Alright, here comes the next chapter in the "Strike Heroes" story.

Before we begin, let me begin with the usual: the answering of reviews.

fuji92: Thanks for the review. I had to actually think about how I was going to start and finish the chapter. I have to admit that I had improvised the beginning of the second part, but something happened before I actually remembered to save my progress, so I spent a few more minutes trying to retype the section I had worked on. It wasn't exactly what I could remember from before the problem, but when I read it again it captured the idea I had sought in the first place. As for the ending, I had to put some more thought into it, seeing as the previous episode found Roland realizing things and the situations he ended up in.

Dragonman75: It's nice to hear that the story is entertaining to you. Though I still have to address a few things, especially with Roland. When I'll reveal those details will be a mystery, but be sure to keep an eye out.

Now with the reviews out of the way, let's go on to this particular arc...

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Chapter 9: We're the Same (Part 1)

Sanya's POV

I was flying around in the middle of the night, my Fliegerhammer at my side as I patrolled for any signs of the enemy while singing. It's something I'm good at, especially with my magic. Though there's not really anyone to hear it.

Usually, there's not really much to do. I simply fly through the night sky and listen to what I can sense with my magic. It's not much, but Commander Minna and Major Sakamoto at least appreciate me doing this task, seeing as I'm used to the night.

Anyways, tonight was unlike any normal night: I had flown above the clouds to look at my surroundings and I could see a distant light.

Stopping my song, I focused on the light and recognized it as one of our planes, and I decided to fly to it so I could escort it back.

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Roland's POV

Mio wasn't currently happy as she, Yoshika, Minna, and I were sitting inside the fuselage of a plane, and Minna took fast notice of it. That, and the red she was giving off concerned me a little.

"Your displeasure is written all over your face," she said. "Calm yourself, major."

"They call us all the way over there and then start telling us how the budget is totally fubar," was Mio's reply. "Of course I'm totally pissed off. They owe us."

"They're just panicking. We're currently the only ones consistently getting results at this point."

"They're not going to see anything other than what they want until it's far too late."

"That's just how the warmongers behave. If the Neuroi had never shown up, they would have had you, me, and everyone on this team split into sides and killing each other instead."

"Killing each other?" I asked as I sat next to the commander. "They can't do that, can they?" If they did, then it was going to be World War Two all over again.

Minna looked at me. "Don't worry. Even if that were to happen right now, we wouldn't be able to kill each other. We're a team."

"It's not that, it's just…"

"Those damn bankers think they run the world," Mio added, getting back to the original conversation.

At least she returned us to the first topic...

"Wouldn't be surprised," I said as I got comfortable and closed my left eye. "Even now, the world pretty much runs on a lot of ideas like that."

Mio turned to Yoshika, who was sitting next to her as she stared out the window. "Sorry about that, Miyafuji. I wanted to show you around Britannia so you could know how beautiful her people can be."

"It's okay," Yoshika said as she looked at the major. "I was just thinking about how everybody in the military is so different…"

I was about to ask Yoshika what she meant by that, but soon we could hear someone singing a strange tune from the radios. At least, I think it was from the radios.

"Um…do you hear something?" Yoshika asked quickly.

"Yeah," I said as I opened my left eye again. "It sounds like someone singing." I shook my head in case I was hearing things.

"Hmm?" Minna added. "That's just Sanya singing. We're approaching the base. She came to escort us."

At that moment, I could see Sanya flying next to the plane on Mio's side, and I saw Yoshika waving to the girl.

"Thanks, Sanya!" she said cheerfully.

In response, Sanya flew away from the plane and dived into the clouds. However, her song continued.

"Is Sanya really shy?" Yoshika asked next. "She just flew away."

"She may be a little shy," Minna told her, "but she has a pretty voice, and she's a good girl." Something caught her attention as well as mine, and it didn't feel friendly. "Hold on. What is it, Sanya?"

"Someone is looking at us," Sanya radioed back.

That's not good, I thought as I looked out the window behind me.

"Someone is what?" Mio tried. "Repeat that, please. I'm having trouble reading your transmission."

"I'm sorry," Sanya said. "There is an unknown bogey inbound from the direction of Syria at high speed."

"So is it a Neuroi?" Minna asked.

"Yes, I believe it's them. Its speed is too great to be a normal aircraft."

Unless you're Shirley, I added to myself.

Mio had lifted her eye patch and couldn't see any anomalies. "I don't see anything, Sanya."

I tried using my powers to sense it, but the best I could get was nothing unusual, though I finally got to look at Sanya's aura. I could see green for now, and I didn't have time to actually delve into the auras within her. Then again, I couldn't be certain that it was green.

"It's in the clouds. The target cannot be acquired visually." Sanya added.

"Any ideas?" I asked.

"So that's how it is," Minna said.

Yoshika was worried. "Um, major…what are we supposed to do?"

"Nothing we can do," Mio told her.

"We're trapped here?"

"Without our Striker Units we're just regular passengers on this plane," Minna told her. "Roland is the only one who can take them on."

"Yeah," I added. "However, I'm not simply going to just jump out of a moving plane." I glanced at Minna. "Do you think they planned it this way?"

"The Neuroi aren't capable of such complicated strategies," Mio told him.

"Then it's luck that they caught us like this." I furrowed my eyebrows.

Why is it I have to be in the bad situations? I mean, I knew what I was going into when I agreed to go with Minna to the base...but with everything I had to deal with...

"The target is still inbound, fast," Sanya radioed in. "Contact in three minutes."

"Sanya," Minna told her. "Try to buy us time until back-up arrives. Avoid a direct engagement if possible."

"Yes, ma'am. I'll draw their fire away from the transport."

With that said, Sanya took off, her rocket launcher in her right hand. Mio told Yoshika to watch closely, and I looked just to help out. Then, she explained that Sanya's role was a part of the night patrol, which made as much sense as Yoshika and her healing magic or me and my versatility, though so far the only use I had was the green aura from Lynette's first Neuroi kill. Mio also said that the song Sanya used was one of her spells to guide the transport.

Soon, the others and I could see explosions.

After a while, Mio told her to return, and that was it.

If only I could get the cold feeling that it wasn't over yet out of my spine…then maybe it would all be okay. I could sense Sanya being worried about something as well, as if she wasn't certain that it was destroyed.

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"So," Gertrud asked as she stood there, looking at us, "No one saw the Neuroi except Sanya?"

Francesca was busy sleeping on a chair, curled up into a small ball. Charlotte was standing behind the chair, a warm jacket covering her.

"It stayed hidden in the clouds and never showed its face," Mio told her.

"'Kay…" Erica said as she, Minna, and Mio were sitting on the couch, Gertrud standing behind it. "But I heard that it didn't even bother to shoot back at her. When does a Neuroi do that?"

Or any enemy for that matter? I said to myself before I stared out the window and watched the rain fall and hit the glass.

"Are we even certain it was a Neuroi?"

I looked at Sanya, who wasn't sure herself.

"Well," I said, turning to face the blond Karlsland Witch. "If it was, then it should be weak. If not, then…" I shrugged my shoulders while giving off a very cheesy smile. "…whoops…"

"Maybe it was a shy Neuroi," Lynette tried. When she got no response from it, she added, "Or maybe not…Sorry…"

"Maybe she's right," Perrine said as she sat in another chair, sipping some tea. "Maybe they were connecting on the same wavelength, like sisters perhaps."

Eila, who was with Sanya, stuck her tongue out at Perrine.

"Same wavelength?" I asked, noticing everyone looking at me. "I don't think anybody could detect Sanya's wavelength and use it against her, not unless she has a sibling that shared her power or something."

"How a Neuroi thinks is not known," Minna pointed out. "We need a clearer picture of their intentions."

"Until we have that, there's no way to predict what they'll do next." Mio added. "There's a high likelihood the Neuroi that failed will return over and over until it succeeds."

That's not good... I thought as I looked at Sanya quickly.

"I agree," Minna said in response. "Because of that very reason, I'm going to set up a special unit specifically for night missions. Sanya."

"Ma'am?" Sanya asked.

"Miyafuji."

"Uh!" Yoshika said in surprise. "Yeah?"

"Starting immediately, the two of you will constitute the new night combat team."

"Are you really sure you want me?"

"You're the only other one with experience on this Neuroi," Mio pointed out.

"But…I only sat there and watched…"

Yoshika found her head being pushed down as Eila said, "I'd like to volunteer for night combat!"

"That's great," Minna said. "So Eila makes three total for the night patrol…"

"Hang on, commander?" I said quickly. "Count me in as well."

"Why exactly?" Mio asked.

"I never did a night mission since I got here, and I'd like to get some experience in that before it's too late. Besides…" I set my right hand on my chest. "If that Neuroi decides to pick on Sanya then it's going to get a huge ass-whooping!"

"I'm sorry," Sanya said as Minna started talking about reworking something out. "This is all my fault. I let the Neuroi get away."

"Hey, it's alright," I said as I rested a hand on her left shoulder. "Besides, you don't need to be alone. Especially not for the Neuroi."

Sanya looked at me, and I couldn't help but get the feeling that she wasn't feeling too normal right now. I looked at Eila, who was glaring at me like I did something she didn't approve of.

You think she's still not over the fact that she found me trying to carry Sanya back to her room?

I then watched her eyes wander to the hand on Sanya's shoulder.

Oh...right...

I sheepishly removed the hand from its resting place and simply decided to walk back to my quarters.

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The next day, when I got into the kitchen, I saw that there were three metal wireframe bowls holding…

"Blueberries?" I heard Perrine ask. "Why do we have so many?"

"My uncle ships them here all the way from our farm back home," Lynette replied as she brought in a fourth bowlful. "Blueberries are supposed to be really good for your eyesight."

"Let's eat!" Erica said as she started on her bowlful of blueberries.

"Yes, it's true," Gertrud added. "In Britannia all the night pilots eat blueberries. It's likely they discovered their benefits as well."

"That's nice to hear," I said with a slight smile. It was something healthy, and it wasn't nattō beans for once.

I grabbed a small bowl that was nearby, filled it up with blueberries, sat at the table and ate. I managed to eat it all in about two minutes. Within that time, I had seen Francesca ask Yoshika and Charlotte to stick out their tongues before bursting out laughing, turned my head in time to see Eila play a trick on Perrine involving pulling the corners of her mouth back to reveal the ace's teeth. This was followed by Mio saying something about moderation, and Perrine and Eila got into a brief argument.

"Man," I sighed as I ate the last of the blueberries. "Fresh fruit certainly is better."

Soon after, Mio had the ones doing night patrol head back to bed, something I could understand: after all, what was a night patrol if you weren't able to stay awake for it?

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There was a sign on a door in the base that read Sanya's Room…and Temporary Office for Night Patrol.

What? Why was there a sign that read that?

I had gotten the wise idea after thinking about what would happen if I had to get out early to use the bathroom…Besides, it was better than it being written in Japanese (Sorry, Fuso. I can't read that considering my background.).

"But we just woke up…" Yoshika said as she tried comprehending why we were to be sleeping now. "And did they really have to come and cover the windows up too?"

"They probably want us to get used to the dark," Eila said as she was looking at something.

The girls were on the lone bed, Sanya curled up and holding a stuffed animal near her. Yoshika was sitting on the edge of the bed while Eila was closer to the window, lying on her stomach. I found refuge on the floor, lying down as I stared at the darkened room's ceiling. I was lucky to have brought a blanket and a pillow...and a spare blanket for me to lay on. I also brought along my sleepwear and had changed into my fatigues and shirt under my blanket.

"Sorry they turned your room into such a dark cave, Sanya," Yoshika said to the Orussian girl.

"They didn't," Sanya replied as she looked at Yoshika. "This is how I like my room."

"Oh, really?" Yoshika found a folded piece of paper and picked it up. "Hey, this is some type of talisman."

"Talisman?" Eila asked as she sat up.

"Some people think they're good luck charms that scare away ghosts."

Ghosts, huh? I said to myself as I looked at Sanya. Why does she have one of those?

"People sometimes mistake me for a ghost," Sanya said.

"Yeah? Because you're always flying around at night?"

Sanya disagreed. "Happens a lot during the day. They say they can't tell if I'm really there or not."

Well, considering that you're usually accompanied by Eila during the day, with the Suomos Witch carrying you around while you sleep for some odd reason, it's hardly difficult to not tell if she was there or not. Then again, I don't exist in the original, so I don't have any room to talk.

"Don't listen to anything Miss Priss Four-Eyes says," Eila added. "If you're bored, I've got Tarot Cards."

"Tarot Cards?" Yoshika and I asked at once, me standing on my knees.

"It's fortune-telling. I can use my magic to see into the future."

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"I can't see very far though…" Eila added as Yoshika picked one of seven cards lying on the bed. "Now, let's see…" She leaned in toward Yoshika to see her card. "Well. This is good! You're going to see someone you've been longing to see."

Yoshika was happy at first, but she soon became sad. She said that the person she wanted to see wasn't coming back.

Ordinarily I would have pried into who it was, but I knew when it was time to just wait. Besides, it wouldn't have worked for me either: I was longing to see my family again, but I knew that wouldn't be happening anytime soon.

"I see," Eila said as she fell backward to lie down. "I don't know what to tell you then."

I watched as Yoshika looked at a calender that showed the current month along with a red circle over a certain date. However, I didn't think about it too much right now: watching Eila and Yoshika gave me an idea...

"Hey, Eila?" I asked the Suomos Witch. "You mind doing mine? Just out of curiosity?" Yeah, I was considering the risks of it: if the card I selected hinted at something about a falsehood then I better hope no one tries to get me to spill the truth.

"Sure, lieutenant," Eila replied as she sat up, grabbed her deck of Tarot cards, and laid out seven more cards. I picked the one next to the rightmost card, and Eila looked at it. She furrowed her eyebrows as she tried to decipher it.

"Well?" I asked, sounding a little nervous.

"Um, this is a little interesting...it seems that you are going to bring balance to the lives of many. I would have to say that it seems to be the team right now." She looked at me. "That's the best I can do with you, though."

"Uh...thanks." I went to lie back down on the floor. I covered up and closed my eyes, enjoying the time I had to pretend that I was Francesca.

I wonder what picture she had seen...

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I was barely waking up about who knows how much later when the announcement of the approximate time was made by our very own Francesca.

"Time to wake up!" Francesca said as from the other side of the door that read Sanya's Room…and Temporary Office for Night Patrol. "It's night!"

I sat up sleepily and rubbed my eyes.

"Night already?" I asked. I finally got to sleep in for the daytime for the first time ever! Though my body felt rather...stiff.

Standing up, I stretched as the girls woke up.

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"It's dark in here," Yoshika pointed out as she took a seat next to Lynette at the table.

"Really?" I asked, still tired. I had found a seat between Minna and Charlotte.

Lynette nodded in the affirmative. "They said it's to help adjust your eyes during nighttime missions."

"What's this?" Yoshika indicated a teacup filled with what could only be described as "tea". We'll stick with that label for now.

"It's a special marigold herbal tea," Perrine said as the answer. "I heard that it can help your eyesight just as much as blueberries."

"Oh, really?" Lynette asked. "I heard that it was an old wives' tale…"

Perrine was offended by it, saying that the secret recipe was her grandmother's. Lynette, in return, apologized.

"Isn't it all old wives' tales nowadays?" I asked as I picked up the cup and sniffed the contents. I had some memories of old wives' tales before I was thrown into this mess.

Unfortunately for me, Perrine hadn't calmed down completely from her debate with Lynette, and soon I was apologizing as well, but only because I didn't want to feel her fist against my head.

One problem: I made the mistake of saying "Okay, they're not all old wives' tales. Some are young wives' tales, I guess…"

This response earned me a slap in the back of the head powerful enough to send my face into the table.

"Okay, I think I deserved that one…" I said in a muffled voice, me now being the proud owner of an aching head.

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A while later (after I let the pain of having my face be sent into a table by force disappear), and everyone was seated at the table, with Yoshika noting, "This smells like sancho…"

"Sancho?" Lynette asked as they both stared into their cups.

Um, Yoshika...? I asked myself, trying to formulate a question that would make sense. What the hell is sancho?

"Lynne and Yoshika," Francesca asked as she popped up on Yoshika's right. "Stick out your tongues."

When they all did that, Francesca started complaining that her tongue looked like a normal tongue.

"She's got a point," Eila said as she sipped her tea.

Perrine, who was annoyed at Francesca's actions, turned to glare at Eila.

Sanya drank her tea as Yoshika apologized that she was just trying to be helpful.

Apparently, she didn't like it, as indicated by her sticking out her tongue a little.

Neither did I: I wasn't really a big tea-drinker. I mean, I can drink it, but it had never been something I particularly liked.

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"My hands won't stop shaking," Yoshika said as we all stood on the runway, all of us ready for our night patrol.

"Why?" I asked as I powered up my Striker Unit.

"I didn't think the sky would look this black at night."

I've seen darker...though then again I never really actually flown at night since I got here...

"Is this your first nighttime mission?" Eila asked.

"Do you wanna scrub it?" Sanya asked next.

"Will you both hold my hands?" Yoshika asked as she held up a shaking hand to look at it. "I'm sure I can do it if you hold my hand, Sanya…"

Sanya's little magical radio aura turned pink as she grabbed one of Yoshika's hands. Eila jumped to the other side, grabbed Yoshika's other hand, and said, "Okay, let's get going."

Unfortunately, Yoshika wasn't ready, and she spent most of the time down the runway screaming in fear as she started up her Unit. I followed close behind.

About two minutes later, and we were above the dark clouds.

"It's beautiful," Yoshika said as she flew on her own. "I never would have made it up here on my own! Sanya, Eila. Thank you!"

Eila smiled slightly as she looked back.

"It's our job," Sanya simply said.

I lied on my back in mid-air.

"Ah," I said as I flew there, whatever exposed flesh I had feeling the cool air washing over it. "This feels great. Maybe I should do this more often."

I then flew directly above a cloud and ran my left hand through it. Probably not a very good idea considering the height I was at and the fact that it was nighttime. With a newly-freezing hand, I flew back up to the others and noted Sanya's animal feature, which looked like those of a cat. I think it was a domestic black one...or maybe dark gray.

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Alright, this particular chapter is now done.

As usual, please read and respond. Thanks.