“I imagine you realize the situation we’re in,” Aikens said flatly.
Vorgens nodded. “I have seen the reports of today’s patrols.”
“This Mobile Force was dispatched to Oran VI to bolster the Imperial garrison and restore order among the native populace. When the Komani raiders landed, we were ordered to induce them to return to their homeworld. ‘A demonstration of force’: that’s how the orders read. Well, for nearly three weeks now we’ve been trying to pin them down for our little demonstration. Now they’ve led us into a nasty trap. We’re surrounded in this valley, and it looks as though the Komani are perfectly willing and eager to fight a full-scale battle.”
“I know,” Vorgens said.
“They’re well armed with modem weapons, and their tactics so far have been masterful. In short, Vorgens, they’ve led me around by the nose for three weeks, and they’re ready to start slugging.”
“Have you any idea of their numbers?”
Aikens shrugged. “We’re outnumbered, that much is certain. How badly, I can’t tell. But that doesn’t worry me. Trained troops can always lick an undisciplined horde of barbarians, no matter how clever the barbarians are. They may have modem weapons, but we have more firepower … and armored vehicles.”
“They seem to have greater mobility, though,” Vorgens observed.
“True enough, and their reconnaissance is much better than ours. What we need is some airpower and a column of reinforcements.”
“Reinforcements?”
“Certainly. Oh, I’m positive we could handle this Komani mob with the men we have right here, but once they start taking a beating, the barbarians will melt back into the hills again and we’ll lose them.” Aikens tapped a forefinger on .the stereomap as he spoke. “I want a olumn of reinforcements, from the city garrisons, with air cover and support, so we can pin down these barbarians from the outsideThen, between our two forces, we can crush them once and for all!”