Planetfall

[jammi]

Nole nodded to the Lieutenant on the door before hurrying in. Most of the officers in the room were subordinates from his company second lieutenant and lieutenant platoon commanders, as well as one other Captain, Captain Payne, who was nominally subordinate due to the fact he didnt currently have a dedicated command, as opposed to Nole who was B Coy Company CO.

The other scattering of senior officers were Pile resident staff. Three majors, one lieutenant colonel and then Colonel Lewis himself. Nole hurried to his seat at the front of the theatre like briefing room, the lights dimming as he did so. The Colonels bushy moustache twitched a little before he started speaking.

Gentlemen. You are all aware of dire situation that is taking place above our heads. The Kusari have kicked the door down and are intent on ferreting us out of our very homes. He clicked a button on the remote he was holding, which caused a holographic map of Leeds to appear in the centre of the presentation area. These red arrows represent Kusari capitals. As you can see, theres rather a lot of them. The chaps up in space are doing a good job of beating them up, but theres still a chance they could break through to us.

If those capital ships break through to Leeds orbit we will have to move security from Red to Black Special and implement The Contingency execution. Analysts believe that planetfall will occur within the next three days, or failing a Kusari penetration of planetary defences, within a matter of months as the invader enters a battle of attrition with the reserve fleets. He paused momentarily, stroking his moustache thoughtfully.

Im sure youre all also aware of the grim fate of the HMS Haida. Some survivors were picked up in orbit, including the ships captain Admiral Nelles. However, the vast majority of the crew were lost after it was run into the atmosphere when on the losing side of a skirmish between itself and two Kusari Destroyers. There was a buzz of angry conversation at this until the Colonel waved them down. He clicked the remote again, switching the view from the space theatre of war to a map of the land. A small green dot represented the Core, while some distance West of it there was a purple diamond, presumably representing the crash site.

That marker there is the Haida. When she touched down it provoked minor seismic activity in the areas around it and upset some of the abandoned industrial storage tanks. It also landed on top of an abandoned mining complex, here. Were not sure what that will have released, but itll need looking at He pointed out a small cluster of dark shapes on the grid. Shes left an area of destruction around her about ten miles wide, but things could get much, much worse if the reactor goes up. Well be dispatching a unit of Royal Engineers to shore her up and make sure nothing goes critical. Captain Nole, one of your platoons will be accompanying them to make sure theyre covered should the worst happen.

Nole nodded. Yessir. The Colonel made to turn the hologram off, then appearing to remember something turned back to Nole.

Oh, and youre going to have to do this over land as well. Fliers are out of the question. Atmospheric conditions since the crash have been dreadful. Briefings for your men are under your chairs. That will be all. Nole rolled his eyes. Wonderful.

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