Hated Brother

by King's Snake

Unlucky moment in throne room takes an unexpected turn. Two brothers who should be one, finally turn against each other, only to become deadly enemies. First of them, wanting justice and revenge. Second of them, wanting to make their mother's legacy eternal.

11. Chapter X: To Pierce The Heart II

AN:I cordially greet you and invite you to read the next chapter.

This time:

- Lucius and his forces they arrive at their destination and begin a massacre after receiving support in the form of better weapons.

- W-0 arrives at the scene of the fight and two sended units join the battle.

- Lucius returns, and the consequences of the surgery he prepared begin to become clearly visible very quickly.

---

Egypt, United Republic of Europia

February 2017 A.T.B.

The RPI-209 / VB and the accompanying guard of about forty Knightmare Frames reached the place where they were to be dumped fresh ammunition, Energy Filers, or rather special-purpose weapons. Suffice it to say that Lucius once watched the recordings of Panzer-Wespes. This video was watched with Knights of the Purple Rose Chief Engineer Carl Tallgeese. Both came up with the idea of arranging Knightmare Frames to act as artillery support on the battlefield, and the result was another prototype weapon.

At that moment, the pilots of the individual machines began to draw new ammunition from the canisters for the large machine guns used by their Knightmares. Some, however, not only limited themselves to this, but also had to collect new swords from the pouches thrown here, because the previous ones were lost during the fight and were impossible to use. The replacement of Energy Filers was also important, especially for more advanced machines such as Gloucester vi Britannia or Tallgeese. Throughout this exchange, Lucius also allowed himself to get a standard assault rifle as his Hadron Rifle was destroyed.

Nevertheless, that was not all, as the pilots of all machines were also forced to open a few more containers dropped here, where a big surprise awaited them and the key to solving all practical problems that could await them in the fortress serving as the main stockpile. for EU troops in Egypt.

"What the hell is that?" One of the pilots asked on the general channel, thereby breaking discipline and focusing everyone's attention on the new equipment that was sent to them to complete this operation.

"It looks like an oversized machine gun to me." Another pilot stated as soon as he brought his machine closer to one of the pods and took a closer look at the contents inside. "But I'm not sure what role this would play."

Prince Lucius came to their aid and began to explain everything almost immediately. "This, my brave knights, is the newest achievement of Britannia in technological thought that makes most of the fortifications virtually useless. The Foldable Cannon, which uses the latest and highly destructive Sakuradite shells as its core. It is a marvelous weapon that will destroy the fortress walls of our enemies and their hearts, my knights. "

Pilots who had the opportunity to take a look at the new addition for their machines were impressed with the description. One of the pilots even allowed himself to equip his RPI-209 / PR. It quickly turned out that there would be enough new weapons for about thirty machines, and there were only four ammunition magazines for each cannon. Meanwhile, the magazines themselves contained five bullets inside. The pilots were very impressed with the new weapon, and one of them was particularly loud in expressing his joy.

"It looks and sounds fucking wonderful!" Exclaimed a madman of the Order of Michael squad, Sir Ashley Ashra. This man quickly became known as an undisciplined and emotionally unstable unit, which was manifested, inter alia, in the form of his crazy charge on the enemy and quite a large number of comments. "With such a miracle, we'll be able to tear down the walls of this fucking fortress belonging to these lousy rats under the banner of democracy!"

"Sir Ashley!" One of his subordinates and a deputy in the assault team, Sir Johanne Fabius, growled at him irritably, who quickly became known to everyone as the voice of reason, the perfect complement to the impetuous knight. "We are in the presence of the Britannian Prince, and our status as knights of the empire obliges us to maintain any acceptable level of civilization!"

Lucius became somewhat amused by the two arguing, so he decided to intervene and step in between them before it turned into something bigger. "Don't worry about it, Sir Johanne. Actually, Sir Ashley's comments and remarks are quite useful here on the battlefield. This allows you to effectively distract from the possibility or vision of suffering an unpleasant death on the battlefield. More to say, listening to your arguments is oddly relaxing. Especially since you sound like some old marriage. "

Words of the Prince and way of saying it, caused a wave of giggles and laughter among everyone, which was further amplified by Sir Ashley's words.

"Thank you, Your Highness!" He thanked him, full of dishonest excitement and clearly eager to use this opportunity for jokes. "I just sincerely hope you're not going to use us too often! My lovely Johanne's nerves have some limitations in this regard! "

Another wave of laughter rolled over the communications channel, and Lucius himself joined the amused pilots as well. After a while, however, he decided to break this undoubtedly relaxing and nerve-promoting moment.

"That's enough, now let's focus on achieving the main goal of our operation." After these words, Lucius also made contact with the rest of the groups whose purpose was essentially the same. The exceptions were those under the command of Grand Master Shin, who were located farthest on the left flank and were supposed to secure the flank. "Attention pilots, this is Prince Lucius vi Britannia! Most likely, you have already received special parcels and you are wondering what it is and what to do with it. Well, let me put it straight, here is the Foldable Cannon, a prototype weapon that uses special Sakuradite projectiles inside. This will serve us to tear down the walls of the fortress where EU stocks are stored and which are then sent to the front. I am now sending you the coordinates to go to as soon as possible. As soon as I give you a signal in the form of a red flare launched into the sky, then you can start massive fire at the fortress. "

After this order, Lucius limited his communication only to the surrounding squad and the size of the entire KMF battalion. "Take all Foldable Cannons, ammunition for them and then we will go to the vicinity of the enemy fortress, close enough to be able to launch a fairly accurate fire. Although the operation has taken us only thirty-five minutes to date, we cannot afford any further delays. Forward!"

"Yes, Your Highness!" Everyone replied at the same time, practically impassively.

Soon, twenty-two RPI-209 / PR and eight RPI-209 / EB took their weapons from the dispensers. Among the Gloucester Swormand, there was also the blood red one, piloted by Sir Ashley Ashra. There was even the slightest doubt that this man was extremely happy to be able to wield such a powerful weapon, but he did not show anything through words or any eccentric deeds. It didn't take long for all the pilots who had equipped their machines with the latest addition to calibrate everything properly and were ready. Therefore, a force close to the size of the entire KMF battalion moved to take the appropriate position.

The movement of the formation did not take as long as it might seem, and there were basically two reasons for that. The first was the lack of any enemies to slow them down. Although the other formations reported a delay of several minutes, caused by hitting enemy Knightmare Frames companies, those led by Prince did not have such problems. It looked as if fierce fighting led to the loss of combat capabilities by all KMF battalions in the immediate area. Of course, Lucius, Ciaran, and Char considered the option that everything could really only be an ambush and a game of appearances. However, careful scanning of the area by the RPI-209 / VB and the use of Factsphere Sensors for this purpose successfully ruled out this possibility.

It must be objectively admitted that the vast desert in the middle of the night had its own quite specific and at the same time extremely peculiar charm. First of all, huge and vast expanses of sand, bathed in the silvery glow of the full moon that day, so it could illuminate the entire landscape even more dignified.

There was something like long lost in this picture at the same time. Perhaps it did not feel so precisely now, as many people traveled across this undoubtedly beautiful landscape. Nevertheless, if you were to travel alone in this vast desert, bathed in the sunshine, almost completely devoid of any traces of human activity. The landscape seemed natural, wild and unbridled at the same time. However, it was not as intense as traveling through Central Africa, where in the local forests you could get the impression of a return to the past and at the same time something that humanity has lost over thousands of years of evolution, development and change.

Eventually, the entire formation approached close enough that the pilots could and were able to see the impressive and extensive structure via cameras, which they had to capture as quickly as possible at this point. However, this task did not seem so simple, when confronted with a gigantic structure made of reinforced concrete and steel, with one wall only, about two hundred meters long, and with powerful defensive turrets at the top.

"It is, really huge." One of the pilots commented, who was clearly impressed by the enormous fortress. "And we only have some experimental cannons as our siege weapon for this night."

"It doesn't look very good." Someone else said.

The communication channel was then flooded with several other comments whose authors had similar feelings about standing here facing one of the better examples of modern and extremely fast construction technique. A living example of how humanity has refined this art to absolute perfection and transferred it to the next, much higher level than before.

"Undoubtedly, this is an impressive example and undoubtedly proof of how much we have developed as humanity. In the past it could take years to bring something so impressive. Today, however, from a few days to weeks." Lucius spoke to the pilots around him in the machines with calm in his tone of voice.

On the surface, this loud contemplation was meaningless and caused completely understandable confusion and misunderstanding among all the other pilots. Why would their commander talk about such things if they are of marginal importance in the context of the operation? Basically, the only one who understood what the Purple Prince might be aiming for was Char, whose lips curled into a small smirk as he continued to survey the vast and massive fortress in front of him.

"However, do not be deceived by the enormous size of the fortress, whose face stretches out centrally in front of us." Lucius continued, raising his voice at the same time. "They only have metal, reinforced concrete and antiquated technology to offer us, while we have the latest and greatest advances made by the greatest minds in our great empire. Do not be deceived by the massive size of the enemy fortress, for we will crush these great walls like the walls of Jericho. Before twenty minutes it would all be just a sea of burning ruins. Full of dead, dying and wounded. "

The RPI-209 / VB was then pushed a little forward by its pilot in such a way that Lucius could be in front of all the rest of the Knightmare Frame, from his own battle group. Now take a shooting position and form two ranks. Let those in front force the machines to a kneeling position. If possible, try to keep firing in the same place. "

The pilots obeyed his orders to the letter, and soon all the machines were in the two-row position required by Lucius, with the first KMFs kneeling. It looked as if it was taken straight out of the Napoleonic era, when in this way various formations of opposing sides faced each other.

Nevertheless, the Europeans did not remain passive to what happened near the fortress. While surely no one among them could have expected such a bold approach, and surprise predominated among them, nevertheless these people did not let their emotions take over their senses. Any turrets with cannons or rocket launchers were soon activated and aimed at each of the battle groups that took up positions near the walls of the warehouse. Although it was an extremely conscious action and adequate to the circumstances that arose here, it was definitely too late.

While in the cockpit of his custom Knightmare Frame, Lucius, seeing the enemy's actions and activating the defense systems by using Factsphere Sensors, decided to pull the red lever on his right as quickly as possible. Moments later, his Gloucester vi Britannia launched a red flag into the sky, which was the scheduled signal to start firing. Effects came soon late.

Dozens of mighty Foldable Cannons shot towards the walls. Some aimed at the wall itself, others chose to focus their fire on the turrets at the top, and still others chose to fire more close to the foundations. Regardless of this, and to the great surprise of everyone who fired the shots, the effects did not come immediately. Instead, the fired missiles literally stabbed their targets as deep as possible.

Although Britannian pilots were surprised by this fact, despite the awareness of being targeted by their enemies and the ineffectiveness of the fire at the moment, they remained completely calm and disciplined. Their patience and order eventually paid off and brought tangible results.

It took less than five seconds until the projectiles stuck in the targets began to explode with a cool, shining shade of pink, and a moment later the same accumulations of light resulted in powerful explosions and a literal slamming of the ground nearby. A moment later, it became clear to everyone that while it turned out to be effective in the case of turrets and defense systems, it was not necessarily so in the case of the walls and walls themselves.

"It looks like it won't be as easy as I would like it to be." Lucius softly muttered in annoyance at not fully destroying the walls of the supply center. Regardless, however, he quickly mastered his emotions and gave another order. "For all units, focus firing on the walls themselves and be limited to only four volleys."

"Yes, Your Highness!" They responded as a sign of their obedience to their orders.

It wasn't long before the Knightmare Frames gathered around the fortress began to obey their orders, fire concentrated on the walls themselves. More clusters of cool pink light began to appear, which in turn led to full-fledged explosions.

Lucius watched it all with a smile on his face and a certain amount of satisfaction, because very quickly the initial incomplete success turned into a full-fledged one and the walls began to crumble and fall, under the weight of concentrated fire and powerful explosions. Altogether, three of the six sections of the wall fell apart, creating a minor sandstorm and leaving only a few fragments as remnants of their former size.

Regardless of the success, however, the pilots did not limit themselves to this, and seeing the exposed interior, they immediately fired more volleys, which ultimately resulted in massive destruction inside.

It is true that Lucius was not able to see what everything looked like outside the walls of the warehouse, but the sensors showed a series of explosions or other types of energy accumulations constantly arising there. There was no doubt that there was not much left of what was left on the surface.

"Now we're starting to clean up what's left of our enemies, soldiers." The Purple Prince announced, but he did so with a calm and devoid of any feeling in his voice. Thus, he made the soldiers feel that the time had come for total discipline and a typically military order. "Let the commanders of individual divisions separate assault groups, which will then enter and clean what is left of our enemies. While we have undoubtedly destroyed what's on the surface, the core of the supplies has been deposited in the basement, including the reserve Knightmare Frames or Energy Filers. So if we do not destroy what is underground, the operation will end with incomplete success. "

At this point, Lucius didn't even pay much attention to the reply, and instead immediately returned the unit's communication channel under his direct command. "Sir Ashley, you and your unit will be part of the assault team, Captain Anzable will join you in his KPR-00 and any other Knightmare from this assault group. Leave half of your Foldable Cannons here, the enemy cannot intercept any art and own our latest technology. If you lose any of you, do not let his weapons fall into the hands of the enemy. I count on your loyalty "

The Purple Prince also did not pay attention to the obedient response of the pilots or any other type of comments from them, and only waited for the persons designated by him to carry out orders. It happened a moment later, and all the units selected for the attack moved towards the Europia United military supply center in Egypt. And looking at the tactical map in his cockpit, he could very quickly discover that quite a number of Knightmares had entered the interior, and a few had already engaged the enemy remnants. So far, there have been no major losses on the side of the empire.

As for the assault groups separated from each battle group, they looked quite different. Major Schnee Hexenhaus decided to send as many as twenty RPI-209 / PR, which quickly broke inside without suffering losses. The other two Majors, however, decided only to send fifteen or sixteen machines inside, and with the explicit order to move slowly so as not to be surprised by the enemy. It was a careful and sensible approach to combat, but in this particular situation it was necessary to move forward as quickly as possible with overwhelming force to complete the operation as quickly as possible. Lucius made a mental note to clarify the situation when he returned, so that no similar incidents would occur in the future, at least with this type of surgery.

As the next minutes passed, Lucius watched the pilots under his command go deeper and deeper. This time, however, they had no problems and could easily move on. Apparently, the garrison was made up of a relatively small number of Panzer-Hummels and a dozen tanks, and the defense was primarily based on turrets on top of these mighty walls. It is a pity that in the face of the destruction of the basic and, in fact, the only serious defense, the supply facility remained basically defenseless, in the face of the enemy better equipped and prepared for a quick assault.

It didn't take a few seconds for Sir Ashley to establish communication with Lucius, and his wild face was displayed on one of the monitors in the RPI-209 / VB cockpit, in the form of a video conversation.

"Your Highness, I and the commanders of the other assault groups have reached the warehouses." The unstable knight reported everything with a sadistic smile on his lips and a sinister gleam in both eyes. "They have stockpiled quite a lot of Sakuradite, Energy Filers and Knightmare Frames there, including the newest ones that made their debut while breaking those decimated units out of the circle. There are also some other types, or rather variants, of machines that I have never heard of. "

"I see." Lucius replied, seemingly without any obligation or any kind of emotional attachment. In fact, however, his mind was already considering several points at this point, and after a few quick moments, made a decision. "If possible, take one copy and destroy the rest. When you execute an order, you are to immediately return to the previous units and then begin implementing the retreat towards our lines. "

Sir Ashley nodded vehemently, before the video interview ended moments later. Nevertheless, it did not mean a moment of peace or respite for Lucius, because a moment later Grand Master Shin asked for a video interview with him. The Purple Prince accepted it without thinking, as he was well aware that Sir Shin would not have asked for it without good reason.

"Is something wrong, Grand Master?" The question came out of Lucius quickly and immediately after connecting with the leader of the Order of Michael.

"Your Highness, my northernmost observers have detected a powerful enemy formation approaching you. Approximately, this is about 200 Knightmare Frames. From the markings on the hulls of the machines, I conclude that there is Wyvern Zero, the new and assumed elite group Europia United" Grand The Master replied practically immediately and without showing the slightest hint of emotion. "Of course, I have already ordered both observers to withdraw, and soon all the rest of my battle group will retreat."

Common sense and experience in many battles dictated to make an immediate retreat in such a situation, but Lucius had other plans that he decided to implement. "Excellent, once your battle group is ready you will immediately retreat towards us, Sir Shin."

"Your Highness?" The words elicited an immediate reaction from the Grand Master, who was genuinely surprised at this turn of events. Rather, he expected an order to take a course towards the Imperial line as soon as possible, rather than retreat to a dilapidated supply point. But before he had a chance to say anything or express any doubts, Lucius began to speak first.

"I'm going to lure hostile formations into the ruins of this fortress, and then engage in a bloody battle in the ruins." Purple Prince began explaining his plan very quickly, but he did so without emotion and with an expression on his face showing the obvious calculation of everything, including the potential risk of failure and the cost of doing so. Nevertheless, he decided that it was worth the risk in this case. "This is the perfect opportunity to fully test the strength and possibilities of our opponent's new formation. I do not intend to waste this opportunity, so I am ordering you to start retreat towards our location as soon as possible, while monitoring our enemy's movements. Additionally, I'd like you to also try to circle around your reinforcements once you get there. As long as it is real. "

The Grand Master of the Second Order hesitated for a few minutes, but ultimately, faced with the orders of the Britannian Prince and his new political ally, had little choice but to accept Lucius' decisions.

"Very good, Your Highness." He replied after a brief moment of silence, but firmly and without any sign of doubt in the timbre of his voice or gaze. "I will follow the instructions, at least for the retreat and tracking the enemy. As for the encirclement attempts and the approach of the enemy from behind, I am not in a position to say for sure whether I will be able to do so."

"I see. But I have no doubts that someone with your skill can do it, Sir Shin." Lucius ended this whole conversation by breaking the video connection, after which his eyes fell on the tactical map of the immediate area. He knew the enemy would come soon and would be outnumbered. Nevertheless, Purple Prince did not lose his optimism at this point and began to plan his next moves. For this, however, he needed to coordinate all his subordinates, especially those from assault groups.

Realizing this, he established communication quite quickly with the people who were the commanders of the various assault groups. In the first case, it was Captain Ledo Offen, who, while in New Colchester times did not show any leadership skills, now could safely be considered a calm and composed commander. The other man was, of course, Sir Ashley Ashra. The third and last was anonymous to the Prince Captain, Lothar Zedlitz, who reportedly had a fanatical belief in the empire system despite not having a knighthood.

"Attention! My brave knights, it looks like there is finally a serious combat force headed our way, which has the best chance of preventing the achievement of the main objectives of this operation. It is true that the moment you destroy these stocks, your chances will disappear, but do not let it distract you. Let me tell you now, I am going to engage in an open fight with this opponent. " Lucius stated, but decided also to provide them with the appropriate explanations. "If you have heard reports about the new UE formation, Wyvern Zero, I would like to inform you that they are the ones coming our way. Their strength is about 200 Knightmare Frames, including probably new models from the Alexander series. However, it does not matter, for their steel will be broken and melted under our power. "

After this brief introduction, he began addressing each of the assault group commanders with specific orders. "Sir Ashley! You and your men will leave this battlefield immediately, then make a quick maneuver north, and the exact coordinates will be announced shortly. Your job is simple, offensive and luring the enemy here to allow him to be ambushed. "

However, the ginger and mentally unstable knight seemed to be unhappy with it. "I am to be the bait while the rest of my comrades can kill them all and have a good fight !?"

"Recognize your role as a prelude to a great carnage in which you can contribute if you choose your position and that of your division appropriately." Lucius replied without the slightest thought, but with a slightly raised mouth. Perhaps this man was mentally unstable, but in a peculiar way, the Purple Prince liked him because he found him sympathetic, at least to some extent. Even so, Lucius ignored his reply and turned to the other two Captains. "Captains Offen and Zedlitz, it's your job to find a suitable position in the ruins for an ambush. Of course, all after you detonate this place. That's all, you are completely free to fight the enemy, unless I deem it appropriate to interfere with your tactics. I have full confidence in you and I am sure that you will be able to come to an agreement "

"Yes, Your Highness" The trio replied, and Lucius ended the conversation and moved back in his position.

To be honest, the Purple Prince didn't want to be in Africa, despite the glory opportunities such an opportunity presented him. Honestly, this 17-year-old teenager would rather spend time with his family or his sweetheart who were more precious to him than his own life. As for the family, there were quite a few options here. He could go to Area Eleven to see Clovis and play another chess game that would be an easy victory. There was also an option to meet Cornelia and Euphemia in the Aries Villa gardens, where they could remember the good old days together and drink tea together. Of course, Lucius could meet with Schneizel, in the prime minister's office in the imperial palace, and devote this time to an intellectually demanding chess match, or to plotting to gain even more power in the imperial structures. Even so, Lucius did not have many additional options, all because of his peasant origin, which isolated him from a large part of the imperial family. After all, he had no intention of complaining about it, for siblings like Guinevere and Carine were completely useless to him. Nevertheless, Lucius was most curious about the other two siblings, the twin brothers Castor and Pollux rui Britannia. The Purple Prince had no real relationship with them, and their suspiciously low activity at court or in imperial politics was, to say the least, suspect.

The bang of another, but this time much more powerful and definitely louder, explosion took him out of his thoughts and encouraged him to take a look at the ruins of the enemy's warehouse and main supply point. Seeing what was happening before him, Lucius couldn't help but happy smile.

XXX

Akito was sure that this night was not going to be calm or easy. He had this feeling and justification when his colleague from Delta and the newly promoted Lieutenant Peter Kowalsky awoke him in the middle of the night with the information that Lieutenant Colonel Malcal had ordered a combat alert and all pilots were to go to their machines. The Alpha and Delta troops were on full alert as soon as possible, so both were dispatched to hold back a hostile advance that Wyvern Zero believed was intended to be the central squad and supply point for the Europia United army in Egypt.

We were told that one of the parts of a hostile attack would be one of the empire's most elite formations, the Order of Michael. A knightly order that in the past was responsible for many Britannia's victories, but whose members were renowned for their great honor both on the battlefield and afterwards. A bit disturbing was the fact that the other part of the enemy forces was composed of an unknown formation, whose identification emblem was to be a purple rose. Akito had no idea who actually could be the leader of a hostile formation, especially in the face of such daring tactics as breaking through the front lines, destroying several Knightmare Frames battalions, and then attacking a focal point in military logistics, including parts of the world.

Regardless, Akito and the other Alpha and Delta pilots took the risk of fighting the enemy. Not. They took the risk when they decided to submit a voluntary request for transfer into the ranks of this elite unit whose members will undoubtedly encounter sooner or later equally powerful, or even more powerful, enemies with whom they will have to face. It was a risk each of them had to reckon with, and now they will have to pay the price of the risk. By the way, the presence of the new and unmanned Knightmare Frames was a little but some consolation. W0X-Type01 / D, or simply Alexander Drone, i.e. the latest achievement of European technology, which was intended to minimize losses in equipment, and at the same time allow the presence of many more units on the battlefield. The newest additions for the W-0 arrived three days ago, and very quickly their initially rather poor performance was fully checked by the technicians. First of all, all Alexander Drones were simply full of factory faults or design flaws due to the lack of proper manufacturing methods. A separate issue was the relatively weak artificial intelligence system, which turned out to be far below the capabilities of the average or even novice pilot. It was clear that this was something sent to the W-0 out of sheer desperation and willingness to complete the huge starts as quickly as possible, which were as high as 90% after a lap break was completed. However, as for all W0X-Type01 / D, the technicians, mechanics and IT specialists present at Fort Naguib were able to quickly deal with both the technical defects of the machines, and at the same time slightly improve the combat capabilities of the artificial intelligence, so that now it was less more on par with an inexperienced pilot, but still to the benefit of the organic unit.

After traveling a few kilometers and reaching the vicinity of the supply center, the attention of Akito and the other pilots was brought to the attention of the logistics center. Even at this distance, the streaks of black smoke and the light of the flames raging there were more than clearly visible.

"We were late." The new Delta commander, Major Conrad Moltke, stated. His tone of voice was rather perpetually tense, and his gaze was piercing and incredibly intense. Still, he was a competent officer, but who could easily lose his head in an extremely stressful situation and succumb to emotions. "It looks like the Brits have already done what they came here to do."

His not pessimistic look was met with evidently gloomy and heavy silence on the part of the pilots, who were mostly depressed by their failure, despite very quick mobilization and reaching the fighting area, they did not manage to save their comrades from certain death, and deprived of a strong garrison facilities of great importance, to protect against destruction.

"Well, we don't have time to worry about this loss, gentlemen." Major Moltke spoke again after taking an audible breath. It became clear to everyone that he was not satisfied with this turn of events. "Immediately form full combat formation, and then ..."

He did not have the opportunity to finish his speech, because he was interrupted by a powerful explosion, the epicenter of which seemed to be the logistics and supply center itself. The evidence appeared fairly quickly, in the form of a bright light, a cool pink color. Moments later, these colors were replaced by fire and explosions, which took sizes known to pilots only from action movies or animations of a similar genre. This time, however, it was not part of the action of the non-existent, but a harsh reality that soon began to be felt too much for them, through the earthquake.

However, all the pilots were lucky enough to find their aircraft in a position convenient enough to successfully and easily stop. Additionally, the limbs of the Knightmare Frames they piloted were efficiently and reasonably designed to counteract this or a similar circumstance.

Nevertheless, this was only the beginning of Delta's problems, for a moment later and as a result of the explosion, a huge cloud of smoke rose up, rapidly approaching their position and covering essentially everything within five to ten kilometers from the epicenter of the blast.

While initially both Akito, Peter and the other pilots were surprised and unable to see anything, even despite the advanced camera technology of their machines, they switched to infrared extremely quickly. It was one of the latest improvements that all Alexander series machines had, unlike the older machines.

Captain Hyuga did not allow himself to be influenced by circumstances and circumstances to affect his ability to make decisions, concentrate or judge. So instead of focusing on spotting his allies, he decided to look for and look for any sign of an enemy for whom this little sandstorm was more than a perfect cover for scouting, reconnaissance or even offensive operations.

It didn't take long for Akito to see with the help of infrared a beam of heat coming towards Delta. However, it was much larger than standard ammunition. This time, it was all a beam of energy that was approaching the Knightmare Frames formation at dizzying speed.

"Enemy fire is coming!" He shouted and thus announced Lieutenant Kowalsky, who, like Akito, concentrated on observing the potential moves of his opponent. Apparently, he was much faster at it and a little more perceptive than his supervisor.

However, this information could not change anything, because the energy beam hit the target. To the great misfortune of Delta, it was Alexander Commander, piloted by Major Moltke, who exploded a moment later, leaving only a burning wreckage, obviously a shadow of the machine's former glory.

It did not take long to see the effects, because the whole unit later practically fell into disrepair. The pilots and even some of the officers literally panicked at the death of their commander. Additionally, two more energy beams hit and destroyed two Alexander Masses, of which nothing remained but burning wrecks. It was close, and the organization would have collapsed completely, had the Major's deputy and thus the new commander not intervened a moment later.

"Don't panic!" Captain Kleist Petain caught the attention of literally everyone, thanks to the emphatic tone of his voice that successfully brought everyone back to reality. "Get ready to fight! The enemy is close, and if possible, we must engage him in battle and avenge the death of our comrades! Go ahead and destroy all the enemies we meet, the drones will be our shields! "

"Yes sir!" The vast majority replied, but the only two exceptions were Akito and Peter, who instead focused on locating enemy machines that could pose a threat.

Their efforts, however, were effectively interrupted when about sixty Alexander Drones moved forward and began firing, completely unaware of the enemy's position, due to the direct command of the new Delta commander. It must be honestly admitted that the W0X-Type01 / D did not differ much visually from the standard W0X-Type01 / M. Same armor and weapons layout, except for bright red paint instead of blue, and visible wiring and antennas on both the head and chest.

Moments later, the rest of the machines moved forward and in search of the yet not located enemy. While infrared was extremely helpful in identifying heat sources and potential positions of enemy machines or allies, the sandstorm effectively made it impossible to see anything at greater distances, not to mention the lack of any long-range communication.

Akito personally doubted the possibility that it was the sandstorm itself that was able to drown out and essentially eliminate any long-range communication. All this led to the fact that the Delta squad was forced to move forward, without any knowledge of the terrain or knowledge of the enemy's location.

At the same time, several more energy beams flew towards the ruins of the supply point and hit the target. This time, however, and fortunately for the pilots, only six Alexander Drones were destroyed and there were no casualties among Delta's organic personnel.

A few minutes later, avoiding enemy missiles and losing another three Alexander Drones, the formation got close enough that the drone scanners were able to detect the enemy formations. It turned out very quickly that there were only ten Knightmare Frames, most of which began massive firing moments later with their giant assault rifles.

While watching his opponent, Akito paid special attention to the two enemy machines. The first was a blood-red machine, identified as a Gloucester type, the pilot of which was firing at Alexanders in an extremely chaotic but quite accurate fire. It was clear that this machine was being piloted by an ace with an extraordinary talent and experience on the battlefield. The second was completely different. Despite having a similar red color, it was a bit more shapely, streamlined and less bulky in its design. In fact, the armor appeared to be somewhat reminiscent of the full plate armor of the late medieval period. Meanwhile, the head seemed to resemble a Roman legionary's helmet, which was helped by the fact that it had something like a plume on top. The equipment of the latter Knightmare was also extremely interesting, as it consisted of what resembled a large anti-tank rifle and was undoubtedly responsible for firing all these energy beams.

However, before Akito had the opportunity to take a closer look at both machines, he was forced to respond with fire along with the rest of the allied pilots, and on the communication channel you could hear a rather contemptuous and evidently rising voice that practically bordered on a wild growl.

"How are you, Euro mob!" It became clear that the enemy had connected to their communication channel and was going to provoke them. At least Akito and Peter were aware of that. The rest of the pilots and officers in the Delta, however, were seething at the contemptuous comment of the enemy pilot. "It is a pity that you came so late and only to see the burning ruins where your comrades or brothers are buried alive. It's a pity, because maybe if you got there sooner, your worthless lives would end together, much faster, and we wouldn't have to clean up such rubbish as you! "

After these words, the scarlet Gloucester began to retreat towards the ruins of the fortress. Along with the machine, the rest of the enemy formation started to retreat. It was clear that this was a provocation to enter a trap. At least Akito and Peter were well aware of this. For the rest, it was not so obvious, and the commander was the best example of this.

"To all pilots, give chase immediately!" He roared furiously at the fact that Lieutenant Kowalsky and Captain Hyuga practically grimaced at this display of emotional lack of control. "Don't waste your time, follow them and slaughter all those Brit bastards!"

Although the rest of the pilots were more than willing to retaliate on the enemy pilot, and possibly the commander, for similar boasts, Akito did not lose his cold eyes and did not fail to share his point of view with the rest.

"Captain, this is an obvious provocation and an attempt to ambush us." He said calmly and with no sign of emotion in his tone of voice. One could get the impression that nothing that is currently happening here is of the slightest importance to him. "At this point, let's just focus on regrouping and connecting with the Alpha ..."

"Shut up!" The furious commander roared, who had apparently lost all peace at that moment that could remain after the provocation. "I'm not going to let all the sacrifices and taunts of that Britannian dick go unanswered! I will not let the deaths of my comrades be wasted! But what a fucking Eleven like you can know about brotherhood or sacrifice !? After all, you are just a monkey in the skin of a human! Now be silent and go to fight! "

Akito wasn't offended by his insults in the slightest degree. In fact, he was disappointed with the lack of prudence and stupidity of this man who emotionally signed a death warrant for a large part of Delta. Not to mention the fact that Alpha's fate was now completely uncertain. Of course, splitting up in order to be more effective in eliminating individual enemy units was the most sensible tactic, but it completely lost its meaning in these specific circumstances. After all, there was no other choice but to obey the commander's orders, even if the orders made no sense or were idiotic.

Peter struggled to refrain from disapproving of the Captain's words. Although the circumstances were undoubtedly stressful and could weigh on everyone's psyche, it was not even the slightest excuse in the face of the boorish behavior of their commander. Even so, Peter managed to hold back from escalation and concentrate on obeying orders, as any good soldier should. After a while, however, he decided to have a private conversation with Akito.

"Forgive me, Captain, for having to hear such insults from that man's lips." He spoke quite calmly, although he was somewhat concerned about his well-being, despite the fact that the teenager was generally rather withdrawn and was reluctant to say anything about his emotions or private life that appeared to not exist in his case at all. "I would prefer you not to see us Europeans through the prism of the nervous reaction of one and stressed officer."

"Those weren't the worst insults I've heard in my entire life, Peter." Akito replied, but without betraying or showing any feelings, not even the slightest hint of them. "After all, I accept your apologies, even if you are not responsible for it."

The conversation then ended in a rather awkward manner and did not continue. Regardless, however, all the other Delta machines moved forward, straight into the ruins. While Peter and Akito remained coldly calculating, the rest of the pilots, the officers, and especially the commander, were more than willing to intercept the enemy and fight a battle that could avenge their fallen comrades.

It didn't take long for all other Alexanders of all types to reach what was left of the fortress walls, and then the pilots stepped inside. It wasn't long before Captain Kleist Petain gave the order to split up and begin searching the ruins in the absence of enemy resistance. It was a clear sign that the man was incapable of judging the situation properly and was basically making mistake after error. However, neither Akito nor Peter were aware of how big these mistakes were.

XXX

"How did you like my little provocation, Your Highness?" Sir Ashley asked, absolutely smug, and a few perfectly understood sighs rose up.

"I'm surprised that something so simple and not very sophisticated could even work, but I am clearly overestimating our opponent." Lucius sighed and allowed himself a slight first, when he heard these unimaginative insults, he could not help but grasp his head, but Lucius put both hands on his head and began massaging his temple as the enemy formation grabbed the bait and set off in pursuit behind the enemy who was clearly trying to lure them into a trap. "After all, the job was done as I wished, so good job Sir Ashley."

"Thank you, Your Highness!" The knight replied excitedly, who had apparently either missed the gist of Prince's words or simply ignored it. Regardless, however, the conversation between them ended, and Lucius devoted himself to studying the tactical map, while Sir Ashley's assault team - dubbed S-1 by Prince - withdrew deeper into the ruins of the logistics center.

While it might seem strange at first glance that Lucius and the Britannian army overall had no problems communicating under these conditions, the answer was simple, technological superiority, and much better communication equipment. It did not mean, however, that everything was going well, because initially even individual assault groups had a problem with establishing communication with each other. At one point, Lucius even tried to figure out what was actually causing the disturbance, out of sheer curiosity. It quickly turned out that it was not the storm itself that disrupted communication, but the enormous concentration of particles resulting from the fission of Sakuradite. While the mineral itself was not radioactive, its splitting process had enormous potential to interfere with long-range communications and thereby destroy coordination among enemies. However, the Purple Prince didn't think about it for too long and only remembered to send the acquired data to the Department of New Technologies.

However, apart from this rather interesting tidbit from the battlefield, Lucius looked once again at the tactical map displayed by one of the side monitors. So far, all troops had taken their assigned positions, and Sir Shin was about to engage a second enemy squad through a rearward attack, whose commander apparently intended to encircle the ruins and either attack them from behind or cut off the escape route for the squad involved in this special operation.

As for the logistics and supply center of the Europia United army in Egypt, it was left with burning ashes for the most part, or at best, the debris and skeletons of ancient structures with which the interior was literally filled. In fact, it was a pile of ruins at this point, and the perfect spot for an ambush. The commanders of individual assault groups efficiently took their positions in the best points for this. Captain Offen turned the northwestern part into a line of defense, impossible to conquer without suffering huge losses by the enemy. Captain Zedlitz in the center focused more on the numerous traps among the covers that the enemy could potentially capture the fastest. Meanwhile, Sir Ashley and the other pilots did everything in their power to man the ruins in time for the enemy to arrive.

As for the rest of the troops that remained outside the ruins, Lucius was on one of the hills, from which he had the perfect picture and could collect the most data, despite the still raging artificial sandstorm, which, however, at this point was gradually losing its intensity.

The RPI-209 / VB itself was surrounded by a small but tight cordon of Gloucester Purple Roses under the command of Captain Ciaran de Revil, who, despite the relatively safe and transparent situation, did not lose his vigilance and tried to pay attention to as many details as possible.

As for the other troops surrounding the ruins, their commanders were instructed to use the recently delivered Foldable Cannons to either support allies in the ruins or to fire at a second enemy formation that was coming from the northwest and would make contact with the group of Major Hexenhaus as soon as possible. , however, had already been made aware of this, and if necessary he and his pilots were more than ready to give the enemy a proper greeting.

In short, everything was more than prepared for the arrival of enemies, which was shortly after.

After about three minutes, scanners, sensors and the IFF system detected about eighty hostile signatures, which was immediately plotted on the tactical map. The part has been identified as Knightmare Frames from the Alexander series, the newest addition to the EU Army. Honestly, when Lucius heard about it for the first time from Maria's mouth and saw the plans for an extremely advanced machine with neat and high anti-tank armor, he had visions of a miracle weapon that could change the tide of war if only it was gradually put into use . However, in all this excitement and excitement, Lucius forgot for a moment that even the best weapons are nothing without the proper administrative and logistical support, or when commanders are fools and have not the slightest idea about the use of these weapons. While the commander of the W-0, Lieutenant Colonel Leila Malcal, was not an idiot in the Purple Prince's opinion, the vast majority of EU officers and commanders are. Ultimately, the Alexander series at the moment was intended solely for use by the elite Wyvern Zero unit, and in the near future was to become the backbone of the panzer infantry of UE.

That said, Lucius was curious to see how these machines and their pilots would confront the Knights of the Purple Rose, and a small portion of the Order of Michael's forces. Regardless of the outcome, however, the Purple Prince felt that it would be something very interesting and worth watching, if only for the sheer desire to learn from this battle and collect as much combat data as possible.

It didn't take long for the enemy formation to split into three smaller ones, each headed in a different direction. At this point, things got even more interesting for Lucius. Soon, after a dozen or so seconds, the formation with the largest number of machines reached the Captain Offen position and in an ideal point for the Capitan unit to carry out concentrated and massive fire at the same time. The effects came almost immediately, in the form of twelve destroyed Knightmares, while the remaining thirty retreated backwards. It was the end of the hostile tactic, which was apparently to break through the defenses quickly, then encircle the remaining units of the empire and gradually eliminated them. As if that was not enough, Knightmare Frames under the command of Captain Offen began to dynamically change their position again and again and forcing the enemy to go deeper and deeper and lose more machines.

Lucius made a note to commend after the battle the impeccable use of mobile defense tactics by this officer and one of his New Colchester friends. As for the other assault groups, Captain Lothar Zedlitz was also successful, as the enemy entered his trap and the battle group of twenty Knightmare Frames was very quickly reduced to fourteen. Still, the enemy commander did not lose his cool head and ordered an immediate charge. Apparently, it was a suicide, but taking into account the specifications of the Alexander series machines, it could turn the tide of the skirmish and gain the initiative. However, Captain Zedlitz also managed to keep a cool head and ordered the fastest possible retreat while continuing to fire at the enemy. It is true that four Knightmare Frames were lost in this process, but the enemy lost five. Eventually, the remaining nine Alexanders were forced to retreat and take up defensive positions as quickly as possible, while Gloucesters and their pilots returned to their previous positions. The whole thing ultimately came down to a fruitless exchange of fire between the fighting sides, and there was no sign that it would end soon.

Meanwhile, on the right wing, Sir Ashley had not yet made contact with the enemy. It happened only a dozen or so seconds later, and resulted in immediate losses of the opponent. Despite the awareness that the enemy had better machines, the mad knight decided to maneuver among the enemies and start eliminating the enemy as quickly as possible. This resulted in the dizzying destruction of as many as five machines, while the other enemies apparently did not know what to do. Eventually, one of the Alexanders got close enough to begin hand-to-hand combat. Moments later, the remaining machines engaged in hand-to-hand combat, and another three Alexanders were destroyed by the KPR-00, piloted by Captain Char Anzable.

Although the right flank fight seemed extremely interesting for Lucius, his attention was shackled after a while after the enemy on the line of defense commanded by Captain Ledo Offen, the enemy after losing another Alexander, fell into complete disorganization. Some of the machines moved forward and were very quickly destroyed, and the rest began to retreat. Although in this case, a much more accurate term for it would be a completely disorganized and chaotic escape.

"It seems the enemy commander is dead and the sheep do not know what they should do when the lion who was in power over them dies." Lucius said under his breath and with a malicious smile on his lips, then decided to give orders appropriate to the situation. However, he made contact with all commanders so that each of them could have a clear picture of the situation. "Offen, give chase immediately and, if possible, go to the rear of the formation that is undergoing a shootout with Lothar's squad. Sir Ashley, if possible, destroy the enemy as quickly as possible and then block any escape possibilities for our opponents. "

"I'll try!" He growled as if he were a wilder animal than a human, which was generally not a very positive image of what was actually going on there. "But the enemy pilots are giving us a real hell!"

Soon, Lucius noticed that two RPI-209 / EBs had been destroyed in the course of the fight.

"Franz! Alan! " Sir Ashley half growled and half roared furiously, but it became clear that the loss of two pilots was not good for his psyche. "That prick will pay for it!"

These words, combined with the loss of another machine, this time the only Gloucester Purple Rose present in that place, disturbed Lucius, who decided to change his order a bit. "Sir Ashley, new assignment, you just have to survive the fight against the enemy and bind them in battle until backup arrives."

"I will try, Your Highness!" He replied, but he didn't sound as sure as he had just a few moments ago. "However, I cannot guarantee that in a few minutes I will still be in one piece or a dozen!"

"Just do as much as you can, Sir Ashley." Lucius replied, completely unfazed and stoically composed, not wanting to let the control of his body language and tone of his voice elude him in the slightest degree.

Before Lucius could say or decide anything else, however, a report came immediately from Major Schnee Hexenhaus.

"Your Highness, there was about a hundred Knightmare Frames approaching our positions, all of them from the Alexander series!" The major dutifully reported, showing in the tone of his voice at least the height of calm and discipline. "What are our orders?"

"First shoot them with Foldable Cannons and put them on the defensive until Sir Shin gets behind them with the power of his own entourage." Lucius replied impassively, for such a variant was part of a plan which he saw no need to change in the slightest.

"Yes, Your Highness!" Major Hexenhaus replied quickly, then ended the conversation willing to obey the order.

Out of the corner of his eye, Lucius noticed the new signatures on the tactical map, and there were exactly a hundred in all. All that stood in the way of encircling the Britannian forces was the Major and his unit, located on a fairly large hill. Thanks to this, his forces had at least some form of advantage over the enemy.

It didn't take long for the first few signatures to be marked as destroyed, all due to the use of powerful weapons by Major's pilots against which enemy pilots had no chance of effectively defending themselves. As if that were not enough, more signatures appeared on the map, this time they were Knightmare Frames, under the direct command of Sir Shin. It didn't take long for the enemy formation to be encircled, and its pilots had to fight their way out of that little battle cauldron if they intended to fight again.

Despite some setbacks and some pretty big losses, Lucius was generally pleased with the overall progress of the fight. It seemed that despite receiving new and much better machines, the EU pilots were still much inferior and struggled to fight effectively, perhaps due to much lower skills. Still, the Purple Prince was able to figure out that the effect of such high losses was largely the fruit of disastrous leadership. The best example of this for Lucius was the fact that the enemy commander, faced with intense fire, had not made the decision to withdraw and regroup before continuing the fight.

"Well, there is an effect where capable and understanding officers are demoted or fired for opposing the politics of the executive." Lucius indulged in a half-sour and half-derisive comment about the situation in the EU army. Not only Mariemaia and her network, but also OSI, had sent him many intelligence reports in the past about how rebellious and often talented Europia United army officers oppose decisions and ever stupid ideas for war, which are the fruit of the thoughts of politicians who at the same time, they are not familiar with any basic conditions on the modern battlefield. "And so the EU slaughtered the only thing that could stop our empire from expanding, quite a gifted officer corps. All these people have been replaced by a simple bunch of mediocre people who are at best passive and accept all orders from the EU Minister of Defense. Faced with such a situation, our technological advantage is only another of many advantages over the degenerate state entity. "

Moments later, however, Lucisua's full attention was once again directed to the unit, under the command of Sir Ashley, who had lost another four Knightmare Frames. However, at least at the same time, Captain Char Anzable, destroyed five enemy Alexanders, which at the same time proved once again both his great skill and, at the same time, the superiority of the new machine over what the EU had recently put into service.

After a while, however, KPR-00 encountered another opponent, who this time, and for a change, seemed to be quite competent. All because of the fact that there was a fairly even fight between these two.

Looking at the signatures in that area of combat, Lucius could not help but be concerned with some typically analytical interest in the situation. All of this was due to the fact that the Purple Prince had some difficulty imagining someone who would be able to gain an advantage over one of the best Knights of the Purple Rose pilots, especially by piloting an inferior or equal machine in terms of capability.

"It can be quite interesting too." Lucius muttered softly, then decided to watch the situation and not intervene until the situation changed dramatically. "After all, we will have to back out soon, because by prolonging this fight we are risking a lap, which is not the best option."

XXX

"This is quite a strong opponent." The long-haired blonde in goggles and a scarlet uniform muttered with clenched teeth, while piloting one of the most modern Knightmare Frames, while fighting the enemy pilot and his machine with melee weapons. "But that's not even enough to beat me, Char Anzable!"

The culmination of his short monologue was the use of the machine he was piloting to try to stab at the enemy Alexander, who in his rather limited knowledge in this regard or knowledge of detailed technical data appeared to Char as Alexander, variant Commander, for officers and aces. According to one of the reports by Mariemai Khushrenad, it was the most advanced type of Knightmare Frames, produced on the initiative of United Europia.

Regardless, however, the fact was that not only the machine was of high quality, but also the pilot, as evidenced by the fact that he successfully avoided a thrust aimed at him, and then successfully launched a counterattack. Additionally, the enemy pilot was able to successfully dodge during the counterattack, the Beam Saber, which despite its huge advantages, such as the ability to cut any metal easily, had a rather powerful disadvantage that made it impractical on a real battlefield.

"Although I try to save energy, Beam Saber is consuming it at an alarming rate, and soon I will not be able to fight effectively." Captain Anzable grunted, realizing how unfavorable his current situation had become. Although his KPR-00 machine and equipment could have given him a dominance in terms of quality alone, this high-quality equipment was simply too advanced for Tallgeese, which was only a sixth-generation KMF machine. Perhaps in the future, Beam Saber would have the option to become standard on Knightmare Frame, but not at this point.

Soon, however, the communication channel was torn apart by the furious roar of the assault group commander. "Jan, René, Johanne! You will pay for it, European bastards! "

It was at this point that Carl realized that apart from the mentally unstable knight acting as the commander, there was no one else left in this assault group, which should now rather be described as a desperate defense group given the very unfavorable conditions of the fight. But comforting was the fact that the scarlet Gloucester Swordman, piloted by Sir Ashley, managed to destroy two more enemy Alexanders, apparently under the influence of extremely strong emotions. Moments later, both pilots were pushed on the defensive when the enemy unit, consisting of only four Knightmare Frames, managed to almost circle the remaining pilots. In this situation, only one option was reasonable and would ensure their survival.

"Sir Ashley, cover my back and I will cover yours in return!" Captain Anzable's proposal was basically an order that was carried out fairly quickly, with no opposition from the mentally unstable knight. Apparently, he felt that any attempt to take a different action could only produce undesirable results for both of them.

Thus, two different machines stood back to back, shielding each other and preparing for what might soon happen. Neither of the two dared to say a word, all of which was due to the fact that no words were needed at this point. It became clear that defense was all that was left for them at that moment. Or so it might seem. In fact, however, the tempting possibility of breaking the enemy's encirclement soon became apparent, as all the other four Alexanders began circling clockwise around the encircled Britannians.

"Any ideas to get out of this situation and save your life?" Sir Ashley asked, the timbre of his voice showing all too obvious signs of distress on his part, which was perfectly understandable in the present situation.

Char didn't answer, but instead waited patiently for his chance, keeping his large anti-tank rifle ready, motionless, aimed in one and the same direction. The perfect occasion finally came when one of the Alexanders was perfectly on the missile's trajectory. In less than a few seconds, Captain Anzlabe pulled the trigger on the console in the cockpit, and a gleaming beam of energy almost immediately shot out and destroyed the enemy machine, giving the pilot no chance of survival.

"We're moving forward!" Char announced, and a moment later he activated his Beam Sword, then cut another orbiting machine straight across the center, which a moment later exploded and turned the half-cut Knightmare into a burning wreck.

While all this was completely unexpected, Sir Ashley obeyed orders from someone who should technically be his subordinate at this point. However, the tense situation and the obvious threat to his life influenced his instincts, which made him obey the orders of someone who, even in such a situation, was stoically calm. He even seemed to care little about the prospect of death, despite being in a situation that was clearly life-threatening.

"Never mind with my team, I can avenge them at another time when we fight W-0 again." Sir Ashley muttered softly under his breath, postponing revenge plans and adjusting the speed and movement of his machine to KPR-00. But the main problem in this case was the much better systems and overall much better performance from Tallgeese.

Regardless of all this, however, and against all odds, both machines and their pilots managed to get out of the encirclement, from this unpleasant situation, and then retreated to reach any of the other assault groups as soon as possible. Of course, the two enemy Knightamre Frames and their pilots had no intention whatsoever that the two remaining enemies on the battlefield would escape the battle alive and go in pursuit. Fortunately, the enemy pilots ran out of ammunition in the large rifles of their machines, which additionally had no Slash Harkens at all, so they were forced to try to get to their targets with the use of large knives.

At one point it seemed that the Alexanders pilots would get their game, but then Sir Ashley made a rather risky move that would be much more appropriate for a gambler than a KMF pilot and a professional soldier.

As the scarlet Gloucester and KPR-00 Tallgeese approached one of the still burning buildings, Ashley Ashra had the extremely risky but daring idea to collapse what was left of a structure that, not so long ago, acted as a garage for armored personnel carriers , or other wheeled vehicles.

Moments before both machines could pass through the ruins, Sir Ashley fired both Slash Harkens which then hit the building, and after both harkens returned to their place, the surviving part of the garage wall began to collapse and break, all on the side of the two pilots. The plan was so risky that it could very easily end tragically for the two remaining pilots. Especially that the condition of success was to cover a dozen or so meters as quickly as possible to be at a safe distance. At best, the wall would collapse moments after Sir Ashley and Captain Anzable were in a safe zone where they would no longer be in danger of being buried alive.

While this might only seem like silly luck - or the cheeky fence armor - both pilots managed to safely avoid the collapsing wall of the still burning building that has likely overwhelmed both EU pilots. Regardless of the fate of their enemies, however, they still could not afford even a moment of respite, because with the wall everything else began to collapse, and all this could bring them and bury them alive. Therefore, both pilots simply pushed their machines to the limit to overcome these several dozen meters as quickly as possible and get out of the collapsing ruins. They succeeded, but it was really close to being finally buried.

"It was too close." Ashley breathed a sigh of relief, although no pilot or soldier should ever be fooled by a false sense of security, especially in this situation. After a while, however, the knight decided to look back and turned his machine to make sure of a possible pursuit. Much to his surprise, no one was chasing them anymore, so Sir Ashley headed for the other surviving assault pilot to catch up with him as quickly as possible.

"What are we doing now?" To Sir Ashley's surprise, it was Captain Anzable who was the one from whom the question came, despite the fact that he had just been in charge.

"I think I should be the one to ask this question, Captain." The red-haired knight replied, although it was definitely more due to an emotional instinct than any rational thought. It is hardly surprising, given the fact who of the two was able to maintain rational thinking in a difficult situation that could have ended in their death, if not for his reaction and a quick plan.

"Nonsense." He replied calmly, perhaps even slightly amused, Char. "Technically, you have been appointed by Prince Lucius as commander, so it is your responsibility to give orders to what is left of this assault group."

Sir Ashley sighed, then gritted his teeth in irritation and with the fatigue that slowly began to bother him more. After all, he had no intention of allowing any weakness to be shown, or at least no more than he had been so far. "Excellent, so at this point we have to withdraw and regroup with one of the other assault groups. We have to ... "

However, he didn't have a chance to finish as a merger came a moment later by Prince Lucius itself. "Attention, Knights of the Purple rose and Knight of the Order of Michael! Our main goal of this operation has been accomplished, and the enemy has suffered catastrophically great losses. From the north, more and much larger enemy reinforcements are coming. Consequently, the only sensible option is to retreat to our front lines. I repeat to all assault and combat groups, our mission is complete and we are withdrawing immediately! "

Sir Ashley and Captain Anzable, after finishing their announcement, had a short video call where they looked at each other. While the latter had no problem watching the Knightmare Frame co-pilot, Ashley had quite a problem with having this type of conversation with someone who constantly covered his eyes under dark goggles. On top of all this, there was also the ever-present and cold smile on the Captain's lips. In fact, at this point, Sir Ashley couldn't help but consider how Prince Lucius could trust someone so secretive. Regardless of everything, orders had to be given

"Well, in the face of the new circumstances, I slightly changed our priorities, Captain." The red-haired knight regained his usual confidence and a smile on his face, which promised everyone on his way a very unpleasant and painful experience. "We're backing out, follow me."

"Yes, my Lord." The captain replied, and the two set off on their return journey, their Knightmare Frames obeying their pilots' orders without the slightest disturbance or delay.

While both parties involved in the operations, Knights of the Purple Rose and Order of Michael, suffered heavy losses that night, at the same time United Europia suffered a catastrophic defeat that day, the repercussions of which will continue to be felt for a very long time and in many different spheres.

XXX

"Damn it!" An enraged Pole growled in the cockpit of the W0X-Type01 / C he piloted, also known under the simplified name Alexander Commander.

Lieutenant Peter Kowalsky was more than furious when he fully realized that the opponents were not only retreating, but also one of the enemy pilots decided to do something as crazy as the collapse of a ruined, burning and basically collapsing building, using Slash Harkens. It was a completely crazy plan, and while Peter didn't know if it had any real result, he couldn't deny the simple fact that it was really close and both he and Akito would be dead. Nevertheless, both were skilled pilots with vast experience, so before the building, or rather its wall, could collapse on them and their machines, both stopped. Meanwhile, the Alexanders piloted by them were covered only by sand and dust, but nothing more.

For his part, Peter wasn't sure if he was more furious with the two enemy pilots, or more impressed with their tremendous skill. But aside from undoubted admiration and hatred, the fact remained that the attempt to defend, or in this case repel, the enemy had been a complete failure and enormous losses among the Delta pilots. After a while, too, it became apparent how great the losses were among the Alpha as soon as communication began to return.

"To all squads, this is Sergeant Luke Valentine!" Very quickly a scream filled with terror was heard on the Delta and Alpha general channel, reaching the ears of every pilot who remained alive. "Alpha has lost more than half of its machines! Of the hundred Alexanders, only twenty-three are still operational! Plus, all our officers are dead, and I took command of what's left of our unit! I am asking for immediate permission to withdraw from the fighting area! "

Peter couldn't help but smile at this NCO's panic if it weren't for the fact that the Alpha casualties were just as great. Looking at the tactical map of the immediate area, the Lieutenant had no trouble finding that only twelve machines, including his, were still operational and could continue the fight. There was also a certain positive in this, because the enemy, despite being composed of undoubtedly elite pilots and officers, also had to suffer quite a lot of losses, given the scale of the operation and the number of machines involved. Regardless, it was still a major failure.

"This is Captain Akito Hyuga, if he has a good understanding, reinforcements should be here soon. Sergeant, focus on holding and defending your position. If possible, do a reconnaissance and make sure about the location of enemy machines. "

At this point, also Peter drew attention to the fact that the electronic tactical map and its system added another friendly signatures. It became clear very quickly that these were three other teams. Beta, Gamma and Epsilon. In total, two hundred and fifty machines. Although the regulations stipulated that each team was supposed to have a hundred machines, shortages in pilots and equipment forced the temporary truncated Epsilon squad to only fifty. Peter had no doubt that in the event of enemy contacts with such overwhelming force, Britannia would undoubtedly fail. Even formations with such an overwhelming leadership in technological and personnel quality over the enemy would have to succumb if they were literally flooded by a real barrage of perhaps slightly worse, but definitely more numerous opponents.

While everything seemed to be headed for a decisive settlement, and Akito had taken command of the remnants of Delta in the ruins of the supply center, a message soon arrived from a Sergeant who had recently and temporarily been promoted to commander of one of the teams.

"Captain Hyuga, it's me again, Sergeant Luke Valentine!" Although the manner of reporting was still a scream, this time the tone of the Sergeant's voice was full of joy and undoubted relief. "The pilots appointed by me have carried out a reconnaissance. It seems the Brits have made the decision to retreat towards their positions. Apparently someone must have warned them about the upcoming meals. Regardless of the reason, however, it is the end of the battle. "

"It looks." Akito muttered, but to Lieutenant Kowalsky's great surprise, his commander's murmur was not stoic as usual, but more melancholy, or downright indecisive. "Let Alpha secure the area leading south and towards the front lines while we try to locate some survivors in the ruins."

It was completely unlike what a stoic and determined Japanese usually displayed. Consequently, Peter almost immediately isolated the communications and entered into a private video chat with Captain Hyuga.

"Captain ..." Lieutenant tried to start this whole conversation formally, but realized it would be more of a personal nature, he decided to start differently. "Akito, what happened?"

Captain Hyuga's facial expressions seemed to be apparently the same and unchanged in the slightest way. However, the tired and hard-to-read expression in his eyes suggested that there was more to what happened here today. Much more than Captain Hyuga himself would like to admit.

Akito sighed heavily before answering, then all his apparent determination literally fell like a curtain, revealing in this case an image of pure melancholy. "Is it that obvious, Peter?"

Lieutenant Kowalsky, rather, expected some attempts to deny, or even orders, not to interfere in his personal life. Nevertheless, the Pole was surprised by the fact that something did not happen, and also by the fact that a precedent was established between the two of them that they should use names in the conversation, and not only ranks and surnames.

"You are clearly depressed." He replied directly and without the slightest attempt to beautify the actual state of affairs. If Peter himself were to list any of his qualities that could be considered unequivocally positive, honesty and directness would be the first of them. "What happened to that indifferent boy that you were not so long ago, Akito."

Captain Hyuga did not answer right away, but only for quite a long moment, he seemed mainly to ponder his words and try to come up with any answer. Eventually, however, he decided to do so. "I just had a rather strange feeling. It was just like meeting someone or dealing with something that I had lost a long time ago. "

"What is this?" Peter asked in response, hoping to get an answer from him and be able to get to the bottom of the problem that seemed to be troubling the heart, soul and mind of his supervisor, and now perhaps even a friend.

"Does not matter." In an instant, Akito decided to end this process of confiding, and from moment to moment, he reverted to his stoically calm personality. "Maybe one day I will tell you more about it, but for the moment we need to focus on cleaning up this mess that Brits gave us."

"That's true." Peter nodded, though he quietly hoped the new friend would open up a little more to him. After all, responsibilities in the current and very difficult situation should still come first and be prioritized. "Ultimately, this was the main sourcing point for our armies in Egypt. Now that the site's supplies and infrastructure have been destroyed, the frontline soldiers and their commanders will be on their own. "

Captain Hyuga seemed to be more than interested in the thesis his new friend made. All of this was due to the simple fact that Akito did not have the slightest experience or knowledge of politics or strategy. "You seem to be quite familiar with the situation, Peter."

Lieutenant Kowalsky nodded slowly and firmly. "This is correct, Akito. This is mainly due to the fact that in my spare time I try to follow press reports and read reports on the general situation on the fronts of our war with Britannia. "

Akito frowned at these words, but did not even become hostile to him in the slightest incident. "You say it all as if this war really meant a lot to you, despite the fact that you were basically betrayed by United Europia military officers."

"These people are not even the slightest representation of what Europe is and will be." Peter replied almost immediately, firmly and with a clear passion in his voice. "In fact, the one who can have the greatest influence on our future may be a young politician who, until recently, was a high-ranking military man, and now has the opportunity to change the face of the republic and save all our values, such as equality and egalitarianism. legal for everyone. "

Akito once again broke his stoic demeanor, and instead of peace there was something akin to joy and a friendly smile. "A little more, and I'll start believing in all these values and slogans."

Peter seemed almost shocked at the statement and opened his mouth wide for a brief moment before any more words came out. "You don't believe in Europia United and what we stand for?"

"As I can believe, when Japanese fleeing the oppression of the empire are not treated here in the slightest degree in a dignified manner and they are locked up in ghettos where poverty, hunger and overpopulation reign. Just like Area Eleven. " Akito replied without the slightest thought, his eyes flashing as his mouth returned to its original state of iron, almost calm. "Forgive me if I sound like a cynical man, but it is impossible for me to take seriously all these beautiful slogans, or any ideology, as merely a way to gain and maintain power, without the slightest faith in them."

"It's hard for me to describe it as cynical." Peter stated in response, to Akito's quite enormous surprise. "In my opinion, the thesis you presented is, above all, a real assessment of those who use the values they proclaim very often. All of this is unfortunately at the expense of people who support and believe in individuals who present themselves in public as someone they are not in the least, or at best, minimal. Personally, I believe that a modern cynic is a person who does not believe in any values and treats them like Marxists religions, as opium for the masses. "

Akito didn't reply, but he considered quietly the man's words, who within moments, had become a friend entirely by chance, perhaps the first Captain Hyuga had ever had.

"Regardless, however, we still have our responsibilities to fulfill." Akito ended up concluding their entire conversation so far. "We have to search the ruins for survivors and equipment or supplies that may not have been destroyed and have survived. And after the rest of the W-0 forces have arrived, it is imperative to report to the highest-ranking officer as soon as possible, who will take command. "

"Undoubtedly." Peter replied. "So let's start as soon as possible, maybe we will have a few moments to sleep and rest before the sun starts to rise."

Both friends, however, had one and the same feeling about the enemy aces that they would meet them again, under different circumstances and times. Regardless of this, however, it has become clear that the heart pumping blood in this part of the world has just been pierced.

---

AN: Hello, my beloved readers. In that chapters, many thing have happened, and I once again was writing this longer than I wanted.

Before I will go to the coments, I want to ask you for something little thing. Did you wish so many political and philosophical threads in the future. Personally, I love to put a lot of them into your narrative and plot, and then let you draw your own conclusions without dictating what's right and what isn't. Or at least I try to do it.

And no, its time to reply to your reviews:

- Diabolos Aides - As always, I'm happy you like it.

- Freedmoon - I just wanted show, that facing the huge crisis and with ineffective elites who cannot cope with the threat, the alternative becomes extremely attractive, in the form of concentrating as many competences and power as possible into the hands of a competent individual. Hovever, something like this could have serious consequences in the future, which will be discussed later in the story.

- Egregious Potato - This arc will take a few more chapters, four or six, I am not sure yet. Also, thaks for you appreciation for my delving into political and philosophical topics.

Thats all at this moment. I wish you all the best and see you in the future.