Chapter 313: Operation Stay Frosty

The first challenge for the speeders turned out to be exactly what Kalli had predicted.

The Mountains.

But not in the way that she had thought, as the speeders didn’t seem to have many issues with altitude, though the pilots did, and everyone soon had their helmets on, as the air filtration system helped increase the air pressure inside the helmet enough to make it easier to breathe.

No, the problem was that the speeders wouldn’t climb over near vertical rock walls more than a thousand metres high, and they got themselves into a box canyon that wasn’t on the map.

So, they had to double back, find an alternate passage, and update the maps.

But when they found a sloped rise more than that height, the speeders had no issues rising with it, and they were back on their way to the Frost Giant city.

Their vehicles were still getting updates from the city, as the patrols were following the Giants south, and scouting for any reinforcements that might not have joined the first battle. That gave them a good idea of how much of a head start they had on the Frost Giants returning home, and how easy it would be to escape after.

As the smoke from the city’s cooking fires became visible on the horizon, the attack team paused in the same valley they had cleared during their last visit to the area.

Sanchez spoke into the radio.

"Alright, everyone knows the drill. Maximum altitude, start with the rockets and shatter some buildings. Once the warriors run out into the street, the Pulse Cannons can take them out. We’re not here for a long time, we’re here for a good time, now let’s go fuck something up."

Around him, the special forces team cheered, and most of the heroes laughed.

Sanchez was definitely in charge of the motivational speeches from now on.

The team raced out of the valley and over the city, while a dozen assault speeders worth of rockets, six hundred in total, tore toward the city, destroying indiscriminately. Stone buildings shattered, wooden structures burned, and panic set in.

Then, the second wave of rockets came as they reloaded, aimed for the far side of the city, while the Pulse Cannons wove a tangled web of energy fire into the crowds.

"Are we sure this is alright?" Yara muttered as she watched the carnage.

Clearly, these were not all warriors. But the Frost Giants were bipedal and could speak an intelligible language, not like some mindless monster or a farm animal. Gunning down their children just felt wrong.

That didn’t slow Reggie’s rate of fire from the back of the speeder, though.

At over a hundred kilometres an hour, a leisurely pace for the speeders, they swept over the city, tearing into the defenders without any concern for the actual casualty rate. Many were dead, many more were wounded.

But that was the point.

They would make another pass once the target was softened, and finish them off. But first, they had to get the defensive mages to burn through their mana trying to hold off the speeders.

Only, the city felt mostly empty.

A full third of the buildings had nobody emerge from them, though even a Frost Giant child was unlikely to be killed by a slate shingle roof falling on them.

They must have emptied the city for the assault.

While the Frost Giant Clan held a large city, they were large creatures. So, even a city larger than Marimgar didn’t actually hold too many people, and the Frost Giants had taken heavy casualties once before.

The team swept over the city, and circled wide as they were pelted by ice spears, with a storm brewing over the city that promised a much more difficult second pass.

Not that they were too concerned. They could fire blindly into the city and hope to hit something, even if the sensors couldn’t see through the magical storm. They were still firing at what they could see, and the heavy Plasma Cannons on their larger speeders were firing blindly into the storm, hoping to hit a barrier.

If they could see a solid barrier, they could focus on it and wear out the mage casting it.

Then came a report from the forward scouts.

"{ The Frost Giants appear to have gotten a message from home. Many of them have ceased their travels and gathered to create some sort of ritual magic circle. We’ve got a strike team en route, but they might not stop them in time. }"

Sanchez calculated how long they were likely to have, and pegged the time at three minutes.

One to finish the ritual, two for the returned Giants to organize an effective counterattack.

"Step up the assault. Aim for any clusters of Giants that you can find, and let’s finish this before they get back. I really don’t need angry Giants chasing us through the mountains," he instructed.

They had done way more damage to the city than anyone had expected, as the rockets seemed to catch the Giants completely off guard, and there were nearly no effective barriers up to stop the assault.

Back near Marimgar, the lone remaining Flight Suit team was accompanied by four transport helicopters and four utility speeders with the top hatch open to reveal a warrior in power armour with a Pulse Cannon.

That was all that they had left, everyone else in a speeder was visiting the Frost Giants.

Still with the door gunners, the helicopters were plenty capable, and even a fresh team in flight suits was better than nothing. All they had to do was to stop the ritual before it was finished.

Over the grasslands and the freshly grown trees they raced, while a blinding white storm raged on the horizon.

The Giants had made great time in their retreat, and it had been hours since the battle ended.

They were not going to make it on time.

The storm swirled, growing in intensity, and then collapsed in on itself, leaving behind nothing but a runic sigil on the ground.

"{ Someone get a proper recording of that. Mages, I need you to inspect it not just with your eyes, but with your magic. I want to know everything about that transport magic, in case we can use it ourselves. }" Kalli ordered the moment that the camera feeds from the scouts revealed the empty field.

"{ Got it, Boss Lady. We won’t destroy it, yet. }"