Summary: Tragedy can scar the soul but love can heal even the deepest wounds...
Genre(s): Romance/Drama/Angst
Character(s): F. Lucchini, Charlotte Y.
Pairing(s): Lucchini x Charlotte
Story Type: One-shot; AU; Tie-in
Disclaimer: I do not own Strike Witches
Author's Notes: This is a tie-in for 'The Lost Witches', it is set in an alternate universe 1945. You don't need to read 'The Lost Witches' to understand this story. However, it is highly recommended that you do go back and read both the original before reading this story.
* The Lost Witches: Don't Let Go *
It is October, 1945. The Neuroi have won the war by overwhelmingly defeating the 501st Joint Fighter Wing. All of Europe, Asia, and most of Liberion have fallen under Neuroi dominance.
* Strike Witches *
Lighting streaked across the bleak night time sky as a torrent of rain pounded down from the blighted heavens. The lightning briefly illuminated a red headed Witch as she bolted across the sky, nearly outrunning the lightning itself.
"Damn it!" Charlotte Yeager whispered harshly to herself as she tightened her grip on the crying girl she was dragging along behind her.
She glanced back to see the tear-stained face of Francesca Lucchini, though it was hard to tell from the rain. However, at that moment she was more concerned with the horrid shriek of the Neuroi that had been chasing her ever since she retreated from the chaotic battle above the Strike Witches' base.
"I can't shake it!" she said angrily to herself as she poured her magical energy into her Strikers but, even with the modified engines, the Neuroi was swiftly gaining on her. The creature let out another shriek almost as if to mock her which elicited a loud sob from Charlotte's passenger.
"Lucchini! You're too heavy!" Charlotte called out back to the sobbing girl, strain clear in her voice, though it was almost inaudible as a thunderclap sounded throughout the area.
Lucchini gasped as she realized what she needed to do. With a look of despair, she lowered her eyes and released her focus on her magical fusion with the machines on her legs. The blue glow coming from within her Strikers faded and they slipped off her legs.
Lucchini watched helplessly as her Strikers fell through the sky and crashed into the ocean. Charlotte felt the loss of weight and revved up her Strikers before bolting off into the night, leaving a trail of exhaust and the Neuroi behind. Lucchini watched with blood-shot eyes as the Neuroi and the smoke from her former home slowly faded off into the distance.
* Strike Witches *
The hot African sun reflected off the surface of the ocean just off the northern coast of Africa. Charlotte emerged from beneath the waves with a dramatic splash, her fiery red hair whipping out behind her as a spray of water sparkled around her. Lucchini, however, sat on the beach in the comfortable shade of a palm tree, a blanket, emblazoned with the Romagnian emblem, below her. She excitedly watched as Charlotte came bounding out of the water, her generous assets bouncing happily in her red bikini.
"You should really come on it, Lucchini, the water is nice and warm," Charlotte encouraged as she flopped down on the plain towel next to Lucchini. Lucchini had to force herself to avert her gaze up to Charlotte's smiling features as a playful grin spread across her face.
"I hate the heat," she whined with a playful wink as Charlotte laughed then lazily fell back on her towel.
"You better get used to it if we're going to be hiding out here for a while," she replied as she sighed from the comfort of the sand beneath her towel.
Lucchini glanced up and noticed a small group of native North African men from the small tribal village in which she and Charlotte were hiding out. She could see the lustful gleam in their eyes as they stared at Charlotte, which earned them a ferocious glare from the Romagnian girl. Her hands quickly shot out and she began to grope and pull on Charlotte's breasts which startled the Liberion girl.
"What are you doing, Lucchini?" Charlotte asked in pleasant surprise as she sat up on the towel.
"Just reminding them who these belong to!" Lucchini replied possessively as she stuck her tongue out at the group of men, which earned her several unpleasant gestures.
"Lucchini, don't antagonize the locals, they were very kind to take us in despite knowing the risk!" Charlotte scolded as the Romagnian girl looked down at the sand and sucked on her index finger pitifully.
"I'm sowwy, Shirley," she mumbled as a light blush lit up her brown cheeks. Charlotte smiled at the pitifully cute display and patted Lucchini on the head.
"It's alright," she said with a smile which earned an excited grin from the lively girl. Lucchini cried out with glee as she half-leaped at Charlotte and began to grope her chest in earnest once more, earning an amused laugh from the older girl.
Lucchini and Charlotte lounged around beneath the shade of the tree for the rest of the day, with Lucchini being especially catatonic as she had a difficult time dealing with the heat of the day.
"Wake up, Lucchini," Charlotte cooed as she gently shook the girl out of her catatonic state. Lucchini blearily blinked the sleep out of her eyes and then saw that the sun had nearly set.
"We need to get back," Charlotte said as she stood and offered Lucchini a hand, which she happily accepted.
The two girls headed back through the short expanse of desert that separated the beach from the village, passing by the occasional palm or shrub. Charlotte received many looks as the two girls entered the village; though she did not seem to pay too much attention to them, unlike Lucchini, who did her best to shoot out as many predatory glares as possible. The pair passed by one of the village elders on the way to their hut. Charlotte paused and respectfully bowed her head.
"Thank you again for letting us stay," she said as she raised her head.
"It's no trouble at all, Yeager-san," the wizened man replied as he smiled tenderly. Charlotte returned the smile gratefully then continued on her way to her and Lucchini's shared hut.
Lucchini let out a relieved sigh as she entered the sanctity of the hut and immediately flopped down on her make-shift bed.
"I'm so tired!" she whined as she flopped from side-to-side on the bed, clutching her blanket tightly.
"You've already slept the day away," Charlotte commented playfully as she changed into her uniform then went over to her Striker Units which were caringly propped up against the wall. She pulled her backpack over, pulled out a few tools that she had salvaged along their journey and popped open a service panel on one of the Strikers.
'All she ever does is work on her Strikers,' Lucchini mentally huffed as she twisted on her bed to get the best and lewdest view of Charlotte from the floor.
The sly girl smiled to herself as she enjoyed the view, but she was unable to keep her eyes open for long as the heat always drained her strength. Slowly, her eyes closed and she fell into a deep sleep...
* Strike Witches *
..."Lucchini..."
Lucchini stirred slightly, shifting and mumbling something in reply.
"Lucchini..!"
She slowly blinked her eyes open and saw the shape of a woman above her.
"Lucchini!"
Suddenly everything was so much louder and brighter as Lucchini bolted upright in her bed to be met by the face of Charlotte.
"Finally! You're awake!" Charlotte said hurriedly as she rushed over to the window and peered outside at the streets of Rome.
"Lucchini, they're coming," Charlotte said worriedly as a dark shadow began to spread across the white cobblestone of the road. Lucchini instantly knew what she meant and jumped out of bed.
"Already? But we've only been here for a week! How did they find us so fast?" Lucchini asked hurriedly as she joined Charlotte by the window.
"I don't know, but we haven't had time to organize a proper resistance. If we fight now..."
Lucchini cast her gaze down at the floor. She knew full well what would happen. '...Rome will fall,' she thought as tears filled her eyes.
"But we have to! For Rome!" Lucchini cried in defiance as she looked up into Charlotte's eyes. Charlotte's hardened visage softened at the sight of Lucchini's tears and conviction.
"Alright...alright," she said in defeat. "I'll try to fight them, but you can't, you don't have your Strikers anymore."
Lucchini frowned. "But I still have my weapon! I can still fight!"
Charlotte was unable to resist the fire in Lucchini's eyes. "Alright-"
Just then a rumble shook the ground, causing Lucchini to fall forward but Charlotte caught her and steadied her.
"We need to get to the resistance garrison," Charlotte said urgently as she and Lucchini grabbed their rifles and rushed out the door just as the city-wide Neuroi alarm began to blare.
"Captain Yeager! Are you there?"
A frantic transmission came over Charlotte's earpiece as she and Lucchini ran through the back alleyways of Rome as to avoid being detected by the incoming Neuroi.
"This is Captain Yeager! Report!" Charlotte barked through her earpiece as she turned a corner.
"We have massive incoming! We don't have enough men to repel such a force! We need you and Ensign Lucchini here now, Captain!"
Charlotte looked over at Lucchini and grinned which was excitedly returned.
"We're on our way!" she responded as she and Lucchini burst out from a back alley onto the runway of the resistance base.
"Captain Yeager, your Strikers are prepped for launch!" an officer said quickly as Charlotte dashed into the hangar, up the stairs of her Striker's mount and hopped into the machines. Her rabbit ears and tail appeared as she magically synced with the machine then looked to the attending officer.
"Gather the ground troops, Sergeant, Ensign Lucchini will be leading the ground resistance," she ordered as her Striker restraints unbuckled. "Have all rear echelon personnel assist in the evacuation of the city!" she yelled over the loud hum of her Striker's engines.
Charlotte gave Lucchini a small smile before steeling her expression forward and taking off down the runway then lifting up into the sky.
'Come back to me in one piece...' Lucchini thought as she followed Charlotte with her eyes for as long as she could, almost as if in a trance, before being brought back to reality by the Sergeant.
"What are your orders, Ensign Lucchini?" the Sergeant hurriedly asked as he saluted. Lucchini shook her head to dislodge her worries.
"Gather the resistance; we need to man the artillery!" Lucchini ordered then shouldered her Beretta MG as she returned the salute.
'I won't let you fight this alone, Shirley,' Lucchini thought as she glanced up to the sky, watching as Charlotte engaged the Neuroi, and then hurried off after the Sergeant.
Lucchini stood atop the tallest spire she could find and surveyed the ground troops below her. The men were awaiting her orders at the few anti-air artillery guns the city could muster under such short notice.
"Awaiting your orders, Ensign," the artillery captain reported over Lucchini's radio.
Lucchini stared up at the sky, watching as Charlotte weaved and dodged between the Neuroi, but it was apparent she was struggling against the Neuroi's superior numbers.
'Just have to wait for them to come in closer...' Lucchini thought, though a feeling of helplessness pervaded her thoughts.
The Neuroi were too high up for her gunfire to be of any help. She just had to sit and wait until the Neuroi began a bombing run so that they would be in range. She did not have to wait long, however, as a group of Neuroi broke away from the main group and came in low above the city.
"Fire!" Lucchini shouted out as she raised her Beretta and unleashed a volley of gunfire at the incoming Neuroi.
The ground shook beneath her as the artillery fired one-by-one at the incoming enemy, striking a few of them but, to Lucchini's dismay, they regenerated with surprising speed.
"No!" she cried out as red spherical bombs detached from the underbellies of the Neuroi and fell onto the Romagnian buildings below them, wreathing the streets in unnatural, crimson flame. Lucchini gritted her teeth in anger as the sound of distant screams pierced her ears.
"Fire!" she commanded again which was shortly followed by another burst of anti-air fire.
The Neuroi shrieked and unleashed beams that effortlessly cut a swath through the artillery, causing the barrels and ammo reserves to detonate in a hellish explosion which knocked Lucchini violently to her knees. She helplessly looked down at the burning artillery as the screams of the soldiers burning below her reached her ears.
Tears slowly leaked from her eyes and dripped onto the ground as she steadied herself again the railing and looked up to see Rome burning before her, watching helplessly as the Neuroi dropped bombs onto the Coliseum and the Forum. Flames began to engulf the structure that she stood atop, the heat beginning to make her sweat profusely and feel weak.
'This is it...I'm going to die here,' she thought as the hope drained out of her.
"Lucchini!"
Lucchini looked up to the sky as Charlotte's voice came over her earpiece. Charlotte sped down towards her and she weakly raised her arms up to the incoming girl. Charlotte dipped low and picked Lucchini up, clutching the young girl tightly in her arms as she sobbed onto Charlotte's shoulder.
"I couldn't protect Rome..." she sobbed as Charlotte hugged her tighter, her hard gaze set out towards the horizon as the once-beautiful city burned in her wake...'
* Strike Witches *
...Lucchini's eyes shot open only to be met by the dark ceiling of the hut. The moon shined in through the open window and gave some illumination to the small, single room house. Lucchini's entire body was covered in a cold sweat and she panted lightly as her heart thumped violently in her chest from the nightmare. She turned on her side as tears threatened to spill down her cheeks.
'I couldn't protect Rome...' she thought then looked over at Charlotte, who was sleeping soundly, the rise and fall of her chest catching Lucchini's eye. She rolled onto her stomach then rose to her knees and crawled over to the sleeping Liberion.
"Shirley..?" she whispered and was satisfied that the red head was not awake when she received nothing but a snore in reply.
Lucchini crawled on top of the sleeping girl and gently lay down atop her, laying her head snuggly in the valley of Charlotte's cleavage. She sighed in peaceful bliss as she snuggled Charlotte's breasts then brought her right hand up and latched onto one of the soft mounds, squeezing it gently for comfort. Lucchini managed a small grin as she felt the comforting warmth and softness of the other girl's body envelope her and gently cradle her as she slowly drifted off into a more peaceful sleep.
* Strike Witches *
"Mmm..?" Lucchini was gently roused from her slumber by the feel of a gentle pressure on her scalp. She blinked her eyes open and groggily looked up and her blearily curious gaze was met by Charlotte's smiling face.
Charlotte did not stop in her ministrations however, as she continued to slowly stroke and run her fingers through Lucchini's hair. "Sleep well?"
A flash of sadness passed through Lucchini's eyes as she recalled her nightmare, but she repressed it then brightened up like her usual self.
"Sure did!" she replied chipperly, "Especially with these as pillows," Lucchini said slyly as she gave Charlotte an affectionate squeeze.
Charlotte smiled again then propped herself up on her elbows, prompting Lucchini to crawl off, allowing her to rise and put her uniform on.
"What do you want to do today-?" Charlotte began but was cut off as a deafening explosion muffled her sentence. The explosion was quickly followed by an unmistakable shriek and the sounds of the villagers screaming in terror.
"A Neuroi? How do they keep finding us!" Charlotte cried angrily as she ran over to her Strikers. Lucchini was temporarily dazed as the screams of the villagers caused her to momentarily relive the fall of Romagna.
"Lucchini!" Charlotte yelled as she laid her Strikers out on the ground, jerking Lucchini out of her daze. "Help me!"
Lucchini snapped to attention and rushed over to Charlotte as the red head sat on the floor and slipped her feet into her Strikers, sighing as she magically synced with the machines. Lucchini got behind Charlotte and heaved her up by the shoulders until she could stand without assistance.
"Lucchini, help the villagers escape," Charlotte said firmly as she grabbed her Thompson and prepared to launch through the roof.
"But Shirley-!"
"No, not this time, Lucchini," Charlotte said sharply, cutting Lucchini off and giving her a look that silenced any protest.
Charlotte positioned herself then concentrated until her magical rotors appeared. She revved them a couple of times before launching up through the weak hut roof, leaving a gaping hole that allowed Lucchini to look up at the pair of Neuroi in the sky. She gave one last glance at her Beretta MG before rushing out of the hut into the chaos of the village.
"Everyone! This way!" Lucchini called out to the panicked villagers as she leapt to raise a shield to block a Neuroi beam.
The villagers were drawn to this beacon and soon Lucchini was able to guard the villagers as they scattered out into the surrounding desert. The entire time, Lucchini kept a vigilant eye on Charlotte; she knew that she could not do anything to help, but it comforted her nonetheless to know what was going on.
Charlotte weaved through the Neuroi beam fire but both her rifle and Strikers were badly in need of maintenance and it greatly affected her performance. She circled around one of the Neuroi and peppered it with gunfire until she exposed the core. A single shot later and it split into a thousand pieces and glittered into the sand below.
Charlotte's face lit up in triumph but her victory was short lived as the second Neuroi popped up behind her with a shriek. She wheeled on her opponent, leveled her gun and squeezed the trigger.
"Damn it!" she cried in frustration as the rifle clicked uselessly. "What a time to run out of ammo!"
The Neuroi shrieked again, almost laughing at her as it unleashed a torrent of small beams at her.
'Shirley!' Lucchini watched helplessly as Charlotte was pushed down out of the sky by the overwhelming attack, sending her crashing into a sand dune, the impact sending up a choking cloud of dust.
"Shirley!" Lucchini cried out as she ran over to the fallen girl just as the Neuroi charged up for a second attack.
As the Neuroi unleashed its beam, Lucchini leapt in front of Charlotte and raised an enormous shield, one far larger than the young Witch had ever produced before.
"I won't let you hurt Shirley!" she screamed at the creature as the beam intensified for a moment then weakened and died.
Lucchini's shield faded and she fell to her knees, panting heavily from the strain; without her Strikers, using up such a large amount of magical energy was even more exhausting than it would have been.
By that time, Charlotte had climbed out of the crater, slightly dazed but alert, then rushed over to Lucchini.
"Idiot! What were you thinking? You don't have your Strikers to enhance your magic!" Charlotte scolded despite the tears in the corners of her eyes. Lucchini looked up at her and smiled weakly.
"I had to protect you..." she replied weakly as she fell against Charlotte's chest.
Charlotte scooped Lucchini up in her arms and launched back into the air. Fatigue nagged at her limbs as she surveyed the empty village and, shaking her head sadly, she turned towards the vast expanse of desert beyond. With a final, labored burst of arcane power, Charlotte shot off just in time to avoid another Neuroi beam that tore a ragged scar into the village below.
Lucchini briefly opened her eyes just in time to watch the village, the place she had called home for the past few weeks, erupt into flames. Tears fell from Lucchini's eyes as she passed out in Charlotte's arms...
* Strike Witches *
..."Where am I..?" Lucchini asked herself, her voice seeming to echo out into the dark expanse she was floating through. "Wasn't I just..?"
Lucchini blinked rapidly as she began to feel hot, stiflingly hot. Suddenly the roar of flames and the buzzing of rotors filled her ears. She looked down and saw that she was back in her Strikers, and below her an unending sea of flame stretched out into the void.
She felt something fall into her hands and found that she was holding her Beretta MG.
"What is this?" she cried out as she spun around in the air to view her surroundings. Structures appeared in the flames, burning and smoldering as they collapsed in on themselves.
"No..!" she cried out as she watched Rome burn beneath her.
"This can't be happening again..." she begged as tears welled in her eyes. A Neuroi shriek pierced her ears and her attention snapped to the sky, which was filled with rapidly passing storm clouds. Thunder and lightning accompanied another Neuroi shriek as Lucchini stared helplessly up.
"Lucchini..!" Charlotte's voiced reached Lucchini's ears as if coming from across a vast chasm.
"Shirley? Where are you!" Lucchini cried out as she rapidly spun around to try to find Charlotte. Finally she spotted her, she was far above her, next to the Neuroi but the Neuroi did not try to attack her.
"Lucchini..!" Charlotte called out again as the Neuroi suddenly turned on her and fired a beam that obliterated her Strikers.
"No! Shirley!" Lucchini cried out as Charlotte fell towards the sea of flames. Lucchini rushed through the air and caught Charlotte's hand in her own.
"Don't let me go..!" Charlotte cried out as she dangled precariously above the flames. Despite being right next to Charlotte, her voice still seemed to be coming from a great distance.
"I...I can't..." Lucchini grabbed onto Charlotte's arm with her other hand, but she was slipping out of her grip. It was almost as if there was an unknown force pulling her down. Tears streaked down Lucchini's cheeks as the roaring flames jumped up and licked at the red head's feet..
"I can't hold on!" Lucchini cried out as Charlotte slipped out of her grip and fell, disappearing into the flames as her screams echoed in Lucchini's ears...
* Strike Witches *
...Charlotte panted heavily as her magic levels were nearly depleted; more than a few times she had to strain just to keep her Striker's magical rotors from fading. Lucchini suddenly writhed weakly in her arms.
"I…I can't…" she mumbled before she settled down. Charlotte glanced down at the girl in her arms with concern then looked back up at the vast expanse of sand before her.
"Have...to...land..." she panted out as she surveyed the desert below her for a suitable spot.
There was nothing but sand dunes as far as she could see. Despite what she wanted, she was slowly drifting towards the ground below. Charlotte looked up at the setting sun then down at the unconscious girl cradled in her arms. Finally, she was unable to stretch her magic out any further. Her ears and tail retracted against her will and her Strikers forcibly disconnected from her legs. Luckily, she was close enough to the ground that she only had a short distance to plummet before crashing into the sand, her Strikers sinking upright in a dune a few yards away.
Charlotte and Lucchini coughed up sand, the impact having jarred Lucchini awake.
"Sorry, Lucchini..." Charlotte panted as she sat upright and Lucchini coughed a few more times, and then simply looked down at her lap, not responding to the older girl. "Lucchini?" Charlotte asked as concern filled her voice. Lucchini again did not respond and instead passively surveyed the surroundings.
"We're in the desert now..?" she asked, almost as if to nobody, she sounded distant.
"Yeah...sorry, I couldn't get us any further," Charlotte responded apologetically. "It's going to get really cold, really fast, really soon," she added as the sun slipped past the horizon.
The temperature dropped almost instantly as soon as the warm glow of the sun passed the horizon.
Charlotte and Lucchini laid against the sand dune, with Charlotte gazing up at the fresh stars in the sky. She began to see her breath as she felt a tremor in her limbs. She glanced over at Lucchini, who had curled up into a ball, still on her side, and noticed that she was shaking uncontrollably. Lucchini could not control her own body. The rapid drop in temperature had seeped into her bones and made her skin ache and, try as she might, she could barely repress the violent shudders as her muscles tried to reheat her body. Charlotte furrowed her brow in concern.
"Lucchini? Are you alright?" she asked, her voice shaking slightly as a chill passed through her body. Lucchini rolled onto her back then sat up, looking down at the sand.
"What's it matter?" she retorted suddenly, her voice filled with apathy. Charlotte was shocked as Lucchini continued. "It's hopeless! We're going to die out here..." she trailed off as she turned away from Charlotte and began to cry again, the chilled tears stinging her cheeks.
'I'm going to lose you too now...' she thought as she wiped her tears off on her sleeve. Charlotte did not know what to say, the way Lucchini was acting was so unlike her.
"I wonder where the girls are right now..." Charlotte wondered aloud as she stared off at the rising moon, hoping to change the tone of the mood. Lucchini looked up at the silvery orb as well.
"They're all probably dead, we're the only ones who made it," she replied callously. Charlotte's attention snapped back to Lucchini as tears filled her eyes. She reached over, grabbed Lucchini's shoulder, turned her around and suddenly embraced her.
"This is so unlike you, Lucchini," she said sadly as she held the younger girl to her tightly. "Why are you acting like this?"
A long silence followed as Lucchini simply lay in Charlotte's embrace, which worried her even more. Lucchini was always the one who kept her morale up and now something had come over her.
"What's wrong, Lucchini? Please tell me," Charlotte tried to coax a response from the unresponsive girl. Lucchini suddenly stirred and pushed herself away from Charlotte.
"I had to watch Rome burn...my last true home after..." Lucchini's voice choked slightly as tears welled up in her eyes. "...After we lost our real home," she continued. "Then we lose our last place of refuge..." Lucchini's tears dripped down onto the sand.
"And now I'm going to lose you too!" she cried out with a sob.
Charlotte was momentarily shocked by Lucchini's outburst before her features softened into a smile. She pulled the crying girl back into her embrace.
"There, there..." she cooed softly as she stroked Lucchini's hair. Soon her sobbing died down into the occasional sniffle. Charlotte lifted her chin up and wiped the tears off of her cheeks.
"Francesca."
Lucchini was taken aback; Charlotte had never called her by her first name before. She stared up into Charlotte's eyes as the red head lowered her face to the younger girl's.
"You'll never lose me, Francesca," she said softly, almost a whisper. "We'll always be together," she finished as she closed the distance and pressed her lips against Lucchini's.
The younger girl's eyes went wide before she closed them half way and wrapped her arms up around Charlotte's shoulders. Her dark mood dissipated as she earnestly leaned into the kiss, the corners of her mouth twitching up into a playful grin as she became the aggressor. After a few moments they parted, Lucchini's renewed grin still present on her face.
"I love you, Francesca," Charlotte said happily with an intense blush, overjoyed that Lucchini's dark mood was gone.
"I love you too, Charlotte!" Lucchini replied with a coy grin as she gave Charlotte a playful squeeze. Charlotte held Lucchini closer and began stroking her hair again.
"We'll figure something out, together," she whispered as she gave Lucchini an affectionate kiss on the forehead. The two girls laid back against the sand dune and Lucchini nuzzled her head against Charlotte's chest then slowly fell asleep in her arms, with the older girl soon following.
* Strike Witches *
Lucchini groggily blinked her eyes open as an annoying buzzing sound filled her ear.
"Just a...few more minutes..." she mumbled as she nuzzled Charlotte's chest. The buzzing grew louder and more annoying. Suddenly Lucchini could hear a voice through the noise.
"Thi-...Sakam-...All…Witc-...Repor-..."
Lucchini bolted upright as soon as she heard this and shook Charlotte awake.
"Wake up, Shirley!" she cried excitedly as she vigorously shook the older girl. Charlotte bolted upright on the sand and looked around the area through half-lidded eyes.
"What's wrong, Francesca?" she slurred through her fatigue. Lucchini blushed at Charlotte's use of her first name again, but quickly got back to the point.
"Listen!" Lucchini said then listened.
"This is Mio Sakamoto with Yoshika Miyafuji reporting in from South Fuso, I am requesting any and all surviving Witches to report in."
The transmission came again across the two girls' earpieces. A look of joy slowly spread across the girls' faces.
"Is it really..?" Lucchini asked in joyous disbelief.
"The Major is alive!" the girls cried in unison as they embraced each other from joy.
"I repeat, this is Mio Sakamoto requesting all surviving witches report in."
The line went dead after this final transmission.
"Hurry and respond!" Lucchini urged.
"I don't know if the signal is strong enough," Charlotte remarked as she pressed her finger to her ear.
"This is Charlotte Yeager and Francesca Lucchini reporting in from North Africa, it's so nice to hear your voice again, Major!" Charlotte replied excitedly over the line then eagerly waited for a reply.
"This is Gertrude Barkhorn, Erica Hartmann, and Minna Wilcke reporting in from East Karlsland, this is the first time we've heard any transmission from you in awhile, Major," Barkhorn's voice came through the line shortly after Charlotte's transmission.
"Barkhorn!" Charlotte said excitedly as tears of joy filled Lucchini's eyes.
"This is Lynette Bishop and Perrine Clostermann-san, reporting in from West Gallia," Lynette's timid voice was the next to come over the line.
'Lynne and Perrine too?' Lucchini thought as her joyous expression grew and grew. The line was silent for a moment before another familiar voice came across.
"This is Eila Juutilanien and Sanya Litvyak reporting in from Central Orussia!" Lucchini almost jumped to respond but she was cut off.
"Eila-san!" Yoshika and Lynette cried over the line in unison.
"I can't believe it..." Charlotte said almost to herself.
"...They're all alive!" Lucchini cried happily as she hugged Charlotte again and gave her a quick kiss.
"It's so good to hear you all!" Eila said again over the line. Charlotte and Lucchini were about to add in their agreement until Sakamoto's voice came over the line again.
"Everyone, make your ways to Asia Minor, we'll reunite there, but until then maintain radio silence, we can't afford to be caught," Sakamoto interjected the order but even she could not hide the joy in her voice, then the line went dead. Lucchini looked disgruntled for a moment.
"Asia Minor? Where's that?" she whined as she threw her arms out and flopped back onto the sand. Charlotte eyed the rising sun and smiled confidently.
"I know where it is," she said as she rose to her feet and spotted her Strikers, half-buried in a nearby sand dune. She offered her hand down to Lucchini who happily grabbed it. Charlotte hoisted Lucchini to her feet and she gave her trademark coy grin.
"I told you we'd figure something out together," Charlotte said as she began to walk over to her Strikers. Lucchini looked down at the sand for a moment then a devilish grin spread over her face.
"Charlotte~!" she cried as she leapt into the air. Charlotte spun around and stared up as the Romagnian girl came crashing down on top of her. Both girls laughed as Lucchini encased her in a fierce hug.
END
Author's Commentary: My third Strike Witches story! I'm still getting used to the speech patterns so have mercy. This is the second installment in an epic saga I want to write, I plan to write three more tie-ins and then a sequel that brings all five stories together. All feedback is happily welcomed!