Chapter 14: The Marmota, and Jaeger's Final Battle
Response to reviews:
-Well, I do try my best to make Damon a real ass. After all, Richard did try to screw him over mentally, and the only reason Richard didn't get shot through the head, was because Squad 7 would be witnesses, and that said squad managed to take back Ghirlandaio for his own wishes.
-Actually, now that I read it... I feel like a utter moron for not realising it. I might actually have a small epilogue chapter at the end of the VC2 arc, where Richard and the others get to witness the childbirth of Welkin's and Alicia's child.
-Not truly, if Squad 7 testifies that the soldiers had no clue about Selvaria's true intentions to start with, so they cannot be held accountable for the actions of their superior, since they weren't the ones who carried the bombing out, only Selvaria herself. Besides, she DID surrender, truly to the word, and no-one knows how that damn explosion happened. Kinda hard to incite perfidy, when you don't even know who's responsible for it. It's a matter that Selvaria picked her words carefully. She stated that the army are free to do what they wish unto her.
-Well, Welkin's a little too cosy with the enemy, but thankfully, Richard and his friends are here to make him realise he's being a little hypocritical and exaggerating at this point, and make him realise that he doesn't need to bend himself backwards for the well-being of his enemy.
In a deep canyon ridge, within the Kloden Wildwoods...
Deployed Team: Edelweiss, Shamrock, Rain, Vyse, Aika, Rosie, Largo, Alicia, Remi, Mari, Sally, Gus
Alicia and Gus looked through their binoculars, as they looked for any signs of the Empire's land-based battleship, the Marmota, while the others were preparing themselves for combat, stocking themselves full of ammunition for battle, being in a temporary camp that they have made.
"...So let's go over the operation once again." Welkin stated to everyone, holding the area map, as he traced various routes on the map. "We will start our operation at this very place. The Marmota is expected to arrive from north-side, advancing south towards Randgriz. We are tasked with directing the path of the Marmota towards the marked path, luring it into a ambush filled with anti-tank mines and the Randgriz Royal Guard."
"But how will we divert that damn thing, Welkin?" Vyse complained. "That thing won't even be scratched by even the best of our lances right now. So how do we expect to do anything to it...!?"
"The Captain informed us that the area has been set up with large-range explosives. We will use these to our advantage, both in slowing its advance, and blocking off all possible routes ahead." Welkin explained. "The explosives are shock-triggered, so a gunshot will set them off. There's a decent period between the trigger and the detonation time, enough to allow all of us to move out of its range. If we can use the canyon's rock debris to our advantage, then we can do this."
"Welkin! It's here!" Alicia remarked, as she immediately pointed forward, as everyone saw the Marmota in the distance. As Varrot told them it looked like a large battleship, with a flat surface on the bottom. It was loaded all around with armoured cannons and turrets, as well as large main cannons on the front of the mobile fortress. On top of it was a large ship bridge, where the moving mega-weapon was controlled.
"So that's it, huh? They weren't kidding with that battleship stuff." Largo commented with surprise.
"Remember, our mission is just to lead it along. Avoid combat with it, and avoid any gunfire it launches towards all of you." Welkin stated. "And although I know that you may all be aware of this, but keep your distance from it, always! It may be quite slow compared to the massive tank we fought before, but that's no excuse to underestimate its mobility. If you get run over, then there won't be anything left of you to save!"
"R-Roger that." Sanae remarked, with a gulp, considering the size of the Marmota.
"Alright squad, we have to divert that monster away from the capital! Move out!" Welkin commanded, as he immediately entered the Edelweiss, as the squad comms crackled on. "Alright, everyone make your advance, but slowly. We don't know what could lie ahead."
Everyone immediately advanced down the pathway, before they reached a fork, where they saw Imperial soldiers nearby.
"Damn... They really prepared for this sort of thing..." Rosie cursed, as she immediately slammed a full clip into her weapon. "What's your move?"
"We will need to deal with them, along with triggering the explosives." Welkin responded back. "I do believe that there are two nearby. So make sure that you trigger them before we continue advancing."
"Got that." Rosie stated, as she immediately rushed towards the Imperial soldiers, pushing through the gunfire coming her way, and then firing at them. "See if you can handle this!"
The returning gunfire managed to take out the Imperial stormtrooper, before Sanae made her way forward, as she noticed a explosive in her sight. She immediately fired a shot at it, as the ragnite explosives immediately lit on, as the blue glow seemed to pulsate slowly. Gus activated the other explosive, while the others immediately continued on, taking positions to intercept any enemies that could come into their view.
After a few moments of waiting, Imperial lancers immediately made their way, expecting to get clear shots of either the Edelweiss or the Shamrock, although they were shot down by the squad's foot-soldiers, as the massive combined barrage of gunfire took them down before they could even aim their lances.
Behind them, the Marmota managed to get closer to the temporary base that the squad set, as the ragnite explosives began to flash erratically, before they exploded with such force, that most of the cliffside was torn off, broken into very large rubble piles. One obstructed the path ahead, while the other was in the path of the Marmota, as a impediment in its path.
"Good, that should buy us some time, at the least." Welkin stated, as everyone immediately began advancing, before they were stopped by the sight of a Imperial minefield, set within the base before them, as it was filled to every square inch with anti-personnel mines, as well as some anti-tank mines added to the mix. "...A minefield...!? At this point? We need to find a way to get past this... Sally-"
"Nuh uh, no way. I can't defuse that many mines in such a short period of time, Welkin." Sanae refused. "However, I don't think the anti-personnel mines can harm either the Shamrock or the Edelweiss, so we can drive over the anti-personnel mines, to clear the path for the rest of us, and allow me to deal with the anti-tank mines for the rest of you."
"You're right on that... I don't expect you to do this much..." Welkin agreed with a worried tone. "Alright, hop on either tank, and we'll drive you to where the anti-tank mines are."
"Alright, I'll ride on yours, Welkin." Sanae nodded, as she immediately climbed onto the Edelweiss. "Please hurry, the sooner we can get past here, the more time we can prepare for the potential enemies ahead."
"More bad guys? I'll do my best!" Aisha remarked, as she was still the Edelweiss's gunner.
The Edelweiss immediately drove over the swarm of anti-personnel mines, as they went off one by one under the treads of the tank, causing the tank to wobble and shake violently, startling both Sanae and Aisha, as they were pushed up a bit with each explosion. After making a path forward, while the others closely followed the Edelweiss from behind, using the cleared path through the minefield, the tank stopped in front of several anti-tank mines that barred the path forward."
"Righty-then." Sanae stated, before she hopped off the Edelweiss, and pulled out her disarming tools. "Time for me to take care of this small problem-"
"Miss Sally, look out!" Aisha cried out, as Sanae whipped around to see a Imperial stormtrooper preparing to fire at her.
Sanae immediately ducked down, as Aisha swivelled the MG towards the Imperial soldier, and gunned them down.
"You alright?" Aisha asked, concerned about Sanae's safety.
"T-Thanks, Aisha. I'm just grateful that you managed to save me." Sanae remarked, as she immediately started working on the landmines. "I'll just get this done right now."
"Hehe~ You're welcome!" Aisha giggled behind her armoured turret.
Gus watched at the Marmota advanced through the base, as it stopped right in front of the rockslide that the squad created with one of the explosives before.
"It stopped... Our plan is working..." Gus remarked.
"I'm glad it is. Let's get moving, before it takes care of that." Welkin stated, as the last of the obstructing anti-tank mines were disarmed by Sanae, who hopped back onto the tank, as it continued its way forward.
Suddenly, the sound of whistling mortars rang through everyone's ears, as it warned them about the impending attack in their way.
"Everyone move, now!" Largo shouted, as everyone immediately sprinted out of the minefield, weaving through the remaining mines at their feet, before several mortar shells hit several parts of the minefield, causing a huge explosion, boosted by the secondary explosions of the triggered mines.
"Thankfully, we weren't in there. If the mortar explosion didn't do us in..." Marisa remarked. "Then the mines after that would... The entire minefield is basically a 'hit me' spot for large explosives like that, because if even a single mortar hits a mine, then the entire field goes up in explosions... It would be a miracle if even tanks could handle that much..."
Welkin then looked through the periscope, as he saw that there was another fork in the road, and that one of the paths was being guarded by Imperial soldiers, led by a Imperial squad leader, evident from their red armour.
"There's another fork ahead. Just on the right is the path where the ambush is set! We just need to block off the left path, and clear out the enemies on the right path, and our operation will be complete!" Welkin shouted to everyone.
"Got it. Mari, shall we?" Richard stated, as he turned to Marisa.
"Yeah, let's show them who they're dealing with! We're Squad 7, and we are specialised at mowing down all that the enemy can throw at us!" Marisa grinned, as she raised her Petard, before switching it into the semi-auto firing mode.
"I'll take care of the ragnite explosives, Welkin." Reisen said, as she immediately used the Tornerre to activate both sets of explosives on the left path, ensuring that the path would be heavily blocked by debris in time. "It's done."
Richard and Marisa immediately made their way forward, as they immediately fired at the enemies ahead, which only consisted of lancers, and a sniper, as well as said squad leader. The ripping gunfire from the Victorie in Richard's hands, and the devastating salvo of mini-rockets, was all it took to take down the small Imperial squad trying to block their path.
"All done here as well, Welkin. Path ahead is clear." Richard reported back to Welkin.
"Then that should be operation complete! The dreadnought should have no choice but to follow the path that we have set our trap at." Welkin stated. "We need to prepare for any battles that may follow. If we can disable its mobility with the minefield... Then we can initiate a boarding attack on top of the Marmota, and reclaim it."
"Well, guess we'll have some time to prepare, until we see what our results have netted us." Zaka added as well.
Everyone immediately continued their way down, where they were met by the sight of the Randgriz Royal Guard, who lined up a entire platoon of tanks on the other side of the massive and long minefield set ahead. One of the Royal guard members, seeing the group approaching, immediately gestured to them.
"Over here! You can make your way across the minefield around this path!" The royal guard called out, pointing to a small passage that was devoid of any mines, just big enough for a tank to go through.
"Thanks for the information. We managed to divert the Marmota to this path." Richard responded back. "Be ready for it, because it's coming hot behind us!"
The entirety of Squad 7 immediately made their way through the safe passage, where they found themselves far behind the Royal Guard's ambush, right in the open field.
"Well, that should take care of that..." Vyse stated. "Surely, that thing can't possibly handle a hell lot of tanks whaling onto it, as well as thousands upon thousands of mines being detonated under its treads, right?"
"Oh, I'm sure that this should be it for that thing! Together with Vyse baby, and all of us, there's nothing that we can't handle!" Aika remarked.
The Marmota then came into view, as the Royal Guard's tank immediately started firing, as well as the multitude of small explosions occurring under it. However, despite the overwhelming firepower directed at it, the Marmota didn't even seem to take any form of damage, as the tank shells exploded on it, only to reveal mere scorch marks from the flare of the explosions, and the Marmota hasn't even been slowed at all by the large minefield.
"What the...!?" Vyse stated. "That thing... That thing can take that much punishment, and shrug it off!? What is this thing made of!?"
Suddenly, the armoured cannons on the side of the Marmota immediately whirred around to face the tank squad, as they then fired in rapid succession, as they tore the tank battalion, the very ambush, before the very eyes of Squad 7, who were shocked beyond belief.
"Would you look at that... We're raining cannonballs on that thing, and it ain't even flinching. There goes the Royal Guard's tanks..." Largo remarked with a bitter tone, before he sighed deeply. "We gotta have some way to place a dent onto that thing..."
Alicia looked at the Marmota with fearful eyes, as she watched it plowed through the wrecks of the Royal Guard tanks, with not even enough damage to state that the ambush even had any effect, as she bit her lip, holding back any feelings of hopelessness and horror at the events transpiring before her.
"And now it's pretty much clear of the gully." Rosie hissed. "Well boss, what's your plan now? We don't have any-one to support us out here..."
Welkin was left speechless, as he didn't know what to say.
"No wonder of nature up your sleeve to fix this one, Lieutenant?" Rosie asked with a irritated tone. "Come on, we're at the brink of destruction here! Surely you must have some way to take this thing out!"
"Rosie, calm down!" Richard shouted. "Welkin is troubled as it is! We need to fall back further, and try to contact the Captain for another plan-"
Before Richard could continue, Alicia immediately rushed towards the Edelweiss, as she parkoured on top of the tank,before dragging Welkin out.
"Alicia, what are you doing-" Welkin tried to ask, before he was forced out of the tank. "Argh!"
"Alicia, what in the hell are you doing...!?" Rosie exclaimed.
Alicia didn't respond, as she dropped down inside the tank, as Isara's startled cries could be heard, muffled through the tank's hull, before she then came out, holding the Valkyrian lance and shield in her hands, with a determined yet frantic expression on her face.
"Alicia... You're not planning on taking this thing as a Valkyria... right..!?" Gus exclaimed. "Even with that, you can't possibly beat it alone...!"
"Forgive me..." Alicia whispered quietly, before she then summoned up her Valkyria aura, as her eyes turned red and her hair turned white once again, before she darted off the battlefield quickly.
"Alicia... Damnit, I never thought that she was frantic enough to pull off a suicidal plan..." Zaka muttered with concern in his voice. "Someone needs to get her back, before she does anything stupid!"
Richard immediately turned to Welkin, who got up, groaning from falling from the top of the Edelweiss. He then walked over with a appalled expression.
"Welkin... Why is Alicia's lance and shield in the tank...? Why the hell did you bring them...!?" Richard demanded, as his voice became more and more shaky.
"Alicia told me that she needed them... in case that we would have to deal with the Marmota, if the plan fails..." Welkin stated. "But I never thought that she could be so desperate for it... She must be insane, if she is going to fight it alone!"
Richard's expression turned into one of pure disbelief, before he then whacked Welkin on the side of his head with the Victorie. Welkin looked up to him with a stunned expression, as Richard's teeth were grit in anger.
"Welkin, you goddamn idiot!" Richard shouted. "She's not even planning to fight it! She's going to literally pull what Selvaria did, and use her Valkyrian flame to vaporise the Marmota with her!"
"What...!?" Welkin exclaimed with pure horror and fear.
Richard immediately turned around, before he threw the Victorie on the ground, before pulling out the shield, as he mustered up enough of his strength to trigger a partial transformation, as his eyes turned golden, and the shield glowed slightly in his hands.
"Hey, wait, where are you going, Rain!? Don't tell me you plan to-" Largo shouted to him.
"I don't have time to talk! I'm stopping Alicia before she even gets the chance to do so!" Richard roared back, before he then charged after Alicia, with much more speed from his transformation. "Alicia! Stop! STOP!"
Welkin slowly got up, before he then charged after Alicia as well, shouting Alicia's name repeatedly and loudly, as everyone was surprised.
"Boss, not you too! Get back here, now-" Largo was about to bellow, before someone placed a firm hand on his shoulder, stopping him, as it was Reisen herself.
"No, let Rain and Welkin go." She stated coolly. "Right now, Alicia needs someone to comfort her and make her realise that she has value in this world... The reason she's willing to gamble her life to take down the Marmota, is because she can't bear to live with her Valkyrian powers..."
"What the... Are you serious!?" Largo exclaimed.
"I don't lie, Largo." Reisen stated. "I can see it in her eyes."
"Damn..." Largo stated, as he looked at the two males running after Alicia. "So we can only wait for all of this to happen...?"
Alicia immediately made her way near the moving Marmota, before she stopped with a solemn look on her face.
"Forgive me, Welkin..." Alicia muttered, as her voice was layered from her power making a faint echo. "I shouldn't have left. Not without saying goodbye to you first... I've been thinking this whole time, Welkin. Wondering why I was born like I am, a Valkyria, like Selvaria... If only I weren't a Valkyria, things would be just like they were before, wouldn't they?"
She then clenched the lance in her hands, as her eyes hardened. "But no, that is one way. But I have found another. I know how I can give my life as a Valkyria meaning. I can use my power, to stop this thing once and for all. I'll stoke my life's fire into a furious blaze! I'll save you, I'll save Bruhl, my friends, and everyone else in Gallia! Even if it takes my life in the process!"
She then raised her lance, before she then charged at the Marmota at full speed, as it immediately directed its mounted cannons towards Alicia, who used the shield to weather the blasts aimed at her. Richard also managed to make his way through the cannon blasts with his shield, although it had left him with increasingly worse wounds, as the shrapnel from the blasts tore through his body. Welkin, who was not amidst the explosions, was merely blown away by the force, onto the ground, before he got up again, and continued pursuing Alicia.
"I am Valkyria..." Alicia stated calmly, before she then cocked the arm with her lance back. "But I never wanted this! I NEVER WANTED THIS!"
At that cry, she threw her lance straight onwards, as it soared through the air straight like a dart, as it had a blue trail following after it, and the colour of the streaks it made cutting through the air were pure blue. It pierced through the side of the Marmota, before the penetrated hold exploded in a large plume of fire and smoke, as it slowed down considerably, from the severe damage dealt to a section of it.
"I am Valkyria... not a woman... No... that life has ended." Alicia muttered to herself. "Alicia Melchiott is dead. And soon, so shall I..."
She immediately walked forward, as her blue aura immediately flared up, as it turned into a massive ethereal flame that engulfed her entire body, relentlessly walking forward willingly into her own demise, which she chose for herself.
However, before she could move any further, she was tackled from behind by Richard, who knocked her down onto the ground, dispelling the growing blue aura of flames that she was building up.
"Alicia! Stop this! Now!" Richard shouted, as he slowly got up. "You can't do this!"
"Rain... Why are you here? Leave...!" Alicia stated. "I'm destroying the Marmota! Only I can do it."
"And who would allow it!?" Richard yelled back, throwing his arm out in pure outrage. "I'm not letting you do this, Alicia!"
"I'm one life! My death could save a whole country!" Alicia argued back. "So please, let me finish my final duty and-"
Before she could continue, Richard back-handed her across the face with the back of her hand, cutting her off mid-sentence, as she clutched her face. She then looked back at Richard, whose expression was both sorrowful and rage-filled.
"Shut up... You're not just one life anymore..." Richard growled back in a low voice. "You're Alicia Melchiott... Officer of Squad 7, of the Gallian Militia's Third Regiment... The saviour of Bruhl, and Welkin's only love in this world. You can't just die like that, because what will the people who care about you do, if you sacrificed yourself for such a hollow victory!?"
"Rain, I... I can't..." Alicia stated. "Valkyrian blood runs in my veins... And you too... You too possess that power inherited from the Darcsens... You must understand, we're not human like Welkin and the others are... But at least you aren't known for being ones with destructive powers beyond measure, to the point that people worship or fear you like some sort of vengeful deity... I cannot bear this... I can't... I can't..."
Alicia began to cry, before Richard clenched his fists, before he then grabbed both of Alicia's shoulders forcefully, making her look at him.
"So what... So what if you're a Valkyria..." Richard responded back softly, before he raised his voice afterwards. "That doesn't the damn fact that you're still Alicia Melchiott! You can't run away from being Alicia, no matter what kind of power you have, so stop acting like that you hate yourself, because of what you are! That's just pure damn cowardice, Alicia! Running from yourself is the most pathetic thing I have ever seen! Look at me, Alicia! I have the very same powers of destruction I do, but do you see me agonising about the strength given to me!? I'm a monstrosity in the eyes of every single person in Europa, should they know about what I am! I'd become the antithesis of this very land!"
"Rain, I..." Alicia tried to say, although her voice was cracking up, as she was moved by Richard's words.
Richard then lowered his head, as his voice lowered once again.
"Alicia... You're not a monster. Remember what I told you before in Naggiar...? Power is only a resource that is controlled by others." Richard responded back with a firm tone. "Just because you have all this power, doesn't mean that your only choice is to use it for destruction like this. Even though the only times that a Valkyria is of use, is on the battlefield, but that doesn't mean that you can't change yourself. You don't need to shed either your life or your power, just to be Alicia. Alicia the Valkyria, and Melchiott of Squad 7 can either be two people, or a single person, depending on what you choose. Either way, you're still the kind-hearted and idealistic woman that Welkin came to love... You deserve a future like all of us, no matter what happens. You are Alicia, and you always will be, not some Valkyrian deity."
"I... I..." Alicia tried to say, before she then broke down into tears in front of Richard, as Richard then held her close.
"It's alright... You've been through so much, so you deserved better than all of this." Richard soothed Alicia, before Welkin came running over, as he saw Alicia crying.
"Is she..." Welkin asked.
"She's broken down into tears, Welkin. Looks like it's time for you to work your magic on her." Richard responded back. "Come on, show me that you can fix her broken heart."
"Rain... Thank you." Welkin thanked Richard, as the latter let go of Alicia, allowing her to walk up to Welkin with raw eyes from the crying.
"Welkin... I..." Alicia sniffled back
"You're right. It's true that you have powers that we don't have." Welkin told her firmly. "But so what? You're still yourself, Alicia. Kind, bright, a future baker. Alicia, has any of that changed, even after you have became Valkyria? You may be Valkyria, but you're still the same girl I met back then. I can tell that from how much you care about all of us. You mean so much to me, Alicia. I will not let you come to harm, just like this... I will protect you, because I can't bear to let you do this to yourself... I love you, Alicia... and I always did..."
Alicia was stunned, as she gasped softly, before Welkin pulled out a flower with a long stem, before then tied it into a small ring.
"Alicia, once this war is finished, will you be with me?" Welkin asked back, as he placed the ring over her gloved finger. "I would be with you, together. Always..."
Alicia looked at the ring, as tears began to flow from her eyes again, except it wasn't from sorrow or pain, but instead joy, as she smiled back. "Yes, always..." Alicia replied back, before she then walked towards Welkin.
Welkin, knowing what she wanted, immediately pressed forward, as both of their lips touched softly together, as they embraced themselves in a firm kiss, as the blue flames of Alicia's aura wrapped around both of them, although not harming them, as they spiralled into the sky, before they dissolved into a shower of green particles that surprised Richard.
"Woah..." Richard muttered with awe, as he looked at the rain of energy surrounding him, as he immediately dispelled his partial transformation, as his eyes and shield dulled back into their original colours.
Welkin and Alicia then separated from each other, as they gazed into each other's eyes with affection and new-found love, before they were interrupted.
"Whoa! You're making me blush here!" Largo remarked, as the budding couple turned around to see that the rest of Squad 7 saw all of that, and got closer to the action. "But uh, you sure that's wise? You know, this being a combat zone and all?"
"Largo, you big lout!" Sanae sharply cried out, smacking Largo on the back of his head. "Let them have their moment!"
"Uh, hey..." Welkin stated back with a sheepish tone, and slight blush on his cheeks.
"Aww, they look so cute together~" Aika swooned with a dreamy smile on her face. "I can only hope that we could have the same kind of love between us, Vyse baby."
"Yeah, gotta say that I kind of like this confession. Just the right between cool and romantic!" Vyse grinned, with a thumbs-up to Welkin and Alicia.
"I'm so proud of you both, Welks." Isara warmly congratulated both Welkin and Alicia, on having made their love blossom beautifully in those moments.
"Is..." Welkin muttered, before he blushed much harder, as he turned around to hide his red blush, while Alicia was slightly flustered, blushing just as hard.
"Alicia, welcome back." Rosie greeted Alicia, as she gave off a warm smile.
"Thank you... all of you! I missed you so!" Alicia cried, as she was then embraced by Sanae.
"You're welcome, Alicia. We're just glad that you didn't do anything rash to yourself..." Sanae stated back.
"Um, you dropped this on the way, boss." Largo stated, before handing the blue officer beret that he wore, as Welkin immediately took it.
"So, orders now, Welkin? Should we go after that thing?" Richard asked Welkin with a smirk on his face.
"We go to hunt the Marmota. We'll head straight for Randgriz." Welkin stated his orders to the squad. "All right, everyone! Let's get moving!"
"Right then, you heard Welkin! On we go!" Richard exclaimed back, raising his shield up, as everyone let out a cry in response.
The following night, on the way to Vasel...
While the rest of the squad made camp in the area, and have laid themselves to rest, Welkin was still wide awake, as he was making his way silently through camp, before he then stopped at the campfire, that was still lit, as Richard was sitting there, on the ground
"Rain... You said that you wanted to talk to me alone..." Welkin told Richard. "What is it...?"
Richard didn't say anything, before he waited for Welkin to sit down as well, before he then spoke.
"Welkin, we need to talk. And I expect you to take everything I am going to say seriously. I don't care what you have to say in return..." Richard responded back with a stoic expression. "But I've left all of this unsaid for too long. And the last straw is what Alicia did."
"...What are you talking about...?" Welkin asked, as his tone turned dead serious.
"Exactly what you're expecting." Richard answered back, as he leaned forward in the fire. "We need to talk about the fact why you abstained Alicia from using her Valkyrian powers, and yet, you still brought her lance and shield. That kind of thing is quite questionable, if not suspicious, is it not?"
Welkin's response was only silence, before Richard then sighed.
"Don't get me wrong. I believe your reason, but I believed that there was something deeper in the meaning." Richard stated. "But still, if you never wanted Alicia to turn into a Valkyria... Then why did you even bother keeping the lance and shield then? She can't transform if she lacks the weapons. The same case might apply for me, but I'm not testing it out in front of prying eyes."
"...I don't even know, Rain. I truly don't know..." Welkin stated back with a low voice. "I knew that there would be a time that Alicia's powers as a Valkyria would be called into action again, and I..."
"What?" Richard asked firmly. "What would you do in this kind of case?"
"...If it was Alicia's choice, to use her power, then I would still object her actions, but I know that what Faldio told me back then was right to a point..." Welkin remarked back. "And what you said then was true as well. Selvaria couldn't be defeated as a Valkyria, unless it was by the hand of a equivalent force. I knew that you would have taken Alicia's place in the battle of Naggiar, had Alicia not been gravely wound to awaken her powers... While I spent the time in solitary confinement, I came to reflect my actions... Perhaps I was being a little hypocritical myself, because Faldio did what I could never do, because he knew that I wouldn't be able to do such a thing, even if it killed me. So I let him do it for me, and I blamed it on him fully, because I couldn't bear my own squad being used for such things. Perhaps, there are times where her power is the only way to resolve a conflict, for the sake of everyone."
"And now you understand, Welkin. Just because you refuse to accept it, doesn't mean that it will simply just disappear." Richard nodded gently. "Alicia was born as a Valkyrur descendant, fully unaware of the fact, until the recent events... I know it hurts to say, but using her power is the key to bringing this futile war to a close."
"What do you mean... If you're telling me that she should-" Welkin was about to fume back, before Richard raised a hand to stop him.
"Stop there, Welkin. I'm not telling you that Alicia should charge right into the enemy frontlines, and cut the head of the snake. I know that it's a task that is suicidal even for a Valkyria." Richard interrupted. "What I'm saying is that she should utilise her power to drive back the enemy and protect her friends. She has tenacity and strength beyond compare, when she's a Valkyria, so she can use both shield and lance to defend her allies, and take out the enemy armour with her lance. That way, she won't have to use her power to destroy everything, and our allies benefit from her protection."
"But even so... I..." Welkin stated with a conflicted tone. "Rain... Then what about you...?"
"Welkin, I've come to terms with myself." Richard responded back. "I'm not a pacifist, and I never will be, because I have to kill in order to protect. But even so, I don't wish to take more lives than I must. I could have simply transformed and wiped the enemy off the face of the earth within mere minutes. But if I do that, what's to guarantee that I would be there to protect my allies? I use my power to bring my allies out of a perilous situation. Once because my fear of Zaka's death awakened it, once again when Selvaria threatened us, and once more, when I tried to stop Alicia. It's because I possess a power similar to a Valkyria, that I know that our powers aren't just meant for weapons of mass destruction. Valkyrias are capable of being protectors and altruists, as they can be destroyers and tyrants. Alicia can still use her powers to fight, and it wouldn't matter, because as long as she is in control of her powers, she will never be the same as the destructive Valkyrias of old."
Welkin was left in silence for a moment, as he was considering Richard's words.
"Think of it like this." Richard said again. "Remember those Imperial weapon prototypes that we managed to take? That's the same kind of power that comes with being a Valkyria. Can you imagine what a weapon like ours would do, should it be mass-produced? A rifle that can fire a hail of bullets at a far distance, a sniper-rifle that can fire rapid shots, and has a clip big enough to clear out an entire field of soldiers, a scout rifle that has bullets powerful enough to punch through tank armour, and a explosive-launcher based of a lance, that can fire a salvo of rockets that can do the same job as a lancer, except both with greater precision and haste? Welkin, what me and my friends are wielding right now are the pinnacle of weapon technology. We have annihilated every single enemy, save for the Valkyria, with them, and we still continue to use them to this very moment. By your line of logic, such weapons should have never existed, right? And yet you never objected to their creations, because you believed that they would benefit us. Wouldn't Alicia's Valkyrian form be of the same kind of use? Either way... Welkin..."
Richard then pulled out the knife, before pointing it at his chest as a threatening gesture.
"One way or the other, we must make use of every advantage. I can understand if Alicia won't become Valkyria, because she can't bear using ungodly power that isn't even hers, and makes her feel ill in the mind with each use, due to the religious background and destructive history it brought. But if she won't do it, then I will, because I have nothing to fear and nothing to lose using my power to carve a path to victory." Richard stated. "So, tell me, in all your honesty? Who will it be? Me or her? Because one way or another, we cannot afford to lose, even if it means that we have to use every single trick up our sleeves, no matter what."
Welkin didn't speak for a moment, before he then got up. "I'll... need time to consider this." He responded back with a strained tone.
"At least you're doing that." Richard stated. "That's all I ask. But understand that I'm doing this for everyone's sake. What point is there, fighting for a nation, if it doesn't exist anymore, because we didn't do our best to protect it? That's why power is valued in war, because those who have much of it are feared, and rarely disrupted, while those who lack it are discriminated and helpless."
"...About that time before... I'm sorry that I slugged you in the face..." Welkin apologised back. "I never meant to hurt you that badly, that your jaw was badly damaged from my punch... I guess that I underestimated my own strength that time... And I never did say sorry about what I did to you, because you never deserved it."
"It's fine... That kind of grudge passes quite quickly." Richard chuckled. "Besides, at least it was a sobering experience... For both you and me."
Welkin then left, as Richard immediately went back to guarding the campfire, as well as keeping watch for any Imperial soldiers who might try to ambush the camp in the middle of the night.
Deployed Team: Edelweiss, Shamrock, Rain, Sally, Mari, Largo, Rosie, Alicia, Gus, Remy, Vyse, Hector
In the city of Vasel...
The squad immediately arrived into the inner areas of the city, as they looked around for any signs of enemies.
"Welks, we're almost at the Great Vasel Bridge..." Isara stated. "Just a little more, and we'll be able to catch up to the Marmota and stop it."
"Yeah, Is... Once we cross that, Randgriz is just a hop, skip and a jump away."
Alicia then immediately spotted Imperial troops, before she then noticed that there was a familiar tank among them, except it looked far different than before.
"Ah! The enemy is deployed, blocking the bridge!" Alicia exclaimed, as Gus turned around to see them as well.
"Wait... That tank... I recall that we fought it once before... Wasn't that the tank that General Jaeger drove?" Gus commented on the tank, as it had the addition of a mortar cannon on top of it, as well as large heavy armour plating around it, especially around its underside. "It looks like that it has been severely bulked up from the last time we fought it."
Suddenly, the Edelweiss's comms buzzed on, as Varrot spoke through it. "That tank... and the forces with it... That's Jaeger's batallion. Just our luck it's him... At this time..." Varrot stated. "He's lived through more battles under the Empire's standard than I can count. That said, we need to break through him, if we hope to take Randgriz back. He's one of the most renowned tank commanders in the Empire, so he has tank strategies of a calibre that has been never yet seen. However, you of Squad 7 have your own remarkable tactics and strategies, in order to counter whatever plans he has. The entire militia is counting on you, Lieutenant, as well as your entire squad."
"You heard the Captain, our target is to break through the enemy blockade! If we can take out Jaeger's tank, then the rest of his forces should scatter from the morale loss of their commander's defeat." Welkin stated. "Stay sharp everyone, we can't afford to let down our guard and slow down yet! Squad 7, move out!"
Everyone immediately prepared for battle, as the Edelweiss and Shamrock immediately revved their engines and loaded their weapons at the ready.
"From the look of those defences ahead, they really don't want us crossing that bridge." Alicia remarked.
"Yeah, and they set up a bunch of camps. Plus, Jaeger's commanding them. This is not going to be easy for us." Welkin agreed.
"Maybe so, but we haven't given up a single fight. We'll press on and bring him down, no matter what he throws at us!" Marisa stated. "Isn't that right!?"
"Damn right!" Vyse cried out.
"Alright, squad. Make your advance in two directions. Our main focus is to clear out the enemies ahead, and flank the enemy command tank." Welkin ordered everyone.
The Edelweiss then moved northwards, as it then fired off a smoke round in front, obscuring the views of several Imperial troops, including a heavy tank. On the moment that the smoke round dispersed its contents, Alicia immediately rushed into the smoke, followed by Largo. Alicia then immediately used her rifle-mounted grenade-launcher to propel a grenade towards one of the hunkered-down Imperial storm-troopers, as it blew him to death from direct contact with the resulting blast. She then immediately signalled Largo to take out the heavy tank, before she then took out the remaining Imperial soldier defending the nearby camp, while Largo raised his lance, and fired at the heavy tank, striking it right in the radiator plates, causing it to explode, and disperse the smoke cloud. Alicia took the camp, before she and Largo immediately ducked behind cover, to defend themselves against any advancing Imperials. Vyse, Hector and Sanae followed after them shortly, as they too took cover in the sandbags surrounding the base.
On the other direction, as Richard, Gus, Rosie, Reisen, Marisa and the Shamrock pressed westwards, Reisen took position on top of one of the destroyed houses, sniping out a Imperial lancer who was taking cover in the upper levels of a house, hoping to ambush the Edelweiss when it would advance further. She then took out a Imperial sniper, who was taking position to shoot at the other group. The rest of the group continued forward, as they encountered no enemy resistance at all.
The remodelled Lupus immediately made its advance, as it immediately fired a accurate cannon round at the Edelweiss, causing minor damage to it, before it then fired off a smoke round of its own, right in front of one of the camps.
"It can fire smoke rounds as well!?" Sanae exclaimed. "Everyone, be careful! Don't peek your head out, and try to use an explosive to dispel that smoke as quickly as possible, before the enemy can make use of it!"
The rest of the Imperial soldiers advanced, as the northern group fired at the squad members in cover, while dodging any lance or sniper shots that came their way. The eastern group had significantly less luck, as they were gunned down in the narrow streets of the city, by Marisa, Richard and the Shamrock's machine-gun turret immediately tearing them on sight.
The two groups of Squad 7 immediately advanced again, as the Edelweiss fired off another smoke round, this time right in front of the remodelled Lupus, to obstruct its sight temporarily, as the others immediately rushed into the smoke cloud, as they avoided the gunfire coming out of the other smoke cloud, potentially Imperial soldiers. Sanae immediately threw a grenade mid-sprint into the enemy's smoke cloud, as the explosion cleared it out, allowing Vyse to fire his entire clip into the enemy soldiers ahead, as well as Alicia and Sanae supporting him with rifle-fire. This allowed Alicia to take the second camp for herself, as they immediately hopped into cover, just in time for the Lupus to fire a tank shell to dispel the smoke cloud in front of it.
Suddenly, the Lupus turned back, as it immediately made its way to one of the Imperial-owned camps in the area, as engineers immediately started working on the tank, using ragnite cooling reagents on the back of the tank, where the radiator plates were covered by armour as well, much to the surprise of all Squad 7 members who saw it.
"Damn... you got to be kidding..." Largo grunted. "That thing even has a armour plate over its radiator plates...!? How are we supposed to blow it up, if the weak-point of the blasted tank is covered now!?"
"Well, for starters, the engineers actually tried to cool that tank down." Sanae explained. "I bet that because the armour plate is obstructing the normal process of the radiator plates' exposure dispensing excess heat from the tank into the surroundings, it has be cooled off at certain periods. And by the looks of it, that armour plate would sooner or later break apart, if we can hit it enough times. But with those engineers at camp, it's just going to get patched right back up if we try to, unless we can take the armour out before it can get back to repair it..."
"I'll do my best to help you with that." Hector responded back, as he loaded his lance.
The engineers immediately retreated to safety, as the remodelled Lupus returned back to the battlefield, as it immediately fired another smoke round, being in a unreliable distance to fire its tank cannon at the Edelweiss again.
Largo and Hector immediately fired their lances, as they aimed for the armour plates, as the explosions managed to damage them considerably, although not enough to cause them to be shed off. It immediately retaliated with its machine-gun turret, forcing both lancers to duck down into cover.
Richard and his group then takes another Imperial camp, only leaving the one that the Lupus was using to cool down its radiator, and repair itself, before they immediately rejoin the other team on the main road, where they caught sight of the Lupus, and the heavy plating it was covered with.
"Well, ain't that just clever. Placing tank-armour in front of the radiator plates." Marisa scoffed. "Doesn't matter. I'll blow as many plates as it takes to bring this thing down!"
"First, we need to take out the armour, before my Victorie can do anything to damage the tank from the radiator." Richard instructed the group. "Gus, you help as well."
Marisa and Gus immediately assaulted the Lupus from behind, damaging the armour plating even more, as the damage became more apparent and severe, as the plates were begin to have fissures from the pressure and damage dealt to them.
The Edelweiss then immediately advanced, as it fired off a tank shell, that managed to be the final blow to the Lupus's thick armour plating, as the armour plates immediately flew off the tank, allowing the main body of the tank to be exposed, as well as the now-exposed radiator plates. As if it noticed that it has lost its extra armour, it immediately turned around.
"Oh no you don't!" Marisa exclaimed, as she immediately shifted her Petard back into her lance-rocket mode, before she fired the rocket right at the Lupus's exposed radiator plates.
"Looks like this is it for you, General Jaeger!" Largo shouted, as he immediately rushed out of cover, with Hector, as they quickly loaded a rocket onto their lances. "Time for you to lay down and accept your defeat!"
They immediately fired their rockets at the radiator plates as well, as the combined damage from the rockets was too much for the tank, as it immediately grinded to a halt, as it began to spark and burn all over the hull, with dark smoke rising from several gaps in the hull itself.
"We did it...! The enemy tank is neutralised..!" Welkin remarked.
Richard immediately moved over to the Imperial camp, as he prepared his Victorie, to gun down the defenders, only to see them retreat in haste, surprising him, as they disappeared from the camp.
From the smoking wreck of the remodelled Lupus, a person crawled out of the top hatch, before he then landed on the ground. He was a mature man with a stocky figure, brown hair that was tied into a short chopped tail on the back of his head, brown eyes, and a moderately thick beard on his chin. He was dressed in silver plated armour, with a velvet gold and red vest, and a open brown trenchcoat over it. On one shoulder was a clean cow's skull, with long curved horns, and on one side of his waist was a sheathed sword. He also wore black baggy pants, and long grey boots.
When he landed, he saw the soldiers, who had their weapons at the ready, and immediately raised his hand in gracious surrender.
"It seems that I have finally fallen to you." He stated. "I, General Jaeger, admit that you have bested me with both strategy and force."
The Edelweiss immediately came close, before Welkin hopped out of the tank, as Jaeger looked at him with intrigue.
"So, this is the leader of the militia squad that managed to best the Lupus Regnum in combat...?" Jaeger remarked. "I guess that your resolve to fight for your homeland, and protect those you hold dear, has proven to be stronger than the Empire's ambition."
"...Is that so...?" Welkin asked, as he was still unable to relate with Jaeger, before Jaeger immediately walked over, and gave him a firm pat on the shoulder.
"Come on, kid. Why the long face? You managed to break through our little blockade." Jaeger stated with a chuckle, and a casual expression. "Besides, I'm powerless to stop you anymore. So I'm just going to leave the Empire's service. Since I lost, His Grace would definitely sent me to die like Selvaria."
"...Maximilian truly told Selvaria to use the Valkyrian Flame...?" Richard asked with a clipped tone, as Jaeger turned around.
"Yep, not a single shred of remorse on his face. I mean, he never did care really much for the girl. He just simply treated her like a proper subordinate." Jaeger responded back. "But still, that's far better than being treated like a test-subject and a nobody in anyone's book. Maximilian really needs to learn how to treat a lady right, and I seriously doubt that he's going to uphold his side of the deal."
Richard clenched his gun tightly, as his knuckles turned white. "Is that so... What was your deal...?" Richard replied with a slightly more restrained tone.
"For my own country to regain its independence. You see, I'm a tried and true citizen of the country of Fhiraid, who has the displeasure of being one of the few countries to be first absorbed into the growing Empire." Jaeger explained, before he sighed and shook his head. "Unfortunately, back in those times, we didn't have squads and leaders as good as you all, so we had to surrender unconditionally, if we were to even have a Fhiraid to call home. Quite a hypocrite, I am, fighting to trade one nation's independence, for my own... And using force of all things. We're basically fighting for the same reasons, except I fight for the invaders, as a traitor to freedom, while you are the resistance who keep your Gallia away from the clutches of the Empire. In war, the victors are the ones who decide what's right and what's wrong. And since I lost, I have no reason to continue fighting."
"Then what about your men? Where do you plan to go?" Welkin asked the Empire general.
"I'm going to just simply disappear from the war records. I might return to my own nation, but I might also just become a wanderer through the rest of Europa." Jaeger shrugged. "You defeated what remained of my battalion here, after the rest were mobilised to assist the Marmota. I'm already a failure to the Empire, and there's no way that I'll be given any more chances, especially from Maximilian. So I leave you young soldiers to finish the fight for your own nation. Hope that you don't fall as well, I've taken quite a liking to the passion and determination that you fight hard with. With how you are fighting, not even the Valkof and the Marmota alone will not win the war against you, because neither of them can reliably put you all down."
"Valkof...!?" Alicia exclaimed. "You mean the massive Valkyria lance that has been said to be sealed away...!? If they are seeking the lance, then why would that... Oh no..."
"Yep, figured it out, clever lass." Jaeger grimly responded back. "Turns out that inside the royal castle of your capital, lies the Valkof itself. If you don't get moving, Maximilian would have already mounted it on the Marmota. And when it does... Things will get quite hairy."
"Then we have to get moving. Squad 7, we're moving for Randgriz double-time!" Welkin shouted to the rest of the squad-members, as he hopped back into the Edelweiss, as everyone prepared to leave. Before they left, Richard immediately turned around towards Jaeger.
"General Jaeger... I can only wish you that we will never have to meet again as enemies..." Richard told him with a firm nod. "We fought for what was right for each of us, and I cannot consider you a true enemy to Gallia... May the gods bless you on your long journey, General..."
Jaeger watched as the squad immediately left the city, before he then laughed heartily, before departing in the opposite direction.
"...And you." Jaeger muttered silently, before he left the city as well.
"Alright, we've broken through Vasel... We're making good progress, despite the impediment before."
"We're in striking distance of Randgriz now!" Alicia exclaimed with hope.
"Welkin, I'm afraid that I've got some bad news, from command." Varrot reported in through the comms. "The Marmota reached the gates at Randgriz, it plowed through them and into the castle. After that, there has been no response from them as of yet."
"No...!" Welkin growled, as he slammed his fist against the tank wall in frustration. "We're too late..."
"But there is still hope. We are coordinating a counter-offensive against the Marmota, on the path to Randgriz." Varrot stated. "When they arrive, we will engage it, and attempt to disable or destroy it. Until then, make your way to the rendezvous point."
"...Got that." Welkin responded back, as he then communicated with his squad. "Change of plans. We're making our way to a rendezvous point set by the Captain. We are to battle the Marmota when it makes its return trip towards Empire terrirtory, near Randgriz."
Before Randgriz...
Every squad remaining in the third militia regiment, regrouped right in the road to Randgriz, as they were prepared for what may have been the final battle of the entire war.
"We're drawing close to Randgriz now. As for our plan of attack once we arrive..." Varrot instructed the squads before her, as she was standing on top of her own personal tank "Focus your attacks on the spot damaged by Sergeant Melchiott in the previous battle. Exploit that weakness, gain access to the interior and destroy the dreadnought's engine. Everyone follows?"
"Yes, Captain!" One of the other squad commanders saluted back.
"I'm confident you can do this, soldiers. You are dismissed." Varrot stated, as everyone dispersed to prepare for battle, leaving only the officers of Squad 7 alone on the battlefield.
"...Quite a risky operation, Captain..." Welkin commented on the mission ahead.
"I know. I'm worried about morale if everyone feels like it's a suicide mission." Varrot sighed.
"We're used to your crazy missions by now. Aren't we, guys?" Welkin asked everyone.
"Yeah, you bet. Nothing bothers me anymore now." Largo stated. "Turns out being through all of that has made me far better a soldier than before."
"And it helps to know that if we can just win this one, our war will be over." Zaka said.
"We'll do it for everyone who has fallen in this war." Rosie stated with determination. "Right, Isara...?"
"Yes, for everyone in Gallia... We have to defeat the Marmota, and return peace and happiness to everyone..." Isara responded as well.
"One more victory, and this will be it for the Empire! Peace is so near..." Alicia said.
"What about you, Rain and guys?" Welkin asked.
"I'm awaiting the time that the final battle comes." Richard responded back with a bold tone. "Because I will put everything I have to the limit, all for the sake of winning this conclusive battle in Gallia's favour."
"We've come so far, fighting all those battles, and taking back our land bit by bit... We can't just falter here." Gus stated as well. "Welkin... Captain... You have our hand until this very war ends."
"I can't wait to brag that I brought down that mammoth of a tank! Of course, with all of you guys! Either way, I can't wait to see how those Imperial bastards will react, when we flush their ace in the hole down!" Marisa grinned widely.
"You need not ask that kind of question. No matter the odds, no matter the situation, all of us are dedicated to fighting for your cause, until our last breaths." Reisen intoned.
"Don't worry, we'll all make it through this, and when we do... No longer will the dark shadow of war and death hang over our hands like a ill omen... We'll be finally free and happy...!" Sanae exclaimed.
"Words fail me... Thank you, Squad 7." Varrot responded back, moved by everyone's words, as she wiped a tear off her eye.
"Alright, everybody get ready to deploy! We only got a few hours, until the operation begins!" Welkin told everyone.
Irene then immediately walked up to the group, as she looked around to see all the soldiers preparing. "Almost showtime, huh, Welkin?" She asked, as she smiled, with her trusty notepad and pen out. "'Militia Rides into Randgriz Showdown!' Mind if I put you all's story on the radio? I'm afraid I can't go help you fight, but I'd like to do what I can to stand by you. As ace journalist, Irene Ellet!"
"Okay, why not? Our activities are hardly a secret to the Empire at this point." Welkin agreed with a smile. "'Irene Ellet', eh? I can't remember ever hearing your full name like that."
"At least until the war ends and I get married. Then I'll be Irene Koller, just FYI!" Irene answered back. "This'll be my last big assignment as an Ellet. Time to do the old name proud!"
Richard then walked up, before placing a hand on Irene's shoulder, as he gave off a warm smile.
"Knock everyone's socks off, Irene." Richard told her with a encouraging tone. "It's only fitting that this last report of yours will be world-trembling. And boy, will it shake the world around us! Today, the Empire is going to be finally defeated, and Gallia will be free of war and misery once again!"
Irene was stunned for a moment, before she then nodded, as she then entered the Edelweiss, as she immediately turned on the radio system in the tank, and tuning it with the Gallian Radio, and using it as a broadcasting device, while the others made their final preparations.
"News flash from Radio GBS, your source for the news... The Gallian militia has..."
Final Team: Edelweiss, Shamrock, Alicia, Rosie, Largo, Rain, Sally, Gus, Sanae, Homer, Remy, Oscar, Vyse, Hector, Nancy
A few hours later, at the start of the final operation...
The entirety of Squad 7 were on the path, as they slowly advanced down the path, looking for any signs of the Marmota, which could be coming at any moment. Nancy, who noticed a moving dust-cloud in her direction, immediately zoomed in, to see the Marmota and its Imperial escorts.
"M-Marmota sighted ahead, sir! Range, 4-4000 meters!" Nancy nervously reported back.
Gus then turned around, as he spotted the newly-equipped weapon atop the Marmota, which was a large-scale version of the Valkyrian lance, just big enough to fit on top of the tank.
"...That's the Valkof, isn't it...?" Gus remarked.
"Whatever it is... It isn't good news!" Richard stated. "Welkin, we are potentially in its line of fire! We need to evade to the side immediately!"
"A good idea, a Valkyrian lance of human proportions is devastating enough. I can't imagine what a Valkyrian lance like that can do." Welkin responded with worry. "Look out 7's! Clear the Marmota's forward path immediately! Move it!"
The squad immediately deviated off the main path, as they took cover deep in the forest of trees surrounding the path, as they watch the Marmota advance slowly.
Suddenly, the Valkof on top of it began charging, as blue swirls of energy immediately began to spin around the lance, as more and more of them appeared, before the entire weapon was filled with them, before it then lowered itself, as the blue swirls began to grow larger and wider, before it then fired off a large blue blast, that sped through the air, causing the ground underneath the projectile to be engulfed in the destructive azure energy, resulting in massive explosions in the path of the shot, before it then hit one of the faraway mountains, exploding in a large blast and a loud ringing sound.
As Squad 7 weathered the sudden winds created by the explosions, they then saw that the ground hit by the Valkof was scorched black, and there was fires everywhere it hit.
"The Marmota's fired an unidentified beam of light! Squads 4 and 5 has been wiped out!" Alicia reported frantically. "There is no response from them at all! It's complete annihilation!"
"Hot damn... If we didn't duck out of the way, then we would have been big piles of ashes by now, with those squads...!" Largo exclaimed with sheer horror.
"That thing... How could such a thing come to exist...!?" Sanae spoke with horror as well.
"No-one knows, but we'll be the ones to make sure its destroyed once and for all..." Richard responded back. "Welkin! Give the order!"
"Everyone, advance, and sink the Marmota at all costs! Move out!" Welkin commanded everyone, as they immediately pushed out of the forest, and immediately took cover in the small temporary base that the squad have made, in order to allow both cover and ammo supply for the,
"Here we are... Actually squaring off against the Marmota..." Alicia remarked, as she was slightly surprised.
"Yeah... This will really be the final battle. Which is why it is imperative that we win it." Welkin responded back.
"It doesn't matter what they throw at us, we'll beat them down as many times as it takes to allow us to get onto the Marmota and take it down!' Richard shouted.
"Lieutenant Gunther!? Are you alright!?" Cordelia's voice rang, much to the surprise of everyone, who turned around, and saw the Cordelia was hiding within one of the camp's tents, as she didn't have her head-dress, revealing the raven-black straight hair she had.
"Princess Cordelia...!?" Rosie exclaimed.
"The Princess!? What in hell is she doing here!?" Vyse exclaimed. "Your Highness, this ain't the place you should be! We got enemies coming all sides ahead! You don't want to peek your head out at this time."
Richard looked stunned, as he was shocked.
"Y-Your highness.. You're... You're a Darcsen like me...!?" Richard blurted out with surprise.
"Ah... I'm sorry that I deceived you, and never told you the truth, back when you rescued me..." Cordelia apologised. "I am merely glad that you are still alive and well, Lieutenant Rain."
"But what are you doing here, Your Highness? Why are you within our base...?" Welkin asked.
"I managed to escape from Randgriz, thanks to the help of my personal guard. Maximilian sought to sign a treaty of marriage, in order to bind Gallia to the Empire." Cordelia explained. "I know that I may just be in the way, if I come out, but I wish to be of assistance, however I am able. I wish to fight for my homeland, in my own way. Allow me to stand in defence of my homeland!"
"...I understand." Welkin responded back. "We'd be honoured to have your help in the rear guard, Your Highness."
"Thank you. I possess with me the ceremonial lance I have." Cordelia thanked Welkin, before revealing the same lance she usually carried in ceremonies. "For now, I will not stand in your way, but when the time comes, you will find my assistance most useful."
"Here's the plan. Start by focusing our fire on the hole Alicia's lance has made." Welkin stated. "The dreadnought's side is lined with cannons though, so you all need to be careful."
"Roger!" Alicia stated.
"We've come through a lot of tight spots, 7's. So let's add one more victory... Believe in yourselves!" Welkin shouted to rally his men. "I know that we can do this!"
"Of course we can! Who do you think we are, Welkin? We're Squad 7, the militia squad that makes miracles in impossible situations!" Marisa shouted back with a mock-hurt manner.
"Alright, first up, we need to take out the cannons on the side." Reisen stated, referring to the mounted cannons that consisted of both anti-tank cannons and gatling turrets. "And we have to deal with the Imperial escorts as well."
"Largo, Mari, Hector, Gus, please take care of the cannons... The Edelweiss and Shamrock will assist as well, using the depressions on the ground to aim the turret properly at the cannons." Welkin relayed his orders. "The rest of you, protect the ones taking out the cannons, and don't let the enemy get to our camp. We can't afford to allow the princess to come to harm."
"Please, we done it once, we can do it again!" Vyse scoffed, before he then charged at the Imperial soldiers in the westward direction, as he fired at them wildly. "Time for you to go down, punks!"
Richard immediately vaulted over his piece of cover to catch up to Vyse, as they gunned down a small group of Imperial soldiers who were planning to surround the base, as they were torn to pieces by their gunfire.
Meanwhile, Marisa, Largo, Hector and Gus were firing shot after shot at the cannons, not sparing a single moment to rest, while dodging the return fire from each of the cannons, as some of them targeted either tank, in a attempt to destroy them. However, Homer and Sanae did their jobs just as quickly, making sure that the tanks are kept in pristine condition.
The Imperial troops, threatened by the progress of the lancers and Gus, immediately rushed at the camp, expecting to take either of them down. However, the others did a good job at intercepting the enemies, shooting them down, the moment that they walked into sight, as assorted kinds of gunfire brought them to a early grave.
"We're making good progress!" Richard shouted, as he rolled and weaved out of the way of a Imperial tank, allowing him to fire his weapon into the radiator plates of the tank, blowing it to pieces. "Keep it up everyone! The Marmota has only so much defences against us on the sides!"
As the lancers slowly took out the turrets, Marisa immediately focused her attention to the damaged plating, which had several broken strips of metal. She immediately grinned maliciously, before she snapped the Petard into semi-auto fire, before she then aimed at the plating, before firing off the entire clip of mini-rockets in the weapon, causing the plating to finally give way with a rending groan, as a large piece of metal fell, bridging the cap between the alcove connecting to the frontal section, and the side section of the Marmota.
"Welks! We managed to blow open the damaged area on the Marmota's side!" Isara reported. "It seems that the damage allowed us to access the Marmota's frontal section with a path around the side, for out foot-soldiers!"
"Yes! So the plating in that damaged section was vulnerable to lance-fire after all!" Welkin exclaimed. "We can use the fallen metal armour plate to traverse the gap in the side-walk and allow everyone to climb up."
"Yes... And we'll need to destroy the propellers... We need to limit the mobility of the Marmota, as well as weaken its capabilities." Isara dded.
"Then we'll have everyone on foot, to start their ascent up." Welkin stated. "Rain, would you-"
"No problem, leave it to me!" Richard shouted, before he then immediately sprinted across the field, as he immediately started climbing up the side-walk. "Everyone, with me!"
"Wait! Allow me to give you some assistance!" Cordelia cried out, before she then immediately came out, before she then tapped the lance's hilt on the ground, as she began to chant in a language that no-one knew. A green aura began to surround her, before said aura dispersed to everyone, disappearing shortly after. When it did so, everyone felt rejuvenated.
"Woah... Who knew that the Princess got her own tricks..." Largo remarked with awe. "I feel like that I'm a few years younger and just as fit!"
"Damn, I like this sensation of newfound energy!" Vyse laughed, before he then rushed after Richard, in order to join him in taking down the mounted Valkof.
"Alright, the rest of you, make your way to the front of the Valkof. The Edelweiss and Shamrock will stay behind, in order to ensure that the rear flank is protect, and the princess is safe." Welkin called out to everyone.
As Richard climbed up onto the front of the Marmota, he noticed that the heat-sinks of the two propellers was in view for him, although he had Imperial soldiers to deal with, as they spotted him the moment he climbed up. However, before they could react, he immediately shot them down, and reloaded his weapon.
"Alright, time to wreak some havoc! Let's do this!" Richard shouted, as he immediately showered the heat-sinks of the propellers with bullets, as they shorted-out and blew from the damage, causing both propellers to stop, disabling the Marmota's mobility.
However, much to everyone's surprise, the Valkof began to flash, as a barrier appeared around it, before it slowly disintegrated into small flaking hexagon panels.
"...So the Valkof was protected then..." Richard remarked, before he frowned. "So much for defences. It looks like that thing is about to be broken into so many pieces that it will never be used again!"
"It seems that the Valkof's invisible barrier has been destroyed. I expected that there has to be some sort of defence mechanism for the Valkof... At least it's gone now." Welkin stated. "If we can destroy it, then the Marmota is as good as de-fanged! Everyone, gather your fire on the lance's tip, where it is the most weakest and thin!"
As the soldiers came up one by one, they immediately started firing everything they had, as rockets and bullets peppered the large Valkyrian lance from below, as its glow began to falter due to the damage, until finally, the glow disappeared, as cracks began to form on the body of the Valkof, as it had been rendered unusable due to the critical damage it sustained.
"Enemy dreadnought destroyed! I repeat, enemy dreadnought destroyed!" Welkin shouted.
"Excellent work, Lieutenant! Now, we need to disable the Marmota's engine." Varrot praised the group.
"Alright, boarding the Marmota immediately!" Welkin stated, as he then stopped the Edelweiss in front of Cordelia. "Your Highness, it's best that you be within one of our tanks, for your safety."
"Very well, I'll stay within Shamrock, as your squad-mate Zaka, has named it." Cordelia stated, before she then made her way to the Shamrock, as she entered the tank, with some help from Zaka. "Sorry for the inconvenience... I promise that I won't interrupt your operation of your tank."
"Ah, nothing to worry about." Zaka responded back, before he closed the hatch. "I'm just glad that I'm personally escorting the Princess.
Both tanks immediately boarded the Marmota's deck from the frontal ramp, which was already lowered, thanks to Sanae using the control room nearby, as everyone immediately descended, as they prepared for any threats that may still lurk on the deck of the Marmota.
Richard immediately placed the Victorie on his back, before he immediately pulled out his sword and shield, as he looked forward.
"This is it... Today, your twisted ambition, Maximilian... will end here...!" Richard shouted, as he and the rest of the squad prepared for the last battle of the entire war.