Chapter 54 - Unrest
There was a loud beep and ST AR 15 cursed. "Easy there! Keep that up and you'll blow yourself up."
"Shut up! I can't figure this…"
Bryant stopped her. "Are you feeling alright? You seem distracted." She shook her head and sighed.
"Just tired. I…I don't know. Not rattled, per se…Sangvis is just getting bold. I don't know how they found us." There was another loud beep and STAR threw down her tools. "Gah! This stupid-"
"That's because you're thinking about it the wrong way. It doesn't need to be perfect: see? Just put this here and slide the charge in. Easy as pie." She tried again, this time there was no sound. She breathed a sigh of relief. "Good work. You'll be leveling buildings in no time. Now take SOP and set the real ones outside."
STAR nodded and SOPMOD popped out from a foxhole with a silly salute. She was covered in dirt, and her arms were full of scavenged parts and cores. "Mines are fun, right?" STAR brushed some dirt off of her and frowned.
"Nothing fun about them. It's work."
"But the Sangvis POP into neat bits when they step on them~."
"I can make them into 'neat bits' just fine with my gun. I've never needed bombs."
"Because you would blow yourself up?"
"Shut it!"
Bryant chuckled and slowly stood up. His knees hurt, his head hurt, and a nagging and unknown fear was chewing away at his last nerve. An A-Doll stood nearby and handed him a tablet. "Commander, they are ready for you." He nodded and headed towards the meeting room. Ursula was waiting for him outside. The two exchanged nods and entered.
The surviving and able commanders were present. Dozens of other commanders had been added to a remote call. Bryant recognized several faces, some he never worked with but most he had fought alongside at one point. This was an all-hands meeting, not a good sign. Mr Kryuger stood at the head of a massive war table with his arms crossed and his eyes closed. There were some tense whispers and curt greetings before the boss spoke.
"Today's attack cost us the lives of five of Griffin's Command Staff. A moment of silence, please." The room was quiet. Bryant and a few mouthed silent prayers, a few held back sobs, and the rest stared wordlessly at Kryuger. After the moment passed, Kryuger opened his eyes and put his hands down on the table. "Let us begin. Security team, report."
Bryant motioned for his tablet and updated the map of the sector with the intelligence he had gathered. "We believe there are two Ringleaders in the area. They are SP-ACA 'Dreamer' and SP-NANO 'Destroyer'." The small amount of intelligence they had gathered appears on the map, along with the build specs of both dolls. "Besides the standard ground forces, they are supported by a Jupiter network. That is how they were able to bombard the base."
A line of cannons appeared on the corners of the map, deep in Sangvis controlled territory. "It seems that they were after something in the base, otherwise they would have kept bombarding us." Another security officer added. "So, our theory is that the cannons couldn't continue bombardment without jeopardizing their mission." Kryuger nodded. It was clear to everyone in the room who their targets were.
"Assault Team, status?" One of the remote commanders started talking.
"We have five support teams on standby, but the bulk of our forces are too far away to provide adequate assistance. We are mobilizing for a full assault as we speak, but it will take days." Kryuger sighed and gently rubbed his beard.
Bryant exchanged a few looks with the security team and cleared his throat. "Sir, we have able commanders and dolls in the security team. Let us join the assault team for this operation. We can't let this chance at Sangvis go to waste." All eyes turned to the commanders of the security team. They were tired, rattled, but determined. Bryant's voice was solid and resolute as he spoke.
Kryuger nodded after a moment. "Very well. We will integrate your forces for this operation." Kryuger turned to Ursula. "Commander Ursula. You have a plan of attack for this operation, yes? Let's hear it." She nodded and stepped up next to Helian. The two of them pulled up a tactical map of the area. The older woman started.
"We've traced a Sangvis signal to this post here. When the scouts went to investigate, it was empty." Ursula nodded and pointed to another post.
"It's a relay. Destroyer is either reckless or is luring us to these coordinates here. Regardless of the reason, we have the numbers to take them." The map zoomed into the combat area. Mountains, badlands, not much cover. Good for a tiny doll that uses explosives. "We will split into two teams for this operation. One will approach from the south and push north. Once the SF forces have moved away, a smaller team will push from the East and storm the ringleader's compound. If they are fast, Destroyer won't have time to set up out in the open."
A classic bait and switch. Normal Ringleaders wouldn't fall for it, but it was worth a shot. Speed and overwhelming force were needed. But with all the combat teams working together, it wouldn't be a problem. That and the AR Team - now that they have received enough field experience to match their Military Specs, they were a force of nature.
Bryant looked at the map intently. The squads had been shuffled, USP was in his squad along with the other security dolls. Kryuger began the mission briefing properly, snapping him out of his thoughts. "So be it. Griffin will respond to Sangvis Ferri's challenge. Commander Ursula - you are in charge of the Southern Front. Give them no quarter and don't let them take an inch. Helianthus and myself shall organize the assault on the Ringleader."
He nodded and the operation officially began. Several commanders saluted and left. Ursula and Bryant remained behind, looking at the map. "Commander Ursula, Commander Bryant: one more thing." Helian began. Both commanders saluted and waited for her to continue. "ST AR-15 will not be taking part in this operation. She needs to undergo some emergency maintenance following the attack."
There was a tension in her voice, the way her words seemed to be more pointed and urgent than usual. Both commanders exchanged a glance before slowly nodding. Bryant picked up his tablet and nodded to the A-Doll helping him. Before he walked off to the barracks, he turned to Ursula.
"Good luck." She returned his nod with a smirk.
"And Godspeed."