The Miroslavan-Swieczieman Border
1st October 1952
It would be dramatic to say the only warning had come in the sound of artillery firing in the distance.
It would also be incorrect.
The first sign the Mezhist forces received was in the form of the handful of Miroslavan villages and towns that had dared to grow in proximity to what was undoubtedly the most heavily fortified border in the world suddenly and swiftly being evacuated of all life. This was doubly true in the southwestern-most part of the border, where woodcutting operations near the mile-long strip of cleared forest and no man's land along the demilitarized zone suddenly and inexplicably ceased. Wary Swieczieman guards would have been able to see, if briefly and at a distance, obvious signs of civilian movement, men, women and children fleeing inland with a handful of their most prized possessions in hand or carried on their backs. A few richer communities in the north fled by train or horse-drawn cart, but the majority struck out on foot, avoiding the major roads. The process took no more than two or three hours.
The second sign was somewhat more obvious, coming as it did in the form of military troop movements all along the border. This was especially true in the steppe of eastern Miroslavl, where great plumes of dust from many hundreds of thousands of vehicles rose up into the sky as the Miroslavan People's Revolutionary Army rushed with near-glee to take positions for the long-awaited offensive towards the north. A buzzing drone filled the sky as well as the Miroslavan People's Air Force began to deploy it's forward fighter and ground attack assets. At this point the signs were unmistakeable to all but the basest of fools.
And even they couldn't ignore the sound of a hundred thousand field guns opening fire in unison.
-----
Miroslavan People's Revolutionary Army 1st Shock Army Group
North of Bogodar, the Soviet Republic of Miroslavl
Central Offensive
The three hundred thousand men and two thousand tanks of the 1st Shock Army Group charged across the border into Upper Swiecziema five minutes into the bombardment, their masses of medium and light tanks advancing across a wide front, each tank ridden by five infantrymen and followed closely by swarms of armored cars, personnel carriers, and trucks. The People's Air Force also roared overhead, propeller-driven aircraft taking the fore while the less numerous and more valuable jet aircraft hung back to await more equal prey.
The 1st Shock Army Group's assault was indiscriminate. If it moved, was not Miroslavan, or was not in the process of surrendering, it was fired upon. Thousands of field guns fired endlessly for as long as they had potential targets in range, and close air support aircraft dove on anything that looked even vaguely threatening. Despite this, the soldiers and officers of the Miroslavan People's Revolutionary Army made sure to gracefully accept the surrender of any Swieczieman troops - or civilians - that offered it. On only one occasion did this fail to happen, and after the offending soldiers were swiftly thrown under the treads of their comrades' tanks it did not happen again.
Charging northwest like a raging bull, the 1st Shock Army Group eagerly sought to lock horns with the Prime Enemy.
-----
Miroslavan People's Revolutionary Army 2nd Shock Army Group
North of Tayshevsk, the Soviet Republic of Khitai
Eastern Offensive
The elite 2nd Shock Army Group proved far more precise than it's counterpart to the west. Targetting only known and suspected Mezhist military positions, the Second's artillery had only just begun to fire when the bulk of it's forces began sweeping north with a collective cry of "Za rodinu!" The light tanks and armored cars of the 2nd Armored Cavalry Division thrust forward in search of the enemy, followed closely by the rest of the 2nd Shock Army Group's armored and infantry forces. Civilians and their population centers were bypassed or left alone when possible and treated with utmost respect when encountered otherwise. Even the occasional armed partisan was ignored unless perceived an actual threat, and disarmed when possible.
In the skies above, the People's Air Force kept a close eye out for Mezhist bombers. It's own ground attack fighters held back, awaiting better targets than wild animals or particularly suspicious trees.
The 2nd Shock Army Group was not a bull.
It was a tiger, swift, collected and precise, and it hungered for a worthy foe.
-----
Miroslavan People's Revolutionary Army 3rd Shock Army Group
West of Volodymr, the Soviet Republic of Miroslavl
Western Offensive
If the First was a bull, and the Second a tiger, then the 3rd Shock Army Group could only be described as a herd of murderous demonic elephants. The Third did not charge into the fray. It did not hoot or holler or yell as it advanced. It's tanks did not bear grinning young Kozak men eager for war and glory atop their hulls.
The Third ground forward. Slowly. Inexorably. And leaving nothing in it's wake.
Forty thousand guns beat an endless tempo, a creeping barrage advancing slowly across the border into Upper Swiecziema. Heavy bombers of the People's Air Force flew high overhead, flanked by squadrons of fighters and dropping loads of bombs and incendiaries on the forest below. Masses of heavy tanks treaded onward, lines of gas masked infantry following behind. First contact with the Mezhist forces meant first deployment of Miroslavl's stores of nerve gas.
No surrender was accepted, because time to consider surrender was never offered. And the line between civilian and soldier blurred when one intended to leave only ash in their wake.
The 3rd Shock Army Group's death march continued to advance to the west.
1st October 1952
It would be dramatic to say the only warning had come in the sound of artillery firing in the distance.
It would also be incorrect.
The first sign the Mezhist forces received was in the form of the handful of Miroslavan villages and towns that had dared to grow in proximity to what was undoubtedly the most heavily fortified border in the world suddenly and swiftly being evacuated of all life. This was doubly true in the southwestern-most part of the border, where woodcutting operations near the mile-long strip of cleared forest and no man's land along the demilitarized zone suddenly and inexplicably ceased. Wary Swieczieman guards would have been able to see, if briefly and at a distance, obvious signs of civilian movement, men, women and children fleeing inland with a handful of their most prized possessions in hand or carried on their backs. A few richer communities in the north fled by train or horse-drawn cart, but the majority struck out on foot, avoiding the major roads. The process took no more than two or three hours.
The second sign was somewhat more obvious, coming as it did in the form of military troop movements all along the border. This was especially true in the steppe of eastern Miroslavl, where great plumes of dust from many hundreds of thousands of vehicles rose up into the sky as the Miroslavan People's Revolutionary Army rushed with near-glee to take positions for the long-awaited offensive towards the north. A buzzing drone filled the sky as well as the Miroslavan People's Air Force began to deploy it's forward fighter and ground attack assets. At this point the signs were unmistakeable to all but the basest of fools.
And even they couldn't ignore the sound of a hundred thousand field guns opening fire in unison.
-----
Miroslavan People's Revolutionary Army 1st Shock Army Group
North of Bogodar, the Soviet Republic of Miroslavl
Central Offensive
The three hundred thousand men and two thousand tanks of the 1st Shock Army Group charged across the border into Upper Swiecziema five minutes into the bombardment, their masses of medium and light tanks advancing across a wide front, each tank ridden by five infantrymen and followed closely by swarms of armored cars, personnel carriers, and trucks. The People's Air Force also roared overhead, propeller-driven aircraft taking the fore while the less numerous and more valuable jet aircraft hung back to await more equal prey.
The 1st Shock Army Group's assault was indiscriminate. If it moved, was not Miroslavan, or was not in the process of surrendering, it was fired upon. Thousands of field guns fired endlessly for as long as they had potential targets in range, and close air support aircraft dove on anything that looked even vaguely threatening. Despite this, the soldiers and officers of the Miroslavan People's Revolutionary Army made sure to gracefully accept the surrender of any Swieczieman troops - or civilians - that offered it. On only one occasion did this fail to happen, and after the offending soldiers were swiftly thrown under the treads of their comrades' tanks it did not happen again.
Charging northwest like a raging bull, the 1st Shock Army Group eagerly sought to lock horns with the Prime Enemy.
-----
Miroslavan People's Revolutionary Army 2nd Shock Army Group
North of Tayshevsk, the Soviet Republic of Khitai
Eastern Offensive
The elite 2nd Shock Army Group proved far more precise than it's counterpart to the west. Targetting only known and suspected Mezhist military positions, the Second's artillery had only just begun to fire when the bulk of it's forces began sweeping north with a collective cry of "Za rodinu!" The light tanks and armored cars of the 2nd Armored Cavalry Division thrust forward in search of the enemy, followed closely by the rest of the 2nd Shock Army Group's armored and infantry forces. Civilians and their population centers were bypassed or left alone when possible and treated with utmost respect when encountered otherwise. Even the occasional armed partisan was ignored unless perceived an actual threat, and disarmed when possible.
In the skies above, the People's Air Force kept a close eye out for Mezhist bombers. It's own ground attack fighters held back, awaiting better targets than wild animals or particularly suspicious trees.
The 2nd Shock Army Group was not a bull.
It was a tiger, swift, collected and precise, and it hungered for a worthy foe.
-----
Miroslavan People's Revolutionary Army 3rd Shock Army Group
West of Volodymr, the Soviet Republic of Miroslavl
Western Offensive
If the First was a bull, and the Second a tiger, then the 3rd Shock Army Group could only be described as a herd of murderous demonic elephants. The Third did not charge into the fray. It did not hoot or holler or yell as it advanced. It's tanks did not bear grinning young Kozak men eager for war and glory atop their hulls.
The Third ground forward. Slowly. Inexorably. And leaving nothing in it's wake.
Forty thousand guns beat an endless tempo, a creeping barrage advancing slowly across the border into Upper Swiecziema. Heavy bombers of the People's Air Force flew high overhead, flanked by squadrons of fighters and dropping loads of bombs and incendiaries on the forest below. Masses of heavy tanks treaded onward, lines of gas masked infantry following behind. First contact with the Mezhist forces meant first deployment of Miroslavl's stores of nerve gas.
No surrender was accepted, because time to consider surrender was never offered. And the line between civilian and soldier blurred when one intended to leave only ash in their wake.
The 3rd Shock Army Group's death march continued to advance to the west.