The night sky was lit ablaze with rockets, the bombardment screaming through the air at its targets. Fired from an old Soviet BM-21, dating back to the Cold War, the artillery truck was unregistered by the modern Union and therefore perfect for a sneak attack such as this. Forty high explosive rockets slammed into their targets, devastating the buildings and their occupants. The Brigade's storehouse collapsed in on itself, not designed to withstand such an attack. Fuel in the helicopter hanger exploded and launched a fireball in the sky, briefly turning the night to day before returning to the red glow of the burning buildings. Part of the defensive line around the entire complex was hit as well, leaving the remains of one of the three Manticores scattered in a smoldering crater.
Many of the armored Sangvis Ferri dolls and machines had been in the storehouse undergoing repair work and modifications, resting during what they thought was a safe and secure night time. All that was left of the Sangvis Ferri defense was a single group of Aegis defense mechs, two Manticores, and a few squads of unarmored dolls built on the Ripper chassis. The backbone of Sangvis Ferri's forces, the Ripper chassis could be armed and equipped with a variety of weapons and equipment for various purposes. Unfortunately, they would be the first line of defense for the incoming attack.
Scarecrow was not pleased that her night had been disturbed, especially since the current situation was not one that she was equipped for. Despite all of her strengths and abilities, she was still meant more for espionage and stealth rather than frontline combat. As she surveyed the tree line as it had been pushed back by the recent renovations, she couldn't help but lament the fact that she would have to operate as a forward commander. Luckily the dolls and machines were not as dependent on her as they used to be, meaning she could devote more of her processing power into her own shortcomings rather than theirs.
A raid siren blared over the Brigade's complex grounds, signaling for the dolls to assemble for defense. This Griffin base lacked an underground complex that would have made the previous rocket strike trivial in its ability to destroy the entire complex. Instead, the main building that housed the girls' dorms and other important facilities was almost untouched save for a window that shattered during the impact explosions. Scarecrow was unconcerned with what their contingencies were, for she would be the one holding the line in the event of an attack. The girls were best equipped for holding the main building anyway, while Scarecrow would be more efficient on an open battlefield.
"Are there any perimeter breaches?"
"Negative," P38 frantically tried to operate the holographic table in the command center, "one of the sensor systems near the hanger was destroyed though, giving us a blind spot."
Kar98k paced back and forced around the table, trying to get a grip on the situation. An artillery strike just hit them, and that only meant an attack could follow. She couldn't just assume that this was an accident, the damage was too precise to be a mistake. Military grade equipment was just used to level their storehouse and hanger bay, destroying their stockpile of repair parts and spare dummies. Save for a few bodies in the maintenance bay, the girls were stuck with the bodies they had until more could be constructed. The loss of their helicopters only meant that they were stuck here as well. "What about our on-base motion sensors?" She asked, trying to find if they'd been infiltrated early.
"Nothing yet," P38 looked nervous, afraid of all the unknowns, "but that doesn't rule out electronic warfare either."
"Not on a large scale," Kar98k shook her head in disagreement, "Scarecrow and MP41 are too attentive for that."
"Well they had to have had a spotter or a target beacon somewhere." P38 protested.
The doll was right, the missile strike was too accurate to be random fire. Someone must have placed a beacon for the rockets to follow, or provided accurate spotting information. Either way, the girls weren't alone here. With most everyone asleep, save for StG44 on her night time patrol, the possibilities for an infiltration were quite numerous. Of course, it also didn't rule out betrayal from within as well. "It wouldn't be one of ours, would it?" Kar98k asked out loud, vocalizing what was supposed to be an internal thought.
P38 cleared her throat. "I think we know who it could be." She suggested.
"There's no way," Kar98k shook her head and waved her arms in dispute, "I saw her memories."
"She's lied before."
"Where is she now?" Kar98k needed to find FG42 before anyone else did. If P38 was thinking along these lines, no doubt the other girls would be quick to turn on her as well. Kar98k needed answers, not a lynch mob.
The first wave came hard and fast, charging out of the tree line like bats out of hell. The canine Orthos machines were built to charge defensive lines and engage them at close range. Working as mechanical dogs, they serve to distract the defenders by mauling them in melee, or quickly putting up energy shields to cover the advance of charging infantry behind them. Their speed and maneuverability made them nearly impossible for precision fire to handle, forcing a defender to waste valuable ammunition firing blindly. The dolls of the Sangvis Ferri defensive line at least had the advantage of superior targeting when compared to the humans that the Orthos was meant to fight against.
As the mechanical beasts charged across open ground into the hastily fortified trenches and sandbags, Sangvis Ferri did its best to hold back the initial charge. Scarecrow at least was able to levitate a short height above the ground, but that only meant she could rely on her multitude of gun drones to keep herself safe. Weapons fire erupted amongst the trenches, the dolls targeting allowing them to shoot at close range without too much concern for friendly fire. The Orthos were doing their job, however, forcing Sangvis Ferri to concentrate on them rather than the next wave of attackers.
Next to emerge from the tree line were military grade Aegis defense droids, wielding their shields to provide cover for an advance of humans in combat gear. Scarecrow immediately turned her attention to the next wave, directing her drones to suppress the human advance. These were Soviet soldiers, many of whom were wearing unit identifiers of the KCCO. The rogue military group had been hounding Griffin for some time until eventually being labeled as traitors and targeted by their own government. The Brigade themselves had little experience with them, however, making the attack even more peculiar. There was no reason why any of these renegade soldiers should still have this level of equipment, or have any interest in a Griffin base that seldom interacted with them.
There was little time to contemplate, however, as the remaining Manticores that were guarding the main gate came under fire. Fire from the main cannon of a Coeus armored support tank forced the Manticores to take evasive maneuvers, crawling about on their crab legs as they avoided the indirect artillery fire. They weren't the only ones, as Scarecrow herself was soon targeted by mortar fire. Unable to stay aerial, she was forced to land and take cover in the trench line with the dolls. An Orthos made an attempt to dive at her throat like a rabid hound, but found itself caught in her hands instead. With a quick twist she severed the Orthos main head from the rest of the body and destroyed the mechanical beast. Throwing the remains aside, she tried to reassess the situation.
The Aegis line and the human soldiers had pushed into the defensive line, with humans providing close range fire support for the melee oriented Aegis droids. At this range, the Sangvis Ferri dolls were no match for the armored battle droids, forcing the defenses into chaos. Scarecrow tried to provide some sort of defensive support with her flying drones, but couldn't get a decent overview of the battlefield from this trench. Things were too hectic to use the dolls to spot for her, with the attacking force bearing down upon her as well. Unlike the other dolls, she was better equipped to defend herself at close range. Her strength was still matched by one of the Aegis droids, however, who threw itself at her in an attempt to hold her.
While their arms were locked in a struggle, Scarecrow was aware enough of her surroundings for her to notice a grenade landing at her feet. Immediately, she tried to break from the fight but found the Aegis was refusing to allow her to leave. A mix of panic and grudging respect washed over Scarecrow as she realized the Aegis was gladly giving itself up to the imminent explosion of it meant taking down a high priority target such as herself. Luckily for Scarecrow, her neural cloud would transmit back to the main computer with the Brigade's main building. While her fate would lie in the hands of the Griffin dolls, she had to trust that they would defend their main data stores with their lives.
The mechanical door to the maintenance bay was locked open, allowing for quick entry and exit for the dolls in the case of emergency. Unfortunately, this also meant that it provided no warning for FG42, who immediately fell under fire as StG44 stormed into the room. Over the past few days, Fredrick had been working on the shoddy workmanship that was her reconstruction; he figured that if he was going to have to live with her again he at least wanted her in a proper state. Since her old room had been claimed by Angel, FG42 took to sleeping in the maintenance bay to avoid disturbing the memorial. Despite spending her entire night thus far locked in here, that didn't stop StG44 from assuming that FG42 had something to do with the attack. As the unarmed doll dove behind some milling equipment for cover, StG44 made a slow advance towards her. "You couldn't help yourself, could you bitch?" She yelled.
"Leave it to the perfect princess to assume I did this!" FG42 yelled, having absolutely no plan for when StG44 finally reached her. "Don't you have a toilet to clean or something?"
"I knew I shouldn't have bothered arresting you," StG44 hissed, "I should have fucking shot you dead." The white cat, who had been perched on a maintenance bench, arched its back and hissed at StG44. Oscar, as FG42 had named him, was more than pleased to have his original caretaker back. He had disappeared for some time after Angel's death, occasionally poking around the small memorial by the flagpole. The cat seemed to instantly recognize FG42, despite her being in an entirely new body. Maybe it was the fact that she was still wearing the same clothes, but it still confused everyone nonetheless. Right now, Oscar's tail and spine fur bristled as he spat at StG44.
"Oh yeah, because I'd want to bomb a building that I'm inside of." FG42 rolled her eyes at the notion.
"The Commandant took a huge risk to bring you back and this is how you repay her?" StG44 couldn't believe this doll. "More of your sarcastic bullshit and lies."
Taking a risk, FG42 stood out of her cover and held her arms out. "Then fucking do it," she gambled, "shoot me just like you want to."
StG44 smiled and pulled the trigger, putting a bullet right into FG42's left shoulder. The doll fell to one knee as she held the wound, surprised that StG44 hated her enough to actually want to shoot an unarmed and non-combative doll. She had hoped that putting herself in a vulnerable position would have made the other doll more receptive to her innocence, but clearly she was mistaken. StG44 was here for blood and she was going to take it. "You miserable bitch," FG42 groaned, "you actually shot me."
"I missed." StG44 slowly approached, rifle leveled to finish the doll off. "Now give me a reason not to turn you into a stain on my boot."
"You don't have the bleach to clean me out of your socks." FG42 replied with a smile, clutching her wound as it seeped synthetic blood. A little bitter that StG44 had chosen now to show mercy, she figured it was time to finally start using diplomacy. A similar cruel smile from her assault reminded FG42 to mind her manners before she ended up splashed across the wall. "Luckily you only have to kill me once."
"I know that we didn't back you up so soon." StG44 scoffed, her rifle carefully trained on the other doll as she tried to rise back up to her feet. "I'm very aware of how permanent this will be."
"It's because you can't back me up." FG42 retorted, clutching her bullet wound. What hurt more was the knowledge that this doll had shot her with the intent to give her a final death. "Paradeus scrambled me with the same shit as our commander, then they dumped me in Tallinn to die."
"My problem isn't your mortality," StG44 shouted, finger on the trigger and ready to pull, "the problem is what's going on outside!"
"Then why the hell am I in here with you?" FG42 swayed as she yelled back, still off center from being shot. This wasn't her body and she wasn't used to how it felt under stress, especially since it was made from multiple other dolls.
"Angel dies and then you show up out of the blue," StG44 was growing more indignant as the conversation continued, "and now we're under attack. You really expect me to believe you don't play any part in this?"
"If I had to guess," FG42 surmised, "this is just Paradeus cleaning up shop while someone else does all the dirty work."
There was a long pause as StG44 considered the hypothesis. Scarecrow had mentioned that FG42 was sent here by the person that made sure Angel walked into that trap. With the Nyto gone, a simple artillery strike would disorient the Sangvis Ferri line and leave the Brigade wide open for an attack. With so few human personnel on base, the dolls could easily be routed and destroyed. With no defenders, the central mainframe that held all of their backed up neural clouds would have no defenses and would be the next to fall in line. All evidence of the Brigade being used as a Paradeus testing ground would be lost to the void, as would the Brigade itself.
StG44 bit her lip nervously, but kept her rifle trained on the other doll. "Let's assume you're correct," she asked, "what are we going to do about it?"
Letting out a sigh of relief, FG42 gave a small smile at this tentative attempt at diplomacy. "In the walk-in freezer in the cafeteria, we hid an entrance to a tunnel that serves as a way out. There should also be a backup mainframe system we can activate so nobody has to die."
StG44 raised an eyebrow. "So that's why you and your little Nyto were always in the kitchen."
"Nobody should know about the tunnel," FG42 carried on, "it was always meant to be used in case of an emergency we didn't plan for."
"This is an emergency." StG44 finally lowered her rifle, but kept her finger on the trigger.
"Yes, I fucking noticed."
Outside, the Sangvis Ferri defensive line crumbled without Scarecrow. The SF dolls were overrun and unable to effectively fight while surrounded, forcing many of them to fall back into groups in the hope of holding out together. Each stronghold was systematically eradicated, the invading force intending to allow no one to survive. One of the Manticores still stood, despite being heavily damaged, and was falling back with a few of the SF dolls to hold the burning ruin that was once the helicopter hanger. The advancing troops had stopped to turn the trenches into a siege wall, preventing any sort of retreat.
Seraph and MG34 had arrived too late to be of any real assistance to the defense, reaching the very edge of the military's line and stopping. MG34 was unarmed and still confused as to what was going on, but she knew that her sister was still on the other side of the force. Waiting in the bushes on the main road, Seraph silently signaled for the two of them to stop. "Their captain is not leading the charge." She whispered, watching as more troops made their way down the road to the Brigade.
"Who?" MG34 asked, wondering if it was someone she should have been made aware of
"The bastard that murdered Sister Angel." Seraph replied, resisting the urge to spit.
"Why would he be here?" MG34 asked.
"He was with the assembly we scouted last night," Seraph explained, "this must be his plan."
"Then what do we do-" MG34 started before Seraph put a hand over the dolls mouth to get her to stop talking.
A Hydra combat tank was making its way down the main road now, slowly sauntering towards the Brigade. With heavier weapons and armor than the standard Manticore, the Hydra could clear the entire company of dolls by itself. This was overkill, and MG34 was starting to doubt if they'd survive this at all. Stomping behind the Hydra were two bipedal Minotaur combat mechs, each one designed to break through emplacements and heavy armor while serving as mobile shield walls. Combined with their regular force, there was nothing the Brigade had that could stop them.
"If I can get a well placed shot onto the Tesla shield generators on the Minotaur's arms," Seraph explained, "it might trigger an explosion that would render the machine inoperable."
"But what about the Hydra?" MG34 asked.
"We can figure that out as we go," Seraph shrugged, "let's just focus on getting you and your friends back on your feet."
Sister Lilith was by no means a combat type Nyto, but desperate times called for desperate measures. While Seraph and MG34 tried to find a way through the offensive line into the main Brigade headquarters, she decided to find a way to sow discord amongst the soldiers. Lacking the proper equipment to wage wireless electronic warfare, she decided to do things the old fashion way. A bottle with alcoholic spirits was stuffed under her white robe, a rag stuck inside and soaked with the same alcohol. Old fashioned ways indeed.
The Coeus support vehicle was performing its duty admirably, suppressing what was left of the Sangvis Ferri defensive line and allowing the invading soldiers to keep pushing. Despite its relatively small size, it was unopposed when it came to firepower on this particular battlefield. Because of its comfortable safety, the three man crew had left the rear hatch open for cool air as they operated the main gun. Their hubris would be their downfall; this made a perfect opportunity for her attack.
Lilith watched the soldiers mill around, waiting for a chance to dive out of the bushes and toss the glass bottle in her hands. Time was not on her side, but eventually enough backs were turned that she felt confident enough to slowly saunter out into the open. Confidence abounded within her chest as left the safety of cover without notice, her first real combat experience going quite well. The open hatchway gave her an ample target to hit, almost inviting her to throw the glass bottle. With the grace and poise of an Olympic athlete, Lilith tossed the glass bottle. As the green glass left her hands, she realized that she had been so excited to participate in a battle for once that she had forgotten to actually ignite the alcohol in the bottle.
The bottle hurtled through the air, cold and unlit, until it impacted perfectly inside the Coeus tank and exploded. Alcohol splattered across the interior, soaking the two men inside in flammable liquid. The man who served as the gun's loader looked to Lilith, confused as to who or what she was. This did not stop the Coeus gun from firing, the sparks from the gun igniting the alcohol and allowing Lilith's attack to fail successfully. As the flames exploded from the sudden combustion, Lilith realized she was now in the open with no cover.
Sister Lilith bravely turned and ran back into the bushes and the forest, pursued by soldiers who were going to gun her down for her flame attack. Men and women shouted and chased her, occasionally firing at any flash of white they couldn't see. Lilith, however, had the advantage of being an augmented Nyto. With a faster stride and a tireless effect, she was able to not only escape her pursuers but also circle back around them. While they would eventually give up and keep a closer eye on their rear lines, this meant they were dedicating less resources to the attack. This allowed an opportunity for Seraph and MG34 to sneak past the combat lines and make their way into the Brigade.
Much of the Brigade's munitions and supplies were kept in the storehouse that had gone up in flames. Anything that wasn't destroyed in the initial bombardment was now exploding as the flames detonated grenades and bullets. In the main building, a small stockpile of weapons and ammo was kept in the maintenance bay for proper weapon maintenance. This stockpile also served as a last store of ammo in case they ever needed to defend their neural cloud data stacks. Maintenance itself was more heavily fortified than the rest of the building, built to withstand a heavy bombing from anything less than a collapse bomb. Most of their weapons and ammo were stored in an on-site armory, which was located further away so as to prevent a single attack from cutting off too much of the building's important facilities. Located on the west side of the building, exiting towards the firing range, this armory was the most important stockpile that the Brigade needed to hold.
Due to the ferocity of the attack, however, the decision had been made to fall back and hold out in the fortified maintenance bay. While the girls had grabbed as much of their ammunition they could hold, MP41 had stayed behind in the armory to load up a wheeled cart with even more supplies that they would need. Much of it was boxes of ammo for MG42, who was distraught over her sister being missing since the attack started. The girl was no doubt going to do something stupid, and they needed as many supplies as they needed in case she did.
Working alone to load the cart, MP41 had left the door propped open for a quick egress back to her friends. She was small, but tenacity lit a fire in her heart as she rushed to grab as many supplies as she could. As she worked, she bumped her head on an open cabinet. Cursing herself for being so careless, she closed the open door and returned to her work. Her vision was a bit blurry afterwards, however, so she smacked the side of her head to hopefully jostle herself back into a proper working state. She needed to see if she was going to finish loading, let alone fight.
As she tried to blink her sight back into a normal state, something began to feel wrong. This wasn't a hardware failure; it was an electronic attack. Something close by was actively jamming her vision, and there was nothing she could do to fight it. Based on the facts, it must have been some sort of electronic jammer, probably a cloaking field made specifically for avoiding electronic sensors. While impossible for an idle camera or sensor system to pick up, a doll experienced in electronic warfare like MP41 could at least figure out a way to try and fight back. Her eyes blurry, she reached for her weapon on a nearby counter and immediately swung it around to face the open door. Scanning the room, there was an area that seemed to shift unnaturally in the light. Figuring it was an invader, she pulled the trigger.
Blood splattered across the armory and on the shape, giving it away as human. Cloaked spotters made sense, probably marking locations for artillery strikes without detection. While their numbers were yet unknown, it most certainly had to be more than one. If this was the case, there might be more of them moving around and causing havoc for the others. MP41 needed to move quickly if she was to-
The sound of a small metal object rolling across the floor made MP41 stop in her tracks. The clattering of the grande stopped as it touched her boot. Looking down, she couldn't help but feel a sense of amusement that once again she would be on the receiving end of an explosive device. What sounded like a thunder strike preceded the explosion, leaving her neural cloud a split second to wonder who would be firing a large caliber rifle indoors and at whom was it firing at.
Somewhere, a clock strikes 11:58. There are only two minutes left until midnight.