas of town, and took a right, heading north. I wanted to find a.. a government building or major store or something, not a private house - they may not speak Equestrian (English), but a Trader probably would. I needed a translator.
The narrow side roads eventually fed to a major street that seemed to come up into Neigha from the Harbor.
Rarity: "K! Over there!" She pointed to a dress store.
Applejack: *Hiss* "Now ain't the time ta' go shoppin'!"
Rarity: "No, no, no! The size of that boutique tells me it does a LOT of business - and its proximity to the harbor says that business is with tourists and traders from other lands that want something to take home to their mares! Meaning they probably speak Equestrian, Germaneic, Roaman or Prench." She sniffed. "And I do speak Prench and Roaman."
Cosmic: "She's got you there, Applejack."
Applejack: *Huff* "Alright, but no shoppin'!"
K: "You ask a great deal, Applejack. Now, hush. Move in stack, watch the streets." I said, cautiously.
We broke from cover and dashed across the street one at a time, with those not moving, providing cover for those that were. We didn't see any opposition, but that didn't mean anything.
K: "Alright. Rarity, knock." I said, taking a knee near the entrance.
The others fanned out in a tight C around the side doorway. Rarity shouldered her Scoped Bradley and gently pressed on the door to see if it was open. It was. She tapped me on the shoulder, and we moved into the store and off the streets in reverse order.
Rarity: "Bonjuor! Hello? Ciao! Is anyone here? Qualcuno qui dento? A l'une … cet endroit!?" She called out, half walking backwards, half turning, with me right next to her.
K: "Guten tag! Wer hier!?" I called out in Germane.
??> "HANARERO!" A young filly's voice.
Rarity: *Quietly* "Was that Neighponese?" She asked aloud.
K: *Quietly* "I think it was."
??> "Gaikokuno akuma wo hanare te iku!" It spoke fast, like it was scared. It was dark in here, so, it was hard to see where the voice was coming from.
K: *Quietly* "Akuma..? I think I heard Akuma in there.. that means Devil.. uhhm.. I think we were just called foreign devils. Seems.. about what I'd expect to hear." *Sigh* "We need a translator. I know maybe a couple of words in Ja-ah-ah.. Neighponese." I corrected myself. It's true - and they were all words I used in my World War II research. Ship names - like Aratama and Goryo, or Kaga, Akagi.. et cetera.
Rarity: *Quietly* "I don't speak it either. Don't feel bad, K." She murmured that to me.
K: "Stay close, ignore the voice. Don't give whoever's on the other end the idea we want to hurt them." I said as I moved to the lead, and from the back area of the shop, to the front.
When we got out to the front area, we were surrounded by gorgeous Japanese, Chinese and Korean-style dresses. Very clearly designed to entice the Gaijin away from their money without them realizing where the dresses all come from. Rarity was giving them a very stern once-over. Applejack, Cosmic and Gaze moved to the window and looked out into the street.
Gaze: "K! Duregars and Raptorians!" He hissed at us.
K: "Everyone get down." I motioned for them all to get to concealment. "We're not looking for a fight, here. Numbers?"
Gaze: "Dozen.. with an APC."
Those things again. I didn't have Walkers with us, but the Gavin's impact grenades gave about 40mm of armor penetration against standard steels at a flat angle. Which was enough to hit the engines and crew compartments, but it would not pierce the turret or driver's stations. The Walker was overkill everywhere and boasted up to 127mm (five inches) of penetration against steel. Enough to kill a T-34 back home.
??> *AHHH!*
That little filly voice again. She must've actually seen us! All of a sudden, a ball of filly came charging out of the back area we'd entered from, and ran right towards the front door!
K: "Someone stop her!" I yelled, perhaps too loudly.
Applejack: "Come here, you!" She dove for the little Filly, and just missed.
Gaze: "C'me here, Ah'm not gonna to hurt you!" He made a lunge for her, and overshot.
Cosmic: "Hey, wait! Don't go out there!" He charged up from the rear and got to her, just as she grabbed the door handles and opened them..
..right to the street full of enemy troops.
{End of Part 4}
Part 5: Proud Soldier Cosmic
TIME: 05:32 NRWT
DATE: War Day 258 (Local)
LOCATION: Prefectural Capital of Neigha, Okinumnah, Reinyuku Islands
Cosmic: "...oh, fillyflanks."
That profanity, I heard spill from his mouth, as the doors came open. For a moment, the Duregars and Raptorians were as surprised to see us, as we were to see them.
K: "GET DOWN!"
I screamed that at the top of my lungs as I sailed across the room and slammed Cosmic and the Filly down, right as the gunfire started from both sides. I landed hard, but I got them both to the ground. I felt a burn slice across my torso, and another along my thigh, but I ignored it as I pulled both Cosmic and the Filly tightly to my body and used myself to shield them.
Filly> *AAAAAHHHHHHHAAHHH!* *SOB*
Applejack: "K! COSMIC! CELESTIA-FLANKING-DAMNIT, COVER ME!"
Gaze: "RO'JAH! COVERING FIRE!"
I could hear her hooves scamper across the floor and I could feel her teeth at my pant leg. She dragged all three of us across the floor, with gunfire criss-crossing the air above us, splintering planks around us. Just as she got us about halfway across the floor, I looked up to see the turret of the APC complete its turn towards us.
K: "Fuck.. FUCK!"
I heaved over from my stomach, leaning on my right side, partially facing left, to my LEFT side, pitching all of my weight, and throwing Cosmic and the filly over the main counter. Adrenaline does nice things - like letting you heave a 120lbs pony and a 40lbs filly about four feet. I kicked Applejack in the face hard enough to push her away, as I tried to make myself as small of a target as possible, curling up in a little ball.
The explosion, I barely remember. I'm not even exactly sure where the shell hit. But at this distance, it didn't much matter. The front of the store caved in, the ceiling partially collapsed, the windows exploded, and there was a lot of screaming. And weight. I remember weight. I was pinned under rubble. Not an insane amount, but enough to piss me off.
At least pony buildings weren't built as heavy as human ones.
It gave me a moment. The shooting stopped, meaning the enemy was evaluating what they just did and my people were either wounded or playing 'possum. The distance was too tight to risk voice communication - that and my ears were ringing something fierce - but I could move. Fingers, toes, nostrils.. I was shot. Yeah, I just realized that. I felt the warm wetness along my side.. no hole, it grazed me, but it did some damage. Thigh? Yeah, that was hurt, too. My leg burned as I moved it a little. That might be bad. I could see a little from under the rubble. Applejack wasn't far away, maybe a couple meters from where I was. She looked injured, and she was clearly knocked out.
We needed to kill them and get the hell out of here before they decided to torch the place.
My Bradley.. I felt the cool metal against my cheek. I fingered it to check the important parts - barrel, receiver, magazine. Seemed okay. Gavin was intact. I couldn't slide it out, though, it was pinned. I'd have to lift the rubble off of it. Fortunately, it was more or less pointed right at the enemy APC. And I had an Impact Grenade loaded. I could get them. Maybe.. if I could just reach.. the trigger..
They started coming into the building. They had chains with them.. manacles.. something that looked like an iron hood. They weren't going to kill us, they were going to CAPTURE us! They must've figured out who we were..
..no, wait, they walked right past Applejack like she wasn't even there. They were walking towards where the little filly was! They went to grab her up from the rubble. Two Duregars and a Raptorian.
I could feel the air around me get very light.. and gravity itself fail for a moment. A unicorn's telekinesis! So close.. it must be Cosmic! He burst from the rubble, just to my right, just within my narrow field of view..
Cosmic: "GET THE BUCK AWAY FROM HER!" He opened up on them. He telekinetically pulled the little Filly behind him, shielding her.
It was now or never. I forced my hand through the sharp splinters of wood and grabbed the Gavin's trigger, squeezing the grip. The grenade fired..
*THOONK!*
*PAW-CHAM!*
And blew a hole in the APC's side, starting a fire, and knocking over two Raptorians with shrapnel. Cosmic's telekinesis field was just strong enough for me to force enough rubble off of me to partially get up. He shot the Duregars and Raptorian that had been coming over with the bondage gear, cutting them down with surprise on their faces.
The remaining enemy troops outside recovered from the grenade shot, and started shooting the same instant I did. I felt another burn go through my arm, but I magdumped, pulsing the trigger on three-round burst, making my way to Cosmic, screaming the entire time.
Cosmic: "K!"
I didn't respond intelligably. I went to change magazines, and found that my left arm wasn't doing what I wanted it to, and blood was pouring down it. I forced it to work, to change magazines, as I stumbled behind some fallen timbers. I watched Applejack twitch.. her ear. And suddenly, her eyes snapped open, she rolled over on her back, and opened fire as she rolled across the floor.
Applejack cut the legs out from underneath the enemy party, making several of them fall over. The effect was immediate - the rest of them scattered quickly. She got to her knees, and ejected the magazine as she stood up fully on her hind legs.
Applejack: "COSMIC!" She shouted to him.
Cosmic: "A-J!" He snapped his aim up at a Duregar climbing over the back of the APC, trying to get a bead on her.
They fired at the same instant.
Applejack half-turned as it happened, and brought her forelegs up to shield herself. The Duregar's round hit the magazine well of her rifle, and passed through. Cosmic's round passed just beneath the front tuft of her hair and hit the Duregar in the head, painting its brain matter across the wall of the nearest building.
Applejack discarded her Bradley, and drew her twin brace of Hickok revolvers, and Akimbo Wielding them, got up, turned, and started shooting every creature she saw. Cosmic did the same thing with his Bradley, not advancing or moving from his position, just breathlessly executing every twitching enemy that dared show any sign of life. She rushed outside, John Woo'ing three Duregars that piled out of the APC as Cosmic picked off one climbing out of the turret, before running up to it, and reloading.
Reloading a Hickok is very quick. The Hickok is a break-frame revolver, and is designed to accept Moon Clips - which are flat circles of metal that hold cartridges in a ring, and the whole thing is dropped into a revolver's cylinder - it's almost as fast as reloading a semi-automatic. The Hickok is also chambered in the hard-hitting 10mm Super Pony Express (10x24mm - with a powder charge close to the power of a .357 Magnum - it was a lengthened 10x18mm Pony Express cartridge using the advanced powders Colonel Williams gave me). Applejack popped both frames open by pressing the frame release levers together. She ejected the spent rounds by up-ending both revolvers and hitting the ejector rods against her chest while grabbing two Moon Clips with her teeth. As she brought the revolvers back around, she dropped both Moon Clips in place and snapped the frames shut against her thigh. This took her about four seconds.
Applejack spun around the corner of the APC, and fired into the cabin. Reaching in, she grabbed a loose cannon shell with her teeth, and bucked the projectile part off with her back right leg, exposing the propellant. She dumped a line of propellant leading away from the projectile, making a trail about a meter long. Casually resting her left-hoof Hickok on the end of the pile, she fired once, to get a spark and heat. This ignited the trail of propellant..
..and she simply walked away, pulling out a pair of sunglasses with her teeth and putting them on, just as the APC exploded in a massive gout of flame.
Because cool ponies walk away from explosions like it ain't no thang.
It was over. We'd won. I sat myself up against a wall.
K: "Cosmic.. AJ.." I shook my head. "Go check on the others." I nodded.
Applejack: "BUT! Honeybun, you're bleedin' somethin' fierce!" She protested.
K: "I'll be fine." I said as I pulled out my IFAK (Individual First Aid Kit).
Applejack: "Alright.." She said, worried.
My left hand was trembling and stopped working on me, so I had to use my right hand and my mouth to get the bandage open. I examined my arm.. sure enough, there was a hole in the meat, about an inch (25mm) above the elbow. It cut a nice channel through the flesh, and blew out some of the remaining cellulite there (hey, I was a bit out of shape when I got here, okay?) but I couldn't see muscle or anything that looked important. So, I wrapped it. The bandages in the IFAK have an antiseptic already impregnated into the cloth, and when it got wet with blood, it rehydrated, and started to sting like a mother-fucker. I wrapped it as tight as I could and tied it off.
K: "Someone give me a status report!" I demanded, as I moved on to my side and leg.
Applejack: "Ah c'ain't find Rarity! An' Gaze's knocked cold. Cosmic, you okay?"
Cosmic: "Nothing leaking on me." He checked himself over. "Did I just do that?"
K: "You did. And you did a great job of it."
Applejack: "RARITY!? WHERE ARE YA!? Ah swears ta Celestia an' Luna above, if'n yer lollygaggin' around lookin' at dresses..!"
Rarity: *Gentle moan*
Applejack: "Rarity!" She bucked a huge pile of rubble out of the way. Rarity was very close to where the shell exploded. "OH, SWEET CELESTIA!" She shrieked. My Leading Mare does NOT shriek like that.
My side still untended to, I forced myself up and hobbled over to where Rarity was. She was bleeding pretty badly.. there were bits of shrapnel and rubble all stuck in her like a pincushion. It looked bad.
K: "Shit.." I shook my head, clamping my hands over the worst bleeder. "Cosmic! Does that radio still work!?"
Cosmic: "Give me a second." He put the radio down off his back and checked it. "No holes!"
K: "I need MedEvac! NOW!" I grasped the wound on Rarity as tight as I could. "Hang on, Rarity. Don't you die on me."
Cosmic: C> "This is Alpha Leader to Alarm, come in Alarm! Over!" He called frantically.
HMS Alarm Radio Operator: C> "This is Alarm, go ahead Alpha Leader, over."
Cosmic: C> "We have wounded! We need MedEvac, NOW! Send with Armed Escort - we've got enemy forces in the area. Tango forces. Repeat, TANGO forces. Marking Ell-Zee with Flare! Over." Tango. For Tirek. Cosmic leaned the Bradley/Gavin combo on the windowsill and angled it up. He fired the flare shell in the launcher.
HMS Alarm Radio Operator: C> "Understood, Alpha Leader. Flare spotted. ETA is three minutes. Over."
Cosmic: C> "Nominal, Alarm. Alpha Leader, out."
K: "Hang on, Rarity. For the love of God, hang on."
I looked at Applejack with horror in my eyes. It looked really bad. I wasn't sure how much blood she'd already lost.. how far she was into shock..
That's when the little filly came out from behind Cosmic's legs and came running over to where we were. It was then that I could see her more clearly - she was wearing a cloak of some kind to hide herself. When she flipped the cloak's hood back, we could see she was a Unicorn. She looked at Rarity.. then at me.. then back to Rarity.
Then her horn started to glow.
Rarity was lifted from my arms, covered in a pink-red amorphous field of magical energy. The little filly was straining herself hard.. but I didn't understand at first, what she was doing. Until I saw the shrapnel slowly slide out of her.. and her wounds start to close. The Filly was sweating, shaking.. like she was on the verge of passing out.. until, finally, she did.
Rarity landed in my arms. Most of her smaller injuries were simply gone.. even her larger ones had shrunk by more than half their total area. She was still bleeding, but not nearly as bad as before. I took her IFAK and started applying bandages, not bothering to question what I just saw.
The MedEvac Flight landed outside, with some Pegasus providing air cover. I picked up Rarity, and Cosmic picked up the Filly, while Applejack dragged Gaze. As we headed to the awaiting stretchers, I was still trying to process what I just saw.
{End of Chapter 28}
