Chapter 214: Breaking the Assault

Chapter 214: Breaking the Assault

The second rocket salvo was already in the air when the northern observers reported what the first one had done. The large Astragoth formation behind the damaged center had been broken apart. Many had died where the rockets landed, while the survivors were now moving forward in smaller groups with wide gaps between them. The second salvo struck farther west, hitting another concentration before it could enter the main approach.

The northern commander watched the reports coming in from the center, then contacted the officer holding the damaged wall.

"The group behind you has been hit hard. I can still see three Astragoths close to your position. Deal with those before you start shooting farther out."

The center officer looked over the broken section of the wall. "I see them. One is coming straight toward the damaged section. The other two are moving along the left side. I can put the RPG team on the closest one and let the soldiers on the left deal with the others."

"Do that. Once those three are down, keep everyone behind the wall. We finally have some space between attacks, and I don’t want anyone running into the lower ground and getting caught when the next group comes."

"That’s fine with me. We need the time to reload anyway. I also have wounded men still waiting behind the center."

The RPG team waited until the first Astragoth reached the base of the damaged wall before firing. The round struck the creature before it could climb. Soldiers on the left concentrated on the other two. One fell after repeated gunfire, while the second turned away from the wall and tried to cross the lower ground. Soldiers from two positions tracked it until it collapsed.

With the ground below the center clear, ammunition carriers moved forward. Machine-gun crews replaced belts, RPG teams received fresh rounds, and several wounded soldiers were finally carried toward the rear. Other soldiers checked the damaged cover and filled positions that had been left empty by casualties.

The western side of the northern sector also received fewer attackers. A machine gun engaged several Astragoths crossing the approach, while a tank fired at a larger group farther back. The creatures were still advancing, but they were no longer arriving close enough together to put the entire position under pressure at once.

The northern commander contacted the center again after checking the western reports.

"How does the ground in front of you look now?"

"Clear close to the wall," the center officer replied. "There are still Astragoths farther out, but they’re spread apart. None have entered the lower ground since we killed the last three. The RPG team is loaded again, and I’ve put the replacement soldiers into the empty positions."

"Good. Keep them there. Let the machine guns and tanks deal with anything farther out. If another group reaches you, fight it from the wall instead of going forward."

"I wasn’t planning to send anyone out. The men have better cover here, and the Astragoths still have to cross the same open ground to reach us."

The eastern sector received another rocket strike soon afterward. Observers had marked a large Astragoth group behind the creatures already fighting on the lower slope. The rockets landed before the formation reached the slope, killing several Astragoths and scattering the survivors.

The eastern commander contacted the officer on the northern side.

"How many are still coming up your slope?"

"I can see five," the officer replied. "Two are already high enough that we need to deal with them now. Three more are lower down and spread apart. I don’t see another large group behind them."

"Can you clear your side without asking the center for men?"

"Yes. Keep the center where it is. My soldiers can handle the two close ones, and the machine gun still has the lower three."

"Then stay where you are. Once your slope is clear, some of your men can help the center from their current positions. Don’t send anyone downhill."

"I won’t. We have enough height to cover part of the center without moving."

The northern soldiers focused on the two closest Astragoths. One fell before reaching the upper slope. The second continued climbing until several soldiers concentrated their fire and brought it down. Of the three farther below, one was killed by the machine gun and the other two were hit repeatedly while trying to continue upward.

Once the northern approach was clear, several soldiers turned toward the central approach. They did not leave their positions. From higher ground, they could see part of the center and help engage an Astragoth climbing toward the upper defenses.

The eastern commander kept the rest of his men where they were. There was no reason to move down the slope while scattered Astragoths were still visible farther away.

West still had two creatures directly below the southern end of the stone shelf. The tank could not fire at them safely because the defenders were directly above. Soldiers along the edge fired downward while an RPG team waited for one of the Astragoths to move far enough away from the rock face.

One creature began moving along the base of the shelf toward a lower section. The officer responsible for the position contacted the soldiers farther along the edge.

"One is moving underneath you. Stay on top of the shelf. Don’t climb down after it."

"We can see it from here," a soldier replied. "It’s moving toward the lower part of our position. If it tries to climb, we can hit it from both sides."

"Do that. I don’t want anyone below the shelf while our machine gun is firing over the approach."

The Astragoth reached the lower section but never found a safe place to climb. Soldiers above it kept firing until it collapsed near the base. The second creature remained closer to the original position, where the soldiers forced it away from the rock face. Once it moved into open ground, the RPG team fired and killed it.

The officer contacted the western commander after checking the edge.

"The southern base is clear. I can still see Astragoths farther out, but none are close to the shelf."

"Keep everyone where they are," the commander replied. "The tank already has the next group. If any of them survive and reach the base, you have the better position from above."

"That’s what we’ll do. There’s no reason to give up the height when they still have to come to us."

South took longer to settle. Several Astragoths remained near the outer defenses, and another group was still moving toward the center. The southern commander had only one small reserve group left and did not want to use it unless the center actually needed more soldiers.

He contacted the center officer.

"I still have one reserve group behind your position, but the eastern side is busy too. Tell me what you need before I move them."

The officer watched the approaching Astragoths for several seconds before answering. "Keep them where they are. The tank is already firing, and both machine guns have clear shots. If enough creatures survive to threaten the center, I’ll call before they reach us."

"Don’t wait until they’re at the wall. If you think your men can’t stop what’s coming, tell me while I still have time to move the reserve."

"I will. Right now the heavy weapons are doing their job, and I’d rather keep those men available."

The center tank fired into the approaching group first. The machine guns followed. Three Astragoths survived and continued toward the defenses, but they were far enough apart for the soldiers to deal with them separately. The closest fell under concentrated gunfire. An RPG team stopped the second, while soldiers from the center and western positions killed the third.

No large formation followed them. The southern observer reported that the rocket strike farther back had hit the next group before it could join the attack. The survivors were scattered across the open ground and were no longer moving toward the center together.

Similar reports came from the other sectors. Astragoths farther from the perimeter were beginning to spread out before advancing. Groups that had previously gathered together were now leaving more space between individual creatures and between separate formations.

The field commander placed the latest reports in front of Noah.

"They’re changing how they approach us," he said. "North is seeing smaller groups with more space between them. East reports the same thing. West and south are starting to see it too."

Noah looked over the marked positions. "They’ve figured out that gathering in one place gives the rocket artillery an easy target."

"That’s what it looks like. We can still fire rockets at the scattered groups, but we’ll spend the same salvo to hit far fewer Astragoths."

"Then we don’t fire at them. Give the smaller groups to the normal artillery. Keep the rockets loaded until they gather enough soldiers for another large attack."

The field commander considered the reports for a moment. "Some of those smaller groups will still make it closer to the perimeter."

"They already were," Noah replied. "But if they stay spread out, fewer of them reach the front at the same time. The tanks, machine guns, artillery, and soldiers can handle smaller groups. The rockets are more useful when the Astragoths gather enough men to overwhelm a sector."

"I’ll tell the observers to report large concentrations separately. The rocket crews can hold their fire until we have a target worth using them on."

The order went out to all four sectors. Conventional artillery continued firing at smaller groups, while the rocket launchers remained loaded.

The difference at the front became noticeable soon afterward. North still received attackers, but there were gaps between the groups reaching the damaged center. East cleared most of the lower slope. West stopped another small group before it reached the shelf, while south finally had enough time to move ammunition forward and carry more wounded soldiers away from the center.

The smaller attacks were still dangerous, but they were easier for the local commanders to manage. Soldiers could remain in their assigned positions instead of constantly shifting between threatened areas. Machine guns fired shorter bursts, and tanks had more time to choose targets before the Astragoths reached the closer approaches.

The rocket launchers remained silent until a northern observer noticed several scattered groups moving toward the same area beyond the damaged center. More Astragoths were joining them from behind, and the combined formation had begun moving toward the goblin defenses.

The observer sent the report immediately.

"I have several northern groups joining together. The front is already moving toward the damaged center, and more are coming in from behind. They’re still packed close enough for a rocket strike."

The field commander marked the position and showed Noah.

"If we wait, more of them will join the formation. The problem is the front may start spreading out before the rockets arrive."

"Don’t wait," Noah said. "Have the observer confirm the position and fire while they’re still grouped together. We don’t need every Astragoth in the same place to make each salvo successful."

The observer confirmed that the formation was still well beyond the goblin positions. The rocket crews adjusted their launchers and fired.

Multiple rockets crossed above the northern sector and descended on the advancing Astragoths. Several impacts struck the center of the formation, while others landed along the sides and rear. Many Astragoths were killed before they reached the northern approach, and the survivors scattered as they continued forward.

Conventional artillery fired on the survivors next. Shells landed among the smaller groups before they reached the tanks. The tanks then engaged the largest remaining targets, followed by machine-gun fire as the Astragoths entered the northern approaches.

By the time the attack reached the lower ground, only six Astragoths remained close enough to threaten the damaged center.

The center officer contacted the northern commander.

"I have six entering the lower ground. Nothing large behind them, and the western side isn’t asking for help. I can handle them with the soldiers already here."

"Then don’t move anyone from the west. Your RPG team is loaded, and your soldiers already know which ground they’re covering. Use what you have."

"That’s enough for six. We’ll keep everyone in position and only use the RPG if one gets close to the wall."

The soldiers opened fire. The first Astragoth fell in the lower ground. Two others moved toward the damaged wall and were engaged from separate positions. Another moved west but came under fire from the soldiers responsible for that approach.

The final two reached closest to the fortifications. One fell before reaching the broken section. The other continued toward the wall until the RPG team fired and killed it below the fortification.

No new formation followed.

Reports from the other sectors changed soon afterward. East saw Astragoth groups moving away from the lower slope. West reported scattered creatures withdrawing beyond the stone shelf. South had no organized formation moving toward its center.

The field commander contacted each sector before giving Noah the combined report.

"North has nothing left in the lower ground. East has no Astragoths climbing the slope. West has cleared the base of the shelf, and south has no new group approaching. There are still enemies farther out, but none of the observers see another large attack forming."

"Keep everyone inside the defenses," Noah said. "We have cover, tanks, machine guns, and artillery supporting these positions. I’m not sending soldiers into open ground to chase a retreating enemy." 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ

"I’ll make sure every commander gets the same order. The observers will keep watching the withdrawing groups, and the rocket crews will stay ready in case the Astragoths gather again."

The surviving Astragoths moved away from the perimeter while the goblins remained behind their fortifications. Ammunition was carried forward, wounded soldiers were moved toward the rear, and replacement troops filled positions that had lost men during the assault.

Noah kept the rocket artillery loaded. The Astragoths had already changed their formation spacing after the first salvos, which meant they were learning from the new weapon. The observers continued watching the ground beyond all four sectors for any groups gathering again. For the moment, no organized Astragoth formation was advancing, and the goblins still controlled the entire defensive perimeter.