Chapter 7
Persica slurped down another cup of coffee. Things were always difficult when you were on the cutting edge. Someone was always there, trying to one up you, and this time, she was up against the brightest minds of the Japanese military.
Well, at least they recognised the importance of cyber warfare, which was more than she could say for many of the people she'd known throughout her years. Still, the best program in the world was no good if it had the wrong input.
"How are our guests doing?" she asked her "assistants". Well, it wasn't entirely a lie; she'd requested the two of them under the pretense of their specialized knowledge, something that Helian and Kryuger had gone along with, and the JSDF had accepted, not knowing any better. As far as they were concerned, the three of them were simply acting as technical support for the T-Dolls, and the AR team in particular.
"They went for a "walk", miss," the girl, Zeele, replied. "We've managed to calibrate them for operations within the Special Zone."
"Thanks to yours truly," the boy, Deele boasted. "Those passes are working well, too; we haven't had any issues from the military, either."
"They'll never know you were here," Persica assured them. "Anyway, nothing's come up yet, but I've received word that the SDF are putting together some recon teams. So, if they find anything interesting, I'll let you know."
"Stealing from right under their noses?" Deele smirked. "Well, whatever you want. I'm sure she'll be fine with it, as long as she gets paid." He looked at his sister.
"Yes, I think so, too," Zeele concurred. "Still, there's a lot of factors we don't know about here. So, if you could give us all the information we need…"
Persica nodded. "If you know yourself, and know your enemy, then you won't lose a hundred battles," she quoted. "But that aside, your ability to improvise is why I can rely on you."
The twins nodded. "Yep! You've got nothing to worry about," Deele reassured her.
"Indeed…" Zeele added, a little more hesitantly.
Persica got up. "Well, I'm off to investigate the effects of the Special Area upon coffee grains. I'll be in touch."
The newly formed 3rd Recon team stood to attention as Sergeant Major Kuwahara's bellowing voice called them to order.
1st Lieutenant Itami tried his best to look his best as he approached the team he was being put in charge of. He'd mentioned the assignment to Helian, in the hopes that she might need him for something at G&K, but she'd told him that if the JSDF wanted him for something, then he'd have to do it. Great. Now he had double the work and a new command role.
He sighed. He recognised the sharp, focused faces of the soldiers he'd been assigned from his dossier.
Sergeant Major Souichirou Kurahawa was the oldest of the bunch at fifty years old, a loud, strong man, and an experienced soldier who knew how to get the most about the people around him. He seemed like a reliable person, and someone who could probably lead the team at least as effectively as Itami could.
He recognised Sergeant Takeo Kurata from the time they'd hung out together, and his thing for cat-eared girls that had resulted in him being seen in the G&K area more and more lately. He shot Itami a smile, and Itami nodded back at him. He'd probably volunteered for this team in order to be the first to find out if this world had catgirls.
Sergeant First Class Akira Tomita was a big man, bigger even than Kurahawa. However, he was also known for his gentle manner, something at least as important as fighting ability for the sort of mission they were being sent on. The JSDF didn't want to further aggravate the locals, and winning them over would do worlds more good than trying to subjugate them all by force. No-one wanted to fight a guerrilla war.
There were also two women on the team. Itami could tell that they weren't T-Dolls by their outfits, the green camo of the JSDF, rather than the outlandish outfits the PMCs decided to wear. Sergeant First Class Shino Kuribayashi wasn't a particularly short woman, but her peers all seemed to tower over her. She was stiff, her face focused and eager, even more so than the others, clearly wanting to present her best side to the new commander.
The other was Sergeant First Class Mari Kurokawa, a tall, kind woman who had additional medical expertise. She seemed like a gentle person, but Itami knew she held rank for a reason. Not only was she good with people, but medical knowledge was important when exploring new lands, not only for their sake, but also for the sake of those they came across who might not have the necessary disease immunities to deal with those carrying them. Then again, that hadn't really seemed to be a problem so far. Maybe it was the magic of the gods of this place; pray hard enough, and they'd protect you from disease and sickness.
The rest of the group had been made up of T-Dolls, a sign of camaraderie from Helian between G&K and the JSDF, as well as, as had been pointed out to him, a handful of extra bodies between them and the enemy. Itami shuddered. After spending time with them, it was hard to think of them as tools, despite how a number of them liked to remind him of this fact. "Every time a T-Doll dies, a human life is saved" was how the girls put it. Still, he had no intention of losing anyone under his command.
He recognised M4A1 from Persica's introduction, as well as when they'd tried to hang out earlier in the week. She looked straight ahead, avoiding his gaze. Perhaps this was what Persica had meant when she'd asked him to look out for her. She'd probably suggested that Itami be on this mission as well.
Like her shadow, ST AR-15 was ever at her side. She had a more relaxed stance than the others, but also a distant look on her face. Was she nervous? Despite their objections to the idea, he was sure that T-Dolls did get nervous, or at least exhibited a similar kind of behaviour to a nervous human. He was sure that her primary role here was to look after M4, rather than contribute to the mission, although she seemed like someone who could be relied upon at any rate.
He also recognised F2000 and Five-seveN, two of the girls from FAL's FN team, the so-called "supernatural specialists". Despite their playful personalities, they followed the salute of the others, sharply, without even a wink from either of them. On the other hand, they were quite personable for T-Dolls, which would certainly help, and perhaps their expertise would come in handy as well. They seemed, at least, to know what dragons and magic were, and could wrap their heads around the idea of such things.
The penultimate member of his team was someone he hadn't come across before, a slender T-Doll known as WA2000. By all accounts, she was one of the best G&K had to offer, a master sharpshooter who could put half a dozen rounds into someone's eye in under a second with the extremely rare and valuable weapon she carried. She had a confident expression on her face, a smug smile and a lift of her chin that some might've even called impolite.
Finally, he came to IDW. He recognised her from around the base, as well as from Kurata's attempts to meet cat-eared girls. The cacophonic cat catastrophe. Today, rather than her usual outfit, she was wearing some kind of dark, hooded outfit, like an assassin or a ninja, her ears poking through holes that had been cut in the hood. Still, despite her usual demeanour, she saluted Itami professionally, a confident, toothy grin on her face. Well, he supposed that G&K kept her around for a reason, so perhaps she was good on missions or something. Itami knew that most people who saw him when he was off-duty would peg him as a slacker otaku; maybe it was the same for her?
The twelve of them mounted up and headed out. Itami was in the light truck at the front, along with Kurata, Kuwahara and WA2000. Kuribayashi, Kurokawa, F2000 and Five-seveN took the High-Mobility Vehicle in the middle, while Tomita, M4, AR-15 and IDW brought up the rear in the Light Armoured Vehicle.
Kuribayashi wondered about her commander. The lieutenant seemed organised enough, being able to run procedure properly, but he wasn't exactly what she'd call a charismatic leader, lacking the air of authority that Sergeant Major Kuwahara did. Or maybe it was just a commissioned officer thing.
"You are curious about Mister Itami, no?" Five-seveN leaned over towards the front seat. F2000 shot her a quick glance, before turning her eyes back to the road ahead.
"2nd Lieutenant," Kuribayashi corrected her.
"Isn't he? How dashing!"
"Do you know him, Five-seveN?" Kurokawa asked, sitting across from the T-Doll.
"Bien sûr! We have known one another since Ginza. He is a man of many surprises, I think you will find." She sat back in her seat, crossing her legs.
"So, uh," Kuribayashi tried to change the subject. "They said you two were some kind of supernatural specialists? What does that mean?"
Five-seveN giggled. "It is as it sounds. Whenever G&K comes across a paranormal event, we are the ones to deal with it. It almost seems like fate that we should be in Ginza, yes?"
"Has anything like this happened before?"
"Hmm. I would say so, yes, but not in my own experience. It seems inevitable, wouldn't you say? Perhaps, in times past, our own world held the key to opening such a gate. Or maybe, that was where the gods went, so long ago? Perhaps the heavens are a world such as this." She chuckled again. "As a T-Doll, I would like to see such a thing."
Kuribayashi grimaced.
"But enough of that. Perhaps I shall tell you of a time I turned into a ferret."
"Coda Village." WA2000 read the sign above the village as she followed Lt. Itami and the others down the path. The rest of 3rd Recon had been left outside, just down the road. It wasn't that WA wasn't used to dealing with humans, but it wasn't typically her role. Typically, that kind of thing was left to other humans. Still, she'd had the latest translation software installed, along with the other T-Dolls, and that would prove invaluable when speaking to the natives, although, the other two had learned quite a bit of it as well.
Her weapon was stowed in a compact case by her side. The others had decided to leave their rifles back in the truck, so as not to scare the villagers, but WA wasn't about to part with hers so easily. Not only was it something of a great shame for a T-Doll to be caught in a fight without her weapon, but hers was an extremely rare and fine piece of equipment, something she didn't want any curious humans rubbing their dirty hands all over.
The interactions with the villagers ended up being a surprisingly simple affair. It turned out that Itami had adequate knowledge of their language to discuss their map with the village leader, a small, rounded man with little hair on his tanned head. It turned out that there was another village a few hours drive from where they were, near a stream that ran through a forest.
WA kept an eye on the villagers. The last thing they needed was for some smartass to try and pickpocket one of the soldiers' sidearms while they were distracted. She noticed one of the villagers staring at her, a small girl, perhaps only six or so years old. WA looked down at her. Then, she yelped at the girl ran up to her, giggling, prodding and probing at her outfit and case. WA did her best to fend her off with one hand, but found herself falling to the ground as she tripped on something.
The girl's mother rushed over, picking up her child and apologising profusely to WA's beet red face. "It- it's nothing!" WA insisted, pushing herself to her feet. She folded her arms and turned to the side with a huff, embarrassed, until the woman left with her child. When she looked back at them, she saw the girl waving back to her over her mother's shoulder.
She sighed, and waved back.
"Something the matter?" She turned to see Sergeant Kurokawa beside her.
"H-hey! It's nothing. Really."
"Is that so?" Kurokawa smiled gently. "Well, we're about to head off again. Let's get going."
"I-I knew that!"
But when she looked back one last time, the girl had gone back inside with her mother, and she turned to follow Kurokawa back to their vehicles. Yes, an exceptional T-Doll like her, who was designed purely for sniping, didn't need to worry about such things.
They came to the stream as the sun was setting. AR-15 looked about ready to smash their radio after listening to the inane conversations that were coming through the radio from Itami and Kurata from the lead vehicle, when Kurahara finally seemed to realise that they were live, and they prepared to set up camp for the night. M4 listened carefully as he explained the reasoning for this to Kurata, and it made sense to her when he explained it; they didn't want to come up on the village during the night and scare them. She made sure to store that concept away for later.
However, even as they slowed their vehicles, a great plume of smoke began to rise into the sky before them. They pulled over while the lead discussed what to do about the situation. By now, it seemed like the entire forest was on fire, a burning glow that lit up the heavy clouds in the sky above. And then, it appeared, a great, flying monster, like the Devil himself rising from the fires of Hell.
"Now that is a dragon," F2000 remarked.
"We'll camp later!" Itami called, returning from his discussion with the others. "That dragon's after something, and I'll bet it's the village we're headed to."
"Mount up!" Kurahawa roared. "Mount up!"
Author's Notes
I must've watched episode 2 about two dozen times by this point, or at least parts of it. Anyway, now we have the choices I ended up going with for the 3rd Recon team. Originally, I was going to put Vector instead of IDW, but she got suggested, and I kinda have a soft spot for our favourite 1:10 feline.
