Things Left Behind

A Valkyria Chronicles fanfiction by Renfro Calhoun

Notes: And so the story begins in earnest. While the prologue was a post-game snippet, the bulk of this story happens just prior to Chapter 13, the Clash at Naggiar. For the curious, the ideas behind this come from a mix of sources, among which are the movie Sahara and the game World in Conflict.

Anyway, let us continue. As always, I own none of the characters or ideas from the games. They are used without permission, but with the utmost respect.


Covering the Bases

Mission time: -2 minutes, 22:56 hours


"In preparation for the clash at Naggiar, the Gallian army ordered a series of scouting missions to watch for potential flanking maneuvers. Several attempts were halted, forcing the Empire to consolidate its forces and attack directly, but Gallia was unable to force a breach of her own. Scout teams were thus recalled alongside the militia to reinforce the front line, with both armies positioning for what would be a devastating battle. However, a few teams reported unusual activity near the small border town of Rhodall, the nature of which quickly got the attention of senior officers.

Situated close to both Imperial and Federation territories, Rhodall had bountiful farmland and a sizable population. The town itself was of little strategic value, having been evacuated early in the war due to poor defensive terrain. Although scouts in neighboring regions did not encounter any Imperials, they did find evidence of troop movements and weapons fire. Curiously, these pointed away from Naggiar and towards Rhodall, and speculation was that the Empire was running its own scouting efforts through the area. Shortly before the battle began, a small unit from Squad 7 was dispatched to investigate, acting under the assumption that this was another flanking attempt.

The truth would be buried, in part literally, until the end of the war."

- Irene Koller, "On the Gallian Front"


His eyes drooped shut, an attempt to shut out the noisy growl of the engine. The armored vehicle bounced roughly over a pothole in protest, nearly causing him to bite his tongue. Frowning, the young soldier turned his thoughts back to the plan, and he could almost hear Captain Varrot's voice again. The entry point's on the edge of town from the northwest. Survey the outlying buildings and work your way in. If any Imperials are sighted, retreat and signal for extraction.

Alex snorted to himself. If any Imperials are sighted, I'm taking them out.

There was certainly fine print to consider, but he left that up to the carrier's other occupants. Opposite him he could just hear the quiet snoring of dancer-turned-scout Freesia, her catnap a sign of the long ride from the Naggiar command post. Fellow scout and squad leader Juno, seated closer to the front, carefully arranged what sounded like a map. And the rustling from the sniper to his left told him Oscar was having a hard time sitting still, by anticipation or anxiety.

Juno's probably the only one taking this seriously, he thought, understanding why she had been picked to lead the squad of four. She can have it. The sooner we get this done, the sooner we get back to the fight that matters.

The ride smoothed out as the APC hit an intact stretch of road, the noise dropping enough for Alex to hear a soft sigh from Juno. He smirked, his eyes still closed. And the sooner she gets back to stalking Welkin.

"We're coming up on the outskirts," called the driver. "Still no activity."

Juno folded up the map and lightly rapped it over Freesia's knee, startling her awake. "Get ready, we're almost there." To the driver she answered, "Understood. Drop us off just north of grid A-4, we'll go the rest of the way on foot."

Blinking her eyes clear, Freesia glanced sharply at Juno before turning to the shocktrooper across from her. "Alex, you awake?"

"Yeah," he answered with a hint of annoyance, sitting up straight. "Just wondering why the army couldn't do its own scouting this time."

"Everybody's tied up with the main offensive at Naggiar," said Oscar matter-of-factly, snatching up his rifle from the seat next to him.

Alex did likewise with his gun, brushing a spot of dust off the iron sights. "And that's where we should be. The militia's been doing all the dirty work. If anybody is actually ready to take the Empire head-on, it's us."

"I suppose they have to send somebody," Freesia pointed out, craning her neck towards the nearest window. Absently, she brushed a few short strands of raven-colored hair off her forehead. "No harm in warming up before the show begins."

Oscar patted the ammo pouches strapped to his side, making sure they were still fastened shut. "Frankly I hope this is a dead end," he added, mostly to himself. A close observer may have noticed one of his hands quivering. "I get shot at enough as it is."

"Relax, Alex," Juno said with a stern look, pressing her glasses further up the bridge of her nose. "There will be plenty of fighting left for us when we get back. Besides, Welkin picked us specifically for this. He wouldn't send us if he didn't think it was important."

Alex fiddled with the bolt of his weapon, carefully testing for potential jams. "Or if he didn't have any choice."

The blonde squad leader looked away and shook her head, but stopped herself from replying as she felt the vehicle slowing down. Through the front window she saw little black lumps silhouetted on the horizon: buildings, almost invisible against the clear night sky. The road ahead went dark as the driver cut his headlights.

"A-4 is just ahead. Everybody load up and stand by."

Juno nodded, unbuckling her harness and grabbing a handhold. "You heard him."

Alex took the lead as the four stood up and filed towards the APC's rear door, steadying themselves as the vehicle slowed to a halt. They prepared in a chorus of clicking equipment and sliding rifle bolts, and soon the engine had fallen to a gentle purr.

"End of the line, Rhodall outskirts," called the driver. "See you at the rally point, guys. Good hunting!"

Alex shoved the heavy door open, letting the dim light of the APC spill feebly onto the dry, dusty road. He hit the ground and immediately scrambled around the vehicle, taking a knee and scanning the horizon from down the barrel. Three sets of footsteps joined him as his eyes adjusted to the darkness, and he relaxed as he saw nothing that could pass for a human. "Looks clear," he confirmed to his companions.

"Good. Alex, you're up front," said Juno. "Oscar, you're with me. Freesia, hang back a bit and cover the rear. Let's move out."

The shocktrooper took point, leading the group towards the dark, distant buildings. Alex heard the vehicle shift gears behind him and roll out to a safe distance, and he wanted nothing more than to be back inside, out of boredom rather than fear. The town looks as dead as I thought it would. This is a waste of time.

Freesia waited a few seconds before following the others, shifting her feet to find her balance on the loose soil. For her part she did feel apprehensive, more at the relative silence than the nature of their task. From stage and music to combat and gunfire, she was accustomed to being seen before being heard; the quiet one amidst the noise. Out in the open every rustle of clothing, every gust of wind, every boot on the dirt rang louder in her ears.

"Why at night, sir?" she remembered asking. "Wouldn't it make more sense to search during the day?"

"We're short on time, and aside from that there's no cover on the approach to town. If the Imperials are already there, you'll need the cover of dark to get close."

Counting the minutes, Juno kept a wary eye on the town as they ventured into knee-high grass. A small hill sat on the far side of the approach, and she half expected it to light up with artillery fire the second she let her guard down. No stranger to cliche, she struggled to keep from thinking it was a little too quiet. The impromptu squad leader forced her thoughts to the mission, recalling the layout she had spent hours trying to memorize.

The town hall's the one with the clock tower. If there's anything going on here, that will be the first place to look. I wonder if...

Her thoughts came to a stop as she saw Alex do the same. He abruptly held up a hand, motioning for silence. The squad obediently held fast, their soft-quiet movements giving way to the wind brushing over the grass. Straining her ears, Juno heard nothing beyond that.

"Alex," she hissed. "What is it?"

No response. She saw his head turn left, staring at or beyond the nearest building. Seconds passed without comment, until he finally said, "Nevermind. Thought I heard something."

"What was it?" asked Oscar, his own suspicions aroused.

Alex simply shook his head, glancing back to face his team. "Imagining things, I think." Moonlight painted his face, and for a moment the shocktrooper showed a hint of worry. "I hope."

Juno frowned, but motioned forward. "Let's keep moving."

The recon team resumed its pace, soon passing outlying structures and nearing the town proper. A small footbridge crossed a creek, the babbling waters briefly adding to the noise of the night. From the rear, Freesia found herself reacting to every sound out of place, briefly wondering if she too had heard something.

"Know what I don't like?" she whispered. "Why are there no animals? No birds or anything? I've barely heard a cricket in the past few minutes."

"I thought you hated bugs," said Oscar.

"I hate silence," she corrected, trying to keep her eyes on the horizon. "It's too quiet out here."

"You're welcome to shoot if you'd like to make noise," Alex called from the front, just loud enough to make the sarcasm clear.

"Cut the chatter," Juno shot back to her comrades. "Town square's a good four blocks in. Keep your eyes peeled, everybody."

Before long the grass had faded to dirt, soon followed by proper roads. All eyes and rifles were on an empty watchtower, its side ripped open by a stray mortar round but otherwise still intact and empty.

"That look recent?" asked Alex.

Juno shook her head. "No, it'd still be burning otherwise. The Imperials were here before when the militia fled, and only a few shots were fired. They consolidated positions nearby but never actually took the town, or so we thought."

Alex blinked. "How do you know that?"

"Some of us paid attention during the briefing," she admonished in hushed tones. "Let's go."

"Yeah, yeah, I... wait." He froze again, turning an ear towards nothing anyone could see. "There it is again."

This time everyone heard it, a distant rumbling and grinding of big and heavy things rolling along pavement. The Gallian scouts exchanged looks, all coming to the same conclusion: vehicles, lots of them, and almost certainly tanks among them.

"I don't suppose there's any chance those are ours?" Oscar asked, now clearly nervous.

"Sure, and there's a chance we might find buried treasure here," Alex shot back. "But I wouldn't count on that, either."

Juno cleared her throat, feeling the first disruption to her sense of command. "All right, we still have to find out what's happening. The clock tower at the town hall has the clearest view, let's get there and see what we can see."

The block passed silently, the moon providing barely enough light to show an alley across from them. At Juno's prompting they carefully filed into it, squeezing through sturdy two-story dwellings and into the next darkened avenue. The noises grew louder, more numerous, and now punctuated by indistinct shouting. Freesia, the most sensitive to the ground beneath her, swore she could feel the very stones in the street trembling. Her trained ears betrayed her, telling her the engines were coming from multiple directions, possibly even up the street they just came through.

Amidst her disbelief she found herself wishing for the silence again. "Juno, this is bad," she heard Oscar say.

Jaw firmly set, Juno nodded and tightened her hold on her rifle. "I know."

Something clicked loudly in the night, a noise at once mechanical and electrical that quickly repeated itself. Points of light abruptly pierced the darkness, rapidly working their way towards the startled Gallians. The streetlights turned on one by one, ringing the city and working their way in.

"The power," Alex muttered. "What in the world is going on here?"

"Off the street, everybody into the far alley, now!" Juno practically barked, her well-lit expression showing the first signs of panic.

Bewilderment about them, the team abandoned any attempt to keep silent as they rushed for the corner of a brick-and-mortar storefront. Leading with his barrel, Alex pressed on into the alley. One of his boots stepped in something wet and squishy, and he spared a microsecond to cringe at the thought of cleaning it. "Looks clear up ahead," he said to the others, who filed in behind him. "Now what?"

Juno took a deep breath, trying to steady herself. "Stand fast."

Engines suddenly halted, allowing the sounds of infantry to rise above them. Nobody was close enough to pick out words, but Oscar got the impression something was happening. "We need to get out of here. Whatever this is, we're way outnumbered, and..." he trailed off as he looked skyward, eyes going wide and breath catching in his throat.

"I know, just keep quiet," said Juno, throwing a quick glance at him. She started to speak again when she noticed his stare. "Oscar, what..."

Other eyes shot upward, seeing reddish-orange streaks over the rooftops; their origin unknown, but intent clear. The cry rang out as the first salvo arced towards the ground, clear enough for even the Gallians to hear.

"INCOMING!"