Darkstone Code-Chapter 1028 - 1026: Bombardment
A warlord paced back and forth in the room, growing tired, sitting down and then standing up again to continue pacing.
Cigarette butts littered the floor, some discarded after just two puffs.
But shortly after tossing them away, he couldn’t resist lighting a new one.
He was troubled because those major warlords planned to ambush the Federation people in his territory!
Undoubtedly, whether they succeeded in the ambush or not, these people would never admit they were behind the act afterward.
And he, an ordinary warlord, would have to bear the consequences of these capricious actions, possibly ending up on the Federation’s blacklist.
At the thought of this, he felt utterly uncomfortable, anxious, and even had an urge to go to the bathroom, but after standing there for a long time, not a single drop came out.
He felt he might die, the sensation of death slowly approaching each day was truly unpleasant, he wanted to run, but couldn’t.
If he dared to flee, his body would soon be hung on some lamppost or statue with an inscription on his chest.
Something like "Running away is cowardly" or "There’s no escape for you," people liked doing this, making the corpse "speak" to intimidate the disobedient.
He had done it before but didn’t want others to do it to him, so he had to stay put.
Just a day ago, he hated the Federation and Sanchez deeply, why did they have to choose his territory to attack when they had so many options, he cursed them, hoping a meteorite would fall and kill those bastards.
But at this moment, he began praying the Federation wouldn’t suffer too much on his turf, nor blame it on him!
"Colonel, what do you plan to eat tonight?" asked the official outside the door.
The warlord referred to as Colonel paused, glancing at the gemstone watch on his wrist, it was 4:57 PM, only an hour until the ambush.
The major warlords planned to ambush the Federation people tonight at 6 PM.
They had been observing these Federation people yesterday, or even longer, knowing they would gather for a meal at 6 PM, doing nothing thereafter.
It’s an excellent opportunity to attack, they let down their guard, no one would hold a gun while eating.
The Colonel felt his heart almost leaping out of his chest, the thumping like thunder frightening him.
After some time, he shook his head and said, "I don’t want anything to eat, give me a bottle of wine, I need it..."
Time is like a creek in the mountains, it seems lifeless whenever you look at it, showing no evident signs of movement, making one think it is stagnant.
But when you touch the water, the flow hits your fingers, forming ripples, making you realize it is alive.
Time quietly reached 5:45 PM.
After a day of battle, soldiers rested where they were, rear carts delivering dinner, they chose a strategically favorable spot.
It was easily defensible and hard to attack, reportedly once a temple in the city, abandoned after the overthrow of the Malorian rule.
Now it served as the most suitable forward base, thanks to its elevated position, simplifying defense.
One soldier shed all burdens, holding an aluminum chow box he queued for dinner, sniffing the aroma causing salivation, he couldn’t help but shout, "What’s for dinner tonight?"
"Beef, potatoes, and dumplings!"
Soldiers queuing and heading over cheered, beef stewed with potatoes and dumplings, everyone’s favorite dinner.
Dumplings made from refined flour, thumb-sized and somewhat thick, added to beef and potato stew, cooked briefly and then scooped up.
Not thick soup, dumplings absorb the aroma of beef and broth, chewy like meat.
After a day of fighting, perhaps this was the most relaxing moment.
The soldier stared at the approaching food cart, swallowing his saliva continuously, muttering as though urging the people in front to move faster.
After a while, it was finally his turn, he breathed a sigh of relief, smiling, holding out his chow box, "Give me some extra potatoes..."
The cook nodded, at this moment the soldier instinctively glanced at his watch, exactly six o’clock!
In the next second, he slightly lifted his head to look at the distant sky, a confused expression on his face, "Did you hear something?"
The cook paused, also turned to look at the sky behind him, more people had lifted their heads, clearly hearing a strange noise.
It was sharp, harsh, with an inexplicable sense of fear enveloping their hearts.
In the next second, a black dot appeared in the sky, swiftly falling within the temple!
With a loud bang, the entire city was shaken!
"Enemy attack, enemy attack!!"
In an instant, alarm sirens blared, and people began to frantically grab their gear they had just taken off and scatter to avoid the shelling.
There were no flames shooting into the sky, only those barely visible fragments flying everywhere.
Dust fell from the walls of the ancient temple, forming large holes and small dents where the fragments hit, everyone tried to keep their bodies as close to the ground as possible.
The soldier was gasping for air, he looked down at the wound on his abdomen, striving to keep his emotions under control.
Before coming to the battlefield, he was trained, knowing that what he needed to do was not stand up, cover his wound, waving his arms shouting "I’m fucking hurt", but to press on the wound, lie down, slow his breathing, and let his body relax.
This would allow him to survive an additional three to five minutes.
In these three to five minutes, maybe his life could see a turnaround.
He glanced at the knocked-over food cart in front of him, looked at the potato chunks and beef mixed with soil on the ground, hesitated for a moment, and grabbed a few pieces of beef and stuffed them into his mouth.
Even if he was going to die, he needed to eat his fill first.
Blood from the wound quickly soaked the ground, he stopped eating and just lay there motionless...
War never becomes merciful because of an individual!
The first moment the outpost was hit by bombardment, the command vehicle was alarmed, a group of officers standing outside the vehicle watched the distant temple constantly rising with dust, every person’s expression frozen.
The highest-ranking Colonel’s body was trembling slightly, he then hysterically shouted loudly, "Quick, contact the frontline, report the casualties, prepare to send someone to bring them back..."
As he spoke, he returned to the command vehicle, standing in the doorway, he loudly said, "Detain the person in charge of reconnaissance, he must be held responsible for this loss!"
The message from the outpost was dire, they were attacked while eating, most had taken off their bulletproof vests.
This led to the most dreadful damage effect caused by the shrapnel among the people, a single piece of shrapnel could easily kill one to two people, people fell en masse.
Of the 1,500 who entered the city, it’s estimated that fewer than a thousand may survive.
Even more fatally, when the bombardment had yet to end, the periphery of the temple rang with sounds of combat, clearly, the other side was launching an attack under the cover of artillery.
This tactic had already proven effective in World War I, artillery support covering infantry assault, this was no minor skirmish, this was war!
Fierce arguments broke out within the command vehicle, but the argument was short-lived, two minutes later the latest command was issued from the vehicle, to abandon the outpost and withdraw entirely to the outer rim of the city.
Simultaneously ordering the remaining seven hundred soldiers to quickly construct simple defensive works, gratitude for those military enterprises who brought some convenient equipment.
For instance, things that could prop up to mimic rock formations were now coming into play.
The frontline command’s idea was to create a defense line at the city’s outskirts, if retreat was necessary, they could retreat into the wild at any time, if not, they could rely on these defenses to organize a counterattack.
Meanwhile, at the riverbank camp, Ryan was also having dinner.
"I love their potato and beef stew, the potatoes are mushy, which is great." he gently pressed with a spoon, turning a piece of potato into mashed potatoes, then scooped up the stew full of meat juices and sauce with the spoon, put it into his mouth, and closed his mouth...
The feeling was simply wonderful!
Each potato mash granule, as small as sand, was full of meat broth, rich and delicious flavor, and after eating a piece of well-cooked beef, perhaps this was the most memorable dinner in life.
While chatting over dinner, suddenly, the camp sounded the alarm, Ryan instinctively stood up, looked toward the soldiers gathering not far away.
These were just transferred from other places, said to be that Darkstone Security reduced field personnel in Amelia, transferring them here.
He also ran towards the assembly field, grabbing a soldier who was putting on a bulletproof vest, loudly asked, "What’s happening?"
The soldier didn’t hide it, directly saying, "The frontline was bombarded, the frontline command needs our support..."
Ryan froze, stood there stunned for a moment, then turned and ran towards the camp.
The injured soldiers looked at him, all asked what’s happening, then fell into silence.
As for Ryan, he had already begun putting on equipment, feeling a sense of duty, he thought he should step up at this moment.
Actually, it wasn’t about reasons or whys, he just had such a thought, feeling he was ready, it’s time to do something.
He frantically ran towards the assembly field, finally arriving as the others were about to leave.
"Marine Corps Senior Soldier Ryan, reporting back from injury, Sir!"
