“I'm going to hear a lot from Danny, aren't I?” Liz said. “I'm not even all that interested in baseball. I'm more of a Brewers fan anyhow, truth be told.”
“Ugh, not the time to bring that up to him,” Zach said.
“Is that why you didn't bring him along,” Liz said.
“No, he took the platoon for a raid,” Zach informed her. “They got good information that there's a supply convoy moving valuables out from Old Chicago. They're going to catch them out in the open and blast them.”
“I'm surprised that you didn't send me along as well with my platoon,” Liz said.
“They'll be able to handle it themselves,” Zach said. “Besides, this is going to be important, and I need you here with me. I don't have Nora, after all.”
“Still need an adjunct, eh?”
“Hey, it gives me someone to counterbalance me so I don't make stupid decisions. And it gives me a more dignified air. Especially since you're from another company. That's got to mean something.”
Zach and Liz were flying to a meeting with the alliance led by Ronin Company. Ronin had decided they wanted to have greater cooperation with Hydra, and had put out feelers to see if that was possible. Many of the companies in Hydra were still wary of Ronin; after all, they weren't sold on the way they operated, or that they were capable of taking on Ragnarok for a sustained period of time. However, the original five members of Hydra were receptive to the idea. Anything that drew Ragnarok's attention was good for them, and they wanted to see what it would take in order for that to happen. Even Gina, who was one of the least enthusiastic about the possible cooperation with Ronin, saw the whole thing as a good chance to take. In her mind, Hydra could use Ronin like a shield, deflecting attacks away from themselves and letting another take the brunt of them.
They weren't going to bring it to the council's attention until they had a concrete agreement on the table that was agreeable. The sheer dislike for Ronin meant that any proposal made without actual plans was going to be stonewalled by some of the more obstinate companies. Zach couldn't exactly blame them for that either. Ronin was probably looking for an opportunity to exploit Hydra, just as they were doing the same in return. That was the ugly nature of politics in this game, and Zach wasn't terribly bothered by it. Coupling that duplicity with the amount of sheer dislike for Ronin meant that many companies would actively balk at the prospect of working with Ronin.
Much of that had to do with the rigid style of Ronin Company, along with the way that they were organized. Ronin was headed by Levi Kanagi, who controlled every aspect of the company. Ronin was equipped a certain way, fought a certain way and was organized a certain way. There was little room for flexibility in their doctrine, and that was because of Levi's hands on approach. Nothing was allowed to pass without his notice, and that had extended to trying to form an alliance. The unaffiliated companies might have hated Ragnarok, but they hated Levi's way of doing things just as much and refused to join, even with Ragnarok at their doorsteps.
Then again, they had simply formed up into their own alliance and hoped for a miracle. Black Wolf, Redd Foxx and Sacred Sword had been proactive and had put themselves in a good position. With the addition of Grizzly and later Hephaestus they gained a strong power base, which they had leveraged in order to bring the rest into the fold. Once Ragnarok had taken their strongholds they had little choice but to join Hydra or disband. That wasn't bad for them, though, since they gained access to a large treasury, armory, advanced technology and the greatest player-owned fortress in the region.
But Ronin was an entirely different story. They had managed to form their own small alliance, which was fighting Ragnarok for all it was worth. They weren't slouches either; The alliance included White Tiger, Dogs of War, Ascension and the recently formed Paladin, all of them good fighters. If this was a movie then they would be the true underdogs. For all the talk that they were outnumbered, Hydra had just as much power as Ragnarok. They were the two juggernauts in the region going head to head, while Ronin was simply struggling to stay alive. It was a minor feat in and of itself that they were still going and were a major thorn in the side of Ragnarok.
There thankfully hadn't been any major disputes between Ronin and Hydra. It was likely due to the fact that Ragnarok was such a threat; it would be a waste of time for them to fight each other when their real enemy was still strong. At the same time, their cooperation had also been limited. The attack on Fort Baldr was a good start, but there was plenty more that could be done.
Zach was especially keen on better cooperation with Ronin. Hydra didn't have any bases in the north; their territory extended no further north than the southern end of Old Chicago. If his troops were going to operate up in that area they needed a place to stage their raids from. They could possibly try to find a secluded place deep in Ragnarok territory, but that was inviting trouble down on them if they were discovered. They would probably have the Valkyries paying them a visit.
Cooperating with Ronin was probably the best option. It would give them a measure of safety, since any place they would be operating from would be guarded by Ronin troops. Coordinating with them would also be easier, which would make joint operations more practical if they wanted to do that. It would also serve to strengthen Ronin's position, which served in Hydra's best interests.
Even so, there were a lot of people in Hydra that were leery or even outright opposed to the idea. He had gotten approval for it anyhow by way of a loophole that Danny had suggested. The council had unanimously voted to authorize Zach's command to use any means at their disposal to disrupt Ragnarok in the north. Danny had astutely pointed out that cooperation with Ronin would fall under the umbrella of those orders, and so Zach was going to do everything in his power to make sure that happened. Others might not like it, but even the most obstinate among them admitted the value of the plan. There was simply too much to gain to let prejudices get in the way, as much as that might annoy some of them.
They weren't going to be the only problem. Zach liked Levi as a person, but trying to negotiate with him was like trying to get blood from a stone. He would probably have much better luck with some of the other company commanders, along with some of his subordinates that he would listen to.
That was their objective now. They were flying to meet with a couple of their representatives in an outpost in the western end of Ronin's territory, away from the fighting. As far as he knew, they would be meeting with three representatives; Rafael of Dogs of War, Tafari of White Tiger and Sam from Ronin Company itself. Levi hadn't been filled in on the details yet; they wouldn't bother until there was a solid proposal on the table.
“Hopefully this goes better than the last time we tried to negotiate,” Liz said, referring to the disaster at Ronin Fortress several months earlier.
“Are you thinking ambush?” Zach asked.
“We're in the middle of nowhere, so I don't think so,” she said. “I'm more concerned with us running into a brick wall with them.”
“Sam's a good one,” Zach said. “He's been our main contact through this whole thing. Tafari's the practical type, and he wants to do something to hurt Ragnarok. He'll go along as long as the plan is solid. As for Rafe, well, I'm honestly surprised that he hasn't jumped ship and joined us yet.”
“Still, this might be a tough sell,” Liz said.
“They need ammo, and we can produce that,” Zach said.
“Are we going to be able to produce enough is the question,” Liz said. “We're already pretty stretched trying to provide enough for ourselves and to sell on the market. Plus, if we give them that we're cutting down on the number of people that actually need to buy it. That's going to hurt us when we're trying to get fusion batteries.”
Zach grimaced to himself. He hadn't thought of that. “Well, what are your thoughts?”
“Would we be willing to give them schematic designs?” Liz asked.
“I thought of that. The problem is, if Ragnarok realizes that they're likely g
oing to go after Ronin to get them. And while that might buy us some time, we'll eventually have a much more heavily armed enemy on our doorstep. We don't exactly have many throwaway ones we can offer.”
“I have a feeling that they might be insulted if we offered them anyhow,” Liz said. “They'd want the big guns, and I wouldn't want to give them up. My other suggestion would be to offer them aid in the field. Like, we'll agree to perform a certain number of raids for them in exchange for a base.”
“That sounds like a good idea,” Zach said. It matched up with their objective of keeping Ragnarok off balance as well. Plus, it would help to prop up Ronin as well, which in his mine was going to be important.
“So do we want to offer only that?” Liz asked.
“Yeah, that seems like the best bet,” Zach said. “If they don't go for it we'll find another way. But I think it will work.” In his mind the exchange was worth it. The agreement would cost Ronin nothing and would gain them a force that they could use to attack Ragnarok's weak points.
“We're one minute from the landing point,” Cole said.
“Thanks Cole,” Zach said. “Ready for this?” he asked Liz.
“Just as long as there's no shooting, we'll be fine,” she answered.
“It's at the far end of Ronin territory. I don't think that's going to be a problem unless they betray us, and that's not going to happen. Whatever else you can say about them, they're loyal, and they take their word very seriously.”
The outpost below them was small, little more than a converted house and a garage surrounded by a log wall about eight feet high. There was a sizable courtyard in within the stockade, though, and that was where they landed. Three figures moved out to greet them as he and Liz unbuckled themselves.
One of them offered his hand, a soldier with Ronin's insignia on his shoulder. “Good to finally see you in person again,” Sam said.
“Likewise. It's been a little hectic down in the south,” Zach replied.
Tafari was up next. He was a heavy built for strength. He towered over the rest of them, and his dark skin looked like it hid a ton of muscle underneath. “Good to see you again,” he said.
“And good to see you too.”
Rafe was last. “Hopefully this goes better than last time,” he said as he shook Zach's hand. He was a sniper, medium height but thin.
“I can't imagine how it could go worse,” Zach said.
They finished introductions and headed inside the main building of the outpost. Sam lead them into one of the larger rooms. There was a table and a half dozen chairs inside. Sam, Zach, Liz and Rafe took a seat. Tafari leaned up against the wall.
Sam spoke up first. “Alright, so you want a base inside our territory,” he said plainly.
“That's correct,” Zach said. “We want somewhere closer to Ragnarok territory so we can strike further into it.”
Sam nodded. “I'm guessing that you want to have a base on the river, so you can also use it to launch boats out of. I think that it should be at White Tiger's fortress. That's on the river, and it's heavily guarded so Ragnarok isn't going to be able to pull sneak attacks.”
“Can Ragnarok get across the river?” Liz asked.
“We control the only crossings, so no,” Rafe said. “The only way they can take them is by using a lot of troops, and that leaves them vulnerable to you guys. They also have to cross the river before they attack, so they're penned into a small area where they're sitting ducks.”
“Do they have boats?” Zach asked.
“Nothing major. They can send small raiding groups across, but they're nothing we can't handle. Plus, they're pretty lightly armed. If you have a couple of your craft patrolling the river they're going to be pretty hesitant to cross.”
“We're willing to raid some places for you, in exchange for the base,” Zach said.
“Good. That's going to be a lot easier to sell,” Tafari said.
Zach looked at them, confused for a moment. “What, were you just going to give it to us for free?”
Rafe shook his head and grinned. “Well, I wouldn't exactly call it free...”
Tafari shrugged. “You're going to be raiding Ragnarok. That helps us no matter how you slice it, and that's what we need. I'm more than happy to help you however I can as long as you're hurting them.”
“Actually, there is something that you can do for us,” Sam said. “We've been scouting to the north of here. We've discovered an abandoned airfield that probably has a schematic but we can't clear it with anything less than a platoon. And we can't spare that many troops at the moment. If you guys could clear the place out and get the schematic for us, we would be willing to share. And that would probably fill your obligations of raids to us.”
“Sounds good, although we won't know how well we'll do unless we hear all of the details,” Liz said.
“The proposal is fine as is,” Zach said. “We'll recover the schematic in exchange for a base. I can't imagine that the place can't be cleared out by two platoons.”
“Alright, I'll make sure that it gets approved by Levi,” Sam told them.
“It's approved, since it's my base,” Tafari said. “We don't have an official alliance like you guys do, so it's still up to the individual company commanders to decide what to do. And I think this is a good idea.”
“Don't cause a rift in your alliance on account of us,” Liz said. “If they don't like it, then we'll do what we can. We'll find another way.”
“That's rather candid of you, considering we could force you to make a better offer if we wanted,” Rafe said. “Not that we would, but still.”
“Who said we'd negotiate with you?” Liz said. “We could just grab a place for ourselves.”
Both Sam and Tafari laughed. “She has a point there, Rafe,” Sam said.
“What do you guys need help with?” Zach asked. “Our objective up here is to keep Ragnarok busy. We're not picky about how we do it, so if we can help you in any way we'll be glad to.”
“Well, anything that weakens them will be good,” Sam said. “We're not going to be very picky.”
“It might be better if we didn't know,” Rafe said. “The best thing you can do is to cause confusion.”
They were being evasive, and Zach could hardly blame them. True, both sides wanted to cooperate, but neither was forgetting that they were part of separate alliances. They had their own interests and would exploit each other for those ends if they could. Right now they were cooperating because those interests intersected, but giving away valuable intelligence would be foolish. There could be a time when both alliances ended up in a war with each other. In fact, if Ragnarok managed to absorb Ronin then they could be in serious trouble if they new Hydra's secrets. They would have to instruct their troops about that before they moved to their new base.
“Well, that definitely works for us,” Liz said. “We-”
The world outside suddenly came alive. There was gunfire, a lot of it, and it sounded intense. Sam was immediately on his radio. “What's going on?” he demanded.
“This again?” Zach grumbled to himself. His alert rang. Rielle was on the other end of the line.
“Wolf Lead, we've got trouble,” she said. “Ragnarok's here in force, and they're gunning through the troops here pretty quick.”
“How did they get here?” Zach demanded, though he knew full well that she didn't have the answer.
“Don't know, but we're going to have to either run for it now or resort to Plan B.”
“Copy. We're coming out,” Zach said. He turned to the rest of the group. “We're leaving. Contact me when you guys decide.”
“Sorry about this,” Sam apologized.
Zach pulled his carbine off his back and jogged out of the front door, with the rest of them close behind. He got out just in time to see everything go south.
BAM!
The front gate was suddenly blown off its hinges, rocked by several explosions. A few seconds later troops started pouring in. Zach and Li
z were forced to dive into cover as they opened fire. Several bullets came very, very close to hitting them.
“Crap, we lost Rafe,” Liz said, looking back. “Tafari looks like he got hit as well.” She peered up from her position and fired. A barrage of fire drove her back to the ground.
“Wolf Lead, I just lost Cole,” Rielle said. “I can't hold them off by myself.”
“They're here for the chopper,” Zach said. “Go with Plan B.”
“I didn't want to walk anyhow,” Rielle said.
BAM!
Another explosion went off. Small shards of metal started to rain down from the sky.
That was their Plan B. If their choppers were ever at risk of being captured, they were rigged with charges and a self-destruct switch. Even though it mean the deaths of the pilots it was well worth it. They couldn't risk Ragnarok being able to reverse engineer one of their best weapons.
And anyhow, they would be dead no matter what. There was no way they were going to get out of this alive. Ragnarok had too many troops and were through the gate already.
Sam sat up to fire and got a bullet through his head. Tafari managed to get off a burst at the enemy before an RPG came his way. Liz was thrown into Zach by the force of the blast. And then they had a half-dozen guns in their face. Rough hands knocked their weapons away and forced them up to their knees. The outpost was a wreck, and it looked like they were the only survivors.
Zach looked around at their captors. They were wearing Ragnarok colors and their insignia on their shoulders, an earth being engulfed by the world serpent, but they had an additional mark on their chest. It was a female warrior with wings, carrying a spear. A Valkyrie.
“Joy,” Zach said to himself.
The ranks in front of them parted, and a figure walked toward them. He had a sniper rifle slung over his back.
“Of course it would be you,” Liz said beside him.
The Wraith stopped in front of them and shrugged. “I'd like to know what you're doing here.”
“Just passing through,” Zach said.
“I bet,” the Wraith said. He made a sudden motion, and then there was a pistol in his hand. Others grabbed theirs as well. Liz was hit by a dozen shots.
Howl: A World at War Novel Page 8