Pool halls near me

The best curry recipe I've ever found was the Thai salmon coconut curry recipe I found on a site called farlona.com. When I went to try to make it the other day the page had been taken down. Is there any chance anyone else knows that recipe or how to find it? I tried another one that I thought sounded similar to the farlona one, but it didn't taste anywhere near as good. I hope someone can help me find my favorite recipe!

A pool is 12’ by 25’ and surrounded by 5’ of concrete all the way around the pool. What’s the square footage of the concrete? The pool being there is throwing me off

Hi I wanted to make a python script connect to a bitcoin/verus pool and return the job ID or job hash from the pool. I tried connecting the pool using https connection and http connection but they didn't work. Note that this is only for an experiment and not for anything else. Can some one help me out?

Hello,
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I have a Mobiscribe Origin. I know the prevailing response from people here will be "buy a new one or purchase another used one". However, I know that Mobiscribe is a tablet from Netronix, and they basically take the mix of components that Mobiscribe requests, and builds the tablet based on that.
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Does anyone happen to know what type of battery is in the actual tablet? I have a store somewhat near me that will replace permanent batteries (on stuff like IPAD's, Samsung tablets/phones with "permanent internal batteries", etc). I would assume that Mobiscribe would be similar to all that, but I wouldn't want to do anything before I can make sure the battery place has the appropriate battery or can order it.

My gf and I have been together for nearly 2 years. I don't have a lot of friends nearby since most of my friends live in other parts of the country. My gf made a friend last year that she's met up with for drinks and food a few times. My gf invited her friend out for drinks with us last month. I had never met her before this and we all had a good night. My gfs friend shares a couple of interests with me that my gf does not such as being outdoors, hiking, similar movie tastes etc.
My gf has always said she has no interest in hiking or seeing certain types of movies with me and that I should do them with a friend if I want someone to do them with. Well my gfs friend mentioned she was going on a hike the following weekend and invited both of us. I accepted and said it would be good but my gf said she didn't want to which is fair enough.
When we got home my gf questioned me on why I accepted the invitation and I pointed out she's the one who told me I should find people to go hiking with and now I have. She just said she find it a bit weird I was going to be hanging out with the girl in question just the 2 of us. I mentioned that my gf got invited so it's not like we've planned it to be just me and this other girl but my gf repeated it's weird hanging out one on one with someone of the opposite sex while in a relationship especially since we'll be spending most of the day together. Does anyone have any advice?
tl;dr my gf introduced me to one of her friends who has some similar interests to me. The friend invited me and my gf on a hike, I accepted and my gf declined and my gf is annoyed I'll be spending the day with her friend. Does anyone have any advice?

I was with my ex for nearly 2 1/2 years and when I look back at his behaviour I wonder why I stayed with him that long. I mean, I know it is because I DID love him at the beginning and found it hard to accept that I no longer did towards the end, and also I was terrified of being alone and never seeing him again. But there are some things he did that seriously shouldn't made me end the relationship sooner. Here are a few:

1. Doing cocaine around me during a period of time where I had extreme anxiety. I would ask him not to and he would do it anyway. I hated him doing it because he would act really different and it made me even more anxious.
2. He had a drug/drinking problem in general. He would get so drunk that he would talk literal gibberish. There were so many occasions where he'd go out and wouldn't come home until 8am OR would just stay home doing cocaine until 8am. I think the latest he came home once was like 1pm.
3. He stayed late at work all the time. And I mean to drink & play video games with his colleagues, not do more work.
4. He was bad at communicating. So many times when he went on nights out he would tell me he was coming home "soon" and then not show up until like 4 hours later. Or he just wouldn't tell me when he was coming home and I'd be waiting up really anxious until like 8am for him.
5. He didn't initiate moving in together. At the beginning of our relationship we used to say how we wished we lived together, but later on he never brought it up again and I basically had to beg him to move in with me which is so crazy to think about now.
6. He broke up with me and then begged me to get back together with him twice. The second time was during the lockdown so my parents literally had to drive 4 hours to come pick me up and then he called me 2 hours into my car ride home saying to come back.

This list could probably go on a lot further but I'll leave it at that. Please don't settle for this kind of behaviour. I nearly did and I can't believe I was going to try and spend the rest of my life with him. I'm with a new guy now and have been for over a year and he STILL does stuff sometimes that makes me think about how my ex would NEVER behave in the same way.

28 years old, been losing since 17. I’m on 200mg Spiro, presumably it’s doing something since my progress would probably be worse after nearly 12 years but it’s certainly not a cure.
Also, not sure I’m comfortable nuking my T for eternity. My doctor says it “only works on the skin” and shouldn’t have any muscular or mental effects, but when you see transgender women grow entire boobs from nothing on the same dose I’m on… seems pretty systemic to me.
I haven’t had great results with Minox so I stopped using it. To be fair, I’ve never been very consistent about using it daily, mainly because it makes my hair look like shit. Since my goal is to not make my hair look like shit, this is a bit counterintuitive. I’ve tried both formulations and unless I use a tiny amount on wet hair and then blow dry, it looks greasy and crunchy. I’m not sure whether I’m a minox responder or not based on my inconsistency, despite using it every couple days for a few years.
Similarly, ketaconazole dries the fuck out of my hair and doesn’t seem worth the tiny boost.
Other than that I haven’t really been using anything recently. I have a microneedling device but not sure if using it without minox will do much. I use hair fibers and take vitamin D. That’s pretty much it.
I have only gone to endocrinologists in the past and have been refused finasteride or any other hormonal treatment by multiple doctors due to being female…. even though they’re already giving me a teratogenic drug and I have an IUD… it makes no sense and is extremely frustrating.
I’m open to oral minox — I have dark hair and pale skin, so facial and body hair removal is already a constant battle, but I’m at least used to it…..
I’m hoping that a cosmetic derm might offer some alternative options, especially because the visit will be covered by insurance, since my PCP referred me. But there’s a good chance they’re just going to try to upsell me on PRP, given I’ve already tried the “standard” stuff. I just started making good money but not sure I’m comfortable going that far yet, that shit is ridiculously expensive. What should my plan of action be going into this visit?

Let's remember Hector Lopez, an overshadowed but valuable roleplayer on the Yankees' 1960s dynasty that went to five straight World Series!
There have been six players born in Panama who played for the Yankees, about a third as many who were born in Mexico... yet from a Yankee point of view, Panama has been the far richer source of baseball talent!
Of course it helps when the list includes the greatest closer of all time, Mariano Rivera. But three other Yankees from Panama have been notable contributors as well: Roberto Kelly, Ramiro Mendoza, and of course... Hector Lopez. (The other two Yankees born in Panama weren't as notable: Ruben Rivera and Omar Moreno.)
The six Panamanian-born Yankees accumulated 85.6 bWAR -- 56.3 of them from Mariano. Compare that to the 17 Mexican-born players in Yankee history, who combined for 3.6 bWAR -- most of it from Alfredo Aceves (2.7).
Hector Headley Lopez was born July 8, 1929, in Colon, Panama. Just as many kids did in the Dominican Republic and Cuba -- and the Bronx, for that matter -- Lopez grew up playing baseball with a broom handle for a bat and a rubber ball. He attended an English-speaking high school, where he played baseball and ran track, and by age 14 was playing against men in amateur leagues; at 19, he played in the 1948 Amateur World Series. Playing for a professional team in Panama during the 1950-1951 winter season, he was signed by a scout for the independent league St. Hyacinthe Saints and went to Canada.

“When I got to Canada it was about 40 F, and I had left Panama, where it’s usually 70, 80. The owner of the team had to buy me clothes. He wanted to make sure I had a lot of woolen stuff to wear.”

He hit .297/.370/.386 at the age of 21, making him one of the most exciting prospects in the league -- all the more exciting because the team thought he was just 18!
The following year, the Saints became an affiliate of the Philadelphia Athletics, and Lopez continued to hit, putting up a .329/.441/.458 line while stealing 32 bases. They promoted him to the Eastern League, where he hit .270/.349/.344. In 1954 he was in Triple-A, hitting .316/.389/.425 in 520 PA. In 1955, the A's made the move from Philadelphia to Kansas City, and after hitting .321 with 5 home runs in his first 21 games in Triple-A, Lopez was called up to the bigs. He hit .290/.337/.422 that season, with 15 home runs in 527 PA.
Lopez could hit, but fielding was an issue. Initially a shortstop in the minors, Lopez made 61 errors in 127 games in 1952 and was soon moved to second base and third base, but the errors came there as well.
In 1959, Lopez opened the season as the A's starting second baseman, and over the first two months of the season hit .281/.324/.533, with six home runs and 24 RBIs in 35 games. The Yankees, meanwhile, were desperate for an infielder -- prior to the trade, shortstop Tony Kubek was hitting .252/.278/.396, second baseman Bobby Richardson .247/.276/.301, third baseman Andy Carey .218/.274/.269, and reserves Gil McDougald .214/.296/.262, Jerry Lumpe .214/.313/.214, and Clete Boyer .136/.174/.136.
And when the Yankees needed a player during this era, they often got him -- from the A's.
The Kansas City A's from 1955 to 1961 were essentially another farm team for the New York Yankees. There's a long list of players the Yankees got from the A's, including Enos Slaughter, Clete Boyer, Ryne Duren, Ralph Terry, Roger Maris, and Bob Cerv... while giving up little in return. In all, the Yankees and A's made 16 trades involving 62 players (some traded more than once) during this stretch. According to this analysis, the Yankees got 64.1 WAR from the A's in return for 36.2 WAR to the A's... and of the 36.2 WAR, nearly a third came from Slaughter and Cerv, who would later be traded back to the Yankees!
Lopez was yet another player on that list, traded May 26, 1959 (along with Ralph Terry) for Johnny Kucks, Jerry Lumpe, and Tom Sturdivant. It was a good trade for the Yankees, but nowhere near the heist that was Roger Maris (and two others) for Norm Siebern (and three others). Terry and Lopez would be worth 13.4 bWAR for the Yankees; Kucks, Lumpe, and Sturdivant would be worth 10.1 bWAR, nearly all of it (9.9) from Lumpe, a utility infielder with the Yankees who would become the starting second baseman for the A's for five seasons.
Lopez continued to hit in New York much as he had in Kansas City, putting up a .283/.336/.451 line with 16 HR and 69 RBI in 406 ABs with the Yankees. He'd play his first 76 games as a Yankee at third base, but after making 17 errors, the Yankees decided to make a change. On August 18, they put Lopez in left field for the rest of the season, with McDougald primarily taking over a third base. Lopez would almost exclusively be an outfielder for the rest of his career, playing just 9.0 innings at first base, 19.1 innings at second, and 19.2 innings at third over the next seven seasons, compared to nearly 5,000 in the outfield.
During the Yankee glory days of the early 1960s, Lopez was the "third man" in the Yankee outfield with Maris and Mantle, and often getting extra at-bats when one of them was injured.
In eight seasons with the Yankees, Lopez hit .262/.324/.399 (101 OPS+) in 2,796 plate appearances. He played in five straight World Series, 1960 to 1964, and hit .286/.333/.536 (.869 OPS) in 31 plate appearances. His best World Series performance was in 1961, when he had an RBI triple and a three-run home run in the decisive Game 5.

"I played with a great bunch of guys. They talked about winning as a team. If you didn't perform up to your ability, Moose Skowron would walk up to you and say, 'You're messing with my October money.' "

After the 1966 season, in which he hit a disappointing .214 in 130 plate appearances, Lopez was released. He signed a minor league contract with the Washington Senators -- not the original team, which had moved to Minnesota to become the Twins, but the expansion team founded in 1961 that became the Texas Rangers in 1972 -- and played two seasons in Triple-A, hitting .295/.382/.422 in 1967 and .258/.319/.405 in 1968. He returned for a third year in 1969, but now nearly 40, he knew time was running out. He decided that off-season he'd retire at the end of the year.
During warm-ups before a Spring Training game, Lopez heard Ted Williams -- in his first season as manager of the Senators -- shouting his name. Lopez, who had spent the last two years dreaming the Senators would add him to the major league roster as a reserve outfielder, hustled over. But Williams had other plans for him.
Williams had just told Triple-A manager Wayne Terwilliger that he was going to be the Senators' third base coach. Now the Senators needed a Triple-A manager, and Williams asked Lopez to do it.
"Sure," Lopez coolly replied. "I gotta pay rent."
It all seemed pretty casual, but it was actually a historic moment. Lopez was the first black manager in Triple-A history, six years before Frank Robinson became the first black manager in major league history. (Only two black men had managed in the minors before Lopez: Sam Bankhead in 1951 and Gene Baker in 1961.) The Bisons had a bad year under Lopez -- 58-78, though not much worse than the 66-81 they'd done the year before -- and the Senators didn't bring him back after the season as a manager or coach.
He would be a scout for the Yankees for the next three years, then became a recreation director for the town of Hempstead on Long Island for the next 20 years. "I enjoyed that very much. I loved working with kids," Lopez said.
But he would return to Yankee Stadium for Old Timers' Day, and longed to return to baseball in some capacity.

"The game stays with you like your first romance." -- Hector Lopez

He did some scouting for the Yankees and Giants, and then, in 1991, George Steinbrenner hired him to be an outfield and hitting instructor with the Gulf Coast Yankees in Tampa.
In 1992, he worked with the Yankees' 1st round draft pick, an 18-year-old shortstop named Derek Jeter. "As soon as you watched the kid play you knew he was something special," Lopez said. "He had all the moves and he was very confident on the field. He was a little raw with the glove and made a few errors, but he was willing to work hard. He would come out early, and I would hit him a lot of balls. He was very determined to get better. I'm not surprised at how good he got -- one of the very best in the game."
He also managed the Gulf Coast Yankees in 1994 and 1995 -- where Darryl Strawberry had his first at-bats in the Yankee organization, going 5-for-20 with no home runs -- and managed Panama in the 2009 World Baseball Classic.
Lopez died six months ago today, on September 29, 2022, at the age of 93.
The Lopez Low Down:

• According to the book Where Have You Gone by Maury Allen (2004), Lopez's full name is Hector Headley Lopez Swainson, and Headley was his father's surname.
  
• Hector wore #11 with the Yankees, a number I'll always associate with Brett Gardner, who wore it from 2008 to 2021. Other notable 11's in Yankee history were Gary Sheffield (2004-2006), Chuck Knoblauch (1998-2001), Fred Stanley (1973-1980), Joe Page (1945-1950), and Lefty Gomez (1932-1942). Dwight Gooden wore #11 when he threw his no-hitter in 1996. The first Yankee to wear #11 was Hall of Fame pitcher Herb Pennock in 1929.
  
• Lopez's baseball-reference.com page has one of the more colorful baseball nicknames, "What A Pair of Hands". It was not a compliment. Supposedly the nickname came from sportswriter Leonard Shecter as a sarcastic commentary on Lopez's "many duels with ground balls." (“If I bench him I bench 93 runs,” Casey Stengel said after the 1959 season, “but I would like better fieldin’ outta my 93 runs.”) Outfield was a reasonable compromise.
  
• A more charitable nickname came from sportswriter George Vecsey, "Hector the Hit Collector." Lopez also was known as "The Panama Clipper."
  
• Hector said he was a ballplayer from birth -- actually before birth. He said his father was a pitcher for an amateur team and his pregnant mother would bring him to games in the hope that he would grow up to play baseball as well. “Ever since I can remember I wanted to be a ballplayer,” he said in 1963. “Things didn’t seem bright, though. Panama is crazy about baseball but most of those few who had a chance in the majors were pitchers. I was a skinny little infielder.” In fact, Lopez was the first Panamanian-born player in the American League, and the only other Panamanian to have played in the National League at the time was pitcher Humberto Robinson, who had made his debut with the Phillies a month earlier. (Twelve Panamanians had played in the Negro Leagues prior to integration.)
  
• Lopez said he was a Yankees fan in Panama: "We were all Yankees fans because that was the team we heard the most about and listened to on the radio." Years later, when he was on the Yankees, he said his family and neighbors would gather around the radio in Panama and listen to games -- even though the broadcast was in English. "My father was a salesman and spoke English as well as Spanish," Lopez said. "He told everybody what was going on and what I was doing."
  
• In the late 1940s, the Yankees would play spring training games throughout the Caribbean, including Panama. The teenaged Hector Lopez said he used to cut school to watch all the games he could. A shortstop in his early years, he said his favorite player was Phil Rizzuto.
  
• In a 1960 article in Newsday, "The Lonely World of Hector Lopez", writer Stan Isaacs noted Lopez commuted an hour each way to Yankee Stadium, riding the subway from the Brooklyn home he shared with his mother. Lopez, looking just like just another commuter on the subway, was almost never recognized as a Yankee. “One difference in playing in Kansas City and New York was that Kansas City wasn’t a big city, and everyone knows you. You walk around, and they all know you,” Lopez would recall years later. “In New York most people don’t know you.” He got married after the 1960 season and moved to Long Island, and started driving to the Stadium instead.
  
• Lopez had a reputation as a clutch hitter. "Hector was never a spectacular player, but he was one of those guys you could always depend on when you needed him," said Ralph Houk, Lopez's manager from 1961 to 1963. He had a career .269/.330/.415 slash line, but .298/.355/.422 with runners in scoring position, and .286/.333/.536 in 15 World Series games.
  
• Lopez was managing a game in 1969 when a dropped fly ball in the outfield allowed the winning run to score. Lopez, enraged, stood on the top step of the dugout, glaring at the outfielders as they sheepishly jogged off the field toward him. Boiling mad, when they were finally in front of him he screamed: "Jiminy Criminy!" The minor leaguers were mortified by the error but fought to hide their smiles at their manager's version of an angry outburst. It may have been the harshest thing the soft-spoken Lopez had ever yelled on a baseball field.
  
• The Yankees would have had even more bWAR from Panama if Rod Carew had been traded to the Yankees in 1979. Carew was in the last year of his contract with the Twins and had said he wouldn't re-sign with them after owner Calvin Griffith called him "a damn fool." The Yankees offered Chris Chambliss and Juan Beniquez, but the Twins also wanted two prospects -- either Paul Mirabella or Dave Righetti, plus either Damaso Garcia or Rex Hudler. The Yankees wouldn't include the prospects, and the Twins instead dealt Carew to the Angels for four prospects (none of whom panned out). The following season, the Yankees would make pretty much the same deal -- Chambliss, Garcia, and Mirabella -- but for Rick Cerone instead of Rod Carew. In seven years with the Angels, Carew was worth 17.4 bWAR. If he'd done that for the Yankees, he would have been the second-greatest pinstriped Panamanian behind only The Sandman.
  

"I was just excited to play ball with those Yankee teams," Lopez told sportswriter Maury Allen. "I think the 1960 and 1961 teams may have been the best in baseball, ever. We had everything -- power, pitching, great defense, depth and great leadership. It was fun to be on those teams."
It was fun having you on them, Hector!

I was with my ex for nearly 2 1/2 years and when I look back at his behaviour I wonder why I stayed with him that long. I mean, I know it is because I DID love him at the beginning and found it hard to accept that I no longer did towards the end, and also I was terrified of being alone and never seeing him again. But there are some things he did that seriously shouldn't made me end the relationship sooner. Here are a few:

1. Doing cocaine around me during a period of time where I had extreme anxiety. I would ask him not to and he would do it anyway. I hated him doing it because he would act really different and it made me even more anxious.
2. He had a drug/drinking problem in general. He would get so drunk that he would talk literal gibberish. There were so many occasions where he'd go out and wouldn't come home until 8am OR would just stay home doing cocaine until 8am. I think the latest he came home once was like 1pm.
3. He stayed late at work all the time. And I mean to drink & play video games with his colleagues, not do more work.
4. He was bad at communicating. So many times when he went on nights out he would tell me he was coming home "soon" and then not show up until like 4 hours later. Or he just wouldn't tell me when he was coming home and I'd be waiting up really anxious until like 8am for him.
5. He didn't initiate moving in together. At the beginning of our relationship we used to say how we wished we lived together, but later on he never brought it up again and I basically had to beg him to move in with me which is so crazy to think about now.
6. He broke up with me and then begged me to get back together with him twice. The second time was during the lockdown so my parents literally had to drive 4 hours to come pick me up and then he called me 2 hours into my car ride home saying to come back.

This list could probably go on a lot further but I'll leave it at that. Please don't settle for this kind of behaviour. I nearly did and I can't believe I was going to try and spend the rest of my life with him. I'm with a new guy now and have been for over a year and he STILL does stuff sometimes that makes me think about how my ex would NEVER behave in the same way.

4th of June, 2070
(One month after the Northeast park incident)
After the attack, it was clear what needed to be done. Elements of the 29th infantry division of the National Guard were stationed around Northeast park and were tasked with keeping watch over the now designated 'Rift' 24/7. Nothing was to get in or out without permission. The coast guard near San Diego was told to do the same. There has been no activity on either of them for a month, but the US Army didn't want to take chances.
At the UN council, the world came to a decision. The United States will attempt to solve this issue on its own, diplomatically. Elements of the US 75th Ranger regiment, 7th Infantry division, 1st Armored division, and 1st Special forces command have been organized into a force 30.000 strong and dubbed the Rift Expeditionary Corp or REC, led by Lieutenant General Patrick Coleman. They were tasked to cross to the other side, create an FOB and make contact with the natives. Despite prince Bodin Zorgen's constant attempts to persuade them otherwise, the US held strong to its decision. Any and all chances to stop bloodshed will be taken and America will not strike first. One of the conditions for peace will be the return of all captive Americans, this will not be negotiable.
This decision was not favored by some. The Chinese president, Bao Huang, suggested that the US should listen to Bodin and wage a full-blown war with the empire. He used the Empire of Japan as an example, a power that couldn't be negotiated with and chose war. US President Arthur McShane said that the empire and the elves received a vision through magic that humanity is a monstrous enemy that wishes to destroy their world. Bao refused to believe anything that 'magic' has to say but Arthur told him that if they do wage a war and strike, then they would only prove them right. Diplomacy needs to go first and should things go south, they'll cross that bridge when they get there.
The Russian president, Dmitri Vukov, suggested that the US should destroy the rifts so that they would not cause problems in the future. Out of sight, out of mind. There were two problems with this plan. First, the US had no way of doing this as they themselves don't possess magic and the rifts aren't affected by any physical means. Second, even if they destroy them, there exists a possibility of the elves opening another one, maybe in another part of the world, and should it open in an unprepared land, it would cause devastation. This is why Arthur urged all countries to create contingencies just for a situation like that. With all of this said, the UN council ultimately decided to let the US deal with this threat, however, NATO will be on alert should things take a turn for the worst.
Now it came down to picking the right people for the job. The empire wasn't the only faction they needed to make peace with. First things first, the Rosians. While prince Bodin is alive, they first needed to get them to know this. Second, they needed to make friendly relations with native elves. Not all of them are cold-hearted like the army. Turns out, most of them live in smaller communities and try to live their lives in peace. The plan is to make contact with them and show them that they aren't an enemy. Third, the tribal peoples. Between thirty and forty percent of lepians, feelians, leanoids, welfen, and others are enslaved by the elves and forced to do their bidding. About twenty percent fled south to the Rosian kingdoms to live in peace. The others live in scattered tribes across North Altia. The captured animal peoples will join the REC and help them establish peaceful relations with them. Finally, the other continents. Besides North Altia, there are also South Altia and Kaplios that are also under the empire's control. However, they are all in a war with the natives and aren't able to send any proper aid, so the UNEF is on low alert at the moment.
Several platoons of rangers have already been organized for the assignment, along with their lieutenants all that was missing was a certain prodigy.
Norfolk, Virginia
Connors estate
The Connors family has a long and proud military tradition dating all the way back to the first world war when Joshua Connors volunteered to go to Europe. World War II, Vietnam, Afghanistan, and even the Great Crisis. They've been through it all. But the current successor, Logan, wasn't too proud of that. It's soldiers who fight wars and bring death. Logan was naturally gifted with strength and skill. He was tall, and athletic and rose to the rank of captain at the age of twenty-five. Still, this didn't make him as happy as he wanted to be. He wondered if there is something else out there for him. But, that might just be a dream.
He lived alone in his house in Norfolk, Virginia near Deep Creek park. He'd usually wait for his sister, Penelope, to come back from her assignments at DARPA and go for a walk, but lately, she's been coming over less and less. At twenty-six, Logan didn't really know what to do anymore.
He sat down with a beer in his hand and turned on the TV. The first channel was the news, typical.
"Thank you Jack.", said the newscaster, "Now that we're at the end of our program I'd like to read you the decision President Arthur McShane has made regarding the now dubbed Rifts incident. The United States army will lead an expedition force through the land rift and attempt to make contact and creates peaceful relations with the Empire of Light. This decision is not supported by some American citizens, the majority of which are from North Carolina. Protesters have gathered near Northeast park and are demanding justice for their loved ones and their city. Still, the president is standing by his decision, and for the time being, the diplomatic approach will be taken. No NATO or other UN forces will intervene until the necessity arises. May God help our brave men and women. This is Kevin Harper, signing off."
The news ended and Logan turned off the TV while sipping his beer. A few moments later knocking came on his front door. Logan stood up and answered, only to find two men dressed in military uniforms standing in front of him. Both were clearly older than Logan and one had gray hair while the other one had blonde hair and carried a briefcase.
"Captain Logan Connors?", asked the man with gray hair.
"Yes.", Logan answered, "What can I do for you, Lieutenant General?"
"My name is Patrick Coleman and this is Brigadier General Oscar Wayne. May we come in?"
"Of course.". Logan let them enter and closed the door. He showed them to the living room where they took a seat on the couch and Logan sat in front of them. "Now. To what do I own the pleasure of sitting in front of the leader of the rift expeditionary force?"
Oscar was a bit stunned by his question, "How did you-"
"Why else would you be here? I'm one of the rangers that are going over there, aren't I?"
Patrick chuckled and pulled out a folder from the briefcase. "Logan Hannibal Connors. Unique middle name. Joined the military at age of 19, and was recruited into special forces at age of 24 upon reaching the rank of lieutenant but quit a month after starting. Rewarded the Medal of Honor and the rank of captain on August 29th in Thailand after saving three platoons of soldiers in an attack on a remnant True salvation outpost. Now serving the army rangers and saving up money to help his father, Marcus Connors, walk again after his legs were paralyzed in a car accident last year. Those new nerve surgeries sure are expensive."
"Where are you going with this lieutenant-general?", Logan asked.
"I don't want to sound like I'm trying to bribe you, that's not my job. I'm just saying that if you take this opportunity it will prove to be mutually beneficial."
Logan took a long look at the folder Patrick was holding. Was this really worth it? This could help his father, but he was going to a completely foreign land to fight an enemy only seen in fiction. He knew there was going to be war, that he will have to fight. Question was, could he? After much consideration, Logan spoke, "Fine. I'll do it. But I want my father's medical bills paid for in full and I want insurance for him and my sister."
"We can arrange that.", Patrick said, "Thank you for accepting this, captain."
"Don't thank me yet. But what's your role in all of this, brigadier general?"
"Me?", asked Oscar, "That's simple. I'm the commander of the first REC infantry brigade. We will go in first and prepare the terrain for the first armored brigade which will properly enforce FOB Galdush. That's the name of the place we're going to by the way."
"And I'm supposed to be in it?"
"Corectomundo, my friend."
"Alright. Let's go win a war then."
---
(Around the same time)
Undisclosed location
The invasion was over in several hours. Zoya had never seen such destruction. Thousands dead in minutes, great beasts slaughtered like cattle, and entire armies turned to blood and ash. She wished she had never come here. She should have just stayed with her tribe in the Great Bolma forest all those cycles ago and not run away. This is what she got for it. A life of enslavement and then being sent to a foreign land just to die.
'Mother. Sister.', she thought to herself as tears went down her face. She was now in a human prison, all alone, separated from her kin. That soldier, Jeff Miller brought her there. He could have killed her along with Bora, but didn't. The reason was never cleared to Zoya. 'Please be alright. I beg you spirits, watch over them. Don't let them suffer my fate.'
As she finished her thought, three loud knocks came from the metal door of her cell. A small window opened and a man spoke, "You. Do you understand me?" After hesitating a bit, Zoya nodded.
"Do you understand me?", he asked again.
"Yes! I understand you.", she said frightened.
"Please stand up.", he said and opened the bottom window. Zoya slowly moved to them and was put in chains. A feeling all too familiar. The cell door opened and she saw the man who talked to her. He was slightly taller and was wearing blue clothing of material unknown to Zoya, unlike the two armed guards who wore black armor.
"Come with me.", he said and led her through the halls. They walked for some time until they reached a door with glass on it. As they entered, the guards stood outside and Zoya sat down at a metal desk. Before the man sat down, he opened a box in the corner of the room and took a white plate of sorts. When he placed it in front of Zoya she saw it was food. Fried meat on one half and green and orange vegetables on the other. She first assumed it was a trick before the man gestured for her to eat. She took the meat and ate as fast as she could. It was delicious, way more than anything she had ever eaten. As she ate the man sat down and opened a thin book.
'He can read?', she thought, 'He must be a scholar then.'
He grabbed some kind of sharp stick and asked, "What is your name?"
"M-My name is Zoya."
"Last name?", she didn't answer, "Family name?"
"I... I don't have one."
"You are a lepian, correct?"
"Yes."
"Are there multiple kinds?"
'What kind of questions are these?', she thought, "Yes. Brown and orange. I am brown. You can see by my fur."
"Alright. Where are you from?"
The questions went on and on for what seemed like hours. The man asked Zoya about everything. How she fights, her skills, what can she do that an elf can't, and what are her relations with the other tribal peoples. She couldn't understand why all this was important. If she was going to be a slave, then not even her name mattered. Why? That question kept ringing in her head.
After a while, the man closed his book and spoke, "Alright, I think we're done here."
Zoya rubbed her hands and muttered, "Can you... can you tell me who my new owner will be? Is it you?"
The man seemed confused by her question, "Owner?"
"Y-Yes. My slave owner. Who am I going to?"
The man laughed a little, "Unbelievable. The others asked the same thing."
Now it was Zoya who was confused, "O-Others? What do you mean by others? Others of my kin? Or other tribals? Tell me."
"Relax. All your questions will be answered in there.", he said pointing at the door on the opposite side of the room from the one they came in, "Just step in and someone else will answer your questions."
The man removed Zoya's chains and then left through the same door they entered from. Zoya stood like a statue for a while. She didn't know what to do. Trust this human? He could be trying to deceive her. But either way, she didn't have a choice. She opened the door she was told to open and entered the room. Inside she saw chairs and three more people. One male welfen, one leanoid, and a familiar face.
"Bora!", she shouted.
"Zoya!", Bora shouted back and hugged her, "I thought you were dead." The two friends hugged for a while before Bora spoke again, "What happened? Did they hurt you?"
"No.", Zoya said, "They just asked me a lot of questions and even fed me."
"They did the same with us.", the welfen said, "The meat was very good, however."
"Yes.", said the leanoid, "For a moment I thought about killing that human for food. The questions confused me. He wanted to know what my strengths were and where are the rest of my people."
"Same with me.", said the welfen, "My name is Brokil by the way."
"I am Gorgo.", said the leanoid.
"A pleasure to meet you.", said Zoya.
"Likewise.", said Bora.
"I see you're getting along.", said a man as he walked into the room. All four of them were immediately on edge as five more entered behind him. They knew that these men were warriors, perhaps the elites of these humans. "That's good.". One of them looked elderly as he had gray hair. One had golden hair and blue eyes, one had medium brown hair, and two were bald, one of which was very tall and had dark skin. The one who entered first had short black hair and black eyes. He was the leader.
"Who are you?", asked Brokil.
"A bit rude.", said the leader.
"Answer the question.", demanded Gorgo.
"Well, we're gonna be working together. So why not?", said the leader after a short pause and sigh. This greatly confused the tribals. "My name is Julius Fisher, but I'm better known as Chief. The senior gentleman is John Castro, known as Pops. This big fella is Griffin West, call him Boxer. The guy eyeballing you is Rick Hunt, Lucky. The ladies man here is Noah Ramirez, he likes to be called Pretty Boy. And last but not least, this is Ryan Spencer, better known as Rook."
"Hi.", said Rook as he waved.
"We are soldiers of the First Special Forces Command, also known as Green Berets, and our team is Spearhead. And you are Brokil, Bora, Gorgo, and Zoya. Nice to meet you all."
The four relaxed a little bit but were still confused. Finally, Bora spoke, "What did you mean by working with us?"
"Oh that.", Chief said, "My superiors think it's a good idea to work with the native tribal peoples as we know you hate the empire and the elves."
"That may be true.", said Gorgo, "But what makes you think we will fight for you?"
"I never said for us, I said with us. We will work together and beat the empire."
"Why?", Zoya asked, "We all saw what you're capable of. You can turn all the elven armies to ash if you wanted. What do you gain from using us?"
"We gain knowledge.", said Pops, "We don't know much about your land and we can use a guide. Besides, allies are always good in war. It's true that we can completely destroy the empire if we wanted to, but that is not how we wage war. In doing so we would kill tens of millions of people and that is not something we want."
This came as a surprise to the four. A force so powerful and yet they choose not to use their power to the fullest and crush their enemies? They sound nothing like the elves.
"Furthermore.", said Pretty Boy, "We're not the monsters your elves say we are. In truth all we want is peace. But since that might not be possible, we have to make plans for the future."
"And why us?", asked Bora, "Why do you care about what happens to us?"
"Because we want to help you.", said Rook, attracting the four's attention.
"Why?", asked Zoya.
"'Cause slavery is wrong.", Boxer said, "And we know a thing or two about that."
This came as a shock to the four. Do they know? Does that mean they were slaves, too?
"You see.", Lucky spoke, "A long time ago, there existed an empire called Great Britain. They, much like your elves, had the bright idea of conquering the world. At some point, they conquered our country and turned us into their slaves. But our ancestors rebelled and we beat them. From that point on, we decided to end slavery everywhere. Because everyone deserves to be free. No one can own another person's life."
The four could just listen. A part of them didn't believe this. These people fought against their rulers and won. And now they seek to eradicate slavery everywhere. This was too good to be true.
"So...", Zoya said, "We fight for, I mean, with you, and we gain our freedom?"
"Not just you.", Rook said, "But all of your people as well. All of your tribes will be free and no longer hunted by the empire."
"This seems too good.", Brokil said. Chief walked up to him and placed his hand on his shoulder.
"I promise you.", Chief spoke, "You and all your people will gain their freedom, if you help us win this war." The four walked to the corner of the room and whispered to each other.
"You think they're gonna accept?", Rook asked.
"I have a gut feeling.", Chief replied.
After some time, Bora stepped forward and spoke, "Alright. We will join you and fight. What do you want us to do?"
Chief smiled, "First, I need you to try these on.". He walked to a large wooden crate and out of it took out some clothing. They looked thick and were green in color, but it wasn't armor. It looked similar to what the humans were wearing. "Then, I need you to sit down and listen carefully."
---
(Twenty days after REC crossed over)
Late yellow season
Past the Yellow forest, Meilume region
General Drannor Crax needed to hurry. The news of the invasion force being destroyed in less than a day was as troubling as it was unbelievable. According to the surviving soldiers, the enemy has boomsticks and cannons much like the dwarves, but more powerful and devastating. This made the general feel worried but also relieved. He knew how the dwarves fought and how their weapons worked. Moreover, he had dwarves in his army and this would help him. The enemy is a more powerful version just meant that he needed to be more careful. At least in his mind.
The force of the VII army along with five thousand dwarves and five thousand auxiliary marched to the Galdush fields in hopes of preventing the enemy from making a foothold in Meilume from which to launch an assault. It might have been a good idea to get one of the three east coast fleets to launch an organized strike from the coast so they can pincer them, but it was too late to plan now. They were now eighty leagues from Galdush and one hill separated them from a straight towards the enemy. Drannor decided to go over the plan one more time in order to finish this battle with perfection.
In his personal tent, he spoke to his captains and the dwarves, "Do your troops know the strategy?"
"Of course.", said captain Bamur of the dwarves, "Dunan and I are prepared."
"Our legions are also ready, sir.", said the first captain of the elven army.
"Excellent.", Drannor said, "The spearhead of the attack will be the feral auxiliary, the dwarven legions, and the wyvern corp. The combined force of over forty thousand shall attack the enemy from the front, with the ferals serving as a distraction the dwarves will launch the initial attack with cannons and move in with shooters. The infantry and archer legions will move in from the right but not before the cavalry penetrates the enemy's left flank. We must strike hard, fast, and make sure the enemy can't use its cannons against us."
"I do not like the idea of our troops going in as distractions.", said Dunan.
"Have a better strategy, dwarf?", asked the first captain, "The general is the one in command here.". Dunan scoffed at that and didn't say anything.
"This is the best we can do.", Drannor said. At that moment, a lepian walked into the tent.
"I have news.", she said walking closer but was stopped by one of the captains.
"Aren't you forgetting something?", he said.
The lepian groaned and knelt. "My lord. I bring news."
"Speak.", Drannor said.
"I have returned with my scouts from observing the enemy."
"What have you seen?"
"They have already built a fortification of sorts."
This troubled the officers and the general in the tent. The enemy already has a foothold in their land. Perhaps their cannons aren't the most dangerous part about them.
"What kind of fortification?", the second captain asked.
"It is... strange. They have short walls and round metallic tents as well as long silver bushes. On top of that, many of the soldiers spent their entire day digging holes using metal monsters." This didn't trouble them as much as it made them confused. What kind of fortifications were these?
"What of their weapons and numbers?", asked the sixth captain.
"As far as we know, they have many strange-looking cannons that face upwards as well as several long cannons on iron carriages. Their numbers however can't be higher than eight thousand.". To this, the officers widened their eyes and some smiled.
"Only eight thousand?", said the fifth captain, "They dare think so low of us."
"Seems like you won't even need to send your army, Drannor.", said Bamur, "We will deal with the enemy and scavenge what remains."
"This does not feel right.", Drannor said.
"What are you saying, sir?", asked the tenth captain, "Not only will we destroy the enemy, but also prove why we are not to be trifled with."
"Do you forget already? This is the same army that defeated the first invasion force. I will not make the same mistake of underestimating our enemy. If what the survivors say is true, then their numbers mean nothing.". The tent turned quiet. Drannor's words held truth. If this is the same army that defeated general Ylindar, then they cannot afford to take chances.
"My lord.", the lepian spoke.
"What is it?", Drannor replied.
"I am just a scout, but when my people attack we usually prefer to go on a night raid and strike the enemy when they least expect it."
"You expect us to use such a barbaric and dishonorable tactic?", asked the third captain in disgust, "What do you take us for?"
"This is no time for being picky.", Drannor said, "It is a sound strategy, often used when facing an enemy with a strong defense. Attacking at night will limit their capabilities. Perhaps even inhibit them from using their cannons."
"You cannot hit what you cannot see.", said Dunan, "If we get close enough, it will not matter how powerful they are. Our numbers will drown them."
At last, a sense of hope filled their hearts. Perhaps not all was lost. This could work.
"Very well.", Drannor said, "Spread the word to all soldiers. The tactic remains the same, just that it will be a night raid. And tenth captain?"
"Yes general?", he asked.
"The wyvern corps will not move in. They can't fly well in an organized formation at night."
"Yes, general."
"Lepian."
"Yes my lord?", she asked.
"Take your scouts and prepare for the raid. You will infiltrate their base and cause distortion."
"Yes my lord.". With that, she left and the other officers as well. It was time to prepare. This will be the first battle with the enemy in the empire's own borders. No matter what, they needed to win. Or at the very least, make the enemy bleed.
---
Everything was prepared. The feral auxiliary already started moving forward and the dwarves steadily advanced behind them. The warhogs moved first, behind them were warriors, then shooters, and finally the cannon crew. Dunan was on the right and Bamur on the left, each ready to give orders and lead their legions to battle. As they moved closer they could see the enemy fortification in the distance. It looked just like how the lepian described it. All that was not immediately visible were the cannons. Perhaps they were camouflaged. A tactic used often by the dwarven general of the second Halboram army, Kutmec Coalcloack. He would paint his cannons in the color of the surroundings so the enemy couldn't see them until it was too late. No matter, all they had to do was get close.
"What do you think will happen, commander?", asked a dwarven shooter.
"We will win.", Dunan answered, "We have to. And after this, we will get what we were promised."
The dwarves wouldn't typically choose to fight alongside the elves unless there was something in it for them. Such was their nature. The dwarven kingdoms have good relations with the empire as miners, builders, and blacksmiths. A large portion of elven mines are mostly run by dwarves and with that, the dwarves gain a fifth of the profit. If they dug out five ores of iron, they would get one and if the ore is sold for five pieces of silver, they get one, and so forth. This made the dwarven economy boom as the elves control roughly eighty percent of the Tubal mountains. Now the emperor gave them an offer they could not refuse. If they contributed to the war, they would receive half of the earnings from North Altia, but also half of the earnings from the other side of the rift. The dwarves, due to their lust for riches, could not say no. Of course, king Bylnar of Benullur refused, but the other two kings assumed that when they win the war, Bylnar would see that he was wrong. And if he didn't, the elves would take care of him.
"I hope we do win, commander.", the shooter continued, "I want revenge for what they did to general Dalmin."
"So do I.", Dunan said, "But we must not be-"
Suddenly, explosions came from the front lines. The feral auxiliary started to die out as the ground burst into flames. Orcs, swine, ogres, and trolls were all being destroyed and their scorched bodies were scattered across the field. But there was something strange. The cannons weren't firing. Dunan would have seen them if they did. So how? It's almost as if the ground beneath the ferals exploded on its own as they crossed it. But that shouldn't be possible.
The dwarves were all in shock. "Commander!", shouted the shooter, "What do we do?!"
Dunan was stunned for a moment but spoke, "At this point, I would signal the wyverns. But we left them behind.". Before he could say more, something he never thought would happen, happened. A bright light flew into the air, shining like the sun. Then another and another. The whole sky was filled with them. What kind of magic was this?
"Commander?", a shooter asked.
"All legions, charge!", Dunan shouted, "Quickly, charge! They see us! We must reach them as quickly as possible! Go!". Dunan charged with his warhog. The rest of the cavalry charged with him as well as the infantry and shooters. Now that they can see them, it was only a matter of time before their cannons took aim. They needed to hurry. The hogs ran and ran, behind them the thousands of warriors and shooters. In the distance, he could see cannons and rods pointed upwards as well as the enemy running toward some of them. "Scatter!", he ordered and the dwarves did just that. They knew the power of a cannon and that they couldn't stay clumped together. But they weren't quick enough and the cannons opened fire. The upward-facing rods shot into the air and explosions erupted around the dwarves. Despite them being somewhat scattered they were losing hundreds. The warriors screamed in pain as their arms and legs were scattered over the land, the shooters fired at the enemy, hoping they would cause at least some amount of damage, but fared no better than the warriors. The cannon crew fired as well but were horrified at the sight. Their cannons couldn't reach and were destroyed by the enemies.
Dunan didn't fair much better. His cavalry was almost destroyed and he himself began to realize he would lose. But not before drawing blood, spirits damn him. He had made it to the lines the ferals crossed. He could see craters in the ground and bodies around them. Trolls and ogres were missing legs and heads while orcs and swine were blown to pieces. The ground beneath them did erupt. Dunan knew he would have to be careful, but he couldn't finish his train of thought as the ground beneath his hog exploded and he was tossed on the ground. As he slowly and painfully got on his knees, he removed his helmet and looked around him. None of his soldiers got through, they were all dead or dying. Some retreated, hopefully, they can tell the others. To the left he saw Banur's body, half of it in a pool of blood and the other half gone, he suffered the same fate. Exhausted and frightened, Dunan lay there and prayed. Perhaps the enemy won't see him.
On the left flank, the eighth and ninth captain led their respective cavalry legions. Ten thousand cavalry troops, ready to fulfill their part. As the two captains moved in they could hear the explosions and death on the central front, but there was nothing they could do. Now that the enemy used its magic to create light they needed to hurry. The cavalry charged in two arrowhead formations and had one target, the enemy's left flank. Their mission was to break it and move into the enemy's center so the infantry can take the rift.
The horses ran as fast as they could and could see the enemy's fortification. All that was defending them was a line of silver thorns. The eighth captain rushed in, hoping to jump over, but the thorns were too thick and the horses got stuck. Hundreds of horses got entangled in the thorns and the elves were thrown over. Thousands behind them either trampled themselves or stopped.
"Scatter!", yelled the eighth captain, "You have to get out of here! The enem-". Before he could say more the horses and elves were engulfed in flames. They screamed as they were burned and torn apart.
The ninth captain ran to the eighth and shook him, "Come on! We're still alive! We can reach the enemy on foot!". There was some truth to that. They still had hundreds of soldiers.
"You are right.", he said and drew his sword, "Forward soldiers! We still have a mission!". So he ran towards the enemy fortification alongside the ninth captain and hundreds of soldiers. He had not just hope, but confidence. Confidence that he can still do what he needed to do. Confidence was shattered as the enemy fired upon him. Their boomsticks spat thousands of led arrows at them as if hundreds of thousands of dwarves were in front of them. His elves were dying and dying quickly. They couldn't even get close as they were torn apart and left screaming on the ground. Time seemed to slow down for him. He turned to all sides and swore he could see the arrowheads pierce his soldiers. He could see the blood pouring out of them and the life escaping their bodies. He faced forward just in time to see the arrow coming toward him. It pierced his forehead, and in those few final moments, he thought of his home and how all of this was a mistake.
On the right flank, general Drannor moved with his men. He could hear and see the explosions on the other sides. How could the enemy have known they would come, and worse off how could they possess such magic to create suns in the night sky, was beyond him. He led forty thousand troops in hopes to penetrate the enemy's flank, but it hasn't been going well. They were being slowed down by iron thorns and were forced to use shields to get across. A large part of the army got over them, but then the enemy attacked. Their cannons fired cannon balls that killed dozens of soldiers per hit, blasting them to pieces. Most of the army that was on the outside of the thorns was destroyed and Drannor could only watch the horror unfold before him. After one of the explosions, a soldier was sent flying toward Drannor, knocking him to the ground. At the same time, the enemy fired its boomsticks and tore through his men. First, they killed the ones on the sides and then worked their way in. The survivors gathered near the general and created a layered shield formation, hoping to save him.
When Drannor came to his senses he got up and shouted, "You fools! You have to run! Scatter before they-", but it was too late. The enemy's weapons destroyed their shields and soldiers all around him began to fall, screaming in pain as their hearts, lungs, and heads were pierced by thousands of lead arrows. Drannor just stood there. Miraculously, he wasn't injured. He looked to all sides and saw nothing but carnage. Most of the men that crossed the iron thorns were dead, the ones behind either got blown to pieces or fled.
Drannor just walked. Slowly. He walked towards the enemy as he was taking off his helmet, then his wrist guards, then shoulder pads, and finally his breastplate. He extended his arms and closed his eyes as if he accepted his fate. It was his fault that nearly a hundred thousand people died, so now he was ready to pay the price. As he walked closer to the source of the firing, he noticed it started to die down. He assumed all his men were dead. Slowly opening his eyes, he saw a bright white light in front of him and a shadowy figure walking closer.
'Morto?', he thought, 'Have you come to collect my soul?'. As the figure got closer, he saw a pale-skinned man with a black boomstick and before he could react, the man hit him in the head and Drannor was knocked out cold. With that, it was over.
---
It was finally over. The ferals were all dead and the surrendering and wounded elves and dwarves were brought to Galdush base. This couldn't have been a battle, more of a one-sided slaughter. The enemy walked straight into them. First, the minefield destroyed the ferals and the leftover claymores took care of most of the dwarven cavalry. The entrenched Abrams tanks and mortars cleared the rest. Their cannons fired, but couldn't reach the foxholes.
On the right, the elven cavalry made their way to the barbed wire and misunderstood how it worked, which caused them to fall over and leave the horses trapped. Mortar fire destroyed what was on the outer portion and machine guns cleared the foot soldiers that tried to rush them.
The left side was bloodier. The infantry used their shields to get across the barbed wire, but most weren't quick enough and were killed by the mortars and tanks. The ones that did survive put their shields in layers, but that didn't help them much. After most of them died, the several dozen that still had a brain left and one crazy bastard stripped his armor and walked to the machine guns. Luckily, Logan stopped the firing and knocked the nutjob out.
The army was rounding up the survivors, cuffing them, and sending them to a special prison back in the States. Some struggled, but ultimately couldn't do much. From the scorched field came a group of tribals. They walked slowly in shock at what just happened.
"Hold it!", said one of the army soldiers who pointed his gun at them. The tribals raised their hands.
"Lower your weapons.", said Chief, "That's not how you treat your allies."
From behind Chief came Zoya, "Mina. Are you alright?"
"Yes.", spoke the lepian, "I'm just in shock. When you said they were powerful I never imagined this."
"I know. I can hardly believe it myself. Let me introduce you to someone.", she said as she gestured to Chief, "This is Julius Fisher, the chief of the humans' elite warriors."
"A pleasure to meet you, Mina. You helped us out a lot.", Chief said as he extended his hand. After a slight hesitation, Mina shook it.
"You!", yelled an elf as he was pushed, "You traitor! When the others find out about this, they will have the heads of your families, and then-", his bantering was stopped by a kick to the stomach delivered by Zoya which knocked him several feet back.
"Shut up.", she said.
"Is it really true?", Mina asked, "Will you really save my people?"
"Yes.", Chief said, "In time, we will free all of you."
This made Mina smile, "Then, we will fight alongside you.". She turned around and waved her hand several times. Far away in the tall grass, Chief could see people rise and walk towards them. A battalion-sized force of tribals. Lepians, feelians, leanoids, and welfen all walked towards the base. A lot of the soldiers stopped what they were doing and stared at them. The elves and dwarves felt nothing but disgust.
Chief chuckled and so did Pretty Boy next to him, "We're gonna need more uniforms."
End of chapter 6
---
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4th of June, 2070
(One month after the Northeast park incident)
After the attack, it was clear what needed to be done. Elements of the 29th infantry division of the National Guard were stationed around Northeast park and were tasked with keeping watch over the now designated 'Rift' 24/7. Nothing was to get in or out without permission. The coast guard near San Diego was told to do the same. There has been no activity on either of them for a month, but the US Army didn't want to take chances.
At the UN council, the world came to a decision. The United States will attempt to solve this issue on its own, diplomatically. Elements of the US 75th Ranger regiment, 7th Infantry division, 1st Armored division, and 1st Special forces command have been organized into a force 30.000 strong and dubbed the Rift Expeditionary Corp or REC, led by Lieutenant General Patrick Coleman. They were tasked to cross to the other side, create an FOB and make contact with the natives. Despite prince Bodin Zorgen's constant attempts to persuade them otherwise, the US held strong to its decision. Any and all chances to stop bloodshed will be taken and America will not strike first. One of the conditions for peace will be the return of all captive Americans, this will not be negotiable.
This decision was not favored by some. The Chinese president, Bao Huang, suggested that the US should listen to Bodin and wage a full-blown war with the empire. He used the Empire of Japan as an example, a power that couldn't be negotiated with and chose war. US President Arthur McShane said that the empire and the elves received a vision through magic that humanity is a monstrous enemy that wishes to destroy their world. Bao refused to believe anything that 'magic' has to say but Arthur told him that if they do wage a war and strike, then they would only prove them right. Diplomacy needs to go first and should things go south, they'll cross that bridge when they get there.
The Russian president, Dmitri Vukov, suggested that the US should destroy the rifts so that they would not cause problems in the future. Out of sight, out of mind. There were two problems with this plan. First, the US had no way of doing this as they themselves don't possess magic and the rifts aren't affected by any physical means. Second, even if they destroy them, there exists a possibility of the elves opening another one, maybe in another part of the world, and should it open in an unprepared land, it would cause devastation. This is why Arthur urged all countries to create contingencies just for a situation like that. With all of this said, the UN council ultimately decided to let the US deal with this threat, however, NATO will be on alert should things take a turn for the worst.
Now it came down to picking the right people for the job. The empire wasn't the only faction they needed to make peace with. First things first, the Rosians. While prince Bodin is alive, they first needed to get them to know this. Second, they needed to make friendly relations with native elves. Not all of them are cold-hearted like the army. Turns out, most of them live in smaller communities and try to live their lives in peace. The plan is to make contact with them and show them that they aren't an enemy. Third, the tribal peoples. Between thirty and forty percent of lepians, feelians, leanoids, welfen, and others are enslaved by the elves and forced to do their bidding. About twenty percent fled south to the Rosian kingdoms to live in peace. The others live in scattered tribes across North Altia. The captured animal peoples will join the REC and help them establish peaceful relations with them. Finally, the other continents. Besides North Altia, there are also South Altia and Kaplios that are also under the empire's control. However, they are all in a war with the natives and aren't able to send any proper aid, so the UNEF is on low alert at the moment.
Several platoons of rangers have already been organized for the assignment, along with their lieutenants all that was missing was a certain prodigy.
Norfolk, Virginia
Connors estate
The Connors family has a long and proud military tradition dating all the way back to the first world war when Joshua Connors volunteered to go to Europe. World War II, Vietnam, Afghanistan, and even the Great Crisis. They've been through it all. But the current successor, Logan, wasn't too proud of that. It's soldiers who fight wars and bring death. Logan was naturally gifted with strength and skill. He was tall, and athletic and rose to the rank of captain at the age of twenty-five. Still, this didn't make him as happy as he wanted to be. He wondered if there is something else out there for him. But, that might just be a dream.
He lived alone in his house in Norfolk, Virginia near Deep Creek park. He'd usually wait for his sister, Penelope, to come back from her assignments at DARPA and go for a walk, but lately, she's been coming over less and less. At twenty-six, Logan didn't really know what to do anymore.
He sat down with a beer in his hand and turned on the TV. The first channel was the news, typical.
"Thank you Jack.", said the newscaster, "Now that we're at the end of our program I'd like to read you the decision President Arthur McShane has made regarding the now dubbed Rifts incident. The United States army will lead an expedition force through the land rift and attempt to make contact and creates peaceful relations with the Empire of Light. This decision is not supported by some American citizens, the majority of which are from North Carolina. Protesters have gathered near Northeast park and are demanding justice for their loved ones and their city. Still, the president is standing by his decision, and for the time being, the diplomatic approach will be taken. No NATO or other UN forces will intervene until the necessity arises. May God help our brave men and women. This is Kevin Harper, signing off."
The news ended and Logan turned off the TV while sipping his beer. A few moments later knocking came on his front door. Logan stood up and answered, only to find two men dressed in military uniforms standing in front of him. Both were clearly older than Logan and one had gray hair while the other one had blonde hair and carried a briefcase.
"Captain Logan Connors?", asked the man with gray hair.
"Yes.", Logan answered, "What can I do for you, Lieutenant General?"
"My name is Patrick Coleman and this is Brigadier General Oscar Wayne. May we come in?"
"Of course.". Logan let them enter and closed the door. He showed them to the living room where they took a seat on the couch and Logan sat in front of them. "Now. To what do I own the pleasure of sitting in front of the leader of the rift expeditionary force?"
Oscar was a bit stunned by his question, "How did you-"
"Why else would you be here? I'm one of the rangers that are going over there, aren't I?"
Patrick chuckled and pulled out a folder from the briefcase. "Logan Hannibal Connors. Unique middle name. Joined the military at age of 19, and was recruited into special forces at age of 24 upon reaching the rank of lieutenant but quit a month after starting. Rewarded the Medal of Honor and the rank of captain on August 29th in Thailand after saving three platoons of soldiers in an attack on a remnant True salvation outpost. Now serving the army rangers and saving up money to help his father, Marcus Connors, walk again after his legs were paralyzed in a car accident last year. Those new nerve surgeries sure are expensive."
"Where are you going with this lieutenant-general?", Logan asked.
"I don't want to sound like I'm trying to bribe you, that's not my job. I'm just saying that if you take this opportunity it will prove to be mutually beneficial."
Logan took a long look at the folder Patrick was holding. Was this really worth it? This could help his father, but he was going to a completely foreign land to fight an enemy only seen in fiction. He knew there was going to be war, that he will have to fight. Question was, could he? After much consideration, Logan spoke, "Fine. I'll do it. But I want my father's medical bills paid for in full and I want insurance for him and my sister."
"We can arrange that.", Patrick said, "Thank you for accepting this, captain."
"Don't thank me yet. But what's your role in all of this, brigadier general?"
"Me?", asked Oscar, "That's simple. I'm the commander of the first REC infantry brigade. We will go in first and prepare the terrain for the first armored brigade which will properly enforce FOB Galdush. That's the name of the place we're going to by the way."
"And I'm supposed to be in it?"
"Corectomundo, my friend."
"Alright. Let's go win a war then."
---
(Around the same time)
Undisclosed location
The invasion was over in several hours. Zoya had never seen such destruction. Thousands dead in minutes, great beasts slaughtered like cattle, and entire armies turned to blood and ash. She wished she had never come here. She should have just stayed with her tribe in the Great Bolma forest all those cycles ago and not run away. This is what she got for it. A life of enslavement and then being sent to a foreign land just to die.
'Mother. Sister.', she thought to herself as tears went down her face. She was now in a human prison, all alone, separated from her kin. That soldier, Jeff Miller brought her there. He could have killed her along with Bora, but didn't. The reason was never cleared to Zoya. 'Please be alright. I beg you spirits, watch over them. Don't let them suffer my fate.'
As she finished her thought, three loud knocks came from the metal door of her cell. A small window opened and a man spoke, "You. Do you understand me?" After hesitating a bit, Zoya nodded.
"Do you understand me?", he asked again.
"Yes! I understand you.", she said frightened.
"Please stand up.", he said and opened the bottom window. Zoya slowly moved to them and was put in chains. A feeling all too familiar. The cell door opened and she saw the man who talked to her. He was slightly taller and was wearing blue clothing of material unknown to Zoya, unlike the two armed guards who wore black armor.
"Come with me.", he said and led her through the halls. They walked for some time until they reached a door with glass on it. As they entered, the guards stood outside and Zoya sat down at a metal desk. Before the man sat down, he opened a box in the corner of the room and took a white plate of sorts. When he placed it in front of Zoya she saw it was food. Fried meat on one half and green and orange vegetables on the other. She first assumed it was a trick before the man gestured for her to eat. She took the meat and ate as fast as she could. It was delicious, way more than anything she had ever eaten. As she ate the man sat down and opened a thin book.
'He can read?', she thought, 'He must be a scholar then.'
He grabbed some kind of sharp stick and asked, "What is your name?"
"M-My name is Zoya."
"Last name?", she didn't answer, "Family name?"
"I... I don't have one."
"You are a lepian, correct?"
"Yes."
"Are there multiple kinds?"
'What kind of questions are these?', she thought, "Yes. Brown and orange. I am brown. You can see by my fur."
"Alright. Where are you from?"
The questions went on and on for what seemed like hours. The man asked Zoya about everything. How she fights, her skills, what can she do that an elf can't, and what are her relations with the other tribal peoples. She couldn't understand why all this was important. If she was going to be a slave, then not even her name mattered. Why? That question kept ringing in her head.
After a while, the man closed his book and spoke, "Alright, I think we're done here."
Zoya rubbed her hands and muttered, "Can you... can you tell me who my new owner will be? Is it you?"
The man seemed confused by her question, "Owner?"
"Y-Yes. My slave owner. Who am I going to?"
The man laughed a little, "Unbelievable. The others asked the same thing."
Now it was Zoya who was confused, "O-Others? What do you mean by others? Others of my kin? Or other tribals? Tell me."
"Relax. All your questions will be answered in there.", he said pointing at the door on the opposite side of the room from the one they came in, "Just step in and someone else will answer your questions."
The man removed Zoya's chains and then left through the same door they entered from. Zoya stood like a statue for a while. She didn't know what to do. Trust this human? He could be trying to deceive her. But either way, she didn't have a choice. She opened the door she was told to open and entered the room. Inside she saw chairs and three more people. One male welfen, one leanoid, and a familiar face.
"Bora!", she shouted.
"Zoya!", Bora shouted back and hugged her, "I thought you were dead." The two friends hugged for a while before Bora spoke again, "What happened? Did they hurt you?"
"No.", Zoya said, "They just asked me a lot of questions and even fed me."
"They did the same with us.", the welfen said, "The meat was very good, however."
"Yes.", said the leanoid, "For a moment I thought about killing that human for food. The questions confused me. He wanted to know what my strengths were and where are the rest of my people."
"Same with me.", said the welfen, "My name is Brokil by the way."
"I am Gorgo.", said the leanoid.
"A pleasure to meet you.", said Zoya.
"Likewise.", said Bora.
"I see you're getting along.", said a man as he walked into the room. All four of them were immediately on edge as five more entered behind him. They knew that these men were warriors, perhaps the elites of these humans. "That's good.". One of them looked elderly as he had gray hair. One had golden hair and blue eyes, one had medium brown hair, and two were bald, one of which was very tall and had dark skin. The one who entered first had short black hair and black eyes. He was the leader.
"Who are you?", asked Brokil.
"A bit rude.", said the leader.
"Answer the question.", demanded Gorgo.
"Well, we're gonna be working together. So why not?", said the leader after a short pause and sigh. This greatly confused the tribals. "My name is Julius Fisher, but I'm better known as Chief. The senior gentleman is John Castro, known as Pops. This big fella is Griffin West, call him Boxer. The guy eyeballing you is Rick Hunt, Lucky. The ladies man here is Noah Ramirez, he likes to be called Pretty Boy. And last but not least, this is Ryan Spencer, better known as Rook."
"Hi.", said Rook as he waved.
"We are soldiers of the First Special Forces Command, also known as Green Berets, and our team is Spearhead. And you are Brokil, Bora, Gorgo, and Zoya. Nice to meet you all."
The four relaxed a little bit but were still confused. Finally, Bora spoke, "What did you mean by working with us?"
"Oh that.", Chief said, "My superiors think it's a good idea to work with the native tribal peoples as we know you hate the empire and the elves."
"That may be true.", said Gorgo, "But what makes you think we will fight for you?"
"I never said for us, I said with us. We will work together and beat the empire."
"Why?", Zoya asked, "We all saw what you're capable of. You can turn all the elven armies to ash if you wanted. What do you gain from using us?"
"We gain knowledge.", said Pops, "We don't know much about your land and we can use a guide. Besides, allies are always good in war. It's true that we can completely destroy the empire if we wanted to, but that is not how we wage war. In doing so we would kill tens of millions of people and that is not something we want."
This came as a surprise to the four. A force so powerful and yet they choose not to use their power to the fullest and crush their enemies? They sound nothing like the elves.
"Furthermore.", said Pretty Boy, "We're not the monsters your elves say we are. In truth all we want is peace. But since that might not be possible, we have to make plans for the future."
"And why us?", asked Bora, "Why do you care about what happens to us?"
"Because we want to help you.", said Rook, attracting the four's attention.
"Why?", asked Zoya.
"'Cause slavery is wrong.", Boxer said, "And we know a thing or two about that."
This came as a shock to the four. Do they know? Does that mean they were slaves, too?
"You see.", Lucky spoke, "A long time ago, there existed an empire called Great Britain. They, much like your elves, had the bright idea of conquering the world. At some point, they conquered our country and turned us into their slaves. But our ancestors rebelled and we beat them. From that point on, we decided to end slavery everywhere. Because everyone deserves to be free. No one can own another person's life."
The four could just listen. A part of them didn't believe this. These people fought against their rulers and won. And now they seek to eradicate slavery everywhere. This was too good to be true.
"So...", Zoya said, "We fight for, I mean, with you, and we gain our freedom?"
"Not just you.", Rook said, "But all of your people as well. All of your tribes will be free and no longer hunted by the empire."
"This seems too good.", Brokil said. Chief walked up to him and placed his hand on his shoulder.
"I promise you.", Chief spoke, "You and all your people will gain their freedom, if you help us win this war." The four walked to the corner of the room and whispered to each other.
"You think they're gonna accept?", Rook asked.
"I have a gut feeling.", Chief replied.
After some time, Bora stepped forward and spoke, "Alright. We will join you and fight. What do you want us to do?"
Chief smiled, "First, I need you to try these on.". He walked to a large wooden crate and out of it took out some clothing. They looked thick and were green in color, but it wasn't armor. It looked similar to what the humans were wearing. "Then, I need you to sit down and listen carefully."
---
(Twenty days after REC crossed over)
Late yellow season
Past the Yellow forest, Meilume region
General Drannor Crax needed to hurry. The news of the invasion force being destroyed in less than a day was as troubling as it was unbelievable. According to the surviving soldiers, the enemy has boomsticks and cannons much like the dwarves, but more powerful and devastating. This made the general feel worried but also relieved. He knew how the dwarves fought and how their weapons worked. Moreover, he had dwarves in his army and this would help him. The enemy is a more powerful version just meant that he needed to be more careful. At least in his mind.
The force of the VII army along with five thousand dwarves and five thousand auxiliary marched to the Galdush fields in hopes of preventing the enemy from making a foothold in Meilume from which to launch an assault. It might have been a good idea to get one of the three east coast fleets to launch an organized strike from the coast so they can pincer them, but it was too late to plan now. They were now eighty leagues from Galdush and one hill separated them from a straight towards the enemy. Drannor decided to go over the plan one more time in order to finish this battle with perfection.
In his personal tent, he spoke to his captains and the dwarves, "Do your troops know the strategy?"
"Of course.", said captain Bamur of the dwarves, "Dunan and I are prepared."
"Our legions are also ready, sir.", said the first captain of the elven army.
"Excellent.", Drannor said, "The spearhead of the attack will be the feral auxiliary, the dwarven legions, and the wyvern corp. The combined force of over forty thousand shall attack the enemy from the front, with the ferals serving as a distraction the dwarves will launch the initial attack with cannons and move in with shooters. The infantry and archer legions will move in from the right but not before the cavalry penetrates the enemy's left flank. We must strike hard, fast, and make sure the enemy can't use its cannons against us."
"I do not like the idea of our troops going in as distractions.", said Dunan.
"Have a better strategy, dwarf?", asked the first captain, "The general is the one in command here.". Dunan scoffed at that and didn't say anything.
"This is the best we can do.", Drannor said. At that moment, a lepian walked into the tent.
"I have news.", she said walking closer but was stopped by one of the captains.
"Aren't you forgetting something?", he said.
The lepian groaned and knelt. "My lord. I bring news."
"Speak.", Drannor said.
"I have returned with my scouts from observing the enemy."
"What have you seen?"
"They have already built a fortification of sorts."
This troubled the officers and the general in the tent. The enemy already has a foothold in their land. Perhaps their cannons aren't the most dangerous part about them.
"What kind of fortification?", the second captain asked.
"It is... strange. They have short walls and round metallic tents as well as long silver bushes. On top of that, many of the soldiers spent their entire day digging holes using metal monsters." This didn't trouble them as much as it made them confused. What kind of fortifications were these?
"What of their weapons and numbers?", asked the sixth captain.
"As far as we know, they have many strange-looking cannons that face upwards as well as several long cannons on iron carriages. Their numbers however can't be higher than eight thousand.". To this, the officers widened their eyes and some smiled.
"Only eight thousand?", said the fifth captain, "They dare think so low of us."
"Seems like you won't even need to send your army, Drannor.", said Bamur, "We will deal with the enemy and scavenge what remains."
"This does not feel right.", Drannor said.
"What are you saying, sir?", asked the tenth captain, "Not only will we destroy the enemy, but also prove why we are not to be trifled with."
"Do you forget already? This is the same army that defeated the first invasion force. I will not make the same mistake of underestimating our enemy. If what the survivors say is true, then their numbers mean nothing.". The tent turned quiet. Drannor's words held truth. If this is the same army that defeated general Ylindar, then they cannot afford to take chances.
"My lord.", the lepian spoke.
"What is it?", Drannor replied.
"I am just a scout, but when my people attack we usually prefer to go on a night raid and strike the enemy when they least expect it."
"You expect us to use such a barbaric and dishonorable tactic?", asked the third captain in disgust, "What do you take us for?"
"This is no time for being picky.", Drannor said, "It is a sound strategy, often used when facing an enemy with a strong defense. Attacking at night will limit their capabilities. Perhaps even inhibit them from using their cannons."
"You cannot hit what you cannot see.", said Dunan, "If we get close enough, it will not matter how powerful they are. Our numbers will drown them."
At last, a sense of hope filled their hearts. Perhaps not all was lost. This could work.
"Very well.", Drannor said, "Spread the word to all soldiers. The tactic remains the same, just that it will be a night raid. And tenth captain?"
"Yes general?", he asked.
"The wyvern corps will not move in. They can't fly well in an organized formation at night."
"Yes, general."
"Lepian."
"Yes my lord?", she asked.
"Take your scouts and prepare for the raid. You will infiltrate their base and cause distortion."
"Yes my lord.". With that, she left and the other officers as well. It was time to prepare. This will be the first battle with the enemy in the empire's own borders. No matter what, they needed to win. Or at the very least, make the enemy bleed.
---
Everything was prepared. The feral auxiliary already started moving forward and the dwarves steadily advanced behind them. The warhogs moved first, behind them were warriors, then shooters, and finally the cannon crew. Dunan was on the right and Bamur on the left, each ready to give orders and lead their legions to battle. As they moved closer they could see the enemy fortification in the distance. It looked just like how the lepian described it. All that was not immediately visible were the cannons. Perhaps they were camouflaged. A tactic used often by the dwarven general of the second Halboram army, Kutmec Coalcloack. He would paint his cannons in the color of the surroundings so the enemy couldn't see them until it was too late. No matter, all they had to do was get close.
"What do you think will happen, commander?", asked a dwarven shooter.
"We will win.", Dunan answered, "We have to. And after this, we will get what we were promised."
The dwarves wouldn't typically choose to fight alongside the elves unless there was something in it for them. Such was their nature. The dwarven kingdoms have good relations with the empire as miners, builders, and blacksmiths. A large portion of elven mines are mostly run by dwarves and with that, the dwarves gain a fifth of the profit. If they dug out five ores of iron, they would get one and if the ore is sold for five pieces of silver, they get one, and so forth. This made the dwarven economy boom as the elves control roughly eighty percent of the Tubal mountains. Now the emperor gave them an offer they could not refuse. If they contributed to the war, they would receive half of the earnings from North Altia, but also half of the earnings from the other side of the rift. The dwarves, due to their lust for riches, could not say no. Of course, king Bylnar of Benullur refused, but the other two kings assumed that when they win the war, Bylnar would see that he was wrong. And if he didn't, the elves would take care of him.
"I hope we do win, commander.", the shooter continued, "I want revenge for what they did to general Dalmin."
"So do I.", Dunan said, "But we must not be-"
Suddenly, explosions came from the front lines. The feral auxiliary started to die out as the ground burst into flames. Orcs, swine, ogres, and trolls were all being destroyed and their scorched bodies were scattered across the field. But there was something strange. The cannons weren't firing. Dunan would have seen them if they did. So how? It's almost as if the ground beneath the ferals exploded on its own as they crossed it. But that shouldn't be possible.
The dwarves were all in shock. "Commander!", shouted the shooter, "What do we do?!"
Dunan was stunned for a moment but spoke, "At this point, I would signal the wyverns. But we left them behind.". Before he could say more, something he never thought would happen, happened. A bright light flew into the air, shining like the sun. Then another and another. The whole sky was filled with them. What kind of magic was this?
"Commander?", a shooter asked.
"All legions, charge!", Dunan shouted, "Quickly, charge! They see us! We must reach them as quickly as possible! Go!". Dunan charged with his warhog. The rest of the cavalry charged with him as well as the infantry and shooters. Now that they can see them, it was only a matter of time before their cannons took aim. They needed to hurry. The hogs ran and ran, behind them the thousands of warriors and shooters. In the distance, he could see cannons and rods pointed upwards as well as the enemy running toward some of them. "Scatter!", he ordered and the dwarves did just that. They knew the power of a cannon and that they couldn't stay clumped together. But they weren't quick enough and the cannons opened fire. The upward-facing rods shot into the air and explosions erupted around the dwarves. Despite them being somewhat scattered they were losing hundreds. The warriors screamed in pain as their arms and legs were scattered over the land, the shooters fired at the enemy, hoping they would cause at least some amount of damage, but fared no better than the warriors. The cannon crew fired as well but were horrified at the sight. Their cannons couldn't reach and were destroyed by the enemies.
Dunan didn't fair much better. His cavalry was almost destroyed and he himself began to realize he would lose. But not before drawing blood, spirits damn him. He had made it to the lines the ferals crossed. He could see craters in the ground and bodies around them. Trolls and ogres were missing legs and heads while orcs and swine were blown to pieces. The ground beneath them did erupt. Dunan knew he would have to be careful, but he couldn't finish his train of thought as the ground beneath his hog exploded and he was tossed on the ground. As he slowly and painfully got on his knees, he removed his helmet and looked around him. None of his soldiers got through, they were all dead or dying. Some retreated, hopefully, they can tell the others. To the left he saw Banur's body, half of it in a pool of blood and the other half gone, he suffered the same fate. Exhausted and frightened, Dunan lay there and prayed. Perhaps the enemy won't see him.
On the left flank, the eighth and ninth captain led their respective cavalry legions. Ten thousand cavalry troops, ready to fulfill their part. As the two captains moved in they could hear the explosions and death on the central front, but there was nothing they could do. Now that the enemy used its magic to create light they needed to hurry. The cavalry charged in two arrowhead formations and had one target, the enemy's left flank. Their mission was to break it and move into the enemy's center so the infantry can take the rift.
The horses ran as fast as they could and could see the enemy's fortification. All that was defending them was a line of silver thorns. The eighth captain rushed in, hoping to jump over, but the thorns were too thick and the horses got stuck. Hundreds of horses got entangled in the thorns and the elves were thrown over. Thousands behind them either trampled themselves or stopped.
"Scatter!", yelled the eighth captain, "You have to get out of here! The enem-". Before he could say more the horses and elves were engulfed in flames. They screamed as they were burned and torn apart.
The ninth captain ran to the eighth and shook him, "Come on! We're still alive! We can reach the enemy on foot!". There was some truth to that. They still had hundreds of soldiers.
"You are right.", he said and drew his sword, "Forward soldiers! We still have a mission!". So he ran towards the enemy fortification alongside the ninth captain and hundreds of soldiers. He had not just hope, but confidence. Confidence that he can still do what he needed to do. Confidence was shattered as the enemy fired upon him. Their boomsticks spat thousands of led arrows at them as if hundreds of thousands of dwarves were in front of them. His elves were dying and dying quickly. They couldn't even get close as they were torn apart and left screaming on the ground. Time seemed to slow down for him. He turned to all sides and swore he could see the arrowheads pierce his soldiers. He could see the blood pouring out of them and the life escaping their bodies. He faced forward just in time to see the arrow coming toward him. It pierced his forehead, and in those few final moments, he thought of his home and how all of this was a mistake.
On the right flank, general Drannor moved with his men. He could hear and see the explosions on the other sides. How could the enemy have known they would come, and worse off how could they possess such magic to create suns in the night sky, was beyond him. He led forty thousand troops in hopes to penetrate the enemy's flank, but it hasn't been going well. They were being slowed down by iron thorns and were forced to use shields to get across. A large part of the army got over them, but then the enemy attacked. Their cannons fired cannon balls that killed dozens of soldiers per hit, blasting them to pieces. Most of the army that was on the outside of the thorns was destroyed and Drannor could only watch the horror unfold before him. After one of the explosions, a soldier was sent flying toward Drannor, knocking him to the ground. At the same time, the enemy fired its boomsticks and tore through his men. First, they killed the ones on the sides and then worked their way in. The survivors gathered near the general and created a layered shield formation, hoping to save him.
When Drannor came to his senses he got up and shouted, "You fools! You have to run! Scatter before they-", but it was too late. The enemy's weapons destroyed their shields and soldiers all around him began to fall, screaming in pain as their hearts, lungs, and heads were pierced by thousands of lead arrows. Drannor just stood there. Miraculously, he wasn't injured. He looked to all sides and saw nothing but carnage. Most of the men that crossed the iron thorns were dead, the ones behind either got blown to pieces or fled.
Drannor just walked. Slowly. He walked towards the enemy as he was taking off his helmet, then his wrist guards, then shoulder pads, and finally his breastplate. He extended his arms and closed his eyes as if he accepted his fate. It was his fault that nearly a hundred thousand people died, so now he was ready to pay the price. As he walked closer to the source of the firing, he noticed it started to die down. He assumed all his men were dead. Slowly opening his eyes, he saw a bright white light in front of him and a shadowy figure walking closer.
'Morto?', he thought, 'Have you come to collect my soul?'. As the figure got closer, he saw a pale-skinned man with a black boomstick and before he could react, the man hit him in the head and Drannor was knocked out cold. With that, it was over.
---
It was finally over. The ferals were all dead and the surrendering and wounded elves and dwarves were brought to Galdush base. This couldn't have been a battle, more of a one-sided slaughter. The enemy walked straight into them. First, the minefield destroyed the ferals and the leftover claymores took care of most of the dwarven cavalry. The entrenched Abrams tanks and mortars cleared the rest. Their cannons fired, but couldn't reach the foxholes.
On the right, the elven cavalry made their way to the barbed wire and misunderstood how it worked, which caused them to fall over and leave the horses trapped. Mortar fire destroyed what was on the outer portion and machine guns cleared the foot soldiers that tried to rush them.
The left side was bloodier. The infantry used their shields to get across the barbed wire, but most weren't quick enough and were killed by the mortars and tanks. The ones that did survive put their shields in layers, but that didn't help them much. After most of them died, the several dozen that still had a brain left and one crazy bastard stripped his armor and walked to the machine guns. Luckily, Logan stopped the firing and knocked the nutjob out.
The army was rounding up the survivors, cuffing them, and sending them to a special prison back in the States. Some struggled, but ultimately couldn't do much. From the scorched field came a group of tribals. They walked slowly in shock at what just happened.
"Hold it!", said one of the army soldiers who pointed his gun at them. The tribals raised their hands.
"Lower your weapons.", said Chief, "That's not how you treat your allies."
From behind Chief came Zoya, "Mina. Are you alright?"
"Yes.", spoke the lepian, "I'm just in shock. When you said they were powerful I never imagined this."
"I know. I can hardly believe it myself. Let me introduce you to someone.", she said as she gestured to Chief, "This is Julius Fisher, the chief of the humans' elite warriors."
"A pleasure to meet you, Mina. You helped us out a lot.", Chief said as he extended his hand. After a slight hesitation, Mina shook it.
"You!", yelled an elf as he was pushed, "You traitor! When the others find out about this, they will have the heads of your families, and then-", his bantering was stopped by a kick to the stomach delivered by Zoya which knocked him several feet back.
"Shut up.", she said.
"Is it really true?", Mina asked, "Will you really save my people?"
"Yes.", Chief said, "In time, we will free all of you."
This made Mina smile, "Then, we will fight alongside you.". She turned around and waved her hand several times. Far away in the tall grass, Chief could see people rise and walk towards them. A battalion-sized force of tribals. Lepians, feelians, leanoids, and welfen all walked towards the base. A lot of the soldiers stopped what they were doing and stared at them. The elves and dwarves felt nothing but disgust.
Chief chuckled and so did Pretty Boy next to him, "We're gonna need more uniforms."
End of chapter 6
---
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Hey, if you found this you searched for historical Roleplays. So why dont you check out why you should start a Historical Roleplay of any type with me.
I know alot about History, know alot about European History in General. My favorite Era to learn about is post-ww2 Europe with the Victorian Era a close second. You can call me by my username or Brunhilde.
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Some plots:
Cold War Era Archeological Roleplay
This Roleplay is set in 1967. Its set in the Eastern Bloc, mostly East Germany(GDR) and Poland aswell as Hungary. The main premise is that our two characters go on a treasure hunt and find secret Places.
The Year is 1967 and you just got promoted in your position in an American University. But with a new job came a new task. The Government has hired you to perform a secret Archeological Operation with a person of your choice. But you didn’t have a choice and got my character a Female Professor in a small East German University. My character has ties to the West and gladly helps you out. The Goal is to visit locations which are now underground due to war,natural disasters and landscape changes. There we must find treasures and secrets to help our allies.
One Problem we have is that you dont really like me due to my countries history. Could i change that problem using my methods?
Victorian Era Village Roleplay: Mystery,Romance,Action is what this scenario entails. In a small Village near the Austrian-Prussian Border a conflict erupts, you are called into war for your country and fight, on the way you stay in my characters village. Its a nice place but it includes a crime scene and a unknown perpetrator. We both decide its best to find who it is and bond along the way. Can we stop this person and establish order once more?
Time Travel Disaster. You are a ordinary person until you notice you can time travel. You go back to your favorite era and do the things you want until you realize you cant go back. Do you really want to go back? Or do you decide to stay and adapt? Its up to you.

I am a female, 28 years old, been losing since 17. I’m on 200mg Spiro, presumably it’s doing something since my progress would probably be worse after nearly 12 years but it’s certainly not a cure.
Also, not sure I’m comfortable nuking my T for eternity. My doctor says it “only works on the skin” and shouldn’t have any muscular or mental effects, but when you see transgender women grow entire boobs from nothing on the same dose I’m on… seems pretty systemic to me.
I haven’t had great results with Minox so I stopped using it. To be fair, I’ve never been very consistent about using it daily, mainly because it makes my hair look like shit. Since my goal is to not make my hair look like shit, this is a bit counterintuitive. I’ve tried both formulations and unless I use a tiny amount on wet hair and then blow dry, it looks greasy and crunchy. I’m not sure whether I’m a minox responder or not based on my inconsistency, despite using it every couple days for a few years.
Similarly, ketaconazole dries the fuck out of my hair and doesn’t seem worth the tiny boost.
Other than that I haven’t really been using anything recently. I have a microneedling device but not sure if using it without minox will do much. I use hair fibers and take vitamin D. That’s pretty much it.
I have only gone to endocrinologists in the past and have been refused finasteride or any other hormonal treatment by multiple doctors due to being female…. even though they’re already giving me a teratogenic drug and I have an IUD… it makes no sense and is extremely frustrating.
I’m open to oral minox — I have dark hair and pale skin, so facial and body hair removal is already a constant battle, but I’m at least used to it…..
I’m hoping that a cosmetic derm might offer some alternative options, especially because the visit will be covered by insurance, since my PCP referred me. But there’s a good chance they’re just going to try to upsell me on PRP, given I’ve already tried the “standard” stuff. I just started making good money but not sure I’m comfortable going that far yet, that shit is ridiculously expensive. What should my plan of action be going into this visit?

I take hygiene seriously. Like if I am about to get intimate with someone, I am taking a shower with soap. Few weeks ago I met a guy over Grindr, cute and all, and we started getting near and it was obvious he hasn’t showered down there or anywhere, ah that turned me off a bit.. like the smell was bad. So we finished off and I didn’t say a thing. Forward few days ago we text again and he invites me over, I thought I can give the guy another chance but this time it was really bad. Like 3-4 days no shower kind of bad. The smell was very “penetrating”. 😥 I lost all the connection in the moment and finished with disgust.
I just don’t get it..

I got diagnosed in March 2020 after catching what I think was Covid, my local hospitals were absolutely incompetent and they barely managed to diagnose me..
I thought I’d suffered with heart pain until today when I realized it might be the costochondritis instead, like a stabbing pain near my heart and slightly sensitive to the touch.. I had a heart monitor and EKG/ECGs and X-rays and they found nothing wrong and I’d been left thinking I’d die with a heart attack one day!
Both my mom and paternal grandmother actually have it, and the doctor said it could have been genetic as I didn’t do anything to cause it, it was subtle through late childhood but after that illness in March 2020 it got severe.
Does anyone get ‘heart pain’ and I noticed a weird uncomfortable sensation where it felt like it was flooding through my left arm below the elbow and into my hand where I had to keep squeezing things as if I was losing circulation? It was mildly there in the right but mainly left. I never really experience it in the right ribs only left near my heart and I’ve been convinced it was a heart problem until it crossed my mind today..
Left arm and hand pain and ‘heart attack’ feelings are common or not? Google isn’t really helping!

Due to personal reasons the ship engineer of my players' star ship has left the group and I was wondering if anyone out there would be willing to fill the role. It is not necessary that you play an artificer but i would ask that your character be at least a intelligent one. We are using the 5e homebrew source book 'Dark Matter', it is full of new subclasses, races, backgrounds, blasters, and star ships. I am also extremally open to home brew as per my approval and i encourage down time activities like crafting or brewing due to time spent traversing the galaxy (I even made a new type of magic item for this called techno-magic that your character can make). In addition role play is heavily encouraged, I go for a 60/40 rp to combat split on average but don't be surprised when there are sessions that are wholly one or the other. Currently the party consists of Captain Drik'Tharus (near human Space Marine fighter), Pilot Na'vi (Yuan-ti Divination wizard), Ship Doctor Elne Syldove (Elf Void Cleric), and Gunner Sash (Changeling Hacker Rouge). If you are interested in this marry crew then please send me a DM a chat message on reddit, tell me your preferred name, how much experience you have with d&d, what class you would want to play, and if you have an general idea of a character then feel free to give a description. We play on Fridays at 8 est, I do not expect your character to be done this friday. We use discord and roll 20 for the game, most if not all of my combats will be ran on a battle map in roll20.
Here is a little lore dump to tell you a little about the setting Space, Magic, Blasters, Gods, and Dragons. The Crusaders Mantle is a region in space located between two theocratic Super powers, both hungry for expansion and dominance. To the galactic east, The Metallic sea is the country of dragons and other reptiles lead by Bahamut, the Platinum king and his royal court of the metallic dragon gods, The Metallic sea is a powerhouse of magical industrialization. To the galactic west, The Holy Republic is the country of humans, elves, and dwarves, The H.R. (Holy Republic) is ruled over by the holy triumvirate, the 3 clergies to the 3 most holy of gods. where the HR lags the Metallic sea in industry it more than makes up the difference in manpower and zeal.