Cafeteria, E-2 Babylonia
======
Akiio chewed on the pork chop he stuffed in his mouth, while taking a spoonful of white rice afterwards. The savory taste of the meal made his taste buds crave for more, so he continues eating while staying in his own little world.
Lucia and Liv was not with him at this moment, since he wanted to do this without the need for help. He discreetly looks over to his 3 o'clock and sees four girls sitting and talking to each other. It was Rozzi's squad, and the person in check had her back facing him.
His feet touches the medium sized paper bag on the floor, making him sigh. He has been finding openings to give it to Rozzi, not because Thana said so yesterday. Well, it is because she said it but that's not the point. The thing is, he can't find the right timing because there were so many people.
“-so I was saying, oi Akiio, listen in will you?” A black haired Commandant, who was sitting across him, snapped his fingers as he spoke.
“I'm listening, Zandril...go on.” Akiio lied.
“Yeah...where was I?” Zandril asked the guy beside him.
“About the latest talks of a joint op with the Forsaken.” the brown haired Commandant responded while munching on some bell tacos. He continued speaking after swallowing the food.
“I heard the rumors, though logically speaking, I'm not too optimistic about the result.”
“Yeah–,” Zandril added with a sigh, before flicking Akiio on the forehead.
“Ayo!”
“–after all, the Forsaken leader Watanabe only ever listens to this guy... How'd you even do that?”
“Guess my natural charms of peacefulness made him think twice?” Akiio rubbed the spot in his forehead. Kimura laughed heartily before eating a spoonful of golden fried rice.
Akiio laughed too, since it was, in a sense, true. Watanabe is a straightforward man, and his ideals often collide with the way Babylonia does things. That's why the Gray Ravens are almost always involved whenever Babylonia has to operate near Forsaken controlled territory.
As they were talking, Akiio averted his attention towards Rozzi's table. Blood rushed up his head and his forehead began trickling with cold sweat as two of the Transcendants sitting across Rozzi was nowhere near the table. Instead, they were walking towards his direction, eyes fixed at him like predators finding it's prey.
He was about to stand up when Thana whistled loud and sharp, causing him to flinch. In mere seconds, the two towering ladies was already standing beside their table.
“Crap...” Akiio muttered. Most of the Commandants eating around him turned their heads to see what was going on, since the two Transcendants are sticking out like a sore thumb.
“Err... Is there any problem..?” Kimura was the first one to break the ice, since both girls was looking down at Akiio with amused expressions.
“Nah, nothing of the sort. Just wanna borrow him for a second.” Thana said and puts her large hand on Akiio's shoulder, before closing on his ear.
“You owe her an apology, remember?”
Akiio flinched at her tone, which, to his hearing, sounded a bit threatening. He looked up and faced her, only to see that she was smiling at him, yet her eyes conveyed the opposite.
“Yeah, yeah. I was just finishing my meal, that's all. Haha...” He answered, nearly stammering as he finished the sentence.
Kimura and Zandril glanced at each other, confused about this sudden development. The others turned a blind eye in an instant, cautiously avoiding eye contact with the Transcendants as if they were out for blood.
“We'll return your friend later, hopefully still in one piece.” Laethiel added, causing the two Commandants to gulp hard.
Thana motioned for Akiio to follow when she saw that Rozzi exited the cafeteria. Stella was standing in the doorway, her cold stare landing on the human walking in between her two teammates. He couldn't help but shiver after making eye contact with the ice queen.
Akiio, in sense, wasn't small either. Yet walking in the middle with these two women made it feel like he was around 4'11. He awkwardly cleared his throat as they exited the cafeteria. And what added to the awkwardness was that Stella was walking in front of him, while Thana and Laethiel was just a few inches to his side.
This made it looked like he was being escorted to jail or something.
“It's you again huh? I guess you're the reason Rozzi is upset again.” Stella addressed him with a dismissive tone as they passed through the construct dorms.
“Same old shit it is. You're lucky I don't hate you that much.” Laethiel added with her usual Russian accent, which made it sound much more life threatening.
“Guh...so you do hate me...” Akiio muttered.
“Of course we do. You're bad when it comes to treating women right. Shame on you.” Thana teased, causing him to sigh heavily.
He was already acquainted with the three of them, given how many times they swooped in to save his task force one too many times from past operations. It just didn't occurred to him that he was hurting Rozzi emotionally, which made him felt like a douchebag.
The group made a left turn, which led towards the gravitational lift. He caught sight of Rozzi, who was standing at the elevator's doorway. She was repeatedly tapping her right foot on the tiled flooring.
“The hell did you bring him for?” She asked Thana as they boarded the lift.
“Orders from Nikola. Remember what he said yesterday? Pick which Commandant we should team up with for the latest op?”
“Wait what?” Akiio interjected, but no one seemed to acknowledge his existence.
“And you decided to bring this nutjob? He can barely even stand up straight.” Rozzi clicked her tongue before begrudgingly pressing the button.
“Well, he can act as a meatshield.” Stella commented.
“As well as a good distraction.” Laethiel added.
“Oi, oi, oi. I'm right here you know!?” Akiio exclaimed.
“Hmph, I can't believe of all people it has to be you.” Rozzi mumbled.
“I was literally forced to come here.” He interjected.
“Now's a good time to apologize too.” Thana said from the sidelines, making the other two nod.
Silence engulfed the lift once more, and it's fair to say that it wasn't a comfortable experience. He discreetly moves his eyes side by side to see what the Transcendants were up to. For all he knows, they could be aiming their weapons at him right this moment. Having an unshakable love and loyalty to one person can be quite terrifying...
However, he saw Thana and Laethiel calmly and silently watching the space beyond the glass structure of the elevator. So they aren't that machine like too.
Before Akiio could open his mouth, the elevator doors opened, revealing a stretch of white hallway. He feels a light tap on his shoulders, both his shoulders, as Thana and Laethiel exited the lift. Meanwhile, Stella made sure to stare at him dead in the eyes as she followed her friends.
“This morning... The reason why I went to your quarters was so that I could apologize.” Akiio said after the Transcendants were out of sight.
“I know, it's just I'm not in the mood to converse with you right now Akiio.”
Rozzi sighed beside him before exiting the lift.
“I know, I know. If you don't want to accept my sorry, then it's understandable–”
*SLAP!*
He massages the side of his face as the stinging sensation spread on his cheeks. He looks over to see Rozzi's breathing was hard, and the corners of her eyes were brimming with tears.
Akiio couldn't do anything as she grabbed him by the collar and shook him.
“I've always cared about you! I showed it through my actions many times over the past, got myself and my squad almost being killed just to save your life and your team, and you couldn't even say a simple thanks!” Rozzi sobbed hard, tears falling and dropping on the floor.
“You are so....so heartless.” She whispered sharply, glaring at him as she met his gaze.
“I'm sorry...” was all Akiio could muster to say.
After all, he doesn't know what to say.
He had neglected her for quite a while now, while she was always there for him. He was sure that even though Thana and the others weren't voicing it out, they are also hurt and left dissatisfied by what he did.
“This next operation...might be the last time I will ever get to see you.” Rozzi said as she wiped the edges of her eyes. “I'm tired chasing after you Akiio... while you keep leaving us to hang dry.”
Rozzi cried one last time, before embracing Akiio tightly. He felt pain and guilt welling inside him, causing his eyes to sting as tears suddenly emerged. His cold, rock solid heart began to break as his friend reluctantly let go from the hug.
His vision clouds as the brown haired girl turns her body away and saunters off to the opposite direction, leaving him alone to ponder about everything that happened leading up to this point. He tries calling out to her, to try and stop her for leaving him, but his voice clogs in his throat.
Ultimately, he was left with a heavy feeling inside him. He unknowingly clutched his chest as he collapsed to his knees. And then his face felt hot.
Then came the tears. A lot of them. He could only cry as he stared at the floor in front of him. After a while, screams of pain came from the broken man, echoing off into nowhere.
.
.
.
///
Command room, Babylonia.
======
“So,” Hassen says as he paces in front of the holographic screen beside him. “Your mission is to link up with the Forsaken leader, Watanabe, and open negotiations with his organization.” he pauses slightly so as to look over to his subordinates.
Rozzi Pheovixilla, along with her rag-tag collection of Transcendants were standing side by side near the oval shaped table that contained most of the paperwork and documents. They were listening intently like any good soldier would do, which made the briefing easier.
He took note of the female Commandant's gaze, which seemed more serious today. Has something happened beforehand? That, he couldn't tell.
The brown haired Commandant raised her hand. “Sir, I have a couple of questions.”
“Go on.”
Rozzi clears her throat before speaking. “How can we be sure that the Forsaken are going to keep their word and not just start shooting us?”
“Yeah, for all we know they could be itching a fight. Also, the Gray Ravens are going to operate on the other side of the African desert, so their Commandant won't be there to act as a mediator.” Laethiel added.
Hassen nodded his head a couple of times after hearing their concerns. It's true, the Forsaken has been under constant pressure lately, so they might be acting a tad bit volatile. He heaves a sigh before turning his head towards Nikola, who was standing menacingly on the other side of the room.
“There's been reports lately about a group of Forsaken, probably Division strength, that broke away from the main organization.” the stoic, white haired officer spoke in his usual grumpy tone.
“And what has that got to do with making us contact the Forsaken?” Thana chimed in.
“They have been harassing our Forward Operating Base near the edges of Forsaken territory, while also doing raids on their former organization.” Nikola grumbled.
“What we'll do is offer up security measures, while also gathering more information on why it happened, hence the urgency of this operation.”
The members of task force Lazarus glanced at each other, before nodding their heads.
“So we'll be playing them in our palms? That's a rather risky, and quite bold move you guys thought of.”
Rozzi said with a neutral frown on her face. She knows, and saw first hand, how tenacious the Forsaken fights. Using unconventional methods, they excell at any sort of situations thrown at them by the post apocalyptic Earth.
Truly, they are masters of guerilla warfare. However...
“Yes, that's what we're doing. And to add to the current problem in hand, the breakaway division that has been pestering both sides are former soldiers of the 35th motorized infantry brigade of the old world government army. Surely, you've heard of them?” Nikola raises an eyebrow.
“Fuck me...” Rozzi sighs, massaging her nose bridge in the process. Of all the former soldiers that broke from the main group, it had to be them.
Hassen clears his throat. “Language Roz. Anyway, since you know their past services back in the war, you're task is to gauge their strength while also plucking out information from the Forsaken. We need to know why they are having internal conflict.”
“Sure thing sir.” Rozzi imprisons the documents handed to her by Nikola on her slender fingers, enclosing the papers in an envelope in the process.
“We'll be reporting directly to officer Nikola then?”
“Yes. Celica has already sent the necessary data that we have currently gathered from the past week to your data pad.” Hassen says, before briefly saluting. The female Commandant gives him a firm nod and reciprocates the gesture, before heading out.
The three Transcendants followed suit, leaving the office with silence. Hassen lets out a sigh afterwards, before facing the large screen monitor on his right.
“You think she's the perfect candidate?”
Nikola crosses his arms with the usual stoic frown on his face. “We've been strictly monitoring her mind. She is still slightly rough on the edges, but she's doing great effort in meeting our expectations. Asimov and his team are also developing a new set of serums for our future plans.”
“Hmm, that's good news then.” Hassen nodded his head. “But I have to ask... Why didn't you pick our wonder boy?”
“You mean Zxeuvietté?” Nikola scoffs. “The man is already battered physically and mentally. Besides, he's not augmented to connect with Transcendants for long term durations.”
Hassen stares at his old friend for a while, before sighing. All of them are worn out from all the endless fighting, yet some things are grittier that even the higher ups don't experience from the ground. It's all thanks to the Commandants, but they are all in danger if they don't get enough mental rest.
With a hand, he kindly waves off Nikola to leave before turning to face the vast emptiness of space.
“Yeah, you're right. We should give him a good R&D after this one. Let's just hope the latest addition in his task force won't die easily.”
.
.
.
///
Unspecified location, somewhere in the North African desert.
======
The shifting sands of the desert rustles as the a strong gust of wind envelopes the entire land. The distant sounds of crackling gunfire interrupts the serenity of the arid and barren wasteland. No man or animal should he able to survive in here, yet the Forsaken are still resisting.
In the distance, multiple hordes of corrupted mechanoids swoop in to kill a wounded soldier, tearing limb and muscles like beasts. The deathly scream of the dying man erupted like a firecracker, before being swallowed by the sand itself.
Forsaken soldiers, both constructs and humans, are currently fighting a two way front. A stronghold situated atop a large hill is all what's standing between them and the corrupted, while a preying menace stalks in from behind.
At the entrance of the walled fortress, vestiges of a large battle can be seen. Remains of soldiers lay dead among the scraps of metal that once was corrupted droids. The Forsaken soldiers keeping watch atop the walls don't even bother recovering those dead troops, since they were their enemy.
Zooming out of the Forsaken stronghold, a small group of people can be seen running through the desert. They were the remnants of another outpost a few kilometers from the said stronghold, and they were desperately trying to escape the clutches of their attackers.
“Go, go!” A female construct wearing desert camo clothing bellows loudly. “Run as fast as you can! Don't you dare look back!” she shouts at her remaining group of soldiers.
Once a proud company of 200 soldiers, now reduced to a measly group of 22.
Behind the retreating Forsaken are another group of soldiers, larger by them three times their size. These were once their comrades, now poisoned by an ideology from a far fetched dream. Some take aim at them and fire, while others give chase with military vehicles.
“Kali! Contact Watanabe!” A tall, Forsaken construct shouts before sliding in the declining sand dunes. He positions himself behind a solid rock and aims his sniper rifle on the pursuing enemies.
“No use Rick! They're jamming us!” Kali exclaims, letting the useless radio fall unceremoniously on her lap. She goes beside her friend and cranes her neck to see how many enemies are going after them.
“I counted 40 soldiers. I dunno about those in the vehicles though.” Rick says in between his rifle shots. He manages to hit two enemies before being forced to duck for cover.
“Crap, we need to hold them back...” Kali mutters as she watches one of the retreating soldiers fall limp on the sand. If they don't do anything, her company might just vanish forever. The construct beside her shifts, making her turn.
“I'll fight with you til' the death, Captain.” Rick smiles beneath his armored mask, before inserting a fresh magazine on his sniper rifle.
“Alright. Let's show them what hell on earth looks like.” Kali responds with a smirk before racking the bolt on her assault rifle.
Sporadic fighting soon erupted between the two construct and the pursuing enemies. Some of their comrades managed to get to the walled fortress, but a few unlucky soldiers gets gunned down in the process.
And while Kali and Rick are slowly but surely chipping away at the enemy personnel, they were also being forced more to run from cover to cover. The sandy dunes was helping slow down the ex-Forsaken troops for closing in, but the open spaces on the desert meant that they were sitting ducks in the open.
Twenty minutes into the fight and Rick was shot in the shoulder. The force of the bullet caused him to be thrown like a ragdoll into the ground.
“Damnit...” The construct grunts as Kali pulls him on the collar of his shirt. Sparks flew off from where his arm was used to be, now severed and left mangled on the shifting desert sands.
“Sit tight. We're walking on a dense area with the Punishing Virus.” Kali clicked her tongue and injects a serum on her friend.
“It's alright...leave me here. I still have one arm.” He weakly lifts his sniper rifle with his right hand.
Kali scoffs at him, before lifting him off the ground. She puts his arm around her neck and began leading him towards the direction of the fortress.
“You can get...shot any minute, y'know?” Rick groans as they walked past dozens of mangled corrupted remains. They must be close.
“I don't care. We're already dead if we stayed there.” she responds and turns her head sideways, hoping to catch a glimpse of any soldiers behind them. Much to her surprise, even the sounds of gunfire already stopped.
‘Did we lose them..?’ Kali thought to herself. She shakes her head and continued to support her wounded friend. Shortly after, they managed to reach the Forsaken stronghold.
“Identify yourselves!” A guard in the watchtower shouted, all the while menacingly pointing his weapon at the two approaching constructs.
“Captain Kaliena Vilfor! I command the 41st rifle company of outpost Delta!” Kali shouts back as Rick raised a white flag from out of nowhere. The guard shouts a couple of indecipherable words to someone from within the complex before facing them.
“Get inside! We'll patch your friend up.”
The metal gate screeches open as the steel hinges did it's job. Kali makes way towards a heavily guarded bunker near the entrance, all the while making sure Rick is still alive. A couple of Forsaken medics soon helps her with her friend, putting him into a stretcher and giving him another shot of serum.
“Don't worry ma'am. We'll make sure to treat his wounds.” The medical personnel says with a reassuring nod.
“Good. Sit tight Rick.” Kali firmly holds his hand as he gives her a thumbs up, albeit shakily.
Watching the far away figure of the ones carrying Rick, Kali decides to check up on the remaining soldiers under her command. She asks the human soldiers stationed at the stronghold where her unit went.
“You must be Captain Vilfor. The soldiers of the 41st are all in the courtyard. Just go straight and you'll see an open space.” A lieutenant salutes her before walking away.
Sighing to herself, Kaliena heads to the specified location. She passed rows upon rows of wounded soldiers on the way. Humans and constructs alike, all groaning and shifting on the bed as they were being treated by the undermanned crew of medical personnel.
She arrives at the courtyard and was immediately met with the sight of exhausted men and women. She saw banners of other companies, of which she assumes are remnants of other outposts in a 10 kilometer radius near the stronghold.
Kali squints her eyes as she tries to find her unit amongst the mass of soldiers. She only manages to do so when her second in command, Attila, climbed atop a crate and began wildly waving her hands in the air. A feeling of relief washes over her mechanical heart after seeing her friend still alive and well.
“Captain, glad you made it.” The grey haired construct said before pulling her into a hug.
“Yeah. We lost a lot of good friends out there...” Kali muttered as she hugged her friend.
“How many did our troops survive?”
Attila lets go of her show of affection and turns around, double counting what was left of their company.
“All in all, we're down to 16 men only. Wait, is Rick still alive? I can't seem to find him. He's the only one who hasn't showed up.”
“Don't worry, he's in the medical bay. He got shot in the left arm.” Kali responds as she walks towards their makeshifts space. The weary and exhausted soldiers under her command suddenly stood up and formed a line.
They still acted like a true soldier, even in times like these. The stoic faces and their firm salute was the only thing keeping their tears in check.
“At ease soldiers. You all did well, and you guys are the bravest bunch I've ever seen.” A smile forms on her face, before shaking every hand of her fellow soldiers.
======
*SLICE*
*SLASH*
*THUD*
The smell of burnt flesh emanates from the charred corpses of unrecognizable soldiers lying still on the ground. Construct and human parts alike are strewn astray as the lingering signs of explosion gave away what had happened.
Atop a hill, Rozzi stops and flips a body, examining any identification on the dead soldier. Her Task Force has just landed a few kilometers short on their designated drop zone. Luckily for them, they found themselves right on top of their prey, hence the fighting that occurred.
Footsteps behind her made the female Commandant turn her head. It was Stella, approaching with neutral expression on her face.
“Status report?”
“Yes Roz.” The swordswoman responds and raises a bunch of dogtags, some blackened by the fires that ravaged them. “Found these on everyone, including those caught in the exploding vehicles. They are Forsaken soldiers. I told Thana to keep an eye out for more.”
“And Lae? Has she called in yet?” Rozzi inquires.
Stella shook her head. “Not yet, but her comms are active. I can still hear gunfire in the distance, so maybe she's still cleaning up.”
Rozzi stares at the torn badge in her palm, which belonged to the 35th. Given the amount of armored vehicles Thana and Stella managed to blow up in here, it's safe to say that they were planning on besieging an outpost somewhere.
“Alright, any other details surrounding their presence here?”
“Well, there's a Forsaken stronghold about 2 kilometers westward from our current position. The F.O.B meanwhile is just 5 kilometers up north. That's where the other task forces are currently right now.” Stella finishes her report.
“Good. And uhm... the Gray Ravens?” Rozzi stammered a bit. “Are they involved?”
Stella stares at her for a moment before answering. “They are, but they aren't seeing any action. Hopefully.”
“Ha, so much for bringing them along huh?” Rozzi sighs and walks downslope, and Stella shadowed behind her. After walking a couple of minutes, they soon found Thana, who was busy providing vision atop a small ridge. She was lying prone on her stomach while scouting using her rifle.
“Thana, progress report.”
The tall Transcendant grunts as she stood up, patting away the sand in the process. “The Forsaken stronghold is surprisingly intact. A few minor holes in the walls, but all in all they're holding back a corrupted horde.”
“No signs of other ex-Forsaken soldiers?” Rozzi queried.
Thana snickers. “How should I know? They wear the same uniform, and if they do have some kind of semblance from different units, I can't see shit in this type of environment.”
“Time for you to get a haircut then.” Stella chimes in.
“Alright, enough. Thana, try contacting Lae and tell her to stop what she's doing. We need to make contact with that garrison.” Rozzi points towards the ghastly silhouette of the stronghold in the distance.
As the three of them were about to take a quick break, the ridge they were standing in started to move. It was quick and sudden, but enough for them to go alert.
“Earthquake?” Rozzi asked.
“No shit. Did the earth just do a quickie?” Thana cocked her rifle. Why did she have to cock her rifle if it's just an earthquake??? WHY? TELL MEEE.
Stella glanced around for a bit, just as the ground began trembling violently again. “No seismic activity detected. It's coming from something man-made.”
A deafening wail came from far behind them, followed by a huge explosion of sand and rocks. The strong gust of wind made them jump for cover, as their vision was blocked by the sudden sand storm.
“Shit! Oi! My vision modules are glitching!” Thana yelled as her hair slapped her face from every direction. So much for Babylonia tech.
Luckily for Rozzi, she managed to put on an oxygen mask and a special type of goggles to help her see through the misty sand of the desert. She pulls Stella closer so she wasn't the only one out of cover.
“What the hell caused that!?”
“I'm trying to find out Roz!” Stella shouts back, before peaking out of cover. There she catches sight of something that made her look twice.
“It couldn't be...”
“What? What do you see?” Rozzi asks, feeling uneasy about Stella's reaction.
She glances back at them, with a rather uncanny smile on her face.
“Laethiel... She's riding a Vassago.”
«‹⟨ TO BE CONTINUED ⟩›»
Published: May 16, 2022
Words: 4639
(First of all, I want to apologize for the long update. I'm getting ready for college life, even though it's online, but the process is long and hard. I can't promise that I'll be able to update the story every month, but I'll to my best. (~￣³￣)~)
(Also, Zandril and Kimura comes from Xuckyxheese and KuroGryph respectively. Thanks for letting me borrow your Commandants xD. Check their stories out too if you guys want to!)