Destiny
The dim passageways of the Ancient vessel Destiny were paths Dorin had walked many times. Each time he returned, memories of the vessel soaring through the universe alone, in her time before the arrival of those from Earth, filled his thoughts. During those days, he had often wondered if the vessel understood the concept of loneliness. Much later, he learned that Destiny did understand the concept, and had often felt the pangs of loneliness.
Since the redeployment of Destiny, the atmosphere was much changed. Now, the ship was brimming with life and enthusiasm. Finally, a crew that not only enjoyed their time aboard, but also believed in the overall mission manned her. Their disregard for the dangers involved, and the incredible personal sacrifices made to be here, earned each of those crewmembers Dorin's deepest respect.
Making his way towards the observation deck, Dorin was pleased none of those crewmembers were about. In his mind, walking among them invisibly would be disrespectful of their privacy. Approaching the observation deck doors, Dorin resumed physical form. Pushing the doorway activation button, his eyes took in the swirling palate of color flowing through the viewing port. Stepping through the doorway, Dorin was instantly aware that he was not alone.
Ignoring that fact, he stepped towards the large window. Stopping, feet from it, he marveled at the sight of Destiny hurtling through space at faster than light velocity. Often since his ascension, Dorin had stood in this very spot to watch this scene. He found it soothing. Out of respect for the other occupant in the room, he watched in silence.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Nicholas Rush asked in a soft Scottish brogue.
"That it is. I have come here many times over the ages to take in this view." Dorin replied, not taking his eyes off the window.
"I come here after most of the crew is asleep to think." Rush explained.
"Does it help?" Dorin asked.
"Some of my best thinking happens in this room." Rush answered.
"As does mine Nicholas." Dorin whispered.
"Might I ask what brings you here Ambassador?" Rush asked.
"You may. I am here to enlighten you. Would you be so kind as to wake the Colonel Davidson, Eli and his partner Ginn, and Doctor Perry? I will await their arrival and yours in the core interface room." Dorin stated.
At the Furling Ambassadors request, Rush quickly exited the observation deck to wake the others. For minutes after his departure, Ambassador Dorin simply stood at the window admiring the beauty before him. As an ascended being, he had seen many things, but still reveled in the sight he now enjoyed. Putting those thoughts from his mind, Dorin soon departed the observation deck also.
Making his way quickly to the core interface room, also known as the apple core to those onboard, Dorin inspected the data display before him. As he inspected the data streams flowing across the screen, he took note of an arrival beside him. The avatar of Destiny had appeared.
"Hello Destiny." Dorin began.
"Welcome Ambassador." Destiny said in greeting.
"I trust all is well aboard and with the crew?" Dorin asked.
"It is." The avatar of Destiny replied.
"When is your next scheduled rendezvous with a seed ship?" Dorin asked.
"The next joining will occur in forty six Earth days." Destiny explained.
Before the conversation could go further, the doorway opened, and new arrivals entered. Dr. Rush and his wife Amanda; Eli and his wife Ginn; Colonel Davidson and Dr. Joseph Kent stepped through. When first woken, those now present had been concerned something was amiss with the ship. Seeing the always present smile of Dorin reassured them greatly. Fanning out across the room, the new arrivals settled in.
"It's a pleasure to see you Ambassador." Colonel Ian Davidson began.
"The pleasure is mine Colonel. Colonel Young sends his greetings." Dorin replied.
"How is the Colonel?" Eli asked.
"He is well. We recently went on what you would call a field trip." Dorin answered.
"Anywhere good?" Eli asked.
"The Furling home city. I unveiled it to him, and gifted it to Earth." Dorin replied.
"Kind of like Vis Uban then?" Eli inquired.
"Very little like Vis Uban. The Furling built in grander scale than the Ancient's." Dorin answered with a shy smile.
"What is it you wished to speak with us about Ambassador?" Colonel Davidson questioned.
"Officially, I am here to review your recent progress in deciphering the cosmic microwave background message. Admittedly, I am well aware of your progress. Unofficially, I am here to educate you on something of historical importance pertaining to the message." Dorin hinted.
"Historical importance?" Rush asked with a raised eyebrow.
"As you are all aware, Destiny is on a mission examining the cosmic microwave background radiation, looking for evidence of an intelligence existing before the creation of the universe. What you do not know is that it was not the Ancient's who discovered the message, but instead the Alterran's." Dorin explained.
"Navigation logs show clearly that Destiny was launched from Earth." Rush argued.
"That fact I am in no way disputing Doctor. Destiny's launch point in no way changes the fact the message was first discovered when the Ancient's and Ori were one people, in the Alterran home galaxy. That discovery set off years of debate." Dorin continued.
"I have reviewed the philosophical debates stored in Destiny's computer core. They say nothing of this." Rush countered.
"Nor should they be expected to. Immense amounts of time passed between the message discovery, and the launch of this vessel." Dorin replied.
"How much time exactly?" Eli asked.
"Roughly two thousand years." Dorin answered.
"Wow!" Eli exclaimed.
"When the Ori and Ancient's were still one people, the Alterran people, they were a race of differences. The Ori were devoted to faith, while the Ancient's dedicated themselves to science. The discovery of the cosmic microwave background message directly led to the split between these two groups." Dorin continued.
"Are you saying that discovery was what started the civil ware that forced the Ancient's to depart for the Milky Way?" Colonel Davidson asked.
"Yes Colonel that is what I am saying. Those that would later be known as the Ancient's sought to examine this discovery from a scientific basis, while the Ori did not. The Ori say this as a divine message from a higher power. Ascension was known to them, from a few rare instances it was witnessed at that stage in their evolution. Ori belief at the time was that ascension could take them closer to that higher power, which led to fundamentalist thinking taking root. Gripped by religious fervor, the Ori moved to vanquish the unbelievers. That is why the Ancient's fled to the Milky Way." Dorin said with a trace of sadness.
"So you are saying that the message we are after is the root cause to the enslavement of galaxies, and the death of millions who refused to bow before the Ori?" Colonel Davidson asked in disgust.
"No Colonel, that is a gross oversimplification. The discovery of this message is what led to the departure of the Ancient's to the Milky Way, and the later creation of your race. Everything the Ori did, they did out of a lust for power and their own vanity." Dorin replied.
"Why are you telling us this?" Amanda asked.
"So that you understand the history that contributed to your mission, and remember the price paid to make it possible. The conclusion of your mission will mark a close to a chapter of universal history filled with both high points and low points. Your mission is larger than any one of you. It is larger than us all. Now, to accomplish my official reason for being here, would you mind reviewing your most recent attempts to analyze the signal fragments with me?" Dorin asked.
Tagrea
Milky Way
Initiation of active hostilities on Tagrea greatly expanded possible tasking orders for the CAAT's already on the planets surface. While many would continue to their surveillance and reporting functions, four of the Cybernetic Autonomous Armed Tracker's were reassigned. Forming a network of their own, three of the four CAAT's relocated themselves, and began sharing information gathered amongst themselves. The time for stealth and covert measures was now past. Replacing it was the time for direct action. Due to the loathing professional soldiers had for those of their kind that slaughtered civilians, the CAAT's were going in.
The three relocated CAAT's, joining CAAT 06 already on station, converged on the area around the scene of the recent massacre of political opposition to Kalfas. Standing off half a kilometer from each corner of the fenced in township perimeter, the active camouflage systems seamlessly blended the CAAT's into the desert landscape. UAV's deployed from the four silently captured the township scene from the township and perimeter. As these images were processed, each CAAT's spinal plating opened, and from within each feline body emerged an M-25 Counter Defilade Target Engagement System.
Networked together, the four camouflaged CAAT's examined every facet of the tactical situation they faced. Opposition facing them was analyzed, leading to targeting assignments being assigned to each unit. As the order of fire was established, ammunition selections were made. Housed in the metallic ribs of each CAAT, a variety of twenty five millimeter grenades of different types sat. These would feed each M-25 once firing commenced.
Video stream from the four UAV's above the township passed from CAAT to the fleet in orbit. Men and women aboard several vessels monitored the data stream intently. Before reassigning the CAAT's to this mission, sensor scans of the township first validated the mission purpose. Coordination would play a large part in the minutes to come.
Silently, from points north, south, east, and west the four CAAT's moved towards the perimeter fence. The rough craggily desert terrain greatly assisted them in this task. Was this a flat desert, the four units would have surely been spotted as they approached. Five hundred meters from each corner, each CAAT settled down in a depression in the soil. Raising their heads out of these depressions somewhat, four laser rangefinders activated. These traced from prospective target to prospective target.
In the guard towers at the four corners of the perimeter, soldiers looked inwards, instead of out into the distance. Clearly, the fear here was of escape from within, instead of an external assault. Walking each side of the four cornered perimeter, two man teams of sentries strolled. Each guard had his individual weapon slung over a shoulder, not that it would have made a difference.
Adjusting their initial loading to thermobaric, the four CAAT's targeted the units most likely to interfere with the overall plan. Coordinating their efforts, the four CAAT's slowly extended their metallic legs, elevating their top mounted weapons into firing position. Simultaneously, they fired.
Sharp cracks marked the launch of four 25mm airburst grenades. Spinning as they moved through the air at two hundred meters per second, each grenade tracked the distance traveled by counting the number of rotations made.
Sailing through the opening of each guard tower, between the railing and the overhanging roof, the four 25mm grenades reached the center of the standing platform. Internal scatter charges fired, forcing a thick cloud of aluminum, magnesium, and a nanofuel oxidizer into the air. Dispersing in fractions of a second, the clouds filled the surrounding air. A secondary ignition charge fired, igniting the volatile airborne mixture. The resulting fireball quickly reached five thousand degrees, incinerating everything it met. Quickly behind this fireball, a crushing overpressure wave followed. The quickly expanding and retracting pressure wave left a vacuum in its wake, tearing each tower platform and its occupant's apart.
Before the guard towers met their end, the CAAT's were already reloading. The next set of four targets called for a different type of ammunition. Instead of thermobaric 25mm rounds, they instead loaded 25mm flechettes rounds from within their metallic ribs. As the rounds chambered in each M-25, the funeral pyres of each tower lit in the distance. Shifting their aim points, the CAAT's next targeted the four roving patrols at each side of the perimeter fence. These two man patrols looked up in shock and horror at the scene marking the deaths of eight of their comrades.
Firing again, the CAAT's once more unleashed death in a 25mm package. Closing on their targets, each round counted down the number of spirals to judge distance traveled. Moving in a blur detectable to the human eye, each of the four grenades quickly arrived overhead of the four sentry groups. Detonating above the two man groups, these rounds were far different from those last launched. On detonation, each of the four grenades unleashed sixty small slivers of metal, no larger than a sewing needle. Propelled at great velocity by the grenades detonation overhead, these flechettes tore through flesh, bone, and equipment. In a bloody heap, eight dead men fell to the ground.
CAAT 06 and CAAT 07, moving to finish what they started, bounded from their hide sights. The time for stealth and discretion was gone, and in its place, the time for fast and vicious acts of violence now stood. Moving at great speed, the two autonomous killing machines closed on the guardhouse standing beside the perimeter fence. Onboard sensor telemetry told the two CAAT's that the remainder of the sites guard force was inside. Networking allowed the two hunter killers to stage their attack as a team.
CAAT 06 loaded and fired a door-breaching round at the structure doorway in view. On contact with the upper portion of the door, the breaching round exploded outward into the door face. Torn from its hinges, the wooden door buckled inward and fell to the floor. The shock of this was still fresh three seconds later when the thermobaric round from CAAT 07 flew through the now open doorway and exploded. Contained within the confined structure, the thermobaric detonation blew out windows, and large sections of the roof. Internally, the guardhouse was ripped to shreds before being consumed in the high temperature wave of fire. Many of the men inside died, without understanding what was happening, except for two.
Hearing the detonations of the guard towers and those that followed, two of the guardhouse occupants quickly grabbed their rifles. Together, the two men crashed through the second doorway of the structure. Half running, half stumbling, the two frightened men escaped seconds before their comrades met their end inside the now flaming structure. Driven my fear and the desire to live, the two men ran headlong towards the desert patrol vehicle twenty yards away. Turning the key and bringing the vehicle to life before the CAAT's could engage, the men wildly drove away. Their destination ceased to matter as long as they lived to see another day.
Giving chase, CAAT 06 and CAAT 07 moved to pursue. Hurtling across the desert landscape faster than the vehicle they chased, the two hunter killers ran in pursuit. Like the predatory cat's found in nature they were modeled after, their legs moved in a flurry. Reloading a high explosive round, CAAT 06 closed on the fleeing vehicle from a forty-five degree angle. Firing quickly, the round accelerated away, exploding on contact with the front driver's side wheel of the vehicle. Flipping end over end, the vehicle landed on its role cage reinforced roof.
The driver, amazed he was still alive and intent on staying that way, grabbed his rifle from the wreckage, and kicked his door open. Rolling clear of the wrecked vehicle, his passenger forgotten, the driver fired his weapon blindly in all directions as he ran. As he fired, he began to believe he might survive. Seconds later, a flechette round dashed those hopes permanently. He fell to the ground, dead, never seeing death coming.
The guard in the passenger seat of the overturned vehicle faired far worse in the crash. Partially pinned in the wreckage, he could feel the warm blood running down his back. His upper torso out of the vehicle, the man knew death was coming. Around him, he heard movement. Though he was unable to move his pinned legs, the same was not true for his arms. Despite the pain, he brought his hand to his thigh mounted holster. Feeling the pistol in his hand gave him a moment of hope. Curling his fingers around the pistols grip, he used all of the strength he had left to bring the weapon to a firing position. As his pistol holding hand left the vehicles interior, further sounds of movement rustled behind him. Before he could release the weapons safety, a metallic clawed paw came down on his wrist viciously. Looking up, he saw a face unlike any he had ever seen before. Glowing red eyes stared at him venomously, as sun glinted off the metallic fangs protruding from the mouth. Had anyone been nearby, all that would have heard was a single shrill scream.
Within the township in the distance, many silver tinted points of light erupted from inside several buildings. As the survivors of the massacre of Tagrea were beamed to the fleet overhead, so too were Ashwan supporters and their families contacted earlier beamed to the Tau'ri fleet. Now, they were safe.
USS Benjamin Franklin
In orbit of Tagrean moon
Milky Way
Aboard Benjamin Franklin, and her sister ship HMS Illustrious, flight operations continued. From her flight decks emerged a constant stream of F-302 and 302 derivative craft. Streaming towards and away from the two super carriers, the constant streams of aircraft were posing somewhat of an air corridor nightmare. In the flight operations section, coffee flowed in great quantities.
Returning aircraft, once recovered, quickly wheeled to rearming stations. Their, with systems still running, the warplanes were quickly rearmed to allow for turn around deployment. As armament technicians lifted ground and air ordnance into the internal weapons bays, aircrews quickly exited the craft to make quick runs to nearby restroom facilities. Running back to their aircraft quickly, many of the flight crew grabbed sandwiches from trays where they were piled high. Foregoing coffee, most of the aircrew instead opted for sports drinks, hoping to replace electrolytes lost during their previous missions.
Aircraft rearmed, and bodies refueled, each aircraft taxied towards the launch area. There, at the direction of the carriers Air Boss, these craft waited in line for departure. Operational tempo's for the time being remained high. The fragility of the human body meant that this tempo could not be sustained indefinitely. As the air campaign progressed, certain rest periods would come into play. During that time, the UCAV's operating from both Benjamin Franklin and Illustrious would assume the primary role now resting on the shoulders of manned aircraft.
Center ship, above the multilevel flight decks of Benjamin Franklin, intense expanding shafts of silvery light appeared in the main quarantine bay. Cleared for the purpose, this bay was ringed with teams of Marines, and Navy corpsmen. Rematerializing, the Tagrean refugee's were shocked by their sudden relocation. Many of these men, women, and children were wounded. In most cases, they were frightened and somewhat distraught. Wounded were quickly surrounded by Tau'ri medical staff. Those not wounded, looked around at their surroundings. One of their number was Burlis Kot, former head of the Tagrean Air Force.
A military man his entire life, Burlis Kot had a trained eye. Each Tau'ri in the room was quickly looked over, and their place in the overall hierarchy estimate. Hearing a doorway open, Burlis cast his gaze in its direction. Judging by the reaction of the Marines standing guard, he guessed this new arrival was the military commander of all those present. As the Tagrean of highest military rank present, Burlis assumed a position of authority over the other Tagrean's present. Walking quickly, Kot moved to confront the newly arrived Tau'ri officer. As he stepped toward the Tau'ri officer, Kot overheard another individual report to the senior officer that search and rescue efforts on the planets surface had resulted in no joy.
"If you have come to restore Ashwan's government, why are you invading instead of negotiating?" Burlis Kot demanded angrily.
"We tried that. I am Admiral Clancy Grant, United States Navy. You are Mr. Kot, correct?" Admiral Clancy Grant asked.
"I am. Do me the honor of answering my question." Kot responded.
"On Earth, we call this an intervention. Unfortunately, Kalfas forced that intervention to come in the form of a military assault." Grant responded sincerely.
"Admiral, I demand to know why it is my pilots are dying!" Kot demanded sternly.
"Mr. Kot, do you really believe we are killing your pilots?" Grant asked.
"I witnessed your aircraft savaging Tagrean fighter formations. If that is not killing, I do not know what is." Kot argued.
"Come with me." Grant requested.
Admiral Grant, with a seething Burlis Kot beside him, exited the quarantine deck. Marines to their front and rear ensured walkways leading away from quarantine were clear. Three decks, and a transporter station later, the procession arrived at another sealed doorway. Standing guard to the left and right of the doorway were two teams of armed Marines. Seeing the Admiral, the Marines quickly came to the position of attention.
"Sergeant, open the door." Grant ordered.
Removing his coded access card from his uniform blouse, the young Marine Sergeant quickly slid his card over the card reader. A soft audible chime announced authorized access, and the double doors opened. Grant and Kot quickly stepped through the open doorway. Inside the compartment, dozens of men were seated around tables. While eating, these men spoke among themselves quietly. Several of them cast their gaze towards the two new arrivals. Seeing them, many of the men quickly rose to their feet.
Many of the faces Kot saw were faces he knew well. Some of these men had served under him. Others, he remembered from exercises several years in the past. These were his men. More than that, these were his pilots. Kot sat stunned by the realization that the pilots he saw die were not dead at all. Unsure of what to say, Kot turned to face the Admiral. On his face was a bewildered and dumbfounded look.
"How is this possible?" Kot stammered.
"We have our ways." Grant replied cryptically.
"These are my men, my boys. Why have you left them alive?" Kot asked honestly.
"Our two worlds will not always be at war Mr. Kot. Surely as a former soldier, you can understand that. When this situation is over, these men will be needed to reconstitute the Tagrean Air Force, and defend this world. Our quarrel is with Kalfas, not your men." Grant explained.
"You mean what you say?" Kot asked dubiously.
"You have my word as an officer and gentleman." Grant promised.
"You have shown me something I would never have believed possible. Now, let me educate you on something you may not know." Kot stated.
"I am all ears." Grant replied.
"Liptis is unhappy with the methods Kalfas has employed in his rise to power, and what came after. Liptis is a good man at heart, a man of honor. He could be the key to ending this insanity." Kot explained.
Kot continued to recount all that he knew of the growing divide between Kalfas and his protégé. Admiral Grant, listening closely, mentally recorded every word said. Looking out the window of the pilot containment room as he listened, Grant stared at tank shaped inflatable decoy's filling with air in the unused flight bay below. Had he been able to look through the ships hull, he would have also seen craft large and small spewing from the Veracruz Class transport ships in the distance.
Surface of Tagrea
Milky Way
Forty minutes after the arrival of Ajax above the planets surface, a caravan of aircraft descended towards the hovering warship. These craft were C-142 Nimbus airlifters. Arriving in groups of five, the arrivals continued for several hours. Sadly, one of the C-142's was lost to enemy fire as it moved to ascertain the location of a downed pilot during its departure from Tagrea. In the air above the makeshift landing sight, 302's from Ajax stood guard against any air threat that might come their way.
As each Nimbus set down on the hard packed desert soil, rear cargo ramps immediately lowered. During the first eight airlifter pack arrivals, vehicles belonging to the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, garrisoned at Joint Base MacArthur on Langara, rolled off. This detachment of the 11th ACR was composed of Main Battle Tanks, Armored Fighting Vehicles, and several large eight wheeled vehicles known as MTHEL's or Mobile Tactical High Energy Laser systems. In the second wave of Nimbus arrivals, heavily armed variants of the new HUMVEE replacement known as the XC2V rolled off.
The XC2V was a performance built, off-road specialized military utility vehicle. Where it differed from the HUMVEE it replaced was in its power plant, suspension, and armament. In place of the traditional diesel engine, each XC2V was equipped with a naquadah powered electric drive. Suspension rivaling that found on race built Baja trucks could be seen. Armament came in the form of electrical rail gun variants of the M-134 mini gun mounted on the roof, and a five missile pack in the back holding the Non Line of Sight Missile.
Manning these vehicles were the men of the Ready Ranger Force. In this case, these men came specifically from Bravo Company, 1st Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment. On the ground, these men knew what needed to be done. In two vehicle groups, the XC2V's moved forward of the earthen barrier Ajax had erected with her transporters. The tanks and armored fighting vehicles took station behind this barrier; their weapons aimed downrange.
As ground troops dispersed around the area, Ajax went about her next mission priority. Making use of her powerful radio transmitters, Ajax began to broadcast. Her broadcast was in the form of a premade recording. This recording contained unit to unit military chatter. Transmitted in the clear, in an unencrypted fashion, this broadcast was easily intercepted by Tagrean listening posts. To Tagrean ears, it sounded as if the entire Tau'ri army had arrived and was broadcasting.
Three hours later, the Tagrean scouting effort started in earnest. Launched from dispersal airfields not yet attacked, six Tagrean photographic reconnaissance aircraft streaked towards the location as fast as their jet engines could propel them. Playing into the expected development, Ajax ordered her aircraft to climb and not engage the inbound recon birds. Instead of making the Tagrean photo recon mission easy, which would have shed light on the unfolding deception, two of every three photo recon birds were struck with intense weaponized laser energy from the MTHEL's parked on the ground below. The surviving recon pilots, their film expended, streaked back towards their airfields, grateful to have survived the Tau'ri air defenses. Clearly, it was their skill that had singled them out to survive they believed.
Two hours after the photoreconnaissance over flights, the first ground probing began. In groups of three vehicles, two separate ground elements attempted to close in on the Tau'ri landing zone. The first of these groups to arrive quickly came under fire from XC2V NLOS missile fire. Two of the vehicles were destroyed, while the third was allowed to reverse away quickly. The second group to make a recon attempt kept their distance, believing themselves to be safe from rocket fire.
Watching the vehicles creep in the distance through onboard long distance imagers, the tank crews were entertained. Apparently, Tagrea had never considered long range tank fire possible. In the interests of educating their fellow human, two of the heavy rail gun cannon equipped Main Battle Tank's waited until the Tagrean ground recon vehicles began to pull away before opening fire. Propelled at incredible speed, the dart like sabot rounds neatly sliced through two of the three vehicles. Once again, a survivor was left to tell the tale.
As the Tagrean government viewed the photos of the reconnaissance flights, anger ran through the high command. Each photo showed Earth forces growing dramatically in number. Orders went out for all units in the defense sector to muster together, for one armored push. A single armored car battalion of Tagrean ground forces was ordered in first. Their death would serve to educate those to follow on the firepower awaiting them.
Three hours later, the armored car battalion had crossed the barren desert between them and their target. As the sun was beginning to set, each man in the battalion counted themselves luck to have the setting sun at their backs. Advancing with the armored cars were self-propelled artillery units. Once the distance to the Tau'ri landing zone was estimated to be fifteen miles, these artillery units stopped. Once set up, artillery fire arced through the air towards those from Earth.
As artillery rounds fell around the earthen barrier erected by the Ajax, Ranger manned XC2V's pulled back behind the defenses. For soldiers like Frederick Mathas, being on the receiving end of an artillery strike was far less pleasant than he would have imagined. Safe inside their Armored Fighting Vehicles and Main Battle Tanks, the men of the 11th ACR detachment rode out the shelling comfortably.
Finally, word came over the battle net that it was time to send a message to Tagrean forces. Gunners inside each MBT increased the power flowing to their large bore rail guns. Long range sighting systems showed their attackers approaching. Laser range finders on each tank quickly provided exact firing ranges. From behind their earthen defensive barrier, the tanks of the 11th ACR fired together in one booming blast.
In the distance, Tagrean armored vehicles blossomed in flame. Drawing first blood, the tank crews of the 11th shifted to rapid fire. With methodical precision, Tagrean men and equipment fell. In vain, those armored cars not yet aflame fired back. Due to the extreme ranges involved, Tagrean fire fell far short of its mark. When it was, fire illuminated the battlefield. Burning vehicles, smoke, and the smell of burning human flesh filled the night sky.
Once it was confirmed that the last of the Tagrean armored forces approaching were no more, the 11th ACR vehicles backed away from their defensive positions. Moving five hundred meters away, the armored vehicles came to a stop. The crews inside these vehicles watched in wonder as inflatable tank decoys appeared in flashes of light. Standing where the real vehicles once were at the defensive barrier, their faux main gun barrels pointing towards the destroyed Tagrean force in the distance, internal heat generators activated inside each decoy. To any looking through thermal imaging, these would appear to be the real thing.
Moments later, the 11th ACR detachment was engulfed in shafts of light. Courtesy of Asgard transport beaming, these men and vehicles soon found their way aboard an orbiting vessel of the Earth fleet. Their portion of this war was now over.
As for the Rangers and their vehicles, they set out towards Tagrean outposts far distant. On the battlefield, a most terrifying effect can occur. This effect is known as the rule of the LGOP. This, in its purest form is composed of small groups of highly irritated nineteen and twenty year old paratroopers. They are well trained, armed to the teeth, and lack serious adult supervision. They collectively remember their Commander's intent as 'march to the sound of gunfire and kill anyone who is not dressed like you…' or something to that effect. Happily, they go about their days work.
Six hours after the last of Earth's forces had departed the defensive area, the largest armored force Tagrea had yet fielded against the invaders closed in. Moving quickly, in the dead of night, their aim was to overwhelm and overrun the enemy. To do this, a force of three thousand armored vehicles converged on the desert location. In divisional formation, the march was orderly.
An hour later, their thermal target sighting systems detected the spectral outlines of Tau'ri tanks in the distance. Refusing to join those fallen on this field already, every Tagrean vehicle opened fire. Artillery, cannon, and chain gunfire smashed into the earthen defensive barrier. To the attacker's satisfaction, they saw enemy tanks break apart under the onslaught. In their hearts, these men believed that the true grit of the Tagrean fighting man would be shown this day.
As the Tagrean's overran the defensive works of the landing zone's perimeter, whooping victory cries erupted in many vehicles. As the men celebrated their victory, events above unfolded. Eight thousand feet above, a single B-3 Chimera silently cut through the night air. Opening its bomb bay doors, the large craft quickly dispensed one hundred cylindrical objects. These objects were CBU-97 Sensor Fuzed Weapons.
As the weapons fell, explosive bolts blew away three panels from each CBU-97. From these one hundred freefalling weapons, ten submunitions broke away, for a total of one thousand submunitions. As the submunitions fell, each rapidly ejected four Skeet's. Each of these Skeet's quickly deployed its individual parachute, to slow its decent. As the Skeet's fell, infrared and laser sensors scanned the terrain below. Finding a target rich environment, each Skeet fired indiscriminately. As each Skeet's two pound charge of Octal high explosive detonated, an explosively formed kinetic energy penetrator streaked towards and individual ground vehicle.
Neatly slicing through thin top armor, each vehicle exploded as the penetrator's lit fire to fuel and ammunition in each vehicle.
Burning vehicles, ammunition cooking off, and running streams of burning fuel marked the death of thousands of Tagrean ground troops. Never before in Tagrean recorded history had a single event caused so much death. While the Tagrean's came to grips over the crushing defeat, those from Earth watching from orbit celebrated a successful deception operation. Tagrea's first large scale ground engagement ended far different than Kalfas ever predicted. Sadly for Kalfas, a large portion of his ground forces were now gone.
Three hundred miles to the south, drop ships and vehicle landing craft were streaking through the atmosphere, towards rapidly filling landing zones. As they landed, drop ships disgorged troops and personnel. The larger craft lowered their rear ramps and deposited vehicles of war. Thanks to the decoy invasion location, the true landing zone of Earth's ground forces remained undetected and unchallenged.