SWNOVELXO Chapter 3: Prologue (3)
Flickers of light, followed by a thunderous explosion that echoed through the streets, continued throughout the night. In less than a day, the Imperial Army was pushed back from the outskirts of the Fortress City and into a few fortified streets within the city whilst the castle was being used to host the wounded. As with the laws of war, anyone with a cross that is colored red and a building stained with the red cross cannot be attacked as it is protected by international law. It is no less to say that they are now making a final stand.
Within the confines of the fortified streets, a lone man filled with wounds and dirt was commanding the situation.
"Major! We're losing ground on the northern barricade, and the enemy planes will drop another round of men in the skies!" An officer exclaimed.
"Major! Someone razed our stored food supplies and poisoned our water supplies! We could no longer last in a few days, let alone a few hours, without something to feed the army and the remaining civilians! We also have unconfirmed reports that there are saboteurs from the populace!" Another officer exclaimed.
"Major! We have lost another district with the soldiers mutinying and surrendering to the enemy!" The officer exclaimed.
"What!" "Cowards" and "This Can't Be!" were the officers' reactions.
With accumulating problems and the mental overload Quagmire or the Major was taking, he was momentarily stunned, as if he was in a trance. The surrounding officer were left with their eyes wide open as the reality of things dawned upon them.
There was no hope.
However, another officer came that broke Quagmire off the trance he was in.
"Major, we have received reports from a messenger pigeon that Army Group B will attempt to break us out of the encirclement that we are in. The Commander's order was to hold out for as long as we can until the army arrives to break us out!." the officer, with a hopeful expression.
Upon hearing the contents of the message, the officers around Quagmire were filled with hope and courage to fight again, and seeing his officers' expressions, Quagmire began giving out his orders.
"Good! Here are my orders: with the food and water supplies left in our pockets and canteens, confiscate all of it and ration it to the bare minimum. Furthermore, to stave off starvation, start rationing cigars. Even if one cigar has to be used by multiple men or women, force it. We need to stay alive for as long as possible."
"Reinforce the northern barricade with additional soldiers from my unit and grab a few able-bodied men to start constructing more barricades, even if we must dismantle houses. Please do it. Moreover, with the threat of men in the skies, prepare to shoot ducks in the sky and remember to conserve ammunition. Only shoot when near!"
"As for the district we have lost, order those who stayed to retreat to the second barricade; it should be enough to stave off the enemy for a while-" As Quagmire was giving orders, a loud whizzing sound came from afar.
As he would have already heard of this sound due to the multiple runs it did earlier, he ordered the men to get ready and shoot some ducks.
However, in a twist of fate, when the door opened from the plane, it did not open to the side. Instead, it opened at the bottom. Numerous black, round-shaped objects came out. Quagmire and the officers were initially baffled. However, due to an unknown instinct, horror came into the heart of Quagmire.
"No…."
The objects are descending at a rapid pace.
"No."
The objects were nearing the ground.
"No!"
Upon looking down, he saw the target of the objects.
"No!!!"
It was none other than the castle, the place where they housed the weak, disabled, and old.
A thunderous explosion resounded throughout the battlefield. The Imperial Soldiers have their mouth agape as the foundations of the castle begin to crumble and eventually fall piece by piece, crushing those under its roof alive.
Quagmire, unable to contain his emotion. He fell to his knees on the ground and shouted.
"No!!!!"
The other soldiers saw this, and honestly, Quagmire's reaction represented what they all felt then.
'How can one nation be so barbaric as to target the weak and unable to fight in times of war? They are even signatories to all treaties. How can they do such things?' Were the thoughts moving in his mind?
Just as everything was transpiring, an officer was running towards Quagmire.
"Major!" the officer exclaimed
Quagmire glanced at the officer with blank eyes, tears evidently falling. The officer was taken aback but continued with his reports, albeit without hope remaining in his heart.
"Major, multiple units from around the districts have mutinied and surrendered. As of now, the enemy is rapidly advancing towards our position." The Officer exclaimed.
Upon hearing the report, Quagmire stared at the ground, and there he realized that there was no more hope; even if the army arrived, it would be too late. So he made the decision. With the officers gathered around him, he spoke.
"All of you, those who want to surrender, are free to do so. You are also free to do so for those who want to stay with me and protect our duty and honor towards the Imperial Republic."
The officers looked down and thought for a while, and most of them took out their service pistol and gave it to Quagmire.
"I apologize, Major; it is an honor to serve with you. However, I have a family waiting for me back home." An officer exclaimed.
"I respect your decisions," Quagmire replied to all those who gave back their service pistols.
After a while, they started preparing, but they had a fire in their hearts this time. They have now steeled themselves to fight to the death. Although some of their brothers abandoned them, they cannot blame them for doing so, and Major Quagmire even respected their decisions.
They were now lying down, waiting to ambush the enemy. However, no enemy came forward. This was fortunate, as they have now experienced some respite to regroup and plan their defenses. Unfortunately, a thunderous explosion came just outside of the Fortress City.
"This can't be!" "Fuck!" were some of the expressions the soldiers had
A shining light ascended the sky and made an arc, to which it eventually descended. With fear in the eyes of the defenders, they hurriedly took cover.
Destruction prevailed, houses were destroyed, and barricades were blown. After the explosions, the enemy units started pouring in.
"Shoot!" Quagmire ordered the remaining soldiers. Unfortunately, they were all immediately shot and killed. He unloaded all the bullets in a frenzy, but sadly, he couldn't hit anything.
An officer walked towards Quagmire, with Quagmire still pressing the trigger, not knowing it had been long empty.
"We will be offering you to surrender right now since you are a high-ranking military member. Unlike those who we shot earlier, you are more useful to us. What do you say?" The enemy officer exclaimed.
Upon hearing the statement, anger welled up inside Quagmire.
"What? You dumb barbarians have no integrity and honor at all! Fuck y-" However, before Quagmire was able to finish his last words, he was cut off as the enemy officer shot him in the head.
"Honour and Integrity? All is fair in love and war!" The enemy officer exclaimed.