WESTERN BORDER
IMPERIAL AIRSPACE
JULY 1923
I don't even know what to say. A few weeks ago, the Entente violated our border in the North, starting what will soon become an absolutely unacceptable war. I could assume that Tanya is getting healed and awarded right now, but I don't exactly understand the time period between the events of the transition from Norden to Schugel for her, and honestly, I don't really care. I have other things to worry about, such as the fact that I am 'lucky' enough not to be transported for battle on the Alliance to our backside. I put that word lucky in contempt because I know that soon enough, I'll have a front and center view to one of the worst conflicts to ever occur in the coming Great War. The Western Front, The Rhine, whatever the hell the name, I would have loved to have no part in it. Unfortunately, I am again not so lucky to find a transfer from my location and I am instead finding myself forced to patrol over the skies once more, basking in the stiff air of the morning.
The faint hum of my flight accompanies me as the heavy bag attached around my waist shakes along my path. The flight uniform is kind of comfy now that I think about it, despite how burdensome it can be if I didn't have magical reinforcements running. A nice feel of both cotton and leather, thick and sturdy boots, a steel helmet that attaches itself stably to my noggin and goggles that cover my eyes from the wind. As I rearrange my gloved hands on the orb hanging about my neck, it's not difficult to feel that we are valued by the empire. Even I would believe so, if I wasn't on the brink of being eternally deployed on a battlefield that was basically a mage mincer. Every day, I find myself becoming more nervous, anxious, and jittery. My subordinates haven't noticed it yet, nor have my superiors, but I don't know how much longer that will last. I guess the fear I have is simply because I don't know how the first push in this area started, nor do I understand when. All I know is that the surprise attack was indeed a shock, pushing back the Western Garrison for a good amount, until it soon became a stalemate upon trench warfare.
Looking down towards the blank lands beneath me, filled with dotted garrisons and overall a lack of destruction, I cannot help but think of what it will soon become. My three aides were following behind me, all Corporals in their own rights. These men have all listed themselves loyally under my command to my surprise in confusion, but its not as if I'll deny it. After all, they really take off pressure during these mundane tasks. Private Unten, Corporal Lorgren, and Corporal Klauntein. These three men are good mages, even by the standards of that blonde girl, but I already know the probably reasons for their omission from the main story. Again, it seems like the story starts, and ends with the fun little skies that I currently glide through. This place really seems to deserve its name, seeing all of the talented men and women residing here now. Before I can continue my internal rant however, Lorgren interrupts my process.
"Lieutenant, were almost in the patrol zone!" The yell comes, barely muffled through the use of magic. I glance slightly at the smirking face besides me, where I see a red stripe of hair slick over his goggles from my point of view.
"Don't let me shave that cowlick of yours when we get back to garrison." I spit back, betraying a small smile as I see him fumble his fingers towards his head, laying my left palm towards the comms tick on my neck.
"Mouse 01 to CP, Platoon has reached patrol zone and is now commencing duty on line W14-3, over." I stated blankly within the static node, moving my eyes back downwards as I noticed the almost complete lack of fortification this close to the border. Really, no wonder the Western border got pushed back so quickly. Though we had major tensions between the two nations, neither would have been so insane as to put military bases and reinforcements this close to the other side. Well, other than the Francois soon enough, if they haven't already.
"Cp to Mouse 01, location affirmative. Good flying." The gentle reply of the female voice by the other side came a good beat later. The efficiency of the Imperial war machine is still one of excellency despite the fact that a good amount of its military forces is fighting on an entirely different theatre and border. I slide my hand off my throat as I look behind myself, past the ginger clown to my right and to the other blonde of my group, Unten, and next to the Brunette, Klauntein. They were flying as stable as always, their rifles firmly gripped within their grasps as they bantered with each other, each bearing dull faces despite the idiocy that left their mouths. Really, an entire flight of fools.
"Pay attention to the land, not your uniforms boys. We got a job to do." I stated as solemnity appeared on their faces, dipping their heads around same as mine to survey the area. Though the job was boring, it was something that must be done, especially so to me as I understand that soon, rest will be the last things on our mind. I swiveled my head towards the clouds and dusk sky flashed against my tight goggles, giving me view to nothing of value other than the color gray. What an unfortunate place, I can almost smell the despair…
Goosebumps. The hair on the back of my neck began to rise, and my arms had begun to feel itchy and numb. I felt a cold sweat running down my back, damping the cotton lining my back. What is this? What is this feeling of panic? I whip my head to the rest of my flight, who seem completely unworried, simply looking upon the environment, and then pivot to view the rest of the skies. Am I having a panic attack or something? The feeling of impending dread did not stop, but simply continued to greaten as the pressure mounted. This has to be some type of bullshit from that asshole deity. My hand flew up to my throat as if by impulse and clamped down wildly.
"Mouse 01 to CP!" I shouted, ignoring the startled sounds of the men behind me as I wished for a response. The worst of my fears came true as the only response was a heavy static. Is this what they call intuition? This feeling of imminent death as I recognize the sound of magic interference. It is with the denial of my communication to the Western post that I feel it. Death, in the form of a blip that washed across my consciousness from deep in the clouds around us. I heard the sound of a rushing wind, the encroaching vibration of a roaring beam. The bright light flashed across my face, my body instinctually twisting to the side in the face of great danger as the passive shell I had kept on almost unconsciously shattered almost immediately in a blaze of radiance.
"Shell and Scatter!" I yell in a voice that even I couldn't recognize, as if it were the scratching of nails on a board. A shield formed before me facing in the direction of the shot and my side as I flipped my body towards the right, soaring upwards. Unsurprisingly, I could feel the auras of my own men following after my exact footsteps. The crackling of enchanted rounds did not stop, explosions of smoke filling the vision below me as the active barriers of my men withheld the first attacks. The hum of my equipment greatened as I felt the powerful smack of ballistics against my shield, again, and again. I looked forward, to see the cause of the peril that my flight had been placed in.
Men in Brownish blue uniform, fit with metal armor riding some kind of iron horses. I wont lie and say they don't look at least somewhat threatening, but what damn time period do they think this is, the 16th century? I feel like their style in the Anime was much more practical than this getup. These were the only thoughts I could muster before the twelve Francois mages split into four groups of three, spiraling towards us while continuing to fire volleys towards us. I could see the dimming of my barrier as I struggled to dodge and continue to bear it, finding slight success but higher tension knowing my men may be doing much worse.
The mages were getting closer. The gunfire was getting stronger. I felt as if I could see the gruesome smiles of our attackers as my heart drummed faster. These devils on stallions got closer as their rifles shone brighter. I had to calm down. I must calm myself. I got to…
"Lieutenant!" I heard a yell, unable to react as a great blast penetrated through my barrier. I expected pain, a sear of agony that should have erupted in my chest. Instead, I became wet in a fluid that I couldn't recognize, feeling the warmth that covered my face. I had been covered in red, the color mixing with my green uniform as my eyes dashed in the blood that had splattered upon me.
It was as if time had slowed. I couldn't even recognize the body in front of me anymore, as the vision of its viscera would stay with my mind for the rest of my life. It was imprinted immediately to the deepest depths of my brain, my eyes taking in every inch of the interior of another intelligent being's body. I couldn't react. I couldn't think. The voice was that of Klauntein, who had just minutes ago been telling Unten to clean his socks. I couldn't even see brown hair, nor the sturdy face of that soldier who volunteered to give his life for the Empire. He should have lived. He shouldn't be dead now. He wouldn't be, if I had just been focused, if I had been calm, if I had just been the leader everyone was thinking me of.
The body simply flew out of my vision, being accompanied by the shatter of my barrier in a glorious fall. The blood… The entrails… The anger. My shock was soon replaced by an incompetent fury. Barely a minute had begun since the beginning of this battle, this can never happen again.
"Retreat! Reinforcements are here!" I Yelled out with magic amplification, making sure my enemies heard it in vigor as I deployed decoys that slowly started to materialize in the clouds, as if another group of four mages whisked quickly through the mist around us. My last two subordinates seemed confused, but started to fly backwards towards the only direction we could leave through. I noticed the lapse in judgement of the enemies before us, two of the four groups turning towards the movement that had occurred in the surroundings. That was the only thing I needed.
"Go boys! Report to CP once you get out of this interference, I'll hold them off!" I shouted firmly through magic communication, feeling the waves I sent slam off the two men who were making a standard retreat behind me. Ignoring any sense of response from the two probably bewildered men, I flew out with a newly renewed barrier, consuming my energy in droves. The group of mages before me obviously did not expect such a reaction from a previously timid enemy, and as I twisted through the newly found gunfire around me, feeling the crashes around me, my rifle began to glow.
I rested the sights upon my eye, feeling the tension of the rifle in my grasp rolling as I zoned in on the nearest soldier I could find. The head slowly came upon the middle, as the visual pitchfork straightened upon his body, my finger twitching as it wrapped around the trigger. With all of the calculations, all the preparations, all of the months of training, I did something that I had lost countless nights of sleep over with frightening ease. I pulled the trigger.
The pushback came upon my shoulder with wrath, a beam of light flying out of my rifle as the enhanced bullet lashed out towards the unsuspecting man who had been pointing towards the decoys in the clouds. I could only see the flinch of the helmet, and the turn of its visor that faced towards me in what I could only interpret as terror. The eyes that looked upon my own is something I will never forget. It was not anger, not sadness, or blank. It was dread. That was the last reaction I saw from the man as the penetration of his passive shell followed with a mist of blood, his upper body disappearing in a blast of smoke.
I didn't react then. My rifle simply turned mechanically as I slithered through the air, bullets flying past me and exploding in blasts of smoke and fire as another thrust slammed against my shoulder, the contraption of the mage in my sights melting into a castoff. My body, now on autopilot, ignored the horrible screams of the man who fell from thousands of meters, being unable to fly anymore. The force upon my shoulder happened once more, and unsurprisingly, was blocked by the mage in my vision. They had finally reacted. But it was too late for the two before me.
My bayonet brightened, as I enchanted it to its highest with magic. The man on my left dodged in time, his horse just barely missing my swing. The panicked soldier on my right was not so lucky. I only felt a slight tug before my rifle seemed to freely flow. My body became doused in more blood, this time of my enemy. My uniform changed color once more, my rifle becoming covered in the remains of the human I had just split in half. My legs flew in a swaying motion, letting me turn in a wide flank. The other group of three that I was now heading straight for scattered to the sides, shooting at me as I maneuvered towards them in a fickle motion. I felt the clanging against my shield, the smell of iron embedding itself within my nostrils. I responded in kind, feeling the ache in my arm as my rifle continued to show its fangs, exploding across the shields of the men my opposite.
The battle continued on, my body starting to feel searing pain from the mana usage. My heart could not stop thrashing against my chest, my lips were bloodied from the teeth that clenched so hard on them, my palms were bloodless from the tightness of my grasp. Another dash of red accompanied my chest as I dug my bayonet deep within the gut of a man, who I stared straight in the eyes as I pulled on the trigger. The emotions, the blood, the screams and orders continued to blare in my brain. My energy was dwindling. I had to end this. I had to end this. I had to…
My thoughts stopped. At some point, I had found myself in the air, staring on into the complete void of clouds as I flew forwards. I could hear gunfire in the distance, the sound of distant artillery as the Western Front finally became a theatre, but I did not have enough care for that. My coat was completely reddened by the blood of my enemies, my helmet gone with the wind as my damp and dirtied blonde hair drifted in the wind. My goggles were cracked, dusted from the battle that had just occurred, red splattered on my red skin. It was cold. I could feel the fluid dripping off my steel toed boots, the sweat down my uniform, and the trembling of my hands. My equipment purred ever so slight, just enough to show that it still had energy. My rifle… Seemed as if it had lost all of its original color, covered in the rotten smell of death.
The enemy had retreated. I don't remember how many I clashed with, how many I killed or injured. I don't know how much damage I did to them, but I knew I was barely running on fumes. Adrenaline was the only thing pushing me forward, that, and my failing will. My gums bled from the interruption of my teeth as I tried to keep myself conscious. The pictures of the dead continued to flash through my mind. Klauntein and his less than honorable death, the eyes of that first man that took the brunt of my anger, the flesh of the soldier I cut through. I can't feel it anymore, the anger, the sadness, the vitality. What have I done?
I didn't even see that I entered uncontested Imperial territory. I didn't notice the voice attempting to speak to me through communications as I left the area of interference. I didn't notice the loss of glow from the computation orb that rested itself on my neck. My body slowed down, drifting downwards as I fell at a steady rate. My eyes rested upon the ground before me that I rapidly approached. I could barely see the imperial trucks in the distance that rushed in my direction.
It was only when I slammed against the mud, feeling the brunt of the impact in my internal structures, that I finally came to my senses just enough to hear the familiar shouts of my language rushing towards me. I felt the darkness engulfing me, the whisper of sleep as Germanic faces entered my vision. I could only think once more before my mind lost sobriety.
"Curse you… Being X…"