The 33rd Imperial Ground Assault Division

Chapter 19: The 33rd Ground Assault Division—The Imperial

The 33rd Ground Assault Division is a unit under the Fourth Army of the Onuru Sigma Legion, a force renowned for its blitzkrieg tactics and unstoppable, high-intensity strikes.

Its predecessor was a ground assault detachment in the Sigma system. After two full years of grueling tug-of-war against Kel-Morian forces, the detachment was repeatedly shattered, reorganized, and expanded while retaining its designation. It now commands five infantry brigades, two armored regiments, and one engineer regiment.

The commander of this ground assault division is none other than Arcturus Mengsk, the first heir of the Mengsk family of Korhal. Yet, ten years ago, this eldest son of the Mengsk family was merely an obscure private.

The unit Arcturus first commanded was named the Imperial Squad. This tradition continues to this day; the 33rd Ground Assault Division is also known as the "Imperial" Assault Division, and its emblem is a Sigma Dire Wolf on a red field.

The base where Augustus's brigade is stationed is quite far from the main Turaxis base, requiring a four-hour flight by transport. Warfield really didn't need to come all the way out here himself; one didn't need to think twice to know whose orders this was.

At 14:45 standard time in the northern hemisphere of Turaxis II, Augustus and the recruits of the Second Platoon boarded an APOD four-engine heavy near-space transport. This model of transport is more than capable of carrying a platoon of soldiers not wearing power armor, yet they were still forced to cram into two crew compartments, with the remaining space packed full of supply crates and ammunition.

As the transport slowly ascended, the cabin walls remained fully sealed with no portholes, leaving all the recruits to rely on their personal terminals and idle chatter to pass the time.

Harnack Hank and Kurt Josephine sat across from Augustus, looking dejected, a stark contrast to the gloating expressions on the faces of Raynor and the others.

Augustus could almost picture the bewildered expressions on their faces when they were dragged out of bed by Warfield's adjutant. Just as they were enjoying the company of women or sleeping soundly, someone had suddenly burst in to tell them their leave had been cut short.

That wasn't even the worst of it; the upright Warfield had looked quite displeased upon hearing they had been frequenting such establishments, explicitly telling them not to consider such things again while on active duty.

However, the good news was that with a new war looming, leave for the entire recruit training camp had been canceled.

Fortunately, the two of them were indifferent to everything; within five minutes, they had put the matter behind them and began to scramble, boasting vividly to Augustus and the others about their "heroic deeds" from the previous night. Soon after, Raynor began talking to the men of the Second Squad about his time piloting a Vulture, which quickly devolved into the entire platoon listening to the First Squad brag.

During the flight, Augustus could only browse the pre-downloaded official website of the Federal Marine Corps, which was filled with combat reports of the Terran Confederacy Marines and the Orbital Fleet engaging the Kel-Morian forces. These ranged from minor skirmishes between scouts in desert towns on the fringe worlds to the struggle for large cities or even entire planets.

Considering this was an official website aimed at the public, it was filled with reports of the Federal military beating the Kel-Morians to a pulp, while irresponsible holographic news networks and print newspapers often reprinted these reports without discrimination to boost clicks and sales.

In such a climate, "appropriate" embellishment was considered acceptable, and even the UNN Global News Network, considered the most authoritative and credible source, was no exception.

The Federal military was unstoppable and victorious. The Kel-Morians were throwing away their armor and retreating in defeat. Most of the Terran Confederacy population believed that a Federal victory in this war was only a matter of time; the only issue was that they all hoped it wouldn't take too long, lest the increasingly heavy taxes crush the average hardworking citizen.

Augustus flipped to some reports regarding Turaxis II. Even by noting the dates and the troop numbers openly committed by both sides, he could see that the intensity of the conflict was gradually escalating.

The arrival of the 33rd Ground Assault Division and other planetary forces proved that the balance of power between the Terran Confederacy and the Kel-Morians on Turaxis was about to be broken. Currently, the Terran Confederacy was still continuously deploying large numbers of troops to the planet. It was foreseeable that the Marine Corps operational command was planning a decisive battle that would determine the fate of the entire planet.

These were not things the officers at the recruit training camp would tell them; the non-commissioned officers would only say that while the Kel-Morians were fierce and cunning, the Marines were more than a match for them. Sweat more in training, and you will bleed less on the battlefield.

The future war on Turaxis II was both a danger and an opportunity for Augustus. Whether in the game or in this current StarCraft world, living Marines were the most expendable assets. But if Augustus could earn a promotion and become a senior NCO or a commander, it would be of great benefit to his future life.

Rather than acting like a coward, praying all day that a shell wouldn't land on him and leaving his life and death to fate, Augustus preferred to build his reputation and military merit from scratch.

If he were lucky enough, Augustus might earn a few medals in combat and become an NCO before the war ended. If everything went smoothly, Augustus would follow the discharge process, return to Korhal to inherit the family business, and persuade his father to abandon his plans to rebel against the Terran Confederacy and live out his life as a peaceful aristocrat.

Augustus lacked the ambition and desire for control that seemed inherent to the Mengsk family; after all, revolution and salvation had never had anything to do with him. He was long past the age of harboring dreams of saving the world.

At first, the transport flew quite steadily, but in the latter half of the journey, everyone felt intense turbulence. Augustus had to put down his personal terminal and grip the handrail. Immediately after, Warfield announced over the loudspeaker that at least two Kel-Morian Hellhound squadrons were pursuing them, but asked them to remain calm.

"Kel-Morian Hellfire squadrons rarely dare to penetrate our controlled territory, but there are always exceptions," the lieutenant said.

Most of the recruits fell into a panic as the transport began to roll and rotate, constantly turning to evade missile locks. All the recruits could do was pray that the Kel-Morian Hellhounds couldn't catch their prey, even though they all knew it was only a matter of time.

For a while, the transport continuously performed various high-difficulty, high-angle evasive maneuvers. Augustus felt dizzy, his head spinning as he was turned upside down; this was far more thrilling than the suspended roller coaster at the Sterling Center amusement park.

"We're done for..." Tom Omo said, clutching his face. "Mom, forgive me, Mom..."

"Oh, this pilot's flying skills really suck." Although Raynor had never flown a ship, that didn't stop him from running his mouth.

At this moment, Harnack was cheering and shrieking, Josephine was shrieking and cheering, Ward was expressionless, Zander's face had turned pale, and Benjamin was praying incessantly. Another, even more violent jolt occurred, and Augustus's seat shook violently.

If they hadn't been tightly strapped into their seats, they would have been thrown against the cabin walls and smashed to a bloody pulp. The warning lights overhead shifted from a soft blue to a constant, flashing red.

"We've been hit." Lieutenant Warfield's voice was louder, yet remained calm.

The transport flipped over, and the recruits saw the rotating cabin ceiling. Augustus felt himself falling.