*Germany: Eichenwalde*
They dare to march towards the final resting place of Balderich.
The last intel that was sent to them was that the Omnics seem to have a more in depth insight of human psychology and emotions, recognizing that if they could defile this place, it would cripple the morale all forms of resistance in Europe, as Eichenwalde remains an almost mythological symbol of defiance against the Omnics.
Knowing this, the German Military has prioritized to defend the Black Forest but their forces are being held back by ranks upon ranks of Null Sector forces. In desperation they reluctantly accepted and, with great effort, drop the last living Crusader and his squire in to hold the line until they arrived, which hopefully will be within two days.
Reinhardt immediately took over and personally direct the defenses with the survivors who retreated there from previous battles, which included mercenaries and various units, whilst assigning Brigitte to plan out their offensive tactics. Their defenses total up to himself, Brigitte, and 30 men, numbers that he can work with.
The attack will begin at the base of the hill, where the Omnics will have to go through the chokepoint under an arc that leads to the Bell Tower. This will be the easiest to defend. With a clear line of sight and sufficient firepower, they can easily destroy any Omnics that attempts to set up heavy weapons, allowing Reinhardt to focus less on the integrity of his shield and more on protecting the rest. Bolstered by mines and automatic turrets, they are confident that the Omnics would never reach the Second Line.
If by chance they do, they will rain firepower down from the Towers just behind the gates, where the Omnics must also suffer through a series of barricades littered across the road. If even that is conquered, Reinhardt has ordered the Bridge to be laced with C4, ready to be blown upon his command.
Finally the last line of defense is the Fortress itself, where Balderich's body still sits. This is where the fighting will be the fiercest but also at its weakest, as many would have died before retreating behind the ancient wooden doors. But as long as he remains untouched, his memory amongst the people will not be tarnished.
Standing on the highest tower, Reinhardt was pondering what else could be added to their efforts when Brigitte came to join him.
"All preparations are complete" she reported.
"Good, we will crush the enemy!" he laughed towards the moon in a deliberate motion whilst stroking his beard.
"Reinhardt, what should I focus on today?"
He looked down at her, carefully thinking what to say. When she first joined him, he could comfortably put her anywhere in battle as she was a powerful asset to the team, her courage and mastery with the mace would have earned her the Knighthood she desires, but recently, many factors have held her back.
Her shield has weakened in power over the years due to her negligence to maintain it, even her Repair Packs have been malfunctioning. Her physique has been less sturdier than usual, and now she seemed to be more inclined to inspire herself than the others, though it could be because she kept comparing herself to her betters.
Now it will be supremely difficult for her to attack, defend, or support, if he is being honest with himself, he no longer knows where to put her.
"No lesson today. Show me what you have learnt!" he said finally.
"Yes sir!" she saluted enthusiastically.
He can't help but laugh. With people like these by his side, there is no way they could lose this battle.
"Go get some sleep, we have a big day tomorrow!"
"What about you?" she asked.
"A tale is only good if the hero walks around under the moonlight before battle"
She rolled her eyes as she left, leaving Reinhardt with his thoughts, knowing from experience that in this part of his stories, he needs to be alone.
Walking down to the battlements, he nodded to the few sentries stationed there as he inspected the three lines of defenses that were set up. With little more they could add and a few more hours before morning, he inspired the men with tales of his adventures. He was just describing how short Torbjorn is when a siren echoed through the streets and they jumped to their feet in panic.
The Omnics are early.
"Ah, my friends, what's with all this standing around? There's glory to be won!" Reinhardt shouted happily, grabbing his hammer and putting on his helmet, gold lights beaming from it's slits.
*Kenya*
"Achoo!"
"Beep Dwee Boop"
"Ahh shut it, it's not that loud" Torbjorn grumbled, wiping his nose as they drove through the Savannah.
He could not believe that the UN Armies have given up the lands here, now there is nothing to distract the Null Sector from his mission. They have to be extra careful as they approach the solar panels that are now powering the majority of the Omnic operations in Africa.
"Bleep Beep Dwee?"
"I already told you! I gave you enough upgrades, no sand's going into your system!"
Bastion fell silent with a sad beep.
"Hey! I ain't scolding ya! I'm just under a lot of pressure alright? Focus!"
Bastion said nothing and merely watched the bird that is resting on his finger, an action that Torbjorn knows full well not to disturb as this is one of its ways to reassure itself or something like that.
Another hour passed, he noticed that there is a significant decrease in wildlife. Before he would occasionally spot various animals, but now it is a barren land despite having no signs of a battle.
"Even the animals know that these Null Sectors are bad news" he thought to himself.
"Beep Beep?"
"Yup, we are getting close"
"Bleep?"
"I'll tell you when we get there"
Spotting a hill, they drove up until they were near the top, where they continued the journey on foot, Bastion struggling to stay as low as possible whilst Torbjorn merely walked.
"See? This is why being short is not all bad" he boasted.
"Beep"
From the hill they could only see a fraction of the Solar Farm but enough to see that it is heavily defended. It would not be wise for anyone to attack it head on unless prepared to suffer many casualties. What he could observe however, is that the other half of the farm is still under construction, but once operational, it could provide for a global size army.
"Beep Dweep Dleep?"
"How am I supposed to know why they didn't set security on the hills? What, you're complaining that there's no one here to stop us?"
"Bleep Beep"
"That's why I brought you along"
Bastion nodded and dropped into Turret Mode, scanning their surroundings carefully. Usually Torbjorn would be concerned as Bastion has always been trigger happy, however, with the lack of animals around, there shouldn't be a problem.
If the report is accurate, Torbjorn had to act quick, if he does not complete his mission within the hour, there will be nothing to stop the Null Sector from building the next farm, which could take months to find, which by then three more would've been built.
"Alright, here's what we are going to do, you are going to raise hell and I'll go in to set the charges, got it?"
"W-w-wooooooooo?"
"You'll be fine, this is Torbjorn made!" he said, tapping his hammer on its armor while adding more with an Armor Pack.
"Beep Boop Dwee?"
"I don't care, as long as it distracts them"
"Dwoo…"
"How about this, if we get outta here alive, I'll take you to the petting zoo"
Bastion immediately gave him the thumbs up and scrambled to a better position whilst Torbjorn proceeded down carefully. Reaching the fence that is undoubtedly charged with electricity, he took a deep breath and raised his flare gun.
Before the flare reached its peak, Bastion unleashed a hail of mortar and bullets into the base.
*Russia: Medic Camp*
Zarya woke up with a start, the last memory she had before passing out was her Mech running out of power and she had to crash through the wall to escape the wall of Nullifiers. Now she is on something soft and clean, however, the air still smells of snow and smoke, nothing like a hospital.
She forced herself to move, she need to set up in a better position, a chokepoint where the Nullifiers must squeeze past. Panicking slightly when her weapon is nowhere to be seen, she almost tore off the tubes attached to her body when she spotted Katya sitting next to her, apparently watching something in her pad.
"Good, you're awake" she said, looking up.
"Where am I?" Zarya groaned.
"A medic camp at the rear lines"
"How did I get here?"
"Some pilots volunteered to get you out, which reminds me..." Katya's voice trailing off as she pulled out some documents from her bag and begin signing them.
"We have pilots?"
A clap of thunder like noise filled the air as Mechs flew overhead, which was immediately followed by the cheering soldiers outside the tent.
"We do now, all thanks to you"
Too tired to even process that, Zarya just lay back on the bed, trying to figure out what to think about. Thanks to her? She did not do anything except rampaging through a city for a few days, how could she have possibly inspired anyone?
She watched as Katya called in one of her bodyguards, passing them the papers and saying "Make sure their families get these".
"What are you doing in a tent? Shouldn't you be back in Volskaya?"
"I am here to show my support for the soldiers... And to see my Mechs in action" she added.
"We have an army?"
Katya smiled and explained everything that happened since Zarya's attack, whose face darkened with every word.
"So you used me as some sort of puppet for your propaganda?"
"Like you said, wars are won by soldiers, and we needed something for them to rally behind"
"While you profit from everyone"
Speakers came to life and a very enthusiastic announcement sped through them so quickly that Zarya couldn't catch what he was saying, but obviously something incredible as the men outside exploded into a song, then a war cry... Ending with the sounds of hundreds of soldiers running towards a single direction.
"What's going on?"
*Russia: City of Perm*
'Braid''s worst fears are realized as the Revolution in Russia has been stopped completely, the cost of the war finally apparent. In a monumental and unexpected comeback, the people have rallied behind the romantic idea to fight and die. Somehow the exhausted population has found new strength to not only resist, but to fight back.
An avalanche of reports came crashing in as Null Sector units from around the world are also faltering. Normally a war of attrition against the Null Sectors is suicidal, however, the supply lines from Maximilien have become fatally careless. The once carefully guarded and ever shifting routes are now constantly being attacked and their journeys are as predictable as snow melting in flames. Without the supply lines, their forces are unable to receive reinforcements or replacements in time as they are the only functioning Omnium left in the world.
It is predictable that they could not overthrow the military might of America, China or Korea, therefore Talon was supposed to take care of all the Russian Leaders so they could convert the entire country into an Omnium for their staging ground, but thanks to their failure, many countries in the world is now equipped with monstrously powerful Mechs that they still do not understand.
Worst still, all 14 Prime Programs are beginning to hack through the codes to escape their prisons, without new updates from Maximilien, it is only a matter of time before he loses control of them, which would end all his efforts to create the supreme Omnic Race.
Cursing himself for relying so much from a single organization, he demanded that the armies to stop retreating and dig themselves in wherever they are to fight the incoming threat.
How could this have happened? They are supposed to be the superior race! If Humanity can become stronger with machinery implanted into them, then why can't Omnics, implanted with Humanity, be supreme?
Was it the wrong calculation? Was it because he did not add limits to how much they should feel? Fear and pain was what humans used to evolve, why is it not working for the Omnics? Now the humans are ever evolving whilst they are still stagnating.
"01010111 01100101 00100000 01100001 01110010 01100101 00100000 01101100 01101111 01110011 01101001 01101110 01100111" one of the voices inside him sounded out.
"01000010 01100101 01100011 01100001 01110101 01110011 01100101 00100000 01101111 01100110 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101" another added.
As they were speaking, a message came.
Report
Status: City of Izhevsk - Lost. Vanguard - Destroyed. Main Army - Retreated.
Damage: Lost 3 Titans + approx. 20% All Forces
Analysis: Enemy - New Mechs & Unorthodox Tactics, Update: Russian Reserve Forces Charging
Correction Action: Set up new defenses outside City of Perm
Chances of Success: Inconclusive
Braids had to stop himself from overturning the tables. How could they give up the lands that took months of brutal fighting to earn under only a few days of fighting, especially when 80% of the army is still intact? They were supposed to keep attacking! They had the advantage!
His dream. His vision. Is coming close to the breaking point.
His only hope now is that the Solar Panels in Kenya will be finished quickly so that they can have unlimited supply of energy to bolster the war effort.
"As We had predicted, you have brought us to the end of the Revolution" the eldest Prime Program voiced out.
"Quiet"
"If only you have not been led astray by that radical man, We would've won the war"
"You lost the First after a decade of fighting, your leadership is lacking"
"And you lost the Second within a year"