Reich Marshal of the Belkan Reich

RM Vol 4: War – Interlude: EEF – Edited by Yovis

"Where is the strategic reserve?"

"There's no longer any."

That was the most shocking thing Churchill had heard in his life. During the First World War, the reserve saved Paris from a bitter battle. Yet, after learning that the Ustian's reservists are all deployed and are dying in drove, Churchill felt light a fire was lit beneath his ass. In haste, he immediately flew to the headquarters of the Erusean Expeditionary Force, uncaring whether or not the act would endanger him. Upon touching down, Churchill was welcomed by General John Vereker, otherwise known as Lord Gort, and was the overall commander of the EEF fighting in Darscen. Upon getting comfortable, Churchill received a situation report that is best summed up as follows.

"The whole affair is a bloody mess!" Lord Gort complains, nearly biting his cigar in half.

Currently, Churchill is sitting down with Lord Gort in the office of a commandeered villa.

"We are losing ground faster than we can retreat. Troops are being isolated and destroyed on every front. The Darscens are just a stone's throw away from losing their capital. As we speak, we have an unknown amount of Belkan Divisions marauding right in our backyard. Their unseen Air Force seems very capable of bombing us with impunity. Cambrais has already fallen and Arras is not doing any better. The Ustians put up a good fight there but I doubt they will be able to hold for half a day, much less a full one. Worse, we suspect that the Belkans are seeking to seize Abbeville, and should they succeed, the Northern Armies are to be without supplies."

Churchill can just about feel his face drained of color. "Truly, is the situation that bad?"

Lord Gort rolls his eyes unceremoniously. "No. My gut is telling me that it's much worse, but without a swift method of transmitting information, there's no telling how our battlefront has devolved."

The sheer finality in Lord Gort's tone triggers alarms in Churchill's mind. It's as if the General sees no hope in recovering the situation to what it once was. Can Churchill blame him though? The Prime Minister is surely not a military adept, but even he knows that all battles must be fought with proper intelligence gathering and order dissemination. Yet, with the EEF currently incapable of doing either of them to any acceptable standard, it's a godsend that the Belkans haven't managed to overrun their position, yet.

In a way, the EEF does inspire confidence, having held out for this long with such a major disadvantage.

It's regretful that the Darscens are losing ground all the way to Brussel, however. Nevertheless, it's an understandable occurrence. The Principality of Darscen doesn't have much manpower nor expanded terrains to work with in the first place. Still, perhaps with the right investment, everything can be salvaged.

"Penny for your thoughts, Minister?" Lord Gort asks, seeing the color return to Churchill's face.

The Erusean Prime Minister nods. "While it's unfortunate that the Ustian Loyalists don't have their clutch which is their massive reserve force, we are lucky that whatever Armies they have left on the field are still sizeable in nature. The Loyalist Prime Minister and his military command have reassured me that they will dedicate their resources to mount a counterattack. They are aiming not just to prevent the encirclement of the Northern Armies, but also to take back control of the gap in Sedan. They're going all in on this one, mustering whatever force they can for a hit or miss."

Lord Gort mulls on his cigar before saying. "That's highly risky of them. Without backup units, the Loyalists will find themselves on the backfoot if they can't subjugate the Belkans."

"Yet it does inspire motivation, no?" Churchill asks back, lighting up another cigar in the process.

"Indeed." Lord Gort admits.

"So?" Churchill presses.

Understanding what the Prime Minister is urging for, Lord Gort says. "I can spare two Divisions. Any more than that, we risk the Reich kicking us back over the Channel."

"So little?" Churchill asks.

"Inferiority of numbers, inferiority of equipment, inferiority of methods." Lord Gort replies.

Churchill frowns before saying. "Then it seems that we must go all-in, much like the Loyalists."

"You mean to send over the Territorials? Won't that endanger the Isles?" Lord Gort puts on a similar frown.

"We don't need to send all of them. However, fresh blood and equipment must be shipped over to this side of the front. At this point, we must utilize everything we have to stop this Iron Menace. Suffice to say, the Army, Navy, and Air Force have to discard their prior grievances and work together if we're to achieve the ultimate victory." Churchill spouts with all the righteousness he can mutter.

"How soon can we expect reinforcement, and where?" Lord Gort asks, a bit of spirit has returned to his voice.

"Preparations have been made prior to my departure here. The voices in the cabinet have been sensible for once. I never thought that we would have to play this card so soon, however." Churchill sighs. "But yes, if I am to return to London now, the first shipment should arrive by daybreak of tomorrow over at Dunkirk."

"Dunkirk?" Lord Gort asks with a raise of an eyebrow. "That place has little to no way to host a naval disembarkment."

Churchill nods. "Indeed. Yet it's also the only place we can get the troops across in a reasonable timeframe. The Admiralty will see to it that the Territorials are delivered swiftly. Numbering approximately half of the EEF, it falls on you to receive these reincforcements and put them to good use."

Lord Gorts replies. "Aye, I shall be able to do that much. I will have my sappers work on creating a giant pier or something to receive the reinforcements at best speed. However, it will be open sky for the next few days, are we capable of hiding our actions from the enemies?"

Churchill gives him a deadpan look. "What do you think?"

"Right, my apologies for the stupid question. I guess the stress must have gotten into me." Lord Gort nods to himself. "Can we guarantee that the reinforcements won't be intercepted?"

"The Air Force and the Navy will work together. Our transport will be guarded by aircraft and warships. At this point, I think it won't be a stretch to say that we're willing to do whatever it takes to even the odds. I will have words with the people back home to wage a bombing campaign and convoy raiding missions against the Reich. As long as we can inflict enough damage, we can demoralize the Belkan civilians to the point that the Reich will have to pull back its Armies."

"That's a dishonorable way to wage a war, isn't it?" Lord Gort questions. "There's no way we can ensure that we won't slaughter innocent civilians."

Churchill sighs. "At this point, we don't have much of an option. The Belkans truly have pulled the rug from under us on this one."

The conversation ends hastily with Churchill immediately being flown back to London, leaving Gort to mobilize his assets all over the North. Each man has a different thought on how the war should pan out, yet both share a common unwillingness to give up just yet. Perhaps, with fresh bodies and firepower, not to mention a shaking united military for once, the Eruseans can still turn the battle around.

It doesn't mean that they can't plan for the possible yet grim event of an all-out retreat from Ustio, however. They're not that stupid to fight for a different country with complete disregard for their own.