Disclaimer
I do not hold the intellectual property rights to the Strike Witches franchise, or any other book, comic, song, movie, or other work of art I reference. Original Content created by me is copyrighted by me alone. All brand names are property of the respective parties owning rights to them. This disclaimer is valid hereinafter and won't be repeated in the following chapters.
Partial copyright by Doran Maya
Welcome (hopefully again)
Yes, it's me again. This time I present to you a story not from the Second Neuroi War - which in my opinion is a dead horse, as well as time traveling – but from a more recent period. A word of warning – this IS a sequel to the Chosen One series, however I will try to explain all the things you should have gathered from reading it in author notes, so a newcomer can (and should) read it. Frankly, the most prominent referencing to the Chosen One series starts from the dead middle of this story, so I hope you all who haven't read-slash-shunned-slash-dropped my previous stories will have a nice read, at least until the half.
Oh, and you really should read the prologue story, since it explains a few things about two characters, the geopolitical situation, and how the war began.
Without further ado – let's go!
Chapter 1 - History
"Lehistan is no more…"
Those were the words of General Jaruzelski, which he spoke at a special meeting of the United Nations on New Year's Eve 1981.
After their sudden reappearance near the border of the Mizhkraine, Chernarus, and Lehistan, the Neuroi began their unholy crusade against humanity yet again. This time however, humanity was better prepared. Immediately, border troops were mobilized to defend the Bundesrepublik of Karlsland, the USSR, and Ostmark, and ships took out to the Baltic to defend the sea borders.
The initial impetus of the attack threw back the Soviet defenses about thirty kilometers before Moscow to the northeast, ten kilometers before Leningrad to the northwest and twenty kilometers before Volgograd to the east. By order of the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev, that was the absolute territory, which no Neuroi could pass. Mobilizing every soldier, witch, tank and plane, that objective was held, but at great losses.
Meanwhile, the Karlslander Bundeswehr, which had the doubtful handicap of distance and time, prepared their defenses across the Karlsland-Lehistan border. Using the best technology the West could offer, along with slews of highly trained witches, they withstood the enemy onslaught with heroic efforts and minimal losses.
However, fate had made a cruel joke out of Ostmark, and while Karlsland and the USSR were in a deadlock with the enemy at their own territory, Ostmark was yet again decimated due to having a lesser army than Karlsland, and a worse defense plan. The Neuroi started expanding using the corridor, and soon, the whole central-southern Europe was subdued.
The United Nations issued a call to arms, most intensively replied by Karlsland and the USSR. Every able girl that was capable of using magic was drafted into the armies of their countries. Then, by tactical genius of a few select witches, an enormous military operation threw back the Neuroi several dozens of kilometers back, giving more breathing space to the USSR.
Red Square, Moscow, Orussian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic
Revolution Day 1982
Neuroi or no Neuroi, there is one festivity that had to be upheld - the remembrance of the Great Soviet Revolution. The whole ceremony went on as usual. Representative battalions of many units and military schools marched on the Red Square, and positioned themselves in an orderly manner.
The walls of the building before Lenin's mausoleum were decorated with his portrait, and surrounded by enormous patriotic murals, with the big red numbers 1946 and 1982 being the most prominent. The rest of the building were decorated in a similar fashion, so that the TV cameras could broadcast the glory of the Revolution and Communism to the world.
The Secretary of Defense, at the time Dmitriy Feodorovich Ustinov, did an inspection of the troops while riding standing in a convertible Volga limousine. Once he did that, he climbed the stairs the stairs of Lenin's mausoleum, which had a tribune handy, where Brezhnev and comrades from the Party and the Red Army stood. Once Ustinov delivered the parade, Brezhnev, due to defense concerns, delivered probably the shortest speech in the history of the USSR.
"Comrades! I welcome you all to the celebrations of the Revolution Day! As you all see, the days of peace, lasting for over thirty years, have ended. Our glorious Soviet Union, and the whole world are now on the edge of destruction. But fear not, dear comrades! The Soviet Army is strong! We will crush the foe and show him no mercy, as our fathers and grandfathers did! Let us show the world, the power of the Soviet Union! For the glory of socialism, and to a free world! Ura!"
Thousands of throats shouted an "Ura!" thrice, each for a duration of five seconds. Then, the orchestra started playing, and the Alexandrov Army Choir started singing the national anthem.
Soyuz nerushimyy respublik svobodnykh (An unbreakable union of free republics,)
Splotila naveki velikaya Orus'! (The Great Orus' has welded forever to stand!)
Da zdravstvuyet sozdannyy voley narodov (Long live the creation of the will of the people,)
Yedinyy, moguchiy Sovetskiy Soyuz! (The united, mighty Soviet Union!)
Slav'sya, Otechestvo nashe svobodnoye, (Be glorious, our free motherland,)
Druzhby narodov nadyozhnyy oplot! (A reliable stronghold of peoples' friendship!)
Partiya Lenina - sila narodnaya (The Party of Lenin, the strength of the people,)
Nas k torzhestvu Kommunizma vedyot! (Leads us to the triumph of Communism!)
Skvoz' grozy siyalo nam solntse svobody, (Through tempests the sun of freedom shone to us,)
I Lenin velikiy nam put' ozaril, (And the great Lenin illuminated our path,)
Na pravoye delo on podnyal narody, (To a just cause he raised up the peoples,)
Na trud i na podvigi nas vdokhnovil! (To labor and exploits he inspired us!)
Slav'sya, Otechestvo nashe svobodnoye, (Be glorious, our free motherland,)
Druzhby narodov nadyozhnyy oplot! (A reliable stronghold of peoples' friendship!)
Partiya Lenina - sila narodnaya (The Party of Lenin, the strength of the people,)
Nas k torzhestvu Kommunizma vedyot! (Leads us to the triumph of Communism!)
V pobede bessmertnykh idey Kommunizma (In the victory of the immortal ideas of Communism)
My vidim gryadushcheye nashey strany, (We see the future of our country,)
I Krasnomu znameni slavnoy Otchizny (And to the Red Banner of our glorious Motherland)
My budem vsegda bezzavetno verny! (We shall always be selflessly true!)
Slav'sya, Otechestvo nashe svobodnoye, (Be glorious, our free motherland,)
Druzhby narodov nadyozhnyy oplot! (A reliable stronghold of peoples' friendship!)
Partiya Lenina - sila narodnaya (The Party of Lenin, the strength of the people,)
Nas k torzhestvu Kommunizma vedyot! (Leads us to the triumph of Communism!)
Afterwards, the orchestra started playing various songs, including such songs as Katyusha and Kalinka, and the soldiers marched off the Red Square at a speed of a hundred twenty steps per minute, making way for a parade of armored cars, tanks, motorized artillery, rocket launchers, and finally, in the air, helicopters, jets and a squadron of witches, with red smoke coming out of the exhausts of their MiG 31's and other Striker models, amongst which where two miraculous survivors of an encounter at day zero.
Brezhnev died on November 15, 1982. His successor was Yuri Andropov.
Lebyazhye Air Base, Orussian SFSR
Commander's office
January 15, 1983, 1240 MST
"Hey, hey, Katie, let me help you!" the silver haired Leh shouted from behind her desk.
"No need, Ellie, the boxes aren't as heavy as they look," her chestnut haired compatriot replied and slammed the sealed cartons the formers desk.
"What is all of this?" she asked.
"It just came in by courier."
"A courier?! And you didn't tell me anything?! I wanted to talk to somebody else than you…" Ellie pouted.
"I'm not enough?" a man's voice came from the corner of the room.
"Oh, sorry, you're so absent, Kola."
"Pfff… You should talk to your only mechanic, and only living being besides Major Kowalski, a bit more often…"
"You are really cheeky, Yefreyto (PFC) Savchenko… We've only known each other for what, two days?" Ellie threw a snide remark. "And besides, you know that the army has strict rules on witch-male contacts…"
"As if I could do anything with you, hah! If I laid a finger on you, you would break it with my arm to boot!" Kola laughed.
"Heheh, true… But we are supposed to get reinforcements, so you should restrain yourself with your sexist jokes, understood?"
"Yes, yes… Podpolkovnik (Lieutenant Colonel) Horbaczewski… But we really could get along better. I mean we're all Slavs, more or less, and we're from… ehem… befriended countries…"
"What do you say, Ellie?" Katie asked. "Should we have a nice triangle going on here?" she smirked wildly.
"Hah, well, Kola is the only guy here, so we might as well treat him specially. Don't bother with our ranks or family names, Kola. Is that okay?"
"Da, ponial (Yes, I understood)," he said and smiled.
"Um, Ellie, returning to what I brought… You should read the letter on the top of the stack…"
"Ah, okay!"
Ellie took the fat package, and ripped it open. Dossiers fell out of it, with a single sheet with orders on top. She took it, and started reading.
After reading it, she had a dumbfounded expression on her face.
"What is it, Ellie?" Katie asked
"It seems that we will get our reinforcements sooner that I thought…"
"And when is that?"
"It's tonight and tomorrow morning!"
"A night transport?" Katie tilted her head.
"I'll explain later, time to read the dossiers… Take a chair if you want and read with me."
"Kay!" Katie cheered, fetched herself a chair, and sat by Ellie's side.
"Let's start…"
"Aspirant Marie Bonaparte-Champignon of the Gallian Armée de l'Air, born July 14, 1966 in Boulogne-sur-Mer. Height: 165 centimeters, short red hair… Special magic: Tonerre (lightning strike)."
"She looks… rustic…" Katie commented. "And dawwww… she's ginger…"
"Right? Okay, next patient… Marshal First Class Giulietta Francesca Pesci from the Romagna Aeronautica Militare, born August 1, 1965 in Florentine. Height: 172 centimeters, dark long hair. Special magic: Sunlight Strike (enhanced ramming capabilities)."
"She has a mischievous look…"
"I don't like her... I have a weird feeling… Well, whatever, next… Senior Master Sergeant Elwyn Francine Clarke of the Air Force of Liberion, born February 14, 1965 in Wrightsville, Arkansas. Height: 170 centimeters, auburn short hair, glasses. Special magic: Speed Boost (enhanced acceleration and top speed)."
"A Liberian? Cool!"
"Still fond of your stay in the US of L, huh, Katie?"
"Heheh… Although I was five when I went to Lehistan, those five years were better than the next fourteen…"
"Dunno, I'm a Leh since day one… Anyway… Senior Warrant Officer Tatiana Aleksandrovna Bulhakova…"
"My compatriot?" Kola interrupted.
"Are you eavesdropping, Kola?"
"You are reading so loud the dead would hear it."
"Ah, didn't notice, heh… Well, yes. She was born May 1, 1968 in Leningrad. Height: 160 centimeters, pale gray short hair. Special magic: Magic Antenna (radio wave sending/receiving/manipulation)."
"So she's probably a night witch…" Katie pondered.
"Having a Magic Antenna basically predestinates a witch for that function… And she's so cuuuute!"
"Heehee, yeah, a real cutie…"
"Putting that aside, let's continue… Chief technician Elizabeth Moore of the Royal Air Force, born April 2, 1967 in Warwick. Height: 165 centimeters, chestnut twin pigtail. Special magic: Ballistic Stabilization (immense accuracy over long distance)."
"She looks average…" Katie said rather intrigued.
Wait, Elizabeth Moore? No… This could just be a coincidence… - Katie thought
"Not everyone has to look like Miss Universe… Next one is… Master Sergeant Aina Inga Brunhilda Freya Eila Ruukilainen-Haraldsdotir of the Suomus Defense Forces"
"Jesus Christ Pantocrator…" Katie sighed.
"Whoever accepted that name in the public office was probably drunk… Born May 15, 1966 in Helsinki. Height: 166 centimeters, long blonde hair. Special magic: Foresight (limited precognition abilities)."
"She looks like the ice queen herself…"
"Heh… Senior Master Sergeant Nami Ranmaru of the Fuso Air Self-Defense Force, born October 13, 1965 in Hiroshima. Height… holy crap, 180 centimeters!"
"Dayum!"
"My thoughts exactly… Special magic: Type B Super Strength (weight nullification)."
"This could be interesting…"
"Warrant Officer Shinobu Sakamoto of the Fuso Air Self-Defense Force… Wait a second, Sakamoto? That rings a bell… Well anyway, she was born December 24, 1965 in Nagoya. Height: 171 centimeters, long black hair. Special magic: Magic Eye (Neuroi core detection ability)."
"A core seer? Good, we need one. Is that a sword hilt on the photo?"
"Looks like it… Okay now… Senior Ensign Sieglinde Bäcker of the Karlslander Luftwaffe. Born September 7, 1965 in Munich. Height: 176 centimeters, long single braid blonde hair. Special magic: Sturm (piercing high-speed drill attack)."
"She looks like a Valkyrie… Sourpuss…"
"Typical Karlslander… Who do we have now… Ensign Elsa Feuerstein of the Karlslander Luftwaffe, born September 14, 1965 in Stuttgart. Height: 169 centimeters, short bob cut brown hair. Special magic: Type A Super Strength (physical strength augmentation)."
"She looks like a ditz…"
"Quick to judge people, huh?"
"Heheh…"
"Only two dossiers left… Senior Ensign Angela Bauer of the Karlslander Luftwaffe, born September 21, 1965 in Berlin. Height: 170 centimeters, long red hair. Special magic: Area Analysis (enhanced three dimensional perception)."
"She looks like a choleric…"
"Last one! Ohhhhhhh shit… Oooooh shit…"
"What is it, Ellie?"
"Senior Ensign Aya von Edelweiss…"
"You mean… The granddaughter of the last Kaiser?"
"Uhum… I've heard rumors that she's in the Luftwaffe… I wonder what's in the dossier… Born September 1st, 1965 in Dortmund. Height: 173 centimeters, dark long hair. Huh… what's this?"
Ellie turned the page, and saw that the next one was heavily redacted.
"I wonder what's the deal with her… Actually… Wait a second…" Ellie started rummaging through the files. "All of them have some redacted parts!"
"Each military has its secrets…" Katie sighed. "Maybe we can get something out of them personally?"
"Probably… By the way, guess what's in the box."
"Dunno, tell me!"
"Well, it's…"
Airspace over the Orussian SFSR
21,230 meters ASL
2310 MST
A dark shape was silently crossing the black sky over the Soviet Union. If one would suddenly shed light on it, one would see a prototype, high altitude, stealth insertion craft, the KVKU EF-152 Himmelssucher. Even the most modern of radars would pick it up as a bird the size of a swan. According to latest tests, Neuroi would only pick it up from a distance of five hundred meters, and nobody ever saw a Neuroi at the altitude they were flying at.
"One minute till drop off," the second pilots' voice sounded through the intercom.
A dim light was shining over five figures in sleek, black pressurized suits with closed helmets covering their faces. They all had aerodynamic two-piece backpacks, matching the color of their suits.
"Are you nervous… Marie, was it?" one of the figures asked the other.
"Yes… It's my first HALO jump… And this altitude… And it's dark…"
"Not like we have much more experience… Our four only did one."
"Not really reassuring…"
"We'll manage. We have night vision goggles built in the helmets, all of us have IR strobes on our backs, so we will see each other. And the transponders will provide communication."
"That was a bit more reassuring…"
Suddenly, the light shut off, and they could only see the red light near the now slowly opening ramp.
"Prepare yourselves, ladies," the pilot said "Roll call – Rabe (Raven)?"
"Ready."
"Panzerfaust?"
"Ready."
"Walküre (Valkyrie)?"
"Ready."
"Teufel (Devil)?"
"Ready."
"And…" the pilot stopped for a bit.
"Marie, I don't' have a call sign… Ready."
"Five seconds!"
The ramp was open all the way down, and the cold wind was blowing inside of the back of the plane. The red lamp then changed to green, and the pilot shouted, "GO GO GO" through the intercom. The five girls dove into the infinite darkness of a moonless, January night.
And there it is, the first chapter. As per usual practice, I'll be releasing new ones every three days.
Now the AN:
Lehistan – the Osman Turkish name for Poland
Jaruzelski – Wojciech Witold Jaruzelski, the First Secretary of the Polish United Workers' Party, and later the President of Poland. He instated the state of military law in Poland on the day of the 13th of December, 1981.
Mizhkraine – Ukraine
Chernarus - Belarus (I know, right? But this was an obvious choice for a name)
MST – Moscow Standard Time
Leh – citizen of Lehistan
Kola - no, he's not the second coming of Toshiro, lay down the pitchforks already
Aina's name – Servant x Service anyone?
KVKU - Karlslander Vereinte Kampfflugzeugbauer Union - Karlslander United Fighter Plane Builder Union, something Toshiro Edelweiss, the protagonist of the Chosen One series helped form
Toshiro Edelweiss – protag of the Chosen One series, biggest Gary Stu the SW fanfic section saw, former Kaiser of Karlsland, it's first President, blah blah
Himmelssucher - Sky Searcher
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