Author Notes:
I have not much else to say as the deadline for my rent are but a dozen of days away. I am legit only missing out on 80 USD to cover the rent. However, that number can grow worse if my fortune is particular bad.
All I can say is that I will try my best, questing on and on...
https://www.pa-treon.com/Heartbreak117
https://ko-fi.com/heartbreak117/goal?g=0
Income goal 760/880 USD (Right now, we can really use some help to cover rent and medical fees. Any and all forms of morale and monetary support are welcome.)
Emergency Surplus (House rental fee): 0/80 USD (The amount changes, depending on whether or not my supporters fluctuate)
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On the 20th day, the mass exodus of Western Polish Army units is in full swing. Whether it's out of sheer luck, desperation, or the Belkans decided to be merciful for once, the messengers of the Polanian Revolutionary Command Council have managed to reach the last of the straggling Polanian warbands to organize a full retreat. Their orders are to make haste to the South, whether by hook or by crook, with instruction to ignore the Belkan Airbornes' territories if they have to. Thanks to the presence of the messengers, some of the warbands form up to make the push. Others that are unlucky enough to be isolated have to make the precarious stretch on their own, leaving behind their heavier equipment in exchange for speed. Understandably, the reactions to this Southern movement order are mixed. Some see it as a chance to live another day, while some curse, thinking that their sacrifices were in vain. Those young blood that got indoctrinated by the false racial supremacy the Council fed them with, if they haven't woken up to reality, cause rackets over cowardice and lack of patriotism by those before them. But ultimately, almost all surviving Western Polanian units have no choice but to comply. Staying on this side of the battlefield will only lead to them being surrounded, cut off from supplies, and unceremoniously eliminated... As if they aren't already neck deep in mud. Those with working heads have long since realized just how foolish their nation was to poke the Belkan Reich and expected to be rewarded for the trouble. Their hopes and dreams are dashed right before the metallic hooves of actual Belkan superiority, to put it mildly.
A few treacherous minds even play around with the thoughts of mass-desertion, if only to prevent further humiliation to their nation... And themselves. Logically speaking, it's not even a guarantee that the Southern retreat will mean anything in the end. Polania has no allies whatsoever; any attempt at contacting the Allied forces that are at war with Belka has been met with setback after setback. Further down South is the European DMZ, an entity that presents itself as the world's ecological park, which has long expressed itself to be unconcerned with worldly politics. It's only scientific pursuits, tourism, and the preservation of historical lifeforms that matter to them. The Polanian Revolutionary Command Council can't even bother to request help, harass, or offend them either. Doing so is tantamount to giving the rest of the world more bullets to shoot at their already rotten reputation. In short, Polania is on its own, being gang-pressed on all sides by the Reich and the Union. There's no silver lining for them, unless the two superpowers somehow got wiped off Gaia in one go.
Pitching the two superpowers against one another? It's a good idea, but can the Polanians even do it in the first place without being eviscerated first? It's clear to anyone sane that the Belkans and Rusviets are working together.
Right?
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Thomas the Train had been running around fully loaded for the better part of Day 19. However, when the call for heavy artillery came running, the armored train delivered just that with a full salvo of its Sunburst MLRS. The mighty thermobaric onslaught lived up to its namesake and alleviated the stress for the Airbornes that were stuck neck deep in mud and limestone. Thomas's barrage, and the supplies it's carrying, have been crucial in ensuring the three Belkan Airborne Divisions remain thick in the play. However, what one may not expect is Thomas's actual job on today's schedule.
Lieutenant Adam Kemper hops off from the front of the train, his feet sinking into the soft grass below. Taking a good glance at the sprawling length of his war train, Kemper nods to himself as he sees the men and women of the crew working their very best. Although Thomas is parked in an unmarked area of the Greater Polania region, deep in what once was hostile land, the security here is tight and provided for by the 501st Airbornes. It is, however, near the ever-expanding frontline due to the Polanians' retreat down South, and still a bit of a distance away from the small airstrips the Airborne's have seized. Now, why would Thomas park itself in this out-of-the-way corner? You will be correct in answering that the war train is here to perform its supply duty. But supplying what?
Aircraft.
And no, it's not in an indirect manner where they offload some crates at a base and are done with it. Oh, no, Thomas is directly servicing the airframes of the Belkan Air Force. Granted, it's only for specific aircraft, but has anyone ever seen a train directly replenish an air formation to keep it up and running in the war? Pretty sure it hasn't happened anywhere in the annals of history.
"Be careful with those, boys." Adam calls out to a few soldiers who are just about to push a crate of GBUs to one of the landed Harrier jump jets. "The tips of those things are fragile, and we don't want anyone's toes to be crushed due to careless handling."
"We'll take good care of the loading process, Sir." One of the crewmen replies seriously before pushing the weapon trolley away to the awaiting aircraft.
Adam hums before overseeing the loading process from the side. A combination of mechanical equipment and good old elbow grease ensures the Harrier is dressed up for prom night in no time. This Harrier has been part of a group of three Harriers to land on the Thomas.
You read that correctly, they really did land on Thomas the Train.
This is thanks to the three specialized flatbed cars Thomas has been pulling along. When at a stop, the flatbed cars are unfolded horizontally, and supporting struts are deployed to support the weight of the Air Force's VTOL aircraft. In this manner, and thanks to the supply cars holding aircraft parts, liquid mana, and the necessary ordinances, Thomas can service up to three VTOL airframes at any time. If they're in a rush, Thomas and its crew can replenish an additional two more in the same timespan, if the other two choose to land on the flatland around the train. Quite an ingenious way to have a literal mobile FOB, and only the Belkans with their technologies can pull this off. Of course, the supplies Thomas is pulling are limited when compared to actual airbases. However, the war train brings enough to keep the weapon-hungry frontline aircraft well-fed for a brief time. The war goes on and on, and the Polanians have much too many things to be decimated.
Thomas and its counterparts do a lot of good, alleviating the pressure for the frontline airstrips by acting as mobile resupply points. The ones to benefit the most from this arrangement are unquestionably the paratroopers in the Greater Polanian region. With their airstrips uncrowded of combat airframes, resupplying Ospreys can come and go freely without having to wait in a queue.
"Yo, you're the showrunner here?" Adam is called out by a passing group of three pilots. Surprisingly, they're Naval Aviators.
"Yeah, what's up?" Adam nods in greeting.
The representative of the group of two males and a female gives Adam the thumbs up. "Nothing much, other than saying thank you for keeping us topped up. Being this far inland, Knight Squadron doesn't have to take the long flight back to the Bayern due to your contribution."
Adam lets out a small smile before shaking hands with the Naval Aviator. "Just doing our duty."
"Your duty is well appreciated, I am sure." The pilot of Knight Squadron says. "The callsign is Toyjet, by the way. Do give me a holler if you boys and girls need help and we're nearby. Now, if you'll excuse us, we need to grab some chows from the meal car, and some coffee and fries too, if you have them?"
Adam replies with a grin. "Well, if there's anything that's lacking on this train, then it ain't the food and drink. We made sure to pack extra for the fliers on this trip."
Toyjet smirks before smacking his palms together. "Sweet! Don't mind if we indulge on some then!"
As the Naval Aviators step away to board the dining car, not without some very animated chat on the way, Adam resumes his gaze on the three Harriers being serviced. It's only when he's content with the focus and safe environment that his crew has been fostering in their jobs that the Lieutenant moves his gaze elsewhere. This time, Adam's gaze settles on one of the carriages near the front of Thomas. The Sunburst MLRS has been critical in keeping the 501st safe on the previous evening. An entire salvo worth of thermobaric rockets and the tremors it generated on the train sure got Adam's blood pumping. Suffice to say, the first combat test for the rocket artillery system was a major success, adding even more kill tallies to Thomas' already uncountable kill count. Now, though, the weapon system lies dormant after the autoloaders reload the rocket tubes. The size of the system means they can only pack enough for two full salvos at a time. In the Lieutenant's mind, however, two salvos are more than enough to quell any resistance.
It's only Sergeant Lukas who has something to say about the soot marks left behind by the rocket system, however.
Adam focuses his gaze on the blackened cars behind the Sunburst car. Yeah, it will be a pain and a half to clean them all up. Perhaps they shouldn't have fired the rockets on the move, but time was pressing back then...
Ultimately, Adam shrugs. The Lieutenant doesn't shy away from joining the rest of the crew on yet another clean-up duty. It's probably only Captain Surbella who will be absent then, having to do a check on all the weapon systems while they're giving Thomas a facelift.
"Well, that's enough idling from me..." Adam mutters to himself before rolling up his sleeves, showing his defined muscles.
The Lieutenant is also trained in the art of loading things slow+smooth=fast. While he isn't qualified to service an airframe, he can at least be the hauler for its fuel and weapons.
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During Case Yellow, the Belkan Air Force primarily operates its smaller combat airframe to support the mudstompers and bathtub operators. However, the less spoken about are the Air Force's Bomb Wings. Despite their active participation in the war effort, they're not as famous as the men and women piloting the Phantoms or Skyraiders. As for why this is the case, it's due to the B-40 Polar Bear crews flying out of sight, out of mind. Unlike CAS pilots, bomber crews take their aircraft a dozen of kilometers upward. Being merely a blip on the radar and their bombing actions most commonly occurring in the enemy's backline, B-40 crews don't enjoy the same fame as the other pilots. Do they care for that, though?
Not really.
It's less about fame and more about raining down absolute destruction on whoever's unlucky enough to be below them. That mentality alone has set them apart from other pilots in their branch of service. They enjoy the calm flight high above, and they savor the silent annihilation of their foes. Those alone are enough to keep them going on and on, for hours in the confines of their flying wings.
Today is no different than the usual for the 509th Bomb Wing, only a different set of targets. After taking off from K-Town, the 509th splits into smaller formations halfway to Polania. Escorted and loaded with enough bombs to reduce multiple cities to rubble, the B-40s soon find themselves above their blissfully unaware targets. Some are arms factories, others are Polanian military convoys, a few of them are key bridges on the Eastern side of Polania... All of them are valid targets for decimation, just so they can fulfill the requirements in one of ONI's war plans:
The reduction of Polania's military strength and the funnelling of both Rusviet and Polanian forces to Southern Polania.
As for why this is needed, well, only time will tell. For now, let the bombs sing in jubilant praises for the name that is Destruction.