As Lynn heard the command, she glanced at her shotgun and let out a soft sigh. "Well, fuck me sideways," she breathed to herself, before pushing up to take the vanguard with several other Revenants. Pushing up, they finally had eyes on the clearing. Though weren't revealed to the unknown force yet. Though what they saw caused Lynn's jaw to drop momentarily, before a shot pinged in the rock next to her. "Vanguard force taking fire!" Her voice chimed out over comms, before she pulled behind the boulder. Hunkering down after a quick glance to see who it was. Confusing, though she made out that it weren't the soldiers in the clearing that were fighting to the bitter end. "Sniper fire!" She added to the call-out, before throwing a quick glance from the other side of her cover. "Not them in the clearing - whatever the fuck they are."
And whatever the fuck they were, they were a sight to behold.
Q scaled the ridge Hati pointed out to her swiftly, rifle at a ready. Trimmed at a small nest of sniper, spotter and two soldiers for fire support and guards to the pair. Though through the marvel that was the ECS, all that was visible was the mud-tracked smile, which didn't do anything to give her away. A message broadcasted to the Geists of the main force and Hati's team. "Got eyes on a Crimson sniper nest. Repeat - it's Crimson's assualt on the unknowns." Slowly, she looped the rifle's belt around her shoulder and grasped at one of the grenades on her belt. Taking slow and measured steps to approach the nest. Still as death itself.
Slowly smoothing the pin out, she made an underhanded throw. The clunk of metal causing one of the guards to perk up. Yet too late to make out what caused the noise as a grenade ripped through the four entrenched Crimson soldiers. "Sniper nest terminated. Assuming position - proceeding to scope out other ingrains." The message came through again as she broke into a light jog, diving down to the floor. Pulling up her rifle and peering through her DMR's scope.
It was at the time Q's grenade detonated, Affin's force had made their way back to the clearing. "Shieldwall, open south! Two break each pod for cover! Hold wall North and Northwest!" With practiced ease, the rebels opened up the back of their shieldwall, several soldiers bolting out to find cover behind the charred drop pods. A bullet ripped into Affin's chest, winding the interim commander as she staggered. Everything went black for a moment, before her foot slammed into the dirt. Now all she could see was red. A veritable roar resounded, seeming to bring life to the inside of the pods. Several of the Tsumi that were wounded or unable to fight now both rushed and limped out. Some carrying eachother as they threw themselves into cover and contributed as much as they could. Even though the wounded reinforcements brought little to the fight. "Their
pebbles do not hurt us! Give them no quarter!" One of the wounded Tsumi cried as he lugged out what seemed to be extraordinarily heavy ordinance. Shouldering the massive tube launcher.
Though it seemed Crimson took note, several bullets peppering the armour clad - though battered soldier. However, not before a loud thump resounded, the sound of ignition and the shrieking of a rocket ripping through air. A massive explosion ensuing within Crimson ranks, fire and smoke billowing up in a mushroom cloud. The Tsumi had dropped not seconds after, although a company of two had rushed to his side. One dragged the demolitionist off, whilst the other protected both with a gargantuan, full steel tower shield.
Another roar rose from the shieldwall, Affin's voice answering it with a bloodthirsty cry herself as she stuck close to them. Supporting her rifle on one of the shoulders present. "Stetark's ferocity! Feldark's determination! Ywach's resilience and Saweya's holy light! We shan't fall today!" The dry thumping of several star splitters being fired resounded, explosions littering behind the woodline that bordered the clearing. "With steel will and rock-skin! With bloodlust and bloodrage! We
were made for this! We are war-kin!" Affin's cry emenated across the battlefield. Finding traction amongst the present soldiers as the shieldwall began stomping their boots and thumping the sides of their shields together.
"We are war-kin," began to echo from the Tsumi ranks in repeated chant. Battered and bloody by now. But refusing to succumb, the advantage of surprise was eliminated for Crimson and the Tsumi began to rally.