A War for Three

by caryalaciniosa

Two years after the Butterfly Incident, the struggle between Griffin & Kryuger and Sangvis Ferri continues unabated. To many, the countless IOP androids employed by Griffin are merely a tool. But even T-dolls have true warriors, worthy of the highest praise. The stories told here are but a few of such individuals.

36. The Confrontation

Gestalt's thrust deflected off the concrete floor as StG 44 rolled to avoid it just in time. Staggering from the lunge, the Ringleader was in the right spot for StG to place a few bursts into its flank. It attacked again, bringing its arm-mounted spike up from the floor in a swing that StG barely managed to duck. The Griffin doll backed away, letting Type 79 move in instead to distract Gestalt. She was better at dodging and led the Ringleader on a chase around the floor, pulling her away from the others.

"44, stay close," Tokarev reminded, jogging past StG. The uniformed doll nodded to herself before running forward, throwing the stock up against her shoulder before she squeezed, the trigger, sending a chak-chak-chak of bullets down at Gestalt as she ran. Type 79's muzzle flash seared the shadowy image of the Ringleader in StG's mind. She went to fire again but waited as Type 79 got in close once more. The Sangvis was shrugging off most of their fire, and so far only StG had been lucky enough to hit it at one of the weak gaps in its armor. Type 79 started backpedaling as StG rejoined the battle.

Sensing the change in attackers, Gestalt stood a little taller as it locked on to StG. Its mask was staring at her, daring her to come forward.

So she did.

The spike ripped past StG, tearing at her jacket. She responded by shooting a strip of bullets up its torso, most of which pinged off or embedded themselves in its jet black armor. StG raised her sights and managed to nail the Ringleader in the head, stopping its next attack short. But before she could back away and slam a new magazine in her weapon, her adversary had recovered and was coming at her again. StG emptied the rest of her magazine and dropped it, taking a fresh one in her hand before the old had even hit the ground. The point of Gestalt's spike came within a hair's breadth of her stomach as she leaned back.

"Firing!"

Every other sound in the depot was made small as NTW-20's weapon fired, the bullet crossing from one side of the room to the other, passing through the side of the Ringleader's abdomen in an instant. Gestalt started to back away –

"44! STAY ON IT!"

Type 79 was running toward them, but StG was closest. She sprinted, charged the Ringleader as its hand fell for its hip, black fingers wrapping around the large-bore pistol resting there. They had stopped it from using the weapon so far, but if it took it out… StG's burst stung its hand, and then they were back in the close-in struggle for dominance. This was not like the animalistic struggle that had been the fight with FAMAS. Gestalt moved with exact movements, calculated and instant. StG was forced to focus all her efforts on simply dodging its attacks. NTW-20's shot seemed to have had little effect on the Ringleader. How is that possible? Most enemies were felled with a single shot… but this one was shockingly resilient.

StG 44 let off a final burst as Type 79 took her spot once again. Tokarev was crouched in cover, eyes unnaturally wide. Targeting. NTW-20 was using Tokarev as a secondary pair of eyes to keep a visual on Gestalt. It was a unique handgun-rifle relationship. StG shot off a round over Tokarev's head that caught the Ringleader in the small of its back, making it pause – just as NTW-20 fired again, the shot skimming Gestalt's moulded, artificial clavicle and leaving a long, shallow scar. Tokarev made a sound of surprise and disappointment. That was supposed to hit.

Gestalt must have been able to dodge the shot. And if it was able to do that–

"NTW! CHANGE POSITION!" StG virtually shouted over Zener. The sniper, perched on a crate far in the back of the depot, broke from her position with lightning speed. Gestalt was just as fast, though, shoving Type 79 back with a sharp punch, pulling its pistol with one hand, pointing it in NTW's direction, and pulling the trigger.

The handgun erupted with a bright flash and crack, and StG felt a pain over Zener, a mere echo of what NTW had felt. Gestalt had hit? At that range?

Without thinking, StG whipped back around and laid on the trigger, peppering the Ringleader with 7.92 Kurz. Gestalt raised its handgun again, firing just as StG scrambled behind a shipping crate. The metal took the projectiles, barely, and before Gestalt could shoot again, StG popped out and fired a burst, catching the Ringleader off guard and buying Type 79 enough time to rush Gestalt and strike at its gun hand, knocking its aim off. Tokarev's wide-eyed stare followed it, and moments after, NTW-20's shot came again, this time deliberately catching Gestalt's hand and blowing it and the pistol clean off.

The Ringleader replied by swinging its spike at the retreating Type 79, who was just barely out of range. StG dashed forward and kicked the pistol away, bracing herself to take a hit in return–

But nothing came. Instead, Gestalt was running away, back toward where Hunter had fought FAMAS, toward the door. NTW did not even have to shout an order for the other three to leap into action, pursuing Gestalt as it bolted for an escape. StG looked back to see NTW-20 leaping from shipping container to shipping container as she struggled to keep line of sight, coolant flowing from her leg. Gestalt disappeared around the corner of a crate, and everyone temporarily lost sight of it.

"79, 44, I want both of you on it this time," NTW-20 ordered. "No quarter."

StG felt a surge of pride and excitement and programmed adrenaline coursing through her Digimind all at once. "Consider it done!"

A pulse ran through Zener, a virtual chuckle from Type 79. It was a shaky emotion, and betrayed the doll as being worried. They were all worried, they had never fought a Ringleader like this. And never without FAMAS.

They came around the container to see Gestalt crouched over the French doll's corpse. The body was missing a hand, the filthy, coolant-covered stump of her arm disgorging ruby red liquid across the concrete floor. Gestalt looked up with what StG almost felt was a guilty look – impossible, it didn't have a proper face – and started running again.

"44, take left! I'll pursue!"

StG broke to the left, threading her way through crates as Type 79 ran directly after Gestalt. The Ringleader was going back towards where they had fought earlier. Tokarev kept pace with them as they dogged the Sangvis.

"It's going for the pistol," Type 79 stated matter-of-factly. StG escaped the narrow confines of the crates and brought her weapon up just as Gestalt leapt for the hand cannon. Her rifle pumped out rounds that cracked the concrete around the pistol, but failed to deter the Ringleader. It dove for the weapon, scooping it up and aiming.

"EVADE!"

The pistol thundered, but the SMG doll was fast, running up and into the Sangvis's face and jamming her barrel close. StG charged in as the two struggled, Type 79 barely managing to hold Gestalt's ferocious metal spike back. The blonde doll rushed the Ringleader and grabbed the pistol, pulling hard. To her surprise, its grip was loose, and StG stumbled back from her momentum and fell to the ground with the pistol in her grip. Gestalt used the opportunity to knee Type 79 in the stomach, then shoved her back.

StG still had the pistol in her hand. She turned it on Gestalt, feeling the rough scoring of the trigger under her index finger, and pulled.

The trigger caught. Safety. But there was no selector on the blocky frame. Coded to Gestalt's signal–

It was coming at her. StG tossed the pistol and made to pull her rifle up, but the Ringleader was too close. It batted the barrel aside and reached for her throat, wrapping its hard, armored fingers around her neck and gripping tight. StG's rifle dangled from one hand, her other reaching for the Ringleader's claw, trying to find purchase, trying to pull it away – she was not getting killed again, not by a Ringleader, not like this. Hot rage burned through her, anger at her helplessness. For the first time, StG caught sight of a knife handle sticking out from under its arm. Had someone else fought Gestalt before Hunter? Maybe Ingram, the one with the knife. The thought of the berserker T-doll she knew in S09 was stuck in StG's Digimind as she felt the artificial skin around her neck starting to break.

Then she swung her rifle up and fired a burst at point-blank range. Gestalt let out a guttural screech, its grip loosening enough for StG to pull its hand off and drop to the ground. Gestalt instead seized the doll around her torso, lifted, and threw StG back.

She hit the ground hard, rolling to absorb the impact and get back on her feet. Tokarev joined the fray, her shots sparking off Gestalt's armor. Type 79 was sparring with Gestalt again, barely managing to match each blow with a block. Their metal hands clashed in a hard meeting of steel, then 79 raised a foot and kicked the Ringleader square in the stomach. The armor plating buckled a little at the strike, and Gestalt broke off and backed away.

"Where's the pistol?" Tokarev asked

"My left," 79 replied. The handgun doll scurried to pick it up. Gestalt was retreating, knowing that it had lost that confrontation. Hunter had to move fast.

StG made eye contact with her teammate. The two exchanged a subtle nod, a pair of warriors making ready for another bout. With weapons raised they began to advance, marching forward, two arbiters of Griffin, let loose on Gestalt. When the Ringleader came, they would be ready; when they were tested again, they would pass with flying colors. It was now that StG truly felt ready for combat, even craved it. She felt… emboldened.

NTW-20's bolt racked, the big doll's footsteps shadowing the others' movements as she kept a distanced pace with them atop the shipping crates. Tokarev was close too, shoes clicking on the concrete.

"Keep it occupied, no respite, no openings."

StG checked her magazine. Half capacity. She still had three full magazines of ammunition left. "Three and half. 79?"

"I've got plenty," the SMG replied, checking her own magazine. They swept their barrels about, waiting for Gestalt to pop back out at any moment. A shadow of a presence swept over the Zener network – NTW-20 scanning for any Sangvis viruses, a precaution after FAMAS. Gestalt could infect any of them with Parapluie.

"Transponder ping, Griffin IFF detected," Tokarev reported. "It's – no…"

It's Tiss, StG guessed. "Where? Where is it?!"

"Left, forward left–"

StG swung her barrel over and squeezed the trigger as Gestalt materialized from between two crates, spike raised, barreling down on the Griffin dolls. Tokarev yelped in surprise as Type 79's weapon joined the bark of StG's, deflecting off Gestalt's armor in a bell-like pinging. At the last moment StG sidestepped the Sangvis's charge, but the side of the spike swung sideways and slammed her in the side. Type 79 ducked a strike and held the Ringleader at bay while StG recovered and ran back in, sending a scattered burst of furious bullets into Gestalt's back.

"CLEAR!"

StG reeled back at the last moment, getting out of the way before NTW-20 fired. The rifle's shot went clean through Gestalt's left thigh, leaving a gaping hole. The Ringleader seemed unfazed, striking Type 79 across the chest with its spike, ripping her weapon out of her hands with one swift stroke. The doll dove for the weapon, but the Ringleader was quicker, kicking it away and catching 79 out of position all at the same time.

"No!" Tokarev ran forward, firing off shot after shot, at the same time StG launched herself into Gestalt, throwing her shoulder underneath its arm and pushing up. The Ringleader was heavy, but she succeeded in getting it off balance enough that another hard shove pushed both it and StG to the ground. The Griffin doll landed on top, but before she could do anything, Gestalt was ramming its fist in her gut, shoving StG off. She rolled to avoid the spike right as it crashed down, taking the chance to grab Type 79's weapon off the ground. Gestalt climbed to its feet as she did, and StG tossed the SMG to its owner as another crack rent the air, and Gestalt contorted itself.

"Move again, it's got you figured out," StG said to NTW just as she resumed the assault, squeezing the trigger and wondering, vainly, if maybe this time she'd get lucky.

Gestalt merely ignored the rounds and surged forward. Tokarev was its target this time, and she was totally unprepared as the Ringleader spitted her almost effortlessly, lifting the doll off her feet.

"Hurrrrrrrrk–"

"ON IT, NOW!"

But before they could take advantage of its lack of movement, Gestalt had pulled Tokarev off the spike and turned around, meeting their attack head on. StG barely had time to react as the tip of the weapon roared by her head. NTW-20 fired again, but Gestalt was rampaging. Type 79 seemed pushed to the limit as the Ringleader set upon her with unbridled ferocity, pulling her gun out of her grip and sweeping across with the spike, knocking the doll to the ground.

"44!" NTW-20 thundered, and StG lowered her rifle and sprinted forward. Type 79 held her arms up in a futile gesture of self-defense as Gestalt drew its spike back, ready to plunge the tip forward. StG abandoned any sense of self-preservation and plowed forward, ready to slam into Gestalt–

–only for it to twist at the last moment, narrowly avoiding the charge and letting a shocked StG run right past it. The blonde doll stumbled to a halt and twisted around, rifle raised, but it was too late. Gestalt drove the spike forward, lancing Type 79 through the chest. The doll seized the spike with both hands, but with a twist of the weapon, Gestalt shattered her core, and 79 went limp.

Sturmgewehr squeezed the trigger and held her finger down. Gestalt hesitated at that, at least, unable or unwilling to move forward. The Griffin doll felt a hint of exacted revenge from that. Revenge for 79.

Then her magazine ran empty.

The Ringleader turned to face StG. Its hand – the one NTW-20 had shot off – had been supplanted. FAMAS's pale hand had taken its place, jammed onto Gestalt's stump and fused to it with whatever unknown technology Sangvis employed. The green-lacquered fingernails shone in the light as StG stared her adversary down. The acrid odor of coolant and nitroglycerin hung in the air. StG became acutely aware of the shape of her weapon's grip through her glove. The sight post was on Gestalt, ready, but she had no rounds to fire.

StG pressed the mag release and grabbed a magazine. Gestalt sprang forward, and StG leapt to the side. The Ringleader caught her with its other hand as it rushed by, however, knocking her off balance. Its footsteps slowed, then reversed. StG knew what came next. But even as the Ringleader beared down on her, she slammed a new magazine in, and raised her rifle.

A 20mm round caught Gestalt in its stomach, and then NTW-20 was next to StG. The doll's pink hair waved behind her as she ran forward.

"NTW–"

No, it was useless. The pink-haired doll already had her mind set: they had come here to kill the Ringleader, and NTW did not intend on leaving the job unfinished. Her rifle discharged again, glancing off Gestalt's shoulder, then, on an empty mag, NTW took the gun by its barrel and hefted it like a long bat. She swung with speed and precision, the decisiveness of an expert. Gestalt's flank buckled under the impact, armor bent out of shape. NTW-20 threw the gun aside before the Ringleader could take it.

One-two-three, Gestalt's chained strikes were dodged nearly effortlessly by NTW. The doll retaliated with a gloved fist to the Sangvis's midsection, followed by a flurry of blows that drove the Ringleader back. Each of the Griffin doll's attacks was perfectly executed, fighting skills honed by years of training and experience. She and Gestalt were excellent sparring partners, even if they aimed to kill. They blocked a strike with one hand even as the other moved to attack, all in the span of a few moments.

It was a battle between elites.

"44. Get out of here. Get help." NTW-20's voice over Zener was oddly calm.

"But–"

"No time for pride. Do it." Then she disconnected from the network. A knife appeared in NTW-20's hand, and she turned to slashing and stabbing at the Ringleader, aiming for the gaps in its armor plate. StG watched in awe for just one more moment before picking herself up and starting to run. The staccato tap of footsteps and dull impact of synthetic flesh on hard armor were the only thing to remind StG that there was a duel happened as she lost sight of her team leader, running past a crate toward the stairs.

Help. She had to get help.

––––––––

"Third time's the charm, right, SASS?"

"Right."

Overpowered. Need assistance. NTW engaged. That was what the transmission had said.

SASS's body was already in overdrive as they rushed down the stairs. RFB was up top, providing overwatch – Rose and Chrysanthemum had dispersed into the forest – while the other four members of Grizzly pounded down the concrete steps, into the belly of the beast. M590 was racking the pump on her shotgun and inserting slugs to replace the buckshot while Ingram muttered excitedly. Grizzly was mostly silent, doing her best to break the atmosphere of dread around the party. They had gone to assist Hunter because they were the closest, still lingering in the factory when StG's garbled transmission made it through the concrete.

"590, Ingram, we'll take this thing head-on while SASS provides overwatch. Remember, stay moving, keep your eyes on it. Don't let it retreat into the shadows like it did last time."

"Are the other teams going to follow us in?"

"Yes, as soon as they get back. Throne's been informed too."

"The cordon?"

"Closing in…"

They stepped out of the stairwell abruptly and through an open doorway. SASS nearly ran into Grizzly's back as the doll came to a sudden stop, turning off her flashlight.

"Light on the other side," she said, pointing to the bottom of the door. It was true: a thin strip of light shone through the gap. The echelon leader and M590 looked to each other and nodded.

"SASS, Ingram, step back. Follow us when we breach."

"Grizzly and M590 are going serious mode," Ingram whispered to SASS. "That always means that stuff's about to get fun."

SASS said nothing, instead reaching down to check her knife sheath. The blade had not inexplicably reappeared since the last time she checked, doubtlessly still stuck in the Ringleader. Her purpose here was twofold: save her senpai and the rest of Hunter, and reclaim her weapon.

M590 leveled her barrel at the door as Grizzly reached across, turned the handle, and pulled it open. The shotgun doll advanced through, shields facing forward, as Grizzly followed behind, then SASS, then Ingram. Their barrels swept around, looking for a target. The room beyond was a large depot, crates scattered about. SASS stowed her flashlight and turned off her night-vision, eyes flicking back and forth as she assessed the room. Like in every other encounter, it was the perfect spot for Gestalt. Even with the ceiling lights activated, there was still a great deal of shadow to conceal itself in, as well as all the crates for cover.

A single handwave from Grizzly was met with a subtle nod from M590. The two slowed their pace, quieting their footsteps, and everyone started to listen. That shift of a boot on concrete, constant irregular tapping–

It was close, but moving away. Grizzly bounded forward with everyone else in tow, a knot of worry forming in SASS's mind as she thought on what they might find.

"Hey, look."

"It's Type 79…"

Each of them looked at the doll as they walked by. SASS knew from her time working cleanup after the raid that the hole in her chest was Gestalt's work. Fragments of the core glimmered in the light, scarlet coolant slowly drying on her jacket. Discarded magazines littered the ground everywhere they walked, hundreds of brass shell casings shimmering up at them. SASS spied a couple that were 20mm.

"Tokarev too." M590 pointed her barrel toward the white-clothed corpse, looking all the world like a fallen biblical angel. She too had a hole through her, a red stain spreading on her clothes around it. SASS forced herself to stare at it, forced herself to commit it to memory. Like the corpses in Doll Services, it was a grisly reminder of what lay ahead, of what failure meant. She tightened her grip, felt the textured grip in her hand. She had felt that grip for a long time. It was quite familiar.

Ingram was excited. She was twitching in every direction, clearly itching for a fight, more than usual. It was doubtless because she wanted a second showdown with the Ringleader, after she lost the last one. SASS was wanting too. She just hoped that Ingram's eagerness didn't get in the way.

There's that noise again. Grizzly seemed to hear it too, and picked up her pace. Everyone followed, weaving through shipping crates, sometimes single file, as they drew closer and closer to it. They all knew what it could be. What it most likely was. SASS admired the others for being able to charge into peril with not a second of hesitation. It came with being experienced, she supposed. How else could someone be so self-assured, even in the face of defeat and death?

There was a loud report, then a burst of fully automatic fire. Someone shouted – "LEFT!" – then another report, another burst.

When SASS burst out from the crates behind Grizzly and M590, she was greeted with a duel.

StG hit Gestalt hard across the head with the stock of her rifle. Nearly unperturbed by the strike, Gestalt hit back with a blow to the Griffin doll that sent her flying. But before the Sangvis could set upon her any more, two familiar figures emerged from behind it and opened fire, knocking the enemy off balance and forcing it away from StG.

"Open fire!" Grizzly shouted. There was a loud crack as M590 fired a slug, then racked her shotgun. Grizzly's pistol spat fire as she squeezed the trigger again and again. Ingram wasted no time in rushing forward, but a split second later Grizzly sent a loaded halt command over the network, forcing Ingram to hang back before she got herself killed. "SASS!"

"Yes!" The sniper hurried forward and put her eye to her scope, finding the Ringleader and firing. The shot missed, and Gestalt slipped out of her sight, behind a container.

"Ah, shit. Ingram, check on StG!"

The doll actually growled in displeasure, but nevertheless ran to the felled member of Hunter. Grizzly and M590 advanced, SASS close behind. The two girls who had entered seemed to still be pursuing Gestalt, firing off shots on occasion. Grizzly waved an arm as the three approached.

"Hey, hey! Quit looking, it's gone!"

"Grizzly!" M590 said sharply. "It's not that simple!"

"Oh, like hell it isn't. I thought we were backing up Hunter, not replacing them. We're not here to take out a Ringleader–"

"Leave."

It was the blond-haired girl who had been helping StG, and, SASS realized, the same one they had seen in the forest.

"What? No, it's you who has to–"

"LEAVE!"

With nary a glance back, the two started running again, toward the far side of the depot that Gestalt had disappeared by. M590 turned to Grizzly, and SASS caught the pained look on her face. The two seemed to have a silent argument, a split second of myriad facial expressions, then Grizzly whipped her head around.

"Keep a cool head, and we'll come out of it alive. SASS–"

She gave the sniper's shoulder a quick pat.

"You're good. Ingram!"

"StG's core is fine, but the body is pretty beat up," said the submachine gun doll, jogging back toward the others. "Where'd those two go? To the fight?"

"Yes. And we are too, so let's go."

They moved out, following the path that the two dolls had taken. SASS knew for sure who they were – OTs-12 and SV-98, two of the dolls declared MIA after that incident in the forest. It had been so long ago, so how had they survived over a month without help? They must be tougher than I remember hearing.

Where was NTW-20? The question went through her mind over and over again, taking her attention from anything else. Where had she gone?

They caught sight of Tiss ahead, the two dolls looking over the crates carefully as they stepped down the row of containers. SASS was looking too, looking for pink hair, looking for any sign of senpai. M590 had her plates behind, shielding her back, while Grizzly and Ingram were walking in a defensive posture, watching each others' blind spots.

"Remember, don't get speared," Grizzly reminded them.

Don't get speared…

Their shadows shifted around on the floor as they passed under one after another of the big ceiling lights. It made SASS flinch to see the black spot on the floor following her, changing position, barely noticeable out of the corner of her eye.

So when something came out from between two of the containers, SASS had to glance a second time before she leapt out of the way. Gestalt's lunge carried it past her, the Ringleader halting itself and spinning around on a dime. SASS backpedaled furiously, bringing her rifle up as the other three turned, raised their weapons, and rushed. Gestalt appeared momentarily indecisive, but was given no time to choose. M590's slug hit it square in the side of its chest, making a satisfying thuck and forcing Gestalt to take action.

The Ringleader decided to go forward. Swinging with its spike, it succeeded in making M590 back up, but as it swung its weapon back, another attacker joined instead. Ingram popped up and plunged her knife into the armor gap by its waist, wrenching it to the right an effort to cut through. Gestalt kneed Ingram in the crotch to throw her off balance before wedging an arm between itself and the Griffin doll. Ingram wrapped both hands around the knife, ready to be shoved away, but before the Ringleader could do anything else Grizzly was hanging around its neck.

"Come on, Ingram! Cut it!"

Ingram grinned wickedly, pushing the knife again, trying to cut through whatever she could. Gestalt stumbled backwards, thrown off balance, and reaching behind its head. Grizzly grunted as the Ringleader found her arms. SASS saw her leader get pulled off and thrown forward, knocking M590 to the ground while Ingram danced away, knife back in her hand.

"We'll take it together," SASS said, glancing at Ingram. The doll nodded firmly.

"Your move first."

SASS quickly raised her weapon and fired off a few shots at Gestalt. Two of her bullets went wide, but the third found its mark, hitting Gestalt's hip but bouncing off. The Ringleader ran forward again, making for SASS, but Ingram jumped in to distract it, letting rip with her submachine gun and landing a line of fire up its torso. Distracted, Gestalt went for Ingram instead, trying to snatch the weapon from her grip, but Ingram stepped back fast, leading the Ringleader away and opening its back up for SASS to fire again, a quick one–two on its back.

Its mask turned toward SASS and it swung the spike, the doll just barely managing to dodge by falling backwards. Ingram attacked again to draw the Ringleader's attention, letting SASS scramble to her feet. The Sangvis swung one, twice, thrice, the third catching Ingram on her calf as she leapt away, causing the doll to nearly fall. Gestalt brandished the spike and SASS felt its attention on her once more. She immediately retreated, just in time for Tiss to come to a halt in front of Gestalt.

The Ringleader jerked the spike around instantly. Tiss dodged the strike by moving forward – directly against Gestalt, safe from the spike. With surprising strength she hooked a leg behind the Ringleader's and pulled its leg out, toppling the enemy before it could react. Tiss backed away and raised her AK-12 as SV-98 stopped and brought her own rifle to bear. Before it could so much as swing its spike, the two opened fire, forcing the Ringleader to crawl away.

"Keep on it!" Grizzly shouted as she got up, starting after the retreating Sangvis. M590 followed close behind, back into the maze of shipping crates, and the others followed right after. SASS shoved her apprehension down and went after them.

There was a shot, then another, as Grizzly fired at the Ringleader. SASS's feet pounded the pavement, her core overdrive setting her mind wild with anxiety and the thrill of combat. They were far enough away that they could not draw a bead on Gestalt before it managed to duck behind a container or go around the corner. SASS was waiting for a time when they turned and it was waiting for them – but no such moment came. Gradually, they slowed their pursuit and stepped back out into the open, forming a jagged defensive circle. SV-98 turned to her partner, who, SASS noticed, had her eyes closed once more.

"Radio?" Grizzly asked.

"Nothing," M590 replied, "besides static. We're on our own, I'd say."

"Great."

"It's still around here." SV-98 suddenly joined the circle with Tiss, shoving new rounds into her Mosin-Nagant. "Close. But… not engaging."

"Well, I'm fine waiting." For once, Grizzly chose not to rush in. SASS bit at her lip before she spoke up.

"Grizzly, I think we need to go after it. We can't let it get away, waiting just gives it more time."

"Rushing in is what got Hunter torn apart. We should–"

"No!" SASS shouted, turning to face her leader. "No! We can't wait any longer! It will get us killed, and just because you're scared of dying again doesn't mean we shouldn't do our best to finish what senpai started!"

Grizzly gave her subordinate a funny look. "You mean NTW-20? If the vaunted Hunter Squadron couldn't finish off Gestalt, then you'll pardon me if I'm not too optimistic about our own chances. I'd like to get the team back alive, and just because you feel like having a moment–"

"Grizzly," M590 warned.

"No, I'll finish! SASS can take some hurt feelings when I'm trying to keep her alive."

"I don't want to live!" the doll returned, feeling hot anger. "I want to fight! I want to do the right thing, not run!"

"You don't get a choice in this." Grizzly's voice was low, coercive. "We've leaving. SV-98, Tiss? What about you?"

But before the blonde could reply for them, a shadow dropped down behind her.

"THERE!" Grizzly yelled in alarm. SV-98 dodged Gestalt's attempt to grab her by the neck, throwing herself to the side as the rest of the panicked group raised their rifles and fired. Gestalt managed to evade the first burst of bullets, ripping Grizzly's handgun straight out of her grip and knocking the doll to the floor with a punch to the head. SASS turned and ran, nearly tripping over herself as she did.

"Ingram, where are you?!"

The submachine gun doll had gotten some sense and followed her for ten paces or so, then stopped. SASS turned, finger on the trigger. SV-98 had been shoved away, her rifle on the floor, while Tiss and M590 beat a hasty retreat. Cover them, quick. SASS raised her weapon again, found Gestalt, fired and hit. The Ringleader shrugged off the round, intent on running down its prey. Tiss pulled ahead of the heavier shotgun doll, and in the last second before Gestalt pounced, M590 threw herself to the ground with her shields covering her torso.

Gestalt set upon the slabs of metal with the same ferocity it did everything else. Both hands, one black metal, one pale white synthflesh, found purchase on the shields and pulled. Just as the thought went through her mind – that's the perfect way to– M590's slug knocked its left leg right out from underneath it, and the Ringleader fell heavily on top of the shotgun doll's shields. The metal creaked, barely holding, but just long enough for the doll to rack the pump and fire again. SASS saw a wave of sparks shower the ground. M590 had succeeded in catching Gestalt at a disadvantage.

That was the end of it for Ingram. SASS knew how intent the doll was about chasing that battle high, and she knew that whatever limited self-control she had was worth nothing here. As Gestalt rolled off of M590 and struggled to its feet, legs irreversibly damaged, Ingram attacked. She had her knife in one hand, her gun in the other, and the Ringleader hardly had time to produce its spike before she was on it. Her knife pinged off the midriff, her weapon echoed around the depot, and she pushed Gestalt back. SASS followed, entranced by the fight, genuinely wondering who the winner might be, but M590 had other ideas.

"INGRAM, CUT IT OUT!"

It didn't go well last time, SASS reminded herself and stopped walking. Tiss, however, ran after Ingram. Gestalt was still retreating, only caring to parry Ingram's blows, but the doll persisted. Finally, Gestalt made an attack of its own, thrusting at Ingram, but the doll dodged it and emptied her magazine into Gestalt's already damaged knee, knocking to the ground. Ingram let out a maniacal laugh, discarding her gun and taking her knife in both hands, ready to thrust. SASS and M590 jogged forward behind Tiss. The silver-haired doll reached out to Ingram, apparently wanting her to stop, but it was too late. Ingram stabbed.

SASS should have seen it coming. Gestalt's arm reached up and redirected the blade, which just scratched its mask, as the other arm reached up and seized Ingram by the throat. The doll tried to jerk away, but the Ringleader's grip was strong, and it slowly got to its feet as Ingram struggled feebly. SASS wanted to reach out, to pull Ingram down, but before she got within ten steps there was a loud snap and Ingram went limp. Gestalt dropped the body and lurched forward on its bad leg, swinging its spike down upon M590.

BRAAAAAAANG

The shield held, but Gestalt was faster than the shotgun doll. The spike swung around and swept her legs out from underneath her, and with one swift strike the Ringleader had put the doll down permanently. Gestalt wrested the shotgun out from her death grasp and leveled it at Tiss, pulling the trigger before the silver-haired doll could get a shot off. She crumpled to the ground.

Gestalt turned to face SASS. A long scrape ran along one leg where the slug had grazed it, while the other had a mess of bent metal and exposed wiring where there once was a knee. The arm hung loose, tip of the spike nearly scraping the floor SASS's eyes roved over the Ringleader's visage, its face marred with dents and scrapes from bullets. She saw the knife hilt under its arm.

The sniper snapped her weapon up into her shoulder and squeezed the trigger as many times as she could before Gestalt was upon her. The Ringleader tore the weapon out of her grip and reached for the doll's neck. SASS rushed forward instead of backing away, evading the grab and quickly grasping the knife handle. A sharp pull and the blade came free, shocking Gestalt enough for SASS to push its arm off and back away.

The handle was quite reassuring, and she flipped the knife to hold it in a stabbing grip . Gestalt seemed wary, like it had seen this before, and got into a hunched posture. SASS struggled to stop herself from attacking instinctively, telling herself that she had to wait. An opportunity would present itself, even if it offered just the slightest improvement of her chances.

The Ringleader's nasty spike was gone. SASS, through her overdrive and anxiety and fear, could not help but notice how strange it was for Gestalt to be resorting to a fight like this. Perhaps, contrary to the impression that Griffin had, it did indeed have a personality, an ego…

It lashed out, but halted its strike right after SASS flinched to intercept it. A test. She remembered, with increasing fear, how NTW had told her not to lose the first strike. There was no recovering from it. SASS had a faster reaction to the next probing strike, nearly making contact with Gestalt's hand before it pulled it back. There was an exchange of strikes, Gestalt effortlessly blocking SASS's while the Griffin doll struggled to halt the hammer-like blows of the Ringleader. It straightened up, readying itself for a heavy strike, and that was when SASS saw her chance. She kicked, Gestalt's arm flinched and it moved to intercept, and then SASS snatched Gestalt's wrist and buried the blade in its exposed elbow. A single, forceful twist–

–and the arm fell away. SASS went for the throat, just like before, but with a heart-rending scrape, it deflected off the armor. Gestalt's remaining arm pushed SASS to the ground, losing her grip on her knife and getting pinned by the Ringleader. Her hands slipped on the armor as she tried to push the Sangvis off, her struggle feeble against her adversary's superior weight. Gestalt leaned down, its hand curling around the back of SASS's neck, taking a decidedly fatal grip. The pressure on her spinal cord increased, causing a deep pain that pierced every inch of her body, and SASS was struck with a deep sense of fear. She would die here, and this time there was no NTW-20 to save her. Senpai, where did you go…

A white hand wrapped around Gestalt's face, and the Ringleader suddenly released its grip and tried to reach what was on its back. SASS was still pinned, but she saw her rifle just a few feet away – if she just reached for it! She stretched her arm out as Gestalt twisted and turned to get to its attacker. SASS saw a flash of white hair: was it Tiss? Gestalt jerked to one side, letting out a frightening mechanical screech. There was a glint of light on a polished edge, then Tiss sank the knife into Gestalt's neck, bending it savagely until the armor was pried up. She reached in with the blade, jerked it back, and Gestalt suddenly pitched forward, hitting the ground next to SASS and beginning to twitch erratically.

With some effort, SASS rolled over, pushing herself up and gulping in air. She reached around to her neck and felt where Gestalt had gripped it. The damaged spine was easy to feel, as well as the bruised skin. To her left, Tiss was straddling the Ringleader. Gestalt was still alive, but only its arm appeared to be working, scrabbling against the concrete. SASS flinched away from it as the hand – a doll's hand with green-painted fingernails stretched out in an attempt to grab onto SASS's wrist.

Tiss dropped the knife and brought her AK-12 out, bashing the Ringleader's face with the stock. SASS stood and backed away from the hand, which still reached, fingers opening and closing. The stock continued to pound, a steady thak… thak… thak.

The mask suddenly bent in and popped off. SASS walked over to Tiss warily, peering down. Behind the simple, expressionless face was a mess of wires and electrical components, looking like the delicate fibres of human muscle, exposed to the light. SASS turned the mask over with her toe. It was just a formed piece of metal, nothing more, and a close inspection yielded a product number stamped on the inside. SP867. To think that Gestalt had once been an item in the Sangvis Ferri catalogue.

Gestalt's mangled head tried weakly to rise, the mass of wires that made up its new "face" flopping about. Tiss held the head to the floor with one hand while the other picked the knife back up and started cutting away at the Ringleader's exposed components.

"Careful," SASS said, disturbed by the image. "You shouldn't touch it."

Tiss shook her head, then began sawing with the knife. Gestalt's spasms intensified for a moment before it went still, and Tiss grinned, self-satisfied. She worked with the knife a little more before pulling it back out, inspecting the blade.

"It's mine," SASS volunteered. Tiss looked up at her, then nodded and held it out to SASS. She took the blade and inspected it tenderly, noting the new marks on the flat. Battle scars. She would have to tell NTW-20 about that.

NTW-20!

Without a word to Tiss, SASS took off, running away from the corpse. NTW could be anywhere in the piles of shipping crates, sitting quiet, perhaps already dead.

"NTW!"

Her voice echoed through the depot. If she was dead… if she was dead…

"SENPAI!"

SASS turned and delved in between the crates, looking back and forth as she passed intersections. There was only dust and a single decayed human corpse. The doll flinched – had she heard something? Was that NTW? Another crate, another empty spot. SASS sprinted across the open floor to another area, peering around every corner frantically. Where was she?!

Finally, after what felt like half an hour of searching, she saw the tip of a black shoe peeking out from around the corner of a crate. SASS ran for it, slowing down only when she reached the edge. Her core pulsed with excitement and worry, and she felt it spike as she looked around the corner.

NTW-20's pink eyes looked back up at her. The doll was sitting down against the crate, holding herself up with one hand while the other rested on a stump where her lower left leg had been. Coolant dribbled out onto the floor, the flow staunched by her sailor uniform's flap collar tied around the thigh.

"Hey SASS."

"S-senpai, you–"

"Don't bother," the doll said, waving her pupil away as SASS knelt down by her. "I, uh… I don't think this body will last much longer. I should be put on level III before the core overheats."

"But, you–"

"Is the Ringleader dead? Gestalt?"

"Yeah. It is."

"That's good."

NTW-20 gulped and looked SASS up and down.

"Glad to see you made it. It certainly did a number on me. I wasn't really expecting it to be so ferocious. Ringleaders don't always have a… survival instinct. My leg, it speared it, so I had to amputate the rest so the nanites didn't spread," she added, accurately interpreting SASS's questioning glance. "I lost too much coolant, though."

SASS frowned. "No, no. We can get you out. You can't lose a body."

She was rebuffed by a derisive snort. "This wouldn't be the first time I've lost a body. Pull my core, that's all I'll need."

"I don't know how!"

"I can walk you through it, but let's make it quick. First, put your hand on my left breast."

SASS bit her lip, then reached out. NTW broke into a chuckle.

"I'm kidding! I'll activate the emergency access protocol, you just need to remove the core."

"Senpai, you shouldn't joke like that." SASS closed her eyes, finding herself feeling… weak. She reached out and placed a hand on NTW's head, shifting position so she was a little closer.

"What are you doing?"

SASS chewed on her lip to distract herself from the synthetic tears welling up in her eyes. "I don't want you to die in front of me."

"I'm not dying, SASS. I'm not dying."

NTW took one hand and pulled her shirt up, then waited until a port below her sternum popped open. "Reach in and take it out. And be careful, it's pretty fragile."

"O-okay." SASS gingerly placed her hand inside the compartment, feeling the cube that was NTW's soul and mind. It was warm, very warm, and she had to take a deep breath before taking a grip on it and starting to pull. The core slid out surprisingly easy, and SASS held the fist-sized cube up to inspect. It was glass and metal with a mess of complex parts on the inside, impossible for her to understand. She carefully cupped it to her stomach. "What next?"

NTW's body had gone limp.

Tiss was still on top of Gestalt when SASS returned. The doll had torn up more of Gestalt's armor and was rooting through the wiring. Her eyes turned to SASS as she approached, flicking down to the core in an questioning expression.

"It's NTW-20," she said, hardly controlling her voice from breaking. The core was held in both hands as one might hold a baby animal. Tiss nodded wordlessly. It occurred to SASS that she still had no idea why the doll didn't speak. More wires were tossed aside or pulled up like weeds, until Tiss's face was overcome with an expression of jubilation. SASS watched, completely absorbed, as Tiss shoved her arm in elbow deep. Hazard… don't touch Sangvis… of course, OTs-12 had not received the same warning that Griffin had. The silver haired doll yanked on something inside the Ringleader, and when she pulled her hand out, a small, grey box was held in her hand.

She looked at it for a moment, then stood, approaching the other doll. The box, held up for SASS to inspect, was not familiar to her, though the IOP logo on it was. Tiss noticed her expression of confusion and made a gesture, from the box to the core. But that's not a core, SASS thought. Tiss frowned, but gestured a few more times. For the first time, SASS noticed the scars on her face, how broken her lips were. Perhaps she means the items are comparable… in importance. "I see," she said.

Tiss nodded, looking satisfied. Then she looked down at the box, running a finger over it, and SASS saw her nod once again, and a happy smile crossed her dirtied face.