Jungle Reconnaissance

(07/19/2005)

As a precursor to the combined multinational effort to once again retake the many island archipelagos of KELT-49b, several different marine force reconnaissance companies were covertly inserted into the Northwestern corner of the planet to feed information pertaining to the locations of hidden enemy fortifications, underground tunnel systems, and logistical lines back to the main force, who were gearing up for a substantial counterattack against the coalition divisions who drove human settlers off the planet a year prior in order to establish a large military staging base from which heavier-hitting assaults could be launched against human colonies in neighbouring systems. The two marines pictured here, Staff Sergeant Levi (foreground) and Lance Corporal Greene (background) belong to the 4th Force Recon company, were able to notify the Joint Operations Command of the coordinates of multiple ammunition depots, communications outposts, and underground tunnel entrances on one particular landmass before being discovered by enemy troops and entering a small skirmish in which several members of their platoon would unfortunately perish before they could be quickly evacuated back off-world. Although the recon operations would prove to be somewhat successful in revealing the locations of enemy infrastructure, the ensuing invasion would turn out to be a much bloodier and more attritional conflict than the operational commanders would've hoped, in which littoral combat involving ground, naval, and air assets from both sides would run the gambit, forcing invading units to thinly spread their troops and equipment across multiple islands against a comparatively more technologically advanced adversary who's weaponry was better suited for the environment.