Okay, this took a bit of time and I REALLY hope you like it and see the positives. As usual, it's not my type of story, but has captivated me and on I go.
Please, Please comment and let me know if I'm doing okays with this.
Thank you... Flick.
*****
THRummmmmm... Engines worked in the background.
Without the arrival of the Planetary Infantry, Inexplicably delayed. The Holy Company ordered the 'Jean-Paul' to take and secure the remaining occupied city's.
While those cities were sparsely populated, they still housed hundreds of rebels in each.
With no place to recruit from and a largely diminished Marine complement, Captain Rawlings was forced to do his best in the time fame that was demanded.
Reluctantly they used the only option available if they were to succeed, it meant ignoring Company rules and using planetary bombardment from orbit and then a mop up operation by the Marines.
After nearly six months of hard fighting and numerous losses, the Marines of the 'Jean-Paul' finally secured the last of the rebel cities on Uraisa Six.
The city of 'Halifax' was a smoking ruin. Named after a small town on old earth, it had once been a beautiful city of Uraisa Six.
Jessica Davis and her remaining team of four Marines sat in what had once been a towering spire. Not anymore.
Now it was one of many ruins with nothing left but a lobby and a gaping hole in one wall.
Jess watched as Williams passed out a ration of 'Fleet Rum'. The Marines eagerly taking it from him with tired battle weary hands.
She checked her rifle as they drank and felt like she had fucked up.
Five of her marines lay dead. No one was blaming her, in fact the commlink was praising her actions.
Still, she felt like shit and stared at the blank eyes of a very dead Hicks.
He still looked so young but he had become a friend and valued 'brother in arms'. The tiny nanites they had injected into him in an effort to save him, now crawled in a silver stream out of the holes in his body.
Gathering into a ball for collecting with encoded precision.
She wanted to throw up, but she didn't.
She sipped her Rum and pointed at Hicks' body. "cover him up Willy." She said with a sigh once Collins retrieved the small silver ball.
'Willy' Williams nodded and grabbed a ripped up bit of cloth. Whatever it had been in the past, it now served as a shroud for a dead Marine.
She looked around at her squad.
Losses and her own excellence over the last few months had seen her rise from PFC to Squad leader with nine Marines under her.
They were a good bunch, mostly from the now none existent 'Recon Team'.
Lt Choi had given her Williams and Smith, both veteran Marines with more than ten years of service each.
Added to that she had had Halliday and Brooks from C company, plus Hicks, Ramirez, Collins, Dobbs and Kent from the recruits they had received on Amethyst Station. It felt like a long time ago, but in reality had been less than a year since they had been on Amethyst Station.
Halliday and Brooks lay outside, still waiting for her to collect their 'tags'. Their bodies a bloody mess from the AP mine they should have scanned for as they neared their target.
Dobbs and Kent were slumped in their death pose at the breach, both cut down by the heavy fire they had taken as the AP mine exploded and tore a hole the size of a truck into the wall, creating a much larger breach than they had originally planned.
Ramirez walked over to them as Jess was thinking about doing it. The tiny but strong girl collected Dobbs and Kent's 'tags' and limped over to Jess with a sad smile. "They got it done." She said.
To which Jess nodded.
"Yeah... guess so." She said sadly as she accepted the dog tags and pocketed them.
****
Captain Rawlings bunched his fists in anger.
He was listening to a fuming Director Jennifer Wells yell at him for laying waste to Halifax.
"With respect Director Hall. We TOOK the city and have secured Uraisa six as requested." He interrupted.
Reminding her that the time frame that the company had given him had been ridiculously tight along with the absence of the promised Planetary Infantry support, it was amazing that they had done so much.
She knew he was right and that they had asked him to do the impossible.
The ruination of Halifax was a small price to pay for a 'breadbasket' planet being back under Company control.
Director Wells scowled at Rawlings. "General Hawking will NOT be happy." She said with an angry snort.
He shrugged, letting her know he didn't care what some ground hog General wanted. "He can kiss my ass. All he has to do is baby sit this planet. He was meant to BE here FOUR months ago. " He replied.
Wells wasn't about to argue further, she and the Company needed the 'Jean-Paul' too badly for that. The war around Janus Four was proving difficult.
"When can you get to Janus?" she said, changing the subject.
"Four weeks minimum, we need to resupply and the Marines need replacements."
"Make it Three." She said firmly. "Best I can give you is what 'Emerald Station' has scrapped together."
Rawlings knew that Emerald Station was tiny and wouldn't have much in the way of replacements for his Marines. "What about Shellan Four? They have a mustering barracks." He said with annoyance.
Wells shook her head, "The 'Saint Michael' emptied it four days ago, sorry Jerry... Troops are hard to come by right now."
Her use of his given name and the look of genuine regret. Let him know she really WAS sorry.
Captain Jerry Rawlings shook his head and swore under his breath before he replied. "Three weeks. If the planetary Infantry get here on time." He said, not really expecting them to.
"They will. They better... Wells out." She ground out in a stressed tone before closing the link.
*****
Captain of the aging 'Jean-Paul', Jerry Rawlings slumped into his chair and frowned out of his window. The Blue and Green ball of Uraisa Six looked peaceful from up here.
It had cost him over half his Marine force to subdue and reclaim for the Holy Company. A thankless task and one he hadn't wanted to do, not with only a half Battalion of Marines at his disposal.
He scanned the reports and grimaced, out of over five hundred men, the 'Jean-Paul' Marines now had less than Two hundred left.
True, they were battle hardened and what remained were probably some of the most professional and experienced troops on any ship. But too few, far too few.
He rubbed his temples and looked at the report from Uraisa six's new civilian leadership. They wanted a meeting to discuss what happened now.
The transition back to civilian control was inevitable and needed. He didn't want his troops planet side for any longer than necessary, there was bound to be bad blood and feelings would be running high.
The last thing he wanted was for his men to be acting as a police force. Marines did NOT work well as peace keepers.
******
The reports showed heavy losses from 'C' company and the former '306' company, both of them had been what were called 'lights'.
The overall intel for the last month had been next to useless. He might have regretted the decision to deploy them without an upgrade in body armour. Perhaps if he had converted them to the heavier armour they might have had fewer losses.
That was the rub though, IF he had, would they have been able to move as fast as they had and secure the city? A prolonged battle would have also led to heavy losses.
He just didn't know, neither did anyone else. Plans tend to go to shit as soon as the first bullet flies.
But looking at the reports, it was obvious that the rebels had somehow obtained military grade Anti-personnel mines and RFRG's.
It would take a lot of digging to find out HOW they had gotten hold of such restricted weaponry.
He doubted he would get any real answers before they had to hand over to the 'Ground hog' infantry and leave for Janus Four.
******
There was a knock on his door.
"Enter." He growled out as he slapped shut the folder of paper reports.
"Well THAT was FUCKED." Said Lt Choi as he walked into Rawlings ready room.
Rawlings would have kicked anyone else out and probably have them given 'ships lashings' for saying what Choi had.
But he knew and respected Choi, they had once grown up together on the same planet and had enlisted at the same time. Though Rawlings had gone to Fleet and Choi had gone to the Marines.
"Yes. It WAS... how did yours do?" asked Rawlings, already weary from reading the 'butchers bill.' Yet wanting to know how the man he considered the closest thing to a friend on board had faired.
Choi shrugged as he took out a 'stim stick' and lit it. "Better than most. Lost twelve." He grunted out as he exhaled the illegal smoke.
Jerry Rawlings shook his head, Choi liked to push him.
"Give me one of those you old cunt." He said with a smile.
Choi handed over the packet of extremely expensive sticks with a grin.
"remember when we were in high school?" he said as Jerry lit up.
Captain Jerry Rawlings nodded as he exhaled in pleasure. "Yeah, you used to bum these off me."