Chapter 220: Fire on Our Position

Astragoths were already inside the northern positions when another attack reached the front. At the center of the northern front, the goblins no longer held one connected line. One group remained around a machine gun facing north, another fought beside a tank farther west, and a third protected ammunition behind them. Astragoths had entered the ground between these groups, which meant each group had to defend itself from more than one direction.

The machine gun continued firing north until several Astragoths appeared behind the crew. The soldiers protecting the weapon turned south and opened fire on them. That left fewer men watching the front, and two more Astragoths reached the position from the north before the first group behind the crew had been killed. The gunner left the weapon and joined the soldiers around him, causing the machine gun to fall silent.

Farther west, the tank was still firing at Astragoths approaching from outside the center. The soldiers around it protected the vehicle from enemies that reached close range, but several creatures were already entering from the rear. Some goblins turned south to stop them. One Astragoth reached the side of the tank before being killed, while another attacked from the west and forced more soldiers away from the northern approach.

The officer responsible for the center began receiving reports from each group separately.

“The machine-gun crew has been forced away from the weapon,” one officer reported. “They’re still alive, but Astragoths are between them and the gun. The tank still has soldiers around it, but more enemies are crossing behind them. The logistics group is being attacked from the west.”

The center officer checked where the groups were before answering. “Don’t try to reconnect them. The ground between those positions is already occupied. If the machine-gun group moves toward the tank, they’ll be exposed before they get halfway there. Tell each group to hold the ground directly around them and keep a path south open if they still have one.”

“What do you want the tank crew to do if the south side closes?”

“If they can move with the soldiers around them, they pull south together. If the route closes before that happens, they stay with the infantry and keep fighting from where they are. I don’t want the tank leaving its soldiers behind.”

The goblins who had been forced away from the machine gun began moving toward another position farther south. Several were killed while crossing the exposed ground, but the survivors reached another group and immediately turned back to fire at the Astragoths following them.

The tank group came under heavier pressure at the same time. Two Astragoths reached the rear of the vehicle while another approached from the west. The soldiers killed all three, then began clearing the ground south of the tank so the crew could move. The driver started turning the vehicle while the soldiers continued firing around it.

The left side of the northern front had already broken into separate groups. One group held around an RPG team, another protected ammunition farther back, and a third still occupied part of the original front. Astragoths controlled the ground between these groups, so moving from one position to another meant fighting through the enemy.

The ammunition group was attacked first. Astragoths reached the carriers before all the supplies could be moved and killed several goblins beside the crates. The survivors pulled closer together and used the ammunition stacks as cover while firing west. Another enemy group was already approaching from the north.

The RPG group could see the fighting but could not reach the ammunition position safely. Its officer contacted the commander.

“The ammunition position has enemies coming from two directions. I can see their people from here, but there are Astragoths between us. If I move my men toward them, we’ll have to fight our way across open ground before we even reach the crates.”

“Stay where you are,” the commander replied. “Your group is still stopping them from moving farther inside the left. If you abandon that position, you may lose your own men without helping the logistics group.”

“They’re going to lose more soldiers if no one gets to them.”

“I know that. I’m not telling you they’re safe. I’m telling you there is no clear route between you. Keep firing at any Astragoths you can reach from your position. If the ground opens, then you move.”

The RPG group remained in place. As the fighting drew closer, several teams stopped using their launchers because goblins and Astragoths were too close together. Those soldiers switched to rifles and joined the rest of the group.

The right side of the eastern front began giving ground at the same time. Its surviving machine gun had already been moved farther inside, with soldiers covering both the northern approach and the exposed outer side. Astragoths attacked from both directions.

The machine gun fired north while several creatures from the outer side reached the soldiers protecting it. Goblins turned toward them, which reduced the fire facing north and allowed the other group to move closer.

The right officer saw that the gun would soon be attacked from both sides.

“Move the machine gun farther in,” he ordered. “The crew moves first. Everyone around them covers the move. Once the gun is out, nobody stays behind to hold the position.”

A nearby officer looked toward the northern approach. “If we move again, we’ll be close to the center.”

“That’s still better than losing the weapon here. The outside is already open. I need the gun somewhere the soldiers can protect.”

The crew dragged the machine gun farther inside while the soldiers covered them. One goblin was killed during the movement, while another was wounded and pulled away by two soldiers. The weapon was set up again before the next group reached them, but the right side of the eastern front had given up more ground.

The eastern commander contacted the right officer after seeing the movement.

“How much of the outer side do you still control?”

“The original outer position is gone. I still have soldiers between the Astragoths and the center, and the machine gun is working again. If they attack us from the north and outside at the same time again, I’ll have to move farther inward.”

“Keep your route to the center open. If that closes, your people will be cut off.”

“I know. I’m keeping the soldiers together this time. I’m not leaving another group behind just to hold a weapon we can’t protect.”

The eastern front was still connected. The northern front was not.

At the center of the northern front, the group south of the abandoned machine gun tried to keep a narrow route open toward the rear. Most of the soldiers fired north, while a few watched the west. An Astragoth reached the ammunition carriers behind them and killed one of the loaders before being shot. The group pulled the remaining ammunition closer rather than send soldiers back and forth across exposed ground.

The left side of the northern front faced the same problem around the RPG position. The teams still had rounds available, but they could not use them whenever the fighting reached close range. The officer told them to fire only when they had clear ground between themselves and the target. Once Astragoths reached the position, the teams used rifles.

On the right side of the eastern front, the new machine-gun position held after the move, but only because the goblins were defending less ground. Astragoths now occupied the outer area and could approach from the side. The right officer kept the machine gun facing north and assigned soldiers to watch the exposed side, preventing another immediate retreat.

At the center of the northern front, the tank began moving south after the soldiers around it cleared several Astragoths from the route. The vehicle had only moved a short distance when another group entered from the west. The soldiers beside the tank stopped and turned to fight, and the vehicle halted rather than leave them behind.

An officer contacted the center commander.

“The tank can still move, but every time the soldiers clear the south side, another group reaches them from the west. If the tank keeps moving, it leaves those men behind. If it waits, the route south keeps getting narrower.”

“Keep the tank with the soldiers,” the center officer replied. “Clear the route again and move together. The vehicle won’t last on its own if the Astragoths surround it.”

Farther left, the ammunition group continued losing men. Astragoths reached the crates from the side and killed two soldiers guarding them. The survivors pulled closer together and fired in several directions. They could no longer move the supplies safely, so they used whatever ammunition remained within reach and abandoned the rest.

The commander of the left side of the northern front received reports from all three surviving groups.

“The front group is still firing north, but Astragoths are behind them now,” an officer reported. “The ammunition position has enemies on two sides. The RPG group is holding, but none of the groups has a clear route to the others.”

The commander checked their positions before answering. “Tell the front group to watch the south as well as the north. If they get a clear path out, they use it. The ammunition group does the same. Nobody crosses ground where we already know Astragoths are moving.”

“And if a group never gets a clear route?”

“Then they stay together and keep fighting where they are. Breaking apart will only make them easier to surround.”

The northern commander was no longer receiving reports from complete formations. He was tracking separate groups around the tank, the abandoned machine gun, the ammunition position, the RPG team, and several smaller positions whose officers still had working communications.

Supply vehicles were also having trouble reaching them. One ammunition carrier heading toward the center stopped after the crew saw Astragoths crossing the route ahead. They unloaded beside the nearest goblin position rather than continue. Another carrier trying to reach the left side of the northern front turned back after enemies appeared behind the surviving positions.

After comparing the reports, the northern commander contacted Noah.

“The northern front is no longer connected. I still have groups fighting in the center and left, but the Astragoths control the ground between them. I can’t move one group to another without sending soldiers through enemy-held areas.”

Noah looked over the positions. “Which groups can still move south?”

“A few have clear routes. I’ve already told them to leave while those routes stay open. The groups still inside either have Astragoths behind them or would have to cross occupied ground to get out.”

“Then keep it that way. Anyone with a clear route moves south. Anyone without one stays together and keeps fighting.”

The remaining goblin groups continued drawing Astragoths toward them. Around the tank, creatures attacked from the north and west. On the left side of the northern front, more enemies moved toward the ammunition group. The RPG position also attracted more attackers whenever its soldiers fired into nearby Astragoths.

The northern commander noticed that the enemy was gathering around these positions instead of spreading farther south. Conventional artillery could not fire into those areas because goblin soldiers and Astragoths occupied the same ground.

Another report came from the center.

“The tank group is almost surrounded. There is still some open ground south of them, but Astragoths are already crossing it. The soldiers who left the machine gun also have enemies in front and behind.”

A report from the left side of the northern front followed.

“The ammunition group has Astragoths on three sides. The RPG position is still holding, but more creatures are moving toward them. The front group has enemies behind it now.”

The northern commander contacted Noah again.

“The Astragoths are gathering around the groups that are still fighting. The center and left are already lost as positions, but the enemy is more concentrated inside them now than it was during the attack.”

“Can conventional artillery hit those concentrations without hitting our soldiers?”

“No. They’re in the same ground.”

Noah looked at the northern positions. “You want to use the rocket artillery?”

“Yes. If we wait until the surrounded groups are killed, the Astragoths will keep moving south and spread out again. Right now they’re concentrated around the tank, the ammunition position, and the other groups still fighting.”

“Can those goblins get out before the strike?”

“The groups that had clear routes are already leaving. The men still inside have Astragoths between them and the rear. There is no safe route left for them.”

Noah continued reading the reports. The tank group was still transmitting. The ammunition position was still active. Several smaller groups remained inside both areas.

“Prepare the rocket strike,” Noah said. “Target the largest concentrations inside the center of the northern front and the left side of the northern front. Check every coordinate before the crews fire.”

The northern commander sent the coordinates to the rocket artillery. After checking them against the battlefield map, the rocket officer contacted him.

“Commander, both target areas are still marked friendly. We still have goblin units transmitting from the center and left. I need you to confirm that these coordinates are correct before I give them to every launcher.”

“They’re correct,” the northern commander replied. “Those positions have been overrun. The goblins still transmitting are surrounded, and the Astragoths have gathered around them. Do not move the targets farther north. The largest enemy concentrations are inside the positions.”

“Understood. I’ll have every crew check the same coordinates before we fire.”

“Do that. Once the checks are complete, launch immediately. If those surrounded groups stop fighting before we fire, the Astragoths will start moving south.”

The rocket crews prepared the launchers while reports continued arriving from the northern positions. The soldiers around the tank were still firing while Astragoths approached from the west and north. On the left side of the northern front, the ammunition group continued fighting as more creatures reached the crates around them.

The rocket officer contacted the northern commander again once the firing data had been checked.

“All launchers have the same coordinates. The center and left targets are confirmed. Every crew is ready.”

The northern commander checked the latest reports. Both target areas still contained goblin soldiers, and none of the surrounded groups had reported a clear route south.

“Fire now. Keep every rocket inside the confirmed target areas.”

The launchers fired in rapid succession. Rockets rose from behind the goblin rear positions and traveled toward the center of the northern front and the left side of the northern front, where the remaining goblin groups were still fighting among the largest concentrations of Astragoths.