Day 1: July 7, 2062 | 1054 Hours | Base S09

"Commander Itsuki?" The pilot doll called out to her from the helicopter cockpit.

"Yes?" Juno answered.

"We're beginning our descent. Your adjutant is waiting by the helipad."

"Thank you." Juno took out her phone.

Using her phone as an impromptu mirror, Juno straightened herself out one last time. The glare from the light coming through the window made it difficult to see her violet eyes behind her round glasses. She brushed aside her chin-length hair that was as dark as the night sky and buttoned up the signature crimson coat commonly associated with Griffin & Kryuger commanders. Under the thick coat, she wore a white shirt, a black tie and pencil skirt, stockings, and black flats. Despite wearing the traditional commander uniform, her short stature and delicate appearance caused many of her fellow officers and employees to not think she was a frontline commander.

The helicopter shook when it finally made contact with the landing pad. As the engine grew quiet and the blades slowed to a stop, Juno bit the bottom of her lip and took a deep breath through her nose.

You're finally here, Juno.

Before she had time to do anything, the helicopter door suddenly slid open, and Juno was met with a young female officer. "Heyo, Commander!"

"AH!" Juno screamed, shot up from her seat, and bumped her head on the ceiling of the cabin.

"Woah, uhh didn't mean to startle ya!" The officer let out a little laugh. "Hopefully, you're not this jumpy during combat."

Juno rubbed the spot where she hit her head and carefully stepped down on the landing pad. "You just caught me off guard, that's all."

The officer, who was slightly taller than her, giggled before saluting her. However, her salute was laid back and playful rather than dignified and disciplined. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Commander Itsuki. Name's Kalina, but you can call me Kalin. I'm Base S09's logistical officer and your personal adjutant."

Kalina certainly didn't look like any Griffin officer Juno had met. Her hair was a vibrant shade of orange and tied into a side tail by a red ribbon, and her cheery blue eyes matched the enthusiastic energy she gave off. Rather than wearing the standard uniform, she wore brown heeled boots, tactical gloves, thigh high socks, a dark plaid mini skirt, a beige canvas jacket, and a white shirt which she wore with the top three buttons unbuttoned revealing quite a bit of cleavage.

While she wouldn't admit it so openly, Juno found Kalina to be quite attractive. However, that attraction was quickly dispelled by her. She wasn't here to ogle over women. She was here to lead the fight against Sangvis Ferri and help bring an end to this war.

Juno gave her a more formal salute with the weight of a well-trained academy graduate. "Nice to meet you, Miss Kalina."

Kalina noticed Juno's subtle refusal to call her by her nickname. "I must say, I expected someone a bit more intimidating to take command of the base."

Juno was insulted by the comment. "I can be intimidating if I want to."

"I didn't mean any offense, but you do look quite green."

Juno tried her best to hide her growing irritation, but at the same time, she couldn't help but feel Kalina had a point. Despite her outstanding performance in the academy, Juno thought she wasn't qualitied for such an important position. Overseeing one of the most vital sectors in the under Griffin control was a heavy burden to put on the shoulders of a commander fresh out of the academy and barely in her twenties. Even with the approval of G&K's co-founder and director, Berezovich Kryuger, the doubt remained within her. Nevertheless, while she didn't feel confident in her abilities, she had to at least appear confident to those under her command. Not only would they be depending on her, but everyone would also be looking up at her.

Juno cleared her throat "Anyways, shall we begin the tour?"

Kalina nodded. "Of course!"

Without even asking her, Kalina grabbed Juno's hand and led her to a nearby jeep. Sitting in the driver seat was a woman with her feet on the dashboard and a can of beer in her hand. She had short light-brown hair and wore a navy-blue jacket, a sleeveless white shirt, and a pair of aviators.

"Hey Grizzly! It's time to show the Commander around!" Kalina yelled out as she approached the vehicle.

The woman turned her head towards them and raised her aviators up to reveal her lavender-colored eyes. "Oh? Why if it isn't the Commander. Name's Grizzly MkV."

"Nice to meet you, Miss Grizzly." Juno shook her hand before she sat in the backseat with Kalina.

"If you ever need a driver, feel free to hit me up. I'll take any opportunity to just get out there and drive for a bit."

"I'll keep that in mind." Juno told her.

Kalina leaned into Juno's right ear and whispered to her. "She just wants someone to pay for her speeding tickets."

A can flew through the air and hit Kalina on the head. "I heard that!"

Kalina giggled with a mischievous look on her face. "Just keeping an eye out for the Commander."

Grizzly scoffed. "Don't listen to her. I haven't gotten a speeding ticket yet."

"Yet?" Juno said.

Putting on her aviators, Grizzly grinned and started the engine. "Sit back and enjoy the ride."

The first stop of the tour was a two-story building located around 100 meters from the main entrance. The first story was much larger than the second, and there were a few T-Dolls positioned at the sentry towers around it.

Grizzly slowed down, and Kalina extended her arms and proudly presented the building to the Commander. "This here is HQ! The command center, main armory, debriefing room, and your office are all located here. It's one of the most fortified positions for obvious reasons."

Kalina then pointed at several buildings around the command center. "Most of those buildings are empty, so you can choose what to do with them. Due to their modularity, it is quite easy to transform them for a wide variety of purposes. You can turn them into storage warehouses, garages, clubhouses, arcades, you name it."

As they continued driving, Juno looked around and noticed a few buildings were still under construction. "Why are some of the buildings not finished? I was told the base would be fully operational when I arrived."

It would have, but SF attacked the base not too long ago, so it delayed our progress." Kalina eyed the towering perimeter wall and the turrets placed on top of it. "Fortunately, they underestimated the combined ability of our defense systems and the girls."

"How many T-Dolls do we have on base?" Juno asked.

Kalina counted on her fingers. "We have… Thirty-two on base."

Juno didn't expect to have so many T-Dolls under her command already, but given the importance of Sector Nine, it wasn't that big of a surprise. "Can you send me their dossiers and combat reports?"

"Aye, aye, Commander!"

Juno let out a quiet sight. Why does she have to be so unprofessional.

The last stop of the tour was quite far away from the rest of the facilities. If they were on foot, it might have taken them fifteen minutes or so to reach it. This building was a large three-story structure shaped like a blocky "C" and was the biggest building on the entire base.

"This here is our final stop! We'll be going on foot from here on out." Kalina announced.

Once Juno got out of the car, she turned towards Grizzly. "Thank you for the ride, Miss Grizzly."

The handgun doll shot her a smile. "No problem, Commander."

Before she could react, Kalina grabbed Juno's hand again and started towards the building. Grizzly chuckled to herself as the two of them walked away before she started to drive her way back to the garage.

"This here is the residential building!" Kalina exclaimed. "Our rooms are on the third floor of the central hub."

Hearing the word "rooms" reminded Juno of her little dorm in the academy and the nice houses some commanders had when she toured a couple bases. "Rooms? Not to sound ungrateful, but I don't get a house?"

"While we don't have houses, the third-floor dorms are more like apartments with yours essentially being a condo. It even has a nice balcony that overlooks the courtyard and most of the base downhill."

Juno looked up to see the balcony Kalina mentioned. "Must be quite a view up there."

"Aside from the dorms, we have a dining hall, bathroom, gym, and even an indoor firing range. In the surrounding area there is an outdoor firing range meant for explosive or long-range weapons and some open space for you to decide what to do with."

Once they entered the lobby of the residential building, the two of them ran into a blonde-haired doll wearing nothing but a towel and a pair of bath slippers.

"Guten tag, Fräulein Kalina." The doll greeted the logistics officer.

"Hello, MP40." Kalina waved back.

Juno immediately caught MP40's curiosity. "Is she a new T-Doll?"

Kalina shook her head. "Oh no. Allow me to introduce Commander Juno Itsuki. Our commanding officer."

Upon hearing who Juno was, MP40 grew red from embarrassment, probably because she was half naked in front of her superior officer. However, while she was only wearing a towel, MP40 saluted Juno like a well-disciplined and trained soldier. "Hello, Commander! I am MP40, and I promise to do my best for you!"

Juno returned the salute. "Nice to meet you, Miss MP40."

MP40 lowered her arm and apologized for her lack of uniform. "I'm sorry, Commander. I was heading to the hot spring to meet up with my sister and StG-44. I hoped our first meeting would be…" MP40 looked down at the towel wrapped around her. "A bit more professional."

"No worries, Miss MP40." Juno reassured the T-Doll that she wasn't upset with her.

Kalina nervously fiddled with her thumbs. "Yea, I might have forgot to send the memo to everyone."

Juno looked displeased at her. And she's my adjutant?

Seeing the look in her eyes, Kalina tried to move on from the topic. "Anyways, you shouldn't keep your sister and StG waiting."

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Commander." MP40 saluted her once again before heading off to the hot springs.

"There's a hot spring here?" Juno asked as the two of them entered the elevator.

"Let me tell ya, it feels like heaven." Kalina pressed the third-floor button.

"You sure this isn't a Griffin resort?"

"Well, seeing how we're also living here, they wanted the base to not only be well fortified, but also a comfy place to live."

"I will say it is quite far away from the rest of the base. Do you drive down to the command center?"

"Sometimes I do take a jeep, but most of the time I walk since it's not too far away. Even at night, I don't mind walking, but granted, I don't have to worry about getting mugged or something like in the city. I know there were plans to build a transportation system too, but we haven't gotten to do that yet."

"At least you're getting a good workout."

Kalina flexed and patted her left calf. "Every day is leg day!"

Juno looked at her own calves which weren't as strong looking. "If I had to be honest, I like this kind of base layout over some of the underground bases I've visited."

"Same! I mean, those things are designed to withstand a lot of damage, and everything is close by, but I wouldn't want to be there if a collapse happens or something. The thought of being stuck deep underground…" Kalina shuttered, "I'll take the chance my room could be hit by enemy artillery over that any day!"

"Maybe I'll request some defensive measures to better protect this building in the case SF decides to fire on it." Juno rubbed her chin as she quietly said her thoughts aloud. "Perhaps some forcefields or even point defense turrets."

The elevator bell dinged, and its doors slid open, snapping Juno out of her thoughts. She followed Kalina into the wide hallway and down to the door at the other end of it. The adjutant tapped on the control panel next to the door. "This is your place."

The door slid open to reveal a spacious room with shiny wooden flooring. Across the room were two large windows and a pair of glass doors leading outside to the balcony. The left side of the room had a kitchen outfitted with a stove, oven, a combined fridge and freezer, dishwasher, a few drawers and overhead cabinets, and a dining table that could comfortably fit four people. On the right side was another door that led to the bedroom and a large open space that hasn't been furnished.

The bedroom door was wide open, and Juno saw a maid diligently tidying the room up. Kalina walked up to the door and cleared her throat. The maid quickly turned around upon hearing the adjutant. She had shoulder-length blonde hair with a long braid going down her back. Her eyes were a beautiful shade of aquamarine, but despite the beauty, a very strict and intense look resided within her eyes. Compared to Kalina, the maid appeared far more serious and disciplined.

The maid's eyes narrowed, and she began to inspect Juno from head to toe. "Who are you?"

Her intense gaze intimidated Juno. "I'm Commander Juno Itsuki."

The maid's eyes widened, and she swiftly bowed towards her. "I apologize, Master."

"Master?" Kalina and Juno said at the same time. The newly bestowed title took Juno by surprise.

The maid then began to introduce herself. "I am Gr G36. I will exclusively serve as your maid from now on, Master."

"Oh… That makes sense now." The explanation relieved Juno but being called Master would take some time to get used to.

Kalina looked around as she entered the room. "You've done a nice job getting the room cleaned up, G36."

The room was empty in its current state. It had carpeted flooring with a queen-sized bed in the middle and two windows, one on each side of the bed, providing a nice view of the fields past the perimeter wall. There were also two additional rooms. On the right was a bathroom and to the left was a walk-in closet. Kalina plopped herself onto the nicely made bed, ignoring G36's objection. Meanwhile, Juno headed into the closet and saw several uniforms in her size neatly arranged within the closet.

"Your uniforms arrived yesterday. I took the liberty of washing, ironing, and hanging all of them," G36 said.

Juno picked up one of the plain white shirts hanging on the rack. "Thank you, Miss G36."

Kalina popped her head through the door. "We need to get you more clothes ASAP."

"What's wrong with these?" Juno took off her coat and grabbed a hanger for it.

"They're boring." Kalina answered.

"What if I like being boring?"

Kalina rolled her eyes, but the sound of Juno's stomach growling interrupted the two of them. The adjutant giggled and pointed at Juno. "I think your stomach disagrees."

"You should get something to eat, Master." G36 told her.

Juno tried to reassure the maid. "I'm not that hungry. Besides, I still have my things to bring from-"

G36 quickly walked up to Juno and stared down at her with piercing eyes. "Don't worry about that, Master. I shall take care of it."

Juno gulped and complied with G36's order. "Miss Kalina, while I eat, can you gather up all the dossiers and combat reports of the T-Dolls?"

"Sure thing, Commander!" Kalina dashed out of the room.

G36 eased up on Juno and moved out of her way. "I shall tell Miss Springfield you will be coming for lunch."

Author's Note:

Thank your for reading the chapter!

This story started out on AO3, so it's much more further along there. Right now I'm working on editing and improving the story, so I thought why not publish on this site since I'm essentially going through the story chapter by chapter again. I aim to update with a chapter a week (maybe two or more if I can). Once this is caught up with the AO3 version, I will update it monthly since that's the pace I'm writing at for the newer chapters. Currently, the story is on chapter 36 with chapter 37 maybe coming this week.

I'm not sure if I'll include A/N's at the end of every chapter like in the AO3 version. I usually put my thoughts on the chapter like ideas I had, how I came up with the ideas, why I chose to do stuff, my goals, my worries, and sneak peeks into the upcoming chapters. If people would like to see A/N's then I'm more than happy to do so. I personally like them, but unlike AO3 where there's a dedicated part to it, I have to actually put it in the story, so it contributes to the word count. The limit on AO3 is 5000 characters, and there are times where I use all 5000.

For the story, it is an AU and there will be changes to the canon/mechanics of the world. I didn't want to copy and paste the GFL story with Juno as the Commander. However, there will be some parallels to the game story, and I try to stick to the characters canon personality as close as possible with some creative liberties.

Anyhoo, I hope you enjoy the story and feel free to leave any feedback or comments. I always try my best to respond to them.

See ya in the frontlines!

-Yuki