studiobondurri Chapter Vol. 1 Ch. 7
Chapter Vol. 1 Ch. 7
There were a lot of black sheep in the fight again that day, and Lena was only able to exhale when it was over.
Pararaid was still on when she suddenly heard Krena's voice. After the battle, all processors usually cut off communication with the handler, but for some reason the girl lingered.
"If it's that hard for you, you'd better stop.
Krena spoke completely indifferently, without a trace of concern in her voice.
"We can do just fine without your leadership, nothing bad will happen. Just because we can't see you doesn't mean we don't feel your fear. This is very disturbing and distracting in combat.
Rena was right, so Lena wasn't angry, and on the contrary, she was a little glad that someone had decided to talk to her about it.
"And you and the rest of us—" Isn't it scary?
Processors couldn't afford to turn off pararaiding. Of all of them, Shin was the only one who could accurately discern the number and location of enemies, no matter where they were, and a great deal depended on this information in battle.
Rena shrugged.
"Not really. We're used to it, and you can't surprise any CPU with death screams, with or without Shin.
Lena felt that she was hiding behind this feigned indifference. Not fear, but a dark and heavy mixture of rage, regret and bitterness.
"Blowing up with your juggernaut is the best death. We have seen many times our comrades writhing in agony with their arms and legs torn off, their faces flayed, their torsos burned to flesh and their entrails spilling out. Compared to this, the screams of people who died a long time ago mean nothing.
It was as if she was trying to suppress the pain aching deep inside. And tears.
Lena felt Krena press her lips together. I heard her teeth grinding.
"Everyone who serves in the First District feels the same way... Whoever dies, we will not be surprised.
"I see...
At the beginning there were 24 of them, but yesterday another one died, and now there are only 13 left.
Raiden threw a hopelessly broken radio into a regenerative furnace from an autonomous factory.
They gathered in their usual line-up, and at the usual time, Lena got in touch again. "Good evening," rang out in the pararaid, and Raiden replied:
"I hear you very well, Major. I apologize right away for the mess and the idiots who are present here.
Lena froze in surprise.
Shin was usually the first to answer her, not Raiden.
— ... Where's Captain Nouzen, is he all right?
Seo, who was sitting at his sketchbook, snorted.
"How did you get it, Major Mirize. All these titles of ours are just beautiful words, and you know it very well.
The captain was considered the head of the detachment, followed by the deputy, and then the warrant officers. However, this command structure existed only for appearances: in fact, the "officers" did not have any special powers, did not receive a salary, and were treated like everyone else. The "tip of the spear" consisted entirely of experienced processors who were in no way lower in rank than captains or senior lieutenants; After being transferred to the detachment, most of them were "demoted" to junior lieutenants or warrant officers.
Be that as it may, Lena responded to this taunt quite calmly.
Raiden noted with interest that she seemed to be getting bolder lately.
"First Lieutenant Suga and Junior Lieutenant Rikka also call me Major all the time. Any problems?
— ... yes," was all Seo said and grinned.
Lena said that she could be addressed simply by her first name, but no one called her that. She clearly understood what was behind this, so she herself tried to behave in a detached manner with the processors and used addresses that emphasized their subordinate position.
The handler spoke to them regularly, but their relationship was not close enough for them to call each other by their first names. In every conversation, it was implicitly read that the friendliness of the processors was feigned, and they only treated her as a member of the oppressive class.
— ... So what's up with Captain Nouzen? Maybe there's something wrong with today's fight...
"No, I don't.
Raiden glanced at the partition that separated them from the next room.
Everyone except Krena and Anjou were present today, and each was going about his business as usual, except that the meeting place was Raiden's room, not Shin's.
Not a sound came from behind the thin partition.
"He's just sleeping. Tired.
Shin started nodding his nose during dinner, and when Raiden walked into the commander's room, he was already lying on the bed. Raiden picked up the kitten, which was meowing in displeasure, and pulled up the curtain over the bed, so that nothing would wake Shin up until morning.
In the three years they've known each other, this has happened quite often. Though Shin said he was used to everything, it was a heavy burden to hear the Legion all the time, even from a distance.
The pararaid's lowest synchronization level prevented Shin from hearing exactly what he was hearing, so Raiden and the others were left wondering what kind of world their commander was in. Shin set the pararaid to maximum synchronization only once, and the handler on the line committed suicide shortly thereafter. He was a bastard who liked to harass them with meaningless orders, deliberately giving false information and confusing the newcomers, causing them to die. Eventually, Shin got fed up with this, and during another fight, he disconnected from all the processors, leaving him alone. Immediately afterwards, the handler disappeared, and the next day the military police reported that he had committed suicide.
Not only did Shin live in a world full of terrifying screams, but lately there have been also unhappiness in the squad. The curator said bitterly:
— ... The Captain, like all of you, must be having a hard time getting harder... If the deaths continue, then...
— ... "Yes," Raiden said curtly. It's not just Shin who is affected. Everyone in the squad is exhausted, and this is starting to take a toll on the battles.
Since the creation of the Tip of the Spear, 11 people have already died. Any good unit is able to function normally in the event of the loss of about half of the permanent staff, provided that it is reorganized. Since the number of attacks and units of the Legion remains the same, the load on each member of the squad increases in this case. As soon as the number of enemies per CPU exceeds the acceptable limits, the depleted squad begins to make mistakes more often, and its number decreases even faster.
Despite all this, a replacement has still not been sent even for the three processors that died first, back in February - Cujo was one of them. Lena bit her lip and said sympathetically:
"I'll try to speed up the replenishment. I will do my best to send people here in the first place.
Hart glanced quickly at Raiden. He chuckled.
"Mm... Truth be told...
"Your squad is operating in a key sector of the front. You have the right to be the first to receive a top-up. In the meantime, I'll ask for help from other units... Try to be patient a little longer.
— ... yes," Raiden nodded absently. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Hart and Seo shrug.
— ... Listen, Anjou... I thought...
There was no one in the shower room except two.
Anjou carefully washed her long silver hair while Krena stood under the barely warm jets of water.
"What?"
"We'd better cut off communication with her.@@@@
For some reason, Anjou's eyes sparkled with laughter.
"Worried?"
"Wh-what...
Rena shook her head in confusion. What is it carrying!
"What nonsense! Why would I, let alone that girl.. Simply... she wasn't scared of Shin, and it could have been done for her," she finished quietly, licking her lips.
Rena hated the curator. She was sick of the way Alba was constantly pretending to be a saint. For all that, however, she appreciated one thing in Lena: the curator did not consider the man dear to Krene to be a monster.
"Neither Shin nor Raiden say anything... If she found out, she would stop contacting herself. And that would be better for everyone.
"Yes, probably... Kaye-chan used to say the same thing...
"It's not because you're a bad person. It's just better to stay away from us."
"And I think Shin-kun and Raiden-kun are silent for the same reason that Kaye-chan is. They must be afraid of hurting her.
Kaya is gone. In the past, not a single trip to the shower was complete without her complaining about her figure, which was too thin and not feminine enough. All the girls loved to laugh about it. But now the shower room was empty: neither the cat-like lithe Kaya, nor the other girls noisily discussing something not meant for men's ears.
Of the six, only two survived.
Realizing this, Krena suddenly looked at her friend.
"Listen, Anjou.
"What?"
"May I?...
Anjou froze, stopped soaping her hair, and shrugged.
They'd known each other for over a year, but they'd never showered together. Before that, Anjou had never been seen naked by anyone, not even girls.
"Yes, why not. There's no need to hide, there are only two of us left anyway.
Drops of water ran down his snow-white skin. Anjou's body was disfigured by scars, old and new. Rena had just as many of them, but a few strange marks on her back caught her attention—they didn't look like battle wounds in any way.
Her long hair obscured an inscription that drew her eye, and Krena forcibly averted her eyes. I think it said "whore's daughter." Alb's blood flowed into Anjou, but the distant ancestors of one of her parents were from Celeste.
— ... You know, Daya-kun... When we met, he complimented my hair. He understood that I was letting them down to hide the scars, but he said they were too beautiful to hide.
"It's such a tradition, yes... Are you also launching it now? Presidential fireworks?
"Mm...
Lena walked across the terrace and looked at the administration building. Apparently, the fireworks have just begun. In the night sky, to the thunder of the national anthem of the Republic, the remains of a five-colored ball disappeared.
Appreciating the skill with which the fireworks were made, Lena smiled coldly.
"Yes, I can see him. But the sky is too bright.
The party lights merged into a blinding mess. The dirty sky paid the price for the insatiable consumption of its inhabitants, who thought only of comfort. The fireworks that were supposed to be the pride of the Republic were barely noticeable.
There was no one among the party guests or the people making noise in the neighboring streets to watch the spectacle unfold in the sky. The presidential fireworks were obviously more beautiful than the standard handicrafts that were sold in the market, special people worked on it, but here they did not surprise anyone.
"Your fireworks must be very beautiful. And the sky, too—it's always dark at night.
The black night sky, the clear air, the enthusiastic spectators – yes, the fireworks in one of the far corners of the front must have been beautiful.
"I wish I could see him with you," Lena almost said, but she overcame herself. You can't say that. She could get to the front even now, one wish was enough for that. However, Shin and the others fought against their will, and she couldn't come back with them. All this "together" is nothing more than an illusion, and therefore one should not allow oneself such desires.
In the end, Lena said:
"Someday we will have to watch the presidential fireworks together. You'll laugh.
Shin smiled stiffly.
"I don't remember him being that bad.
"You'll check it out for yourself." After the end of the war and leaving the service, together with his comrades...
She stopped. Daya. Six people who died one after the other.
"I wish Junior Lieutenant Iruma and the others could see it too..." Forgive me. Again, I'm out of time.
"Nothing. It's the first time we've had a funeral salute, so I think Daya and the other victims are happy too. They never liked to be sad.
Shin chuckled as he imagined Kino having fun. The commander was clearly unconscious, and the pararaid transmitted them more vividly than usual.
"Besides, Anjou has finally burst into tears. And she always keeps everything to herself, so I wanted to thank you for that, too.
Daya and Anjou had known each other for a long time and were very close.
"Warrant Officer Em can't forget—"
"It's natural. You haven't forgotten either, Major. My brother...
After a moment's hesitation, Shin continued.
"I was glad to hear that... After all, I didn't remember it myself.
Lena heard that faintly trembling voice and couldn't believe it.
Shin had never expressed his feelings like this before.
"Captain Knowzen . . .
"Major, you're going to remember us, aren't you?"
The commander asked this question as if in jest. Neither the intonation nor the voice gave any reason to suppose that there was anything serious behind it.
This time, however, they were more synchronized than usual. Just a little bit...
And that was enough for Lena to feel the burning desire that was hidden behind his words.
"Will you remember us?"
"At least for a second after we die."
Lena shivered and closed her eyes.
No matter how strong they are. No matter how many battles you've endured.
Death was always breathing down their backs.
"Of course I will. But...
It was her duty. Her, Vladilena Mirize, curator of "Tip of the Spear". She sighed and finished the sentence firmly.
"But before that, I won't let you die." No one else.
However...
No matter how many petitions Lena submits, no matter how many applications she writes...
Not a single person was ever sent to the Tip of the Spear.
†
Four people died that day.
They made the usual sortie through the Legion's forward positions. The bridgehead for the gathering and further movement of the enemy's main forces was actually a trap. An ambush lurks in a seemingly safe area.
Shin, as always, had predetermined the location and number of units waiting for them, so the plan was to flank the ambush site and launch a surprise flank attack.
For some reason, there were no mayflies, and Lena's radar clearly showed the absence of any other enemy forces, but just before the collision, several people, including Shin, managed to sense something. "Something's wrong," Raiden muttered, and his feelings reverberated over to some of the CPUs, which seemed to be the main reason why they had managed to survive all along.
The fighter's instincts were in no way inferior to the ability to find the Legion by their voice.
At the same second, the radar sounded an alarm and a projectile fell from the sky on a diagonal trajectory.
Only those who did not lose their heads from the signal and allowed themselves to react instinctively to the situation were able to survive. The griffin (juggernaut Chise) did not have time to dodge the projectile and exploded; Fawnir (Kino's juggernaut) was hit by shrapnel, and his point also disappeared from the radar. The remaining juggernauts were thrown back by a strong shockwave, some could not resist and fell to the ground, and the second and third shells fell on them from the sky with terrible explosions.
An auxiliary computer calculated that the firing point was 120 km east-north-east. They had never seen such long-range guns in the Legion. Moreover, the shells were extremely fast. The estimated muzzle velocity exceeded 4000 m/s, which was slightly beyond the capabilities of the artillery.
The ambushed vehicles turned out to be nothing more than cannon fodder, the purpose of which was to keep the Tip of the Spear in the firing zone. Such a clever and cold-blooded strategy, which even took into account the CPU's plan for a flank attack, was nothing compared to what the Legion had demonstrated before.
If Shin hadn't spotted the observation machine in time and dealt with it, and then the gun suddenly stopped at the tenth shot (apparently some defect in the newly developed mechanism), they would not have been able to retreat, no matter how experienced they were.
The processors got away from the last pursuers, and in the end, their losses amounted to 4 people. Chise, Kino, Touma, and Kroto were killed.
There are only 9 juggernauts left.
Less than half of the regular roster. Even less than a dozen...
"I...
Lena couldn't utter a word in terror.
My mouth was dry. My heart was pounding with a terrible premonition. She blurted out hurriedly:
"I'll ask for a replenishment right away." Today. This is... So weird...
In Tip of the Spear, there has been a shortage for a long time.
Due to the small number of processors, the processors were exhausted, and the defensive line could hardly be maintained only with the help of fire support and sorties from neighboring units. Senior management was well aware of this, but no one did anything. Requests for fire support and sorties were duly granted, but for some reason requests for reinforcements were always rejected. Lena tried to take advantage of her good relations with Karstahl and begged him to do something, but even he, the Major General, was powerless, so the squad did not get a single man.
Shin replied curtly.
"Major."
"I'll talk to the Major General again, he'll do something." You'll need any help now...
— Major Mirize.
Lena fell silent.
"We all don't care.
— ... yes," Raiden agreed, as if speaking for everyone. The others maintained a tense silence.
— ... What are you talking about?...
"Major." Stop it. No matter what you do, it won't do anything.
"Captain Nousen, what have you got—"
"There will be no replenishment. In general, not a single person...
— ... I...
Everyone except Lena knew the truth. Shin said quietly.
"We're going to be destroyed. We were sent to this unit to be executed.