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I stood up from the chair and looked at my watch. Ok, that was a fun history lesson, but we’ve got work to do. Kurg and I are going out to retrieve that spotter drone that went down. Hans you can fly the recon sweep while we’re gone. I looked directly at him and made eye contact. You remember how to do that, right? He nodded.. I continued, here’s the coordinate list. I set the sheet of paper in front of him. You just fly over each location at a hundred meters, if you see something you can make a pin drop, but keep going. This is footage for command to analyze, not us, we just fly over, record what's down there and move on. A fresh battery should be plenty to get you down this list and home. This is easy, you can do it, we won’t be long. Do you have any questions? Hans said, no I think I can fly over a dozen locations and bring the drone back.  Ok, good. Kurg and I started gearing up, we put on our full armor and helmets. He put a fresh magazine into his M-7 and I checked that the s...

CHAPTER 16 Hans launched the spotter drone while Kurgan watched and I flew it out to the minefield.  While I was en route a second motion sensor went off. The drone was flying along at top speed and closing on the objective when the signal started getting jammed. Horizontal lines appeared across the controller screen and the picture quickly got worse. I threw the drone into reverse and tried to pull away from the source of the interference, but it came on too quick. The signal flickered in and out then I lost all control and the visual feed cut out. Fucking assholes, I said in disbelief, that drone was brand new. I pinned the location on the map. Kurgan and I shared a brief moment of confusion. There’s no way they got a vehicle that close. The drone had been jammed less than a mile away from our location. Kurgan said, let’s try another, just keep your distance. He went to the back and pulled out another spotter drone and brought it outside to launch, once it was in the air, he and ...

I hope you guys are enjoying the story, thanks for tuning in. I just finished the medical section of class and now we are starting to learn about trauma. EMT class is definitely a challenge, lots of studying and homework. It will be nice to finish in December, but until then here's more WWIII action. CHAPTER 14 Two hours later we had both drones in the air over a squad of enemy soldiers moving through a treeline. The wind had picked up and the drones were getting blown around with each gust. Hans was hunting for a way to attack through the trees while I watched from above. Kurgan sat next to me watching on the tablet trying to monitor the movements of each soldier as they appeared and disappeared under the heavy foliage. Each of us was focused on a task.  My hands were sore from running the controller non-stop, my back hurt from sitting on a wooden crate all day. I closed my eyes and then snapped them open trying to rally my energy. I swear to god,I said, I could actually save the ...

Chapter 12 I selected our most powerful anti-tank drone, a custom heavy lift drone fitted with an anti-tank mine. Kurgan started to carry it outside then came rushing back into the bunker. Drone coming in! He yelled, Hans is that you? Hans looked up from the screen he was watching, yeah Kurgan, that’s me, I’ll land the spotter right outside. Kurgan turned back out the door again. I lifted my FPV goggles off the charger and sat at the station.  Flying the spotter drone was similar to driving a remote controlled toy. I was sitting at the station making the drone go places. I could use the camera on the drone to look at the scene below, but it always felt like a tool that I was using at a distance. Flying the FPV was an entirely different sensation. With FPV I truly felt like I was there, flying like a bird, or hovering inches away from an enemy soldier. If I tipped the drone to the side my view was as if I had tipped my head to the side. FPV’s could fly up to one hundred miles an hou...

    We walked down into the bunker and immediately heard the command radio calling out to us. Tang Tango Seven repeat! Do you copy? There is an inbound assault force on the Cyclops position! The radio went quiet waiting for a response and across the bunker I could hear a muted bassline thumping from Han’s big earphones. He was laid back in his cot staring at the ceiling. I didn’t have time to address him, so I picked up the comm radio. Tango Tango Seven go ahead. Shade, where the hell have you been? There’s an armored column heading towards position Cyclops. We confirm the column is led by a turtle tank with a minerollers. We are redirecting arty assets, but you need to slow that thing down, try to keep it from crossing the minefield. Copy that, I said, we’re on it.  I looked back at Hans and he stood ready and alert, as if he’d always been there and was just waiting on us. Kurgan went to the drone storage and started prepping anti-tank munitions. I grabbed an observer dr...

Chapter 9 Gunfire pounded from the other end of the call. Repeat, taking heavy fire at the Onyx trench line. Requesting aerial assistance. I knew where the Onyx trench was, so I hustled back to the flight station and launched the recon drone. Kurgan set up an anti tank FPV and carried it outside as Hans sat down next to me and pulled his goggles back on. Hans started to say something…when PHOOM! An artillery shell hit right near our bunker. Dirt fell from the ceiling beams and the ground shook. I put my drone into hover and ran to the bunker entrance. I got to the chain curtain just as Kurgan was coming back down the stairs holding something in his gloved hand and grinning. He had fresh dirt smeared across his armor and face. Hoowee! He yelled, that was a close one! Check this out, He held out his hand and dropped a jagged black chunk of metal onto the desk. Whisps of smoke trickled off the shard. It’s still hot! Kurg said proudly. Hans stared at the chunk of shrapnel in disbelief. Han...