Big note: The last chapter has been edited to improve it. Kindly take this into consideration.

Hey guys! I noted that I was back at university last chapter, and with the amount of work I have to do, I have little time to write stuff. In fact, I just finished my mid-term exams. Also, my spare time is split between sword training, chilling out and playing Hearts of Iron (which is pretty cool). FEAR NOT! I'm still going to keep working (probably with the British Grenadiers on loop). Expect more from this work.

Also, due to workload, my mates at home have not been able to read this chapter, so I'd like to give a big thanks to Theralion for giving me some input prior to me uploading this.

Monday, 27th January – Shiranuka, Hokkaido - 1420hrs

As the victory graphic with the Oarai logo flashed up on the screen, Hart turned to his cadets.

"Did everyone enjoy the match?" he asked, receiving several nods and mutters of agreement from his students.

"Good! Now that the match is over, I want you to dissect the match for me. It'll be good practice for you to work on strategy."

"Essentially the match followed the principles of early middle ages warfare," Simon said. As the one who liked that era the most in their class, he was most qualified to comment. "One force offered battle, which their opponent declined, choosing to shadow and harass the attacking force. Despite this, Oarai's forces were simply better equipped, allowing them to get the better of the engagements they undertook, eventually forcing a final confrontation lest the battle drag on for the rest of the day."

"A good start," Hart said, "What about Bonple and Waffle? Notice anything about them?"

"Their cooperation was good," Katherine responded, "It seems they had a clear chain of command, and their styles complemented each other. Given that they are both underequipped schools with few up to date tanks, it is perhaps unsurprising. The small tanks that they possess suit hit and run and ambush tactics better than most vehicles."

"And Oarai's performance?"

This time Pearce decided to weigh in.

"Shoddy. For a team that won against better-equipped teams last term, they didn't show the essence of it this time. Perhaps they aren't used to being the more powerful force in their battles or were underestimating their opponent out of conceit, but they handled themselves in an average manner at best."

"Would you care to elaborate?" Hart asked, interested in Pearce's justification for this.

"Certainly. Whilst they offered battle actively, once they knew the enemy was not going to acquiesce they should have changed strategy. Perhaps form two groups, which would at once entice the enemy to attack them and provide more manoeuvrable power to search for Bonple and Waffle."

"If they hadn't been carrying peashooters in a gun fight, Bonple and Waffle would have been able to maul some of Oarai's tanks," Anna added, before trailing off into technical ideas, "They really could have added some heftier 47mm's to those AMCs, and…."

"I see your points," Hart acknowledged, "Oarai showed a relatively average performance. However, I have to say there were some things that struck me about their actions. Firstly, while they didn't deploy separate elements, they did deploy at least a net of scouts to give them warning and detection, despite their vulnerability. Most interestingly though was the positioning of the Panzer IV. If I recall, the Panzer is their command tank, correct?"

His cadets nodded.

"Then it could be questioned as to why it was deployed to the flank," he concluded. "Command elements are often positioned with the main body of a force so they can't be easily destroyed. Yet Oarai's ostensible command tank was one of their reconnaissance elements."

"Are you suggesting that they may have delegated command?" Liam asked.

"Perhaps," Hart confirmed, "It seems logical, unless Oarai's commander was doing something very strange. The central element was the M3, so perhaps that tank was in command, although I couldn't fathom why."

"Regardless, this suggests Oarai's strength is perhaps greater than they displayed here, despite their victory," Katherine interjected.

"Quite."

Hart turned to his cadets, who were sat on the ridge beside him in fold-out chairs that they had crammed in their transport. Anna, Simon and Katherine were sat normally on their chairs, while Liam was reclined lazily, slouched with a book in his hand. Pearce was sat forward in his chair, his elbows resting on his legs and his hands resting underneath his chin, curled together.

"Should we get going then, or does anyone require anything?" he asked his charges.

"I would like to have a closer look at some of Oarai's tanks, if that isn't a problem," Anna said, "The Porsche Tiger in particular has a lot of interesting features in its design."

"Not only that," Katherine added, "But we can scout them out as competition if we go and see them while they recover their tanks."

"Indeed, we can gauge the mettle of our foes," Simon agreed.

"So then, is everyone ok with going into town to see if we can meet the girls from Oarai?" Hart queried, directing his question primarily at the two cadets who had yet to speak.

Pearce merely nodded, thinking about what would occur meeting Erwin's friends, especially after his less-than polite exchange with the blonde-haired history lover.

"Sure," Liam shrugged.

"Then its settled," Hart said, "Pack your seats and we'll head into town."

Shiranuka – 1440hrs

Minus the wreck of the StuG, which was being recovered along with the destroyed tanks of Bonple and Waffle, Oarai's tanks assembled on the docks as per usual. The crews busied themselves with any tasks they were required to do, while some just bailed out of their tanks to let the dock crews begin loading them back up. Anteater team had immediately gone into the turret bin of their Chi-Nu and retrieved some handheld consoles, and were now leant against their trusty steed playing video games. Leopon team were already looking over their vehicle with critical eyes, gauging what they needed to fix on their temperamental steed.

"There's definitely something not quite right with the left generator," Tsuchiya noted to her teammates, "There's power fluctuations in the drive which is giving it a little bit of forced steer, and I have to correct it constantly."

"That's what, the third time this month that one of the generators has messed up?" Tsuchiya asked.

"Yeah, pretty much."

Of the other Oarai teams, it appeared that Mallard team were reading a copy of the school rules, attempting to find some infraction for which to berate their classmates, Gomoyo and Pazomi reading over the shoulder of their almost identical leader. The volleyballing Duck team had bailed out of their tank as well, and were doing cool-downs on the dockside. The Hetzer had all of its hatches opened, with Turtle team in various states of relaxation, from Momo, who was sat on the edge of the hull, to Anzu, who had somehow pulled a deckchair out of nowhere and was reclining on the tank destroyer's roof. Yusu was laid down reading a book next to the Council President, who had a sun-visor covering her face while she relaxed.

Having popped open the hatch on the Panzer's turret, Miho took this sight in as a welcome view. It was pleasant to be able to fully enjoy Tankery with her friends. The one dampener on her mood came from the sight of the blocky M3 Lee. Radio contact had been limited at best, and the tank's hatches remained firmly shut. Miho guessed it could be that Azusa was worried that she hadn't impressed her enough, or that she'd failed in some manner. She clambered out of the Panzer's top hatch, leaving her team to their own affairs. These primarily consisted of Saori texting, Mako sleeping, and Hana and Yukari trying to haul the aforementioned Mako out of the tank so it could be loaded back onto the carrier.

Miho paced across to the Lee of Rabbit team before clambering onto the tank's hull and stopping next to the turret. She could vaguely hear the team talking inside the vehicle and could make out that most of the remarks were directed towards Azusa, while the latter remained quiet. Knocking on the turret hatch several times, Miho waited for a response. She received one in a sheepish-looking Azusa, followed by the rest of the tank crew popping out of the other hatches.

"Uh, yes Commander Nishizumi?" she asked nervously.

"I came to check on you and see if you were ok," Miho answered, "There's nothing wrong is there?"

Rabbit team's captain shook her head vigorously, but the lack of verbal response told Miho all she needed to know.

"Are you worried about how you did in your first match?"

"A little…."

Miho gave her a comforting smile, and perched on the side of the turret next to Azusa.

"Just remember, in my first match we lost to St Gloriana, and our organisation was terrible. You on the other hand led us to victory over our opposition for the loss of only a single vehicle. I would call that a good display in my book."

"But in your first match our team was terrible and Momo made the plan," Azusa protested, "There were eight of our tanks in this match and our team is far better now than it was then. Even with those advantages, I got us ambushed."

"But you didn't panic," Miho said, "If you remember, in the finals, I got us baited into a trap containing a Maus tank. What's important, even if you did make mistakes, is to learn from them."

Somewhat mollified, Azusa gave Miho a weak smile back.

"I'll try."

"And we'll support you!" Karina declared, with rest of Rabbit team voicing their approval.

Azusa looked somewhat touched by her friends' show of support, and a tinge of colour rose to her cheeks.

"For what it's worth, I think you'll make a great commander," Miho added, causing Azusa to flush a little more.

Miho hopped off the M3 and walked back over to the Anglerfish, leaving the Rabbit team to giggle and talk amongst themselves.

"Did you hear what Commander Nishizumi said? Azusa, she reckons you're gonna be a great commander!" Aya said excitedly.

Miho grinned to herself as she moved out of earshot, while Rabbit team continued gossiping amongst themselves, in a seeming bid to make Azusa go even redder with embarrassment. She walked back over to Anglerfish team, who were sat talking on a nearby bench, overlooking the dock. Mako, who had been retrieved from the tank, was asleep on Yukari's shoulder, and didn't look to be waking any time soon. A grumbling sound from down the street indicated the arrival of one of the recovery vehicles, replete with wrecked Sturmgeschutz and crew on board. As the truck rumbled past, Hippo team hopped off and walked over to their commander.

"Commander," Caesar greeted Miho.

"Hello," Miho replied, "Are you guys alright?"

"We're fine, just irritated that we were the only casualties on our side," Saemonza said.

"We'll do better next time," Oryou added.

"I'm sure you will," Miho told them.

Hippo team grinned and walked off, with Caesar telling the other three members that it would be akin to her namesake's battle with the pirates, defeated at first but then returning triumphant. They passed the rest of their team, exchanging shouted greetings with the other tank crews.

Miho went back to lounging on the bench with her team, enjoying the ambient noise of the docks as their tanks were loaded back up. She began to daydream, and so was surprised when a voice greeted her from her left.

"Commander, I suppose I owe you congratulations," Celina said, striding towards the Oarai team leader, having emerged from an adjoining street a short while prior.

"Yeah, you did really well," Sabine added, hurrying to keep up with her taller ally, "But I must admit, you were a little more direct than I expected you to be."

"Thank you, but I'm not really responsible for our team's win," Miho answered, "That would be Azusa Sawa, the captain of Rabbit team. She took command in this match."

The Nishizumi girl pointed over at the M3 Lee, where Rabbit team were sat on the hull gossiping. As she did, Sabine and Celina stood there in a little bit of disbelief.

"You mean we were beaten by a team commanded by someone with no previous command experience?"

"This is the first year she's done tankery, and we thought it would be good experience for her, since she'll have to take over when we leave the school."

Sabine put on a look of deep thought.

"You know, it would explain some of the choices your team made in strategy. They seemed a little clumsy, if I may say, especially for a commander who had won last term's tournament in a string of victories against the biggest teams."

"I guess that just shows how dedicated your team is," Celina finished.

"All of our team tries their very best, and we believe in each other" Miho said, "It's one of the reasons we managed to get so far last time."

Sabine and Celina strolled across to the M3 and offered their congratulations to Azusa, along with a firm handshake, leaving the first year captain flushing red once more, much to the amusement of her team-mates. Even Saki had a hint of a smile at Azusa's discomfort. The Bonple and Waffle captains returned across the dock to Miho in order to offer their goodbyes.

"I must say, it was nice to actually meet your team in combat," Celina said, "We were unsure if last term's champions would meet our expectations."

"She's trying to be polite in saying that we thought you were lucky," Sabine offered, "Not to cause offence or anything, but you aren't exactly an imposing figure."

"None taken," Miho assured the brown-haired captain.

"To be fair, it is difficult to possess presence as a schoolgirl, particularly in comparison to the tank that you drive," Hana interjected from further down the bench.

"Still, we were pleasantly surprised," Celina remarked, "We will come and watch some of your other matches."

"Yeah, cos if your other matches were anything to go by, they're gonna be epic!" Sabine exclaimed.

Miho nodded politely to the two captains, who began to walk away from the dock, evidently towards their own loading area.

"See ya!" Sabine exclaimed when the pair were nearly out of sight, pairing the shout with a cheerful wave and a big grin.

Miho waved back until the two captains were out of sight, before reclining back next to her friends. All that chasing of enemy tanks had really worn her out, although being able to be the one listening to commands rather than issuing them had gone some way towards alleviating her fatigue. She relaxed as the dock workers got to grips with the last couple of tanks, namely the Lee and the Chi-Nu, and began loading them onto the carrier slowly. The sea breeze and the proximity of her friends made Miho start to drift off…

Shiranuka – In town – 1440 hrs

The refreshing breeze of the day whistled past the Wellesley observers as they trundled into town in their Kangaroo Carrier, Simon at the helm, whilst Hart perched next to him on the outer chassis, watching his driving. The rest of the team were packed into the back along with the seats they had brought with them, now folded and stowed. Their carrier was the Priest Kangaroo, based as it was on the chassis of a Priest SPG, converted for infantry transportation. The cumbersome APC clattered through the town, following the roads towards the dock.

As the group rolled through town, they passed a stricken vehicle at the side of the road, a bright pink jeep, with three girls examining the damage. Evidently one of the tyres had burst, and the smoke coming from the engine bay didn't look too good either. One, a petite orange-haired girl, was venting the smoke, whilst a blonde examined the tyre. A final girl, looking a lot more casual about the situation, stood to one side, watching her friends. All three were wearing the same blue uniform. Both Pearce and Hart raised an eyebrow when they spotted the emblem on both the jeep and the girls' uniforms, a tea pot and cup, accompanied by a flower.

"Sir, those ladies are from St Gloriana Womens' Academy," Pearce remarked.

"Quite," Hart said, "Simon, pull the Kangaroo over, we shall see if they need our assistance."

"Understood."

The bulky vehicle pulled over to one side, with the crew bailing out and walking over to the St Gloriana girls. One of the blonde girls, her hair neatly held up at the back, looked towards the approaching group, and stood up to greet them.

"Hello, can we help you?" she asked, in a neat and calm tone.

"We noticed that your transport seemed to be having some issues, and we wanted to offer our help if you should wish it," Hart replied.

"Thank you, sir, but might I enquire as to your name?"

The other blonde girl, who had long hair cascading down her back, and had to this point been watching proceedings, strolled over to her colleague.

"Surely you recognise that these students are from Wellesley Royal Military Academy, Darjeeling? I do recall telling you about them joining the tournament this year."

The now-identified Darjeeling coloured slightly at the implied reprimand. Hart decided to interject.

"We are from Wellesley. I am John Hart, the tankery instructor, at your service. These are some of my pupils, Anna Rowley, Simon Williams, Liam Andrews, Samuel Pearce and Katherine Armstrong. A pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise," the blonde replied, "I am known as Earl Grey. My schoolmates are Darjeeling," she indicated the girl next to her, "and Orange Pekoe," she said, pointing at the petite girl fiddling with the jeep.

Pearce's eyebrow raised slightly at the names given by the girl from St Gloriana. Evidently the girls from St Gloriana were very proud of their monikers, as it served to demarcate their commitment to their school, but Pearce couldn't help but hope they were nicknames, not birth names, as no sane parent would ever label their child as a brand of tea. The cadet captain could only thank his luck that Chris was not around to make jokes about it.

"Is there anything we can do to help you on your way?" Simon asked.

"Perhaps if one of you could direct us to a mechanic's shop? It would be most appreciated," Earl Grey said.

"Of course," Hart answered, "I recall seeing one on our route through the town earlier. Does anybody else remember where it was?"

Two hands went up, Simon's and Pearce's.

"Sam, could you escort one of these ladies to the mechanic's shop we passed earlier?"

"Of course," the bespectacled student replied.

"Superb! Darjeeling here will accompany you," Earl Grey stated.

Leaving the group to look over the stricken jeep, and Hart and Earl Grey to talk to one another, Darjeeling and Pearce made their way onto the streets leading to the south-western district of the city. For the first few hundred yards, total silence was maintained between the two, before Darjeeling, seeking to be polite, tried to make conversation.

"I heard your teacher say before that you were his tankery cadets. Are you part of the team for this year then?"

"I am," the boy replied.

"What position on the team do you occupy then? I don't wish to pry, but I am curious as to how the academy from our spiritual homeland is organised," Darjeeling said, wishing to find out more about a truly British team.

"I am the team captain, Miss Darjeeling. I am also well aware that you are the team captain for St Gloriana Womens' Academy, as the reports for last term's tournament indicate. In case you were wondering about the vehicle I use, it is a Panzer VI Tiger tank, Ausf E."

Darjeeling barely batted an eyelash at his comment, choosing to retain her pleasant smile instead. Pearce was impressed by her collected demeanour.

"But why do you not use a British tank? Surely a military academy like Wellesley has a surplus of vehicles which you could use as a command tank."

"I personally prefer my command tank for a wide number of reasons, but rest assured, we have an admirable array of British tanks, and were we not competing in the same competition, I would invite you to come and see for yourself, but I fear that could give away too much."

"I understand. It would be unsporting of me to insist upon such," the blonde captain mused.

Pearce glanced sideways at the girl from St Gloriana. Whilst her flawlessly maintained mask of control would say otherwise, he could tell that she was a little bit disappointed. Perhaps she'd wanted to talk to a student who lived up to British ideals far better than he. He brushed aside the apology that he was tempted to give, and instead tried to change the conversation.

"Miss Darjeeling, I apologise if I'm over-inquisitive, but could you tell me more about your school?" he asked, watching as the Anglophile girl became more lively again, the glint of a keen intelligence and enthusiasm in her eye.

"Well, as a part of the government's initiative to introduce us to foreign culture in school, many of our schools have taken on foreign aspects and encouraged us to follow their ways of life. As you might be able to discern, we have been educated in a British manner, and some of us have taken on nicknames to further integrate ourselves with our chosen culture," she proudly expounded.

"Might I ask why you chose names of types of tea as your nicknames?" Pearce asked curiously.

"We were told that one of the distinguishing hallmarks of being British was a love for tea, as well as an unflappable demeanour, pristine manners and keen sense of chivalry. Am I right to assume that these are actual common traits amongst people of the UK?"

"They are indeed common amongst dedicated citizens of Her Majesty," Pearce replied earnestly, "I myself am particularly fond of tea."

Taking his eyes off Darjeeling, Pearce realised that they had reached the mechanic's shop. He held the door open courteously for her and waited outside for her to conclude her business with them. Mulling over his conversation with the blonde-haired captain, Pearce found himself cursing the stereotypes that were heavily entrenched into people's perceptions of the English, and at the same time wishing more people would follow them. As he had found on his walk with Darjeeling, her impeccable manners and command of language were indeed welcome, and in fact quite pleasant to be around. This was saying something considering that there were very few people that Pearce could tolerate spending an extended amount of time with. Whilst Pearce thought to himself, he failed to notice that Darjeeling had concluded her business and was patiently waiting for him. The girl gently coughed into her hand to get his attention.

"My apologies for interrupting you, but my business with the mechanics is concluded. They will be along to fix our vehicle shortly."

"That is indeed good news," Pearce replied, "Shall we return to our parties?"

"Indeed."

The pair began a steady stroll back towards their party, enjoying the peaceful atmosphere. Darjeeling decided to continue their pleasant conversation.

"Whilst I enquired before about your position on the team, I must admit I know little about your academy. Would you mind if I asked you to elaborate a little on what Wellesley is like?"

"It is a military school for those aged 16-21; we educate students in what we would call college and university level qualifications in Britain," the captain replied.

Darjeeling glanced over at Pearce, as his very appearance had confirmed that fact to her. Her uniform, with its blue skirt and jumper, black tie and white shirt, finished by a set of smart shoes, made her appear a British schoolgirl, whilst her counterpart's differed drastically. His attire somewhat resembled that of a British officer from the war. A grey shirt, coupled with a blue tie, could be seen peeking from the collar of his military shirt, which was a darker grey with blue trim. The long coat over the whole ensemble Darjeeling chalked up to personal taste, as none of his counterparts had worn one. Finally, the hefty boots on the cadet's feet completed the appearance of an officer in training.

"Since Wellesley is a military school, am I to assume you receive military instruction, unlike those students who are in civilian education?" she inquired.

"We learn a fairly broad syllabus, although we begin to specialise as we reach degree level. The syllabus also covers basic military training from fitness to weapons and strategy."

"So an education in both the arts of peace and war, correct?"

"Indeed. Those that complete the full course at the academy are expected to be well-rounded individuals and fit to command Her Majesty's soldiers both at home and in the field. This is reflected in our academy's motto, 'if you wish for peace, prepare for war'.

"From the latin, si vis pacem, para bellum?" Darjeeling asked, a glint of amusement in her eye.

"Correct. Quite impressive, Miss Darjeeling, not many would have known that," Pearce replied, his professional demeanour still mostly in place, although the polite conversation threatened to lower his guard. The complete air of innocent polity coming from the St Gloriana girl made him feel a little at ease, and he was struggling to remain entirely detached from the conversation.

"Your school is very intriguing. Tell me, since your academy crafts soldiers, what is its view of tankery?" Darjeeling asked.

"It is to win with both the greatest efficiency and the maximum efficacy."

"I would suppose that befits a military school. I would propose however, that tankery is different to actual battle. It's a sport, not a skirmish, and we can enjoy ourselves to the utmost," Darjeeling said, "Two opponents can honourably battle it out to try and best the other. Is that not a good idea?"

"I would disagree with it. Tankery is a combat exercise. It isn't war, but it uses its machines for a similar purpose. The only difference is lethality," Pearce concluded bluntly, "Those who fight with honour in such battles are often the ones who lose."

Darjeeling frowned. It wasn't much of a frown, more a slight downturn of her lips, but for a woman with such superb control of her emotions, it was a clear statement of displeasure.

"I see we are of different minds on the matter then. Regardless, should you face our academy I will be honoured to fight you."

"Likewise. However, since we are on opposite sides of the tournament bracket, I would assume that the chance of such is lowered. We have Saunders and several other teams standing before us, whilst you have Continuation and Viking standing in your way."

"I will be interested to see how you progress then," Darjeeling said.

The two turned the final corner back to their respective groups, where it appeared almost no progress had been made on fixing the damaged jeep. Liam was sat off to the side whilst his three compatriots tried to assist with the repair work alongside Orange Pekoe. Earl Grey was chatting to John, and it seemed the conversation was flowing well, but John looked distinctly uncomfortable, as he always did around women.

"Sir, we have returned as ordered," Pearce reported.

"Oh, good. What were the results of your expedition?" asked John, looking distinctly relieved at the distraction.

"The mechanics are on the way."

Hart glanced over at Simon, who was assisting Pekoe in fitting a new tyre. The fact that the petite ginger girl looked more at home fixing the vehicle than Simon did made an amusing scene, although Pekoe had yet to comment, instead politely guiding the larger boy in the repair work.

"Simon, how is fitting that tyre coming along?"

"It's going ok, sir," Simon replied, only to drop the wrench he was using on his foot, prompting a loud string of expletives which made his St Gloriana counterpart blush.

"Anna, how about the engine?" Hart enquired, glancing over to where Katherine and Anna were looking into the now lightly smoking engine bay.

"We've diagnosed what was wrong with it, but we don't have the tools to fix it, so they're stuck here till the mechanics show up," Anna reported, neglecting to mention that while she knew what was wrong with the engine, she had no idea how to fix it. That was an engineer's job, not a researcher's.

Hart turned to the eldest girl from St Gloriana.

"I'm sorry we couldn't be of more assistance," he apologised.

"Oh, do not worry yourself, you have been most splendid company while you were here, and you've gone some way towards getting our vehicle roadworthy again. For that we owe you our gratitude," Earl Grey replied.

"No, it was our pleasure," John said.

"Anyway, we have delayed you for long enough. We'll be fine from here, Captain Hart."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course."

"Ok then," John said, "Right cadets, let's move!"

His charges looked up at their instructor and began to troop back to the Kangaroo carrier. Simon said a quick farewell to Pekoe and stood up to move off. Pearce hesitated for a second, before turning to Darjeeling.

"Miss Darjeeling, it has been a pleasure. I must thank you for the pleasant conversation and company. Farewell."

The diminutive cadet turned on his heel and left, clambering up on to Wellesley's personnel carrier and disappearing into the interior. Hart nodded to Simon, who had taken up his position in the driver's seat, and the slow moving APC moved off, headed towards their original objective.

Earl Grey turned to look at her successor, whilst Pekoe was still feverishly working away at their transport.

"They were nice," she said, "Scrupulously polite, courteous, and excellent conversationalists, although Captain Hart seemed a little bit uncomfortable. What about the boy that accompanied you?"

"It seems he takes his career very seriously," Darjeeling said diplomatically.

"Is that not a good thing? He seemed very polite to me, what troubles you about him?"

"I fear we might have a similar case to Maho on our hands. Our school might emphasise being able to control one's emotions, but I think he might have tried to discard his, rather than control them."

"That is interesting," Earl Grey commented, "It seems like this will be an amusing term then."

Shiranuka – Docks – 1510hrs

The team from Wellesley arrived at the docks just as the last of the intact vehicles was being loaded back onto the ship. Leopon team had taken the StuG aside for repairs, and could be seen to the side of the loading area being restored to working order. Anna sighed when she realised she couldn't look over Oarai's tank lineup, spotting the clear absence of AFVs bar the ruined assault gun. A similar lack of students could also be detected, although a few of the Oarai team were still hanging around. Hippo team, insistent on waiting whilst their ride was fixed, were sat near the edge of the dock talking, whilst Anglerfish team were relaxing on the bench they had occupied half an hour prior, Mako, Yukari and Saori having fallen asleep by this point, with Hana and Miho too polite to wake them. Near to where Leopon team were fixing the Assault III, Anteater team were playing games on their handheld consoles.

It was to this scene that Wellesley arrived, the grumble of the engine unnoticed by most. One person however, did take note of the APC, the distinctive sound of the engine reaching Yukari's ears and stirring her from sleep. She bolted awake, looking around for the source of the noise.

"I'd know that sound anywhere! It's a kangaroo carrier!" she exclaimed.

The Wellesley team disembarked from their carrier, Hart staying behind this time. He wanted the cadets to do their own intelligence-gathering and fraternisation. Whilst helping the St Gloriana girls was acceptable, he felt it was a little strange for him to get involved in a talk between the two teams. The cadets split up as they dismounted, Anna and Liam heading over to where Leopon team were working and the others moving towards the girls they recognised from their intelligence meetings, Miho Nishizumi. Pearce had started to gravitate towards Hippo team, but decided not to for the time being. Katherine approached Anglerfish team, deciding to speak first for her classmates.

"Excuse me, are you Miss Miho Nishizumi?" she asked, walking over to the group of girls.

"Er, yes. Might I ask who you are?"

"I'm Katherine Armstrong, and I'm one of the tankery students at Wellesley Military Academy. These are my classmates, Simon Williams and Samuel Pearce. We were hoping to meet the team that won last term's tournament."

Yukari frowned at the last name, wondering where she'd heard it before.

"Most of our team isn't here at the moment," Miho said apologetically, "We finished reloading most of the tanks onto the carrier, so most of them have gone home, but some of us are still around while we finish up. This is my team," she said, gesturing to her friends next to her, of which Saori and Mako were still asleep, "Hana Isuzu, Mako Reizei, Saori Takebe and Yukari Akiyama."

"Our other teammates over there are Anna Rowley and Liam Andrews," Katherine added, pointing to her classmates, who were in conversation with Leopon team, of which all of them bar Nakajima were still repairing the StuG. She then pointed at the Kangaroo carrier, "Our instructor John is over there."

"Have you been doing tankery long?" Miho queried.

"Our academy has been doing tankery for those more senior than us for some time now. It was on our school's initiative that they brought tankery back recently. It seems that there was some interest expressed by previous and current younger students in extending it to all students."

"But why not join a league on your own continent?" Hana asked.

"After an unfortunate incident a few years ago between a visiting Japanese school and a German school the European Tankery League shut down its branch for 16-18 year olds, with the US swiftly following suit. Apparently some considered the match a demonstration of the dangers of the sport and its potential for violence. Our school and three like it have entered this competition as a trial group to see if the ban should be lifted," Simon interjected.

Hana nodded, her curiosity sated. Miho on the other hand, looked quite depressed at hearing Simon's explanation. She remembered the match to which he was referring, in which units under her sister's command had fired on opponents who were trying to rescue some of Maho's team members.

"I have a question about how you fought the match we just watched," Pearce stated.

Miho nodded at him to go ahead.

"Your command style seemed far less fluid than of any other matches I have watched prior. Did you underestimate your opponent, or as our teacher believes, delegate command to a subordinate?"

"The latter. We let Azusa, the commander of our M3 Lee take over from me so she could get experience of command."

"A sensible decision, but would it not have been better to do so in a practice match?"

"I had faith that she would do well," Miho declared, "Anyway, winning isn't everything. We want to win, but we can accept defeat."

Pearce declined to comment. Yukari on the other hand had a moment of inspiration, and remembered exactly what she knew about Pearce.

"Now I remember! You gave Miss Erwin her hat!" she exclaimed.

Pearce inwardly cursed as four sets of eyes swivelled towards the group from the far side of the dock. The four people he had deliberately not gone and talked to when they arrived. At least one of those pairs of eyes was looking at him in a hostile fashion too, with Saemonza looking eminently displeased at his presence. None of Hippo team made to move, as Erwin had not yet shifted from her position, but they continued to watch Pearce intently. The blonde-haired history lover looked at her acquaintance with an appraising eye.

Katherine, Miho, Hana and Simon continued their polite conversation, but Yukari watched the cadet captain closely. His impartial expression was still present, but his eyes had slipped down towards his shoes and his head was no longer held high. To Pearce, it felt like the years before he joined Wellesley, with people looking at him with hostile intent. Yukari looked straight into his eyes, discerning the dead look in them easily.

'That look…. It's like the one I wore before I met my friends…' she thought.

Noticing that the brown-haired tank enthusiast was watching him intently, Sam made a conscious effort to ignore the stares of Hippo team and stood straight again, returning to his clear, focused and disinterested look. He couldn't afford to show weakness in front of these people. Yukari watched Pearce drop a mask back over his feelings with a sense of sadness.

'It seems his outer character is something of an act, but I can't tell why he'd do that," she thought, 'Maybe I should ask Miss Erwin later.'

Pearce decided to break the silence between the two of them.

"Miss Nishizumi said you were one of her crew members."

"Yes, Yukari Akiyama. You're Pearce, right?"

"Correct. Might I ask what role you fulfil in the crew of your tank?" he said politely.

Yukari recognised the somewhat forced nature of Pearce's questions, but played along.

"I'm the loader in our crew," she replied, "I also know you're the team leader for your academy because we watched your friendly match with Kutusov."

"Oh really?" the bespectacled cadet responded, pushing his glasses up his nose, looking mildly curious for the first time in the conversation, "And what were your opinions on the match?"

"I thought your use of terrain was sensible, but potentially risky. Your team could have been surrounded. Also, leaving the M10 on its own just to get an opportunity to take their flag tank out was unnecessary. You could have pulled them back."

Pearce inwardly reflected on this. This was only one of several times his decision in that match had been questioned and by completely different people as well. He dismissed the thought.

"It was the simplest way to win," he countered, "There was no need to overcomplicate things."

"But what about your friends?" Yukari asked, "Do you care nothing for them?"

"I have colleagues, not friends. They know the risks of combat," Pearce said resolutely.

"That's terrible! Isn't the sign of a good commander that they protect their men?"

By this point, Yukari's voice had been steadily rising, and had garnered the attention of Hippo team once more, and they were now listening intently to the back and forth between the cadet and the tank enthusiast.

"No. A good commander wins the battle, striving to minimise casualties but accepting their inevitability."

"Tankery isn't war," Yukari protested, "You aren't fighting for your country here, so why fight as if you are? There's no basis for it."

"Tankery is a replacement for war, and must hence be taken just as seriously," Pearce continued, missing the movement of Hippo team towards the arguing pair, "Tankery may just be a sport for you, but have you ever considered what it does? It trains you for battle and gives you an understanding of tactics and teamwork. Tankery is merely the polite version of warfare nowadays, another way of proving prowess."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Both myself and my colleagues are members of a military academy, where we are taught to lead troops into battle, coordinate forces and guarantee the safety of our nation. By participating in tankery, we are displaying military skills that could quite easily be used in an actual battle. And there is no room for sentiment in an actual battle, something your commander would do well to heed."

"Hey! Don't talk about Miss Nishizumi like that!" Yukari shouted back indignantly, failing to realise that by this point, everyone in the immediate area was looking at them.

"I'm not disparaging her evidently good nature, I'm offering advice."

"Yeah, well it's not welcome," Saemonza interjected, "We won last year without thinking like you, so don't tell us how to fight."

Pearce turned towards the source of the interruption, but his eyes locked with Erwin's as he pivoted on the spot. Choosing not the respond to the other Hippo team member for the time being, Pearce asked one question of Erwin, in a voice far less confident that usual.

"Did you mean it?" he asked, the question coming out quiet.

Erwin looked dumbfounded for a second, before processing the question. When she finally responded, it was with a pained look on her face.

"I missed my friend. But you're not the same Sam I knew. You're dismissive, cold and harsh. I'm sorry, but I missed the old Sam Pearce."

The cadet froze on the spot. A number of emotions churned within him, but he dismissed them all quickly, lest the wave of sadness he felt overwhelm him, and any anger he had be snuffed out by melancholy. He looked back into the brown eyes of his former friend, trying to convey his feelings via eye contact alone. The look on Erwin's face gave away that she picked up on some of it, but Pearce was unprepared to discuss their personal issues in an open space.

"I see. Well then, I apologise if I have offended any of you. Good day," Pearce replied curtly, turning on his heel and heading for the carrier.

The Wellesley team gave hasty apologies, the mood now thoroughly ruined, and hurried off to their transport. The Oarai girls looked at each other as the APC moved off, saying nothing until Nakajima decided to break the tension.

"We finished fixing the StuG, so we can get back on the carrier now if you want."

"Definitely."

"Yep."

Hertfordshire, England – 1510hrs, British Standard Time

The noise of a radio grew steadily louder as the woman approached the door to the study, her smart shoes making a staccato beat on the hardwood flooring. She walked carefully, making sure to keep the tea cups that she had in both hands level, avoiding spilling them on her business-like suit. She opened the door to the room, where a man sat in a high-backed leather chair, reading a broadsheet newspaper. The man was short, dressed in a well-cut suit, severe in visage and greying at the temples. The woman had faint hints of grey in her auburn hair, which was done up in a bun at the back, and stood slightly taller than the man. She placed the cups of tea down on the large desk at which the man was seated, careful to put them on place mats, and seated herself in one of the comfortable chairs about the room. As she did so, the man switched off the radio and neatly placed his newspaper down on the desk.

"Well dear, I think I may have found a solution to our little problem," he said, sipping his tea carefully and directing a small smile at his wife.

"Intriguing," she replied, "I'm keen to know more about how you propose to do this."

"You remember what the school board told us last time?" he asked, eliciting a nod from the woman.

"We can only remove our child from the school either with the child's consent or if they fail a class in the school. I fail to see where this is going, James."

"Well, I was watching the sports news earlier, and it seems that there have been a number of military academies joining the Japanese Tankery League, as part of an experiment regarding the safety of the competition. I rang Professor Kazahana, you remember him right? The technology chair on the tankery board?"

"He was quite a nice man. A little too into his research, but I suppose his dedication was admirable. It's a pity our research partnership with him didn't last too long; we were so close to a breakthrough too."

Her husband nodded, taking a sip of his tea.

"Kazahana confirmed the news to me, and told me where I could watch them. So yesterday, I watched one of the matches on playback, and you'll never guess who's in the team."

"It's not…" the woman asked hesitantly, "It can't be Sam, can it?"

"Oh yes, Emma. Our son is competing."

"What do we do? It's bad enough he's at that school, but playing around in a tank, the thought is horrifying! James, please tell me you have a plan."

Almost by reflex, Mrs Pearce turned to look at a large cabinet set into the corner of the room. It had no fewer than seven pictures in it, some older, some more recent, each displaying a man or woman attired proudly in military uniform. A profusion of medals were displayed in cases underneath the pictures.

"Don't worry dear. I rang Professor Kazahana again, and he put me in contact with this lovely lady, who's apparently very well connected in the Tankery world, said she might be able to help. Apparently she knows a lot about rebellious children."

"What's her name?"

"Shiho Nishizumi."

End of Chapter

Finished! Yay! You have no idea how much time I've had to cut and rearrange in my days just to get time to write this.

I've had several guest reviews recently on various chapters, and I thought I'd answer them here. On the plus side, I'm getting more reviews! (Although more detailed ones would be appreciated) Usually, if you aren't a guest, and leave a well thought-out review, I like to answer them personally in PMs, because I like having helpful contributors.

Some guy 6374938: I'm well aware that the Anteater team play an online tank game. Since your review was on chapter 2 I'm guessing you haven't read much further, but I do make reference to it. I also thought I would expand on it and make their tank gaming more of a general gaming addiction, because that gives me more dialogue scope.

Dh253: The original specs for the Porsche are 100mm of front plate, but you are right. After conferring with my advisers (read some guys I know who really know their shit on tanks), it has been pointed out to me that many of my tanks have already been modded, so why not? I hope what I put into this chapter answers your request. (A/N: I don't do silly requests, only those that are sensible and fit with my story)

SumDumGuy: You told me that the M10 was the Wolverine, not the Achilles. While the original M10 in America was the Wolverine, M10 is the short designation for the Achilles. Kindly direct your attention to this spotlight on the Achilles (below).

Tank Spotlight

The 17-pdr SP M10 Achilles Tank Destroyer (Designated by QF Ordnance Board)

Throughout World War Two, American armour doctrine dictated the necessity of using fast, lightly-armoured vehicles with powerful anti-tank guns as a counter to enemy tanks, rather than, as almost every other nation did, armouring up their biggest guns. The net result of this yielded the M10 Wolverine in 1942. The first of a line of tank destroyers, the M10 was a fast, manoeuvrable tank with a 76mm gun, but low armour thickness. The Wolverine provided a kick to American armour forces, and operated alongside infantry support tanks like the Sherman to take out German AFVs in various theatres. It was first deployed to North Africa with American forces working in concert with British troops.

However, after encountering the German armour in the desert, particularly the infamous Tiger tank, British forces realised the inadequacy of allied firepower against such heavily armoured machines. To solve this, when the M10 became available to British forces, they began a conversion project, similar to the creation of the Sherman Firefly. The tank was refitted with a 17 pounder anti-tank gun and a counterweight on the back of the turret, enabling the tank to take on the heaviest of German armour at distance. Further modifications included a roof-kit to the otherwise open-topped M10, and slightly increased armour plating to the front of the vehicle. The resulting conversion was dubbed the 17pounder Self-Propelled M10 'Achilles', although the designation of Achilles became fixed more to the tank after the war.

Number built – 1100

Crew: 5

Armour: up to 57mm thick (sloped)

Weight: 29.6 tonnes

Armament: QF Ordnance 17 pounder (76.2mm)

Wellesley Royal Military Academy possesses at least one of these fearsome machines, and the one used by its Tankery team is crewed by a team under Christopher Taylor.

AMV of the chapter – Girls und Panzer – Light My Fire AMV by CrazyKarlosonStudio – Quite simply a really well edited piece with lots of tanks and some nicely selected music too.

Second Shout-out – My correspondent, Mr L.W. Kilroy, who has been known to make a youtube video or too on his channel of the same name, has opened a deviantart account. Go and give and them some love please!

That's all from me this time round. Expect more at some point (I have no idea when, maybe 3 or so weeks). See ya!