A Battle Unseen

[Dredd]

[Ketia, April 20th, 5637]

Yariv had been holding the same block in this forsaken city for 3 days, they had eaten most of their rations and water was running dangerously low, the men prayed for rainfall to at least drink the drippings from the pipes and streets. He gnawed on a piece of starch bar and swigged some of the last water to dry his parched mouth. Him and another 8 men were in the 3rd story of an old apartment building, the shelling had blasted most of the houses around him as the concrete jungle of rubble was fought for in every street. Snipers, pill boxes, booby traps, they were doing all they could, and the single hope they hung onto was of the relief efforts coming from the north. They'd asked to be relieved by reserves multiple times, but the best they could hope for if anything were Legionary peoples guard. old men, reservists, or young boys from the sladek youth who had only a few weeks or a month of training many of whom couldn't be relied on when the bullets began flying, but the order came from high command, "Fight to the last man, show the enemy no mercy for you will receive none, Hail Lazar!"

Yariv was turned from his reflecting as a volley of artillery blasted around him as thick smoke filled the air, his comrade shouting, "Enemy movements down the street, make ready!"

Yariv rushed to the windows filled with sandbags and bricks and looked as he saw APCS, a tank, and a few dozen men working their way up the street building by building ready to strafe the windows and anything that moved. The two men next to him were retirees, probably veterans from the civil war, white knuckling their assault rifles, as a couple young boys in the back were smiling giddily betting each other who could kill a Luthorian first, but from the look of the binoculars Yariv gritted his teeth as he saw insignia of Hutorian marines. Yariv wasn't a fool, these men were professionals and miles above the militia who fought only out of fear or to defend their families in the city to evacuate or live, the legion showed the film reels about the enemy, they'd be tortured if captured or at best shot in the head, their wives and daughters brutally abused. Yariv motioned for an RPG and loaded a tandem round, and began taking aim at the tank ahead as a few other soldiers grabbed rifle grenades.

Slowly advancing...wait for it....

Yariv fired the tandem round hitting the Hutorian tank in the front of the turret, he had hoped it would have been completely knocked out, but was still happy to see the barrel bent sideways and black smoke burning around the impact as a crewman jumped out and the tank coax machine guns began wildly firing. His comrades began firing a tripoded heavy machine gun and firing whatever they could at the infantry and APCS. A few were killed outright but once they realized where the fire had come from, Yariv and his comrades were poured upon by a hail of machinegun fire from vehicle and infantry both, barely able to peek through the windows and fire ports. One of the boys yelped and began screaming as his 4 of his fingers were ripped from a hand, one of the older men was already laid on the floor missing half his head. An series of explosions striking the walls send bricks and dust cascading around them as L-AT rang their ear drums, the enemy infantry was rushing forward.

Yariv in a daze got up yelling to the others but couldn't hear his own voice, only a couple of them his fellows from his original squad, real soldiers, saw him waving his hands. He pointed to the stairwell as they could only hope to fight a desperate defense for the interior, booby trapped and barb wired. Yariv held one stairwell as Dmitri guarded the larger one with Ruslan. Yariv's hearing began to come back a bit as sweat beaded down his forehead as he sat unblinking gazing down the dark stairs, an explosion rang out and soon came screaming, at least one of the tripwires was triggered he thought mind racing, heart pounding. He saw flashlights coming closer and closer, before finally one began nearly blinding him as he shot full auto into the stairwell, receiving fire back as panicked voices yelled in a language he didn't understand. For the next 8 minutes grenades and full auto fire were traded back and forth as some of the militia found some courage to at least fire aimlessly down toward the enemy. 8 minutes they held, until a grenade spinning off the wall, one they couldn't catch nor dodge finally bounced toward them as he dove for cover and felt hot piercing pains all over him. His vision was red with blood going into his eyes and dust in his mouth trying to spit the soot off his tongue. He rolled over on his side as he tried to grab his sidearm but found his ring and index finger dangling by threads as his pant leg was soaked in blood. His squadmates were rushed by soldiers who pumped round after round into them before they could reload, he felt around his belt as the room was about to be rushed by soldiers and grasped a grenade holding it under his kitbag, pulling the pin and holding the latch tight. Four men rushed around him, his lungs were gurgling now, they were shouting at him pointing guns. Wordlessly his thoughts went to his life and family, his aspirations were over, his dreams of becoming a store owner like his father dashed, his fiance would be a widow, but he had the power to make at least one last choice before he met his heavenly lord. His hand relaxed, the grenade rolled on the floor as his vision blurred, he saw his chest moving as it was pumped with bullets, the men in a rush to push past each other, and then there was

Nothing.