Chapter 18
Gloriana STS Headquarters New Hereford.
"Alright ladies, listen up!" Vanilla shouted, picking up her rifle, she wore the standard issue Gloriana tactical assault gear, black trousers, black shirt, padding on the arms and legs with a thick kevlar vest on her torso. a black helmet covered her white hair and a gas mask hung loosely around her neck.
In the room was a small team of similarly dressed people. All but one had their masks on and were checking their equipment. A woman with red hair looked up from a map at Vanilla, folding it away and tucking it into her breast pocket under the kevlar vest.
"Orders from the boss, we've got to extract the VIP" Vanilla held up a photo of Rosehip, smiling, drenched in spilt tea at a party. "I know, not the best photo of her, but apparently this was all they had at the time". She coughed, "Now you've all ran the simulation, we're gonna go in fast and hard, any questions ladies?"
Cranberry raised her hand, "Ma'am, what about their defences, reports are they've gone into lock down and doubled their batteries after they found out"
"Excellent question, your our own little assam" Cranberry blushed. "Well, it turns out Helmet owes us for saving her back in the assault on oarai, shes getting Dolphin Team 5 to hit some targets nearby to divert their forces, we've using our Lynxes to slip in, and get her out. Now Ladies, mount up, we are leaving!" she cheered as they sprinted out the door to the waiting helicopters. "She who risks, prospers!" They cheered running after her.
Gloriana Combined Command HQ Tokyo
"Darjeeling, I've received confirmation, STS are on route and Dolphin Team 6 are already hitting targets in the region" Rukuriri read from a small PDA in her hand, "Our spy planes indicate that Pravda and KMM forces are panicking and scrambling from their posts to support the hit sites"
"Excellent" Darjeeling placed down her cup of tea, "Thank you Kay for authorising their use"
"It's no problem at all Darjy!" Kay gave her a thumbs up and winked, as Naomi quietly shook her head behind her, realising her president had just gave a thumbs up and a wink to another world leader, "Plus, who doesnt love a bit of Shock 'n' Awe!" throwing both arms into the air, and sending yet another can of cola across the room, Arisa chasing after it to catch it. "S... Sorry..." she blushed.
"Pekoe, hows Assam?" Darjeeling turned to Pekoe, who was slowly waking an unconscious Assam.
"She'll be ok..." She reached for some more smelling salts, "The medics are on their way too".
"Good, Nilgiri, summon Earl Grey", Nilgiri nodded, leaving the room.
Pravda Capital Building.
Rosehip sat shaking, three bullet holes were in the door, the shouting and banging had gone quiet. "Nonna...?" she whispered, "are... are you there?" Her hands were shaking, her situation hitting her like a freight train, "it was the first time i've fired my gun in combat", she thought to herself.
She crawled to the window behind her, hitting it with the grip of her pistol, it cracked, before shattering. Rosehip turned and look for something to wrap her hands in to protect them from the shattered glass, there was a rather large bed against the wall, and a desk with a small framed photograph. A small woman was on it, to her left stood Katyusha, and to her right, Nonna. She wore a helmet, with a bear stencilled on the side of it.
Rosehip noticed a small book next to it, "Nina's Diary", a small coating of dust covered everything. Rosehip grabbed the sheets of the bed, tearing them and wrapping them around her hands, she rushed to the window, climbing onto the ledge, and began to work her way to the roof, just as Darjeeling had ordered.
"WHAT!?" Katyusha bellowed, "Well, where's Nonna?" an officer continued whispering in her ear, shock hitting Katyushas face, "She's... she'll be ok right?"
"We don't know...
"WHERE IS THAT BRAT" Anger gripped Katyusha, her fists shaking on her desk.
"She broke into the sealed off roo-" He was cut off.
"SHES IN NINAS ROOM!?"
"Yes Comrade Katyusha" the officer backed away slowly.
"GET THE GUARDS NOW, GET MY GUN, SHES NOT LEAVING, DOING THAT TO NONNA AND DESECRATING THE NINA MEMORIAL" Katyusha stood up, running to the door.
Gloriana Combined Command HQ Tokyo
"Ah Earl, I'm glad your here" Darjeeling stood, shaking the taller woman's hand, the taller woman wore a red cavalry jacket, with beige trousers, a black strip running down the outside of each leg, a cavalry sabre hung from her waist.
"No problem, what can I do Crown Protector?" Earl Grey feigned a sarcastic bow.
Darjeeling blushed, "please don't do that" she whispered.
"Don't let the emotions show, Darjeeling, otherwise, your guard will drop and you remember what happens when im around and your guard drops... Right?" Earl whispered in Darjeelings ear with a smirk. Darjeelings eyes widened as the memories of Earl's training reigiem came flooding back. Noticing Kay scowling at her being close to Earl from her wheel chair, Darjeeling coughed conspicuously.
"Well, Earl, i'm authorising a push to finally cut off the supply lines to the eastern reaches. We've finally taken Oarai and I want to completely cut them off, to stabilise the front"
"Hmm, that's an excellent plan" Earl said, eyeing over the maps, "I'm proud".
"Well... actually... it was Kay's idea" Darjeeling confessed, pointing at Kay, who was sat smugly in her wheelchair.
"Ah, well i'm sure you'd have come up with something else"
"Now, we suspect they've tapped into our radios, so until we've found a secure frequency, you've been given a new callsign" Darjeeling pulled out a small notpad.
Earl nodded softly.
"Naomi" Naomi waved from behind Kay, "She will be in command of the Saunders task force, her callsign will be, Alpha America" Earl nodded, "You will be Bravo, Austria"
"I always liked the Alps" Earl chuckled.
"I will be Charlie England" Darjeeling continued.
"And I will be Delta Wor...cesteor... sher" Kay shouted, quickly hiding her notepad.
"1... your still unfit to fight Kay, you know that" Darjeeling pointed at Kay. "2... Worcestershire is a county, not a country"
"Wha..." Kay rolled her chair to look at Naomi and Arisa,
"I did tell you..." Naomi shrugged as Arisa tried not to laugh.
"Well as i'm stuck her, can I at least have a cool callsign?" Darjeeling raised an eyebrow at the desperate Kay. "Like Cowboy or Lone Star or Ally"
"No, you've already been assigned one" Kay smiled in excitement. "Your-"
"Ma'am, STS are 30 seconds from Rosehip, they can see her on the roof, she's currently in a firefight with a large squad of guards and what looks to be Katyusha" Rukuriri cut in.
"Ok, is she injured?"
"Not that they can see ma'am" Rukuriri continued
"Ok, keep us updated, she will be ok... right?" Darjeeling wavered...
"Of course" Pekoe said, standing up as the medics began to work on assam.
"Ok... Earl, Naomi, Pekoe, let's go" she called, walking to the door.
"WAIT!" Kay shouted rolling to the door, "YOU DIDNT SAY MY CALLSIGN"
"Oh yes" Darjeeling looked over her shoulder as she walked, "I think you'll like it, It's Zulu Latvia" she chuckled.
"WHAT!?" Kay's mouth dropped, as Arisa fell to the floor laughing behind her, "LATVIA!?" Kay's arms slumped to her sides, dejectedly...