Saga of Tanya the Evil

On the same day,

The skies above the Federation in Northland.

God, why, why is this happening?

Because his tanned lean face was twisted in agony from the reflection of the snow, Lieutenant Colonel (Lt. Col.) Anson Suez couldn't help turning his face skywards.

In the sky he was so familiar with due to his work as a Federation Mage, there were the echoes of the Empire's artillery bombardment in full force. The scene before him was a one-sided battle. No, any soldier with common sense won't call this a battle, but a massacre.

In a hilly region with no cover and only slight undulation in terrain, they not only moved their unarmoured vehicles in, but even the infantry was marching in. They were heading into an area defended by heavy enemy artillery as if they were at a parade.

"This… this is different from what I was told! They opened fire!"

"I need backup! Hurry hurry!"

"Retreat! On the double! Make a smoke screen!"

"It's gone! My arm is gone!"

"Air support is still not here…"

"HQ, HQ, please respond! Please respond!"

The place named by the Empire as the 'national border', which the Federation called the 'temporary demilitarized zone', was the national border drawn according to the Londinum Protocol.

If they crossed this zone carelessly to launch a direct attack on the heavily defended Empire base, such a result was to be expected. It didn't matter what those politicians were thinking, but the radio chatter was evidence that the soldiers in the warzone were paying the price of the hopeless policy… with their lives.

"...Those damn politicians!"

The sluggish economy, the widening wealth inequality and the unemployment rate that refused to fall... the internal issues the Federation government were facing meant they might be ousted after losing the trust of the people.

The current regime was paying the price and was recklessly fanning the waves of nationalism and chauvinism. No, what was frightening was the next step. War, a war they had no chance of winning.

That was the reason why Lt. Col. Anson was cursing the group refusing to face reality, the dumbass politicians that were still fanning the fire of nationalism.

The Londinium Protocol was mediated by the Kingdom, allowing the Empire and Federation to resolve their national border dispute by compromising and recognizing a common national boundary.

It was officially named a temporary demilitarized zone, and was confirmed by the executive government of both nations as a de facto national border; but in order to appease the Federation who claimed this land as part of their nation, the treaty became a "temporary" protocol that "respects" the claims of both sides.

"They said this would just be a slightly tense hike!"

Putting it simply, the Federation was free to proclaim their right to this land within their country, but the international view was that this protocol was as good as recognizing this place as the Empire's territory.

No matter how loud the idealists in their country claim this to be an official conflict zone and that the Federation had rights to this land, it was just the whimpers of a loser in the eyes of the international community.

"They said this is just a hike! They dared say this is just a hike!"

Just a patrol by the Federation army within our own sovereign lands? This was not a joking matter. Those damn politicians seemed to have unwittingly convinced themselves their political slogan was fact. I really hope someone can tell me this is just a bad joke.

That government spokesman… Or rather, that bunch of wage thieves who kept broadcasting nonsensical political propaganda.

They actually had the nerves to hold a press conference and announce this was just a "highly organized and tense hike." A reckless judgement that was absolutely stunning.

"Cunningham! Where's the remnants of our ally forces?"

"I can't contact them, Colonel Suez. The radio network is chaotic and deteriorating, it's difficult to grasp the situation…"

Their allied forces were in disarray. This was expected. After crossing the borders with the belief that there wouldn't be a battle, they were ravaged by the full might of the Imperial army. No one could keep their cool in such a scenario. This foolish maneuver would probably be immortalized in the history books.

"What about the command post? Either the Forward Air Control (FAC) or Tactical Operation Center is fine. Can you contact the command post?"

"The network is jammed from crosstalk… Forget about command post, even the frequency channel is wrong."

First Lieutenant Cunningham who was operating the long distance radio set on his back with a sour face was one of the top veterans in Anson's unit. While flying in this familiar sky, they were stymied by crosstalk even a veteran couldn't resolve.

This meant the Federation's military campaign was definitely launched carelessly. If this wasn't happening to his own country, Anson would be confounded by the stupidity of it all.

"Launching a cross-border campaign without moving into full war-footing, this is unbelievable. This is definitely brinksmanship by the Federation government. If they weren't sure that the Empire didn't have the resolve to declare war, this would be an impossibly dangerous game."

The words of the Empire's army headquarter's spokesperson he read in the newspaper two days ago told him everything. He mentioned that this was merely military activity to gauge the Empire's reaction to the Federation's brinksmanship.

The comments of the spokesperson, who looked as if he had eaten some bitter gourd, were rational. After all, no one would dare launch a military campaign that might decide the fate of a nation without any preparation.

"Short-range comms are fine too. Just contact the ground forces directly. We will support our surviving forces in their retreat."

"Yes, sir."

It was hard to say if Anson's wing was lucky or not. Due to a series of unofficial skirmishes near the borders, they were re-drawn to the rear to reorganize when the Federation crossed the border.

With their effective strength reduced to squadron level, they were almost at the stage where they would need to return to the capital to reform the unit. As Lt. Col. Anson had participated in numerous battles without official records, he misread the situation…

He thought by allowing his unit to retreat, this meant that the campaign was just political propaganda as usual and the government had no intention of going to war.

As a frontline unit and special forces of the Federation, Anson and his group was probably thinking of the most vicious way to describe the incompetence of the politicians.

They already knew that their government was a coalition of morons, but they didn't expect them to do something so hopeless and idiotic.

"Sorry, Dahton, can you try contacting our sister units? I want to grasp the situation as well as possible."

And so, since they have lost all initiative, Anson could only do what he can to support the retreat of allied forces under heavy fire from a despairingly superior force.

With the Forward Air Control uncontactable, they couldn't rely on command support and the situation had turned into chaos. This unit was meant to ensure that the Mages and other air units could cooperate with the ground forces on a very basic level.

"If there is a need, we will link up with the rest of our wing. If the flights can't rejoin their squadron, it is fine for them to form temporary squadrons."

"Colonel, I got through!"

Snatching the communication set into his hand and a short conversation later, Anson understood that the situation below was a hopeless mess.

Using a peacetime command structure for war was a mistake, and the price they paid was the total collapse of the chain of command. This was obvious to everyone.

"I got it. In short, we can't regain command or fight a war. The only thing we can do is to minimize the suppression artillery strikes that are creating more chaos."

That was why the situation had deteriorated so much that each unit had to act on their own instead of staging an organized resistance.

Even if they could somehow contact ally forces, they couldn't find units that could grasp the situation and take the necessary countermeasures.

"I understand. However, the defence of the artillery is probably very strong… How about targeting the artillery observer?

And so, based on the forces the Lt. Col. had on hand, the most effective means of support was to disrupt the bombardment indirectly by neutralizing the enemy artillery observers. That was the only conclusion they could come up with.

"Colonel Suez! Message from the 6th division. Both observer and signaller are still alive!"

"Excellent! Confirm with them whether they can locate the enemy observer now."

But then, communication with a retreating allied unit that managed to maintain command turned things around.

"... Bingo! Telemetry received!"

Multiple Mage observers were flying alone without concealing their positions. Based on the periodic encrypted signals they sent, they must be making reports of their observations and was using special, encrypted frequencies.

"They are flying alone? They're really looking down on us."

"That might be so, but their defensive line is very strong."

Anson knew that of course. An air defence network that was properly set up, with air units and Mages ready to intercept. Security was so tight, it could make a grown man cry.

It was clear that the Empire only allowed their support units to fly alone because they judged their defence network to be sturdy enough.

"*Sigh* I really don't want to rack my brains and fight the enemy normally. I would have fled with my family if I had known earlier."

"Colonel Suez, those Empire fellows probably have the opposite reaction from us, and are tilting their heads from confusion. They must be wondering if it is alright to fight such an easy war."

"Indeed, let us pray they have dropped their guard."

Anson could only pray to the gods with bitter thoughts.

… Oh god, just what did we do wrong?