October 27, 1943.
xxx
Humid. Gray and humid. These are the two words Rhonda Breivik would choose if asked to describe one of the Baltland's major naval bases in a couple of words. The weather might not always be like this in Karlskrona, but now, at the end of October, that was the first impression. And as far as the girl knew, it would be like this until spring, maybe just colder.
But for her it was cold enough as it was – the concrete hangar could not offer much more warmness than outside. A gusty wind blew in through the open gate, showering small raindrops all around. The hangar was piled up with crates and bags, so the four girls stacked their striker units as far from the gate as they could, and huddled together near the entrance, jigging and raising their collars to get warm as they were waiting. Outside, the grey evening gloom swirled in wisps, in which bulky buildings around were only dimly visible, and some sparse lights of the city on the other side of the strait shone through. The island of Lindholmen shielded the city from the waves of the Baltic but was itself open to all winds.
Headlights illuminated the rain-swept wisps of mist, then an engine noise was heard, and an army jeep with a stretched awning pulled up to the gate, stopping so that the headlights shed light onto the area inside. The door creaked open and a female figure appeared in front of the girls. The girl who arrived walked inside and stopped so that everyone could see each other without squinting against the light.
Black tattered hair touched with grey, strong tall figure, steely gaze of bright eyes. Rhonda could use just one word to describe this girl.
War.
- Flight lieutenant Frederica Maurenbrecher! Assuming command of you! – enunciated the witch. The girls pulled up, saluting.
- I was told you all volunteered. If that's not true, I need to know now.
- Ma'am! – one of the girls stepped forward. – Pilot officer Tuuli Honko, Suomus 22 Squadron. I was just ordered to come, ma'am.
- Honko. The night witch? – the girl nodded. – Right, Honko. In just a few hours you may be dead. You can also refuse to take part now. I guarantee you no repercussions.
The Suomus raised her head sharply, but flight lieutenant added a bit milder:
- On the other hand, it is you who we desperately need. Without you, our chances drop sharply. Please consider this carefully. You have five minutes.
- I don't need that, ma'am! – responded Honko with determination. – I'll follow any order!
- It's not about order, it's about lives! – the commander looked round at everyone. – Remember this, all of you.
- Our lives, ma'am? – spoke the tall girl in Karsland uniform.
- Not just that, but also the lives of those who depend on us now. Honko?
- I'm in, ma'am. I never ran from combat!
- You will today, then. Combat is not what we want for this task, - Frederica walked along the short formation, reciting names and ranks from memory:
- Flying officer Astala, Kirsi.
- Pilot officer Grossberg, Helga.
- Sergeant Breivik, Rhonda…
Commander positioned herself at center again.
- So. From this very minute on. Call me only "commander". Or "Coma", if you want it shorter.
- Coma?!
- Coma it is. Can you memorize that? If it's hard, call me often to get used to. Now…
The commander walked along the girls again, tapping their shoulders slightly one by one.
- You. Radar! – Honko shrugged her shoulders and nodded.
- Medic! – Astala just smiled.
- Sniper!
- Yes ma'am! – yelled out Grossberg.
Flight lieutenant stopped by Rhonda.
- Gallian!
- I come from Baltland, ma'am…
- You speak Gallian, you will be Gallian. Don't worry, it's not for too long. – Commander pulled a sheet of paper from her pocket. – Can you translate this to Gallian?
Rhonda was puzzled as she took the piece of paper, which had only one line of handwritten text on it.
- Err..Yes, I can…
- Write it here and give it back, – a pencil was shoved in Rhonda's hands.
- Radar! – commander's hand pointed to the jeep. – Get your rocket launcher in the car. Pick another weapon there. Three minutes, go. Others, prepare your gear for inspection!
The girls hastily threw off their backpacks and put their weapons beside them. Rhonda handed the paper back, running quickly back over her equipment. Before she was sent here, the girl was issued all the required things: MG-42, P-38 Walter gun, ammo, medkit, flashlight, knife, matches, compass…
- Leave the backpacks here. Take whatever needed from there, - the officer commanded in process of inspection. – Flashlights!
Coma pulled out some pieces of red tape and a tube of resin glue.
- Put the tape over the glass. Like this one here, - flight lieutenant pulled her flashlight out, its glass was covered with red tape.
- Radar, ready? Get to inspection…
Honko picked a Bren machine gun, and switched her rocket pouches for standard machine gun loadout.
- Nice arsenal there you have, commander!
- It's not my first time. All right, next…You know how to use all of this, right?
The commander inspected the girls, every single piece of equipment, every single detail. She had Astala jump on the spot and walked around watching how the heavy medic's bag was holding. That bag was attached to belt in addition to her shoulder strap, and the commander nodded in satisfaction seeing that the short, but heavily-built Suomus girl has no problem with it. Lastly, she strapped a small axe in a canvas cover to Kirsi's belt on her back. Tuuli received an entrenching shovel, and Rhonda – a piece of rolled rope. The witches left food and their other belongings, but each was given a sack of dried meat mixed with nuts, and a chocolate bar. Everyone had a flask with water too.
As the inspection was done, Frederica looked at her watch and nodded to herself.
- Suomi! You may have fifteen minutes in case you need to pray. There is an old Suomus temple right there, just a hundred meters away. It's a historical landmark here...
- Thank you, I don't need that, ma'am… - murmured Astala, stroking a lace on her neck, which, apparently, had an amulet on it.
- I'm not superstitious at all, - Honko shook her head.
- Good, - flight lieutenant headed to her jeep, opened the tent and produced a medium-sized flat backpack for her, then pulled her striker unit out.
- Mount up!
xxx
They flew in a triangle formation - the flight lieutenant was flying behind in the centre, the others formed two salient lines in front of her. They kept a very low altitude, presuming they'll be hard to see and the roar of the engines will mix with the roar of the waves. Dark water spread beneath, wet mixture of sea foam and rain lashed the girls' faces and bodies. Their clothes all soaked through, dim magical halos illumed the witches as the only thing preventing them from piercing cold. Honko rose higher several times, scanning the sky with her magical locator, and following her directions the team reached the shores of Karsland in about an hour, evading the scarce neuroi patrols.
xxx
… -All right, now everyone look here… - the girls leaned over a city map illuminated by dim red light. The commander's voice barely broke through the noise of the surf, the rustle of rain and whistling of wind. The clutter of coastal rocks was helpful to hide their striker units, but did not provide any shelter from the weather. The map was carefully wrapped in cellophane. Witches had it worse.
- Pillau. This city isn't large, so we won't have a long walk. Here, near the center, not far from the bay, lies the university. It's a large fancy building, hard to miss. There is a library in the basement, and we need to find and retrieve a document from there.
- What's that document, how do we find it?
- Can't tell, it's in Gallian. Once there, Gallian will help us find it.
Rhonda nodded, that line on paper now made sense to her.
There was something like disappointment on the faces of the girls, and Frederica, looking round at everyone, added sternly:
- If I get wounded or killed, Gallian will help you find the document. If she dies, I have a prompt on the paper. If we both die, you retreat…and let others come next.
- Perhaps…we should all have that paper prompt? – suggested Honko in confusion. She looked taken aback with those simple words about someone's deaths.
- No point in that. If we both die, the rest of you won't do it, if you will still be alive even. So let's try and not die, - Frederica smiled faintly and pressed her finger across the map. – We'll take this route…
- Excuse me, commander! – took Grossberg a word. – What if we simply make a raft and go into the bay through that channel? Neuroi keep their distance from water, and we'll have a lot less to go. We can then go back the same way…
Commander sneered sadly and tapped on the map.
- Not bad thinking, but, first of all, we'll be exposed on the water, and the weather will be a worse problem for us than for the neuroi. But the biggest problem is right over here…
- That fort?
- Yes…Intel reports it's been neuroified, even though it's near the water. It is now a stationary neuroi citadel. We can't possibly make it past it.
xxx
The abandoned city faced uninvited guests with shattered skulls of houses, gloomy cavities of windows and doors, cluttered alleys, piles of rubble and all sorts of rubbish. Large raindrops pounded on stone, sank into loosened earth, rippled the vast puddles. The girls, equipped by the flight lieutenant with a sort of soft overshoes, trod the broken street almost noiselessly. They moved one after the other, looking around cautiously. Honko's locator didn't work so well on the ground, but the witch was doing her best. Greenish haze swirled in the air - neuroi had engulfed the fallen city in poisonous miasma. Magic protected the witches from the pernicious gas, but breathing the miasma was quite unpleasant, and visibility, already low in the grey gloom of night, was even worse here. A couple of times Honko spotted neuroi in the sky, but they stayed away.
They had been half a kilometre along the street which lay close to the woods edge when Honko stopped suddenly.
- Neuroi straight ahead. I think it's two of them, on either side of the street.
- They are not moving? – Frederica frowned. – Now take another look around us…
Honko started to slowly turn around, but it was no use anymore. The answer came in the sound of rumbling tread nearby, bricks and cobblestones rattled around, and a four-legged neuroi "tank" appeared among the houses on their left. Its flattened hull loomed at second-floor level, crowned with curved tendrils which glowed red, pointing in the girls' direction.
- Ambush! Radar, Medic – hold our back! Others, kill the big one!
The machine guns barked in bursts, showering the looming figure with a hail of bullets. A metre-long torch of fire flashed, and the rumbling shot of the Karslander's anti-tank Boys resounded out loudly. One of the tendrils broke into black pieces, the other emitted intensive red beam which whipped the wet ruins with a loud hiss before breaking into bright-blue circle of a magic shield.
- Aim for the body, you both! – Frederica lowered her weapon and rummaged around her belt for grenades.
Rhonda dodged another beam hiding behind a pile of debris, then steadied her machine gun and fired a long burst at the armoured beast, covering the body in sparks. Helga's rifle rumbled a couple of times somewhere beside her, ripping out sizeable shreds of the enemy"s crystalline flesh with each shot. And then a bundle of grenades swirled in the air, and a powerful explosion threw the heavy monster into the air. Neuroi came crushing down, pressing a couple of its legs under the fallen body and releasing the next beam salvo into the sky. Dull mechanical howl struck the girls' ears.
- Finish it off, before it recovers! – shouted Frederica through the din of gunfire, raising her machine gun again. More gunfire burst out behind her – the other neuroi attacked as their ambush failed.
Rhonda only sent a short look there. Seeing that her mates hold the enemy, she concentrated her efforts again on the "tank" which was rising slowly, and fired off the remaining rounds with two more long bursts. Raindrops evaporated hissing as they hit the heated barrel, a haze of water vapour hang over the weapon.
The large-calibre rifle rumbled again, overlapping the fractional clatter of machine gun bursts. One more shot, and Helga covered herself reloading the gun. And the flight lieutenant sent a well-aimed burst to where the uncovered neuroi core shone. A high-pitched shriek echoed down the street, and the foe finally collapsed completely, casting a white glow and shattering into a pile of sharp crystals.
Rhonda placed another dual magazine on her gun and turned to meet the other enemies, but she barely had to fire. The other neuroi looked like spiked bugs, much less in size than the defeated "tank". One was driven inside a house with gunfire, and Honko, getting closer, threw a grenade inside. A whirl of crystal fragments burst out of the ruin's holes mixed with explosion flash. The second small neuroi hopped out to attack, but was disintegrated instantly with Helga Boys's well-placed shot.
A ringing silence filled their ears. The sounds that only a short time ago had seemed so loud: the howling of the wind, the clattering of droplets, were slowly coming back now. Frederica barely let the girls catch their breath:
- Well, so much for the quiet approach. Get your overshoes off and follow me! It's just two more blocks to go. Radar, I don't care how, but pull out all your antennae and scan all around us! Flashlights! Watch your steps! And – off we run!
Breathing heavily, the girls rushed through the bleak kaleidoscope of gloomy ruins. They had to hide once or twice as some neuroi cruised above the city, alarmed with the sounds of gunfight. Luckily they soon saw the large building in which Frederica recognized their destination, the university. An ancient-looking building, resembling a cathedral, stood majestically amidst the surrounding ruins, though destruction had not spared it either.
Telling Honko to stay on guard and keep a watchful eye on the surroundings, Frederica led the others into the cellars. The girls could only wonder how the commander could navigate so confidently at night in an unfamiliar place, and even in a dilapidated one at that. She definitely did some serious homework before this raid.
- This door! Ah crap…Help me open it!..
The massive door, charred but still holding after the fire, was difficult for even the strong witches to open. It stuck hard, and the hallway beneath the door was covered with dirt mixed with ash and concrete dust, which did not help at all. But when the door finally surrendered to their efforts, opening just enough to squeeze through, the girls sprang back reflexively. The smell that leaked from inside was too grim and familiar.
- It's…Oh no…
Some held their noses, some coughed hard. Even the flight lieutenant grew evidently pale. But, gathering her will in a fist, she turned round to her subordinates who had withdrawn from the door.
- Girls! My dear girls… - the witches looked up involuntarily at hearing such a thing from their stern and impudent commander. Frederica put her hands on the girls' shoulders, demandingly searching their eyes with her gaze. – I know! But understand this – if we don't do it, they'll send others here. And the neuroi will be ready for them! We are this close now! All we need is to find that damned document and get out of here! I'm going in. Now who comes with me?
- I'll go, - responded Astala. – I'm a medic…I've seen it all.
Rhonda and Helga looked at each other and silently stepped forward, overcoming their wild urge to turn around and run away. Oh they will go away, but only after the job is done. They volunteered after all, they can't step back now!
Astala handed out gauze masks and nasal swabs soaked in alcohol to everyone. Then Frederica stepped resolutely into the narrow gap, lighting the way with her flashlight. Girls squeezed though after her one by one. And saw what they expected to see.
What was left of people who were trapped and killed inside.
The witches could barely hold their feelings as they were looking around, shedding light to fragments of this past tragedy. Silent things spoke more eloquently than words could ever say. For some reason these people had to cover here from neuroi and the fire that raged outside. And then deadly miasmas began to permeate the room. The slits around the door and the grilles of the ventilation shafts were stuffed with decayed rags. No one will ever be able to say how long the poor souls lasted, desperately fighting for every day of life. Days, weeks?..Did they have any food or water? Did they know what was coming, or did they keep faith till the last moment, waiting for someone to come and save them?..
In any case, the door remained closed. No one chose a quick death by going outside. Or maybe in their final hours, the dying people just didn't have the strength…
- Stay focused…Stay focused! – Frederica reiterated, cautiously picking her way among the tumbled bookshelves and cabinets, through the heaps of piled books, magazines and newspapers.
- Here…Somewhere in this section. Look for anything that resembles a document. Whatever you find in Gallian, show to Gallian. And move it!
She did not have to say it twice – they all were eager to leave this solemn grave vault as soon as possible. The witches were searching desperately, rifling through piles of papers, creaking open doors, pulling out drawers, rustling the sticky pages.
- Perhaps, we'll find it faster by author's name?
- It's a whole team of authors there…Forget it, just keep searching!
Room filled with laboured breathing, muffled curses, chaotic flickering of red glares and crunching of papers. Nothing here. Nothing here too…
Grossberg tossed aside another thick folder, then looked back at the noise and flinched as the folder hit a skeleton; it was leaning against the wall, and now crumbled to the floor. Skull rolled aside, casting a gaze full of silent reproach into the girl's heart…
The girl bent sharply and barely could tear the mask off her face before she vomited.
- Helga! – it was for the first time when the commander called someone's name. – Hold on! Keep it together! Helga, look at me!
The girl shook in a tremor, and bent in a spasm again.
- I…I threw it up right here…I'm sorry…I didn't mean it, I just can't… - she uttered, catching her breath convulsively between spasms.
- Medic! – commander pointed to Helga, and turned briskly back to shelves. Kirsi held the unfortunate girl over her shoulders and led her out, trying to comfort her as they went.
- If we don't find these damned papers right now, I'll have you carry this whole section back home! – growled Frederica, fiercely digging around.
- Commander, I think I found it… - Rhonda pulled out another drawer and quickly went through the folders inside. – It's all on a similar topic …There! That's it!
- You sure?! We better not make a mistake… - commander examined the find quickly. – Yes, it looks like it…Is there anything else by these authors anyway?
Rhonda did some more digging as Frederica inspected the document more closely.
- Nothing!
- Out then!
Rhonda felt like she'd never received a more welcome command in her life. The commander, however, was just as relieved as she was. The girls almost collided in the doorway, squeezing their way out of the room.
Everyone gathered in the foyer of the building, taking a breath.
- You good? – the commander enquired briefly looking at the slumped Grossberg.
- Affirmative…I'm sorry, commander…
- Don't! It's OK. So… - the flight lieutenant finished packing the valuable find into a tight sealed bag, tucked it under her clothes and pulled out the map again.
- Radar, I understand it the enemy is not coming here?
- No ma'am, but several neuroi are circling above the city, and I heard noises where we had a fight. Neuroi are attracted there it seems.
- I think it's risky to sit here and wait for them to just go away. So we'll make it through the woods right to the sea, and then follow the shore line to our striker units. Neuroi don't like forests much, and they make a lot of noise if they move there, but for us it's a nice cover. Put your overshoes back on, if it's still with you, and let's go. Radar, stay ahead with me, and look sharp. Others, be watchful too! No flashlights till the woods!
xxx
It wasn't a long way to the forest, about three hundred metres, but there was no direct route there, so girls had to loop around broken streets and cut corners through ruins. It was no longer raining, but there was a frozen drizzle hanging in the air, mixed with miasma mist. After what they saw in the cellar, the girls could no longer look at the city as just a collection of crumbling structures. Each abandoned building now revealed the fates of those who had to leave this place. Behind every ruin there were those who died here, escaping or fighting, defending themselves, their loved ones, and just those who were there by their side. Barely visible in the haze of the night, the remains of abandoned houses silently greeted the cautious strangers, gazing after them, filling their hearts and souls with sorrow for those whose lives had been broken or taken by war…and with anger for those who brought this war.
It didn't get any easier in the forest. It was unlikely for the enemy to be there, but danger was felt behind every tree. Honko was sweating from exertion, her magical antennae glowed dimly in the darkness, occasionally illuminated by the reddish glare of flashlights as the girls shone under their feet. The soft overshoes hid the noise of wet wood rubbish scattered all around the forest, crunching under their footsteps. There was a far louder noise in the city – the neuroi roamed through the ruins, breaking and smashing something occasionally. The girls only clutched their weapons tighter, and hid as ominous black shadows flew over the forest. Only half a kilometre the witches walked through the night forest, slowly withering away without the wildlife that left this place because of neuroi, but this path did not seem easy or short to anyone.
At the edge of the forest, the flight lieutenant commanded a small rest stop. Finally they could get rid of the overshoes, which had served well, but made all sick of them. The team took cover behind the coastal trees, nestling in for a rest and watching the surroundings. Here the malignant miasmas were no longer felt at all, the fresh breeze wafted between the trees, rustling the branches and ruffling the small rubbish, and amidst the chaos of the rocky coastal rampart the restless sea was seen. The girls were getting their breath back, sipping from their flasks. The flight lieutenant ordered Tuuli to eat a whole bar of chocolate, hoping that it would help her recover some energy, which was rapidly depleted by the frequent use of her magic locator.
They almost made it out. Moving cautiously but swiftly, the witches made their way through the rocky rubble, made their way to the open bank, and sprinted to where their striker units were hidden. Running on the slippery pebbles wasn't easy, but the team covered these couple of hundred metres in one breath.
And then something unexpected happened.
xxx
- …Again! Just be calm and start the engines, you did this hundreds of times!
The girls huddled together, looking around nervously as they were standing at the dark but still exposed shoreline. The sea rumbled furiously, the cold wind came in gusts, blowing a wet dust on their skin. And poor Helga Grossberg struggled in despair as she couldn't start the engines of her striker unit. Quick inspection revealed nothing wrong in the machine. Helga looked unharmed too. But the striker unit would not work for her no matter what. Leg slots shone dimly, the girl's legs were nested in the "spatial pockets" as they should had been, magical converters and generators zoomed quietly powering the unit's systems. But the engines were silent, despite all the efforts of the witch. Magic aura shone around the girl, the doggy ears and tail of her familiar were trembling as if to show her magic powers are ready and working, but...
- Could it be any technical problem?
- Nothing I could find, commander, - Honko slapped shut the maintenance hatches and shrugged her shoulders.
- I think it's shock, - said Astala quietly. – Time is the least she needs.
- But we don't have any! You and Gallian will carry her. Take her from both sides and lift off. I'll help you if needed. Radar! You go up and be on our guard as you see fit, but stay close. Others, we'll fly as low as we did before, heading two-nine-two…unless Radar says otherwise. And don't spare your engines, you both!
She didn't have to say that last – wet sand and pebbles spurted away as the witches took off.
xxx
Was it that Honko missed something, or that there were some sharp-eyed neuroi around, but the witches failed to escape unseen. The girls made the best of their units, but because Rhonda and Kirsi carried Helga they moved way too slowly to escape. About twenty minutes after they took off, there was no chance to evade the fight. Red beams chased the girls from darkness behind them. More and more often, these beams hit their shields instead of missing.
- All right. Listen to my command!
Frederica flew up close to Rhonda, and handed her the tightly wrapped package.
- Hide it carefully! And make it to the base. Gallian, you are good at naval navigation right? And it's not far now, just a hundred and fifty kilometers from here. Me and Radar will cover you…
Helga groaned in despair, tears spread from her eyes as she tried for the umpteenth time to start the engines of her unit.
- But…
- Don't "but" me! Do it quickly! I swear I'll see you going too slowly, I'll kick your asses outta here with my own bullets! – wasting her words no longer, the commander turned away and rushed up to join Honko.
Metal clinked as the girls checked their machine guns, preparing for battle.
- Here is the plan, Radar. We pull back following our girls, we cover them, we don't let anyone shoot at them! We do all the maneuvers only towards our base! Distract the neuroi and let them follow us…
Another beam breaks against the bright shield circle.
- …we stay close, and we don't let them pin ourselves down! And we try to concentrate our fire on a single target…
Frederica's eyes lit up in venom green.
- I can see in the dark, so don't worry about me.
Several beams at once cut the darkness by their side. Girls shielded themselves as they bent over and opened return fire.
- Eleven medium neuroi…That's a bit tough for us now, but we are close to our base too. And I'm sure some night patrol is on its way here.
- Even if so, it's too far for me to see, Coma…There will be no more neuroi too, though. The small ones didn't make it and are heading back already.
- That's something…Get that one, above us!
Tracers lined into the sky towards their target, Honko's Bren roared its bursts next to it. Frederica rushed towards the Neuroi who broke away from the others, fending off the attacks of the others with her shield, and kept firing at the cross-shaped, ugly silhouette, finding the right point of her aim. The enemy floundered, caught in the crossfire of the two witches, and was soon scattered in a bright cloud of splinters as one of the tearing bursts passed through the core.
- Just repeat this ten times, no big deal… - Frederica whiffed, dodging the continuous beam fire and firing back.
- Coma! Here, ten o'clock, beneath us!
- I got it!
There's less firing from them now, or it only seems so? Aim for the next target, movement prediction, maneuver...Fire, another burst! Damn flashes blind her eyes, especially now that the night sight is active…Commander shot relying more on her rich combat experience and intuition that her eyesight. But Honko could trace her targets precisely with her magic locator, and, as the neuroi floundered under commander's fire, Tuuli methodically tore them apart with her aimed bursts, until foes shattered to pieces or lost their control crushing into furious waves. The enemy ranks were thinning out, but the energy of the girls, already exhausted by intense raid, was quickly melting away either…
Another barrage of beams came at such a bad time and from such an unexpected direction that Tuuli barely dodged it. Immediately she put up her shield, fending off a barrage from a completely different direction. Somewhere nearby, flight lieutenant was swearing, overlapping her words with the rumble of bursts.
- They are outflanking us! Trying to encircle!
"So that's why their fire was weaker for some time. They were outflanking us…" – Frederica barely had a moment to assess the situation as she had to dodge another beam barrage and shield herself against others. Neuroi changed their tactics. They were now spread far apart, firing at the witches from a distance, without exposing themselves to concentrated fire and without giving them a break. And the girls could not cover their both sides at once.
- Radar, get closer! We'll cover each other! Forget the firing, we'll just make it to shore, and then…
- Coma...I… - hearing Honko's gasping voice Frederica realised it all at once.
- Hold on, I got you! I'm coming!
Damn eyes are full of ripples already because of all those beams and firing. But still…There she is! Bren going off in a long burst, muzzle fire flashing and fading, but Coma already saw the Suomus who was helplessly losing her speed and altitude.
- Honko, hold on! Just hold on a little longer!
More beam barrages. Both at Honko and her. No turning now! Honko's shield flashed, fending off the attack, and faded falling apart. Just don't fall right now, you! She seemed to even shout it aloud…
Slowing down in the final seconds, the commander wrapped her arms around the shallow-diving girl and pulled her against her chest, accelerating again as she embraced her tightly. Honko's striker unit coughed wearily and went off, the girl was opening her mouth wide as she struggled to gulp in some air.
The sea is some three hundred meters below. The shore…some fifteen kilometers ahead.
- Dismount your striker unit!
- Wha?..
- Drop it, it's an order! Your weapon too! All the heavy stuff, drop it now!
With a mournful mechanical sob, the guiltless, faithful machine detached, releasing the girl's naked legs, and rolled into the approaching water. The machine gun fell next, followed by by the remaining magazines and entrenching shovel.
- Mine too! Drop those magazines! – Frederica dived so she could adjust Honko facing her. The Suomus slid a bit, her face bumping into flight lieutenant's chest, but she managed to blindly find the ammo poaches and empty them one by one. Their descent stopped and Frederica, pushing on, began a slow climb. Motors howled, blue-grey smoke pulled out of Messerscharf's exhaust pipes.
One of the barrages still got the girls. Flight lieutenant moaned, holding the beams with her shield and feeling how energy leaks out of her too. Just how much longer can she hold like that?
There were two more quite heavy dual magazines on her belt behind her. Frederica could sense how Honko's hands awkwardly sweep all over her back and her butt, trying to find their fasteners.
- Just cut the belt! – shrieked Frederica, raising her shield again. Screaming from painful tension she added a couple of such "nice" words to Suomus girl, that the latter stopped being too careful at once; she snatched the commander's combat knife from its sheath and cut off her belt with all that was left on it. Her own belt was cut next.
Breathing heavily, Frederica let go of Tuuli while the latter kept holding on her. She pointed her heavy machine gun at the nearest enemy with unruly hands and fired the last rounds, burst after burst, then dropped the weapon and hugged her subordinate again. The waves below were getting closer and more clearly visible. The Karslander didn't even look at the shore any more.
Again groans her shield, giving away the last drops of her mana and making her lose her breath. One hundred metres high. The enemies seem to be getting closer again, having assessed the situation. Seventy metres…Honko breathes heavily, biting her lip to the blood, casting her shield again with her last strength, and it crumbles again. Thirty metres…
- Flight lieutenant Maurenbrecher and pilot officer Honko, to all who can read us! Mayday, mayday! We are going down…
Ten metres…Her striker unit rattles under a sliding beam impact, the overbearing howl of the engines dies down. "They know our route. They…"
Impact! The water crashes hard into the body, knocking the breath out, the cold bites into the skin with a merciless icy fire. Their weakened magic barely helps. Pressure grows as the girls dive a few metres inertially. A crimson glow flashes over their heads and the water sizzles, evaporating from the ray that neuroi sent over the waves.
They won't hold long that way. Normally, witches can stay underwater longer than ordinary people. But not now, when their strength was at its limit and the cold was pulling the heat from their bodies, which were already shivering from this long autumn night. The girls slowly resurface, feeling their arms and legs quickly stiffen up. With effort, Frederica takes off her almost empty backpack and holds it to her chest…Swimming up and eagerly gulping for air, the girls are struggling their way somewhere towards the shore, holding on to each other.
If they are lucky, the neuroi will consider them dead and fail to see them among the turbulent waves in the darkness of night. If they are lucky twice, they will swim to shore before their energy leaves them. If they are lucky three times, they'll be able to warm themselves…
It was not luck but a miracle that came. One of the best miracles in the world, and its name is faithful friends. Grossberg still made it. She overcame herself and her commander's last order.
A large calibre shot echoed over the water, and a white cloud erupted in the sky, bursting with crystals of fragments. And then the sky was filled with the rumble of engines, the crackle of machine-gun bursts, the criss-crossing of scarlet beams and the screech of neuroi disintegrating one by one under massive fire.
Honko looked up at the sky with glistening eyes, moving her lips soundlessly, while Frederica pulled a signal pistol out of her backpack, and, barely holding it in her palm numb from cold, fired a bright green rocket directly overhead. Then Tuuli, catching herself, drew a compact pistol from her pocket. The bullets were not tracers, but the shot cast a bright flash among the dark waves. Another shot, and another. Frederica dropped her signal pistol and switched on her waterproof flashlight, scraping the red film off the glass with stiff fingers…
Honko had two rounds left when strong arms reached for both girls, pulling them out of the water.
The part of the night after the return was kept vaguely in memory, as if it had been shrouded in a fog. The events were captured by the mind, but there was no energy left for their emotional experience and evaluation. And time, too - there were a lot of things to do immediately after landing, and they had to be done very quickly.
Astala possessed healing magic, but with hypothermia, that magic was powerless. The commander and Honko, shivering profusely and barely able to move, were carried into a warmly heated guardhouse, driving out of there the duty soldiers, completely bewildered at the sight of the drenched girls breaking into the room. The flight lieutenant, stripped all naked, was laid on the only available bunk. Honko had to make do with a wooden table, covered by tarpaulin, with her legs hanging loose down. The soaked clothes was steaming hanging at makeshift drying bars by the heating furnace; Astala worked hard, rubbing Frederica's naked, goosebump-covered body with alcohol. Nearby, Rhonda and Helga were also working on Honko, one rubbing her upper body, the other her lower body. They all had to gulp in some strong alcohol too, with the "patients" taking double dose. Maurenbrecher protested languidly, muttering that she had to get to headquarters, but Astala sternly threatened her with alcohol injection through an enema. Fourteen-year-old Rhonda had never taken alcohol before, but when she heard about the enema she didn't dare protest - Kirsi was very serious about it. In moments of repose, the girls threw off their soggy clothes as well, adding them to the drying rack. The heat in the room and the intense effort had everyone sweating, their wet hair sticking together in crumpled clumps. The unfortunates could not even protest when the hands of their mates determinedly passed over the most intimate and sensitive parts of their bodies - now their whole bodies were stinging and burning from the frostbite, leaving no room for other feelings.
When the flight lieutenant and Honko had been properly rubbed and massaged, they were handed mugs of strong hot tea, to which Kirsi had added some herbs and medicines. A little later the girls were all drinking tea, huddled clumsily around the table. The room was foggy with stinking vapour, soaked with tobacco smoke left by the soldiers. After the miasms of the Neuroi, however, it was a minor matter. But when she learnt that her and Honko's tea had some relaxing medicine in it too, Maurenbrecher attempted to rise and get dressed to still make it to the headquarters for a report. Astala put that rebellion down simply and radically, injecting a morphine ampoule into the girl's naked buttock. Frederica, grunting with the last of her strength, barely had time to lie back down on the bunk before she fell asleep. Tuuli passed out a little later, falling asleep in her mates' arms.
At last flight lieutenant and Honko, wrapped in blankets that soldiers had brought, were put into a jeep that pulled up to the guardhouse. Astala sat down next to driver, who was a base paramedic, and the vehicle drove off into the night heading for city hospital. Rhonda and Helga were allocated a room in the commandant's office, and the girls, again stripping off their almost dry uniforms, stiff with salt and dirt, fell asleep the moment their heads touched the hard pillows…
-xxx-
- Thank you for seeing us and saying good-bye, - Frederica grinned awkwardly, pushing her hair back from her forehead. – I never gave up my command, huh! Well, now that we are all together again, I declare you dismissed!
The girls smiled uneasily, unsure how to react to the joke or the oddity. Frederica hadn't really made jokes in their presence before.
All five reunited on the second day after returning from the raid. Maurenbrecher and Honko did not suffer too much from overexertion and hypothermia, but the doctors insisted that they be observed in hospital, for a few more days. The command conceded after some grumbling, - without their striker units, the girls would have to get to their units using some kind of other transport anyway. And it still had to be found and negotiated upon. The valuable documents were handed in; reports, statements and other formal papers were drawn up and also handed in. Kirsi, Helga and Rhonda had slept well and were ready to "go home". The three of them met up, walked around the city for a bit, and stopped by the hospital. Tuuli and Frederika, as convalescents, came out to join their guests, and now the girls were sitting on benches in the back yard of the hospital, amongst the fallen trees and bare bushes. The atmosphere and mood were not too good for free and long chatter, but the words necessary on such occasions were said and heard.
- I'm glad you were with me on this mission, - Frederica spoke earnestly, looking into everyone's eyes. – It's good to be able to tell you this now. Thank you. Not just for saving us... For everything. If I have to, I'll always rely on you again. Every single one of you!
It was hard to find something to answer that, and it didn't really require any answer at all. But the silence was broken by quiet sobs. The girls barely had time to look up in surprise before Helga jumped up, tears in her eyes.
- But why?!..Why…After I failed you so miserably out there! In cellar, then my striker unit…You both nearly died out there because of me! Why didn't anyone say a single word about that to me ever since?! Just as if…as if it's all right and nothing happened! But I…
Before the astonished girls had time to react, Frederica suddenly leapt up from the bench and...clutched the sobbing Helga tightly in her arms.
- Now, now… - a quiet voice was heard, so unlike the captain's sharp barking. – Such a big girl, a pilot officer even, and such words, such thoughts! Now calm down already…
The girls' mouths dropped open as they were silently watching. Helga, too, was speechless and only hiccupped quietly, slowly coming to her senses.
- Well, why are you frozen like a dead thing? – cheered her Frederica in a casual tone. - Do hug me back, mumble that you're grateful or something, and let's break our embrace before someone thinks something indecent about us!
Moving cautiously and hesitantly, as if gripped by fear, Helga awkwardly put her arms around Frederica's shoulders and ran her hand over the girl's head. Her eyes widened, her hand travelled once more to the back of Frederica's head, and withdrew quickly.
- Oh! – the flight lieutenant pulled back and laughed briefly, flicking her hair and showing off the large, crookedly fused scar on the back of her neck going up over her head. – No, it's an old thing! I was not wounded that night, don't worry about that.
- How did that happen anyway? – Rhonda asked, seizing the opportunity to change the subject. And the flight lieutenant was eager to support her.
- There was a time once…One of our witches was shot down and I landed to pick her up. The neuroi shot at us, and a beam hit a rock or a stone behind me. It exploded and sent a rock fragment right into my head…I passed out before I could even realize anything. If not for my girl mates…They saved me and the one I was going for. That was it…
Frederica stepped back a little and looked into Helga's eyes.
- Things don't always go according to our plan, yes. Anything happens. And things like you had happen as well. The important part is to survive it, and use your experience to become stronger, not become broken by it. Right?
- Right, - uttered the girl quietly, wiping her tears. - Forgive me…
- You've been long forgiven, you fool thing! – Frederica laughed again, clapping Helga on her shoulder. – Now, enough of that!
- And what was that so valuable document anyway? – Tuuli hastened to intervene.
- Uh, I don't think I can tell it from my mind now, honestly… Rhonda, do you remember how it was written there?
Rhonda quickly strained her memory, passingly wondering how casually the commander...already the former commander, switched to the girls' names.
- Err…Something like: "Geological survey projections of rare earth ore occurrence in the eastern Karsland area".
The girls digested the information thoughtfully.
- Well, uh…I thought it was some blueprints for new equipment or something… - Kirsi expressed their common feelings, running the toe of her shoe over the damp earth.
Frederica grew serious again.
- New equipment, eh. But what is it made of, what is it made on, and so on? Girls, I'd say rare earth elements are worth their weight in gold, but I actually think they're way more valuable than any gold!
The girl crossed her arms glumly and looked somewhere in the distance.
- The neuroi don't care for gold. But our electronics, radars, transceivers…our striker units for that matter, they do make a difference! That's your disappointment for you…
- You know… - Rhonda suddenly spoke up, looking up at her girl mates in her turn. – I am also often asked by people from other countries, - why are we fighting? That means, Baltlanders, and me personally. Why do I volunteer for dangerous assignments like this one? Because Baltland did not suffer from the war that much…Well that is what I am fighting for. What happened there, in that city, must not happen anywhere else! Like in the other cities taken by neuroi. That must not happen anymore. Be it Baltland or any other place.
- That's right! – nodded Frederica, agitated by what she heard. – And you and I have taken another small step towards that goal! And every step should be taken in such a way that those who come after you are ready to make theirs.! And when you think of those who come after you, who do you remember? Other soldiers of course? Think wider! Soldiers must be followed by builders, workers, miners, scientists, engineers… All the people without whom all our battles and our victory are impossible!
Frederica, anxious, walked back and forth in front of the silent witches.
- And they all have to follow us, knowing where and what each one is supposed to do! Without wasting time on reconnaissance, planning, approvals and other delays! We humans don't have time for that! We had already relaxed and missed the moment after the First Neuroi War, and look what it led to!
The girl waved her hand, pointing to where Europe lay in ruins.
- Now we must be ready at all times. The army, our industry, and all others too! And if they need, for example, geological exploration data - well, our task is to give them that too! Give it to them today, so that no time is lost tomorrow!
- But Karsland, the east of Karsland even…
- …Karsland won't belong to neuroi forever! – cut the flight lieutenant short. She paused again, and sighed, catching her breath.
- It may take several more months…Maybe a year even! But we will take our Karsland back! – enunciated the girl, swinging her fist with each word. Cold wind rose, ruffling her unruly hair, but Frederica paid no attention. In a firm voice, she finished:
- And when we humans reclaim Karsland, and other lands, for ourselves…We must not lose them again. We must be strong and ready, and we will do whatever it takes! That's just it.
