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Natalie Slatsky was making another public address to the citizen's of West Fall. This was the war speach. The army of West Fall was headed north, she said, to cleanse the hornets nest of undead known as the Northernlands once and for all. It was apparent that the army would have to move across the rolling hills of the western badlands and plains until it reached the Mythril mountains. She didn't say how the army planned to get across the Mythril mountains. According to her, early talks with Central Axis Corporation proved productive, the corporation was commited to helping West Fall acheive its war aims. A naval task force was already dispatched to the oil rigs, for their safekeeping.

Newly discovered oil supplies in the Western Badlands would be exploited, and oil from the Tundra Rigs would be bought solely by the West Fall government for the duration of the conflict. Oil sold to Gaian Republic would be at drastically higher prices.

Bonds would be issued, conscription would be introduced for the first time, rationing instituted, and the standard work hour increased to 14 hours a day. All factories would be expected to primarily produce supplies and equipment for the military. Funds were to be fully restored and then tripled to all branches of the military, special wartime military taxes would be imposed to support this. The standing army was to be increased from about 50,000 to 500,000. The measures had already passed the house and senate, and military force were already moving forward.

The Charitable Order was ordered to continue providing social services and to cooperate with the Central Axis Corp. on the creation of Negative Energy Cleansers and protective gear.

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THE CITADEL

All five edges of the pentagon opened in the cent, wide concrete reinforced hatches slid open, the walls parting in four directions, metal reinforcement bars retreating in horizontal and vertical directions. From the wide lanes rose a support track of steel rails connected by traingular slats. The massive engines destined to straddle these rails made their exit from the citadel, billowing steam as they moved forward at half speed. One for each side of the pentagon, a total of five in all.

Each one was fifty nine and a half meters long, nineteen meters high at the center, nine meters high at the front edge, fifteen meters high at the back edge, and twenty three meters thick. At the center, each one was fitted with a super heavy artilary cannon, one a 275mm, two others 325mm cannon, and the remaining two were fitted with 400mm stubby bowl shaped cannon that extended no more than a four meters long; these special cannon were connected to mass of wire and tubes and surrounded by glimmering blue triangular devices.

The secondary weoponry was standard. To the rear were three rotating turrets with 110mm cannon, there were another three in the front. There were over ten smaller machine gun turrets arounf the edges of them, each fully rotational and at the moment positioned above the armor. More towards the interior were the 60mm anti-personell mortar turrets, ten in all, placed around the vehicle for overlapping fields of fire. There were what appeared to be small, single missile silos throughout the surface for air defense. At the sides there were additional silos for laser guided anti-tank missiles.

These massive land trains were newly christened as Mobile Fortress Goliaths. Each one had the name Goliath along the side, they also had a certain symbal, that looked an eye, etched throughout the surface of each vehicles armor.

Leg crawlers moved around the Goliath's faster than they could move themselves, even crawling on them like centipede's over the corpse of a giant. They continually ran back and forth from the Goliath's to citadel. Rock Eaters followed lazily, they would be assigned to crushing paths for the re-supply routes.

The Citadel was a very busy place, trucks loaded with newly built Svendari automated launch Multi-purpose missiles were arriving at the scene. Five hundred in all for the first order. Half loaded into the hatches of the Goliath's and the other half restocking the Pentagon Complex.

Reconstruction of the damaged portion of the Pentagon's outer shell was finally begining as well.

~~~~~~~~~
West Fall City

Locally manufactured Merkava type tanks, all of which survived the first war with the Northernland untouched, had been tuned up and fixed nevertheless because of wear and tear they received from constant use. They were headed to the Citadel complex, to be loaded on freigheters that would follow the Goliath's. The army only had 150 tanks battle ready at the moment, but with the main focus on the Goliath's, they would only be needed for support. The armor was supported by a force of 300

Giat VBC APC's loaded with troops, including special divisions of synthetic humans and andriods better suited for war in the Northern lands, would be buzzing through the city. Some forces only had simple trucks for transport, and some would be required to march on foot with the slow moving Goliath's. In all, a small army of about 70,000 formed the intitial vanguard.

Another force of about 50,000 was organized, equipped with a few trucks and a number of T-80 battle tanks. What trucks were available in this case carried the mortars and some towed artilary pieces. It was a force to follow behind the vanguard. Both forces would received full support from the West Fall airforce.

In order to prevent recon of the city from the air, the West Fall airforce would be flying aggresive patrols, and it would follow the force to help keep it's movement somewhat mysterious.

The border between Durem and West Fall was closed off completely, a long trench line of infantry supported with, mortar, artilary, anti-tank and air missiles guarding a twenty mile defense line. The older T-72 type tanks were positioned behind the line for additional support. Troops were being moved into the line daily, and equipment pulled from Barthovos was being set up to strengthen the line.

She looked very much the part of a temple preistess, and would be left to her own devices, despite the fact that the city looked very much as if it had gone under marshall law.


But.. before she could get out of the casino district an unshaven man would fall at her knees, clutching her robes. The smell of strong liquor was obscene. He looked up at her pleadingly, a young looking man with discerning green eyes wearing dirty blue janitor's overalls. A small Feld badge dangling from his pocket.

"Sister," he said, "I'm so sorry, please forgive me, I've disgraced the order. I can't get my head together on right and wrong or good and evil. I'm lost sister, completely lost."

Then he vomited at her feet and passed out in it.

Eripse frowned, knelt, and picked the man up from his own bile, quietly moving to the nearest lodgings possible... Nothing fancy, a cheap, one floor motel.. She'd purchase the man a room, and leave him in it, continuing on her way. Perhaps, then, she could make a rather easy feat of this...

Fingers brushed the dirt, bile, and general yuck from her clothing, extending a heat from her core that purified the clothing, returning it to it's natural appearance. Onward she would go, heaving a soft sigh as she looked around, drawing her hood closer about her abnormal features.

Eripse paused, the briefest of pauses, as she stood before the gates, before the security team, and looked back, turning at the waist in thought of the man. Her hand clenched into a fist in thought, as she looked forward, once more, at a guard, with a pause, and then back over her shoulder again. A frown creased her mouth, the only thing truly visible with that hood, as she turned and ran, full-tilt back towards the motel. Her gut was wiggly, and a wiggly gut usually had the right idea.

She may have to change bodies every few millenia, she may have to buy new clothes everytime she got in a fight, but one thing that never wavered, never changed, was the woman's brain. There was a memory that was meant to exist for a reason, and though it got a little foggy sometimes, it was clear enough to work. Walking behind the building, along the side of the room in which she had left the room, she paused outside a window in the back, fogged for privacy... And... steamy? Yes, she'd found the bathroom... That meant the man was inside... From her back poked the spindly legs, as she climbed steadily to the roof, eventually turning a shade the color of the rooftiles, but not her clothes... A moment's annoyance as she considered this one, before she continued on her way, crawling over the roof, and observing the entryway... She looked at things such as transportation, sentries, et cetera.

Eripse would drop down, into a window, in a room down the hall from the one she'd put the man into. Also on the way to the exit. She'd step out as they approached her doorway. Six foot tall and imposing in her own right, she crossed her arms over her chest and watched from beneath the hood as she spoke, her mouth the only thing visible.

"I must ask... What do you want with a drunk?" There was a firmness in her, in the way she did not rest her fingers over her bicep, but instead curled her hands into fists that rested in the crook of each elbow, that showed what she really was... An imposter of a priestess, and ready to fight if she must....

A noise accompanied her stance, as well, the sound one heard as ice was incited quickly, a crackling, creaking noise of something spreading.

Eripse, was, at this moment, visibly human. Six foot tall, one head, two breasts, two arms, two legs... Typical shape Where her flesh was visible, she was alabaster with crimson markings, in simple, tribal slashes. She was decked in a rope of a honey-cream color, very light, but... heavy. The fabric hung with it's own weight, draping off of her limbs...


"Don't play dumb. I'm not some sassy blonde b***h that would forget something so simple as helping a drunk. He was drunk when I left him here, and low and behold you guys are attempting to whisk out of here with him.." Fingers tensed and curled.. "And none too lovingly. Leave him here, and walk away, and we won't have any problems." Big words for a woman looking at two platoons of 12 men, armed to the teeth. But you know what? Eripse had faced worse. Perhaps they'd be diplomatic good little soldiers.


(She's always the spider creature now. >> It's her form for the next long while.)

Eripse would move quietly, lifting her fingers to the hood, which she would pull back revealing all eight eyes and her bald-head. Revealing red slashes that continued in smaller lines along her face and skull. She would rest the hood about her shoulders, and cross her arms again.

"If you don't want a fight, then don't make one. As to worth, why don't you ask him where he wants to go, hmm? Free will and all that, hum?"

Eyelids of her mains would lower to a half-lidded look, as if to show she was bored. And then, in fact, hand would raise to shield a yawn. Eyes open and hand back to where it was, she would frown at the man.

"Ball's in your court, hon. I can either shut you down hard, or you can just give it to me and we both walk away to deal another day."

Eripse was no longer in the mood for niceties.

"You think you fool, but you don't. You won't kill him... He's too valuable. You're also very stupid, to think you can boss me about like some BDU-Bodybag."

With a smooth movement, the woman would flip the bed over the man, aiming to toss him to the floor and shield him between bed and wall and floor. With this action, she would take her momentum with her and swing one foot hard, turning on her hip, to smash it into the nearest man.

They would be surprised to find her carapace had hardened, impressively so. Her skin, except where it needed to move, was as hard as rock.