The trip took 3 days since Alex developed a better energy that could keep going on and just need to replace every 5 years and Alex had 20 supply ships carrying the supplies and equipment for construction.
40km away from the shores of Novoros principality:
"Your majesty, the 1st battle fleet reported 300 elven warships blocking our way," the captain spoke to Alex, who was eating breakfast.
Alex finished the last bit of pancakes and wiped his mouth with a napkin before speaking, "Alright, send our battleship to the front of the formation, and with us, 4 destroyers and 2 corvettes will try to talk to them. Order them to retreat, and if not, the warships in question, along with mine, will attack their front. For the remaining ones, order the planes on the carriers to be deployed to destroy the remaining elven ships."
Soon, the captain followed what Alex ordered, and his ship was in front of the formation with warships as its escort. The planes on the aircraft carrier were already on standby, and the type of plane to be deployed was the Stuka dive bomber, which could drop 3 bombs.
Alex soon saw the warships, their color was golden wood, which was rare in Pangea, and saw their flag. They were still using a galley, and the largest ship that could be seen might be the Admiral's, as it had a banner or most likely an imperial family member was located.
"Tell me what they use in naval warfare," Alex asked the diplomat guard since he might be knowledgeable.
"They use large powerful ballista's, and they're enchanted by powerful mages. Their ships don't break easily; it needs a powerful spell to make them break. I can see a bunch of dwarven warships in the mix, and they're made out of iron but just small plating of iron, but they're enchanted," he finished.
Alex processed and then spoke to the captain, "Captain, order the ships to fire and launch the planes."
Garbaros Imperial Fleet:
'We were ordered to blockade and prevent them from escaping, and now this large iron fleet arrives. I have no choice but to attack them,' the admiral of the fleet thought.
"So, what's the plan?" A dwarf wearing blue navy clothes asked.
"Well, we have no choice but to attack them. We have the mobility and can outmaneuver them and use our mages to attack their flanks," he spoke.
"Alright, I will send my ship to the front, and you do the maneuver," the dwarven admiral spoke, and soon they began moving their ships.
BOOM X10
Soon, they heard explosions, and when they looked up in the sky, they saw a large pillar shadow. The moment the mages on the other ships reacted and placed the barrier, a large explosion noise was heard.
"Sir, our fleet is under attack," one of the crewmen spoke.
"At that distance?! Order our fleet to charge!" he immediately regained and ordered the entire fleet.
Draconian Fleet:
"Your majesty, they're charging," the captain spoke, looking at the emperor who was watching the battle.
"Order my ship to ram them and fire upon the enemy, and our corvettes to flank them. My battleship, fire upon the dwarven warships," Alex swiftly ordered, and soon his battleship sped up and aimed its turrets at one of the warships. It fired, and the round pierced the warship's hull, causing an explosion.
The destroyers dived among the many elven warships, and every time a barrier was erected, it failed to block as it shattered. When one of the ships got in range, they began firing volleys of arrows and ballistas. Some dwarves were able to create cannons but powered by magic, and they fired, but it just bounced off the ships. The arrows wounded some sailors on the deck, but the cannons were ineffective. Soon, they heard the terrifying noise of the Stukas, and the next moment, explosions happened on their decks. Alex's battleships pierced the center, and the side guns began firing, causing screams of pain. Some elves, confident, tried boarding the warship but were met with a spear to the head by the imperial guard or gunfire by the marines on board.
"Your majesty, it seems they're retreating," the captain said, getting reports from the admirals.
"Order some of our ships to capture some dwarves and elves who are in high positions," Alex turned to him and was just flipping a coin.
Fleet of the Garbaros Empire:
The admiral was shivering in fear, looking at the ships coming to him. Right now, they were losing. They had the numerical advantage, magic, and mobility, yet they were losing.
Soon, a helicopter hovered over his ship, and marines got out and fired at anyone. Looking at the person on top, he saw him as the highest ranking. He came out of the crowd wearing military officer attire, and he had some medals over him and was escorted by some soldiers fully geared.
"Hello, my prince. The man behind me is the Emperor. I have spoken it in the letter; he has come here to assist us in this war," Ludon slightly bowed, and when the man stopped, he knelt in front of Alex and spoke.
"I greet the god of balance of Olympus in Pangea, land of the gods. I read the letter and hereby declare my loyalty for the help my people receive. Please save my people; they have suffered enough." He was sobbing but still keeping it in a serious face.
After that incident, Alex was told that 3 km away from the city is a good place to make a harbor. Alex ordered his forces to disembark at the port's harbor and the rest at the beachside and started constructing a military camp to a harbor. In 5 days, it will be complete, and Alex was invited to the castle.
"So, tell me how many have died in this war?"
"Over the past month, over 100,000 died, and the rest over 800,000 have died."
"But for the elves?"
"They have lost 2 million, and for the dwarves over 1 million. They created a coalition to erase our nation off the map, and now it's a stalemate. They can defeat us in magic, firepower, and numbers, and now they're trying to copy our weapons, but to no avail. The missing resource is gunpowder."
Alex nodded, and soon he heard plane sounds and spoke.
"I have reconnaissance planes, and right now, they're returning to give me a report. I will be staying in my camp, and come to my military camp tomorrow, and I will brief you on the latest in front lines and also bring a map and the progress of your war so I can send my forces to the different fronts."
Next day:
Alex arrived at the Command center, where he saw the map of the war and some photos behind enemy lines. His officers were moving pieces, and soon he heard the word "trains," which made him smile since this could give them the advantage.
Soon, as he entered, everyone saluted, even the Prince and his General, and when he raised his hand to ease them up, they did. Soon, Alex was briefed on how far the front lines were.
"We're still holding the only entry point of the elves; that's the major entry. But they decided to create artificial bridges and held some with eager defense and used some humans from other kingdoms as the ones charging towards our lines. It was suicidal; we tried not to kill them or force them to retreat, but we heard they tortured or raped," the prince finished with a grim face, and this caused everyone to clench their fists while Alex was calm and kept a neutral face.
"Alright, order our forces to create a barrier, our main force to pierce their blockade is at the crossing point. Our mechanized forces will be there but stationed a few support units and employ our artillery on all fronts. Order our submarines to scout on how big the entire continent is, and I want our battleships to bombard their major ports along with the aerial units to bombard their supply lines and reinforcements. I will need some information on their production so I can send my special units in and destroy them," Alex finished. This shocked everyone.
"After hearing their suffering, I have no choice but to push my schedule of going to the east a bit up. Now I will head this war, and tell the admiral that the Emperor orders bringing a battalion of Assassin X that are elves. They will be used to gather information."
Soon, everyone got to work, and Alex oversaw the construction of the harbor. He was reported that they had completed the submarine warfare and read some history of this continent. After reading, he learned that they never traded with the outside world and relied on themselves. Alex decided to bombard their harbors until they were erased. After 3 days, the battalion of Assassin X Elves arrived, were briefed, and deployed since Alex checked the portraits, and some elves living in the Principality had similar features.
"Your majesty, the men have arrived and created defenses. The main unit is ready to pierce the enemy lines, and the airfield was completed. Right now, we have stationed 10 tactical bombers and 40 multi-role planes," he finished the report, and Alex stood up and wore his black cloak and turned to his general.
"Great, let's go, and I heard they have aerial units. Make sure the bombers have escorts; begin our operation." Alex knew that for now, the enemy had overwhelmingly aerial units and magicians that could kill his soldiers and airplanes. He decided to begin expanding the base and use his bombers for longer ranges. He would only use 5 multi-role Cobra planes.
3 hours later:
Alex rode a steam train, a lesser design than his steam engines. He was near where the soldiers were located, and the last batch of his soldiers was being transported. Right now, in a few minutes, they were going to arrive. So, he decided to go to the cart where his men and some soldiers from Novoros were placed.
After he opened the door, he saw men coping up, some reading books, some Novoros soldiers talking to his men and sharing their rations, and some reading books. Some held drawn pictures of their loved ones, and it seemed they didn't advance in the tech of normal daily necessities.
"Your Majesty!" one soldier recognized Alex and stood up and saluted. When the others saw Alex, they immediately saluted, and also the Novoros soldiers since they heard that's their overlord, and since they were not treated badly, they held some respect for him.
"At ease, men. Just gotta say that we're nearing our destination. Get ready since we're departing to the front lines today. We're going to pierce their encirclement," Alex told them firmly. After the last words left his mouth, they tidied themselves up, since the next batch of soldiers were going to board and head back to Novoros to get better treatment.
A few minutes later:
Alex got off the station, where he saw a long line of soldiers standing up with haggard faces. Some had no limbs, some were on stretchers, and some had bandages. Some were okay but very tired mentally. After Alex ordered some men to be brought back to be relaxed since the operation needed fresh and battle-ready troops. After seeing some of the most injured, he went to the general from Novoros and ordered him.
"The most injured men must be loaded into the private carriage, and make sure they're okay since they're heading back." He ordered, not allowing any refusal. The man nodded and left to spread his orders.
After heading outside of the station, he felt the death in the air. He saw a bunch of elven prisoners being dragged by special chains. Some dwarves wore their leather armor, of high quality, and when they saw Alex with his mask on, they started shouting, but they couldn't say anything since their mouths were gagged by leather.
He looked around and realized he was in the city. It was not totally populated by civilians but soldiers from his and majority Novoros.
"Your majesty, your ride is here." One of the imperial guards caught up to Alex, and soon a black vehicle, akin to a Humvee, was seen. It was totally protected, made by antimatter or antimagic, and escorted by two more but with turrets.
"Alright, let's head to the military base. I want my men loaded and arrived at the base in a few minutes." He ordered the officer in charge and saluted.
Alex rode out of the city; it was somewhat short, but he opened the sunroof and looked outside of the city. He saw anti-air guns placed on top and artillery pieces and a weak old tank near the city gates.
1 hour later:
He arrived at the front lines. Along the way, he saw artillery shells littering small to large craters, even swords and banners on the ground, and some dead bodies or, to be exact, bones.
Alex arrived at the camp and saw it was in good condition. It was separated with the Draconian side, and they created a main HQ. Alex arrived with his escorts, but heading there was met with murmurs.
Main HQ:
He was greeted by some officers and generals, but they were minor.
"So, give me a report of the front lines and how many soldiers are there in the enemy lines?" After sitting down, he was briefed, and he was relieved since they held out an attack earlier with the help of the APC and some Draconian units. He could hear his planes dive bombing, and soon he planned an offensive. But not now, he will head to the frontline and think of a plan.
"So now we have stabilized our line of defense. Remember, my mechanized units will be attacking at the same time tomorrow morning. We will rain artillery shells, cloaking my units' advances and charging in with your infantry in the rear. Remember, I have support planes, so no need to worry right now. Recover because tomorrow the expansion will begin and make a standing for us humans." Alex finished, and his words inspired the officers of Novoros. Alex was also called the supreme leader and had command over the armies at its disposal.
After Alex left the tent, he immediately headed to the real front lines. He heard some small artillery being fired, and men in the trenches were firing their rifles. When he saw the majority of the artillery not firing, he immediately asked.
"Why are you not firing your artillery?" he asked the officer who was breathing a cigarette.
"Well, sir, they're out of range, and they have erected a strong barrier over their camp. We can't pierce it since a grandmaster is there, so we can't fire. It's just a waste of resources, and we're waiting for the Draconian Artillery units to finish the setup," explained the officer, taking a drag of his cigarette.
Alex nodded and spoke.
"Well, better practice now because tomorrow, you and the Draconian Artillery brigade will begin firing in perfect sync. Make sure to fire around their camp to prevent escapes or, to be exact, supplies."
The man nodded and ordered the crews to practice firing shots.
"And also, why are the soldiers firing at the trenches at something?"
"Oh, well, sir, every now and then we get infiltrated by enemy saboteurs, and we can notice them and fire before they reach here. Even the Draconian snipers are of better quality than ours."
Alex nodded and ordered his men to find the man leading these soldiers in the trench to get information.
"So, based on the information, how many enemy soldiers are at the crossing?" he asked a man with a handlebar mustache.
"Over 50,000, sir. They have set up different tents or bases, so each base is over 50k or more. But 50k is our initial estimate since they've suffered huge losses. Right now, we have a spy network since they despise human merchants and only trust others."
Alex nodded and knew that soon information would flow in the coming months.
"Alright, I'll head back now. Keep an eye, and also make sure you survive this war. I'm going to end it, not myself, but my men."
The man nodded with hope in his eyes.
Alex continued to scour and left back to the camp where they created a security perimeter around his tent. The most elite soldiers camped nearby so they could keep an eye on those who tried to enter.
To be continued...