Eureka 7- Crimson War
Act 2- The Escape Plan
(AN: Sorry about the long time update. I felt that no one had interest in this fic, so I gave up for a while. However, I got a great review from ThirteenRoses, so I am restarting the fic again, as I have a little free time. So here is the third installment. Plz give constructive feed-back…because I really need it. )
Disclaimer: Oh come on…if I really owned Eureka Seven, you think it would have been over after 50 episodes?
Spinning in the air, two LFO's rocketed down to the earth, like hawks plummeting for their prey. One was the color of the bright sun, and the other of the baby-blue sky. Both zoomed down, intent on becoming the saviors of a group of would-be dead rebels.
"Hey honey, nice shot! Looks like we wiped out those losers!" yelled the pilot of the yellow-orange Terminus typeR606, pointing at the two blackish blue spots below them on the ground. The yell was amplified by the sensitive speakers on the man's headphones, and came out screeching into the ears of an unfortunate dark-skinned woman.
"Pipe down, Matthieu… You really shouldn't be proud of that attack. They were sitting ducks. Anybody could have pot-shot them," replied the ever strict and reprimanding pilot of the baby-blue typeR808 LFO. 'Geez, that guy always seems to get even more rambunctious during these little battles…'
"Sure honey…" A light mumble about women with no sense of humor could be heard on the other side of the conversation. "Hey, but come on Hilda." A light whine emanated out of the radio speakers. "You would think that in all their training, those annoying KLF pilots would learn to scan the sky for incoming enemies. Shoot, if they were really that good, they would have taken to the skies the second they saw us on their sensors."
Sighing, Hilda countered. "Remember, it takes special people to pilot any LFO efficiently. Those KLF's were made for people with normal reflexes and skills, which explains why they don't react to situations as fast as us. It takes a lot of skill and natural talent to even control a LFO like ours. Those KLF's are not too much easier for normal pilots." Rubbing her temples, Hilda added in her mind, 'With the recent attacks and clashes against the Federation, the number of KLF pilots have really gone down, even on our side. Before, the average age of the pilots was in the late twenties. Now, I see corpses as young as 15 in the scattered remains of the blue mechs, littering the sides of the endless battlefields. These new pilots just don't have the experience to survive real battle encounters. Why, just yesterday-' A burst of static interrupted her thoughts. A few moments later, the voice of an excited Hap filled her cockpit.
"Great job guys! We sure were in a pinch. We got quite a few casualties down there, but I think we will pull through. Try landing on the fall side of the campus, near the rubble piles. It's a great cover opportunity." Smiling, Hilda replied, "Good to see you too Hap. Roger that. I will relay the message over to Mr. Clueless here. Over." An angry snort could be heard from the yellow-orange LFO. "Hey, I can still hear you guys. Oh, and I copy too, Honey…"
Hilda chuckled to herself. 'Its nice to have teammates that can still joke around and make me smile after all that had happened after Renton and Eureka left. I tell you, everything went from okay to hell in a bucket after those love-birds disappeared. Good thing we had some left over cash from the revolutionaries, or we would have never recovered the loss of the Nirvash and the "Devilfish". It still cost us a pretty penny to replace or repair all those bashed up LFO's. In the end, we also got a good supply of KLF's, though I still detest those ugly mechs. Holland always has to force us to ride them, 'cause that's the only way I will ever touch those things…'
Realizing that her thoughts were straying again, she scanned the hospital area. From afar, the place looked okay, except for the marred up hospital grounds in the front, where mounds of gray and brown scattered the premises. Two smoking heaps and splattered red could be seen at the front gates, giving a good description of the short but intense battle that was played out moments ago. Hap was right; they were lucky tohave them pop out of the air when they did. From the looks of things, the invasion force was easily large enough to eventually overwhelm the small group of medics and militia left on the grounds.
With a grim face, Hilda flipped on the protection gear and got prepared for landing. She knew that when she got down, the sights would not be pretty.
-----------------------
Landing his bright craft, Matthieu immediately hopped out of his cockpit and rushed to wear he thought Hilda would park. As she landed and popped out of her LFO, Matthieu could tell that she did not like what she was seeing. He looked around to where Hilda was staring, and cringed. There were blood splattered everywhere on the hospital windows, along with grotesque human shapes hanging out of some of the window openings. A huge whole in the building exposed a small pile of human corpses, red as the scarlet flower. It was a sad sight. 'You think that you would someday get used to the sights and images of the war dead, but I always get a weird, sharp, empty feeling in my stomach every time I see a war victim. God… And the saddest thing is that this is just the beginning.' Matthieu was shaken from his depressing thoughts by the sounds of running coming from behind him. He waved at the mismatched group of battered militia, soldiers, medics, and the ever smiling Hap. It was nice to see that Hap still always smiled, even if they were somewhat fake most of the time now. 'War really wears a man down, doesn't?'
Hap, flanked by two soldiers, one women and one man, were followed by two more armed soldiers and about five or so militia units and three medical staff. Matthieu quickly greeted the group, and allowed himself the time to introduce himself to the soldiers and learn that the female was Janice, a corporal who was second-in-command of the Rescue Platoon. The man on the other side was Sergeant Jack, and commanded the now four man platoon.
Once the formalities were out of the way, Hilda, now joining the assembly of troops, cut to the chase. "So, what's the plan, and what do we need to do? I don't mind hanging out here, but I think our welcome is worn out." Hap frowned. "There is not much we can do here. Once the enemy finds out their troops have been wiped out, they will definitely send in their elite troops to finish this place off. And I don't want to stick around when that happens. We need to evact all the remaining men and injured people out of here. So I devised a little diversion plan. Huddle up."
When all the ones that needed to hear were close enough, Hap continued. "Now, in normal conditions, it would be smart to take a convoy through areas that are protected and enclosed, so that the convoy can take cover from air assaults and have a more successful attempt at going undiscovered. However, for obvious reasons, that will not work here. There are anti-vehicle troops everywhere on the abandoned streets, and road-blocks and patrols are another hazard we would have to watch out for. Not to mention that the streets are just big enough for a determined KLF to get into and create a defense. As crazy as it may sound, that was the course we were going to take if we have left a few hours ago." Hap stopped as he felt the concentrated glares of all in the group. "What? I didn't hear any of you step up with a better plan…" Before any of them could argue that point, Hap continued. "Anyway, we don't have to take that course of action, thanks to the appearance of our two Gekkostate members. Because of this unexpected air-cover, we can take a second, and much more appealing, option of escape. There is a straight route out of the hospital that leads to the backlands. These backlands has a dirt road that leads straight out of Hollo and into the Revolutionary base in the south. Normally, this would be suicide, as KLF and other air-borne enemies seem to take a liking in bombing the area, as would-be escapers like to use this no-man's zone for quick getaways. However, our two LFO's can provide air support and cover, and keep us from becoming craters in the ground. We will fill up four out of our six trucks with all the supplies and equipment that is valuable, and then get the twenty or so survivors of the attacks into the trucks. The medics can administer aid along the ride. The remaining militia will take up stations in the back of the trucks, and get ready to take out any stray enemies that try to pursue and attack us. Any questions? … Yes, Janice."
Janice cleared her throat, and spoke. "So, what are the two remaining vehicles for?" Hap grinned, and spoke in a happy manner. "Ah, you caught on. Those two vehicles will be filled with explosives, and put on a type of auto pilot. They will continue down the road until someone fires at them or the trucks ram into a barricade. Either way, they will hopefully cause a big enough distraction for our real convoy to escape." Matthieu interrupted, asking the obvious question: "Do we even have an auto pilot?" Hap smiled, "You'll see. Now, let's move out and start working. Let's go!"
A few hours later, two of the six trucks were filled to the brim with supplies, and important equipment. Now, the medics were helping the wounded and sick into the remaining two trucks for the convoy. As the militia and the platoon got on the trucks and into their positions, Hilda called Hap over. "Hap, I need to talk to you, before we go," Turning to Matthieu, she called, "You come too Matthieu."
As the three headed to a secluded spot about 50 feet away from the others, she turned to the two males. "What is it, honey?" asked Matthieu, clearly confused. Hilda replied, "It has to do with the Federation troops attacking the hospital. Even the most deluded troops and commanders would refrain from attacking hospitals that could very well be holding some of their own injured men. It doesn't add up. If anything, they should be trying to capture the building, not sending attack squads to destroy it!" She then turned to Hap, as if she demanded an explanation. Sighing in resignation, Hap answered her inquiry. "We were actually really fortunate. Until yesterday, we were having no problem. When Holland first sent me down here last month, I thought he had gone a little crazy. Why send your first mate down to an area that has so little to do with the war effort? Then the battle happened 2 weeks after that. That explained some of the reasons for the transfer, but it still felt to me that it was unnecessary for Holland to send down one of his most trusted advisors, and now high-ranking military staff, down to a potential war zone. That was until I saw one of the refugees." Hilda felt chills going down her back, and Matthieu gave an involuntary shudder. "Who did you see?" whispered Hilda, not really wanting to find out the answer.
Hap pointed to one of the girls in the waiting areas, about to board one of the trucks. Nothing different about her, nothing unusual at all, other than the fact that her eyes were closed. She seemed to feel the gazes at her, and turned her head toward them, and opened her eyes. Her eyes…they shot into the eyes of Hilda, pulling memories of a certain girl that was with them a few months ago.
Her eyes, they were the same as Eureka's.
Haha…cliffy. Now you are forced to read on.
Now, you see that little button below this sentence…the one next to "submit review"? You will be blessed in making a child happy if you press that button and type into the popping up box. Try it! Thanks for reading.