A Chimera APC, thick with sand and dust, slowly came to a halt in the shade of a massive sand dune, its engine rumbling. The hydraulic rods hissed dully, and the rear hatch slammed heavily onto the soft sand. Several agile figures leaped out.
Leading them was Joker, his face showing little emotion. The other accompanying battalion commanders wore the full-face masks integrated into their carapace armor, their thick respirator filters shielding them from the swirling sand. Only Joker did not.
Of course, he had his reasons for doing so. He narrowed his eyes slightly, letting the gritty wind brush against his cheeks, feeling the wind direction and speed. Then, he quickly sketched on a portable tactical datapad: "Good, this is the leeward side. My judgment wasn't wrong."
"Sir," Battalion Commander Jade voice came through his mask, a hint of dullness in it. He squinted, observing the steep front slope of the sand dune. "The front slope offers a wide view; we can see for several kilometers."
"And then we can also be targeted by the Greenskins several kilometers away," Joker said without looking up, drawing a thick line on the datapad with his finger. "We need to build our position on the reverse slope."
Battalion Commander 'EGO' immediately understood the intention: "This is sacrificing observation for concealment and protection against direct fire… So we need eyes."
"Exactly," Joker stood up, straightening his back, and pointed to the slightly lower high ground on either side of the sand dune's ridge line. "Jade , your battalion is responsible for the main defensive position. Dig it out on this reverse slope."
"EGO, your battalion is responsible for the left flank, and here, and here," Joker spread out the datapad in front of everyone. On the professional military map displayed, two red dots were clearly marked by him. "Set up two forward observation posts. Your eyes must constantly be on the horizon."
"Third Battalion…" Joker paused, his gaze turning to Mua'dib, who had barely spoken the entire time. "Third Battalion will serve as the regiment's reserve and construct an auxiliary position on the right flank."
At this point, Joker held up three fingers, his tone leaving no room for doubt: "Three large empty containers will be transported here later. Jade will use one to build your main machine gun position, Mua'dib will use one for the artillery company's position, and the remaining one will be the regimental command post. Any questions?"
"Uh, that," Mua'dib raised his hand somewhat blankly, his movements a bit hesitant. "I didn't quite understand. Where exactly is the right flank, and how specifically should the auxiliary position be dug? Also, where should my artillery company be placed? And… why are we setting up a defensive position here? What if the Greenskins come from all directions?"
A series of questions instantly made the atmosphere somewhat stagnant.
"Oh, that was my oversight," Joker showed no impatience. He pondered for a moment, then looked at Archer beside him. The other man understood immediately and quickly brought up a new, more simplified topographic map on Joker's datapad.
"Come, look," Joker handed the datapad to Mua'dib. "This is the sand dune where we are now, which will be the future main position. To the right here is low ground; your auxiliary position will be dug here. First, dig foxholes, then connect them with communication trenches. Your artillery company will be set up in the rear, and once ordered, will immediately fire on the pre-designated areas."
"As for why we're setting up a defensive position here," Joker's lips curled into a confident smile. "If it were individuals, then it might be possible for them to come from 'all directions.' But a race like the Greenskins, who come in the thousands and tens of thousands, will, due to terrain, geology, and various other factors, only have one direction suitable for large-scale movement. Otherwise, we wouldn't even need to deal with them; they'd get stuck in quicksand first. Even if they didn't suffer massive casualties, they'd become our targets, completely unthreatening."
"Oh," Mua'dib looked at the map, nodding thoughtfully. "I think I'm starting to understand."
"If you understand, then execute. Dismissed!"
At Joker's command, Jade and EGO instinctively snapped to attention, saluted crisply, and then turned to leave. Mua'dib, seeing this, quickly followed suit with a salute, though his movement was half a beat slower, appearing somewhat clumsy.
Joker turned to look at Archer, who was still standing there: "Why are you still here? If you're going to ask questions like his, then I'll have to wonder if you got here through connections."
"Hmph," Archer retorted, unwilling to be outdone. "I'm just curious why your game names aren't letters, or are quite feminine, or are both letters and feminine."
"It's just a codename," Joker said calmly, his eyes showing no ripples. "You talk as if you've ever called me by my real name. And you, your ability to change the subject has improved."
"Go to hell!" Archer swore with a laugh, giving Joker a light punch on the shoulder.
After the playful banter, the atmosphere returned to calm. Joker turned his head, looking towards the distant horizon where a battle barge was anchored in the sea of sand.
Its colossal ten-kilometer-long hull was like a steel mountain, casting a huge shadow even from a great distance, bringing an unparalleled sense of oppression. However, compared to when it first crash-landed, it had been buried significantly by the wind and sand. Perhaps in a few more months, only half of the hull would be visible.
"Honestly," Joker's voice was somewhat distant. "This is probably a scene I'd only dream of… I'm actually commanding an army of a thousand men, stepping onto a battlefield to fight aliens, and the most fucked-up part is we're using goddamn WWI tactics."
"Do you have any objections to our advanced trench warfare?" Archer said, squinting, in a half-joking tone. "Lest you not know, let me tell you again—WWI was at least the early 20th century; up there it's still the late 19th-century era of dreadnoughts and big guns."
"That's why I'm worried," Joker sighed, the wind and sand ruffling his short hair.
"Worried about what?" Archer raised an eyebrow. "Mua'dib?"
"No, he knows to ask questions about what he doesn't understand; he's a smart person. He's the last person I'd worry about," Joker said. "What I'm worried about is, will we become like this in the future? Stagnant, clinging to ancient tactics and ideas, struggling and sinking in quicksand until we're completely swallowed."
The playful look on Archer's face disappeared. He was silent for a moment, and the sound of the wind on the sand dune seemed to grow more desolate.
After a long while, he slowly spoke, his voice firm and strong: "We are moving forward, aren't we?"
He looked at Joker, saying each word clearly: "No matter what, I believe humanity definitely has a praiseworthy and bright future."