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The Sinking of Jacinto City was the turning point in the Locust War. With the Locust Horde suffering massive losses and a damaged infrastructure from the Lightmass Offensive; the Horde decided to the only way to defeat the Humans was to attack their last bastion of hope: Jacinto City. With Ketor Skorge using the Riftworm to destroy cities and military installations around Jacinto. This lead the COG high command to regroup and make a counter-attack: Operation: Hollow Storm. During the Operation, Sgt. Marcus Fenix of Delta Squad found within the Locust Command Center files on his father, Professor Adam Fenix, who theorized that sinking the city of Jacinto would cause the surrounding water to fill the Hollows, thus drowning all life underground. The Locust planned on using this information to destroy the Lambent after they would evacuate to the surface. However, Sgt. Fenix proposed sinking the city first, before the Locust could evacuate. Thus, the majority of the Locust Horde would drown in the sinking of Jacinto City.

Prelude to the Sinking

Operation: Hollow Storm

COGarmyatJacinto

The COG Army before attacking Landown

Since the Lightmass Offensive failed to kill all the Locust Horde in the Hollows, Coalition High Command theorized that an attack on the Inner Hollows via Landown to destroy the Locust home front would end the war once and for all. COG forces moved out of Jacinto and into the staging grounds for the Assault on Landown, taking heavy losses along the way. Gears managed to capture Landown and enter the Inner Hollows using Grindlifts, thus bringing the Locust War to the Locust themselves.

During Operation Hollow Storm, Delta Squad discovers the Locust's plans for sinking Jacinto and the Lambent threat to the Locust Horde.[5] High Command theorized from the late Adam Fenix's data that if the COG were to sink Jacinto before the Locust could evacuate the Hollow beneath it, they could destroy the Locust. However, this potential victory would require the sacrifice of humanity's last stronghold.[6]

The Sinking

All Out Attack

The race was now on to see who would sink Jacinto first. Queen Myrrah sent a massive force to destroy any Gears and civilians left in the defense of Jacinto, all around the city the COG fought desperately against the overwhelming Locust forces and were soon engaged in hand-to-hand combat as the Gears thought they'd have nowhere to go if Jacinto fell, the fighting got progressively more brutal and the Locust began to gain the upper-hand as the King Ravens were mostly evacuating civilians, so the Reavers had a free reign to attack the COG wherever they liked as the anti air guns were either left behind in  Ephrya or under Locust control. The Gears were facing defeat and the Locust just kept on coming, soon the downtown district came under heavy assault as Brumaks were deployed to clear the way for an all out final push on the COG holdouts, The COG downtown consisted of Gears, Centaurs, and the few Ravens the COG could spare. The Locust force at the Downtown firefight was staggering as they had Grinders, Boomers, Drones, Reavers and two Brumaks. It seemed the COG wouldn't be able to hold on to their precarious position of control of the situation.

Heavy street-to-street fighting erupted within the city as the Locust, emerging from a massive sink hole, carried out a coordinated attack on the Coalition COM tower from Cooper Street alongside Grapplers on the South platform. Gears in the surrounding streets outside of the COM tower were brutally killed as the Locust pushed forwards using Grinders and Maulers to quickly gain ground and cover the drones and grapplers. At the COM tower the Gears along with Marcus Fenix, Dom Santiago and Col. Hoffman prepared the defenses and held out against a constant stream of Locust forces until two Brumaks arrived, but Sgt Fenix quickly overcame them with mortars. With the attack foiled by Delta Squad and the other Gears, Dom and Marcus commenced a two-man counterattack into the sink hole, leaving Baird and Cole to join them later with a Lightmass bomb on a Raven. Dom and Marcus managed to wipe out large numbers of Locust troops once in the sink hole using a hijacked Brumak.[7]

Jacinto's End

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The Locust's invasion map of Jacinto.

After making their way directly underneath Jacinto, they used the Brumak's weapons to destroy three underground columns, opening holes in the surface large enough for Ravens to fly in with the Lightmass bomb and recover Dom and Marcus. Losing control of the Brumak as it started to react to the Imulsion, Dom and Marcus escaped onto Baird's Raven, but not before the Brumak knocked the Raven carrying the Lightmass bomb into the Imulsion. With their plan now in ruins, Marcus realizes that the Brumak is turning Lambent, and therefore becoming explosive. With approval from Command, the Ravens circled the Brumak underground while Gears targeted it with the Hammer of Dawn. After several hits on the Lambent Brumak, the Ravens evacuated the Hollow and Jacinto as the Brumak exploded, destroying the city's foundation along with it. Jacinto quickly collapsed, allowing sea water to pour into the Inner Hollows, wiping out the majority of the Locust forces stationed there, as well as the advancing Lambent army.[7]

Mass Evacuation

Ending1--article image

COG evacuating all personnel and civilians from Jacinto.

"If you want to flood the city, we can handle it. The evacuation's already under way by road, we've got ships on standby, and this is a population that's used to emergency drills. They move when we say move. But that's the easy part. It's winter, and somehow we've got to carry enough equipment and supplies to create a giant refugee camp from scratch in the middle of nowhere, then sustain it for maybe a year. We're going to lose a lot of people, whatever happens. So let's start by accepting that."
Royston Sharle, head of Emergency Management

Every single King Raven, ship, and vehicles poured into all exits from Jacinto City in the mass evacuating heading for nowhere.[8] But Chairman Prescott ordered all Coalition forces to head to Port Farrall without Col.Hoffman's knowledge;[9] the Chairman's King Raven landed on the Sovereign, a Helicopter carrier and flagship of the fleet.

Outcome

"CONFIDENTIAL
FROM: HOFFMAN, COLONEL VICTOR S., 26 RTI
TO: SURVIVING REPRESENTATIVES OF THE COALITION OF ORDERED GOVERNMENTS
RE: DESCISION TO DESTROY JACINTO, 2ND DAY OF FROST, 14 A.E

I write this in full knowledge that this record may not survive, but if it does, then I wish our command decisions to be understood by any future generations. At 1410 today, after the Locust began to mine tunnels beneath Jacinto to sink it, Chairman Richard Prescott authorized a preemptive plan to sink the city ourselves. This was designed not only to flood the Locust tunnels, but also to trap and destroy the Locust Army that had infiltrated the center of Jacinto itself. A mass evacuation of citizens via land, air and sea routes began an hour ago. We believe there was no alternative. The Landown assault, in which we engaged the enemy within their own tunnels, resulted in major losses and failed to stop the Locust advance. Members of Delta Squad, under the command of Sergeant M. Fenix, E.S., located the Locust queen, and were made aware that the enemy also planned to create a sinkhole to destroy Jacinto. With insufficient forces to prevent this, we took the view that sinking and flooding the city ourselves, to trap the enemy and drown them within their own tunnels, was our only option, and justified the destruction of our last stronghold. We were unaware until Delta Squad penetrated the enemy command center that the Locust Horde is engaged on a second front underground with another faction of their species, which they call the Lambent and regard as a plague. The Locust plan to flood Jacinto themselves and would have inundated their own positions, and seems to be as much aimed at destroying the Lambent as wiping out humankind. We do not yet fully understand the nature of that conflict, and may never do so. We have been left with no option but to try to inflict massive casualties on Locust forces so that a remnant of humanity can be saved to reconstruct our world. We have some certainty that they will never recover from this blow. Not only do they appear to think flooding will be effective in defeating the Lambent, but records have been found that indicate that the late Professor Fenix believed that flooding would destroy the Locust threat itself. At this stage, we do not know the extent of our own losses; evacuation under these circumstances will inevitably result in high civilian casualties. But the alternative is the extinction of the human race. Chairman Richard Prescott and I are no strangers to this magnitude of decision. Fourteen years ago, we took the decision to deploy the Hammer of Dawn. I cannot speak for his private views, but as a soldier, I am fully aware of the deaths I have on my conscience, and I grieve for every man, woman and child who has paid the price for my actions. If there had been any alternative, I would have fought to the end to take it. Sometimes you can save what you love most only by destroying it. Again, we ask; please forgive us. It was the only way.
"
—Colonel Victor Hoffman after the sinking of Jacinto city.

With 30% of Jacinto's citizens and Gears lost in the evacuation, High Command decided to move what was left to Port Farrall, an abandoned COG base.[3] Realizing the logistical nightmare they were in; a winter environment with the majority of the base rundown and setting up a refugee camp in the cold, the COG decided to look for a new base of operations while dealing with Locust stragglers and Stranded infiltration of the camp. After finding supplies in the catacombs of the port and destroying all the feral dogs there, the COG began thinking the worst was over with a large quantity of ammo and food discovered. Unfortunately Locust forces attacked the civilians from the very same catacombs, killing many of them at the food center, while what was left of the navy was collecting the rest of the Imulsion from Merrenat Naval Base. This eventually forced the COG to move to Vectes, an island on the other side of an abyssal trench where the Locust couldn't dig to and they were thus safe from further attacks and could rebuild.

While the Locust did survive the sinking, the Horde was decimated and degenerated into the Savage Locust while some became the Queen's Guard, serving the last surviving Locust leader, Queen Myrrah.

References

  1. Gears of War: Jacinto's Remnant pg 3
  2. Gears of War: Jacinto's Remnant pg 34
  3. 3.0 3.1 Gears of War: Jacinto's Remnant
  4. Gears of War 2 Ending
  5. Gears of War 2: Act 2
  6. Gears of War 2: Act 4
  7. 7.0 7.1 Gears of War 2: Act 5: Aftermath
  8. Gears of War: Jacinto's Remnant pg 7
  9. Gears of War: Jacinto's Remnant pg 8
Locust War
0 A.E. Emergence Day (Emergence in Jannermont · Emergence in Mattino Junction · Emergence in Ilima · Emergence in Porta Ogari · Emergence in Ephyra · Fall of Gorasnaya · Evacuation of Mercy) · Battle of Nordesca · Battle of Kinnerlake · Destruction of Halvo Bay (Destruction of Old Town · Battle of the Museum of Military Glory · Siege of Halvo Bay Military Academy · Evacuation of Seahorse Hills · Battle of Elliott's Mansion · Raid on Onyx Point · Bombing of Downtown Halvo Bay · Ambush on the Halvo Bay Courthouse · Battle of the Plaza · Evacuation of Halvo Bay)
1 A.E. Battle of Kaia (Battle of Jasper · Battle of Autrin) · Battle of Bonbourg · Second Battle of Jannermont · Fall of Ostri · Battle of Andius · Ambush on Voslov Bridge · Hammer of Dawn Strikes · Assassination of Ukkon (Mission to CIC Aldair · Rescue of Echo-Five · Assault on Industrial District · Mission to Claybourne · Rescue of Alpha-Two · Mission to Nedroma Health Institute · Battle of Imtik Imulsion Rig · Mission to Winlock Outpost · Mission to the Badlands · Mission to Zenic Province · Battle of Ukkon's Laboratory) · Battle of Oblivion · Skirmish in the Live Zone
5 A.E. Fall of Landown
9 A.E. Battle of Noroa · Riverside Skirmish · Evacuation of Ilima (Ambush on Checkpoint Zeta · Assault on Ilima Savings and Trust · Mission to Ilima High School · Battle of Downtown Ilima · Battle of Dr. Wisen's Orphanage)
10 A.E. Battle of Estana · Skirmish at Shenko Falls · Fall of Ephyra
11 A.E. Skirmish Outside the Wire
12 A.E. Raid on Ginnet Drive · Incursions at Endeavor
13 A.E. Battle on the Andius Highway · West Barricade Campaign · Raid on the CIC
14 A.E. Operation: Midnight · Jilane Massacre · Siege of the Slab · Lightmass Offensive (Battle of Embry Square · Mission to House of Sovereigns · Ambush at Tomb of the Unknowns · Mission to Old Ephyra · Assault on Franklin's Outpost · Mission to Lethia Imulsion Facility · Mission to East Barricade Academy · Mission to Timgad · Battle on the Tyro Pillar) · Ambush at Sovereigns Boulevard · Evacuation of North Gate · Mission to Tollen · Battle of the Tollen Dam · Evacuation of Speyer · Evacuation of Fort Reval · Battle Outside of Jacinto · Mission to the Pirnah Badlands · Battle for Fucked · Mission to Montevado · Battle Near Jacinto · Unidentified M.O.U.T. Battle · Liberation of Jilane · Siege of Jacinto City · Operation: Hollow Storm (Battle of Stromson Forest · Assault on Landown · Siege of the Inner Hollow · Battle of Ilima · Destruction of the Riftworm · Mission to New Hope Research Facility · Assault on Mount Kadar · Siege of Nexus · Battle of the Royal Palace · Sinking of Jacinto City) · First Mission to Merrenat Naval Base · Skirmish South of Port Farrall · Second Mission to Merrenat Naval Base · Battle of Port Farrall · Ambush Outside of Port Farrall
15 A.E. Skirmish in the Kashkur Foothills
17 A.E. Skirmish at Endeavor · Siege of Azura · Victory Day (Attack on the Sovereign · Battle of Centennial Bridge · Ambush on Hanover Coast · Battle of the Deadlands · Battle of the Anvegad Plains · Battle of Anvil Gate · Skirmish in Concord · Mission to Mercy · Mission to Char · Mission to Halvo Bay · Battle of Endeavor · Incursions in the Serano Ocean · Battle of Azura)
Lambent War
0 B.E. Siege of the Gorgon Front · Skirmish in the South Hollow · Invasion of the Expansion Hollow · Assault on the Temple of the Trinity
0 A.E. Destruction of Old Town · Battle of the Museum of Military Glory · Battle of Elliott's Mansion · Destruction of Downtown Halvo Bay
14 A.E. Mission to Lethia Imulsion Facility · Battle on the Tyro Pillar · Siege of Nexus · Sinking of Jacinto City


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