The alarms blared throughout the base, and it rang in everyone's ears. Groups of people were being put into Halftracks and being shipped away. A jeep came into the grounds.

A soldier opened the door and saluted.

"How are you doing young man?" Eisen asked.

"Sir, Guardian requests that you go into the crisis room right away, sir!" he said back.

Eisen nodded and walked off quickly. He looked at the crowd of people waiting to leave, all of them knowing about what was coming.

A group of soldiers ran by shouting "Move it men, Line Alpha is another 5 kilometers from here!" They ran off quickly, many of them carrying heavy loads of ammunition and machine guns.

The crisis room was a hidden room under the dining room. It was built for an emergency such as this, but it was never used before. The staircase leading to it was extremely weak and looked like it could fall apart in a minute. He walked down the steps and peered inside. A soldier escorting him shined a light at a door in front of him. As he walked up to the door, he dismissed his soldiers and put in the codes. The door opened to chaos.

Radios were buzzing, and the technicians were having trouble keeping up.

"The reports are true, there is a heavy neuroi force attacking!"

"What do you mean the strikers are unavailable? They've been grounded for two weeks!"

"Well then you can tell General Montgomery to shove it from wherever he gets his words from!"

"Delta 6, Delta 6, Respond."

"No Prime Minister, we do not know what their intentions are."

"I need to confirm the arrival of the evacuees at the Gallian Border!"

Eisen finished listening to the frantic technicians and entered into a side room. All the people inside stood up and saluted. Agent Guardian stayed standing and announced the situation.

"General, there is a major Neuroi attack that is imminent. Please tell us the course of action."

Eisen thought for a moment. "Is Colonel Wilcke, Lt. Col Sakamoto, Major Barkhorn, and 1st Lt. Hartmann here?"

Minna said, "All of us present sir."

Eisen nodded and asked, "What is our strength in witches?"

Minna replied, "There is about 20 official witches on base sir."

Guardian sighed. "That's not nearly enough to fight them off!"

Everyone went silent. It was true. For that many Neuroi, there would need to be a division of witches to fight them off.

Eisen spoke slowly, as if he didn't believe what he was saying. "What… What if we send up recruits...?"

Minna slammed her fist on the table. "They aren't ready for this! We need to give them the skills to survive, not be cannon fodder for this!"

Gertrud nodded and said, "I agree with the Colonel on this. We can't risk sending up new recruits to fill ranks."

Guardian shook his head. "Look, I know these recruits are only kids, but if we don't send someone up there, it won't matter if they survive or not."

The room was silent. A tense air had filled the room, and the sounds in the base electrified the air around it.

Mio coughed, and started to speak. "Fine, we will send people up there. However, we are only going to send people we know will survive. This is not negotiable."

Eisen agreed with the plan and started to move on to the next logical subject: Strategy. "The Neuroi are attacking in an organized fashion, which is troubling and dangerous at the same time. We cannot rush in without a plan. General Montgomery has supplied a team to support us, but they are on loan, and we cannot rely on them. I've sent out three lines of contact at certain distances from the base. These lines are Line Alpha, Line Beta, and Line Charlie. I hate to say it, but those lines will be decimated. It's a sad waste of human life. I can't say it enough; we need to get them before they hit the base."

Guardian interrupted Eisen and said, "Sir, isn't it more costly to lose one striker rather than one soldier?"

Eisen snapped back, "Agent, do you realize that it does not matter about cost. Think about their families damn it! How many families will be affected if the Neuroi get through? Ten? A hundred? A thousand families?"

Minna tried to interrupt, "But sir-"

"Enough interruptions!" Eisen said angrily. His tone had become harsh, and the cool and relaxed demeanor was gone. "Wilcke, Sakamoto get me a list of the Assault Mages ready for battle. That's the same to you Barkhorn and Hartmann. I will not have unnecessary deaths under my watch! Now get going, we're at war now!"

The girls ran out of the room. Guardian sat there and said quietly at Eisen, "Was that necessary?"

Eisen sat down and rubbed his head. He glanced at Guardian's masked face. "Where is Ichiro?"

"Don't dodge the subject."

Eisen sighed and shook his head. "You should know this already, but war was never meant for children. It was always meant for adults."

Guardian nodded in agreement. He got up and opened the door. "I know how you feel; I lost my daughter to one."

Eisen was surprised by his admission. He tried to stop Guardian but he left quicker than he could say a word.

Schmidt was sitting in the dining room eating lunch. He and his friends were resting from a long day of war games between the few boys that had graduated the boot camp and the numerous girls who were much better than them at flying. At graduation the boys were given a speech by Lehrer.

"Wow. 20 Boys. Im surprised this many passed honestly. When I came to train people, no one was ready. You guys were sneaky, brash, and plain idiots. And to be honest… You guys still are. However, its not really important. The most important thing is that you guys were the most disciplined out of the rest. That's why we let you graduate. Now… That's the end of my speech. Go forth, and take back our skies!" The boys at graduation were given different ranks based on their abilities. Half were given Sergeant, and half were given corporal. Some people were given corporal because they work best as wingmen. Some just needed a little bit more discipline.

"Goddamn it Frost, how come I have to be your wingman?" When Schmidt got his Sergeant rank, he was joined by Frost and Takashi. Bates and Adagio were given corporal rank. They were wingmen for Frost and Takashi.

"Bates, I didn't ask for it either. Now shut up and eat your food." Frost drank from his glass of water.

Schmidt picked at his food. "So wait, who's my wingman?"

Bates pointed at a small mousy guy. "I think its that guy. Whats his name again?"

Takashi replied, " That's DuMont. Gallian."

"Seriously? I thought that he was another Karsland soldier…"

Schmidt took offense to that one. "Wait a moment, what the hell do you mean by that Bates?"

Bates rolled his eyes, "Most of them graduated. The ones who didn't were too young to do much in combat anyway. Out of all of us here, the Karsland soldiers have the highest ranks."

Schmidt's eyes narrowed. "And your point?"

"Don't you see Schmidt, Lehrer has favoritism!"

Frost intervened before Schmidt was about to verbally maul Bates. "Bates, shut the hell up. Haven't you realized that they did better than most of us in every exercise?"

Bates went back to eating his food. Frost sighed and finished off his water. "We better get going to our next flight lesson."

As they got up to leave alarms started ringing around the base.

"Code Black, Code Black. All units code black." The PA system repeated those words over and over. Ground soldiers ran out to their action stations. The recruits we're confused as to what to do.

Schmidt shouted amidst the chaos, "What the hell is going on? Neuroi attack?"

Frost shouted back, "Probably, but where the hell is the Colonel Wilcke and Lt. Colonel Sakamoto?"

They ran out of the dining room quickly and looked around. Jeeps were quickly driving out of the base towards Karsland territory. Many soldiers were herding people into halftracks that were driving towards Gallian Territory. The base was in full evacuation. A jeep screeched to a stop in front of the boys. Minna and Mio were in the jeep.

"Sgt. Frost, Sgt. Schmidt, Sgt. Takashi get in. Cpl. Bates and Cpl. Adagio, we need you to go to the Hangars. Doesn't matter where, just go."

Schmidt, Frost, and Takashi jumped in and they drove off. Mio started talking to Minna. "What's going on Minna, it's not like the Neuroi to attack like this…"

Minna nodded. "I wish I knew myself… Sending a force that size was deliberate. 2 Neuroi can destroy a whole city. They must be trying to send a statement."

Schmidt asked, "What's going on Colonel Wilcke?"

Quickly Minna replied, "Neuroi attack. Over 10 Neuroi ships headed straight here. We don't have enough troops to effectively take them on, so we need to draw on reserves."

Frost interjected, "So us?"

She nodded. Mio turned around. "Well then… Welcome to the war, soldiers."

Yoshika had been busy moving all of the recon parts to the lower floors. It was surprising how well built the whole base was. There were 5 or 6 lower floors in the R&D hangar, each one dedicated to a project that they had previously endeavored on. The Recon items were placed in level N5: The High Priority Floor.

Guardian approached Yoshika, "The base is in chaos. A Neuroi attack like this is unprecedented, and I'm afraid we won't get enough help before they act. If we need to…"

Yoshika turned around to the finished strikers. "You mean use the R.E.C.O.N. strikers?" She didn't mind them being used in the situation, but there was a faint worry that it would cause problems like the last few prototypes. "I don't mind, but we need to set them up now."

Guardian nodded and reached for a phone. "Get me a halftrack. We're shipping Class 1 Strikers." He returned the phone and nodded to Yoshika. "Head over to Hangar 4. I'll send the Strikers there."

"Why Hangar 4?" Yoshika asked.

"It's the 501st Home Hangar. Only the best squads are situated there."

"Ah. I'll head there immediately."

"See that you do."

Before the elevator left the floor Yoshika saw Guardian pulling out something covered by a blanket.

Schmidt, Takashi, Frost, Minna, and Mio arrived at a control tower. A number of other recruits, both boys and girls, were there too. Minna walked out and talked a little to Gertrud.

"So it begins... Are you ready Gertrud? Ready to take it all back?" Gertrud nodded.

She replied, "It's time to free Chis' and my home. This is just the first step."

Mio quipped in, "It won't matter if we don't get these recruits going!"

Schmidt chuckled at this exchange. He knew Major Barkhorn had a sister; he was a cadet in the academy before she left. He looked around, observing the recruits gathered here. All of them were recent graduates. They were all whispering about the impending attack on the base, and what they we're being sent up to do.

"We're obviously going to be sent up! Why else would they do that?" one said harshly.

"Don't be so rash DuBuois! Maybe they want us to be on standby in case the Neuroi come here!" another said.

"We have the 501st on our side though, this will be nothing!"

"I heard that there were 20 Neuroi headed straight for us!"

The crowd went quiet. Frost blanched at the prospect of facing 20 when 2 could destroy a whole city.

"… Who said this?" Schmidt asked quietly, hoping that it was just a mere rumor.

The boy quietly said, "Colonel Wilcke."

Schmidt hardened at the answer. He didn't reply.

The boys started whispering amongst themselves.

Frost quietly said to Schmidt, "Hey you better say something; they might imagine themselves into a frenzy."

Schmidt looked at the boys slowly descending into madness. "Okay hold on, if we can't beat 20 Neuroi, I think we don't deserve to be here. They can find more people to replace us. So if you aren't ready to face them, there's a gate right there, you can leave, and we'll just replace you."

Shouts of protest caused uproar around the boys. It was so loud that the girls had heard them from a distance.

"What the hell is with that attitude Schmidt? You aren't the boss of us!" a boy shouted.

"Shut the hell up Mark! You can leave if you don't like it!" Another shouted to defend Schmidt.

"I'm not a coward, but I'm not stupid!" Mark shouted back.

Schmidt wasn't about to take this. There were more people getting involved and he knew what would happen if Morale dropped.

"Mark, it takes more of a man to admit he isn't ready than to go in like a fool to prove himself. If you really don't believe that you are ready, then say so. I only want to defend this base, and I'm ready to pay my life. If you won't even do that, how can we ever expect to win?"

Frost gasped, he was surprised at the speech Schmidt just said. "My god, what in the hell was that?"

Schmidt shrugged. "Beats me."

Takashi pointed at the girls walking over. It would be the first time the boys would meet the girls without some kind of striker strapped to their legs. "Looks like they heard the commotion."

One of the girls walked up to Schmidt. "Alice Hall, Flight Lieutenant of the Royal Britannian Air Force."

She was a petite girl, yet her eyes conveyed more than what could be seen on the outside. Her eyes commanded respect from any one she was talking to, and Schmidt took that into account. Interestingly both her eyes were red, but it seemed to be a natural feature rather than a magical or artificial one. Her hair was a dark brown; tied into a short ponytail. In short, an average girl.

Schmidt answered her introduction with his own: "Everyone calls me Schmidt. Sergeant, Karsland Army Cadets."

Alice nodded. He knew that she was trying to hold back something, but he didn't know what. Frost however took it into his own hands.

"What the hell are you doing here Alice?" he said coldly.

She turned and spat back, "Don't give me that attitude, Windsor."

Schmidt felt the coldness between the two. For some reason though, he felt a faint, yet warm connection between the two.

Childhood Friends? No it couldn't be…

Before Schmidt could defuse the situation Frost shouted, "When the hell did I say you could use my first name?"

Alice smirked. "You know. At the oak tree back in Academy?"

Frost blushed and lunged at her. "You bi-"

"ENOUGH!" Takashi stood between them while Schmidt tried to calm Frost down. "We have a Neuroi invasion headed straight for us and you two are fighting about some idiotic childhood memories? I don't care what you do later, go make out or something, but focus."

Everyone giggled at the two blushing Britannians. Schmidt pushed Frost back and began talking to Alice.

"What do you want with us Alice?"

Alice flicked her hair over. "As it looks like we're going to be fighting with each other, I think it's time we at least know who our comrades are."

Schmidt took her consideration very seriously. "Look Alice, you know Colonel Wilcke doesn't want the boys and girls to intermingle."

"Your point?" She was unrelenting. Turning to Frost she said, "Hey, make him agree with me." Takashi covered his mouth while his red face showed his embarrassment and anger.

A small mischievous streak started up in Schmidt. He had kept it down in fear of getting punished. "Okay… We'll let you talk. But you and Frost have to do something."

Takashi facepalmed and let go of Frost. Frost ran up to Schmidt to punch him, but…

Yoshika hitched a ride to Hangar 4 with a ground crew picking up some stuff. She didn't know what was inside, and assumed it was weapons and ammunition for the striker units. The base was full of tension, and many were on edge. She tried not to talk to many people because she didn't want to be on the receiving end of anything. As she approached Hangar 4 she saw the control tower in the distance, and saw a group of people next to it.

Wonder what that is all about…

The hangar that approached was much bigger than the R&D hangar she had been going to for the last week and a half. She walked in and marveled at the amount of strikers that were stockpiled here. There were Liberion Mustangs and Stallions, Britannian Tornados and Firebolts, Karsland Gf 900s and FD 180s, and Fuso A7Ms and Fours. Curiously there were no Gallian strikers within the hangar. Behind her was a weapons stockpile room, one for every striker she had seen. There were rifles, machine guns, and rockets all placed in a special order that she couldn't understand. As she moved along mechanics started dragging out the launchers. One man noticed her marveling at the size of the hangar.

"Captain Miyafuji, over here!"

The man had grease stains all over his uniform which showed a rank of a Staff Sergeant. He had a broad chest and arms which confirmed her suspicions he was a mechanic, but she still didn't know what kind. As she walked towards him many of the men looked like Guardian with brown complexions and slightly pale faces. They spoke in a language unknown to her, but she kept walking.

"Good Day Captain Miyafuji. Guardian phoned ahead, if you were wondering. Anyway, I need to let you know about your responsibility here. As we will be launching Class 1's only you and I are allowed to touch them. Right now, we need to send up our reserve squads and get them to the front lines. Do you know how to prepare strikers?" He talked with a gentle, yet authoritative tone. She shook her head to him and he walked over to a striker. "Watch closely. The other guys are busy trying to get the strikers that will be used, so we will be the only ones getting ready to launch. And another thing-" He looked up at the catwalks above him. 3 men gave thumbs up. He turned back to Yoshika. "Hold on please."

He walked over to a closed office and pressed a hidden button. A loud grinding sound rang out from the sides and a massive door opened. A loud voice boomed throughout the hangar and possibly the base.

"Hangar 4 Active, Hangar 4 Active"

Lights that she had not noticed on the runways started to light up. The 12 lanes lit up through the runway. She noticed the man come back.

"I forgot to tell you my name, Captain. My name is Haji Ironsi, Staff Sergeant of the Allied Army." Yoshika was annoyed he did say his nationality. However she had to forget about that because he quickly went into how to prepare the striker. Haji walked towards the strikers on the launchers and opened a panel on the unit. "This is the calibration unit. Usually pilots do not touch it because it is too out of the way during flight, but sometimes its necessary. The calibration unit prevents magic overcharge. Depending on the situation, the control tower will give us special instructions like today. Here take a look."

A piece of paper was given to Yoshika. It was full of numbers that indicated Magic limits, densities, propeller speeds, and more. "Wait, why would we need to change them?"

Haji replied without even looking from the panel. "Strikers aren't built to be adaptive. Normal technology would break if we didn't do this. Magic Technology would be able to support the fluctuations, but normal technology would break quickly if we left them to the discretion of a distracted pilot."

Yoshika searched her brain for the notes that included this. There was nothing mentioned there. "When was this added?"

Haji scratched his head. "Im guessing a few years after your father showed his research to the military. Tests showed that normal tech would break, but he quickly found a way to limit a users power through limiting the amount let through at a time."

He finished his calibrations and closed the panel. "Okay next you turn on the launcher and give the striker some energy. Magic may start instantaneously, but its easier for pilots if we gave them a hot start." He flipped a switch on the launcher and the striker glowed yellow. "Finally you inspect the propeller turbine and make sure that there isn't any damage on it. Its pretty durable, but the biggest problem is that the wires get frayed after a long battle. Here look at this." He brought out a bottom part of a striker and showed the red wires sparking intermittently. "Obviously that's bad, but it's good that the wires connect in an easy to see place or we would take forever inspecting these. Now, there might be internal problems, but because of post flight inspections, there shouldn't be a problem that we should be able to catch." He connected the piece back to the striker.

"Wait isn't that dangerous?" She wondered why he would remove a part of the striker when it was connected to an energy source.

He shook his head. "These were built to give stability to the striker unit. Before, it was just a place someone could stash something, but then we realized that it would be more efficient to house something that we'd need to maintain more often anyway. They pull off if you push down and twist. Though, you can't remove it if there's magic. I dunno what would happen, but don't do it." Haji returned the part to the striker.

"So, do you understand Captain? By the way, the faster we do this, the quicker we can fight back."

Yoshika nodded and moved on to the next striker. She entered all the numbers in order and started the launcher. The striker glowed with energy as she looked for the part Haji mentioned. Once she found it, Yoshika looked at the innards. It was small yet important. The striker could still function without it, but it would never be as good. There were no problems so she returned it to its original place.

Haji looked up and saw her finishing up at her station. "Good. Another 200 to go."

Schmidt was about to block Frost's punch, but as he readied himself an alarm sounded throughout the base.

"Hangar 4 Active, Hangar 4 Active"

The doors opened at a hangar not too far away from the group.

Mio got out of the jeep and said, "Well its about time. I was about to just do it myself."

She walked up to the group. "Attention!" The group quickly went into neat and organized rows.

"Alright soldiers, we are in a crisis situation. We are below capacity on regular strikers and we need to send up recruits as well as veterans to fight back. Your squads will be waiting in the hangars. Because of the size of the enemy forces we need to use all 6 hangars on this base. Launches will be coordinated by Colonel Wilcke and I at this tower. Any questions?"

No one answered.

"Good, we need all the time we can get. Also, we are using communicators using your magical energy. As long as you are actively using magic you can hear everything we are saying. My final word of advice, don't be a hero. Now heres the list." Mio read off the list of squads and their hangar designations. "Remember this designation; this will be your home hangar from now on."

Schmidt and Takashi had been assigned Hangar 4. He considered himself lucky for not having to run as far as the other guys. Frost had been assigned Hangar 1 and grabbed a ride on a halftrack with the others.

"Lets go." Schmidt motioned to Takashi and started to run to the hangar. As they ran into the hangar, Schmidt found someone he wasn't expecting.

"Captain Miyafuji?" He said surprised.

"Sergeant Schmidt. I'm busy, so please move. Your squad is waiting in the back. Sergeant Takashi, your squad is also at the back." She walked off. Schmidt hadn't seen her since he met her walking around.

"Comon, we don't have time to daydream!" Takashi walked quickly to the back of the hangar. Schmidt noticed an open door, and walked towards it. He found 16 guys sitting inside.

"Well, if it isn't our dear Sergeant Schmidt. Come have a seat will ya?" A boy drawled as Schmidt walked in.

A small mousy boy walked up to Schmidt and said, " Corporal DuMont. I'm your wingman and 2nd in command." DuMont had a quiet voice, yet there was no sign of hardness at the coming situation. It put Schmidt on edge. Whenever a situation arose, he usually turned more serious than before. DuMont seemed to counteract that.

"Nice to meet you DuMont. Now who is that idiot talking?" he said as he scanned the room.

"That's Gregory, recruit from Britannia." He pointed at a boy with blond bangs that covered his eyes.

"Nice to meet you. I'm from the northern part of Britannia, you know, where there's cows and not Neuroi trying to kill you every damn week." The boy lay back in his bed. "Much better than the Barracks."

"And cleaner" another chimed.

This is my squad?

Takashi walked in. "Where the hell did you go Schmidt we have to-…" He noticed the boys sitting on the beds. "Whoever is in my Squad, out. Now."

Schmidt felt a chill go through his spine as 7 of the boys filed out of the room silently.

"Man that guy was scary…" Gregory mused.

Schmidt laughed. "He's usually quiet. Maybe the incoming war has gotten him spooked. Anyway we will be sent up sooner or later, so might as well get to know each other now because we don't have time up in the air."

The boy on his right started talking first. He looked pretty average, but his eyes were also as red as Alice's. "Justin Hall. Schmidt, you may have met my darling twin sister. Never shuts up about how Frost is an idiot sometimes." He rolled his eyes. "Before you assume anything, they are childhood friends who messed around too much during their days together at the Academy. Lovely rumors sprang up and Frost turned into an insufferable jerkass, and Alice turned into an insufferable BITCH. Great Pair huh?"

The boys roared with laughter at his rant about those two. Schmidt smiled and shook his head. "Good thing he isn't an insufferable jerkass to me. Next?"

The next boy had short white hair, and was smaller than the rest. Schmidt assumed he was around 8 to 10 years old. "Neil Anderson. Liberon air force cadet."

After him came Gregory. "You should already know me…"

"I still want an introduction." Schmidt said plainly.

"Fine." Gregory sat up in bed. "Thomas Gregory. Britannian Royal Air Force Pilot. Youngest in a generation." He smiled proudly at this accomplishment.

The boy to his right had dark brown hair and Fuso features. Schmidt was surprised that he had a Liberion Accent. "James Kaido. Liberion Home Guard cadet."

Gregory blurted out, "Wait, whats with the Liberion accent?"

Kaido sighed, as if he hadn't heard that before. "Born in Liberion after my parents moved there."

Schmidt moved on before someone else interrupted.

"Olaf Korsky. Orussian." A deep voice said. Schmidt turned to look at him. He was large, rivaling Bates for size, but his face looked pretty friendly. "Most of the Orussians here are from refugee families, I got lucky, I was drafted by the army and got my family shelter before the fall."

Schmidt nodded. Before Orussia fell, thousands of refugees came through Karsland escaping the Neuroi invasions. Orussia fell a few weeks after the commotion started.

"By the way, my cousin is in the 501st. I think her name is Sanya. I don't really remember. If you find her, tell her that her father is safe and she shouldn't worry anymore."

Schmidt didn't know who Sanya was. He never saw her with the others of the 501st and assumed that there were only 9 members of the 501st. There must be a few more that I don't see often.

"As everyone knows I'm Corporal DuMont. One of the few Gallians here, I'm proud that I got put into a good squadron." DuMont went back into the background.

Schmidt then finally introduced himself. "Sergeant Schmidt of the Karsland Army Cadets. I'm your squadron leader, and this will be your new home barracks. As such, except for DuMont and I, you have not earned a rank because you are deemed unready. Prove it today, and I will make sure you get your true rank."

The boys cheered at that statement. "Im tired of doing crap for Lehrer! I want to fly!"

Gregory laughed. "How in gods name are we getting in there with our pants on? Last time I checked, Strikers needed full skin contact."

Schmidt groaned. He didn't want to have to show his underwear to the girls again. "Yes, it's a bit embarrassing to take off your pants in front of the girls…"

Yoshika came into the room. "Oh, I heard that as you passed by. Hello, my name is Captain Miyafuji. I'm your mechanic for today. Assault Strikers are slightly modified to allow boys to wear their uniforms while in combat. I can't reveal how, but you aren't allowed to wear socks as an FYI. Well I have to go back to work. Oh Schmidt, your squadron call sign is Red Wolf." She walked off quickly.

Hall sat up. "Who the hell was that?"

Schmidt replied, "Captain Yoshika Miyafuji, if you weren't listening."

"I know that, but I didn't know she looked like that!"

Korsky threw a pebble at him. "Stay calm tiger, shes 501st and therefore untouchable."

A silence permeated the room. Schmidt started talking. "Uhh…. Let's get out of here, we need to get ready."

The soldiers stood up and filed out of the room.

Yoshika walked towards the runway and saw Haji doing final checks. "Captain Miyafuji! Go to the panel and tell me if all the bars are stable!"

She walked into the room with the panel and looked at bars. They were labeled "Load". There were no fluctuations.

"All Stable, Haji!"

"Good!" He ran up to a man standing by and started talking to him. Yoshika walked up to find out what was going on.

"Get the first squad. They should be ready." He turned to Yoshika. "Captain, if you would like to, you may continue helping me out, it would be a big help. However, Eisen would also like you to use your medical experience to go on standby at the hospital."

Yoshika nodded. "It would be easier for me to stay and help launch strikers."

Haji went back to work. "Very well. Go in the room and monitor the load meters. I'll come in to help you out soon."

Yoshika went back to the room with the meters. They stayed stable while she waited. Soon enough a squad appeared in view. A message came out on loudspeaker, and echoed throughout the base.

"276th Karsland JFW preparing for launch"

Haji came in. He sat next to Yoshika and started talking on the radios. "Control, this is Hangar 4. Sheilds on slings, ready to clear."

He motioned for her to put on the headphones.

She put them on and listened to the conversation.

"Hangar 4, Clear when allowed." The tower replied.

"Holding."

"Set Launch." He pointed at a button and then at the strikers.

Yoshika nodded and said, "Sheild Squad Leader, Prepare for launch."

A voice returned back, "Sheild is up. Engines on. Launch when ready." The roar of the strikers started up.

Haji called the tower. "Tower, Sheild is ready."

"Tower acknowledges."

Yoshika waited a few minutes. She noticed that strikers were being launched from other hangars.

"Hangar 4, Clear, Clear, Clear!"

"Roger."

Yoshika then told the squad leader, "Shield cleared to launch, all units launching." She pressed the button and released the strikers from their launch holders. They left with such a speed that they were in the air halfway through the runway.

"Tower, Shield has launched." Haji took off the headset and went outside again.

Yoshika kept the headphones on and heard Minna's voice. "All units, Operation Critical Shield has begun."

AN: So here starts the action of this story. Longest Prologue ever? Anyway, I really liked writing this chapter, and I hope I fleshed out the characters a bit more than in the last chapter, and I got to add a new OC. Don't worry he won't be a major character, but he will be important when the time comes. Also, I've unfortunately been neglecting half of the 501st, mainly because they don't fit into the story just as well as the girls I've included so far. As such the next chapters might go more into the 501st rather than the Yoshika/Schmidt sides of the story. And, as a bonus, this is the first chapter in a while I had to research on planes :D.

Next chapter: Strike Witches R&R Ch 11: Hold the line. As a service to you, I will tell you that this chapter will be very heartbreaking. That is all.

Review and Recommend, yadda yadda yadda. See you guys again.