10/04/2024
2300 hours
Siberia, Russia
"I see, so that's the situation…" Osip sat at the head of the small, wooden table in the middle of the cabin, his arms crossed and his eyes closed in thought.
Ralph sat across from him, and Osip's WA2000 T-Doll and UMP45 were also seated at the table. All of the other Dolls stood crammed around the table, still carrying their weapons as the flecks of snow on their uniforms melted thanks to the heat from the fireplace.
"Ja. We would appreciate your help, Osip," UMP45 said.
"Well, if it's only letting you stay here until daybreak, then I don't see the problem…" Osip replied.
"What?!" 2000 cried out. "We can't do that! They'll lead Sangvis Ferri right to us!"
"I thought this location was out of Sangvis Ferri's radar range," Ralph said, folding his hands behind his head.
"Sort of. Sangvis Ferri just doesn't come this way because it's too far away from where we think their HQ is located, and they don't know about the helipad here. But it's not as if they're physically restricted from setting foot in here," UMP45 clarified.
"Exactly! And you all being here gives them a reason to finally come around here!" 2000 pointed out angrily.
"Now, now, calm down," Osip told his T-Doll with a smile. "Sangvis Ferri still won't know that they came this way, right? There's no reason to assume that they will search this place. Besides, we owe Squad 404 for providing us with supplies from time to time, so it would be rude to refuse their request."
"Glad you understand," UMP45 said.
"Now that that's sorted out, I do have some questions," Ralph interjected, "first of all, what exactly is this place? Why is there a retired G&K commander with a WA2000 T-Doll living out here?"
"It's not that he's 'retired.' He deserted his post at G&K," UMP45 provided. "But I suppose I should let Osip do the talking."
Osip sighed. "What UMP45 said is essentially correct, Ralphie. I abandoned my post at G&K and came to hide out here because I thought we would be able to live in peace in such a remote location. As you would expect, G&K is not happy about what I did, and so if I were to ever go back to civilization, I'm sure they would track me down and punish me… 2000 here would probably be retired or have her memories wiped as well…"
20000 frowned and looked away at that.
"Okay… And what did you do to make G&K hate you so much?" Ralph pressed.
"Well, if Squad 404 brought you here, then I suppose I can trust you," Osip sighed once more. "I killed another G&K commander."
Ralph was unperturbed at that. "That's it?"
Osip blinked. "What do you mean? That's a grave offense."
"Eh," Ralph shrugged. "Sometimes the only way to deal with someone is to put a bullet in their head or a knife in their heart. I wouldn't call that a 'grave offense.'"
UMP45 chuckled. "This is why I had no reservations about showing Commander Ralphie this place, Osip."
"I-I see…" Osip was surprised. "Er, Ralphie, normally I wouldn't say that's a good way to go about things, but in my case, I have to agree with you. It just so happened that this commander that I killed deserved death."
"Now you've piqued my curiosity. What did he do?" Ralph grinned.
Osip's green eyes darkened. "He… Was abusing his T-Dolls."
"More specifically, that commander used to rape the T-Dolls under his command," UMP45 supplied neutrally. "As you know first hand, Commander Ralphie, G&K HQ doesn't pay close attention to what goes on inside its satellite bases that are stationed in Third World countries, which makes them ripe for cases of abuse. Like you, Osip was the vice-commander at one of these bases, and the commander who he killed was his superior. Osip actually fell in love with one of the Dolls under his command, and when his commander got around to raping that particular Doll, that was when Osip snapped."
Ralph glanced at 2000. "So… That would be you, right?"
2000 stared at the floor. "... I could've handled it myself…"
"T-Dolls are forbidden from harming their superiors no matter what they do to them. That's why I had to step in," Osip said, more to Ralph than to 2000. "No matter how much I begged him to stop or how much I threatened to report him, that bastard wouldn't stop abusing those T-Dolls… And then when he finally touched 2000, I…"
"Yeah, yeah, I get it," Ralph said. "Very heroic of you. But still, you're telling me that HQ didn't even bother listening to your side of the story?"
"After I killed my commander, I took over command of that base. I told HQ that he had died during a training accident," Osip explained. "However, HQ quickly figured out that was a lie. I don't know how exactly they found out - maybe they sent an independent inspector, or maybe one of the mercenaries working on the base told them - but either way, they weren't happy when they found out that I lied to them and also murdered my superior officer. I then tried to tell them why I did it, but since I had already lied to them and tried to cover it up, they were suspicious of me. It also didn't help that I never reported any of the abuses to them beforehand, so this was the first they were ever hearing of this."
"And why didn't you report anything beforehand?" Ralph questioned.
Osip shook his head. "I couldn't. The commander and his goons would have intercepted the communication before it could be sent out, and then they probably would have killed me. The only choice I had was to do something about it myself."
"G&K isn't a perfect organization. Not by any means," UMP45 noted darkly.
"All right, thanks for the interesting story. Anyway, you got any food here? I'd like to save our field rations if I can help it," Ralph then said.
"I suppose we can spare a bit of food. Wait here for a moment, I'll go see if there's any leftover borscht," Osip got up from the table.
Tired of standing around and realizing they would be here for a while, the rest of the T-Dolls took a seat on the small couch and the few chairs scattered about the tiny cabin. WA2000, unable to help her curiosity, walked over to 2000, glancing uneasily at the identical T-Doll.
"What are you staring at?" 2000 caught her peeking at her.
"N-Nothing!" WA2000 blushed and looked away. "Er, I, um… Was that story really true?"
"Are you an idiot? Do you think he made it up?" 2000 replied.
"Of course not!" WA2000 blushed even harder. "It just… Sounded really horrible."
"Yeah, well, it was," 2000's voice softened.
WA2000 took a quick look at her own commander, who was busy pulling on an annoyed and sleepy G11's cheeks. As much as I don't like Commander Ralphie, I guess there are a lot worse fates out there…
"I didn't think they would make another WA2000 model so soon," 2000 snapped WA2000 out of her thoughts. "I mean, I knew they would eventually, but…"
"Hey, it's just as weird for me seeing you here," WA2000 shot back. "But… It's kind of uncomfortable, if you think about it. Knowing you're replaceable so easily, and that you're not special at all… If I die, they'll just build another copy of me to take my place, huh? No one would ever know that I existed in the first place, or that I died…"
To WA2000's surprise, 2000 laughed. "Look at you, acting all depressed. You're going a bit too far there, aren't you? It's not like me and you are exactly the same, after all. Yeah, we may look the same and have similar personalities, but we've had different experiences, felt different emotions, and lived completely different lives. Surely that makes us different even if our factory settings say we're the same."
WA2000 wore a downcast expression. "Yeah, I see what you mean, but still…"
"Come on, don't be so pathetic. Don't forget that since I'm no longer a soldier, it's up to you to carry on the WA2000 name! Don't you dare embarrass me!" 2000 told her.
"Uh, r-right!" WA2000 stammered, caught off-guard by that.
2000 smirked at her, amused. Then, her crimson eyes shifted towards Ralph, curiously scanning over the G&K commander. Having had his fill of teasing G11, he stood by the window, staring out into the dark, frozen wilderness as his hand absently feathered over his assault rifle.
"What do you think of your commander?" 2000 asked.
"Commander Ralphie? Well, um, I don't know. I've survived on all the missions I've went on with him, so I guess he's competent enough," WA2000 replied unsurely. Normally, she would be more than glad to tear into him, but given who she was speaking to, she felt that would be inappropriate.
"So you don't really like him, huh?"
2000's observation surprised WA2000. "W-Why do you say that?"
Laughing, 2000 shook her head. "We're the same type of Doll, remember? I know what our model's personality defaults are programmed as, so I know that we're just coded to not like our commander at first. You may not like him now, but you are warming up to him, right?"
"I wouldn't say that…" WA2000 looked away.
"Yeah, not surprising that you won't admit it," 2000 replied knowingly.
WA2000 knew she would get nowhere by arguing with the other Doll, so she just sighed at that.
Still, talking with her feels so… Familiar. I know we're the same model, but even so… Is this what it feels like to have a sister?
She pushed that thought aside. She had only just met 2000, and there was no way that she would be able to experience such deep, human emotions like familial connection in such a short amount of time. There were some Dolls who did know what it was like to have a sister, but they were usually programmed with that information into their emotion modules beforehand. It wasn't something that could be learned so simply.
That line of thought made WA2000 curious about something else. "So, now that I've told you how I felt about my commander, what about yours? It's just the two of you in this house, right? You must really like him to be living together with him for so long."
A fond look appeared in 2000's eyes. "I suppose I do… Osip has always looked after me, and I've felt nothing but happiness getting to be by his side for these past several years. The old me would have never traded my life as an elite sniper for a simple existence like this one, but I've grown to like it. It's peaceful, and honestly, I couldn't ask for much more."
WA2000 followed her counterpart's eyes to Osip. The former commander was chatting amicably with UMP45, a warm smile on his face. He appeared to be just an ordinary man, but given what he had done for 2000 and what he had sacrificed, WA2000 knew that he was anything but. With a mixture of loneliness and jealousy, WA2000 wondered if anyone would ever care about her so much so that they would do something like Osip did for 2000.
"Interesting… You both look so similar," RO635 observed, walking over to the WA2000 T-Dolls.
"Obviously. We're the same model," 2000 stated bluntly.
"Ah, y-yes, my apologies. I suppose I'm just more surprised at the fact that there are two of the exact same models right here in front of me," RO quickly clarified. "I know G&K does use duplicate T-Dolls, but it's honestly rare to see them together like you two. Usually they are sent to distant bases so that they aren't mixed up with each other."
"Technically I'm not in service with G&K anymore, so it's not like this is a normal situation anyway," 2000 said. "What type of Doll are you? I've never seen any of your model before."
"I'm RO635," RO introduced herself, tapping her weapon. "I'm the first of my model, so that's probably why you haven't seen me before. I'm also relatively new to G&K."
"You're joining the AR Team, right? You must be pretty special then," WA2000 said.
"I don't know about that," RO blushed. "Still, it's an honor to be selected to lend my aid to the AR Team. I'm going to do my best so that I'm not a burden to them."
"Hm, so that's your mission? To find the AR Team? Those guys were pretty famous when I was still in service too," 2000 remarked.
"Yeah. They're camped outside the Sangvis Ferri base in this sector right now, and we're supposed to meet up with them," WA2000 told her, only belatedly wondering if she was really authorized to be giving out this information to someone she just met.
"So you're going to assault that Sangvis base, then? That sounds rough," 2000 sympathized.
WA2000 suddenly felt more aware of the weight of her rifle on her back. "Do you ever miss it? You know, shooting your weapon, going on missions, fighting Sangvis Ferri…"
"Sort of… I really liked sniping, and it was an amazing feeling to pull the trigger and then see your target fall. But it's not like I can't do some target practice when I want to - I still have my weapon, and this place is pretty isolated so it won't be disturbing anyone," 2000 answered.
"Pardon me, but I think what Miss WA, er, I guess you're both called that, so uh, what our WA2000 was trying to ask about was something deeper," RO cut in. "For example, I think that being in G&K gives me a sense of purpose, and that fighting Sangvis Ferri allows me to feel like I am contributing to humanity and society. I certainly mean no offense, but if I were in your situation, I don't think I would like having to give up those things."
2000 sighed. "Yeah, I see what you mean, and back when I was a new recruit, I felt the exact same way. But everything I thought I knew about 'honor' or 'pride' or 'serving humanity' went out the window when I first arrived at that hellhole of a first duty station. Frankly, after all G&K has put me and Osip through, I no longer give a shit about them or their war with Sangvis Ferri. I've found a new purpose through living here with Osip, and that's all I care about now."
"I see…" RO replied with a small frown.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to seem so dismissive of your goals," 2000 apologized after seeing RO's downtrodden expression.
"N-No, it's fine! I was being naive," RO admitted. "Still, though, I don't think I can agree with your view, but I can recognize that we've had different experiences with G&K. I didn't mean to downplay what you went through either."
"Well, I suppose you have a good mindset, RO. I hope that you can achieve your goals and make G&K a better place," 2000 said.
RO smiled. "Thank you, Miss 2000. I will do my best."
Meanwhile, on the other side of the cabin, Ralph was still staring out the window, the cold frost from outside seeping through the glass and bathing his face in a slight chill.
"What are you staring at?" HK416 asked him, raising an eyebrow.
"Huh? Nothing, really," Ralph replied, turning around.
416 narrowed her green eyes. "Are you really that worried about Sangvis Ferri? There's a reason we came this way, you know. I've never seen any SF patrols come around here."
"I'm not worried about anything. I was just admiring the tundra scenery, if you will."
"Hmph. Yeah, right," 416 scoffed at that. "You had quite the pensive look on your face. Anxious about seeing your beloved M16 again, then? You two spent a lot of time together back at HQ."
"Oh? And how is it that you know that? Seems like you were keeping a close watch on M16," Ralph grinned.
"I just happened to see you two in the bar a few times," 416 scowled.
"Aren't you banned from the bar, though? You were clearly spying on us," Ralph smirked.
"I was not!"
"But since you brought it up, I was kind of curious: what exactly is your relationship with M16 anyway?" Ralph asked. "She talked about you occasionally, and even earlier today she gave you a special shout out. Are you two ex-lovers or something?"
"What the hell! No!" 416 vehemently denied, blushing. "We used to be teammates, that's all. Our relationship isn't anything out of the ordinary."
"Hm, seems there's more to it than that, but I guess you aren't willing to share that with me," Ralph smiled.
"Maybe I would consider telling you if you told me the real reason you were staring out the window with such a depressed expression," 416 shot back.
"'Depressed'? I wouldn't say that. I was just thinking about some things," Ralph sighed. "Do you ever feel lost, 416?"
The German assault rifle Doll blinked in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, do you ever wonder if the path you're on is the right one? Or if the path you're on really even exists in the first place? What the purpose to your life is?"
"Those are strange questions. I definitely didn't expect to hear them from you of all people," 416 said, surprised.
Ralph gave a small chuckle. "Hah, yeah, I bet you didn't… But it's true. I've always done what I wanted without caring about anyone else, and I've got no desire to change that. Still, I don't know if the way I'm living is the 'right' way to live, I guess."
"Are there even right or wrong ways to live? It all depends on what your values and moral codes are, and from what I know about you, you don't seem to have any, so what does it matter?" 416 responded.
"You have quite the bleak view of me," Ralph grinned. He turned back to look out the window. "Maybe you're right. But to be honest, I'm not really sure if I really don't - wait, what the hell is that?"
At the sudden shift in the conversation and Ralph's tone, HK416 went over the window to have a look. Several humanoid figures could be faintly seen in the snowy night sky as they parachuted down to the ground.
"Shit," 416 cursed, gripping her weapon. She whirled around to face the rest of the room. "Unknown number of hostiles inbound! Get ready!"
The rest of the T-Dolls quickly stopped whatever conversations they were having and readied their gear, preparing for battle. UMP45 came over to the window to get a look as well, arriving just as the first enemy touched down upon the snow-covered ground.
"Scheisse, that's a Spetsnaz," UMP45 muttered. "It's the military. Looks like they've got some cyclops units along with their soldiers."
"The military?" Ralph repeated in disbelief. "The fuck are they doing here?"
"They must have found out that the nuclear codes are in this area. They also probably figured out that there was a G&K outpost here; either that, or they've been following us from the start and are taking this opportunity to eliminate us," UMP45 said. "Either way, this is going to be tough to get out of. Those cyclops units aren't as accurate and mobile as T-Dolls, but their armor is stronger and they have much more stamina and firepower. The Spetsnaz soldiers might even be more dangerous…"
"Hey! What's going on? I thought you said Sangvis Ferri wouldn't find you here!" 2000 demanded an explanation.
UMP45 turned to her. "It's the military, not Sangvis Ferri. Even we couldn't have suspected that this would happen. I suggest you grab your gun and prepare to fight for your life."
"Wha -! This isn't what we agreed on!" 2000 was indignant.
"Please settle down, 2000," Osip said to her, his face surprisingly calm. "There's no use in complaining about this. All we can do right now is try to get out of this alive."
2000 shot one last glare at UMP45 and Ralph before nodding to her former commander. She then went over to where her rifle was mounted on the mantle and took it off.
Suddenly something came crashing through the window, startling UMP45 and forcing her to back away.
"It's a grenade!" UMP9 shouted a warning.
Instinctively, Ralph dove towards it, picked it up, and threw it sidearm-style like a baseball back out the window. A second later, it blew up outside the cabin, far enough away where it didn't cause any collateral damage to anyone inside.
"This place is too small and cramped to defend! Hey, do you guys have a backdoor!?"
Without waiting for an answer to his own question, Ralph looked towards the back of the cabin and saw that there was indeed a backdoor.
"WA, DSR, A-91, go out the backdoor and then turn left! G36 and Kar98, do the same but go right! Push forwards and attack them from both sides!" Ralph ordered. "M590 and RO, you're staying in here with me. We will fight from here."
The T-Dolls immediately complied, running out the backdoor to put the plan in action. By now, the enemy had begun shooting, the bullets thunking as they tore through the wooden exterior of the cabin and forced everyone still inside to hit the ground and crawl for cover.
"W-What about me?" Kalina asked Ralph.
"Find somewhere to hide and shoot at anything that comes through the front door," Ralph merely said as he fired a few suppressing shots out the window.
"Fuck! Take this!" 416 fired her grenade launcher from a crouched position, accurately shooting through the smashed-up window across the cabin. An explosion sounded shortly afterwards.
"Don't waste your grenades. We don't even know if that hit anyone," UMP45 told 416. She then turned to Ralph. "You got any other ideas? They're going to barge in here at any moment, and the Dolls you sent outside aren't going to survive for long."
A cyclops smashed open the door, proving UMP45 right. However, it was quickly felled by a shot to the head from 2000's rifle.
"Hmph. I'm still just as accurate as ever," 2000 smirked.
"Grh… I'm gonna go deaf here," Ralph sighed. "Hey, 2000! Get in the attic and snipe from there! It's a better vantage point!"
"We don't have an attic, dumbass!" 2000 shouted back, now pressing herself low to the wooden flooring as the volume of bullets whizzing overhead increased.
A Spetsnaz operative entered the house, somersaulting through the now-open window like some sort of acrobat. With amazing speed and taking advantage of the suppressing fire from his squad, he snapped his AN-94 rifle around to aim directly at UMP45 and fired, the burst hitting the SMG Doll in the chest and knocking her to the floor with a spray of blood.
G11 countered with her own burst, but the Spetsnaz had already backflipped out the window and disappeared back outside the cabin.
"What the hell?" Ralph was dumbstruck, not having seen that type of fluidity from a human soldier before.
"Ugh… I told you not to underestimate them," UMP45 coughed weakly as she sat up.
"Are you okay?!" UMP9 rushed over to her.
UMP45 grimaced in pain. "I'll be fine… Luckily he sacrificed accuracy for speed, so he didn't hit any vital spots."
"Looks like the Dolls I sent outside are holding them off for now," Ralph muttered to himself, glancing towards the open door of the cabin as the sound of nonstop gunfire continued.
Regardless, he knew that he didn't have much time before the cyclops automatons breached the cabin once more and brought their Spetsnaz friends with them. If that happened, it was over.
Without asking permission, Ralph tore a smoke grenade canister off UMP45 and chucked it towards the entrance. As the gray plume of smoke burst to life, Ralph rushed out the backdoor of the cabin, dragging 416 with him.
"H-Hey! What are you doing!" the silver-haired AR Doll cried out.
"Because I threw the smoke grenade towards the entrance, they're going to think that we're coming out the front door," he started, priming an actual grenade this time. "When you first used your grenade launcher, you did it from inside the cabin, so they're expecting any further grenade shots to come from within the cabin. They won't expect an attack from this direction, and furthermore, because my T-Dolls are firing at them from here, the enemy is going to be clumped up here in order to return fire towards them."
Sure enough, when they rounded the corner, they saw G36 and Kar98k crouched and taking shots at the enemy. Three cyclops units and one Spetsnaz soldier were directly across from G36 and Kar98k, clustered together and attempting to overwhelm the two T-Dolls with greater numbers.
"Fire, 416!" Ralph ordered, throwing his grenade.
416 followed suit, her grenade launcher thumping as the projectile went flying towards the group of enemies. G36 and Kar98k briefly paused their assault as the unexpected reinforcements arrived, and they looked on with relief as the two grenades made impact with the four enemies and exploded, sending clumps of snow, human flesh, and metal into the night air.
When the explosion cleared, the disembodied torso of the Spetsnaz soldier was lying in the snow and staining it red, but two of the cyclops units were fully functional, if a bit dented.
"They're tough, huh?" Ralph frowned. "Destroy those things!"
The three German T-Dolls responded by firing off their weapons at the two enemy robots, aiming for their weak spots as they were trained to do in the rare sims that they ran against military units. This time, it was the enemy who was overwhelmed in terms of numbers, and the cyclops units fell heavily into the disheveled snow, out of commission for good.
Ralph peeked his head around the cabin as his T-Dolls reloaded in order to get a better view of the battlefield. Three Spetsnaz soldiers were busy firing into the cabin as a cyclops rushed into the house, and on the far end, there were three more cyclops units firing at WA2000, DSR-50, and A-91, though Ralph couldn't ascertain the status of those T-Dolls since they were hidden out of view.
He quickly ducked back behind the cabin as one of the Spetsnaz sent a bullet his way.
"Six enemy units left outside. I don't think we've taken any losses yet," Ralph told the T-Dolls.
"Let's all round this corner at the same time. That way we can take the enemy by surprise," 416 suggested.
"I mean, they already know we're hiding here because of that explosion, and one of them just shot at me," Ralph said. "But still, if we can overwhelm them with a four vs three situation then we can -"
He stopped short when he heard a loud whooshing noise followed by a strange smell. Ralph poked back outside the corner to see one of the Spetsnaz soldiers lighting the cabin on fire with a flamethrower.
Shit! How did I not notice one of them was carrying a flamethrower? Ralph cursed himself.
"What the hell?!" 416 exclaimed, also having peeked out from the corner to get a look at what was going on.
She moved her upper body out from behind cover in order to fire at the Spetsnaz wielding the flamethrower. Her shots landed true, cutting down the Russian special forces soldier within a second.
However, not a moment later, one of the other Spetsnaz fired a deadly accurate burst which caught 416 in the throat. She immediately collapsed onto the snow and clutched at her throat, choking as blood gargled up in her mouth.
"Damn it!" Ralph pulled 416 and her weapon back behind cover.
"She's not going to make it," Kar98k noted, frowning as she watched 416 drowning in her own blood.
G36 stood up. "We should move away from here. The cabin is rapidly burning down."
"Did everyone inside evacuate?" Ralph wondered, the smell of burning wood in his nostrils.
Before he could get any sort of answer to that, the two remaining Spetsnaz leapt around the corner with stylistic somersaults. Landing with blinding speed, they aimed their weapons on Ralph and the two combat-capable T-Dolls and fired.
G36 moved to shield Ralph with her body, collapsing as she was hit. Ralph caught her with his left arm before she could fall and squeezed off a shot of his AK-12 with his right, aiming for the Spetsnaz's head but missing and actually hitting him in the groin. Luckily, that bought time for 416, who, with her dying breath, also managed a one-handed shot and sent a bullet right into the Spetsnaz's forehead.
Meanwhile, the second Spetsnaz's shot had been aimed for Kar98k, but the sniper Doll had ducked just in time. Her prized hat had been shot cleanly off her head, but she herself was unharmed, and she retaliated with a devastating bullet which ripped through the Spetsnaz's skull.
Both of the Russian special forces operators fell dead onto the snow at nearly the same time.
"Are you all right?" Ralph asked the T-Doll in his arms, glancing down at her and noticing that the bullet had struck her around her hip. Luckily the Spetsnaz had been aiming for the crouched Ralph, so the bullet had not hit G36 in a fatal spot because she moved to block it while standing up.
"Yes… I am fine," G36 managed, her pretty face strained.
"Our other friend here is not, though," Kar98k said, glancing down at 416.
The Squad 404 T-Doll was lying on her side, her gun still in her hand and blood slowly continuing to trickle from her throat. Her green eyes had glossed over, and she lay motionless.
"We have more pressing things to worry about," Ralph said urgently.
Though the fire had not reached this side of the cabin yet, Ralph could still feel the blazing heat emanating from inside the small house just by standing outside it.
"They should have been able to escape out the backdoor. Let's go check," he stated, helping G36 to her feet and then running off towards the back of the cabin.
He expected to see his allies standing outside the cabin when he got there, but instead he was greeted with the sight of a cyclops firing its weapon on full-auto through the backdoor of the cabin.
Ralph raised his weapon and fired at the cyclops, doing little more than denting its armor. The cyclops paused and turned to evaluate the new threat, but before it could do anything to Ralph, a shock of gunfire came out from within the cabin and turned the head of the cyclops into scrap metal.
The military unit collapsed onto the snow, and Ralph hurriedly stepped over it to glance inside the cabin… Though he immediately regretted doing that when the wave of heat hit him, forcing him to back away.
G11 rushed out of the cabin, her fluffy gray hair and her clothing drenched with sweat. Kalina and UMP9 followed, the latter supporting UMP45 who was still injured but able to move. Then M590 and RO635 ran out, both of them coughing and sweating but otherwise unharmed. Lastly, 2000 emerged from the inferno, bleeding from multiple wounds and carrying an unresponsive Osip on her back.
Ralph's own WA2000 came rushing around the corner of the cabin.
"Sorry, we let one enemy slip though!" she apologized hastily before noticing that the cyclops unit had already been destroyed.
"How many remaining units?" UMP45 asked.
"Zero," Ralph answered. "Get moving. We need to get far away from this cabin."
"Hey!" 2000 stopped them. "Osip, he's…"
Ralph took a quick glance at the former commander. He was unconscious at best and bleeding from multiple wounds.
"He has no cha-"
"The AR Team may have some medical supplies which can help him," UMP45 cut Ralph off before he could callously tell 2000 to leave her lover behind. "We need to get to them as quickly as possible. This cabin could burn down at any moment, and both Sangvis Ferri and the military know exactly where we are now."
With UMP45's words leaving no room for argument, the group left the site as fast as they could. Ralph carried HK416's corpse in his arms, but they were still slowed down by UMP45 and DSR-50, both of whom had been wounded in the firefight. G36 was also moving slower and more gingerly than normal, though she tried to ignore her injury as best as she could. Luckily, none of those wounds were fatal.
The only one who might die here is him, if he's not already dead, Ralph thought, glancing again at Osip.
He figured that UMP45 was just trying to keep 2000 from breaking down or exploding in fury, because he seriously doubted that the AR Team would be able to fix injuries like those.
Ralph was more concerned about the status of the T-Dolls in the echelon. He didn't particularly care for 416, but he had to admit that her skill and grenade launcher had come in handy a few times throughout the operation. The rest of the injured Dolls were still fit enough to fight, but he guessed that if they were shot even once more, they would be useless for the rest of this mission even if they didn't die.
"How long is it going to take to get to the AR Team?!" 2000 demanded to know.
"About half an hour," UMP45 told her.
Another lie to placate 2000. Judging by the location of the AR Team on the satellite radio device, Ralph estimated that it would probably take them closer to an hour at this pace.
"Then let me go up ahead! You guys are going too slow!" 2000 said, frantically shifting her gaze to the human on her back from time to time.
"That's suicidal. What if you run into Sangvis Ferri or the military? You'll have no chance on your own," UMP45 replied.
"I'll take my chances! Do you really think Osip can hang on for half an hour!?"
By now, the group was far enough away that the burning cabin was just an orange speck in the distance. They had entered into a forest again, the evergreen trees offering a better degree of cover than the open tundra.
"Like I said, even if his chances of making it another half hour are small, they're infinitely better than his chances of surviving another enemy attack," UMP45 told her.
God, would these two stop arguing already? Ralph thought, frustrated.
"I don't care! Why should I trust your judgement anymore? Look at what you got us into!" 2000 yelled.
"Is he even alive right now?" Ralph asked.
2000 blinked. "W-What?"
"Your commander. Is he still alive or not? Just pause for a moment and check," Ralph said.
2000 slowly and carefully shifted Osip off her back and gently placed him onto the snow. UMP45 sighed as 2000 bent down to place her ear over Osip's chest.
"No…. No, this can't be…" 2000 muttered.
"Was this really necessary? Now we're going to have to deal with this," UMP45 glared at Ralph.
"No… Osip… Wake up," 2000 breathed, horrified. "Wake up! Wake up, please! Wake up!"
"Uwaa, the enemy is going to hear us," G11 moaned.
"Please! Don't die here, Osip!" 2000 continued to wail.
The rest of the T-Dolls and Kalina averted their gazes as 2000 cried out in pain. Ralph set 416 down in the snow and chewed his tobacco silently. UMP45 merely frowned at the scene.
Finally, WA2000 went over to her counterpart and placed a hand on her shoulder. 2000 looked up at her newer model, her eyes stained with tears. She began to quiet down.
A loud crashing noise in the distance interrupted the somber silence, most likely from the cabin collapsing.
"We can't stay here any longer," Ralph told UMP45.
"I know," UMP45 said. She turned to 2000. "Please get up, 2000. The enemy will be searching this area soon."
2000 remained silent, tears streaking down her face.
"Bitte beeilen," UMP45 tried their native language.
"... I'm not leaving," 2000 finally spoke, her voice soft and devoid of all feeling. "You all can go. I'm staying here."
"But the enemy…" WA2000 pleaded.
"I know." 2000 gave WA2000 one final, sad smile before turning back to the body of her commander. "I'm not leaving this spot."
"I understand. Good luck to you… And I'm sorry," UMP45 said. "Okay, everyone. Let's move out."
As an air of uncomfortable sorrow hung over them, the group left 2000 and Osip behind in the snowy forest. WA2000 took a last look back at the Doll who shared her appearance, then continued onwards.
