pugna interminabilitatem (The fight never ends)

[Greywall]

Black smoke rose to the sky as several Grinvelian vehicles were left a shredded wreck, random loud cracks resonated as the Rosarks executed the Grinvelian survivors. It was a large scale ambush, hundreds of Grinvelian soldiers were dead and dozens of vehicles were destroyed or disabled. The Grinvelian survivors were huddled together before a Festrian toying with a music box, trying to get it to work, he looked up for a second before tending back to his previous task. "We only need five, get rid of the other six." 

The soldiers were dragged off yelling before gunshots silenced them, the Festrian placed the music box into his inner trenchcoat pocket. Picking up a rifle and placing it on his shoulder. "So...you boys were heading to Marrlan? Going to take the war there? Kill some Marrish?" he spoke in a tone that was showing signs of quiet rage and hate. 

The Grinvelians just stared off not responding. "Rude." The Festrian said before lowering the rifle and shooting one of the soldiers point blank in the face, "Ja JA! We are going to Marrlan. Oh Gott, please, your nation is capitualted. This is wrong!" 

The soldier responding felt the discomfort of eyes being right on him when he looked up and saw the black eyes of the Festrian looking at him, chambering another .30-06 round in his rifle. "Wrong? What's wrong. Is how this came to be."

He placed to end of the barrel at the forehead of the Grinvelian, "What is your name, cabbage eater?" the soldier meekly answered "Kasper Cringmacher". "Where you from, Kasper?" the Festrian clicked the safety on his rifle indicating his intent to not shoot the man, "I am from the North, a small town named Agsburg." 

"What's Agsburg like?" 
"It's beautiful, hard winters but we make it fine." 
"Would you fight for Agsburg?" 
"What?"
"Let's say...Grinvel lost, surrendered. Would you fight on?"
"Ja. It's my home."
"Welcome to my cause, my name is Luticus. You shall tell them of me." 

A rapid collection of gunfire killed the other soldiers who remained silent, Kasper was the only man alive. "Tell them, tell them we're coming Kasper. Tell your masters and the cowards at Auran. That Luticus of Mars Hill is coming for them all." 

In next following days the Sons of Mars had attacked and ravaged Grinvelians moving through Southern Roskana to prepare for Fiegler's invasion of Eastern Marrlan. The attacks caused delays as the Grinvelian military met rising resistance in the South. An order was made to the Roskanan Dominion. 


"DEAL WITH THIS NOW" 

[VoxApocrypha]

Auran, Roskanan Dominion
Auran Command

---

 The vixen stared at the communique, while Samantha read her own copy again, reports from the south of clashes between rebels and the Grinvelian army along the roads running south. That they had not been going south-bound on trains was their own fault, Amelia thought. They should have known better. But of course, her own should have known better too. That there would be rebels. With the tens of thousands of desertions that'd been reported and recorded, and likely the many that had not, and the substantial amounts of missing equipment on the frontline, and salvage that was to be had, it was no wonder that rebel groups had been able to organize so quickly and establish themselves. 

 Most Roskanans had access to a rifle of some sort. There were millions of guns in circulation on the public market, millions in people's homes across the country, and millions unaccounted for. Roskanan law did not require the registration of firearms, by nature, simply unenforceable and pointless. The Republikans had proposed mass-weapon registration and tried buybacks again and again only for it to backfire. The government lost money and got old rifles, and that money was put towards purchasing new weapons or ammo, or other things, often with no fewer people armed than before. It was just a general rule, in Roskana: an armed neighborhood is a polite one. An armed society is a polite one, was the more broad application of the rule. 

 She wondered what the Kaiser expected, what Fiegler expected. What Apollo had. 
Amelia looked up at Samantha, as she lifted the paper and turned it to her, drawing the fox's attention. She leaned forwards a bit too look at the outlined text. 

"Estimated several hundred dead in one engagement, entire road clogged and cratered." 

Amelia looked at that, and then went back to sitting fully. 
By Mars, that was a lot. The cold analyst in her said that the rebels had greater battlefield effectiveness than the actual army did. 
The jaded politician in her said that this was a disaster in the making politically, not that she really cared. The Grinvelians would never honor a real peace without wanting to impose their will in full, and this would just be a Casus Belli, or at least that's how she felt. Maybe she was wrong, but she did not trust that deep judgement. Though, they were clearly not that good at fighting without all armored supremacy, given they'd been so thoroughly slaughtered. 

The hateful mother of a dead son said that was hardly enough blood to even begin filling the well of recompense.
She wondered who Samantha would send south to deal with this. Probably not her, she hoped. But she knew Makaan was not going to be available. Anderson was out of action, hospitalized by rust-lung. 

There were others, but she was the next in line for theater command.
With a long inhale, and then a slow exhale through her nostrils, she set the paper down and looked at Samantha. 

"Quite a mess. Guess we've gotta get to cleaning it up." She'd say, her eyes drifting to the wall ahead of her. 

"..Yes. Before this spirals any further out of control." Sam would reply. "..Everyone else is predisposed, I am afraid. And I can't leave here. I'm going to give you command of this task force, and it is on you to organize it. Pick the elements you need, and march south to establish positions in Marley, Dockson, and the cities along the southern railways. Secure the railways, and roads, and make sure that these fucking dogs aren't going to be further harassed by the rebels." She'd say. 

"Yes ma'am." Amelia would stand up, and raise her fist over her heart, bowing her head in salute before leaving the room a moment later, taking with her the stack of papers so that she could go to her own office. As she walked down the hall, her mind drifted. Did she even care to stop them? Yes, she did. If not then worse would come of it. 

Just letting them go though.. 

She pushed the thoughts aside. There'd be more time to ponder later. For now, she had to focus on her given task.

---

Task Force Southern Storms

x10,000 Standard Infantry
x8,000 Light Infantry
x4000 Bicycle Infantry
x3000 Special Infantry

x670 Supply Trucks

x40 Armored Cars
x300 Mortars
x70 Howitzers
x120 Field Guns
x15 Anti-Tank Guns

x12 Recon Monoplanes
x10 CAS Planes

Deployment Pending

x1200 Police Officers (Government Agents) from the city of Marley, Docson, Arcaso, and Akulabar deployed to the area ahead of the army to establish security. 

---

1936, Late Esrellia
Northern Region of Mars

While the army mobilized, the Roskanan government recruited several police units to establish security patrols along the roads. 
These were only really a stop-gap measure. With 800 police officers from four major civil police departments, and then agents and field operatives from the Roskanan Railway Guard and Roskanan Roadway Patrol joining in, the police arrived first via truck and patrolled the regions nearer to the cities, while the Roadway Patrol performed sparse patrols along the roads. The RRG moved along the railways on small carts or in trucks specialized for off-road work, though they did not veer far off of their designated paths. 

 Even if they were there to protect the infrastructure and defend against the rebels, they were not a particularly highly motivated force. While they'd fight to defend themselves and their co-workers, they were not going to go so far as to pursue them, and they were not equipped to fight them on an equal field. Each department had only handguns and bolt action rifles, with little in the way of body armor or the training necessary to fight insurgents. Special Tactics Units were deployed from the city police departments, but they numbered collectively only about seventy-five men with modern bolt actions. 

 A proclamation was issued by the Dominion's government that attacks on the Grinveilian troops passing through the country were a capital offense, and anyone captured in the act would be subject to the highest penalties of the law. But anyone who was already out there and willing to do what the Sons of Mars had, was unlikely to be cowed by a threat of life in prison or execution. 

[Greywall]

The increase in patrols and deployment of the Dominion allowed Grinvel to marshal their troops South to begin invading Marrlan from the East. Fiegler was called back to the capital, in his stead was Field Marshall Phillipe Mingle. Mingle didn't hold much respect for the Roskana, viewing this rebellion with disdain and that the Dominion would not hold their word of capitulation. But for now his focus was taking on the Marrish.

Grinvel's army would arrive in Marrlan within the next season.

Luticus had received reports of the Grinvelians increasing their presence but also of the Dominion sending soldiers. "Dominion, does Auran intend to really bend knee then act as if some of us would accept tyranny again? After the Republic stood and gave us liberty? Fools. I'll stain the tapestry of history with their blood and it shall tell of their cowardice as I march us on Auran and retake the Republic."

A bold statement, but Luticus lacked real manpower.

5,000 standard infantrymen had joined his cause from veterans of the recent fighting
2,000 light infantry were trained from volunteers to his cause
only 100 special infantrymen including himself were trained to the highest degree of Roskanan warfare.

He had maybe 100 bicycle infantry
20 armored cars

His best weapon were the people of Southern Roskana, giving up intel to his people when they could and allowing him to move around the Southern countryside. They also fed his men and hid them. "I want to spill Dominion blood, send Auran a message."

He began organizing a small group to attack and probe the initial Dominion deployment. 40 standard infantry, 20 light, 2 armored cars and 5 special infantrymen serving as command. They would assault what would be a Dominion police patrol, bringing down heavy small arms fire and the armored cars laid down heavy machine gun fire. They expected a larger fight. Bringing an approach more deserving of the recent frontline fighting with Grinvel let alone assaulting police officers.

War has not left Roskana

[VoxApocrypha]

The police were not equipped to fight armored vehicles, naturally. Even with bolt action rifles they were no match for proper infantry, and they did not opt to remain in the fight long. With several of their number gunned down, they offerred only sporadic return fire, retreating from any attack rather than remaining. The government didn't order them to remain, as presently, police forces were only there to try to maintain security.

A good dozen or so cops were killed pretty much immediately, and a dozen more would be before long either injured or dead.
Two patrols minced, it was a pretty brutal scene, and it left a substantial section of road unprotected, at least temporarily. The deaths of these officers would immediately be relayed up the chain, taking still some time to reach the nearby city of Docson, though once it did it was telegraphed to the capital that the rebels had attacked two patrols. It was doubtful is anyone had actually managed to even hit a rebel in all that time. Likely not - panic and the strength of the attackers made it near impossible for them to effectively defend themselves. 

Not long after, a request came down to the local garrison to begin arming a force to deploy immediately to the roadways, and to bring man-portable anti-tank with them.
This would still take some time though, and it was only going to be around a hundred men, as that was all they had readily available due to the majority of the garrison being on leave or extended training further north in Karshkan.