"This is your stop, little miss," the pilot of the Black Hawk called out to the t-doll that was dismounting. "Head over to the entrance and Jericho will point you to where you're needed."
"Thanks, Mr. Pilot!" the t-doll cheerfully replied with a wave as she began jogging away from the helicopter and towards the entrance to the Mountain. Despite her being sent on such short notice, she was excited to begin her duties at one of the hot topics of the Griffin forums. A broad smile filled her face as she passed multiple dolls and humans that were on outside guard duty. Many of them gave her a wave and friendly greeting which only made her smile all the more brighter. She would like this place. "Ah, Mrs. Jericho!"
"Hm?" Jericho was standing next to a Tigr looking over a tablet before she looked up to see the new t-doll approaching her. "The new recruit? Good." She glanced down at her tablet for a second before turning her attention back to the doll. "The Commander said you'll be working directly with our chief logistics officer, Annika. Get in, I'll take you to her along with giving you a brief tour of the base."
"Roger!" While Jericho could seem cold, the t-doll didn't mind and hopped in the Tigr. She had to make a good impression on her first day.
"Welcome, Commander Zeldri," Helian said as Zeldri and his echelon of t-dolls got off the Black Hawk. "Glad to see you're punctual despite how far you had to travel."
"The trip wasn't that bad," Zeldri replied as he and his team followed Helian off the helipad and into the secret base. "How long before the meeting officially starts?"
"We're still waiting for a few commanders to show up," Helian replied as she scrolled through the attendance list on her tablet. "So, you're actually a bit early. Mr. Kryuger is, also, still attending to some other business."
"I see." The base was bustling with activity as they wove their way through the halls. Eventually, Helian led them to a large room filled with terminals, display screens, and multiple people wearing Griffin & Kryuger commander's uniforms.
"Please feel free to mingle here while you wait."
"..." While Zeldri really wanted to tease Helian, there were too many people around and he didn't want to cross any lines. "Thank you, Mrs. Helian."
"Mmm." Helian gave a polite nod and left.
"Now then..." Zeldri took a deep breath to focus himself. His leg ached a bit, but it was manageable. Doing an initial scan of the room revealed that some of the commanders were huddled around some of the terminals and the screens were displaying t-dolls running combat drills. "Guess the dick waving's already begun."
"Will this be alright, Commander?" the leader of the echelon he brought, StG44, spoke up. "Wouldn't bringing Dream Eater have created more of an impact than us?"
"Hey, don't say that!" Nagant Revolver puffed out her chest with pride. "The commander chose us due to our superior skills to the novices."
"A-545 would break you like a twig if she heard that," AA-12 remarked. "If only you had more...assets to cushion the blows."
"MMM!" Nagant's face lit up red like a tomato, but she held her tongue to keep her dignity.
"Obviously," M2HB cooed while watching her teammates squabble, "We're here because of how lively you two are."
"I'm not lively with her!" both AA-12 and Nagant said simultaneously before shooting annoyed glares at each other.
"...A good atmosphere," Zeldri smiled to himself.
"Indeed it is!" A new voice approached them. Zeldri turned to see a rather chubby-looking man being followed by a PPK, and a female followed by a AK-47 walking towards them. "Such comradery between t-dolls is a wonderful sight to behold," the chubby man laughed and clapped his hands. "Greetings, Commander Zeldri! I'm Anto, one of your senior commanders, and this is PPK, my adjunct."
"A pleasure," PPK gave a curtsy.
"I see I have a reputation, Anto," Zeldri remarked as he didn't need to introduce himself to be known.
"You were the hot topic of the forums and were all the girls talked about for a while when you started," this time the female commander spoke. She held out a hand and gave a smile, "Name's Sara, another one of your seniors. And, this here's my adjunct, AK-47."
"Yo!" AK-47 gave a friendly salute and winked at them.
"Nice to meet you," Zeldri said with a smile and shook Sara's hand. "Even if you know me, I'll feel left out. I'm commander Zeldri, and AA-12 is my adjunct."
"Mmm," AA-12 didn't like the attention but grunted in acknowledgment.
"Hoho~," Anto rubbed his chin and smiled. "A friendly relation with his dolls, and a peculiar taste with his adjunct. I like you already, Zeldri!"
"I agree," Sara said before gesturing to a table at the other end of the room. "We got coffee and snacks if you want any?"
"..." Zeldri glanced at the other commanders before answering, "Considering no one else is having any, I'll pass."
"Hm?" Sara looked around before giving a chuckle. "Ah. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing bad about what they provided. It's just..." She scratched the back of her head. "Nothing compares to the coffee back at base. And, I'm guessing everyone else thinks so, too about their own bases. The sandwiches are good, though."
"What's so different about the coffee you have at your base?"
"...You don't have a Springfield on your base, do you, Zeldri?" A knowing smile played across her face.
"...No, why?" Zeldri answered hesitantly.
"From a senior to their junior," Sara said while giving Zeldri a pat on the shoulder, "If I.O.P. ever sends you a Springfield, never scrap her. Best coffee I've ever had in my life! She's basically ruined other places' coffee for me."
"I don't have a Springfield, either," Anto spoke up, "But, I've had the pleasure of visiting a fellow commander's base who had one, and Sara here's completely correct." He closed his eyes and rubbed his stomach as he recalled the memory. "That said, it is about time for lun-"
"Master." PPK suddenly spoke in a cold, commanding voice that cut Anto off. "You've already eaten lunch, today."
"...Just one-"
"No." The pistol t-doll's calm smile never left her face as she denied her commander food. "You're on a diet, after all."
"..." Zeldri and Sara couldn't help their eyes from wandering to Anto's chubby figure before both quickly looked away. Sara sighed, "To finish the thought, Springfield always makes you feel at home with her work... Just try to make sure she doesn't get forced into it, okay?"
"Commander," AK-47 gave Sara a worried look, "She's said multiple times it's alright!"
"...?" Zeldri raised an eyebrow at the interaction.
"I know, I know," she explained to Zeldri, "The Springfield on my base is so good at her job that she's no longer part of my combat echelons and is fully in charge of the café."
"She's no longer a t-doll?"
"No, she still has all her t-doll systems," Sara clarified, "But, she mans the café twenty-four seven, so she hasn't seen combat in a while. I've asked her if she ever wants to go out, but she rejects me and says she's fine making sure everyone has a warm welcome home after a mission." A small smile played across Sara's lips as her mind wandered to her Springfield. "I still worry about her from time to time, despite her persistence."
"...I see." It never truly dawned on Zeldri that his dolls would have 'callings' other than being his soldiers. But, as former a-dolls, his t-dolls did have past occupations and predetermined personalities that they all still kept. While all his dolls were more than willing to brave the flames of war, that was only because of what they had all been through after Scarecrow's attack. If given the chance, and when this conflict was over, what would become of his t-dolls? His soldiers? A twinge of sadness went through his heart, and Zeldri realized how much his dolls meant to him. "...Guess I know what everyone else feels, now."
"About what?" Sara asked.
"Nothing important," Zeldri brushed the topic away. "I-...?" As he was about to change topics, he glanced at Anto to see the man squirming as if he was waiting for something. "Something wrong, Anto?"
"No, no!" Anto clarified, "I was just waiting for a chance to bring something up if you don't mind?"
"About?"
"You wouldn't happen to have received an NZ75 t-doll from I.O.P. would you?"
"..." Zeldri thought for a moment as he went through all the recent arrivals. "No, I don't recall having an NZ75 on my base. Why do you ask?"
"Damn," Anto cussed to himself and huffed in annoyance. "A while ago, due to a logistics error, an NZ75 was sent to my base. She became fast friends with my AEK-999 and a few other dolls on my base. But, after she was picked up to be sent to her proper destination I've never heard anything about her. I was hoping to find the one who got her to help her and AEK-999 get back in touch as I hate seeing good friends separated." He grumbled to himself a bit before continuing, "You're the fifth person I've asked this to, and still nothing. It makes me wonder if I just imagined the whole thing?"
"No, Master," PPK calmly spoke, "The repair bill for the dorms was most certainly real."
"...Repair bill?" Zeldri wasn't sure the two dolls in question were 'good friends' like Anto was thinking.
"Bah," Anto waved his hand dismissively, "What're a few bullets between friends? HAH!"
"...Right." Zeldri moved the conversation along as he recalled he had a mission while he was here. "Are all of them doing drills?" Zeldri asked as he started walking towards the groups of commanders that were huddled around the terminals.
"Yeah, since we're waiting for Helian and a few others we've been running drills against each other," Sara and Anto followed Zeldri and Sara had a sly smile on her face. "Are we gonna see the famed Commander of the Mountain in action?"
"Maybe," Zeldri replied with a smile. He spoke a little louder to be heard by most people, "My elite echelon here is always ready and more than capable of anything Sangvis can throw at them, so having them run some drills would be alright."
"Elite echelon? Them!?" His catch took the bait. A bald man pushed through the crowd and away from the terminal he was using to conduct his echelon. "The famed Commander of the Mountain calls that an elite echelon!?"
"Alexander," Anto bitterly mumbled as Alexander approached them. Sara narrowed her eyes in annoyance but said nothing.
"Is there a problem with my echelon?" Zeldri asked and innocently tilted his head to the side.
"Of course there is!" Alexander did a once over of Zeldri's t-dolls and got in his face. "Do you take our fight against Sangvis as a joke!?"
"Ale-!" Sara had enough and went to speak up, but Zeldri stepped forwards and got between them.
"That's awfully rude considering I used this echelon to beat Scarecrow." There were some hushed murmurs from the other commanders.
"They beat Scarecrow?" Alexander scoffed and his gaze drilled into Zeldri's echelon. "The Nagant Revolver's a piss pour choice for pistol dolls, and the Galil's a useless assault rifle doll when compared to even basic three-star alternatives! If you didn't know, you're supposed to replace them when you get better dolls, Commander Zeldri."
"...!" Nagant's fist clenched as she kept herself in check. While arguing with AA-12 was one thing, speaking out against a commander was another. Galil's eyes fell to the floor at the reminder of her 'place' and she said nothing.
"Really?" Zeldri didn't show any hint of anger on his face or in his voice. "So, your echelons would be considered elites, then?"
"More elite than yours."
"Then, why haven't you beaten Scarecrow, yet? Or, any Ringleaders for that matter?"
"Wh-!" Alexander's words caught in his throat and the murmuring around them grew louder. Sara stifled a laugh.
"If you have the superior dolls, but fewer achievements than me, then I guess it's just that I'm a better commander than you who can make even 'useless' t-dolls shine like elites," the smugness in Zeldri's voice begged Alexander to retaliate. "But, while my team might not be filled with 'high star' dolls, I don't see any of them as useless. You just haven't found the best way, as a commander, to use them."
"...I get it," Alexander started to nod his head in understanding, "You fell for her bullshit."
"Her?"
"Dropout Annika," Alexander stated with a laugh. "Now I remember, she's your logistics officer, right?" His entire demeanor changed to that of a disappointed teacher. "Did she fill your head with that crap? If you start thinking like that, then you're only bound to end up like her, or worse."
"Care to make a bet on that?" Zeldri played his trap.
"...Yeah?" Alexander took it.
"My echelon here versus yours in a drill. Winner's chosen by the final score as determined by the computer."
"Alright," Alexander gave a laugh as he once again looked over Zeldri's echelon, "What are the stakes?"
"A week's worth of pay, and half of all logistic run rewards for a week."
"Hah! Then, I look forward to what new doll's I'll get thanks to your patronage," Alexander laughed. He and Zeldri shook on the bet with all the other commanders as witnesses.
"Thanks for the tour, Mrs. Jericho!" the t-doll excitedly waved as she bid Jericho farewell. The Mountain was massive, and the tour took longer than expected. But, it was time for her to get to work. She was currently on sub-level three outside one of the warehouses that she was told Annika was in. Meandering through the rows of stocked shelves, the t-doll found who she was looking for.
"..." Annika was cross-checking the supplies they had with their expected inventory and she looked rather bored. So, the t-doll decided to brighten her day with a joyful introduction.
"Mrs. Annika!"
"Huh?" Annika wasn't expecting anyone, so looked up as she was caught off guard. "What do-...!" And, she froze when she saw who was approaching her.
"I'm C96!" The small t-doll was bursting with energy as it came up to Annika. "I was tasked with helping you however I can! So, when do we star-!" C96 felt her words get caught in her throat as tears were rolling down Annika's cheeks. "Eeeh! Um! Uh! Mrs. Annika!" C96 rushed to Annika's side as she had no idea why Annika was crying. "What's wrong? Did I do something bad?!"
"...N-...No." Annika was hit by a wave of emotions, but it was obviously stressing the doll in front of her so she did her best to get herself under control. "No, you've done nothing wrong, C96, it's just..."
"Oh! This is what he meant!"
"...?" Annika raised an eyebrow as C96 produced a pack of tissues from her pocket and offered them to her.
"I was told you would need these, but I didn't think anything of it at the time." She looked up at Annika pleadingly, "Are you sure you're alright?"
"...Yeah." Annika couldn't help but smile at the genuine concern on C96's face. "But, you're saying you were told to bring tissues?"
"Yeah," C96 nodded and helped dry Annika's tears, "The Commander left instructions to bring them when I met you. And, he also told me to tell you something really weird."
"Weird?"
"Yeah." C96 cleared her throat. "He said: 'Tell her I'm gonna kick that cue ball's ass and I'm not giving you the chance to stop me.' It sounded kinda weird and-... EH!? Why are you crying, again?!" C96 desperately grabbed more tissues and tried to help Annika, but Annika couldn't stop the tears from flowing or her laughter from coming out.
With C96's help, she controlled herself enough to mutter, "You really are something, Zeldri."
"Is this really alright, Commander?" StG44 asked as Zeldri escorted her and her echelon to their deployment area. "While I admit, Commander Alexander's words were uncalled for, wouldn't getting along with the other commanders be better?"
"No," Zeldri flatly replied, "He's brought this on himself."
"The Commander's right," Nagant said as she checked her revolvers, "It takes more than a few words to affect this old soldier of the Empire!" Despite her prideful declaration, it was clear that Nagant had a fire inside her to do her best and beat Alexander's echelon.
"..." Galil absentmindedly checked her weapon. She hadn't said a word since their encounter with Alexander.
"Galil?" Zeldri called to the t-doll.
"Mmm...Mm?" She looked up from her rifle but still seemed out of it. "Sorry, Commander."
"Don't let his words eat at you."
"...But he's ri-"
"Full of shit," Zeldri didn't let Galil finish. "You'll all do fine. Especially since I got to choose the drill we'll be running." A mischievous grin crept onto Zeldri's face as he turned his commander's tablet around to show his echelon.
"Wait," AA-12 asked as she instantly recognized the drill, "Isn't that...?"
"Our easy win." Zeldri chuckled to himself at the prospect of increased pay and extra resources for the next week. Maybe he'd splurge on something nice?
"I-...I see, that's good." While Galil perked up a bit knowing the drill, it was obvious Alexander's words still bothered her.
"Hmm," Zeldri tapped his tablet as he mulled over some thoughts. "Could you at least give it your all for Annika?"
"Mrs. Annika?" Galil asked and tilted her head to the side in confusion.
"I'm assuming you all know her past, to an extent?" Zeldri asked and looked around at the girls.
"...To an extent," StG44 admitted. "It was a hot topic on the forums for a while, so many t-dolls know it."
"Awfully convenient that the person who did it had their name left out of those posts, right?" Something dangerous entered Zeldri's voice as his smile darkened. "It sure would be a shame if someone pulled a few strings to get the name of the guy who did that to our Annika and I set up an encounter for us to embarrass the bastard, wouldn't it?"
"...!" It took a second for the t-dolls to think about it, but then it clicked in their heads. In that instant, the faces of all five t-dolls became stoic with a burning resolve. Even the normally lax AA-12 had a dangerous look in her eyes. StG44 gave a salute and proudly declared, "We will bring a flawless victory, mein Kommandant (my Commander)!"
"Yes!" Galil gripped her rifle with renewed determination and all hints of despair were washed away.
"Well said." Zeldri turned and started to walk back to the viewing room. This reminded him of the times he would take care of bullies during his secondary school years. The dangerous smile never left Zeldri's face as he called back to his echelon, "Good hunting, girls!"