Free Howl: A World at War Novel by Mitchell T. Jacobs Page B

you could finish it up and rig it with a remote detonator?”
    “ Yeah, that's doable. Though it would help if I had a few others with me.”
    “ Grab who you need, and let us know how it's going. We're going to load up as much overdrive as possible while you're doing that,” Selene said. Ragnarok was going to get one heck of a parting gift.
     
     
     
    Even from his altitude he could feel the shockwave from the explosion. Zach was forced to shield his eyes as the entire world lit up in front of them. Once second the base was in front of them, and the next all that remained was a smoking pile of rubble.
    “ Jeeze, did they use enough explosives?” Miko commented. “I could feel the heat up here.”
    “ C.J. might not be happy,” Zach said,
    “ C.J. will be plenty happy,” Miko said. “For him it means that Ragnarok doesn't have their dirty hands on their base anymore.”
    “ True enough,” Zach said. He looked around at the swarm of helicopters joining up with them. Down below Redd Foxx was motoring back down the river.
    Anna's voice cut in. “Great job, everyone. Let's head for home.”
    “Roger that,” Zach replied to her. Mission accomplished.
     

     
    CHAPTER 6
    To the South
     
     
    “I'd say our mission was a success,” Liz said.
    “ I would agree with that,” Selene replied. They were having an informal meeting in Black Wolf's base, going over the aftermath of their raid. Ragnarok was reeling from the attack. The loss of so much overdrive had forced them to pull back their forces and focus on rebuilding their shattered economy. The pressure was off of Hydra and Ronin for the time being.
    Speaking of Ronin Company, their attack on Fort Baldr had been a success. Despite heavy casualties they had taken the fort with the support of Bravehart's mortar fire. They now had a position across the river, right in the heart of Ragnarok territory. Ronin was grateful to them for their support, and they were prepared to fight like furies to defend their new position.
    Ronin would need that determination, Selene thought to herself. The fort was isolated, a threat to Ragnarok's main power base outside of Old Chicago, and a stain on their reputation to boot. They would try everything in order to take it back, and that suited Hydra just fine. Ronin would take the brunt of the fighting for the time being, leaving Hydra free to do what they needed in the south. It would suck for Ronin, but was that really their problem?
    “ From what I've heard Ragnarok is beefing up their garrisons in the north,” Zach said.
    Anna confirmed that. “They have to guard against the possibility of a raid, even if it's miles behind the front line. That cuts their effective troop strength down by a lot.”
    “Still, they're hard fighters,” Selene said.
    “ Yeah, Xavier and Javy said that they did a number on you all,” Danny said.
    “ OK, so we know that we can pull off a raid as long as we're well coordinated. We've forced Ragnarok into a defensive position. What's our next move from here?” Zach asked.
    “ We're going to let the main forces take over responsibilities in the north,” Anna said. “Our concern is in the south.”
    “ How close are we to Indianapolis?” Nora asked.
    “ Distance wise? We're very close,” Anna said. “We've taken all of the towns and outposts between there and Lerna. If you're talking about how close we are to actually being able to take Indianapolis, we're a long way out.”
    “ How long are you talking?” Danny asked.
    “ At least two months,” Liz said. “Maybe even more.”
    That certainly wasn't good. That would give Ragnarok enough time to recover and replenish their supplies. There was also no guarantee that they would be able to take the city even after two months. They would still suffer attrition against Ragnarok, and they had no idea what they were facing inside the walls. She voiced as much to the others.
    “First we have to scout the place, and that might be difficult,”