The Sal Kari offensive is rumored to come at any time now. Given the recent string of Tarakian victories the Sal Kari forces have to respond with a show of force. I am stationed at a firebase just south of Tarakia which means we're again sitting on Sal Kari soil. Hundreds of similar firebases have been set up across the desert border. Their purpose will be to cut off the Sal Kari forces already in Tarakia and prevent any reinforcements from coming in through the porous border.

As I look back into Tarakia through my viewfinder, I can see the verdant mountains, blanketed by tall grass and dotted with groves of trees. In front of me is essentially a desert wasteland. Though not quite as featureless and foreboding as the desert expanse from last week, it's not a place I'd like to be trapped in for long.

The firebase itself is fairly sparse. Five Heavy Gunner Hounds are assigned to each one and everything else at the base exists only to support these mobile gun platforms and their pilots. From each firebase a barrage of heavy artillery fire can be called upon to rain down in any direction.

For now all is quiet. This moment of calm allows me some time to speak with Heavy Gunner pilot, Master Sergeant Gerard Stewart. At age 48 he is the oldest member of the squad, but also the most experienced.

"This reminds me of one of my first missions. About 6 of us Gunner Hounds were packed in tight around a thicket of trees. And when the call for fire support came in, we just let loose with everything we had. The concussive force and blast shockwaves were so great; the trees were getting torn out of the ground and blown over all around us. I knew then I signed up for the right role" he says with a smile. He then adds, laughing, "except out here there aren't any trees to blow over."

"I try to watch out for the younger guys. Some of them are as old as my sons. So when they call for heavy fire cover I make sure they get it and in spades. I guess that's why they started calling me 'pappy'." Stewart says.

"Pappy" may be the name all the guys call him on base, but there's another moniker they use on the battlefield. Though not a religious man, he savors his call sign: "God." "That started about a year ago. I was seeing a lot of action and when our Soldiers and Scouts got in over their heads my rain of artillery would save their bacon. You'd start to hear 'thank god!' a lot over the com. Then one of the guys from Hell's Hounds started radioing in 'We need God's help on this one! Bring in the big guns!' And from there it just stuck," he relays with a jovial laugh. "So now everyone says when you need fire and brimstone to rain down on the enemy, call God...he delivers," the Sergeant adds with a wink.

I suppose if God were to pilot a Hound he would ride in something like this. The Heavy Gunner Hound is absolutely massive and is a commanding presence just standing still. Everything about it looks over-built as if it was chiseled from a solid hunk of steel. This mechanized beast rides on 4 legs which makes for a very stable firing platform. And everything is heavily armored: from the chassis to the cockpit. One can see how easy it is to gain a god complex piloting one of these.

"It's all about the guns. Long distance...fire for effect," says Sergeant Stewart. "We carry all the heavy hitters in the arsenal like large-scale cannons, automatic rifles, rockets, guns, knives, sharp sticks, rocks...we got it all," he says with a laugh.

As night begins to fall the enemy offensive has still not materialized. Offensive missions by Tarakia still continue to try and draw out the Sal Kari forces and fire support from the Heavy Gunner Hounds is being called in more often. The sound and fury of the large cannons produce a visible wake in the air each time they fire. Up and down the border I can see the muzzle flashes, followed closely by the distant booms of other Heavy Gunner Hounds firing from their nearby firebases. The long distance barrages can only be described as a hell storm of artillery fire. The firepower these Hounds bring to bear is just too awesome to fathom.

When this offensive does come this conflict will escalate into a full scale war the likes of which our world has never before seen. It may come tonight or it may come tomorrow. For now, the only thing that is certain is that war looms.