Page 73 of Knot All Is Ruined: Part 2

Chapter thirty-one

No one warned me about the solemn tone the entire army would have when we arrived at camp. It had taken the whole day to get to our destination. Things happened rather quickly as we ate and were sent right to bed. It worked out since we couldn’t risk any fires alerting the base to our presence, so there wasn’t much reason to stay up. The attack would commence before dawn, hitting them when they least expected it. Everyone believed it would be a fairly straightforward attack, since there was no reason for them to even consider they were at risk.

This particular base was a training facility that was in the middle of Northern Asturg. Once we took this base, it would allow us to fan out in both directions and hit the smaller bases nearby. With the addition of the Oscadian soldiers, we had roughly three thousand men at our disposal. While it was still a small group compared to the Northern Army, it was far more than we ever thought we'd find on our own. The hope was that those who surrendered at each fight would be willing to join the cause, adding to our numbers as we went along. If this was achieved, we’d be able to split off and attack more aggressively and swiftly. After this battle, we’d know if the plan was effective or not.

As we geared up, the whole camp was silent as everyone focused on the task ahead of us. I tugged my cap down over my hair, ensuring it fit snuggly as I stepped out of the tent. The air was crisp, but we all knew it would get hotter as the sun came up. Dressed in my Southern uniform with my newly assigned rifle slung over my shoulder, I headed for where the sniper team was to meet up. We’d be heading out in advance of the rest to place ourselves in the best position to offer support.

This base had high metal walls that had been constructed many years ago. According to Lucian, this used to be the main base the Northern Army operated out of. Two generals ago, things were shifted to Stalhold City as the hub of army operations. Now it was the most extensive training camp, and taking this first would cripple General Rasvan’s ability to send out new troops. There were two other training camps, but they were half the size and didn’t have veteran instructors like this one. Making this our first target would get the attention we needed instantly.

Thanks to Lucian’s insight and having been trained at this camp, he knew the layout and the weak points. There was a section of the wall that looked solid from the outside, but on the inside, you could see the damage done by an attack long ago that’s only gotten worse over time. If we blasted it right, we’d be able to gain entry with no problem. We just had to get our men close enough to set the charges. Which was where we snipers came into play. We’d be positioned in the best places to pick off anyone who might try to shoot them from the top of the wall or the watch posts.

Aiding us was that this part of Northern Asturg was hilly and still managed to keep scruffy tall grasses that we could use for cover. The other advantage of doing this before the sun even touched the horizon was that with everyone wearing all black for this operation, no one would spot us since they didn’t have stable enough power to run the floodlights. Lucian explained they had a generator but wouldn’t use it until they realized they were under attack, giving us enough time to set the charges. I tried not to think about the fact that Victor would be leading that team, but it gave me all the more reason to be watching his back through my scope.

“Attention,” Petru ordered, as he walked up.

Instantly everyone stood straight and turned to face where he stood with Karston next to him.

“If you haven’t already been introduced, this is Senior Officer Karston of the Oscadian Military. He will be adding ten other men to this group, and I expect you to treat them with the same respect you do each other. We are fighting for freedom, peace, and the end of this pointless war. Oscad has stepped up to be an ally, assisting us in this effort when they have no reason to. To me, that is a show of true friendship and standing behind their desire to be an ally. I hope this doesn’t need to be said, but I will make it perfectly clear anyway. If Senior Officer Karston or any of the other four leaders of the Oscadian Military give you an order, you listen. The same applies to their people, so I don’t want to hear any bullshit about fair play,” Petru informed, his tone brokering no questions. “Have I made myself clear?”

“Yes, sir,” everyone said in unison.

“Do you have any questions for either of us?” Karston asked, hands clasped behind his back and a commanding energy coming off of him. When everyone stayed silent, the Alpha nodded and whistled over his shoulder.

The ten men Petru mentioned jogged over to join us and fell in line standing at attention. One thing I noticed about the Oscadian Military is they ran a tight ship, and their soldiers could move seamlessly as a unit. I thought the Southern Military had a good grip on this type of thing, but seeing them made me glad I wasn’t forced to be at their level. There was no question if these men would listen to orders or not. While they were on personal time, it was like a switch was flipped and they became ordinary people. They weren’t robots, interacting without emotion, but there was such a dramatic shift in attitude and demeanor when they were called to attention. It was impressive and terrifying at the same time.

“Unit Sigma, you are now under the direct order of Staff Sergeant Petru. He is your commanding officer and what he says is law,” Karston stated, then turned to Petru. “Good luck, and may your bullets shoot true.”

“Same to you and your men. May the fates be on our side,” Petru responded. Both men saluted each other before Karston turned and left, heading back to the men he’d be leading. “All right, let’s move out.”

The Oscad soldiers fell into their formation of three across stacked one after the other. Since we didn’t really have a specific formation, we fell into theirs. When we got close enough to see the looming metal walls in the moonlight, Petru signaled for us to spread out. Each of us was to split off into groups of two or three and cover half the base, with a heavier concentration on the area we’d be blasting. As was agreed upon with my guys, I headed off with Petru and one of the Oscadian soldiers. Not taking the time for introductions, I glanced at the patch on his uniform. His name was Byres. However, I was unsure if that was a first or last name. Scouting out the perfect location was a much more challenging task than I would have imagined. We would stop to check the wind, temperature, and line of sight, ensuring that when we were on our stomachs, nothing wouldn’t be blocking our target. It took a few tries, but we found the optimal spot and hunkered down. A click came over the comms, sporadically followed by nine more, letting us know everyone had found their mark and were ready to go.

Raising a hand to his neck, Petru activated his comms. “Base camp, this is eagle eye. We are in position and ready for infiltration.”

“Copy that, eagle eye. Any unusual movement from the base?”

Petru took a moment to scan the area with a set of night-vision binoculars. “That’s a negative. I see what we expected, one person at each lookout and no one walking the wall.”

“Understood. We are sending in the blast unit now. Your orders are to take out the watch and provide cover if needed to the blast team.”

“Roger that, base camp, eagle eye out,” Petru said before switching channels and giving a double click as a warning before speaking. “Sniper team, they are sending in the blast team and we’ve been given a go on removing the night watch. Provide cover where needed. Click to confirm only.” Once more, nine clicks could be heard in response.

To my surprise, the Oscadian soldier wasn’t a sniper but a spotter as he pulled out this odd-looking scope set on a tripod.

“Target spotted, northwest corner of watch platform,” Byres informed Petru.

Fascinated, I watched as Petru adjusted. Curious, I followed along and spotted the man right away.

“Range five hundred yards and slight right to left wind,” Byres said as he looked from his scope to a handheld device that apparently was tracking the wind. Petru made a few adjustments to the dials on his rifle that I still was learning to use and gave a grunt of approval.

“Spotters up,” Byres called.

“Ready,” Petru answered.

“Send it.”

With those two words, I heard the crack of the rifle and watched as Petru’s bullet hit the mark. The surprised look on the soldier’s face before he dropped made me a little sick to my stomach, but I knew this was part of the deal. War was awful, but a necessary evil to stop the tyranny that would only continue if we did nothing.

“Target one down,” Petru said into the comms.