Mustafa Barzani hurled his cap viciously to the ground, his eyes bloodshot with rage.
The attack had failed again. Soldiers of the 25th Infantry Regiment staggered out of the gate passage and towers, at least half as many as before the assault. Many were missing more than a few body parts, and the foreseeable casualty rate might even rise to two-thirds.
The Beasts let out wanton howls, hurling strings of bloodied heads like weapons. They smashed into the fleeing soldiers, accelerating their collapse.
"Damn it!"
Mustafa slammed his fist against the railing, filled with both regret and fury.
Maybe this time he would end up before a military tribunal, he thought.
But who could have predicted that those brainless Orks would sneak around to the side of the fortress?
Although Fortress No. 2 was only a relatively small fortification, it had been built later and possessed a more complete defensive system than Aswan Fortress, incorporating many new technologies. Its design had also accounted for the different ways Orks and humans fought. Rather than adopting the concept of a star fort, it used the design of ancient city walls, constructed with the latest materials and supplemented with underground communication trenches.
Because it stood close to the Ridge Mountains, the garrison had built several concealed artillery emplacements on the nearby steep slopes while constructing Fortress No. 2, allowing them to provide covering fire from above during battle.
With such tight defenses, Mustafa had been confident he could withstand a sufficient number of Orks.
And he had indeed done so. Although the Orks' initial offensive had been fierce, they could only helplessly crash against the sheer walls. Their artillery could not quickly break through the human barrier of high-strength industrial cement and reinforced steel, while those terrifying Beasts had become targets for artillery