04 - Redemption

<< Revelations

Ages - Kurtherian Gambit - Boris Chronicles

Prologue Revelations takes place over fifty years after WWDE, after the aftermaths of total world destruction. Danislav is still Boris’ second in command, Lilith is established as Boris’ AI, with much knowledge and now, experiences in survival, but still weak in the physical and mechanical sciences. She could maintain their communication links and devices, but had not managed to replicate what TOM had achieved with the shuttlecraft. Nor did they have the capability to make use of the theory she knew. Other forces were still trying to take over Boris’ territory, which is why Danislav was on patrol. They had discovered this burned village, and were puzzled. As there were no supplies taken, this was not done by any local group, for survival, but had been done, by the looks of it, to try out a new weapon, and its effectiveness. This book is, however, mainly about Olaf, Boris' son.

Chapter 01

Boris needed to find a task for Olaf, his oldest son. He and Janna had tended to be overprotective of him, and it was being interpreted that they could not trust him, either his loyalties or his abilities. Boris was planning to develop this new, ruined town as one of expansion for his forces, which would be digging in there, for the winter. “You need to send Olaf. He needs to prove himself,” Danislav stated, leaving no room for discussion on that point. . “The problem isn’t a lack of training, Boris. The problem is all he has is the training. He has too little experience backing it up.” And Boris was stretched too thin. Boris could only protect so much land, so many people. Beyond that, all he could do was encourage restraint as firmly as possible. Prevent the worst atrocities. And to do this he needed troops and leaders. Over sixty percent of the population disliked Olaf for a variety of reasons, while less than five percent liked him. If they sent Olaf out with support from the self-formed militias, it might work. After the platoons he patrols with most regularly, often filling in for injured or ill privates and NCOs, the self-formed militias are the group most likely to support him. They view him as the ‘imprisoned heir.' Although, they won't be easy to lead. They all have their preconceptions of Olaf, and few in the militias have served with him.” “That brings up the second problem,” Janna began in a distant tone, “without any of the militias on the board, we have no reserve for the regulars which will be weakened when the coalition moves in to quieten the central lands.” , “Janna, we’re talking about the independent militia, not the official militia. The official militia would resent being sent under Olaf. Many of the more experienced members are still in the official militia because of the independent militia. The biggest problem will be maintaining numbers when we send Olaf’s militia away. “I’m going to have to slice at least an artillery platoon out of rotation to support whatever forces we end up sending with Olaf. He is going up against an unknown weapon. I won’t have him and his forces more vulnerable than necessary. Maybe not any heavier field artillery, but he'll need mortars.” Boris was too conflicted to give the orders to Olaf. He didn’t want to send his eldest son into battle. He didn’t want his son to live the life he had. Unfortunately, his son had been born into a time worse than any Boris had lived through before the Fall. Though there were centers of light, beacons of hope scattered across the world, after the WWDE, most of it had descended into violent feudalism of one sort or another.

Chapter 02

Boris wanted to send Danislav with Olaf, but then people would think that Olaf wasn’t in command, that Danislav was really running the show. . In the end, Danislav had agreed to find ten or so volunteers from the core pack that went wherever Boris traveled. At least they understood the motivations Boris had in keeping Olaf back. They’d lived through the Fall. They may not be willing to unconditionally accept Olaf as a competent field commander, but they would protect him to the death on Boris’s behalf. They might not have agreed with how he had treated his heir, but they understood the why. Olaf has been training for years, but had never been given a chance to perform in the field. Danislav complemented him on his increased fighting skills, and told him the news, that , he has finally been given a command, and Olaf is excited. He is finally getting his chance.

Chapter 03

Olaf starts to make command decisions on hos own. “We’ll call up the Amazon militia first,” Olaf stated to Danislav. “Danislav, I have to prove myself to the people as a leader. Father never worries about having women in integrated positions serving. Only a few of the old hands,” he paused to grin at his foster brother, “have any issue with it. He was surprised, as he felt that women in the infantry were a liability. The main difference is the Amazons train harder than any other militia to prove themselves capable. I need that self-confidence in their ability.” The Amazons had formed to prove a purely female force could be as capable as any male or mixed force. They held themselves to a high standard in training, and their commander, Major Petrova, was desperate to get them deployed. She reported them as ready, but there seemed to be some equivocation on their ability to co-operate with other units. That was what made Danislav most nervous, especially with Olaf having only a battalion to run a Search and Destroy mission. “Also, and this is more from a strategic perspective, they will be perceived by any local townspeople as less of a threat. They will give us a better way to communicate with the locals because of this. Finally, if they have overestimated their ability in the field, I can still use them for positional defense.” Olaf was going to have to act as the rapier to the other side’s hammer. Clear operational room, find out what they had, if possible capture samples, then return. Any intelligence they captured or gathered along the way would be a bonus. There were the two companies that had been sent to fortify and man the town Danislav had found. It was now being called ‘Hope Rebuilt’ by the locals from the farmsteads surrounding it.

Chapter 04

Boris wants to send a shuttle with Olaf, as defense against alien technology. If there is a weapon that can damage the shuttle, you’ll face the most danger.” Olaf did not want to advertise their assets. But, on second thought, he could make this work. The shuttle was valuable for other things as well. It had a capable sensor suite and had modifications to enable both etheric and radio transmissions. Beyond that, he could use it to make several trips with extra equipment for the forward base, and scout the areas around the new headquarters being established in the town that had been emptied. He needed to prevent his father from learning of his plans.

Chapter 05

Olaf remade the Amazon Units, as they were xenophobic towards working with male units and accepting advice from male trainers. The Amazons needed to be able to have any empty slots filled, or he couldn’t take them. The outright hostility to men had to go, or Olaf would be forced to take action. In this case, it would be the formal disbandment of the unit. It would prove dangerous and possibly even toxic to any mixed or all-male unit it served beside with its current base. He introduced shield wall, or phalanx training, advocated by Gyada, as it could teach them as a unit that no other training would, that they could depend on the man to their left or their right. That they were stronger acting as a unit than individuals. By the end of the first day, they were learning. Much more slowly, they were also developing a sense of comradery with the other units. Other problems occurred with the officers themselves. Major Valerie Petrova, wasn't paying attention to her officers’ actions out of training exercises and assessments. The more common problem was that there was a promoted officer micromanaging things. Her issue was a disregard for the necessary management of officers and noncoms. For Ivonika, it was a private, family issue. Those involved had been executed by Boris. Nimenen had been rescued from a group of particularly vicious bandits, as had her mother. Her dislike of men could be a dangerous thing. Their strong personalities and opinions were not being countered or channeled by the officers above them. Substituting a shiny new lieutenant and a sergeant being called back from retirement were not the best options, they were the only ones available.

For the other problems, he was mostly forced to put in shiny new sergeants and lieutenants. He even transferred a few of his assigned bodyguards into sergeant slots, swapping them for reliable men from the units they were moved to. This helped build esprit de corps for the new battalion. He was trusting picked men from each of their units to be by his side if the shit hit the fan. In addition to drill, training and assessment exercises, and individual task training, the officers were trained in tactics and strategy while using old style sandboard exercises. It took a total of five weeks to get the unit gathered, re-trained, and ready for movement. At the end of the on-base training, they had a movement to complete. Training rounds had been issued, and during the first days of the movement, they were all that was allowed to be in magazines loaded into the weapons. Lilith had come up with a compound that was dense enough to be fired like a standard bullet and acted as a marker on a hit. The marker rounds left residue in any gun barrel, and cleaning was an issue. They were better than previous attempts with training rounds, but would affect the accuracy of subsequent shots fired through the barrel before cleaning. They also taught a lesson by leaving significant bruises on areas hit outside the body armor.

Chapter 06

Olaf plans the movement against the dug-in battalions they would meet when they went to their mission. Boris had sent in two companies of regulars and a company of militia as his opposition force. Attitudes toward men still lingered, even though their companies were working together and mixed. even with the occasional continuing incident, they were overcoming their dislike of men. They were seeing that not all male soldiers were like those that their former leaders had told them to fear. This had been helped by mixing some of those with reservations—but not outright hostility—with the other units. They were willing to work with the men in their new units, and none of the men in those formations treated them with any disrespect. There was also the fear of consequences. . The punishment for a soldier harming another soldier outside the parameters of training was draconian and could possibly kill the perpetrator. It could be from ten years of hard labor or worse. Killing a fellow soldier with live ammunition would be a life sentence as a servant to the soldier's kin, with them having the power of life or death over the perpetrator. Finally, now that the problem had been rubbed in her face, Major Petrova was acting with energy and dispatch to stamp out any active action concerning what she referred to as ‘personal opinions.’ Olaf was also using his were as his Father had taught him – as adjuncts to humans, not instead of humans. Worked better that way. Olaf planned a night-time assault. He had a few setbacks, but his attack was successful. Paul and Lilith always analyzed movement events, advising, correcting where needed. How did Olaf do? “Top score this year. Ninety percent. They gave a few comments as to how things could/should have been different, but in all, a good show. Casualty rate a little too high. Olaf frustrated with to taking active part in the fighting. Paul put a hand on Boris’s shoulder and said softly, “Boris, it is well past time he was sent into the fire. That’s the only way to find the mettle of the man you raised. We both know that. You didn’t raise a scientist or a farmer. You raised a soldier.”

Boris seemed to listen, then left for a meeting abut a prospective action. Boris, having the resources to attempt an assault on fortifications without horrendous casualties, had been asked to help by the Finnish Confederation Council to help. Viktor, a psychopath, had inherited his father’s realm. It was faring poorly after it had been taken over by the psychopath. To maintain it, he’d resorted to raiding. That was causing issues for others with more stable realms. They were negotiating with Boris to take control and eliminate the psychopath.

Chapter 07

Boris did not like the deal offered. Use his men, then take control over the captured property, offering Boris for his commitments some land he didn't want or need and a minor concession on trading for copper and zinc. While brass case ammunition was nice, he could use steel cases. “I suggest you come up with a better deal for my people, who will be paying in blood, than a swathe of land that has little value after what Viktor has done.” The Finnish Representative said, “And your deal is?” Boris told them, having already written it up. “Mutual administration of the entire area, including St. Petersburg, until they can form their own neutral state between us all. I will even offer to provide cadre to train a force to protect its southern border for us, recruited from the local populace. While Sweden would not be involved with the overall administration of the region, they should have a say in St. Petersburg. I don't want a failed state between us, but perhaps we can encourage something like the old Swiss canton system.” Victor had a bad feeling about the Estonians. The Swedes and the Finns were being reasonable and honest, but the Estonians? Janna said she would research it for him, and they went to bed.

Chapter 08

A large number of mercenaries Boris had known ended up settling in Arkhangelsk after the Fall. With the resources he had made available to assist them, they had ended up considering him their effective commander, as did their children today. They wanted to go with him to St. Petersburg. He’d never wanted them to integrate into his realm. That choice was now taken away from him. They were making a statement to anyone who could see that they were a part of his domain. He wanted to protect the Romanovkan people more than anything. Providing a base for Bethany Anne to return to was a close second. Creating a kingdom or an empire was not his goal. But, as Janna put it, ,” He was a leader worth following.” Boris still didn’t trust the Estonians, so had sent a group of ten Werewolves to shadow the Estonian forces in wolf form and report on their movements. Janna had sent a family team that knows the southern dialect to investigate.” He visited Mark, the leader of the St. Petersburg force. Mark confident, thanked him for better Grenade launchers. Boris felt more confident with them than without them.

Chapter 09

Olaf had created his Base, from which to investigate the existence of an alien weapon. It had taken six week, and was now secure wit bunkers, water supply, all they needed. He was now ready to use a shuttle to go on a scouting expedition, to look for energy signals. Every theory of the weapon states it has to give off a large energy signature, to emit an etheric or dimensional energy signature. “If it seems viable, we will raid the site to capture the weapon, so pack heavy. Otherwise, we return. . If we don't find anything by the time we are scanning and searching a hundred kilometers west of Minsk, we'll have to re-think. But for now, we’re doing exactly what my father ordered. I need to be there to judge if any raid is an acceptable risk and to lead the attack if it is. “I leave in thirty minutes. Those designated troops need to be on the shuttle or be left behind.” The shuttle was now halfway through sweeping a hundred and fifty kilometer radius around the highway where it crossed the old Belarusian border. The first sweep, scanning a seventy-five-kilometer radius, had picked up nothing. Then one of the sensors dinged. He looked at the repeater plot and frowned. Gazing at the pilot, he said, “What is that, Vlad?” As they investigated, they were shot at. . A bright red arc, like lightning, flashed past the shuttle. Streamers reached out for it, but Vlad had generated a miss. The shuttle was hit by the next beam, and shuddered . Red streamers arced through the hull of the ship. There were screams of pain in the rear compartment, and G-forces suddenly took effect as the engine was hit. Brace! Was called, as the pilot used the emergency jets to slow the descent and the airspeed, then Evacuate! As they slowed to a stop. When he glanced at the back, he could see four people operating the emergency exits. The shuttle compartment was a picture of chaos. Blood and injuries were obvious on about half the troops in the rear. “Salvage everything you can!” he shouted at those who were coming back into the compartment. He moved to one of the exits. “Stretcher the badly wounded and the dead,” Olaf ordered. I have to set the engine to blow.” He had ninety minutes to get everyone out of the blast radius of about half a mile. An enterprising sergeant had taken the expedient of having a pair of Weres rip the pair of medium railguns off the turret. They would either work or not. They had to get clear of the crash site. They passed over the crest of the hill over three kilometers away, and considered that far enough, and safe enough. They buried their dead, and were astonished at the force of the shuttle blast. They made it to the safety of a copse of trees large enough to protect them, and they rested, allowing their injured to heal more rapidly. Olaf cursed himself. Although he had sent a transmission of the enemy's location, he had failed to transmit his group's survival.

Chapter 10

Boris can’t go to rescue Olaf because of the St. Petersburg activity. Other commanders were too green or too politically dangerous to be allowed to go. The other siblings weren’t interested in going. So that left Paul to go. “Besides, I have to back a play I’ve been suggesting for years. I’ll bet you that bottle of Glenfiddich that I’ve been keeping that your boy has everything sorted before we get there.”

Chapter 11

Paul was organizing his command when a folder was dropped on his desk by his wife, Alecta, AKA Corporal Martia Ilyushin. She had qualified in the field, knowing he would go back to fighting someday, and that she would go with him. Her friends, his friends, their friends, filled out the rest of the command. They had a long bike ride ahead of them.

Chapter 12

Olaf’s group took two more days to find a cave in which to hide, and recuperate. Were’s could hunt, and the cave was defensible. If he hadn't been reduced below twenty-five troopers by having to detach guards for the wounded, he would have been tempted to march towards the initial contact point. He just could not see a way to safely perform a scout and scoot against a force that may contain a Vampire with fewer than that. If the Vampire abandoned all caution and caught a group of less than five alone, it was entirely possible it would wipe them out. Numbers, or possibly Olaf himself, would be needed to defend themselves against one of those, and the Forsaken were a plague outside Boris's lands in Eastern Europe. The Swedes were the other exception Olaf knew of. . After a Forsaken came within a hair’s breadth of gaining control over Sweden, the people found a determination to clear their lands of the threat. His opposition was known to have a Vampire. That meant he needed to keep his troops in groups of no less than five, three teams forward, two available to fall back on or to move forward in support. That made his best option to patrol the space around the camp until the wounded recovered. See what was going on in the vicinity, be prepared to move. Where there was a Vampire, within days, there could be a passel of Nosferatu. The only place with recent human scents had been the hills, the region around the cave. Look for information. Even fire up the shortwave radio in an emergency and contact base.” On patrol, Olaf and his group come upon a group of humans. They open fire on each other, Olaf changing into a werebear, and he eventually captures their leader, a woman. Stasia. They are the local resistance, and told Olaf of the local conditions. Raina, the local vampire, had no were who would follow her, only Nosferatu, plus about 300 infantry who enjoyed raiding the countryside. Olaf could create a plan to take her, if he could convince the local guerilla force to trust him.

Chapter 13

Boris was searching a town that Viktor had demolished. Burned to the ground, including the fields. Some smoke-covered survivors, hiding in cellars. Some survivors would help him, some would go to his lands to live. Viktor’s Mo was to scorch the earth as they retreat, taking as many people as possible with them and leaving nothing that may provide us with any form of support. Boris just shook his head in disgust. Once the war was over, he was going to have to spend more time, effort, and resources than he had planned on rebuilding just the homes and trackways that the vast majority of the population would need.

There was a long march still ahead, and he needed to work on what the few villagers that had visited St. Petersburg were able to tell him about the occupied portions of the city. He was still thinking of an assault plan when he finally fell asleep.

Paul advanced to the base the Amazons were holding, from which Olaf had left. It had taken him two fourteen-hour days to get there, and they needed to rest. He had made it clear to Petrova that she was his tactical deputy. They had a mission and there was little if any reliable intelligence on possible enemies on the route. Belarus was always going to be a wildcard. They had been heavily involved in weapons research. Before the Fall they had also been a secretive dictatorship. Their primary export had been upgrades for older weapons systems—systems that major militaries considered obsolete. If there was any group that might have found a way to power armored vehicles without access to oil, it was the Belarusians. With the shuttle being taken down by an unknown weapon, something they had not expected any weapon to be capable of doing, Paul had to be cautious of everything. They needed to be ready for anything. Alecta soothed him, saying, “It's not like there is a lot we can do about the lack of information. We have a mission. We need to complete it. Worrying about the maybes is not your job now. Acknowledge them and move on. ”And so they did, into the bed in the corner.

Chapter 14

Stasia tells Olaf some of her past history, about her mother eating her family, and she killing her with a shot between the eyes. Only she, her father, and one brother survived. Father has never recovered from the shock. Would as soon kill a representative from a friend as not. Bitter that no one has come to help the smaller countries after the Fall. Stasia wants to grieve for her Mother, and Olaf’s understanding makes it possible. Olaf needs troops to attack Raina, so he and Stasia need to go to the next leadership meeting, in three days. Two days to get there, so they had to leave soon. The troops would be going, as well.

Chapter 15

Olaf unhappy with meeting place. Too vulnerable, so set watches, with other group members to identify “friendlies”. Oskar, leader of a small group, talks to Olaf about the main problem. “We can easily find four hundred fighters that will be interested in your proposal. That is not an issue. The issue is convincing us you can take out the tank the bitch has up and running,” Assaulting their base past a damned tank that can incinerate any that get within a kilometer, that is the issue.” The meeting was tense. When Stasia had introduced Olaf, it got worse. At least half the partisan leaders were highly suspicious of any outside influence. Others were positioning themselves, either around Stasia or around the leader most hostile to the plan. That leader was her father, Andrev. As the arguing continued, Andrev grew insane with his rage, and pulled a gun and shot Olaf. Stasia threw his knife at about the same time, killing Andrev, Oskar had taken the shot, and was laying, dying, on the ground. Olaf knew that Oskar had to live, and so gave him a vial of nananited blood, as well as dripped some of his own into Oskar, knowing it would change him eventually, but would heal him and keep him alive for the time being. Stasia spoke in support of is actions and request for troops, before she threw herself down on her father’s body.

Chapter 16

Olaf the bear, and his patrol, with Stasia, take out a Raina patrol., continue on their way to the meeting. Stasia kisses Olaf.

Chapter 17

The siege of St. Petersburg would start soon, except that the Estonian platoons had not yet arrived. Janna reported political upheaval since the signing of the treaty. Their advantage was that they could take down skyscrapers, because the had shuttles to transport forces. Then the Estonians did show up, firing on Boris’ forces. Boris notified his troops of the change in status, and repositioned them accordingly. Additionally. one of his own Majors had disobeyed in the placement of horse-artillery, and those guns would not be available in time for an assault on them by the Estonians.

Chapter 18

Boris arrives at the contemplated ambush site three hours before the Estonians, and positioned his troops and artillery. When the Estonians arrive, Boris requests a surrender, and upon the messenger shuttle being fired upon, inflicted 50% casualties on the marching troops, again requesting surrender. This time guns were laid down, and troops came forth. Boris queried them on information about Viktor, how he was raised, his field experience, and learned that he had been overprotected as well, but in a different way. Viktor’s father had eliminated all entities that had threatened Viktor’s success – beaten those who did better than he in school, or in training, or in anything, making Viktor feel as if success was a given. He was supremely arrogant, which could be used against him. He feels as if no consequences could ever apply to him. Boris learned from the Estonians that they too had been betrayed, so promised to keep them as “prisoners of war”, and then to help them fight against Viktor to get their families and homes back.

Chapter 19

Lilith talks to Olaf mentally (etheric/nanite connection), informing him of clues regarding Nosferatu behavior, and vampire behavior, in relation to his blood nanites. Wash armor and self to no longer emit any scent, and she will turn that down, as well. Olaf feels better about the expedition. Half the group leaders were accompanying him, half staying with the camp to maintain order there. Olaf sees Raina’s preparations, including the readying of the tank. Only rail guns could even dent it or stand a chance against it. Then Olaf noticed the gun on the turret. That was no standard main gun. Red discharges arced along its barrel. The square shape of the barrel, everything about it, told Olaf that this was the weapon that had taken out his shuttle. That meant it probably had the same effective range as a Railgun. Line of sight. Olaf’s rail gun, rescued from the destroyed shuttle, was not fully functional, and would have no chance of defeating the alien tank gun. Olaf shifted from the departing forces to the base layout. His 300 men against their 100, but any assault he could make would be suicide. Too well dug in, and impenetrable. His scouting party left, to go back to camp to plan. Olaf to take out the Comm bunker ASAP. Vassily said,’ “He’s the best man, with the best Were form, for the job. Besides, as a bear, he’s fast. The job needs that more than anything.” Briefing on how humans were to take out Nosferatu. Weres were to take out the two vampires she had as aides (in daylight?), Raina was Olaf’s’ main menu item. Her base was operating on a skeleton crew. Of the two vampires, he had feared one would have been sent to look for the missing patrol. His hope for one being sent with the tank force had also been unfulfilled. Most of the locals supported the plan for one reason or another. Those not supporting were sent away, to the North, under the guard of those who would make up the northern reserve and assault force. Olaf connected with Paul, through Lilith, to coordinate their movements, Paul taking on the battle with the tank, Olaf at the Base.

Chapter 20

Paul had to move forward, force an engagement, so base would be available to capture. And the assaults would be in daylight. Every survivor of encounters with Vampire-led patrols had reported them at night. Their plan had to form around that detail. Stasia had been picked to lead the southern assault group. It was the largest with a hundred and fifty stationed there. Olaf had a hundred and twenty-five in his own. The rest were in the Eastern group–the Fall-back position.

As gunfire sounded to the East, men erupted from the bunkers on the base. They were ordered back in, and refused. When they were shot by their own leaders, to make them return, Olaf charged in to destroy the comm unit building. Two of the machine gun emplacements fired on him, but he was too fast to track. He threw in the explosive, and ran. Others of his group were taking out the other emplacements in the camp.

The Vampire caves stank so badly they were almost unapproachable. Olaf had to assume there were at least three Vampires in there. As well as an unknown number of Nosferatu. He wished there were at least some shotguns amongst his force. Invading those caves was going to get bloody. None of the AK variant rifles that both of his forces used were a particularly effective weapon in cave fighting, especially not in cave where they were fighting against Nosferatu. It seems that they either can’t be out in the sunlight or have chosen to fight in the caves. Still, leaves us with the same problem. We have to fight them on their terms. We can’t rely on lights being there the whole way. If that’s all there is, I’m going ahead alone in the dark areas. I’ve trained for fighting hand-to-hand while blind. I doubt many in the group have. Besides, what if they turn them off to ambush us? And we need some of the guards to stay with the perimeter force. We don’t want to have to track down an escaped Vampire,” Olaf responded. . In a cave fight, it'll be trigger and bayonet anyways.”

Chapter 21

some of the werewolves wanted to take the vampires, instead of Olaf. They had ended up on the ground retching in disgust and writhing in pain from the stench coming from the cave. It was just too pungent for their animal form nose. Somehow, continued exposure was allowing Olaf to ignore it. If the Nosferatu tried to feed on him, they would at least be incapacitated according to Lilith. He had to get ready for what would probably be the most brutal fight of his life. It would be the greatest risk he had ever faced. Others had tried to dissuade him, but, “There isn't anyone else here who could possibly take down a powerful Vampire”. To be honest, Olaf would have preferred there to be no flashlights at all. Mostly, he would have preferred to go in alone. That would not have flown well with his allies, or his bodyguards, however. Now was not the time to be proud. Now was the time to be a leader. As Olaf continued scouting into the caves, he found supply rooms that indicated that she controlled a much greater territory than they had imagined. There was too much for pure raiding. They had to have people they extracted tribute from. Raina had to be stripping her subjects to the absolute minimum to have such resources. Raina's brutality had caused the entire remaining population of that region to turn on her with a burning, toxic, hatred. Olaf just wanted the day to be over. He needed to dig that nest of nastiness out. He was distracted by his frustration and impatience when the Nosferatu finally did strike. A swarm of at least ten piled straight in on him. Pushing him to the side, their numbers made it impossible for him to block the entire tunnel from the others who streamed past. Olaf heard the shots from behind him, and turned into a raging bear. One of the Nosferatu that had been surrounding him managed to bite, and it let loose a banshee scream of pain. Whatever had happened had frozen the other Nosferatu briefly. He was more worried about the mass. While he had injured several and killed at least five, he couldn't see the end of them. Then his back-up came in, fired over him, and killed the rest. The first, and least dangerous, part of infiltrating the complex was complete.

Chapter 22

He was sick of it. Alone, he could have defeated those monsters. Giving them more prey had been a mistake. Giving Raina more prey would be a similar mistake. Anatoly was down, injured. Oskar and Stasia had taken over organizing the treatment of the wounded. More than half of the forty in the assault group were injured or dead. From what he had seen, twelve of his bodyguards were among the fallen. A horrific price to pay. If he was going to prevent more unnecessary casualties, he needed to move now. Olaf was determined to take out the Vampire only he had a chance against. He would deal with the problem—with Raina—personally. Stasia wanted to go after him, to help. Oskar said no. But Stasia had a point. If Raina did have remaining forces, Boris would be at an extreme disadvantage. Everyone still in the tunnel was already in a risky situation. Sighing, he nodded and shouted, “Viktor, Terus, Delmar, George, Hugo! Grab a shotgun and load up on ammo. We need to at least try and save his furry and stupid hide.” And the rescue team headed further into the caves. Olaf grimaced as he detected ten or more etheric sources ahead. He could not believe that there were ten Vampires ahead. Besides, all but one of them felt wrong. For him to even be detecting one was a bad sign, as he usually detected none except the very strongest. As he approached one of the doorways, he felt the smallest signature rise and peak. Instinctively, he dove his bear form through, rolling to get quickly back on his feet. He saw a jagged red lance of energy pass over his head and smelled the acrid odor of ozone. A bitter taste filled his mouth as he realized how close the bolt had come to hitting. Raina was on him immediately, kicking. Olaf sensed the eight remaining signatures were beyond a double door at the back of the chamber, unmoving. Raina needed to keep Olaf on the defensive until her side-arm recharged. Raina was desperately hoping that she was tiring the Werebear out. Tension simmered in the room when the deadlock was broken. Eight armed figures burst in, filling the room with bullets. Raina looked longingly at the vehicle hanger. She could have evaded even that many attackers there, but flashing through the etheric with her sidearm charged could be a problem. The Etheric and the energy the weapon drew on did not mix. It was hungrier. That was what made blasts of it a more viable, and targeted, weapon. Raina drew a bead on Stasia, and Olaf jumped between them, taking the shot himself. It caused him to turn into Pricolici form, the first time he had ever done that. He went after Raina, hiding behind a tank. Raina knew of that form, and made a decision. She could not escape. She was one of the oldest vampires there. She could still die with honor. She rose from her place of concealment and exposed herself to the Pricolici. She could still die on her feet. In an act of mercy from the universe, she did not feel the blow when it landed.

Chapter 23

Boris could see that there was no real planning against an air assault from the shuttles. However, there was nothing that Viktor had used from his arsenal that could harm the shuttles, so Boris felt free to use them, and his forces were ready to assault the towers. Their biggest problem would be opening the rusty roof hatches with a modicum of silence. . There seemed to be a few sharpshooters in the upper floors, but no defenders otherwise. His biggest concern was the civilian ‘hostages.' Boris was just disappointed that he could not be part of the initial assault. He was moving in after the towers and central area between them had been cleared. The Swedes had landed a regiment of Marines, and the Finns had sent three times the forces they had initially agreed to send. Viktor was outnumbered more than three to one in troops. They were equal in artillery, but Boris had the crude howitzers he had put together. All Boris could do was wait. Wait and depend on the skill of the soldiers he was sending into battle and depend on the planning that had gone into the assault. Gregori entered through the roof, making his way downward, meeting little resistance, until on the second floor down they encountered a guarded door. The guard was taken down by a were. Gregori brought up the reserve squad as soon as the Shifter reached him. The comms unit would have to be on this floor or the next. That it was here meant they had to take it out quickly, quietly, and hope no transmission was interrupted. They decided the best option was to cut wires and hope they did not give the enemy advance warning. They would set a door charge on the door frame. The idiots had set the solid steel door into the original aluminum door frame. They blew the door, and took prisoners. They continued fighting downward, some floors, easy, a few harshly defended. Boris looked over St. Petersburg from ne of the towers. Two had been taken, the third about to be finished. Viktor could not fight on two fronts. He would have to surrender, or go to Hell. He was already relieved to see that civilians, who had escaped the clutches of whatever portion of Viktor's forces were holding them, were already being evacuated out past the siege lines by his shuttles. That meant that all the captives had already been taken away to the prisoner of war cage. He was relieved that he finally had the freedom of action to help the innocent victims of this dreary conflict.

Chapter 24

Boris awoke to find his command post under attack. Enraged by his own stupidity, he changed to Pricolici form and devastated the attackers. Returning to his quarters, he re-dressed, this time putting on his armor, to track the group back to their origins. They had found precisely where the enemy force had infiltrated their lines. It was an old sewerage line. This one was intact enough to allow passage underneath both perimeters to behind his lines. But if it allowed passage inside his lines, it might provide a route deep inside Viktor’s defenses. He had to organize a penetration force now. As his forces gathered, the tension amongst them ratcheted up. A successful raid would throw their opponents even more off balance. It would allow his forces to dictate the pace of combat. But given the direction this tunnel headed, Boris had hopes of an even more significant breakthrough. Depending on where the tunnel exited, it could allow an actual assault on his headquarters. An opportunity to pull off a successful raid on the enemy command post as a riposte to the unsuccessful raid against his own. If Viktor had been careless enough to leave no guards, or even too few guards, on the exit to the sewer tunnel, it presented an opportunity Boris could not ignore. And he was correct. They infiltrated to Viktor’s command post, and waited for dawn’s light. They attacked, and finally kicking down a thick wooden door, Boris burst into a room quickly enough to recognize Viktor as he attempted to flee through a door on the far side. Boris shot his knees out from under him, and he surrendered. Boris walked over to him, rolled him over, and squeezed the trigger to send a three-round burst through Viktor’s brain. Even though Viktor was dead, many of his commanders still fought, hoping they might take his place. Maybe as many as a quarter of the strongpoints fought to the bitter end, to the death. Not that they inflicted much death on Boris’s forces. Now that he controlled the majority of the city’s remaining food stores, and all its civilian population, he could afford to bombard them from a distance. With a civilian population free from retaliation, he had no qualms about simply battering whatever enemy forces remained from a distance. Within three weeks, the conquest of St. Petersburg was complete, and relief supplies were flooding into the city.

Epilogue

Boris and Olaf meet, to discuss the future. Paul organized the meeting, and Janna and Stasia would handle the negotiations. Olaf had found his freedom, and responsibilities, and Boris wanted him back in New Romanovka as the heir. Olaf won. But . If Olaf were leaving New Romanovka for this fledgling Republic, then Boris would damned well make sure it had the best possible chance of survival.