Chapter 12: Getting the squad to work together

A/N: Valkyria Chronicles belongs to Sega.

"Our next mission is to scout the area surrounding Aslone for any enemy soldiers. If we find any, then we are to eliminate them." Kurt announced to the group. Kurt and Andrew had just returned from their briefing with Crowe and found Gusurg to discuss with him their next mission.

"The area around Aslone is crawling with enemies. What can we possibly do?" Gusurg said, "I can't believe they want us to just scout that area for some German units that might not even be there. Do we know who we might be facing?"

"Intel thinks it could be a S.S unit." Andrew replied to which Gusurg began rubbing his forehead.

"Great. Just great." Gusurg said. The suddenly Kurt asked Gusurg.

"Gusurg, besides you, No.1 and No. 13, how many others are in this squadron?" Gusurg looked at kurt for a minute then replied.

"Right now, 10."

"Please find five members that you think would be willing to assist me." Kurt asked. Gusurg looked at him for a minute before nodding.

"Understood." And Gusurg went to find members. Andrew then turned to Kurt.

"So, this plan of yours, mind filling me in?" Kurt just smiled.

"Just wait." Andrew just gave a confused look but shrugged. Whatever it was, Andrew just had to trust Kurt on this.

Gusurg returned later with five members from the squad. Kurt gave them a quick lookover before asking them a question.

"Everyone please tell me your number and the reason why you chose to not participate in the last operation."

'What right do you have to ask?" One of the squadmates asked.

"Don't think that just because you're an officer that you can come here and show off." Another squadmate said, a bit more forceful the the previous man. Andrew stepped in and stood right in the face of the guy.

"I suggest you back the fuck off now." Andrew growled. Both men glared at each other until another squadmate attempted to defuse the situation.

"Hey, don't talk back. Even though I think No.7's being a bit impudent…" The squadmate said.

"You think so. I just think he is cold and distant. And his second in command just odd." Another squadmate added.

"Everyone's speaking such harsh words." Another squadmate said. Andrew broke his glare from the man who was calling Kurt out to look around. Three men and two women, correction girls, had showed up with Gusurg. Andrew heard someone take a deep breath and he turned to see Kurt massage his forehead.

"To think, these people are the people most willing to help me…" Kurt muttered. Then Gusurg spoke out.

"I also want to know why you didn't participate in our last mission. Can you tell me?" Then Andrew saw something that he shouldn't be surprised but it still surprised him. The group of five were more than eager to tell him.

"If Gusurg asks..."

"Alright then."

'This squad reminds me too much of my old squad from the war. But then again I have been out of it for awhile now so this should be good.' Andrew thought to himself as each member began to state their number and reason why they didn't fight. First up was one of the girls, and Andrew swore this girl was around fifteen, his little sister's age. Her uniform was similar to that of a school uniform, even with a yellow handkerchief hanging in the center of her chest. She also had a light blue backpack and two pouches of the similar color on her belt. There were also two leather kneecaps on her knees for protection maybe but Andrew doubted that. She also has short blond hair.

"I'm No.15, I don't want to die so I didn't fight." No. 15 replied. Fifteen stepped back and then came up the man who had called out Kurt. The man was tanned, making him a bit unique in the military, at least in Gallia. He had the standard uniform on but it seems like he decorated it with pieces of leather here and there and has grayish hair with a gold highlight in the front. It makes him look like a cowboy in a sense and Andrew had to hold back a laugh because of how he reminded him of some Texans he knew back home and it brought back a funny memory.

"No. 21, I didn't want my comrades to die so I picked the best alternative." He stepped back and the other girl came up to speak. The girl had short orange hair She had spandex shorts on, hinting she is athletic and a sleeveless jacket with a sleeveless grey shirt underneath with yellow sleeves covering her lower arm and brown gloves. She also has two big pouches on her belt.

"I'm No. 24. I wanted to fight, but everyone held me back!" Twenty-Four replied with excitement. Andrew leaned into Kurt's ear and whispered, "This one is a bit too eager to go fight. I like her already." At this kurt smirked and elbowed Andrew in the gut. The next person to come up was a Darcsen. Like most Darcsen males that Andrew has seen, he had a slender nose, pale complexion, elongated face, and his eyes were slanted downward. His hair reaches down to his shoulders and he was covered in chain mail and a metal chestplate. His Darcsen pattern shawl was wrapped around his neck and when he spoke, he sounds like he gave up on life.

"No. 56, I hate fighting." Fifty-Six said before immediately stepping back. The final man stepped up and the way he was dressed caught Andrew's attention a bit. He wore a standard military uniform but under it was a chef's uniform as well with an apron tied tightly around his waist. He has grayish hair with a small goatee of the same color.

"No. 32, we don't have a captain right now, so we don't have to do anything." Thirty-two answered simply. This caught Kurt's attention.

"No captain?" Kurt asked, a bit confused. Andrew was confused as well since Kurt was their captain. Gusurg saw both men's look and told them a piece of information that would have been helpful in the beginning.

"In practice, the captain of the Nameless is someone who everyone agrees is worthy." So even if your rank is the highest, you still aren't recognized as the captain." kurt then thought about it for a minute.

"Come to think of it… my transfer to this squad didn't say I was to be its captain." Kurt said. Andrew just gave him a dumbfound look.

"What?" Andrew said.

"Well, since I was the only ranking officer here I assumed that I would be the captain." Kurt replied. Gusurg nodded at this.

"Understandable. I believe in you Kurt but you still don't have half of the squad supporting you. In other words, your orders don't carry the weight that a captain's normally would." Andrew was just curious at this point and had to ask.

"Are those official military rules cuz if so, I would love to recommend that to some platoons and companies back home." Gusurg just smiled at this.

"These are the rule of the Nameless. If you want to find out if they're official, why don't you ask Lieutenant Colonel Crowe?" Gusurg answered. Andrew chuckled while kurt just closed his eyes.

"There's no need." Kurt said. All of a sudden, No. 21 approached the three.

"Gusurg! We all decided that you should be captain." He stated. The three turned and saw that he wasn't alone, and not alone in that statement.

"That's right! I respect Gusurg!" No.24 proclaimed. However Gusurg just shook his head.

"I'm not capable of being the captain. Besides, if a Darcsen were to become our captain, then everyone's wage would worsen." Gusurg warned.

"Wait, that happens?" Andrew question, confused. Everyone just looked at him.

"Nevermind." Andrew said. Then thought to himself, 'I need to keep telling myself that Europe is completely different from the States.'

"But besides you, who else can lead?" No. 15 asked.

"I believe that No.7, second Lieutenant Kurt Irving is suitable for the position." Gusurg said, motioning to Kurt. The five members were doubtful of that and Gusurg probably saw this because he continued.

"You were absent for his battle, but I saw with my own eyes his capabilities as a leader. That's why I recommended him. If you are interested, please fight under his command once before you decide." Gusurg paused then announced, "If after, you truly can't accept him, then I will become your captain. I wish for all of you to personally see for yourself. What do you say?" There was a brief silence and Andrew assumed they were going to say no but then No. 32 replied first.

"If Gusurg says so, then it's allright with me. I'll accept." He was followed by No. 24.

"I always wanted to go anyway, so there's no problem!"

"I'll listen to No.6." No.56 replied.

"If No.7 really made Gusurg feel that way…" No.15 replied.

"If everyone else thinks it's okay, I won't disagree. I'll stand by my comrade's decision." No.21 replied. Gusurg looked over the group and then a smile formed on his face.

"Thank you for your support." Gusurg told the group. He then turned to Kurt and Andrew and said, "Kurt, Andrew from here on in, it's up to you both to prove your strengths." Andrew was a bit confused but before he could reply, Kurt replied with a smile, "All right, as far as i'm concerned, our next mission will be much easier than persuading our squad." As everyone dispersed, Andrew stopped Gusurg.

"Why did you mention me? I mean they really need to listen to Kurt. With me, I can work something out with them." Andrew said. Having dealt with a lot of troublesome people in his life, he knows how to be able to get on someone's good side but was a bit surprised when Gusurg responded him.

"You have more experience than all of us combined. I have heard of you, from the American newspapers. I assume you were the "Devil of Juno"? Andrew just gave Gusurg a shocked look.

"I didn't think that would get to Europe but then again…." Andrew started but stopped himself.

"What is it?" Gusurg asked.

"Nothing. I need to get some parts for my rifle." Andrew said quickly and then bolted. Gusurg just looked at the leaving man confused while Andrew had to do his best to control his right hand which was shaking. His nickname from the Russo-American War was created to scare the Russians but to him it is a reminder of the hell that he went through in the city.

"And to think it was because of that nickname that got me noticed by the European powers when hiring mercs." Andrew muttered to himself. Some jobs he did in Europe after the war wouldn't make him lose a night's sleep, some others would always haunt him. He was still thinking about that when he finally reached the resupply truck that gives the Nameless their gear and weapons.

Since the Nameless are a special forces unit that operates far from a base, they would need to be resupplied by ruck and this was usually in a form of an armored APC. It had a blue/tan camo with the Gallian Army markings on the side. There wa also a C, encased in a horseshoe with the C representing the name of the person in charge of the APC. As he approached the APC, there were sheets of canvas laid out around the APC and on them were an assortment of weapons from rifles, to submachine guns, machine guns, and even weirdly swords and mauls. Andrew never really understood the sword and maul being used in a war. In a changing world, guns would be taking over but again he can't say anything since he isn't technically in the Gallian military. As he approached he noticed No.15 and No.24 talking amongst each other and from what Andrew heard, they were pretty excited.

"What has seemed to got you two in happy moods?" Andrew asked the pair as he approached them. They both jumped in surprise and faced him, with No. 24 hiding something behind her back.

"Oh, nothing sir. Uhm, No.28." No. 15 said.

"Yeah we were just uhm you know looking at a beauty magazine." No. 24 answered though it sounded forced. Andrew was not convinced.

"Alright hand it over." Andrew said, extending his hand. No.24 finally reluctantly handed him what she was hiding and it surprised Andrew that it was a newspaper.

"A newspaper?" Andrew said as he looked at the front page and read the headline, " 'Gallian Militia Squad helps take back Vasel'. Wait, when did this happen!?"

"A few days ago. I still can't believe it. We actually won a battle!" No. 15 exclaimed excitedly.

"Yeah! That must have been one hell of a battle! I wish we could have taken part of it!" No. 24 stated. Andrew then smirked a bit.

"Technically, we did take part in it. We cleared out a scouting unit on the outskirts of the city so that the Regular Army and Militia can secure the city." Andre replied. Both girl's eyes lit up.

"Really? We helped with that?" No. 15 asked. Andrew nodded.

"Yup, though you won't see that in the papers sadly. Seems like command doesn't want to public to know about us." Andrew commented. He scanned the newspaper and noticed all the praise it was telling the reader.

"First major victory huh? Well, it's about damn time Gallia started kicking Nazi ass." Andrew said. Both girls nodded in agreement.

"Everyone was talking about it when you and No.7 were gone. Apparently it was a militia squad that did it." No.15 said.

"Yeah! Though it kind of sucks that we won't ever get credit in helping it." No.24 said. Before anyone can say anything else, Andrew said, "Son of a bitch!"

Both girls turned around and saw Andrew was staring at one of the pages of the newspaper, his mouth opened. Both girls were curious as to what he was looking at so they approached him and saw what he was looking at. He was looking at a picture that depicted the squad that help take Vasel. They were posing on top of a destroyed German tank with someone posing with a Nazi flag.

"Do you know someone in the picture?" No.15 asked. Andrew was about to reply before someone called out to him.

"Hey, Yank. I have been waiting for you." The trio looked up and saw someone approaching him. The person approaching them was female and was wearing a standard Gallian Army uniform with her wearing a skirt instead of the usual trousers. She also has a map hanging from her neck and also wearing a headset and throat mic. She had a huge purse attached on her hip with her personalized symbol on it and a small pack also attached. She wore knee high boots and stockings with the red and blue color of the Gallian army. She also has the sergeant major markings and she was the one Andrew had come here to see eventually.

'Carisa Contzen. This woman is probably one the few people that i love/hate. I love the woman for having some good stuff like rifle parts, goods, ammo, hell even mail somehow. But I hate her because with her, everything has a price. Granted, it's not as bad as the black market merchants but we should be getting these damn stuff for no charge since we are still part of the military. But I can't deny, she does somehow get the best gear and even foreign gear and weapons. It's safe to assume she might have other friends she is working with.' -Andrew W. Vandegrift.

The moment Carisa arrived No.15 and 24 decided to leave while Andrew had to deal with Carisa.

"I was actually going to talk to you but since you were looking for me, I'll let you go first." Andrew said.

"Well, from my recent visit back to base, there was a nice little package waiting to be delivered just for you." Carisa said. This caused andrew to raise his eyebrows.

"For me? From who?" Andrew asked. Carisa shrugged as she made her way to the APC opened the passenger side and pulled out a long package.

"Didn't really say. All I was told that it must be delivered to you. Something about a new weapon." Carisa said, giving the package to Andrew. Andrew examined the box and thought what it could be. Looking around, he found a crowbar lying next to some other boxes and picked it up. He then proceeded to open the crate and was surprised by what he saw. Inside the crate was a brand new Thompson submachine gun but it wasn't one that he used back in the Russo-American War. This Thompson was beefed up to have a more sturdy foregrip and on closer examination, it even had a small vertical grip to it, it was just brought up to conceal it. Also the magazine seems to be a bit bigger than the old 30-round mags that Andrew is use to and the sights seemed to have been altered slightly as well with the standard Fixed L sight being altered to be more precise. However on this model, the Thompson the Blish lock was retained. The Blish Lock was a method in which rounds would be ejected with the force of friction rather than anything else, though it was phased out by the military due to it not really being necessary. All in all, this submachine gun was redesigned to be more suitable for warfare but why Andrew was getting it he had no idea. He then noticed a letter tucked in the crate. He picked it up and opened it to read the note.

'Andrew, if this ever reaches you I want you to know that our mother and I are worried about you. Your mother hasn't had a good night sleep and your brothers and sisters are also worried. So, I pulled some strings and found out you were serving in a sort of Gallian special forces unit. So, I sent this new Thompson model to you to help out. I am told it can take the 9mm that the Krauts are using. I hope it helps, and show those Germans how Marines fight. Also, write to your mother please. Love, Dad.'

Andrew had a small smile form on his face and his eyes started to water but he held them in.

"Thanks dad." He muttered as he wiped his face and tucked the letter in his pocket. He then looked up and saw that Carisa was staring at him.

"Who was the box form?" She asked him.

"From home." Andrew answered. Carisa raised her eyebrows but didn't push further.

"Anyway, you said you were looking for me to. What is it that you wanted me for?"

'So it turns out the Cei-Rigotti rifle was going to have to head back to the R&D of the fort to get an upgrade and so that Jess can fix it up for me. So, now I have to use the submachine gun for now but hey I wasn't complaining. Shortly after that, Kurt called everyone together for a mission briefing. And when I mean everyone, I mean the five people that volunteered along with the One, Thirteen, Gusurg, and I. And the mission that was being briefed to us was going to make the squad working together a lot harder.' Andrew W. Vandegrift.

"Thirteen went on a scouting mission for us and has reported that there seems to be a two platoons of German soldiers near a windmill and near a bridge that crosses the river here," Kurt points on the map, "We need to take them out."

"Did Thirteen state whether they are S.S troops or not?" Andrew asked.

"She didn't say. I could be an S.S unit or a normal Wehrmacht unit. Right now, we need to eliminate them before they can regroup for a counterattack on our forces in Vasel." Kurt answered.

"Any enemy tanks in the area?" Thirty-two asked. He was the resident Lancer in the squad and wanted to know if he should bring the anti-tank lance with him or not.

"Thirteen reported that there is a command tank here," Kurt pointed to the place where the tank is near the windmill, "I believe that if we take out that tank that the Germans would retreat."

"What makes you so sure about that?" Twenty-One asked, skeptical that the Germans would actually flee from the destruction of just one tank.

"The Germans value command and control a lot. That's why their NCOs are top notch as well as their officers. Seeing their chain in command taken out will throw them off and the fact that we are engaging them will throw them off guard and confused. Their NCOs are good but they are not that good and know when the retreat when they have to." Andrew pointed out.

"How do you know so much about that?" Twenty-one asked.

"Let's say it comes with my old work." Andrew stated. Twenty-One was about to ask more until Kurt chimed in.

"Enough. Now, we will split all of us into two teams. The first team lead by Twenty-Eight will take Fifteen, Twenty-Four, Fifty-Six, and Thirteen to attack the platoon near the bridge while i will take Thirty-Two, Twenty-One, and One with me to outflank the tank and take it out. Gusurg will take the tank and support Twenty-Eight here to take the bridge." Kurt said. Some of the members felt a bit uneasy, mainly Andrew's team which confused him a bit but pushed it aside.

"We will be leaving within the hour. Take this time to get some rest or get some food. It's going to be a long day ahead of us." Kurt was about to dismiss everyone until No. 24 brought something up.

"Oh, No.7, do you think we will be in the paper if we succeed in this mission?" Kurt looked at her with his eyebrows raised while Andrew sighed and massaged his forehead.

'Look, about that-" Andrew started to say but then was stopped when Kurt raised his hand to stop him.

"I understand that all of you are excited about our country's first victory at Vasel and you should be proud of it due to this squad helping with achieving this victory. However, due to the nature of our work, unfortunately we won't be appearing in any newspapers. However I can promise you all this, even if our victories aren't published or if the credit is given to the regular army it will be in your hearts that we fought those battles and made it through them alive. So that in the future, when you have children and they ask you what you did in the war, you can tell them the truth. The real truth. That I can promise you." Kurt said, looking over everyone. No one said a word as Kurt's word hung in the air. Kurt,seeing that no one was going to ask another question, walked away. Finally it was No. 21 who broke the silence.

"What does that mean?" He asked.

"He means that the feeling of actually winning the battle is more worth it than getting headlines. I knkew he was a good commander." Andrew commented. Everyone looked at him.

"Why's that?" No. Thiry-Two asked. Andrew looked at them all gave them a sad smile.

"Because, only the foolish and the stupid would want recognition for their work and that usually results in them getting killed."

Alone fortress. It was one of the last fortress left in central Gallia that has not been taken by the Germans yet. And calling ti a fortress would be a severe understatement. It was more like a land-locked battleship. The walls are covered with gun turrets and siege guns that have successfully held up the germans for weeks now. The germans have assumed that they could take the fort in a week at the latest. However, they didn't expect the Gallian forces stationed in Aslone to fight on instead of surrender to the might of the German war machine like the other units. As a result, this lead to the Germans dedicating a significant number of their troops in taking the fort. Unknown to the main German units, however, that Byzantium had been a bit annoyed about the stall of the campaign that he decided to send a small S.S unit to help the their main force take the fortress. The S.S unit was currently stationed itself near a windmill as well as a part of the unit was stationed near a bridge crossing that it was planning to use to move more of their men to outflank the Gallians. However, this unit was a bit special in the S.S in that this unit was part of the 5th S.S Panzer Division Wiking or "viking". This unit was comprised of volunteers from the numerous Germania territories from Finland to Norway, to Estonia. Normally this division would be deployed over on the Eastern borders of Germania to counter the Russians but now they were moved over to Gallia to see if they can help speed up the process.

The commander of this small unit was sitting on top of his command Panzer IV and looking over his map. So far, he only has a platoon cross the bridge and they have set up near this windmill. There were some buildings around the windmill but they appeared to be abandoned. That eased the commander's thoughts, grateful that he didn't have to deal with pesky civilians. He probably would killed them anyway since he didn't have the time to deal with them. He continued to look at the map, not noticing that he was being sighted by a scope near one of the houses.

Kurt was looking through the scope of a captured German rifle that he has never seen before. He had the dead German soldier on the ground near him to thank for the rifle, the soldier being easy to kill due to the man having fallen asleep. He looked to his left and saw No.32 and 21, kneeling out of sight. Twenty-One was armed with a Mags-4 submachine gun while Thirty-Two was holding on his Lancer to take out the tank.

"Thirty-Two, I spotted the tank. I want you and Twenty-One to make your way down their and take out the tank. Stay hidden until you are close enough to the tank that the lance won't miss." Kurt told them.

"Got it. Leave it to me." Thirty-two said. Twenty-one, however, wasn't convinced it would be that easy.

"What about the Germans near that farmhouse in front of tank. They wouldn't just sit still and let us destroy the tank."

"There is a ladder in the windmill, leading down to the valley to the side. You two will go through there. Meanwhile, Number One will attack the farmhouse to get the attention of the Germans while I will provide cover fire from here." Kurt looked over to Number One who was leaning on a wall near the door of the house.

"You can take care of it right One or would you need me to help you because I can if you need it." Kurt asked. He heard from Andrew how she was able to single-handedly hold off the germans by herself but he hasn't seen it himself so he is a bit unsure if what Andrew said was true or him just expatriating everything.

"No." One replied, pulling a small mini rocket from her belt, twirling it, and inserting it. Kurt took that as an indication that she would not need any help. Kurt was then about to issue the order to attack until he heard Andrew's voice on the radio.

"Sever, we have a problem."

"What is it?" Kurt asked.

"They have a Tiger."

Hope you all enjoy the chapter. As usual, if you want to ask about anything, feel free to PM me