Chapter 232: Assault on the Plateau

Chapter 232: Assault on the Plateau

The first Astragoths kept climbing toward the plateau while the goblins waited behind the defenses. Several creatures had moved ahead of the larger groups below, but they were still too far away for most riflemen to hit reliably. Machine-gun crews tracked the leading groups while officers watched the rest continue up the slope. A few riflemen raised their weapons early, but their officers told them to wait until the creatures came closer.

The first machine gun opened fire when a group of Astragoths entered clear ground below one part of the plateau. The burst struck the creatures at the front and dropped several of them. Another machine-gun crew opened fire on a second group climbing toward another section. Riflemen joined once the nearest Astragoths moved close enough for accurate shots. Several creatures fell during the first volleys, while the others moved around the bodies and continued upward.

More Astragoths followed behind them. Machine-gun crews kept their fire on the larger groups farther down the slope, while riflemen focused on creatures that had moved closer to the top. Rocks and uneven ground blocked the goblins’ view of some Astragoths for short stretches, but the creatures had to leave those places to keep climbing. Each time they came back into view, the goblins fired again. The first groups were cut down before reaching the defenses, but more creatures continued up the slope.

Armored Astragoths soon appeared among the ordinary ones. An RPG team tracked the first armored creature until the Astragoths around it moved far enough away for the gunner to fire. The rocket struck high on its body and knocked it onto the slope. It moved again after the explosion but could not continue climbing. A second armored Astragoth appeared farther along the plateau. A tank crew had a clear view and fired. The shell struck the creature directly, while the ordinary Astragoths behind it moved around the body and kept climbing.

More armored creatures came with the next groups. Machine-gun crews kept firing at ordinary Astragoths whenever an RPG team or tank had a clear shot at the armored ones. When the heavier weapons could not fire safely, the machine guns put rounds into the armored creature while riflemen continued shooting the ordinary creatures around it.

Several sections faced the same problem as the attack moved higher. Ordinary Astragoths approached the upper slope while armored creatures climbed behind them, forcing the officers to decide which weapons should engage each target. In one section, the RPG team held its shot until the ordinary creatures moved away from the armored target. Riflemen killed the closest Astragoths while the machine gun fired at the group behind them. Once the armored creature had enough space around it, the RPG team fired and stopped it before it reached the cover.

Dead and wounded Astragoths began blocking parts of the climb. Creatures moving upward had to go around bodies or pass over them, separating some of the larger groups into smaller clusters. Machine-gun crews fired into those clusters as they came into view. Riflemen waited for the creatures that continued through the gunfire and moved closer to the plateau.

The first ordinary Astragoths reached the top near one group of defenders. Two were killed before reaching the cover. A third crossed the remaining ground and swung its tail at a rifleman before several shots brought it down. More creatures were coming up behind it. The officer moved several riflemen toward that part of the defense and kept the machine gun aimed farther down the slope, where a larger group was still climbing.

An armored Astragoth came up behind the next group. The nearby RPG team fired before it reached the goblins. The rocket hit the creature but failed to stop it. The armored Astragoth continued upward and struck the material protecting the riflemen. Part of the cover broke apart and fell inward. The men directly behind the damaged section moved back before the creature struck again, and ordinary Astragoths immediately started coming through the opening.

Three ordinary Astragoths entered first, with more climbing toward the same gap. The officer contacted the senior commander while directing his riflemen away from the armored creature. "The rocket hit it, but it is still moving. It broke open the cover, and the smaller ones are coming through behind it. My RPG crew cannot fire again with our men between them and the target. Send another team if one is free."

The senior commander checked the nearest group before answering. "The section beside you has an RPG team available. Their riflemen will stay where they are. Pull your men back far enough to clear the shot and keep the smaller ones from getting past you until the team arrives."

The riflemen nearest the damaged cover moved farther from the armored Astragoth and fired at the ordinary creatures entering behind it. A machine-gun crew farther back shifted its fire toward the Astragoths still climbing toward the same gap. The supporting RPG team reached the section while the armored creature struck the damaged cover again. Several goblins were still between the gunner and the target, so the officer ordered them farther back while they continued firing at the creatures nearest them.

Once the line of fire was clear, the RPG gunner fired. The rocket struck the armored Astragoth from the side. The creature collapsed across part of the opening and stopped moving. Its body covered most of the gap it had created, forcing the ordinary Astragoths behind it to move around the body or climb over the broken material beside it.

Riflemen killed two creatures trying to enter beside the body, while the machine gun farther back fired into the next group approaching the same place. Several Astragoths had entered the defense before the armored creature died. The riflemen backed away from their tails and fired from a few steps farther back. One Astragoth struck a rifleman and knocked him down before nearby soldiers killed it. Another moved toward the machine-gun crew, but two riflemen shot it before it reached the weapon. The last creature inside the section died beside the broken cover.

The officer moved several riflemen back toward the opening and checked the machine gun’s view of the slope. The supporting RPG team returned to its own section. The dead armored Astragoth blocked most of the gap, and the riflemen stayed behind the remaining cover while the machine gun resumed firing at the creatures below.

The fighting continued across the plateau. Other Astragoth groups reached the ground directly below the defenses, but many had lost creatures during the climb. One machine-gun crew stopped firing when several Astragoths reached the riflemen directly in front of it. The gunner could not shoot through the goblins between him and the targets, so the local officer sent nearby riflemen to help. Once the close creatures were killed, the machine gun resumed firing at the next group below.

Another armored Astragoth reached a different section before the local RPG team had a clear shot. The officer pulled the closest riflemen away from the creature. It struck the cover once and pushed into the damaged material. A tank crew behind the infantry waited until the goblins moved clear, then fired. The shell killed the armored Astragoth before the ordinary creatures behind it could use the opening. Four ordinary Astragoths still reached the damaged cover, but the riflemen killed them before they moved farther inside.

Several riflemen crowded toward the damaged area after the armored creature fell. The officer saw that fewer men were watching the intact section beside it and sent half of them back. Four riflemen remained near the break. When more Astragoths climbed toward both parts of the defense, the goblins were able to fire at each group without moving the entire section again.

One rifleman who had been struck by a tail could no longer use his left arm. Two soldiers dragged him behind the cover after the nearby Astragoths were killed, and another rifleman took his place. The rest of the group remained at the defense while the injured soldier was carried farther back.

A machine gun failed during another attack. The gunner pulled the charging handle, but the weapon did not cycle. Ordinary Astragoths were still climbing toward that section. The officer moved more riflemen behind the cover facing those creatures and told the crew to work on the gun while the soldiers kept firing.

The assistant gunner opened the weapon and removed the damaged round while the riflemen increased their fire. Several Astragoths continued climbing, but the officer kept his men behind the defenses. The crew restored the weapon before the nearest creatures reached the top. Once the riflemen in front of the gun were clear, the gunner fired into the remaining group and stopped them before they reached the cover.

At another section, two dead Astragoths fell against the outer barrier and blocked part of the riflemen’s view down the slope. The officer shifted three riflemen several steps along the cover until they could see past the bodies. The remaining soldiers stayed where they were and continued watching the ground directly below them.

A different officer contacted the senior commander after several Astragoths reached his cover. "The ones in front of us are manageable, but another group is climbing behind them. If the second group reaches the top before we clear the first, too many of them will be within rifle range at the same time."

The senior commander checked the machine-gun crew supporting that section. "Your machine gun still has a clear shot at the second group. Keep the riflemen on the creatures at the cover and let the gun crew deal with the ones behind them. If that group reaches you, call again and tell me how many made it through."

The officer kept his men in place. His riflemen killed the Astragoths nearest the cover, and the machine gun broke up the second group before it reached the top.

The number of Astragoths reaching the plateau began to fall. The larger groups that had started the climb had taken heavy casualties, and the creatures still moving upward were arriving in smaller numbers. Several parts of the plateau no longer had Astragoths close to their defenses. Machine-gun crews waited longer between bursts, riflemen continued firing at individual creatures, and RPG teams had longer gaps between armored targets.

The senior commander waited until several officers reported the same change before contacting Noah. "The larger groups are gone. We still have Astragoths on the slope, but they are coming up a few at a time now. None of the officers are asking for more men."

"Keep everyone behind the defenses," Noah replied. "If the remaining creatures turn back, let them leave. Nobody goes down the slope after them."

Some Astragoths kept climbing and were killed before reaching the defenders. Others turned back after the creatures around them fell. A few armored Astragoths remained lower on the slope, but they stopped advancing once the ordinary creatures around them were gone. Gunfire became less frequent as the number of targets dropped.

Officers kept their soldiers behind cover and watched the wounded Astragoths still moving below. The senior commander waited until no large group remained on the climb before allowing repairs to begin.

The largest damaged area was the opening created by the armored Astragoth. Goblins pulled loose material away so riflemen could move through the section without stepping over broken pieces. The dead armored creature still covered part of the gap, so soldiers shifted enough of its body to clear space for the defenders.

They replaced enough of the broken cover for riflemen to use the area again. Other soldiers repaired smaller sections where Astragoths had reached the goblins. Material knocked aside during close fighting was moved back into place if it could still provide cover. Areas that had not been damaged were left alone.

Noah told the senior commander to keep the repairs limited to the damaged sections. Most goblins remained near their weapons while smaller groups moved broken material and restored the cover damaged during the attack.

Observers continued watching the ground below. Their next report came before the largest opening had been fully repaired. More Astragoths were gathering near the base of the plateau. The new groups contained more ordinary creatures than the first attack had started with, and several armored Astragoths were visible among them.

The senior commander confirmed the report with another observer before contacting Noah. "They are gathering for another climb. There are more ordinary Astragoths down there than we saw at the start of the first attack, and several armored ones are mixed in. More are still arriving."

Noah checked which repairs were still underway. "Finish the opening where they broke through. Stop the smaller repairs and send those soldiers back to their weapons. Have every group in position before the first Astragoth starts climbing."

Goblins working on minor damage returned to their assigned defenses. The soldiers at the main opening finished enough of the repair for riflemen to use the cover, then stopped. Machine-gun crews turned their weapons back toward the slope, RPG teams watched the armored Astragoths below, and the tank crews remained with their vehicles. More ordinary creatures joined the groups at the base of the plateau while the goblins waited behind the repaired defenses for the next attack.