Post

Okada, Southern Aquiląnia, Zoygaria

The hail of lead seemed never-ending. The cornered Zoygarians were pinned down on all sides: they took shelter in rubble, sewage pipes, and the remains of buildings— anything to protect themselves from the cold death raining upon them. Sergeant Aito and a squad of his men had taken up positions in and around the drainage ditches of the city to provide some shelter from the cruisers raining hellfire on their positions. The ditches would provide some camouflage and, hopefully, choke points with which to counter an Ulmian advance. However, if the water continued rising, soon they wouldn't need camouflage: they would be dead anyways.

Slowly but surely, the Ulmian barrage trickled to a snail's pace. They were still firing on the city, but with most of the buildings turned to dust, they could be more precise with their targets, conservative with their shells. Aito took the opportunity to have himself and a few others scout the terrain, and see if they could salvage a few of the guns they had set up. A thick layer of dust had overtaken the ruined streets, and combined with the pelting rain, made visibility a nightmare. The troops cautiously moved about, hoping no stray artillery shells found them before they found their emplacements. Miraculously, two of the five tripods they had set up were still intact. The rest lay in pieces, or were simply gone. The group brought them back to their makeshift trench, and prepared for combat. Sergeant Aito radioed any troops able to listen.

"Soldiers of Zoygaria: this is Sergeant Aito. The enemy is coming. Use the low visibility and rubble to your advantage— The enemy can't hit what they can't see. Use what vantage points you can, and always stay near cover. God be with you."

As he put down the radio, over the heavy rainfall, he heard the sound of boots on concrete: the Ulmians had arrived.