A/N: This story is written for entertainment purposes and all characters belong to their respective owners.
Chapter 7: Rough Introductions
"I have been in some tense situations before, mainly tough ambushes during the Banana Wars... Those battles got me on edge and my blood boiling. However, when I first officially meet Riela that day when she held a knife to Kurt's neck, I felt a fear that I have never felt in a long time. It went through my spine and it gave me goosebumps. At that time, I didn't know who she really was and she emitted an aura of power and that scared me to my core. But I didn't show that fear to her, instead, I had to react fast to deescalate the situation before then got out of hand quick." Andrew W. Vandegrift.
"Ok, let's all just calm down here," Andrew said, holding both hands up, trying to calm the situation. The redhead/white-haired woman continued to hold the knife close to Kurt's neck, pressing it slightly to his neck. All the while, Andrew's left hand slowly reached 1911 that was holstered on his hip.
The woman then noticed what she had done and pulled away from Kurt. She was shocked at what she did and then looked to Andrew, recognized him, and saw that his hand was now rested on his pistol. She immediately sheathed her knife.
"My apologies! It's just that you were behind me when you spoke, so I reacted by instinct…" The woman said, trying to remedy the situation and her face becoming red. Before Kurt or Andrew can respond, a voice rang out.
"What is it, No.13?" All three of them looked to the voice and two people were approaching them. One of them was the man Andrew talked to before and following him was a young woman who looked ready for a fight. She wore armor over her chest, shoulders, left arm and left leg. She had kneecaps and elbow pads, black military boots and she had a belt that was lined with what looked like mini rockets. All in all, this young woman was ready for combat and by the posture she had and the wary look on her face, she is probably the most experienced Andrew has seen minus him.
"I don't think they are enemies…" The young woman said. Andrew was a bit surprised by the girl's tone. Her voice was stiff, with no emotion in her voice at all.
'It's like she has no more emotion in her. Well, war does that to you.' Andrew thought to himself and it was then he noticed the girl's hair. She had her hair in a ponytail with a cloth tying it and the pattern on it was Darcsen origins. Along with her blue hair, it confirmed she was a Darcsen.
'She must have seen hell if she is in this unit. Well, she is a Darcsen so I can only imagine what she went through.' Andrew thought to himself. He then noticed that she was staring at him and Andrew looked away. There was an uncomfortable silence between the group as no one was sure what to say. It was the man that Andrew met before that broke the silence amongst the group.
"So, it seems like we always meet somehow," The man said to Andrew, to which he smiled.
"Call it destiny or just coincidence. Either way, at least I do not have to deal with idiots," Andrew replied.
"Indeed, but now it begs the question, why are you two here?" The man asked.
The woman, who just a few moments ago was ready to cut Kurt's throat, began to stutter since she also had no idea who the men were as well.
"They, uh, they are…" Thirteen stuttered, unsure what to say. Kurt took this opportunity to formally introduce him and Andrew.
"My colleague and I were transferred to this squad today. Ku… No.7 and this is No.28." Kurt motioned to Andrew.
'Howdy." Andrew greeted with a smile, ignoring the blank expression from the Darcsen girl was giving to him.
'I'd like to speak to the captain." Kurt said, wanting to speak to the captain of this squad and get info on the situation with this squad. The three members of the squad were silent and the girl that threatened Kurt looked at the crowd. This caused Andrew to raise his eyebrows.
'Did something happen?' Andrew thought to himself as he continued to observe the situation. In Kurt's head, he was thinking the same thing but with different wording.
"Am I being ignored?' Kurt thought to himself as he and Andrew continued to wait for an answer from someone. Then the red/white-haired girl began to back up, giving a nervous smile and still looking at the ground.
"Umm. I… I'm really sorry! Goodbye!" The girl said quickly before running away, heading to a group of tents. Kurt rubbed his head in annoyance.
'What is wrong with this squad?' Kurt thought as he tried to collect his emotions about this squad. Andrew was also perplexed but not surprised.
'This reminds me of my old squad back home but with less swearing.' Andrew thought as the Darcsen man said, "I didn't hear about any transfer today. Is there an emergency?"
"Well, my old record finally caught up with me so there is that," Andrew replied, to which the man nodded. He looked over to Kurt, who looked a bit more apprehensive.
'Well, I…" Kurt then grabbed the Darcsen man and led him away from Andrew and the other girl and explained his situation to the Darcsen man. While this was happening, Andrew took this time to try and engage in a conversation with the quiet girl.
"So, how long have you been in the unit?" Andrew asked, curious as to the reason why someone as young as her was doing in a penal unit.
"..." The girl was silent, then just turned to leave. Andrew wasn't taken aback about this, the girl had a reason to leave but he called out to her.
"Hey, I know that look you have. For the record, whatever you are thinking in that head of yours it isn't worth it." The girl stopped briefly and turned her head slightly to glare at the man before continuing on her way.
Meanwhile, Kurt was just finishing up his explanation of his situation, "... and so in the end, I was transferred here.'
"Well, there are plenty of people here on groundless charges, and some not even for something as bad as treason." Kurt was caught off guard from that. He assumed that this unit consisted of criminals that committed crimes just as bad as treason but to find out that that wasn't the case surprised him.
'Seriously?!" Kurt asked. The Darcsen man smiled at Kurt's question.
"That's why I'm here. I'm No. 6. It's nice to meet you No.7." Six said, extending his hand. Kurt took his hand and shook it.
"I'm glad to meet you too. I am to deliver these orders from command to your squad leader as soon as possible." Kurt said, pulling out a piece of paper and handing it to Six. Six looked at the piece of paper and then back at Kurt.
"Our captain just died in the last battle. You said you're a second lieutenant?" Six asked. Kurt nodded his head.
"Perfect. Why don't you take command?" Six suggested. Kurt recoiled a bit in surprise.
"Sounds like a great idea." Andrew's voice rang out as he approached the pair, "You are perfect for the job."
"Me?" Kurt said.
"There are no other officers here and you have the highest rank. Do you have combat experience?" Six asked.
"I've fought in two battles. But I think And- I mean 28 here should be in command. He has more combat experience than me." Kurt said, pointing out Andrew's combat experience.
"One, I am not technically in this military and as a result of that, I can not take command. Second, I believe you will be a lot better to command. Trust me, you are ready for that task." Andrew answered. Six nodded in agreement.
"Then there shouldn't be a problem then, " Six opened the piece of paper, "Let me see these orders. The mission… it's today!" All of them were shocked. If the mission was today, then they wasted enough time as it is. Kurt took a moment to recover and then smiled a bit.
"It looks like we don't have time to dawdle. Fine, I'll take command." He then looked at Andrew, "But you are going to be my second in command. It would be great to have your input in planning our strategy in the future."
"Sure, why not?" Andrew answered with a smile on his face. Six looked at both of them and had a feeling that the squad's luck might just turn.
"You both will be perfect. Please take command." Both men looked at Six and nodded.
"I was transferred today by HQ. I am No. 7, and this is my second in command No. 28. Nice to meet you all."Kurt said, introducing himself to the rest of the squad. Kurt, Andrew, and Six had gathered the entire squad to the command truck to brief everyone on today's mission and by the look on some of their faces, they didn't know what to think about their new commander as well as their other new member.
"Hey, everyone. Nice to meet you all." Andrew said. There was a silence amongst the group, some of them eyeing both men trying to see what the deal was. Six cleared his throat and spoke.
"No.7 is a 2nd Lt."
"An officer?" One of the soldiers asked. He was wearing what seems to be the standard uniform for this unit, a black jacket, and pants with a white undershirt with armor plates on his arms and knees. He also had leather cover parts of his uniform and he was a bit more darkened than the rest of the unit, signaling that he might be from the Various Desert area.
"Yes, he is an officer," Andrew answered. The man looked at him and narrowed his eyes.
'This one looks like he doesn't like taking orders easily. Might be a bit of a problem but I dealt with these types before.' Andrew thought to himself as he continued to scan the group.
"These are our orders from HQ. Everyone listen up!" Kurt then pulled out a map as everyone gathered around the map. Kurt then pointed at the town marked "Vasel".
"Within 24 hours, we are to enter the town of Vasel and eliminate all enemy reconnaissance forces. Furthermore, as the Regular Army is currently engaged with the enemy's main forces, they'll be unable to provide support to us. They're relying on us for a quick and decisive victory… that is all." Kurt said, finishing the briefing. Everyone was quiet, many of them thinking the same thing.
"Another 'suicide mission'..." Another member of the squad said. This time it was a little girl with neck-length hair that was too young to be on the battlefield and her military uniform resembled that of a school uniform.
"Why's it always us? Tch." Another member commented. He was a Darcsen that wore chainmail armor over his uniform, probably for added protection along with some extra armor hinting he is probably the squad's heavy support expert.
"Um… can I ask a question?" A girl with short blond hair asked. She was wearing a tracksuit with her uniform, which had its sleeves cut off. An old lady, who was apparently part of this unit, stopped her.
"Forget it. You're better off keeping your mouth shut." The old lady said, "As long as you don't say anything that boy won't either… ha-ha."
"Ah, never mind then," The girl with the question said. This caused Andrew to raise his eyebrows.
'This is an unusual unit. Then again it is a penal unit so I guess weirdness comes with the unit.' Andrew thought to himself.
"Anyone else?" Kurt asked.
"Hehe." A woman giggled and her uniform caught Andrew's attention. Her uniform was similar to that of a french maid but she had a corset on over her uniform and she had some nice "assets" that were enhanced by the corset which caused Andrew to blush and look away. Andrew looked towards the one girl that he recognized as the unique girl and noticed she had a determined look on her face. He looked around and saw that the Darcsen girl also had a determined look on her face.
"Then everyone, prepare to move out. And follow my orders in battle!" Kurt said and the group dispersed. Andrew made his way to Kurt.
"You shouldn't have said that." Kurt looked at him confused.
"Shouldn't say what?"
"Follow my orders in battle. Soldiers already know to follow orders in battle and from the looks I saw many of them probably have a hard time taking orders. Especially from a new commander, they will be a bit apprehensive in following a new commander, especially one who doesn't know them at all." Kurt thought about that for a bit.
"You think they won't follow my orders?" Kurt asked.
"I am not saying that. I am just saying, be ready for some disappointment. From my experience, this can be bad real quick."
Kurt and Andrew were currently at the command post and waiting on a report from their scout. Kurt had sent No. 13 out to recon the area where the German reconnaissance unit was. Gallian intelligence stated that the recon unit was probably split into two groups but they needed to be sure. Kurt was looking over the map while Andrew was sharpening his KABAR knife when the radio came to life.
"This is No. 13 with a status report. The Germans are currently camped down and resting. From their equipment, it is the recon unit." Andrew put his knife down and picked up the receiver.
'No. 13 this is No. 28, is the recon unit at both locations that Intel stated?" Andrew asked.
"Yes, they are at both locations." Thirteen reported.
``Well, at least the boys at intelligence weren't wrong for once," Andrew said. In his experience, the intelligence reports were always taken with a grain of salt since most cases, intel tends to be wrong. This time, the intel was good. Kurt took the receiver from Andrew and put it near his mouth to respond.
"Roger Return to base," Kurt said.
"Sir!" And then the line went dead.
``Well, since this is a small recon unit it should be an easy fight for us," Andrew said. Kurt nodded his head in agreement.
"We will do an easy flanking maneuver. One team would take the enemy units near the windmill here," Kurt pointed on the map, " While the second team will flank the other unit here near these two bridges."
"Sounds good. Let's get this show on the road." Andrew said. Kurt pressed the transmit button on the receiver.
"No. 6, has the squad been deployed?" Kurt asked. There was a brief pause before he got a reply.
"This is No.6 I think it's best you come to the front yourself. It'll be faster to give us orders." Six responded.
"Makes sense. A commander should always be at the front, leading his men." Andrew commented. Kurt thought about it then answered.
"Fine then. I'm headed your way." Kurt then went to grab an M1918 Browning Automatic Rifle or B.A.R. The U.S sent the Gallians hundreds of these and thanks to Andrew's smooth-talking with the supplies officer back at the fort before they left, he was able to get Kurt one. Andrew readied his M1 and both men then hopped into a jeep and made their way to the staging area where their squad was supposed to be.
"What's this? What's going on here?!" Kurt exclaimed, surprised by what he was seeing before him. What was supposed to be a staging area, was stripped of all the tents or weapons it was supposed to have except for one tank. Also instead of seeing the whole squad there, Kurt and Andrew only saw Six and Thirteen.
"It's as you see." Six answered. Thirteen also chimed in.
"When I came back, all that was left was the tank." Thirteen reported. Kurt was in a state of shock. He couldn't believe this was actually happening. That shock soon turned to rage.
"Besides, No. 13 where is everyone else? Why wasn't I informed about everyone's status?!" Kurt yelled, his anger getting worse and worse.
"There is still one other person. No.1 is here." Six said, pointing to the girl who was looking out towards the enemy. Kurt, wanting an explanation, demanded an answer from One.
"No.1, where has everyone gone when we're so close to the enemy?! This was not part of the plan!" The girl was silent, not answering Kurt, who was getting angrier by the minute.
"I know you're angry, but now is not the time to complain," Six explained, "The enemy will be moving soon. If we don't act now, they'll getaway. What are your orders?" Kurt was now beyond rage, he was furious.
Meanwhile, Andrew remained quiet. He knew something would happen but this was a bit too much even for him. He remembered from his time fighting the guerrillas, officers thinking that they know everything and the squad just not wanting to listen to be sure to save their own lives. It happened in this case as well and Andrew decided to just observe to see what Kurt will do next.
'Let's see how the top student from Lanseal will handle this example of Murphy's Law.' Andrew thought, remembering Murphy's Law in that no plan survives first contact with the enemy.
"This is unbelievable! GRAHHHHH!" Kurt screamed and then did something that caught everyone there minus No.1 off guard. He pulled out a jar of candy from his pack then started eating the candy. This caused everyone around him to just gawk at him.
"Huh?!" Thirteen exclaimed, confused as to what was going on.
"What's up No.7?" Six asked, concerned that the new officer was insane.
"You ok there sir?" Andrew asked, thinking Kurt has finally gone crazy.
"Just give me a minute…" Kurt answered, continuing to chop on the hard candy. This went on for a few more minutes with the rest of the squad just looking at him with perplexed looks. Finally, Kurt stopped and took a deep breath.
"Ok, I have a new plan," Kurt said. He pulled out a map and everyone gathered around to look at the map. No.1 was the only one that didn't come over and just stayed where she was.
"The plan must change. With the number we have, we can't surround and eliminate the enemy. No.13 and I will head around to the right flank and wait. No.1, 28, and the tank will head to the left flank and attack." Kurt said. Everyone was surprised. They were going to take on a German recon unit, armed with a light tank and around twelve men. Even with a heavy tank, there will only be four infantry units to fight off a platoon. That sounded like a suicide mission.
"That's it?" Six asked, not believing that this was the plan.
"This is a reconnaissance unit. Their objective is to escape and return with intelligence. They will want to avoid battle and flee to the right flank and there…" Andrew finished his sentence.
"We can ambush them and wipe them out before they reach their main camp," Andrew concluded. Andrew liked this idea. By forcing the recon unit to fall back to the right flank, the single tank along with Andrew and No.1 should be able to eliminate the remaining elements of the scouting unit. However, Six was not convinced.
"Will this really work?" Six asked. He was skeptical about this plan. They were outnumbered and facing some of the most experienced troops in the German military.
"If you're commanding a small unit in enemy territory, wouldn't you flee in the direction towards your allies?" Kurt asked with a smirk on his face.
"Hm… I guess you're right." Six said, still a bit unsure but trusts Kurt. Kurt then began issuing orders.
'I don't want to give the enemy any more time. Begin the operation now!"
And thus, the first battle with Kurt and Andrew being in the Nameless begins. Hope you all enjoy the chapter and see you all later where we will see how Kurt and a few others will take on the Germans.