AN: Hello, dear readers, I sincerely apologize for the long waiting time, but recently I had something verging on a writer's block, which matched the extreme frustration that was caused by the rather meager results of my daily efforts. But now I am back and from this place I wanted to say hi to the user of Drone905. Our conversation through the messages gave me a lot of strength and encouragement to continue working, and I would like to thank him for both inspiration and commitment to the shape of the story. Thank you again.
Southern Egypt, United Republic of Europia
Surroundings of Abu Simble
January 2017 A.T.B.
Two kilometers west of the battle cauldron what the village of Abu Simble and its immediate vicinity has now become, was the mighty G-1 Base Land Cruiser, the name of which suggested and essentially informed its purpose. This particular model was the field staff of none other than Princess Cornelia li Britannia. The location was convenient for a field base and a forward staff. Along with the Second Princess, her entire army, known as the Corps of Glaston, was present. Five thousand highly trained soldiers, Knightmares pilots, technicians and engineers. Over two hundred knightmare frames, three hundred tanks and six hundred armored personnel carriers. And several dozen knightmares Carriers VTOL, allowing for a landing in the least expected place.
Princess Cornelia was on the bridge at G-1 Base. The dark circles under her eyes showed signs of fatigue, but determination still smoldered in her beautiful, pale purple orbs. The last few days had been a long and sleepless time for her. The campaign in Egypt grew increasingly difficult as a result of increasingly fierce resistance from the EU military. Commanded by Cornelia, the army group suffered fairly heavy casualties of ten percent, killed, wounded, disabled and captured. Its armored forces also suffered heavy losses, although they mainly concerned knightmare frames equipped with increasingly obsolete and unsuitable for the battlefield Sutherlands. This particular fact concerning the RPI-13 was more and more visible, as a result of which these machines began to be withdrawn into service in the second-line formations or in occupation garrisons, and the RPI-209, much more modern and efficient, was being pulled on the front line.
"Report, Guilford." The princess firmly demanded a report on the current situation at the front. She was currently seated on a throne on the bridge awaiting the execution of her orders.
Sir Gilbert G.P. Guilford, Colonel of the Britannian Army and Princess Cornelia Royal Guard Commander carried out the order remarkably quickly. "The Corps of Glaston managed to break the resistance of the 12th Army at Abu Simble and then push a large chunk of the army into defense in the village. The enemy appears to be tired and sustained heavy losses, and the cut off army will soon collapse. There will not even be a need for an assault. on a village that would undoubtedly entail some loss of its own. " That was the end of the Colonel's report.
Cornelia nodded, then walked over to the electronic map embedded in the table in front of the platform leading to the throne. Her eyesight fell on the vicinity of the village mentioned in the report. "We have circled a significant portion of one of their most important armies in the area, no doubt they will try to counterattack and break out of the encirclement."
After her words, the physically powerful and slowly aging General, and formerly Commander of Empress Victoria Royal Guard, Andreas Darlton, approached the map. "In this situation it is beyond doubt, but we are not sure about the exact place and time. Although it is highly probable that the attack will come from the north, from the direction of the highway."
"It seems unlikely." Sir Guilford interrupted calmly, his eyes still coolly looking at the map. "This direction of the attack is too obvious. I personally think that the forces intended to break the encirclement will gather around Toshka Lakes and attack from that side, perhaps they will try to destroy our field staff."
"It seems extremely likely." Cornelia nodded and agreed with the Colonel. "We will divide the main forces of the Corps of Glaston into two parts, the first will surround and block the highway, while the second will block the space leading to Abu Simble from the Toshka Lakes side. When the attack starts from just one area, the other half of the corps will be able to support the other and overwhelm the highway. If it turns out that the enemy forces are too great, we can easily summon the 20th, 21st and 22th Knightmares Battalions. And if that was not enough, a few kilometers to the east I station the Holy Order of Michael, Lord Manfredi will not refuse to ask for help on the part of the imperial princess. "
The battle plan was well thought out and appropriate to the situation, especially since the three knightmares battalions mentioned were stationed quite nearby and their pilots were now resting.
"There is one more point that remains, Your Highness." General Darlton spoke, and his slightly more serious tone caught the attention of the Princess and her knight. "Soon, our army group is to receive reinforcements in the form of a new, elite unit from the homeland." Then the graying general pulled out from the file in his hand a document about the latest addition to the army group and handed it to the princess. "However, our actual control over this entity will be none, which results directly from its nature."
Princess Cornelia began to read the document almost twice, both intrigued and irritated by the lack of legal control. "Knights of the Purple Rose." She whispered, then put the document on the map. "I've never heard of this order."
This was not surprising, as Godness of Victory - as soldiers and journalists called it - had been busy over the last few months bringing this campaign to an end, and invading and capturing the Middle Eastern Federation as quickly as possible, which required a land connection by crossing the Suez Canal. The princess was constantly busy and had no time to worry about all the little things from her homeland, unless they would have a direct impact on campaigns, such as news of Knights of the Purple Rose being formed and shipped here.
She looked at her knight. "Were they formed recently?" She asked, raising her eyebrows at the same time as firmly as possible.
Sir Guilford did not even flinch at this, merely met the Princess's eyes in a disciplined manner, then began to answer the question. "Less than two weeks ago, Your Highness." After which he began to explain in detail the events that were behind the formation of the order. "According to rumors, during an unannounced audience, Prince Lucius vi Britannia asked the Emperor for the possibility of forming a knightly order under his command, thus making him a great master."
Cornelia was clearly surprised by these rumors, especially about the fragment regarding the unannounced audience. Personally, she found Lucius a bit more cautious and cunning, especially after what happened to his siblings. Honestly, she had not completely expected it, but she had not yet expected the Emperor to accept the request made during this audience. It was a clear sign that either their father found it fun and interesting, or that he had an interest in it. The princess instinctively took the second option as true, which seemed to be much more likely because of its logical nature. For Lucius was a great tactician, and had already become a legendary knightmares pilot, although the latter was because of who his mother was, and not because of his skills, which were still significant and unmistakable.
"So my younger brother, Grand Master, Prince Lucius vi Britannia, was sent here by imperial order, or did he come voluntarily?" She asked because the document did not specify the reason for the arrival of Knights of the Purple Rose. The only thing that was known for sure was the formation of the knights and their arrival in Egypt, nothing more than that.
"It was an Imperial Order, Your Highness." General Darlton replied this time. While calm and poise literally emanated from this veteran of all modern empire wars, he nevertheless seemed somewhat amused at the arrival of a prince whom he had the honor of teaching frontline planning and command. He was his mentor, as was Princess Cornelia, who also learned from the old general. "The Prince will be coming to the front in about two weeks, but by then we should have been able to deal with the destruction and destruction of the encircled troops."
On the other hand, Sir Guilford seemed indifferent to this news, as he had no feelings for the Twelfth Prince of the Holy Britannian Empire. Of course, he respected the prince for his achievements and resisting many adversities at a very young age, but his full admiration and appreciation was only for Princess Cornelia, his beloved princess, for whom he would go to hell.
Princess Cornelia smiled for a moment, the mere thought of meeting her mentor's only surviving child made her incredibly happy, especially since her attitude towards him was more than friendly. She and Third Princess Euphemia loved Lucius wholeheartedly, who always seemed to reciprocate their feelings. Despite the tragedy of the young Prince and many painful memories, Cornelia and Euphemia were always able to have an extremely pleasant conversation with him, even if it was about a painful past. They were so closely related that Lucius was always ready to wash the back of the younger Britnania sisters if necessary, or go shopping with her, possibly assist Cornelia in her military efforts through political endeavors without expecting anything in return. . Probably Lucius developed a real family bond with only his half-siblings li Britannia. It was no secret that Schneizel and his younger brother Charlemagne were associated with Lucius solely because of their alliance, which, however, brought both parties many tangible benefits. Odysseusus and Telemachus eu Britannia had a cordial relationship with Lucius, but nothing more, especially in the face of the sincere hatred on the part of the mother's eu Britannia siblings. Carine ne Britannia and Guinevere de Britannia also hated Lucius, albeit mostly for purely political reasons. Clovis had a friendly relationship with Lucius, but nothing more, while Leila hated Lucius for his origins, largely due to the influence of her mother, Gabrielle la Britannia, who was willing to do just about anything to remove all obstacles to her son's path to becoming the next emperor empire. Marrybell and Lucius competed fiercely for the best possible results, which had its roots in their time together at New Colchester. And the twins Castor and Pollux rui Britannia did not seem to have any relationship with Lucius, as if they did not know about each other at all.
Regardless of family relations, however, Cornelia was sincerely pleased with the prospect of reuniting Lucius, whose achievements on the fronts in Africa were already legendary, starting with the destruction and killing of the entire enemy staff. Her younger half-brother was genuinely respected by the common soldiers whose morale would no doubt have increased upon his arrival, which was undoubtedly useful. Perhaps the campaign was in favor of the empire, but it was not without some - and sometimes even quite considerable losses. Additionally, the last few weeks of increased fighting and maneuvering were successively exhausting Knightmares' soldiers and pilots. It was clear at this point that after this victory a large part of the troops would have to rest.
"Excellent." She replied, satisfied with the current situation. For a moment she considered her next move, but her mind was racing very quickly, and soon she made a decision. "I will keep the encirclement for a few more days, while keeping the enemy soldiers under constant and intense artillery fire. We will exhaust them physically and mentally and force them to use their small supplies constantly. under the great weight of our final attack that will force their unconditional surrender. "
No one voiced any objections, and soon artillery units took the most convenient positions for the firing, which increased on the same day and lasted for the next week, with the only respite from it at nights. Meanwhile, the knightmare frames companies were preparing to launch an attack on the opponent constantly plunging into disorder and chaos.
Cornelia personally observed the positions of the EU troops several times, but the sight of what she found did not fill her with great optimism. Perhaps the enemies had dug into the village and built several lines of trenches around it, but the sight was basically a thing of the past. The village very quickly became a sea of ruins, full of burned, artillery-torn debris and rotting corpses that even the rodents did not want to touch. The trenches around them seemed to be as leaky as the cheese, but more shockingly, desperate defenders began using the corpses of their fallen comrades as replacements for sandbags. The perpetually hot air completed the picture of total destruction, and some enemy soldiers, who seemed to walk from one position to another, as if they had completely lost touch with reality.
It all became too obvious that whether or not the rest of the EU army in Egypt would come to the aid of the besieged troops, they would only save starving, mentally exhausted and completely demoralized people, who would be a burden more to the front than help.
XXX
Leila could only sigh inwardly, she was secretly incredibly tired and resigned, especially in the face of the task set before her. Her unit was not even fully equipped, but while the equipment was of high quality, it was definitely not enough. Only human resources were accumulated sufficiently large. Despite that W-0 was not fully ready for combat and the pilots assigned to it had not yet been properly integrated, but the order was given and it had to be carried out as soon as possible. There was nothing to be done about it, though Leila was well aware that something like this had no chance of ending well. Nevertheless, the enthusiasm and willingness of the pilots to fight gave some - little - hope for breaking the encirclement and saving the EU soldiers, constantly harassed by artillery fire and hunger. At least those who were still alive.
As for the knightmare frame pilots assigned to the unit, they were people of great combat value. Europeans literally exuded zeal to fight and defend their homelands against a powerful and aggressive invader with an unbridled appetite for more. Meanwhile, the Japanese pilots were filled with - in part - an obsession with revenge against the hated enemy who had ravaged, colonized and conquered their once beautiful and truly proud homeland, and destroyed their culture. However, there was a certain part of this group of pilots, there was also another, whose intention was to fight the desire to ensure their family citizenship and the possibility of a dignified life in the countries of the community. Europia United did not offer newcomers - in particular refugees - good living conditions, on the contrary, a corrupt and oligarchic creature that was literally on the verge of collapse at this point. These people were basically second-class citizens if you take into account their terrible living conditions, widespread and unpunished discrimination, or being offered a job at significantly lower salaries than for ordinary EU citizens.
As for the preparations for the upcoming operation, they were carried out by Leila and her aide in the most meticulous way that the present situation allowed. Although it was necessary to face a lot of adversity, starting with the constant shortages in the supply of weapons and ending with the rather overzealous and overworking the oversight officer. While even before the operation, Colonel Pierre Anou limited his interference and all possible supervising operations to the necessary minimum, now the moment in which he did not review any of the details of the operation seemed at least strange.
Also at this time, Leila was forced to explain to the Colonel some assumptions of her plan. While earlier, Colonel Anou carefully inquired about the most important issues, such as resources allocated to operations and their use. He also inquired about the exact condition of the machines and the competences of the pilots who would take part in the fight, although on this particular issue he limited himself to the minimum necessary and did not ask exactly about the biography of each of the Knightmares assigned to pilot. Ultimately, however, his inquiries turned to a bizarre field, the best example of which was the discussion that Leila and Colonel Anou had from opposite sides of the desk in the Lt. Colonel's office.
"Can you repeat the question?" Leila asked her interlocutor after a prolonged silence, which was at least awkward but undoubtedly justified, given the point that had just been raised by the supervising officer.
The Lieutenant Colonel looked into the Colonel's eyes with obvious firmness, the main task and purpose of which, however, was in fact to hide the feelings raging inside her, as well as the great exhaustion associated directly with the last and - at least from Leila's point of view - an extremely idiotic question that somehow miraculously it came from the mouth of her experienced and senior overseer. Meanwhile, Colonel Anou remained firm and impenetrable like a thick wall of chrome. Although he was a good organizer, logistician and supervising officer, his experience on the real battlefield was basically none. His notion of command in battle was non-existent, but he still meddled with the details of the operation being prepared.
"Why was the self-destruct system not uploaded to the pilot machines' software?" He asked with absolute seriousness and the clear expectation of an immediate response. At the same time, he did not take his eyes off the Lieutenant Colonel, and his eyesight was intense and piercing.
"Why would we install a suicide system on the battlefield?" She asked in response, trying not to reveal the slightest hint of emotion. Though, in fact, she understood why the supervising officer was asking about what had caused pure disgust in Leila."Since this will enable the pilots, at least it will give the opportunity to make a suicide attack on the battlefield, if necessary." Colonel Anou impassively replied, though he seemed confident and firm, there was a sly gleam in his eyes. "This is obviously a last resort that should only be applied as a last resort when the pilot finds himself in a hopeless situation where the best decision available would be to attack himself and take some enemy machines with him and their crews."
Leila could to some extent accept this logic in a chaotic battlefield where every possible advantage was worth its weight in gold. Nevertheless, the young commander was well aware that some overzealous and fanatical pilots - in particular the Japanese and Poles - could carry out suicide attacks for no apparent reason and with the intention of inflicting as much damage on the enemy as possible. However, Colonel Anou seemed to completely ignore this possibility.
"Colonel." Leila replied with all possible firmness, which must have made quite an impression on the supervising officer. "I must strongly oppose even the possibility of installing such software on our pilots' machines. Perhaps purely theoretically, it is a good solution, but it is not the case with the pilots we have."
"Why?" Colonel Anou asked almost immediately, and at the same moment he frowned, clearly unhappy with the objection from the person he was to oversee. "It allows us to make all our loss painful to the enemy. I don't see any rational reason why we should not install this software."
"Colonel, this is not a question of rationality, but more a question of the irrationality of pilots in the face of irrational circumstances." Leila replied calmly but firmly at the same time. She made it clear with her attitude that it would be difficult to convince her to this idea. "Our pilots, many of them at least, are more than willing to fight the Holy Britannian Empire ..."
Before Leila could continue, however, her argument was quickly and in an uncultured manner interrupted by the supervising officer: "It is very good that they are willing to fight this tyrannical regime that has finally decided to pull their hands towards Europe and Africa. We have to push them out of Egypt. and stop the expansion of this aristocratic kleptocracy before it's too late! " The last words were evidently fueled by tremendous emotions, and Leila could only guess as to what exactly was the reason for such an emotional attitude on the part of the supervising officer.
"Colonel, the willingness to fight is not the slightest problem here, because it is necessary for every soldier." The young Lieutenant Colonel began to reply to his impolite and sensible interjection. "The main problem is how they will start to fight if they are given the wrong tools to achieve their goal. In this particular case, the inadequate tool is the self-destruct system."
The colonel for a moment seemed to have the intentions of interrupting the supervised commander, even opened his mouth for a brief moment, but finally resolved to contain any frustration and continue listening patiently. Consequently, Leila was able to continue her argumentation further.
"Our unit is full of Japanese and Poles whose zeal to fight is probably all too well known to you, Colonel." The surveillance officer nodded quickly and confidently at her words. "Therefore, you probably realize that these pilots can undertake a suicide fight with the enemy regardless of the circumstances. . "
Colonel Anou could not help but chuckled at her words, it was clear that the reason for the enthusiasm of the Poles to fight was at least funny to him. "It's true, Lieutenant Colonel, Polish pilots are stupid enough to believe the empty slogans from previous eras, which were additionally always invented by people like us for propaganda purposes. An example like 'for our freedom and yours' is the best example of this. Poles have always been the easiest way to seduce, wrap around and use as cannon fodder. " He said it without a hint of sarcasm and with obvious amusement, not to mention the disdain that was pouring out of his mouth for the kind of thoughtless fighting that the Poles presented in his eyes. "I won't mention the Japanese anymore." At the mere mention of this nation, the Colonel darkened a little, as if trying to pay some respects to them. "While I sincerely sympathize with the loss of their homeland and its devastation by the empire, I cannot understand the level of stupidity of those soldiers who are ready to fight to the very end in the name of something as abstract and insignificant in the face of death as honor."
Leila was - to put it mildly - quite deeply disgusted with the level of cynicism and an extremely disrespectfully contemptuous attitude towards the motivations of the fighting soldiers. Even so, the young Colonel had to admit to herself that the Lieutenant Colonel was right to some extent. Even if it was a bitter truth, there was no need to say it in such a contemptuous manner. On the other hand, stupidity has always had to be spelled out and blunt, especially when the influence is doing more harm than good. And the romantic approach to warfare was evidently harmful, mainly by inspiring soldiers to do idiotic and meaningless actions, the harmfulness of which could lead to failure in a skirmish or battle.
"Unfortunately." Leila answered him. "Nevertheless, the essence of the conversation is that pilots may simply adopt a suicide-attack tactic, the sole purpose and benefit of which will be to inflict as much damage on the enemy as possible."
"It's not a problem, Lieutenant Colonel." Colonel Anou replied quickly and firmly, and Leila struggled to hold back from taking a deep and calming breath that would undoubtedly be useful in the face of unpleasant conversation. "If we inflict enough losses on the empire's army, the commander-in-chief in the encirclement area will have no choice but to withdraw his forces and thereby break the encirclement. This will allow us to proceed to a safe and undisturbed evacuation." He spoke his last words with evident pride and open satisfaction, as if he had just found a solution to all the world's problems.
But Leila knew better. She knew the tactics and strategy of warfare, so she was well aware that such a fight would be short-lived at best, and utterly disastrous at worst. "Colonel Anou, what you are proposing gives us only a twenty-five percent chance of succeeding in an operation, and this is still an extremely generous estimate of the probability of a successful plan. Even if suicide attacks would destroy a large part of the enemy forces and force the rest to retreat," this evacuation corridor would only be created for a few hours and by no means would it be sufficient to evacuate all forces. The Empire would undoubtedly regroup its forces and launch a devastating counterattack, the final effect of which would be to push our forces away and lose any chance of distracting our divisions. Just not. we would have enough strength to hold the reflected positions. "
The arguments seemed to appeal to him, at least to some extent, for he was still dissatisfied with the opinion. Although the logical arguments seemed to work for him, he still refused to let go and clearly intended to keep pushing his idea, but this time, he took a different tactic.
"I understand, Lieutenant Colonel." He responded sternly as soon as he had mastered his emotions and suppressed any signs of irritation. "However, I do not intend to back away from this idea. Nevertheless, I do propose a compromise solution that should certainly be satisfactory for you, Lieutenant Colonel."
Leila had some doubts but said nothing and allowed the Colonel to continue.
"I propose that the system should nevertheless be installed in the pilot's machines, but with the proviso that it can only be activated and put into use by the pilots by the operation command. And by that, I mean with the consent and consent of both of us." He offered, and it was clear in his eyes that Colonel Anou was not going to make any additional concessions in this case.
Leila was not happy with his proposal, but it was far better than letting the pilots decide arbitrarily when to self-destruct. Even so, Leila was still reluctant to accept her supervising officer's plan. For a moment she even considered overpowering and imprisoning Colonel Anou for the duration of the operation, the reason for which was simple, his lack of combat experience. On the other hand, this type of gun could - if it were released - result in its demotion or the future having a Colonel - and possibly his friends in the military - as rivals, which Leila would prefer to avoid.
"It's acceptable." The young Lieutenant Colonel with great and clear reluctance agreed to his plan, and at the same time had absolutely sincere hope that it would be only a last resort in a situation of no way out. Sharing with Colonel Anou the power to implement the strategy gave her quite a lot of hope that this would be the case.
The meeting ended a few moments later as the last doubts about the exact plans and potential dangers were dispelled. Leila's explanations were absolutely sufficient for Colonel Anou, as a result of which a military man left her office, and a moment later Major Warwick entered. His lips curved into a malicious smirk as soon as his eyes fell on the evidently weary Leile.
"I see the meeting required a lot of commitment?" He asked a bit maliciously. If there was any quality in this man that Leila valued him for, it would undoubtedly be quite a good level of humor and a relaxed approach to the situation. His rather frivolous behavior stood in stark contrast to Leila's usually rigid demeanor, and probably mostly the young Lieutenant Colonel kept him with her.
At this point, the usually strong and disciplined blonde with a firm aura was literally exhausted, and her bright purple eyes were almost completely covered by the upper eyelids falling as a result of fatigue. Only her enormous amount of self-control managed to keep her from falling asleep instantly. After all, she still had to gather strength and complete some formalities for the day.
"Detailed reporting to an extremely meticulous supervising officer on every last detail of the operation required all available forces on my part, just to keep in control at some point." She responded with a slight tinge of voice that indicated a slow and systematic recovery from an exhausting several hours of intense mental effort. "Not to mention the need to carefully plan everything for the upcoming surgery."
Major Warwick chuckled, then pulled a metal flask from the inside pocket of his rather sloppy jacket and offered it to Leila. "Please take this to strengthen your spirit."
The young Lieutenant Colonel had no doubts what was inside, it was not the slightest secret for a large part of the W-0 personnel, who, however, did not mind this minor deviation from the regulations. As for Leila's feeling about it, she didn't mind, too, especially since the Major never caused the slightest trouble under the influence of alcohol. However, offering his own canteen with quite strong whiskey inside was something completely new.
Although Leila did not like to stick to the rules to an exaggeration, she never allowed herself to grossly violate them, and drinking while on duty undoubtedly was part of it. However, the prospect of working a few more hours with a few ten-minute breaks effectively encouraged her to accept the aide's generous offer and rejuvenate herself with a strong drink with high percentages of alcohol. It was no secret that Major Warwick loved strong Scotch, and there was no doubt that there was some other kind of liquor in the flask.
Leila, with an indifferent expression on her face, grabbed the open canteen, and after a short moment of staring, she tilted and poured the liquid into her mouth. She had to do everything in her power to keep from spitting out what she just drank, and it was even more of an effort to swallow it. However, she succeeded, and the strength of the drink actually gave her some strength.
"Thank you, Major." She thanked him with a sardonic smile, then returned the canteen and its contents to the owner.
"I just care about my well-being and the willingness to perform my duties as my supervisor." The sincere grinning Major replied, quickly turning the flask on and hiding it into the depths of his jacket, then proceeding to discuss the reason for his presence. "Does our beloved supervising officer have any doubts about this plan?" He asked, and his tone took on a much more serious color than it had been moments ago, which was an unmistakable sign that the time for jokes was over at this very moment.
"He had quite a few of them and they were not always rational." She replied impassively and rather sullenly, to the point that the Major frowned at her words and thus quietly pleaded for unfolding. "At first, he talked about meaningful things, such as logistics, a detailed attack plan and possible actions in the event of a unit defeat. It was still rational and fully justified, but when it all shifted to something like installing a self-destruct system in pilot machines. "
"Self-Destruct System?" He asked, eyebrow raised, as if he was a bit distrustful of what had just fallen out of her mouth. "Why would the Colonel demand something like this."
"Because he doesn't have the slightest idea of waging war and fighting." Leila replied impassively and sighed with a degree of resignation in her voice. "He may be a great logistician and organizer, but he should be kept as far away from the battle as possible and should not get involved himself. For such an ignorant man, a battle is just a chaotic meat grinder, with no order or composition. kill as many opponents as possible without taking into account your own losses. " Leila sighed heavily again. "Not to mention his absolute lack of knowledge in the field of psychology and understanding of the representatives of the nations that make up our crew of knightmare frames."
Major Warwick couldn't help but burst out laughing after a while, despite the gravity of the situation. "Did not understand the suicidal romantic tendencies of Poles and Japanese?" He asked with a chuckle, which Leila somehow reciprocated.
"Obviously." She replied, but had to admit one thing. "Honestly, I also do not fully understand Poles and Japanese." Her words intrigued Major, who began to listen to her with complete attention and concentration. "How can you be so willing to fight and sacrifice this one life in a suicidal or utterly pointless act? How can you be ready to lay down your own life so easily?"
Major Warwick watched her with undoubted curiosity, then sat down at his desk and replied, "That's because that's how they were brought up. I've read a lot about different countries and cultures in my short life, Lieutenant Colonel, I've learned from that. first of all, one that no man after birth is a blank sheet that can be written down. No. Man, first of all, inherits some of his parents' traits, and additionally his mentality and attitude to life, as well as many other aspects of it, result directly from the community in The people who serve in our unit are no exception to the rule in this respect. Some were brought up in a culture emphasizing honor and fighting to the last breath, and others in a culture of fighting for freedom and sacrifice, regardless of the potential consequences for themselves. "
"I did not think that under the image of an officer tired of years of service and abusing alcohol, there could be someone so profound." Leila replied half-jokingly, but at the same time looked at him for a moment in total silence, trying to analyze him. Now she saw him in a completely different light than she had been a moment ago.
It did not last long, however, for soon the Major put the conversation on the right track. "In any case, is the operation plan still unchanged?" He asked.
"It will be as agreed and planned in advance." Leila replied with the calm and measured tone of voice that was typical of her soldierly and rigid demeanor. "More than fifty knightmare frames will attack the positions of the empire's troops from between the Toshka lakes. The task of the knightmares and pilots will be to break Britannian's lines and then lead the charge straight to our encircled soldiers. Tanks and mechanized infantry and battalions of knightmares composed of older models will secure the corridor through which the encircled troops will start to evacuate. The whole thing should take no more than two days. The only problem expected is reinforcements from other divisions and battalions of the empire's knightmares. "
"It could actually be a problem." The major nodded at her concerns and looked into her eyes with a serious expression. "Intelligence reports that the 20th, 21st and 22th Knightmares Battalions are stationed in the area. As if that were not enough, the forces of the empire can count on help in the form of an elite Holy Order of Michael." His face took on a much darker expression than it had been a few moments ago. "If the defending troops manage to call for backup, and I have no doubts whatsoever about that, then we may have a real hard time completing this mission. Especially with our meager supplies."
Leila could only nod grimly. "Whether or not a backup request is sent out, defeating the enemy will not be easy." The major could only nod in glum silence.
The W-0 unit could use the most modern and prototype equipment, but even the best-quality equipment with the best soldiers had to sooner or later succumb to larger enemy forces, which additionally had much better equipment.
XXX
Life, a meaningless and long string of uninterrupted suffering, that was the impression one young lieutenant had with dark blue hair and eyes, though the color of the latter was a little brighter. He was a man not very tall, but there was an athletic and athletic build under his uniform, testifying to the many hours of intense training he had gone through to gain it. His age was about seventeen and his name was Akito Hyuga.
Blue eyes, full of resignation incomprehensible to anyone, seemed to talk about him much more than his official file. Honestly, the whole story of his life was - at least in his own and quite nihilistic approach to life - worth forgetting and burying the mind somewhere at the bottom and leaving it for total oblivion. Objectively speaking, it was something unpleasant and indeed regrettable, which nevertheless shaped what Akito was now.
Whatever his life story, a young blue haired lieutenant was standing right here in the underground Wyvern-Zero hangar. The room was completely filled with new and not yet fully tested knightmare frames, which - at least to the lieutenant's knowledge - had come here straight from the factory and with factory defects, as best evidenced by the entire crowd of technicians who worked to eliminate faults before the operation of the first operation began in the history of W-0.
The first machine that stood out were the first five knightmares, the main reason for this being blue and silver markings, proving beyond all possible reason that they were the WOX-Type01 / C or simply the Alexander Commander. The latest machines from the sixth generation KMF. Their appearance was quite specific, and the main reason for this was quite a bizarre design, which on the one hand was slim and shapely, but on the other hand had something of an insect. The armor - apart from the previously mentioned blue and silver markings in the shape of the EU coat of arms - was largely white. The armament of this machine is two linear assault rifles and two Uruna Edge knives, of which the melee weapon was placed quite innovative, because under the armor of both 'arms' of the machines. The biggest innovation, however, was the armor, which seemed to resemble the old knight's plate armor, in stark contrast to the Panzer-Hummels and Gardmares armor, the armor of which made them look more clunky and walking trash cans.
The next machines, about sixty knightmare frames, stood in several rows behind Alexander Commanders, and they were remarkably similar in construction to the WOX-Type01 / C, WOX-Type01 / M, i.e. simply Alexanders Mass. Visually - apart from the aforementioned difference - it seemed to be the same construction as Alexander Commanders, but only on the surface. In fact, Alexanders Mass lacked the sophisticated sensor and communication systems that the WOX-Type01 / C provided would enable the commander to effectively command the chaotic battlefield. Akito familiarized himself with the technical data, so he was familiar with the differences between the two designs.
However, these were machines that were delivered - to Akito's knowledge at least - straight from factories, from assembly lines. So it was all too clear that these constructions had factory flaws. The best evidence to support this thesis was the whole pack of technicians, engineers and service technicians who worked on the machines with all available forces. Honestly, Akito sometimes had the feeling that people were working their best just because some invisible force was constantly whipping them all and making them all work.
However, it was not only the technicians who were making preparations for the coming battle. The pilots also made the necessary preparations, the best proof of this was the constant and continuous work of all of them on their own abilities in the simulators. It did not in the slightest reflect the fullness of the ubiquitous chaos and destruction on the battlefield. Nevertheless, it showed a lot of commitment on the part of the pilots.
However, to be honest, Akito did not fully understand their unusually high level of engagement in the fight. Especially the high level of commitment among other Japanese, who at that moment were to fight and die for their war.
However, Akito's silent contemplation was quickly interrupted by another pilot.
"Pardon." An eighteen or nineteen-year-old boy with an athletic build, white hair neatly combed to the side, and a serene expression said. Even so, Akito saw a certain level of nervousness in him.
"What do you want, pilot?" Akito asked coolly, and his eyes fell on the young man's green eyes. He didn't even pay attention to his rank.
"Forgive me for interrupting, but I'm looking for a Lieutenant Hyug. I was told there would most likely be knightmare frames nearby, and given your distinctive dark blue eyes, I think I've just found the man I'm looking for." He replied, then stood to attention, saluted, and his tone became solemn for the next few sentences. "I am Sergeant Peter Kowalsky, and I am reporting on orders. I have been informed that I have been assigned to the Delta Division, under your command, Lieutenant."
Akito sighed, then walked over to him and returned the salute without the slightest hint of enthusiasm or any sign of any interest in the newly assigned pilot. "So welcome to Delta and Wyvern Zero unit. You can rest, Sergeant."
Peter did exactly that and relaxed his posture. "What are your orders, Lieutenant?" He asked after a short while.
Akito with great difficulty refrained from sighing once more. "There are still a few hours before your check-in begins, you can do whatever you see fit." The blue-haired Japanese could hardly refrain from a few derisive remarks about his new subordinate's ability to think for himself. However, the awareness of some and obvious shortcomings of his subordinate prompted him to ask a question. "Where did you serve before, Sergeant?" The main thing Akito wanted to know was if he was really dealing with a rookie who volunteered to join W-0 out of a desire to survive the adventure. Or maybe he is a veteran but with a shy personality.
"Before that, I was in command of the 4th Knightmare Frames Battallion, which fought primarily in West Africa." He replied quite shyly and clearly didn't want to talk about it anymore. "
Despite the sergeant's apparent reluctance to raise the issue, Akito took an interest in him. The man's words indicated that he had once been an officer with at least the rank of Captain, but now he was only a sergeant and a non-commissioned officer. "Why aren't you still an officer?"
Peter paled at this question and his eyes fell to the ground. For a moment, nothing indicated that he would start responding, so Akito was going to leave for a moment and leave him alone.
"The reason for this is an incident that happened at the end of my service in the 4th Knightmare Frames Battallion." Sergeant Kowalsky looked up to meet Akito's eyes, his tone essentially blank and colorless. "It was about three months ago, a company of about twenty knightmares under my command was supposed to secure the retreat of our wrecked and decimated divisions, but nothing went as planned. The first manifestation of this was a surprise attack by Britannian's knightmares from a completely unlikely direction. It cost my company eleven. machines and forced a retreat, but it was only the beginning of failures. For the next few hours we were constantly harassed by air raids, which effectively devastated our psyche and at the end of the day made us basically unfit to fight and we were no longer able to distinguish enemy machines from But as if all this was not enough, at the end of the day we attacked and fired on our own convoy with retreating troops and equipment that somehow managed to get through Britannian's lines. in the full sense of the word and on our return we were notified who we were actually shooting at. " Peter sighed in resignation, as if he were about to collapse under the weight of the presented past. "You've probably figured out the rest of the story by now."
Akito nodded grimly. "You and your unit were brought to a war tribunal and demoted." To his great surprise, the Sergeant flatly denied his claim.
"It was much worse." Peter replied grimly and with what could be described as barely suppressed anger. "I was only demoted and sent back to Europe, to Poland. My subordinates were not so lucky and were sentenced to death by hanging. The sentence was carried out almost immediately."
Akito was confused by the Sergeant's answer, but showed nothing. There was quite a gap in his story. "Why would they sentence people on the basis of extreme fatigue, a highly stressful situation and obvious communication errors?" He asked, and the answer nearly demolished his austere facade.
"Because I and my subordinates belonged to a small group in the army who do not want to wage a total war with a much more powerful enemy." He replied and vented some of his anger. "We openly expressed our opposition to the recruitment of younger and younger people into the military and condemned the pursuit of victory at any cost. To be honest and frank, a good deal of the military command was just waiting for an excuse to destroy us."
"Why did they leave you alive?"
"There were two reasons, and the first was to destroy me mentally. I have no doubts about it. Second, they wanted me to commit suicide when I got home. In other words, they wanted me to die, but without a tribunal or execution."
Akito wanted to ask him a few more questions, but the visibly irritated sergeant just saluted and left in a rather considerable hurry. Despite being a bit surprised, the lieutenant very quickly decided to let go of the topic and devote himself to the preparations for the battle.
"A few more hours and the battle will begin." He stated, then a maniacal smile appeared on his usually stern and emotionless face, the very edges of his eyes shining with a faint glow. "And then all who stand in my way will have to die." He finished, his eyes full of blood, and a few drops of saliva flew out of his mouth twisted with a wild smile.