Chapter 1: Mizuno Aoi: Crisis

In all our lives, there comes a time when we realize just how trivial day-to-day concerns such as winning the tournament we're in, getting a boyfriend, getting into college, or so forth are. In many cases, these are the first times when we find ourselves in a situation in which lives are on the line. For me, and for the rest of my tank crew, the lives in question were our own.

We, members of the Black Forest High School tankery crew's Team Drei were facing Pravda Academy's tankery crew in the finals of the tournament match. Initially, nothing seemed to be off about this situation; we were in a desperate situation, but the commander, Nishizumi Maho-san, was adamant that we would prevail if we followed the plan. The plan was to have Team Zwei's flag tank, under the command of the the commander's younger sister, vice-captain, Nishizumi Miho-san, and a few others evade the enemy's main forces while our main force worked to flush out the enemy flag tank.

But then a shell landed near our tank, kicking up a large cloud of smoke and dust on impact. Thankfully for us, it was not a hit, much less registered as a disabling shot. But that feeling soon gave way to horror as we found that our tank was skidding and sliding off the path. We frantically- and futilely- sought to stop our descent, knowing that we were falling into the river below, a natural hazard more unforgiving and deadly than anything Pravda could unleash at us, unbound by tankery regulations or the rules of the tournament.

At that point, this stopped being about something as small as a game of tankery and became a battle for our very survival.

Water flowed into the tank through the small openings that allow us to see and breathe, and we, panicked by the sudden danger of drowning as well as the shock of our sudden and violent tumble into the water, frantically tried to force open the hatches, but failed as we, in a shrinking pocket of air, pushed against a wall of water.

Eventually, the entire tank was full of water, and we desperately held our breaths. We silently called out to whatever powers in existence could save us, a common resort for those whose abilities are inadequate to save them from danger, and who fall into despair and fear as a result. Naturally, I made many desperate promises, being willing to sacrifice the tournament victory, become a better woman and devote myself to helping others if I could simply survive this. Living up to those promises was something I could take care of once my survival, and with it, my ability to do so, were guaranteed.

But no signs seemed to come; either the higher powers were refusing to help us, or they simply did not exist. At that point, despair began to sink in, the penultimate stage in a series of emotions I've heard some people go through as they are dying.

"Am I going to die here…?" I thought. I was about to give up at that moment, until I looked around and saw my friends and subordinates struggling to hold their breaths. If I gave up or died, what would happen to them? This thought did not give any answers, though, and I was left with the realization that I would be unable to save myself or my closest friends.

It seemed as though i would die without accepting my fate or being able to change it, a depressing and anticlimactic end to a short life.

"There were so many things I wanted to do..." I thought. "I suppose the others felt the same way. Girls... I'm sorry."

But then somehow, the hatch opened from the outside and we saw Miho-san, who had seen our tank fall and had come to our rescue. Intense joy and hope came over me; perhaps this is what it was like to see an angel. Miho-san then pulled us through the hole, enabling us to swim to the surface. As we filled our lungs with air once again, our hearts began to feel incredible relief. All of us had survived.

But after I made it to shore and slowly rose to my feet, I looked around and realized the full extent of what this had cost Miho-san, and crippling pangs of guilt came over me.

There was a white flag raised on our team's flag tank. Pravda had won, and it was because of us.

Miho-san's decision was not wrong, and she would never have had to resort to that desperate action if our tank had not fallen in the water. But few realized this, and so Miho-san bore the weight of her guilt for a year, until I met her for the first time since then at the next year's finals. Miho-san was in high spirits, which was the greatest relief that I saw since I first put my head above the surface and breathed fresh air after escaping the tank with her help.

Some people understood what I was feeling, such as one of Miho-san's new friends and teammates, who looked on and gave a knowing smile as I spoke with her to express my gratitude. Others did not, such as Miho-san's successor as vice-captain, who had in the past criticized her decision, and now glared at me. There had been many people watching Black Forest's unprecedented tournament defeat, from many angles. If there is one truth behind the event, its causes, and its aftermath, it lies somewhere between all those perspectives.

Author's Note

This is a fic intended to look at the incident at the finals of the last tournament in more detail, specifically, everyone's perspectives on it. What do they think went wrong? Who was responsible? What were their feelings? How were they affected? What do they hold most important?

The narrator for this chapter is intended to be the teammate who comes over to talk to Miho in Episode 10 , thanking her for saving them and expressing relief that she didn't give up on tankery. To my knowledge, she doesn't have an official name. I chose to show her first because to desperate and terrified girls with their lives on the line, nothing else matters, and future chapters will look at the immediate and long-range implications of Miho's decision. She also implies in Episode 10 that she feels responsible for Miho bearing responsibility for Black Forest's defeat, and was worried about Miho after her sudden departure from Black Forest.

The story will focus on the perspectives of seven different people related to the event: Mizuno Aoi, Kotetsu Karin(Miho's driver in Black Forest), Katyusha(whom you likely know as Pravda's diminutive commander, but you may not know was the one who scored the disabling hit on the flag tank in this tournament), Yukari, and finally, the Nishizumi family- Maho, Shiho and finally Miho.

Regarding Maho's plan, this is my rough interpretation given that a small group of tanks went down the road. It's thus possible that they were separated from the main Black Forest force, possibly as a plan to hide the flag tank. One point of contention with regards to the finals is whose idea it was to go on the cliff path, which resulted in the entire situation happening in the first place. Another issue that should be considered, although it isn't always, is what the alternatives were. I decided to leave it somewhat ambiguous as to whether it was Maho's idea, Miho's idea or whether Maho gave the order and Miho decided the best way to carry it out was to go that way.

I recommend reading the Little Army prequel manga, as it gives more detail about why Miho and Maho do tankery. This fic will include references to scenes and plot points from that manga, particularly a similar incident that's alluded to later on.

Next Time: The driver of Miho's tank and the rest of her crew respond to their commander's sudden disappearance in the heat of battle.