Chapter 2: The Cruelty of an Obsessive Heart
It was like a jail cell to Z23 as she sat in her quarters, blankly staring at her naked concrete wall as if it were made of glass. The Commander's words of dismissal kept playing on a loop in her mind, her heart feeling like nails were being driven into it each time. She found herself wincing with pain as she grabbed her chest, as if trying to grab her heart to numb the pain as it shot through her body.
"Am I really going to get replaced…?" Z23 said quietly, still staring blankly at her wall. She flinched as she seemingly felt a chair being pushed up against her own, a body soon sitting in it.
"Of course you are, someone has to hold your position whether they are more qualified or not," Z23 froze as she heard her words grace her ears, unsure of whether or not it came from the room or just her mind playing tricks on her.
"But I am going to be replaced in his heart…?" Z23 hesitantly said a loud, seeing if the voice would come back again. In this time of intense loneliness, she would gladly accept any form of verbal interaction.
"Not easily, but then again…anything is possible," the voice replied. Creeped out by this point, Z23 quickly stood, her head snapping her to find the source of the voice, only find she was still all alone in her room.
"That was...unsettling…I'm sure it's just the stress eating away at me…" Z23 groaned, dragging herself to her private bathroom to hunch over the sink. Looking at herself in the mirror, she found that she couldn't hide her misery, her eyes were cold and hurt as she turned on the faucet. Shutting her eyes, she splashed her face with ice cold water, it's icey temperature feeling giving like a refreshing slap to the face. Looking back in the mirror, she finally saw a smile, proof that there was hope yet.
"Calling Destroyer Javelin, Javelin, please report to the Commander's office immediately," an announcement came over the PA system, Z23 beginning to feel a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Knowing that Javelin's quarters was just a few doors down, Z23 cracked the door to keep watch for her. Sure enough, it was only a minute before the pitter patter of Javelin's feet came rushing down the hall, Z23 slipping out of her room before proceeding to quickly tail her, making sure her feet didn't stomp down the halls as she secretly followed. Finally, Javelin came to the door, giving it a knock before entering then shutting it behind her. Z23 took this opportunity to move up next to the door so she could hear what transpired.
"Javelin reporting for duty sir!" Javelin's voice was a bundle of energy as she gave him an excited salute, the Commander putting on a smile as he gestured her to the chair.
"At ease, please, have a seat," the Commander ordered, Javelin immediately plopping down in the chair. Pulling out her file, he began to look it over from top to bottom, making sure to note anything that may require questioning.
"So...as a result of our last skirmish, I've had one of my secretaries, Z23, take a leave of absence for her own mental and physical health. With that decision however has come an opportunity that I believe you have earned. I can't find a single discretion in your file, which brings me to the point. Javelin, I want you to become the new Captain of Battalion 1, do you accept?" the Commander issued with a smile, Javelin's eyes lighting up like a kid's on christmas as she took in his words.
"I would be honored! I've always wanted to try being in the Captain's seat!" Javelin cheered, immediately coughing to regain her composure when she realized how intense she was being. She quickly sighed and smiled as the Commander went through the final steps to authorize the position. After a few more sign offs, the Commander placed his hands on his desk, looking into her eyes kindly as he put on a big smile.
"You are dismissed. You're now to report to your battalion immediately. Duke of York will inform you of your next mission," the Commander ordered, prompting a salute from Javelin. As Javelin left the office, she began jogging down the wall, not catching sight of Z23 who had been hiding in the shadow of the office doors.
"So...Javelin is to take my position...she's so ditzy that she could neglect to check her equipment..." Z23 muttered to herself, immediately making her way back to her room, her heart crushed as she slammed the door behind her.
"Why choose that ditz?! What qualifies HER of all people for a Captain's position?!" Z23 screamed within the confines of her quarters, her German accent coming out heavy as she sat herself down in her chair, holding her teary eyes in her hands as she fought back the urge to cry.
"You know...we could always sabotage her rig. Like you said, she's just ditzy enough to neglect checking it," Z23 flinched as she heard her voice in the room, her tone low and sadistic as she shook her head.
"No, as much as I hate all of this I would never sabotage a fellow comrades equipment!" Z23 shouted back at the voice which sighed as she felt the entity that embodied her voice sit behind her.
"No one will ever know...think of it this way...if you sabotage her rig and she doesn't catch it, what does that say about her as a Captain hmm?" the voice put reason to anger as Z23 unclutched her eyes, their gaze cold as they stared at her naked concrete wall once again.
"It...would be a good test to see if she's qualified…" Z23 thought, the voice chuckling behind her as the sound of a foot tapping on her floor became apparent.
"You don't have to do anything at all, just let me take care of it," the disembodied voice was confident, bold, all the things she once was when she was on active duty. But now all she sees herself as is a sorry, sniveling child who is scared to lose the one thing most precious to her. She paused before finally releasing her sigh, her eyes moving to the ceiling of her room.
"...do it," Z23 finally answered. She suddenly felt her whole body and eyes grow heavy, as if blacking out as the disembodied voice gave acknowledgment. Slumping in her chair, she sat lifeless for a moment before slowly rising to her feet, a twisted smile forming on her face as she grabbed the few things she'd need for the job. She knew that Javelin would be busy with the debriefing with Battalion 1, so Z23 took this opportunity and immediately headed towards the port. Using her key card, she was able to get in just fine, slowly making her way over to her own rig as she walked in. Her eyes darted around the room, taking in every single personnel's positions within. Lowering down, she began weaving through the countless number of rigs for the girls throughout the docking bay, using her small size to her advantage.
Slowly, she tip-toed right behind one of the workers, quietly tailing him for a moment as she tried to spot Javelin's rig. The moment the worker stopped, Z23 kicked out the back of his legs, pulling him down into a strong strike to the neck before a sound could leave his mouth. Now unconscious, she proceeded onto the next one, making sure to stay out of sight of the camera's that watched over the dock. One after another, Z23 disabled all 7 workers, managing to stay out of the camera frames due to her height and stature. Just before knocking out the last personnel, an alarm went off, signifying that security noticed a few unconscious workers.
"I've got to move quickly..." Z23 said, darting around til she came across Javelin's rig. She removed a wrench from the floor next to it, immediately tinkering with various parts of it that revolved around the communications system. Z23 wiped sweat from her forehead, refusing to buck under the pressure as security entered the room. After another minute she reassembled the machine, placing the wrench in its original position before moving away from the rig. Escaping wasn't a difficult task, continuing to use her size as her weapon.
"We have several people unconscious in the hangar bay, there may be an intruder! Everyone get into position with caution and sweep the area!" One of the security personnel called to the main command center. In the midst of the chaos, Z23 remained calm and collected, an eerie smile accommodating a pair of sharp eyes.. Clearing the hangar bay and making it to her quarters, she was officially safe. She removed her beret and gloves, placing them on the table before tossing herself onto her bed to relax her nerves. As if awakening from a dream, Z23 opened her eyes, looking around to find herself back in her room.
"Did...I just dream all of that?" Z23 said quietly as she closed her eyes once again to rest. The clomping sounds of boots stomping through the halls sounded like a wild rhino stampede; shouting, calling out, and occasional sound of a firearm could occasionally be heard outside of Z23's room. A loud banging came from her door, causing her to flinch from her resting position. She rubbed her eyes to clear them up as she approached the door.
"Z23! Are you in there?! Open up!" A familiar voice muffled through her cedar door. Z23 wanted to ignore the obnoxious noises all around her, but she was also aware that if she did nothing there might be complications. So reluctantly she slid on her gloves and adjusted her hat before opening the door. Standing there was Cleveland, clearly out of breath from running everywhere.
"What's going on? Why do I hear intrusion alarms?" Z23 asked, genuinely lost to the situation which led to no suspicions from Cleveland as she caught her breath.
"There's a possible intruder within HQ, so arm yourself before jumping out here and helping!" Cleveland stated, dashing from Z23's doorway. Her eyes grew cold as she turned towards a small safe on top of a filing cabinet in the corner of her room. Put in the combination carefully, the notification light turned green, allowing her to open it. Without hesitation she removed a Beretta handgun, quickly loading a clip into it. She then cocked it to put a bullet in the chamber before flicking the safety on.
"It wasn't a dream...was it…?" Z23 sighed as a shocked realization slapped itself upon her face. She now realized that it did indeed happen, that she sabotaged her comrade's kit. She wasn't sure on how, all that she knew is it felt like a dream. Making sure not to draw suspicion, she immediately left her room to join the horde of personnel that filled the halls.
Hours went by as every one searched every nook and cranny of HQ, not finding a single intruder within the facility. After the first few hours the security alarm changed to potential threat instead of the designated security alert, which meant it was up to designated personnel to handle it instead of everyone. A new mission came over the intercom, the order leaving Z23 with an awful taste in her mouth as she locked herself in her room.
"There's the enemy dead ahead. Reno and Javelin, both of you move ahead in a flock formation but do not stray too far away from Takao. Javelin, it's up to you to give us the call sign to advance and attack, understood?`` Duke of York ordered, Javelin smiling with a nod.
"You can count on me!" She replied. Moving into formation, the battle was now ready to be commenced. As planned, Javelin and Reno moved in first, firing away once they were in range of the enemy, which appeared to be Sirens. Reno and Javelin began picking off ship after ship, quickly weakening their frontal forces. Takao then moved forward, firing off her heavy piercing rounds at the arrow point of the next wave, immediately grabbing their attention.
"Here they come, hold your positions. Javelin, are you ready to make the call out?" Takao stated into the comms, firing off short bursts of gunfire to pull in the enemy forces. Closer and closer they approached, their shots being fired grew in the bulk of their fleet and confronted the three girls. Javelin activated the comm with a smirk as she took a breath to make her call out.
"Fire at will!" Javelin shouted into the communicator. Closer and closer the enemy crawled but not a single shell of support came to their aid. Javelin began to panic as she made sure things were running as they were supposed to, crying out into her comm once again.
"Do you read me?! Fire at will!" Javelin ordered again, and again, nothing happened. Before she could try again the gunfire from the enemy grew too fierce, forcing the three of the lonely ships to fend for themselves. Reno cried out as she was pelted by a barrage of gunfire while Takao clenched her teeth tightly, taking volley after volley of gunfire into her sturdy hull.
"Javelin! Pull back and alert the others that you're having problems, we'll keep em' at bay!" Reno shouted, moving in front of Javelin to cover het without a word, Javelin took off at top speed, quickly arriving back at the support before she knew it as she tried everything she could to restore communications.
"Javelin, what are you doing back here!?" Duke of York barked at Javelin. Javelin quickly explained what was happening, Duke of York growing more and more irritated with each word as they took off to Takao's and Reno's positions.
"Idiot! Why didn't you double check your system diagnostics?!" Duke of York growled, knowing too well what this could end up resulting in. It was about five minutes before they were able to arrive, only to find that all the gunfire had subsided. There were no signs of their allies nor the enemy forces as Javelin moved down to skim the water, hoping to find any clues whatsoever as to what happened. Sure enough, getting right next to the water she found both Reno and Takao, floating on the surface of the water with their rigs completely destroyed around them.
"Oh my God...a-are you two OK!?" Javelin cried, her eyes welling up with tears as she stared at the aftermath that she had indirectly caused. Takao grunted and winced, grabbing her arms in pain as she stirred to life while Reno continued to float like a plank of driftwood.
"S-She's not dead...I secured her vitals. I am currently suffering from several lacerations and trauma...I'm not sure how long I can hold steady like this..." Takao coughed, holding out her strong arm for Javelin to grab onto. The loud sound of rushing water quickly encroached on the three ships, with Arc Royal finally catching up to them.
"Come on Javelin, I'll help," Arc Royal said, grabbing a hold of Takao while Javelin grabbed Reno. The trip back to HQ was very quiet, with only Arc Royal and Javelin sharing words with one another as the others gave Javelin a few dirty looks. The debriefing was very harsh, with Javelin being scolded a number of times for negligence of her equipment and comrades, however, she wasn't dismissed from the team, with her equipment being chalked up to faulty maintenance regardless of forgetting to perform a diagnostic. Z23 was listening in just like before, her teeth clenching behind her lips knowing that Javelin was still on the main squad.
"I'll fix that..." Z23 grimaced as her eyes turned hostile once more. This time she decided to go incognito as she snuck into the dressing room of the Iron Blood officers on base. Using a lock pick, she managed to open up the locker that belonged to Prinz Eugen, one of the Commander's other secretaries. A sly smile curled on her lips as she removed Prince Eugen's uniform, carefully dressing in it before shutting her locker. Sliding a black hood over her head, she left the locker room and immediately began walking back towards the repair bay. After the commotion finally lightened, Z23 decided to make her move, grabbing her diagnostic and reconfiguration tools from her rig for proceeding to Javelin's. She felt that she had no control as her hands swifty ran across both keyboards, effortlessly putting inputs in that could cause troubles further down the line before removing a small explosive from her tool bag. Sighing heavily, she quickly opened up Javelin's repair hatch, sticking it to the engineering components and rigging a trigger to the inside of the hatch. Screwing it all back in tight, Z23 gave it a small pat, her eyes cold as she made sure that she was in clear view of a camera.
"I'm sorry Javelin...but...I can't undo what I've done...I-I have to become Captain again…" Z23 growled to hide her tears as she finished, placing her tools back with her rig before returning Prinz Eugen's uniform to her locker then heading back to her quarters hastily, completely out of sight and mind of any security cameras or personnel. Later that night, Javelin decided to check in on her system specs so as to not have a repeat of the day that just occurred. She was torn, she didn't think she should've had any blame in the matter, but at the same time she did feel responsible for not checking her diagnostics.
"Let's see, let's see...I'll do a full diagnostic..." Javelin sighed, inputting her commands into the main control board. Taking her time, she went through each diagnosis, yawning occasionally from mental fatigue as she went on. Coming into the gun and launcher section, to her surprise a warning came up for her launcher diagnostic, detailing a part that needed immediate replacement.
"That's strange...something like this should've been caught earlier, I hardly used my launchers in the last battle..." Javelin pondered, hopping out of her rig to check her part stock. Opening up a drawer on her steel part cabinet, she found the part with no problems, smiling as she grasped and removed it from the drawer.
"Alright, let's crack open the hatch and change this sucker out," Javelin said quietly as she grabbed a wrench. Torque after torque Javelin put all of her strength into each shift of the bolt, not remembering that she screwed the panel back in so tight the last time she opened it. After a few more pushes a satisfying *kaching!* sounded. As she tried to remove the panel. She felt a resistance behind it, like it was struggling to keep it in place. Grunting loudly, Javelin pulled with all her might until a loud snapping noise rang from the other side.
*KABOOM!* The blistering shriek of an explosion echoed through HQ as the shockwave crawled down the halls violently. Sirens and yelling came alive as security detail, the Commander and his main acting secretary, Prinz Eugen, were first on the scene, finding the smoldering remains of Javelin's rig.
Security and the commander immediately laid waste to the fire with a barrage of extinguishers while Prinz Eugen tried to locate anybody that may have been injured. Sure enough, about 40 feet from the blast was Javelin, burnt all over as she coughed and gasped for help. Prinz Eugen quickly dashed to her side, immediately looking her over for anything fatal. The burns were quite severe, covering patches of her arms, legs, chest as well as the left side of her face. She was shaking violently as she coughed and cried, grasping weakly onto Prinz Eugen's hand.
"MEDIC! I NEED A MEDIC NOW!" Prinz Eugen screamed, growling anxiously at the lack of manpower in the room. Screaming again at the top of her lungs, a medical team rushed in, the screeching wheels of a medical bed roaring with them.
"You'll be fine Javelin, just hang tough OK?" Prinz Eugen said calmly, with Javelin nodding back weakly. After Javelin was carted away, Prinz Eugen sighed heavily, her eyes glaring around the room viciously as she approached the Commander.
"Eugen, I believe we found the culprit. Take a look at this shrapnel..." The Commander said, waving Prinz Eugen over to the smoltering wreck that was Javelin's rig. Prinz Eugen knelt down, analyzing the bits and pieces that they gathered together. Being an Iron Blood, it was easy for her to pick things out that were relevant to her training; using this knowledge, she noticed the trigger mechanism and how it was possibly put together. Immediately she rose up, rage filling her eyes as she realized that only a handful of people on base would know how to do such a thing.
"Excuse me Commander, I need to check something really fast," Prinz Eugen announced, taking to her feet as she began to sprint down the hall. Z23 found herself back in her bathroom, her stomach feeling ill to the point of lurching over her toilet bowl to release the contents of her stomach in one strong burst.
"What is wrong with me...why would I do something so terrible?" Z23 sobbed as she tried to stabilize her stomach, knowing now that it was way too late to have any serious regrets now.
Flushing the toilet, she was finally stable enough to walk back into her room, clenching a framed photo of her and Javelin posing cutely to her chest. Her pillow was soon drenched with tears over what she had just done to get closer to her Commander. Guilt began to overtake her, which she knew would subside over a night's rest as she huddled on her bed, trying to rest. Suddenly, a loud banging came from her door.
"Z23! GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE RIGHT NOW! I KNOW IT WAS YOU!" Prinz Eugen yelled at the top of her lungs. It wasn't hard for her to piece things together after seeing the mechanism, especially since Z23 is the only individual in HQ that had any form of a motive. She was already aware of Z23's emotional state as well as the relationship with the Commander as she made her deduction. Z23 didn't make a sound as she slipped out of her bed quietly. Prinz Eugen began banging on the door once more, shouting that she was a coward and a worthless piece of trash in German, trying to drive the point home that she had been figured out. As she was met with silence once again, she decided it was time to take matters into her own hands.
"Screw protocol...!" Prinz Eugen growled loudly, removing her Luger pistol from her belt. She quickly shot the handle twice without hesitation, easily destroying the locking mechanism. She then slammed her shoulder into the door harshly, busting it wide open in one simple motion. She rushed in, looking around the room with her firearm locked and loaded. Footsteps leapt from beside her, Z23 bolting out of her room past her in incredible speed. Z23 immediately charged down the hall towards the repair bay, but Prinz Eugen was too quick, jetting past her then grasping her free hand around Z23's throat. Z23 let out a choked gasp as Prinz Eugen then pinned her to the wall by her throat, putting her gun to Z23's forehead.
"Don't move an inch!" Prinz Eugen growled, footsteps charging towards them. The guard detail turned the corner to see the two of them engaged, them more worried about the gun than her possible explanation as they saw Eugen with Z23 in her dangerous clutches.
"Prinz Eugen, remove your firearm from Z23's head and stand down," the security detail ordered, Prinz Eugen more worried about Z23 escaping if she were to let her go. She instead placed the gun to her leg, ready to plant a slug in her leg to keep her from running.
"I've located the possible culprit for the bombing, at ease security I have it under control..." Prinz Eugen carefully explained but was hushed by a second officer charging in from the opposite side.
"Prinz Eugen! Drop your weapon and get on the floor, NOW!" The new security officer shouted, pulling his own firearm on her.
"You dare point your arms at me?! This girl is a criminal! She's the only one that would have a motive to sabotage Javelin's rig! NOW CONFESS YOU PIECE OF TRASH!" Prinz Eugen barked at the security guards then at Z23, firing a warning shot next to her leg.
"Stand down now or I will fire!" The guard said, aiming cleanly at her temple. Prinz Eugen was baffled at what she was hearing. She had the right to override their orders but here she was, frozen in place as if she were the one committing the crime. She went to put her gun back in its holster against her better judgement but she missed her holster, her gun still in hand as she pointed it to the ground.
"Officer, listen to me! I'm not..." *POW!* Prinz Eugen was cut off as a bullet whizzed through her ankle, dropping her to the floor in a shocking display of force. Z23's body lifelessly slid down the floor until she was sitting, her face looking at the floor as if she were about to cry and black out. The officer kicked her luger away, pinning her face down before yanking her arms behind her. The Commander came barreling around the corner, seeing the wild, unbelievable sight for himself.
"What is going on here?! Why is Eugen being subdued?!" The Commander ordered angrily, the restraining officer handing over a tablet to the other officer. The Commander then looked over at Z23, tears streaming down her face with a deep red imprint of Eugen's hand wrapped around her neck. The officer tapped the Commander on the shoulder, getting his attention to show him the shocking footage of earlier in the day.
"What...?" The Commander said, staring at the video slack jawed. Prinz Eugen tried to struggle beneath the officer, trying to turn her eyes up to look at her Commander, hoping that the look in her eyes would absolve her.
"Commander! You believe me right?! That I was apprehending the perpetrator?!" Prinz Eugen shouted at him, but it was as if her words fell on def ears as the Commander covered his mouth as the footage played out in front of his eyes.
"I...don't believe this...how...how could you do something so foul?!" The Commander spat, glaring down at Prinz Eugen, who was waiting for the Commander to call the officer off of her. Instead, he handed it back to the officer, now checking on Z23.
"W-What the hell is wrong with all of you?! I'm not the perpetrator!" Prinz Eugen barked hysterically, thrashing beneath the officer as her eyes shifted towards Z23. Prinz Eugen went pale at the sight of Z23's face; her eyes were glaring into Prinz Eugen's like that of an assassin, her lips curling into a menacing smile that sent a chill down Prinz Eugen's spine before hiding her expression from the others. Fear filled her eyes as the tablet was placed in front of her face, the Commander's hand shaking furiously as he hit play on the footage.
On the screen was a surveillance video. In the video, it showed Prinz Eugen, sneaking through the docking bay with a black hood over her head, tampering with Javelin's rig and smiling all the while. Her eyes began to water as they stared in horror, shifting her eyes back towards Z23, who was now mouthing words to her.
"How could you, Eugen? Hehe...it looks like you're going away for a long time…" Z23 mouthed, tears of frustration cascading down Eugen's cheeks as she was lifted up, immediately stumbling towards Z23 with her fist raised. The ear shattering sounds of another gunshot shocked the area as another bullet planted itself in Eugen, this time into her leg to drop her on mere feet short of planting her fist into Z23's face. A sick sense of satisfaction filled Z23's soul as she watched the enraged secretary being carted off, handcuffs slapped on her wrists as she tried to fight against their grasps.
"This isn't the end of this Z23, not by a long shot!" Eugen screamed, provoking one of the guards to nail the but of his gun against the back of her head, knocking her out cold before being thrown over the larger guard's shoulder. The Commander was knelt next to Z23, pulling her into a warm embrace as she continued to act lifeless, tears flowing more freely now that she was in her Commander's warm arms.
"Don't worry Z23, we'll charge Prinz Eugen with treason and get her off base as soon as possible. Come on, let me carry you to the medical bay," the Commander spoke softly, scooping Z23 up like a bride as she took in every second, unbound joy coursing through her veins as she leaned forward and planted a small kiss against the Commander's cheek.
"Thank you Commander…" Z23 whispered, the Commander smiling warmly as he began to jog towards the medical bay, every inch of chaos now being worth it to Z23. All of her guilt had been expunged as the Commander ran down the halls with her in his arms, sadly knowing that it wouldn't be this easy to be reinstated.