The American In Another World
Chapter 32: The Parpaldian War

November 9th, 1639

Washington DC

“I'm Gary Aleut here with ABC News,” a man in a blue suit speaking in front of the White House. “Following an unprovoked attack on the company's assets in the Kingdom of Altaras, the public demanded immediate action against the Parpaldian Empire. Footage from American civilian contractors and company employees has circulated on the internet, exposing people to the horrors perpetrated by the Parpaldians. Although their actions so far could hardly compare to the atrocities committed by Lourias, they were much stronger. Because of this, Congress has held an emergency session to determine America's response to this new threat. Back to you, Emily.”

A blonde news reporter responded from their studio. “Thank you, Garry. In just a few hours, we will cover the announcement from President Lee. Until then, we have several interviews with Altaran residents who can tell us more about the Parpaldian Kingdom. Johnathan, how are you doing in San Diego?”

“It looks pretty busy here, Emily. You can see the Third Fleet right behind me, preparing to deploy. I am sure this sight is something of a relief to many of those who find themselves oppressed under the rule of the Parpaldians. In fact, I have some merchants from the Altaras Kingdom here with me today. Mr Vaana, what can you tell us about the relationship between Altaras and Parpaldia?” He moved the microphone towards the wealthy merchant in Arab-like clothing.

The cloaked man shook his head anxiously as he spoke. “We have maintained a very unfavorable relationship with them. Taxes and confiscation of their goods are just the opposite of benefiting our economy. They were the only clear winners in the exchange we did with them, and I was quite satisfied to see them finally paying for their sins.”

“And can you outline the general policies Parpaldia has for the conquered territories?”

Vanya scratched his head. “They usually revoke all rights of the conquered citizens, letting them be killed by the Parpaldians. Those arrogant conquerors didn't even need a reason to do this! Thankfully, we 'barbarians' are generally left alone - too pathetic to waste time. Well, as long as we pay our dues. I think we Altarans have been lucky so far, because the Parpaldians to date have only asked for some magic gems as tribute. Of course, we do not like the nature of this trade, but it is better than what happens in other countries within the sphere of influence of Parpaldian.”

"I understand," the reporter nodded. "Is there anything else you want to tell America?"

“Hmm...” she stands, thinks. “Oh, I heard your people strongly disagree with genocide, is that right?”

"Yes, that's right."

“Then, you should know that the Parpaldian Empire is no stranger to genocide. The reason why most 'barbarian' countries do not fight back is because of the genocidal campaign Parpaldian carried out to stir fear in our hearts. They prefer not to do this — because of the logistics of such an effort — although they will gladly sacrifice resources to achieve their goals if they assume that their grip on The Third Civilization is at stake. I hope this information is helpful to your people.”

——

President Lee secretly thanked Altaran for explaining the Parpaldian practice. The revelation of the genocidal history helped persuade the remaining pigeons in Congress to push for war, turning a majority decision into a unanimous one. With the declaration echoed, the American war machine was given a new target.

President Lee sighed as he finished his speech for the teleprompter. He saw the time on his computer, relieved that he could finish his work just minutes before he was scheduled to go live. After adjusting her clothes, she stepped out of her office, out of the White House and into a sea of cameras and reporters.

A simple podium was waiting for him, waiting for the anger he would give to the Parpaldian Empire. He cleared his throat, "My American friends," he began. “Yesterday, our citizens were shocked by reality - which reminds us that we are no longer on Earth. We are no longer surrounded by the decency and security that Western civilization has born. We found this out the hard way: the Parpaldian invasion force launched a senseless attack not only on our warehouses, but also the ships on which our civilians were trying to escape. The casualties suffered by these barbaric aggressors were minimal thanks to a smart decision to attract our employees. However, our casualties are not zero.

Our eyes have opened to a new enemy at the threshold of the free world: an evil force that seeks to undermine the greatness we have achieved. Because of the Parpaldian Empire's reckless abandonment not only to Americans, but to human life in general, your representatives in Congress have heard your call. To this day, the United States is at war with the Parpaldian Empire! May God bless America!”

——

Le Brias, Kingdom of Altaras

Cannonballs pierced through the wooden foundation of the residential building as if it were paper, trapping the Altaran placed under the rubble. Other cannon fire shook the ground, destroying other buildings' roads. Captain Rial grimaced when he saw his men die just to delay the advance of the Parpaldians.

“Sial... What kind of cruel nature makes these people die like this?! If they fight the Parpaldians, they die. If they stay inside the building, they will die!” Rial slammed his fist against the wall with such force that the debris fell from the top floor.

“Master, we should vacate this building immediately. I don't think it will be able to last longer .. ”

Captain Rial nodded, not speaking a word due to the anger piling up on his chest. He came out of the building silently while thinking of a strategy to help repel the Parpaldian forces. Although they had suffered heavy casualties due to the guerrilla warfare waged by his men, Parpaldian was a quick learner. Leaving behind their standard geometric formations, the Parpaldian infantry began to move tactically, using protection to their advantage. For a time, sending a wave of swordsmen to utilize their broken formation succeeded, but the new land dragon stopped this strategy. Each advance of the Parpaldian was accompanied by at least one land dragon, and without another magic jewel bomb, killing one dragon was almost impossible.

Wyvern's support was an option, but General Laav decided not to because of the urban environment. Any wyvern air attack will most likely result in substantial additional damage and potential loss of units from the Parpaldian ambush. Instead, he took a more conservative route by slowly sacrificing his men to buy time for reinforcements and supplies. Captain Rial did not agree to his orders, but realistically he could not think of anything else he might be able to do to fend off the Parpaldian attackers. The only thing he could do was pray, and he prayed.

Attention all units, the voice of General Laav is heard through his manacomm. “We have received word that the United States has finally declared war on the Parpaldian Empire. Hold your position; one small unit of American troops from the embassy is currently on its way to Zone Four to help repel invaders.”

The new order comes through manacomm. “The naval bombardment of the Parpaldians has stopped; their row ships are withdrawing to fight the Americans. Battalions One through Four will soon strengthen the port. The Parpaldians will try to land their troops to avoid losing them due to the explosion! We must prevent them from encroaching on our land any further!”

Unfortunately, the reconnaissance information from the hundreds of Altarans who left their positions made the Parpaldians revive confidence. Driven by the retreat of Altaran, several land dragons charged forward, breaking through the now weakened defenses of Altaran. Some Altarans landed shots at the dragons without success before they were mobbed by a mass of Parpaldian infantry.

"Damn it," muttered Captain Rial as he retreated, shooting at enemy soldiers whenever he could. "Elite Guard, retreat to the Goblin defensive position."

Cutting through deserted streets and lifeless alleys, Rial leads his weary men back to safety. Once he reached the Goblin's defensive position, he saw an unusual fortress. Some bags and crates appear to be the only ones standing between the defenders and the incoming Parpaldian mob. Then, he noticed the defenders themselves: they were strengthening Americans. Brandishing a more sophisticated weapon with a gun in his hand, the American moves with purpose. They formed their team methodically, as expected of people who had been training with automatic weapons for more than a few weeks.

"Captain Rial?" Someone from behind the defense called out.

"Yes!"

"Quick, to the back of the perimeter!"

The Rial captain, according to him, ran past a group of men mounted on the wall of a hastily erected sandbag. One of the Americans pointed to an empty position, gesturing for him to use a weapon mounted there. He was ready to operate the machine gun, suppressing his dizzy excitement, which was soon replaced with nervousness as he saw the terrifying silence on the battlefield.

The silence was broken by the loud roars and stomps of the land dragon that broke through the streets. They turned a few blocks away, followed by a mass of infantry moving behind them. As soon as the Parpaldian soldiers were seen, he heard a strange popping sound next to him.

"Thwnks!"

Almost as soon as he heard the sound, an explosion struck the land dragon. The smoke dissipated relatively quickly, exposing the blood-soaked, but still-living land dragon that was now angry for no reason.

"Backblast clear!" One of the Americans said before a flash of light flashed from the tube he was carrying on his shoulder.

A miniature guided light arrow emerged from the tube, speeding towards the land dragon and annihilating the dragon with a spectacular bloody fireworks display. A more explosive light arrow followed, wiping out the rest of the biological tank and making the Parpaldian formation behind them fall apart.

Shaken by the destruction of their land dragon, the Parpaldians faltered in their assault forward. Despite losing their life's shield; though now prone to lead rain; the Parpaldians continued to advance, pushed forward by a back line who knew nothing about the impending death. Therefore, the reaper placed his scythe on these unconscious people, wiping them to the tone of the shots and cries of the damned.

"Dispose bastard!" The orders of a large, dark-skinned American, were most likely the leader of the group. In response, some 'Oorah' emerged from other Americans.

Instinctively, Rial pulls the trigger of an American machine gun, struggling to control an unfamiliar recoil as he squirts bullet after bullet into Parpaldian's helpless body mass. Bloodthirsty defeated him as he thought of the people lost during the bloody city battle in Zone Four. More explosions erupted in the Parpaldian ranks while he and his men contributed to the American defense.

A cloud of smoke, coming from the rifle, billowed from the Parpaldian advance. However, they were enraged by the American rifle and the futile shotgun fire failed, hitting nothing but the ground tens of meters away from the sandbag line of defense. Some of the Parpaldians tried to escape to the side, running towards buildings and alleys. Some of the early deserters managed to find shelter, but the rest became helpless by the burning gas that covered the Parpaldians. Confused, they stumble around the bodies of their fallen comrades, proving to be an easy target for the combined destruction of America and Altaran.

Finally, there were no Parpaldians left and orders from America were shouted. "Stop firing!" Said the big black man. He then looked at Captain Rial. “So, you must be Captain Rial. I've heard a lot about you. I am Captain Johnson of the United States Marine Corps,”.

Captain Rial offered a handshake while he replied, “I'm honored to meet you, fellow captain. Thank you for your help here.”

“I'm grateful you think that way, but the job is not done yet. We still need to clean up the lost ones and push these bastards out of town. Call General Laav, Captain. I've asked your Elite Guards to join us in our next operation.”

Captain Rial blinked, a perfect answer forming in his mind. "Oorah, Captain."

Johnson grinned. "Norah."

;)