Chapter Thirty-Six

A Desperate Plan

Some "Ifs" bring some stories to a tragic end.

Elisium

5L 21/19/5/12

"Were these trucks toppled in the same way as the trucks in that ambush four years ago?"

HighCommander Christopher asked looking at the toppled vehicles.

"Yes sir," Commander Simon replied. "If anything it was worse than that, but thankfully this time they didn't break open the door to shoot. Our soldiers inside the truck were injured but survived the attack. No one knows what hit them but everyone is sure that the enemies were on foot and they did not have any machines to topple these vehicles."

"Then how did they topple the trucks?"

"No idea sir. The trucks flew then bounced and flipped multiple times before coming to a halt. The soldiers felt as if they were inside a giant football that had been kicked by a monster."

Christopher's family had vowed to protect the legend. He knew what made these trucks fly. "If they had the guts to enter our security perimeter and take a stroll in these fields, then we should be wary of them. Tell me how did we come to know about their presence?"

"Someone amongst them must have accidentally triggered our security alarm."

Christopher shook his head. "But it did us no good. They escaped and we lost around a hundred men."

"Yes, we lost a few men but due to this incident, we came to know that they have secret access inside our security perimeter. That could have been a vital blow to our defenses if it came down to a war. But by following their trail, we were able to locate that hidden entrance."

"What! You mean to say, you have been able to find out how they entered our perimeter?"

Simon's chest puffed up. "Yes sir, let me take you there."

Simon guided Christopher through the bushes towards the entrance of the tunnel. Two hundred soldiers were guarding it. "In their rush to escape they left behind a trail that led us to this tunnel."

"Did you send men down the tunnel?"

"Yes sir. And this is not a single tunnel but a series of interconnected tunnels. Its two other exits open inside the Ruins, but its farthest exit opens on the riverbank outside our security perimeter. They might have used that opening to trespass into our territory."

"What was there on the other side?"

"Just like we are protecting the exits on our side, they are now heavily guarding that entrance on the riverbank. The moment our men exited the tunnel, enemies showered them with Star-Rock pellets."

Christopher paced back and forth inside the tunnel. "Rather than guarding the exits, we must seal the tunnel. Get your men to work and seal the tunnel midway, so that they can't access any of the three exits that open inside our security perimeter."

"Okay, sir."

"I had always been intrigued that from where were they getting the Star-Rocks to use in their ammunition? I have my answer now. And with this tunnel gone, their weapons manufacturing will be severely crippled."

"Yes sir, this will be a big blow for them."

Christopher returned to the farms and looked around. "I don't think they were out here for a stroll. They must have been planning something big but were caught wrong-footed. Still, they managed quite a mayhem. They came so close to our headquarters and we can't rule out the possibility that they were planning an attack on the Ruins. Keep all our forces on high alert and recruit extra troops to guard these exits until the tunnel is completely sealed."

Simon quietly nodded.

"Any news of Commander Darren? Are you sure he isn't amongst the dead?"

"No sir, I think they have taken him as a prisoner."

Christopher sighed. "He would have been better off dead than being alive in their hands."

Christopher climbed onto his truck. "I want these fields patrolled day and night, even after the tunnels are sealed. I don't want a single pebble of Star-Rock getting stolen from under our noses. Also, increase the security of the Ruins. If there are more such unknown tunnels, we are at more risk from being attacked from inside than from outside."

"Okay Sir, I will immediately get to work." Simon saluted his HighCommander as his vehicle sped away towards the Ruins

***

"As expected, they have found the tunnel," David announced while entering the conference room in their headquarters. "Some of their men emerged on our side and we shot down a couple of them. But the main point is that we can't use this tunnel anymore. There will be no more supply of Star-Rocks."

Jacob rubbed his temple. "Well, even if they wouldn't have found the tunnel, it would have been a suicide going back to those fields. Hundreds of their soldiers must be patrolling them now."

George's mind was stuck on another problem. "The turn of the loop is two and a half years away. Our people have grown used to the comforts of electricity and we can't completely cut it off. And our current stocks of Star-Rocks won't last too long."

"And we need more and more Star-Rocks for ammunition. We have to find some way to restart that supply." David was more concerned about his army.

"My son, those fields are out of our reach and I suppose you don't want to attack the Ruins right now. As far as I know, there is no other place in this world where we can find these rocks."

"There is one more place, where there is a huge supply of Star-Rocks." Nathan had a spark in his eyes. "Their storage facility near the bridge of Faith. Throughout the mini-cycle, they transfer the Star-Rock from the Ruins and store it there, so that they can push it into the whirlpool during the Crossing. We can attack that facility and siphon off those Star-Rock stocks. If we can pull this off, we will never have to worry about the Star-Rocks."

"Brother, should I remind you that this facility lies on the other side of the wall. I suppose they are not going to open their gates and welcome us."

"With our latest adventure, we have diverted their full attention towards those fields and the tunnels. And since we forayed deep into their territory, they must be fearing an attack on the Ruins and would have assigned a chunk of their troops for defending it. This means there will be hardly any security at other places. So this is the right time to strike a target that they least expect us to attack."

"Yes, but you still didn't tell me how will we reach the storage facility without triggering all their alarms?"

"I think I have a plan for that," Nathan said with a confident smile. He went to the cupboards and brought some of Matthews's old maps. He opened a map and started explaining his plan.

Although it wasn't a watertight plan, it was a solid one. It did leave quite a few things to chance, but to win this war, they had to take their chances. There was a night-long discussion, heavy brainstorming, and some fine-tuning, but in the end, everyone agreed that they must give it a go.

If all went well, this attack might shake up Aden's army to its core.

But there was a big "If" to this and some "Ifs" bring some stories to tragic ends.

***

5L 21/19/5/21

Nathan and his men came out of the first tunnel and stealthily moved into the shadows. The entry point of the second tunnel was about a mile from there, and they had to reach it without getting detected.

He hoped that everything goes according to the plan. Since their main tunnel was now blocked, Nathan had decided to make use of the only other tunnel that had an exit outside the enemy's security perimeter. However, the problem with this tunnel was that none of its exits opened anywhere near the storehouse on the riverbank.

After closely examining the maps, Nathan discovered that a few other tunnels had exits around the bridge of faith. After all, the main purpose of these tunnels was to enable David's heir to reach the whirlpool and leap. But to access one of these tunnels, they had to come out of the first tunnel, walk for a mile in open enemy territory, and then enter the second tunnel through a sub-exit. To Nathan's relief the scouts he sent out to check this route confirmed that this whole area was covered in thick bushes and there was little chance of them getting caught, especially during nighttime.

After finalizing the route, Nathan had to devise a plan to ensure that the soldiers at the storage facility shouldn't be able to call the headquarters for help. One thing that worked in their favor was that this facility, just being a storehouse, didn't have too much of a defense mechanism. It wasn't even connected to their direct radio network. Only a dozen soldiers guarded this facility at a given time.

However, the main problem for Nathan was the IWS or the Incursion Warning System. IWS was an automated alarm system, which was installed in all the military structures and the security fences. If someone triggered that alarm, heavy reinforcements would arrive at that spot within minutes. IWS almost got them killed, they can't risk it again. They had to somehow find a way to disable it.

Roger gave Nathan a heads up on IWS, but it was Darren who, during an interrogation, revealed its biggest flaw. IWS was connected through the power grid and its distress signal passed through the power lines. If there was a power failure in a certain area, it would get disconnected from the IWS as well. If they can somehow take out the power supply of the storage facility, there would be no other way for the guards to alert the headquarters.

Everyone was surprised when they heard about this outdated defense system. But there was some logic behind this complacency. Since the time Aden's army made their base in Elisium, there hadn't been a single attack on their secured premises. This lack of hostility had prompted them not to upgrade their technology or fortify their defenses.

To successfully carry out this attack Nathan had to anyhow interrupt the power supply. If the transmission tower that provided the power to the storage facility was destroyed, it will be blacked out. But how to strike down a transmission tower? Nathan knew the answer but the moment he proposed it in the meeting he got some furious responses.

"Well, have you forgotten that she just had a narrow escape? How can you even think of taking her back to the front line?" Jacob was the first to shoot down the idea.

"This is the monsoon season. There are thunderstorms every other night. All she needs to do is to direct some lightning bolts at the transmission tower. She doesn't even have to come inside the facility once the tower falls. She can just return to the tunnel."

"My friend, she still has to go inside the enemy territory for doing that. We cannot risk that again." George came out in Jacob's support. The arguments went on and on until one person gave out the final verdict.

"Jennifer will do it. I will take out the tower and rush back to the tunnel as soon as my job is done. No attempts at heroism there, okay?" Jennifer added before her father could start protesting.

That was a week ago and now they were walking into the open enemy territory. They reached the second tunnel without any incident. After walking for more than an hour inside the tunnel they emerged at the other end. This exit opened in the bushes southeast of the storehouse. The bridge of faith lied to the northwest of this facility. The transmission tower, that they wanted to target, was about a hundred meters south of the exit. George's men silently poured out of the exit and gradually spread out to surround the facility from all sides.

Nathan looked towards the heavens. The rain was pelting down and lightning was lighting up the sky. The angels of fortunes were on their side. These thunderstorms were not only providing them great cover but were also making Jennifer's job much easier. She didn't have to create a storm. All she needed was just to divert a sustained lightning strike at the transmission tower.

Nathan watched Jennifer quietly sneak towards her target. She glanced towards the sky and a bright pink glow began to emanate from her forehead. The next moment, a lightning bolt struck the transmission tower. The tower had its protection mechanism to shield it against lightning, but that mechanism was never built to overcome the force of a sustained lightning strike generated by Jennifer. Within a few seconds, the tower caved in and the storage facility, and all its surroundings, were engulfed in complete darkness.

George's men were just waiting for that signal. The moment the lights went off, they attacked the facility from all directions. Soldiers standing on the watchtowers were sniped out with Star-Rock pellets. Around thirty men dashed towards the front gate of the facility. Guards protecting the gate were shot down. Everything was going smoothly till they hit their first obstacle.

Before they could breach the main gate, a company of hundred soldiers took position inside the gate. Hiding behind solid concrete barricades, they started firing at David's army. George's men were caught wrong-footed. Many of them were shot down before they could react.

They heard an officer shouting. "Radio the headquarters that we are under attack. Ask them to immediately send a large reinforcement."

During these scenes of confusion, a certain clarity dawned on Nathan. He now understood that Christopher had outsmarted him and George in this battle of wits. Christopher must have calculated that once he had cut off their access to the Star-Rock farms, they will try to steal it from some other place. He might have predicted that this storage facility would be their ideal target. As a result, he deployed heavy security inside the storehouse and even connected it with their radio network. Nathan was certain that Christopher must have also kept a large reinforcement unit on standby to respond to any distress signal in a matter of minutes.

Christopher had laid down a trap and was waiting for his prey. Nathan and his men had walked right into the trap.

Nathan's hands and feet grew cold as he saw enemy troops firing incessantly at his men. Nathan tried to formulate his next plan of action. He knew that if all his men retreated at once, the location of their secret tunnel would be revealed and they would be hunted inside the tunnel. His men were trapped and there was no escape, but he had to somehow salvage this situation.

He looked in Jennifer's direction. Whatever happens here, he had to keep her safe.

And now that was going to be his only mission.