Deception City: A World at War Novel (World at War Online Book 5) by Mitchell T. Jacobs Read Free Book Online Page B

now,” Danny elaborated. “We need to hit them hard and fast, and we need to do it soon, before they have a chance to recover.”
    “Can’t disagree with that,” Liz said. “But we can’t afford to be sloppy. Making a wrong move because we were unprepared is just as bad as letting them get back on their feet. Maybe even worse.”
    “Right, and we both realize that,” Danny agreed. “But we both have the feeling we need to do something soon.”
    “Would raiding be enough to satisfy your concerns?” Liz asked. “Your commando raid on the Milwaukee harbor definitely hurt them. Maybe more actions like that would distract them while buying us some more time.”
    “Maybe,” Danny said. “But I’m with Selene. We need to keep them fighting at a disadvantage.”
    Liz nodded. “Yeah, I can see the logic in that. But it might not be the best thing, either. Push them too hard and it could end up backfiring on us.”
    “Huh?”
    “Cornered rats always fight the hardest,” Liz said. “Yes, we might get some advantages, but back Ragnarok too far in the corner and they’ll get desperate. And desperate fighters are the most unpredictable and tend to fight like devils.”
    “That’s still a better alternative than letting them get back on their feet,” Danny said.
    “That’s only if we win,” Liz pointed out. “Remember when we were desperate during the Green Bay campaign? Ragnarok should have crushed us in a day or two, but we held them off for longer than that.”
    “Barely.”
    “Considering the numbers of veteran troops they threw at the Ghost Line, I’m surprised by how long we managed to last,” Liz commented. “My point still stands. We were backed into a corner, we were desperate, and that made us fight harder. My forces had them stalled in the swamp, and your end held out as long as reasonably possible.”
    “Yet they still would have crushed us if we didn’t have the offensive in the south,” Danny said. Ragnarok had managed to breach Green Bay’s walls and were fighting their way through the streets when the news from the south arrived. Their hasty retreat had been the only thing that saved Ghost Battalion.
    “Well, who’s to say they won’t do the same thing to us?” Liz replied. “Distract us with hard fighting around Milwaukee while they prepare a counterpunch elsewhere.”
    “That’s a rather unwelcome thought,” Danny said. “It makes me wonder if we’re really doing the right thing.”
    “Hey, still thing we should keep it up,” Liz said. “We just have to be aware of the consequences.”
    Danny nodded. “Right. Like getting blindsided by a huge enemy force when we’re stuck in a quagmire somewhere else. Sounds like fun.”
    “To be honest, I don’t think they can do it on the same scale,” Liz said. “We had several advantages they didn’t. Our troops only had to handle one front, and we had Ronin backing us up.”
    “Ronin,” Danny grumbled. “This would be so much easier if they were still with us.”
    “Aren’t you still good friends with Tafari?”
    “Yeah, but he’s not going to rock the boat,” Danny told her. “Plus, I can see their side of things. If they don’t get their own city they’re always going to be second best to us.”
    “Right. And Ragnarok can’t just ignore Magic Battalion,” Liz pointed out. “They do that and they might lose their important resource areas.”
    “Still, you bring up a good point,” Danny replied. “Might want to make mention of it to Anna.”
    “One step ahead of you there, although the same could be said of her,” Liz said. “Of course she thought of it before I did.”
    “It’s still good to bring things up like that, just to make sure,” Danny said. “The one time you don’t do it is the one time they didn’t think of it.”
    “Yeah. So-” Liz paused midsentence. “Go ahead.”
    Danny listened in on his end.
    “Fox Lead, Bravo Wolf, we’re sending you images from the southern wall. You might