Author's Note

This'll be a complete rewrite from the original concept since I had difficulty with what to do with the original characters but the main characters will still be the same.

Anyway, NATO and the WTO are only present in the first chapters so don't get too attached. They'll all die anyway.

Planning

A cool, gentle breeze ran through the snowy countryside of Ukraine. It wasn’t snowing currently but the snow that lay on the ground like white grass contradicted this thought and was as subtle as a slap to the face. Many spent the winter at home, spending time with their family, drinking warm cocoa and having an amazing time. The same couldn’t be said for the soldiers currently situated at the town of Bila Tserkva. But they were not exactly displeased with this. Many chose to spend the time playing sports while others played board games. Some chose to spend their time performing hobbies and other crafts while there were also some who just simply sat there and kept maintenance of their munitions. Of course, there are also those who spent their time getting drunk and engaging in bouts of arm wrestling like real Russians do. These men were here for the same reason as why all military personnel in Ukraine are in a combat-ready status.

In the middle of the city of Bila Tserkva lies the HQ of the 73rd ground forces division of the Armed Forces of Ukraine where the situation is currently being discussed among the officers there. The current situation is dire with the city of Kiev under the control of a NATO-allied country. The Soviet Union had sent a group of four of its most competent officers. However that was not the problem but rather, a lack of any idea of what to do was.

“So, any ideas on how to take Kiev back from the French?” An officer of the Red Army asked to the crowd of nearly a dozen officers. “General Zhukov had given the green light on this operation but he did not really mention how…” He trailed off.

“I’ve got a question, umm, Alexander, right?” A Polish officer asked. “Is this undertaking done only by the French or was this a NATO backed operation? They managed to take the capital and clear a path rather easily which makes me question if it is just the French.”

Alexander put a hand on his hat and proceeded to remove it, thinking about what to respond. The officer had made a very good point but a more important question popped in his head. What if this wasn’t backed by NATO? It would certainly make things a whole lot easier but it meant that the French had superior equipment if they were able to punch through and reach Kiev without NATO support. “I understand what you mean Rocco but the Americans haven’t mentioned even a word of it so there are two conclusions here. One is that this undertaking was done only by the French themselves or this is secretly a NATO-backed operation. An attack on Ukraine is a clear declaration of war and the Americans know that a declaration of war would mean that nuclear weaponry would come to light. But let’s say that this is a NATO backed operation, what should we do?”

A Soviet officer raised his hand, showing off the name tag on the left part of his chest that had the name ‘PLEKANOV’ stitched on to it. “We could always nuke them.” It was meant to be a joke and it worked, drawing out guffaws and a hearty chuckle from most. The suggestion was plausible if the end result that both sides wanted was total devastation of the world, considering what would result from the decision to drop an A-bomb on any country, whether part of NATO or just neutral, would most likely be a nuclear war.
“Ha ha ha, hilarious. Thank you for the suggestion, Lieutenant but we don’t have much time for shenanigans.” chided Alexander. “From the Intelligence Command had gathered, we have less than three days to take Kiev back before reinforcements arrive to reinforce their positions. We need to accomplish our objective now that the French forces defending Kiev are severely weakened from their push. So, are there any serious suggestions?”

Another officer raised his hand, this time belonging to Armed forces of Ukraine. “Sir, my name is Yaroslav and I have a question. I do not wish to offend but why did General Zhukov send you here without a clear plan?”

Alexander was taken aback upon realizing that he was correct until someone else stood up and began addressing the question. “Corporal Yaroslav, I really hope that you do not think so lowly of us. Do you not remember that we are one of the more competent officers in the field? The French broke through the Iron Curtain and reached Kiev in a matter of days. No one expected them to do such a surprise move, which is exactly why you Ukrainians got your ass kicked so hard. If you think that we would be ready for them to do that, perhaps we would have told you that in advance but we didn’t, so you got your ass kicked and that’s your fault for being so fucking incompetent in protecting the Motherland!” His voice grew along with his anger the more he spoke. His face becoming more and more red, the more he berated the junior officer. Afraid of the situation growing into something more than he could control, Alexander asserted his command.

“Ivan! Hold your tongue! We are trying to defeat the French, not ourselves. Creating conflicts is our specialty but please, not on our allies. Hektor, come here.” Plekanov rose and hurried over. “Formulate a plan here while we ourselves will ready up the men. Make the best of our current firepower. We will attack by sunset, which is when they will have decreased visibility. Do not disappoint me. I will have a word with Ivan and you, in the meantime, will cooperate with the Polish, Ukrainian officers and create a viable strategy that will have the highest chance of success and have the least collateral damage. I will not prevent you from using anything but have some consideration for the Ukrainians so decrease use of artillery as much as possible. Understood?”

Hektor was quick to respond. He saluted “Understood sir.” and hurried off to do his task.

Meanwhile, in the city of Kiev, the French forces are currently asking for help in defending their position.

Soldiers were everywhere. To the average citizen, their number seemed limitless but to the French commanders, they knew that they were screwed beyond who knows what. Pilots were refilling aircraft, soldiers were cleaning their rifles, and engineers were fortifying defenses and machine gun nests. Everyone was doing their part to the best of their ability but all of this was futile unless reinforcements arrived to fortify their position from any serious assault on the city. Amidst all the chaos, two soldiers walked up to the closest bar and sat down. One of them ordered a pint of beer and only then did they begin talking. They discussed about the current situation before they switched their topics to a more classified one.

“Ames, have you heard?” the one on the left began.

Ames looked around before beginning to talk. He spoke in a low voice, cautious about anyone overhearing. “Serge, shut it. We’re not supposed to talk about what we discussed in the meeting. You know, since the walls have ears now. Let’s just talk about family instead.”

Serge shook his head. “But it’s urgent. We need to discuss about it. NOW. ”

Ames sighed in irritation. “Alright, fine. Follow me, let’s talk in some unoccupied corner of the room. But remember, high command must not know that we discussed this… matter. Follow me.”

They stood up, grabbed their drinks and moved to a table at the back of the bar where there weren’t that many people. Ames noticed the nervousness in Serge’s eyes. He also noticed how much his hands moved across his side of the table. “Serge, what’s up with you? You seem… tense. What is up?” Serge’s eyes focused onto his and he himself began to feel uncomfortable. Finally, after a while, he began to talk.

“Have you heard? The combined forces of the Polish, Ukrainians and the Soviets are going to attack us. I felt fine with that until I heard that our reinforcements were delayed by an attack on the convoy. It’ll be nearly five days before they get here. No doubt we’ll be destroyed when they attack.” Unbeknownst to them, one of the waiters ‘attending’ a table nearby wasn’t busy cleaning a table but rather, he was busier eavesdropping.

Ames waved the statement away like it was nothing. “They don’t know that. They won’t risk attacking hastily without artillery support and aerial dominance. We’ll have a few days to fortify before we even get attacked. Only thing we have to worry about are scouting parties and artillery shelling. We are fine for now.” The attendant silently slipped away without them noticing. He walked through the streets of Kiev until he came by a railway station. He entered the underground tunnel and blended in with the people that were currently there. He casted a glance around to see if anyone was looking before entering a part of the tunnel that was off limits to the public. Upon getting past the many eyes of the people, he walked through the tunnel until he found a service door. He entered it and turned on the lights, revealing a radio on top of a table and a few crates containing food and water. He hurried over to the radio and turned it on. All that was left to do was waiting until the Soviets contacted him

A few hours later

An audio transmission began playing through the radio. ‘Took them long enough’ he thought to himself as he walked over from the little mat on the floor. “Transmission, transmission, transmission” It repeated over and over again. He spoke into the mike situated beside it.

“Hello? Commander, are you there?” The radio stopped repeating and a masculine voice spoke. “Timur, have you anything to report?”

“I have important news to tell you.” The sound of people talking in the background could be heard as he waited for a confirmation that his transmission was heard. Finally, a response came. “Continue, we are listening.”