Summoning Our Country - NHS Kai

Chapter 12: Amboss Tropfen

It was about time.

With their goggles and oxygen masks, the most prominent sound that they could hear was that of their own breathing. The Kommandos each took deep breaths, trying to make sure that they were calm and resolute for the coming task at hand. After all, the fate of ten Gra Valkan diplomats was in their hands. Their countless hours of rigorous training all led to this very moment. And so, the countdown finally began.

Each passing second was represented by a beep.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

At the last beep, the Kommandos all sprinted forward, jumping out into the pitch-black void and out of the comforts of their aircraft. As the last Kommando jumped from the Zs-635, the high altitude, low opening jump phase of Unternehmen Amboss Tropfen had begun. Greeting them almost immediately was the intense blast of air pushing against their entire person as they all descended towards the Kingdom of Paganda at terminal velocity. Fixating their gazes at the colorful display of red, orange, yellow, and green fireworks emanating from the light-filled city streets, which were distinct enough that they could recognize the ones they've seen from the maps. The Kommandos had a moment of chronal pause as they momentarily took in the sight, with some inwardly uttering the words "wunderschön" in awe.

As the altimeter approached the designated reading, the Kommandos all reached out to open their parachutes. One after another, the 35 Kommandos deployed their chutes, drastically reducing their descent speed. Due to the altitude at which they deployed their chutes, they were able to slip past the observation posts that still maintained their eyes towards the skies, unaware of the threat that had just deployed to their rear. While there was some degree of variation, all the Kommandos were able to steer their parachutes towards their designated landing site: a clearing in the forest some distance away from the MP compound.

South of the MP compound, 0:10

It was the middle of the night at the decline of spring, which could be felt in the increasingly dry wind that blew in. In the forests south of the Pagandan capital, darkness reigned almost supreme, only partially set aside by the light coming from the two moons and the countless glow of assorted colors coming from the fireworks being set off in the skies above the capital. Disturbing the otherwise scenic and tranquil night were the echoes of loud bangs from the fireworks, music from the festivities, and cheers of people celebrating in the capital's streets. Suddenly, filling in the empty skies above the forest were 35 dark flowers: the parachutes of the inserting KMK. Exercising what they learned in training with graceful near perfection, the Kommandos all landed on Pagandan soil without hiccups. Taking off their chutes and other equipment they used in the jump, the Kommandos gathered their equipment on the ground before moving to the bearings designated as their regroup point. Once everyone was there, they did a headcount before organizing themselves to their respective Arbeitsgruppe. After that was done, Anton went on towards a cliff south of the MP compound that overlooked it while the four assault teams moved towards their staging points. Most of the Kommandos, especially those within the four assault teams, were armed with externally suppressed Strauss MP5 submachine guns and Ziegler P39 pistols, Ziegler Löweschuß pump-action shotgun, and stun grenades for breaching and close-quarters combat. The five Aufklärer and Scharfschützen of Anton wore camouflaged uniforms, alongside matching tan balaclavas, gloves, and body armor, and they were armed with SSG1 designated marksman rifles (DMRs) and PZG1 sniper rifles.

As the spotters and snipers of Anton reached their positions 20 minutes after landing, they were astonished by what greeted them. Pulling out the map and sketch of the compound they made from copying the "sketch" handed to them by the Geheimdienst (GD), Unterfeldwebel Bertram Werner double-checked the intelligence, looking up to look at the MP compound and back down at the sketch to see the differences. Much to his frustration, which the other spotters and snipers also felt, the intelligence handed to them by the GD was as garbage as they initially thought.