June 1875.
Mikumi region, Central Province, Kingdom of East Africa.
Mikumi lay in the transition zone between the plateau and plains of Central Province, where mountains, hills, and flatlands converged, and forests met grasslands.
The rainy season had just passed. The earth was still damp, and hazy mist drifted through the mountains and woods. The Central Railway passed through this place, like a steel dragon slowly disappearing from the coastal plains into the East African Highlands.
East African villages and fertile fields lined both sides of the railway. This year, however, the villagers were treated to quite a spectacle. The Kingdom's army held a massive military exercise in Mikumi. Starting at five in the morning, rumbling artillery fire and gunshots shattered the region's tranquility. Smoke from battle could even be seen rising halfway up the mountains from the croplands on the plains.
With the railway's help, the East African Guards Division rapidly deployed troops into the Mikumi region. Their opponent was the Southern Military Region, which had fought the Boers in the south. The two sides launched a major battle in Mikumi.
"Blue Army Third Combat Squad, the enemy has entered the jungle. Do not act rashly. Enter in squad formations, maintain combat spacing, and do not let yourselves be defeated one by one!"
"Twenty-five degrees to the left. There is unusual movement in the brush. Possible hidden enemy."
"Prepare grenades!"
As a smoke grenade ignited, the Blue Army Third Combat Squad was engulfed in mist.
The referee accompanying the Third Combat Squad made his ruling. "Hit by a Red Army attack device. The blast landed directly in the center. Forty percent casualties sustained."
"This isn't fair! How could grenades have such power in actual combat? It's a shady deal!"
"The exercise command has stipulated that the damage radius of