America Stranded in a Fantasy World

Chapter 10 "The Grim Reality"

"Anything interesting Lieutenant?" The gunner asked, half asleep in his seat.

"If you discount rolling hills of grass with the giant wildfire to our right as interesting then no Zach." Matthew glanced at the wall of smoke rising in the far distance.

"Seems our friends above have been busy. Any idea why commander?" Zach shifted his gaze from Matthew and the fire.

"Fucked if I know, your guess is as good as mine. Andrew, got anything to add?" Their attention turned to the loader.

"My guess? The top brass saw something they didn't like inside that forest and wanted it gone. Maybe a group of trolls?" Andrew pondered his own question as the rest of the crew also wondered.

"Aren't those the small green thingies?" Jim, their driver chimed in with his own question.

"You're thinking of goblins. Trolls are usually massive bastards that wield logs as weapons or something similar." Andrew, the only one in the tank to know much about fantasy, clarified for Jim.

"No wonder the air force was called. Though this seems a little excessive, no?"

"Eh, I think it's justified if it means I don't have to worry about it. Out of sight, out of mind, right?" Zach shot a cheeky smirk at Matthew who could only sake his head and stifle a laugh.

"I should never have taught you that saying." Matthew muttered.

The convoy continued down the road and those who could see the wall of smoke and distant fire watched on, the atmosphere filling with ever-increasing dread. At this point, it had finally hit most that this was no longer Earth and now anything goes. Some soldiers had started to write letters to their loved ones or friends, only to be reminded that those who weren't American were no longer with them.

Peering through his optics, Zach started a slow pan around the tank. Excluding the wildfire, there really wasn't much else to see.

"Oh, how I would kill to have something to shoot at." Zach mumbled, only to have his lazy scan focus on a low dust cloud ahead of them.

"What the?" Zach pulled his head back from the optic sight before taking another look. "Commander! Dust cloud, bearing three-five-seven!"

"I see it. Cancer Stick to convoy, be advised we have a dust cloud ahead, prepare for possible altercations, how copy? Matthew looked behind him to see some of the humvees and MRAPs(Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected) trucks with machine guns starting to test the movement of their respective weapons.

"Solid copy Cancer Stick, Killware is ready to provide assistance, over." The closest cougar MRAP veered slightly right to get a clear shot past Cancer Stick.

As Cancer Stick crested the next hill they were met with multiple dots on the horizon. Zach increased the magnification on the gunnery sights only to be startled to see a wagon convoy with foot soldiers on the side wearing chainmail and wielding short swords. Just as he was about to report, a canine demi-human got pushed out of the back of the last wagon. Their body was limp and they didn't move from the ground.

"Commander, we've got a slave convoy ahead of us, orders?" Zach turned to Jim whose face was turning red with anger at the sight of the convoy ahead of them.

"Wait one Zach. All Units be advised we have a slave convoy ahead of us, weapons ready, I repeat, weapons ready, over." Finishing the transmission to the rest of the American convoy, Matthew turned his attention to Jim. "Get on your MG, we can't risk collateral damage to the civilians."

As they got nearer it didn't take long for the slave convoy to realize that someone was behind them and closing in fast. The foot soldiers started running to the back of the convoy to protect it and its assets.