If there had ever been a night that Ayame should have been asleep by now, it was tonight. The stress of a match had always worn her out by the time she was home. Not that Ayame wasn't tired, she was just actively ignoring it.

She had been halfheartedly skimming articles on Dominion's past for a while now, hoping to find something that might be useful to understand how her school had fought. It was something she had done several times in the past, and almost always came out with trivial bits of information and little else.

By this point, Ayame had resigned herself to another unsuccessful attempt and crawled into bed. She aimlessly scrolled through her phone, feeling sleep slowly creep up on her.

Ayame searched the dark forest around her. It was dead silent, but she knew that somewhere out there, a swarm of tanks was hunting her. The moonlight was more of an ambiance than anything close to helpful. She stood on top of her M7's turret, straining to see or hear anything.

There was no one with her. Ayame was alone, standing on a shut-down tank in the darkness. No friendly tanks, no crew, no nothing. Her crew consisted of her and her alone.

A snap demanded Ayame's attention. There was someone over there. Someone just like her. Someone moving alone in the darkness. That someone might have allies, but she would be equally by herself, unable to see anyone.

Now Ayame could feel someone, or almost something, watching her. Their existence blurred the line between the two.

And there was more than one of them.

The feeling told Ayame that now was her time to go. She leaped off her tank's turret and felt herself drop. A soft glow radiated from behind her, and Ayame could feel her vertical speed slow. The bulky form of her tank disappeared as the comfort of warm steel pulled itself close to her body. She hit the ground with the soft thump of metal on earth.

A reddish gold streak zipped past her. Any sooner and it would have hit the tank that had occupied the space just moments before.

Ayame took off running. More flashes lit up the night, followed by a deep whump as dirt burst into a gritty cloud mere inches from her boots. All she had to do was outrun them. An M7 was faster than her hunters, especially in a straight line and with a head start. Just keep going and everything would be okay.

A distinct booming report thundered behind her, and Ayame instinctively spun herself 180 degrees and slid to a stop. She held her left arm in front of her body and braced herself. Her entire body jerked backward as the massive steel plate took the shock of the impact.

Recovering from the hit, Ayame outstretched her right arm toward her enemy. She kept the palm of her hand up and out of the way of her weapon, its end suspended just below her wrist. A distant flash provided her with a perfect aiming point. Her own cannon answered, the blast whipping at her hair. The recoil forced her arm back. She continued the motion that the recoil had started by turning back around and continued running.

More streaks of light flashed past. Some came uncomfortably close. One bit at Ayame's shield. Its sparks might have been pretty if they hadn't been part of her.

Must go faster. Really must go faster.

Ayame leaped off a small ledge and hit the ground below her, leaning forward slightly and pushing off with one foot and then the other. She was gliding over the ground like an ice skater, spraying up dirt in her wake.

She was going much faster now. Whenever Ayame sensed something bearing down, she could change course quickly enough to dart away. The speed blew her hair around in a frenzy. Her open field jacket slicked back in the wind; her skirt fluttered every time she turned.

Unable to turn around, Ayame was unsure whether those chasing her were still closing in. Even if she was outrunning them, their accuracy wasn't getting any worse. Ayame could keep this speed up for ages, but something was bound to connect at some point. Running wasn't going to work forever.

Ayame spun herself around so that she was still moving backward at a decent speed and outstretched both arms. Her cannon rang out once again; the pair of lighter weapons underneath the shield snapped and barked their rapid-fire harmony. A third mounted alongside the cannon crackled in bursts while the larger weapon reloaded.

Spin, shoot, spin, run, spin again. Ayame repeated this several times. She did her best to point roughly at flashes from her enemy.

On her ninth repetition, Ayame felt a sickening feeling that was immediately confirmed by a bright orange dot flying toward her. She tried to put her armored shield between her and her rapidly advancing end, but Ayame was much too slow to react. A blinding burst of light filled Ayame's vision. Searing pinpricks burned at her face, burrowing into the soft flesh. Blinded and in pain, she was thrown off balance and toppled back. Her head slammed against the ground.

The forest around Ayame ceased to exist. All sensory input was either subdued or simply nonexistent. What was once a dimly lit environment was now a dark eternity.

An unending emptiness left Ayame in a paralyzing agony. She could feel no physical pain. Instead, she felt the comfort of simply laying back and letting herself drop into nothingness. It would remove her from this stage of being. There would be no one chasing her, nothing to hurt her. The sinking feeling was almost pleasurable.

All at the same time Ayame knew whatever this was would mean something more than just giving up. Everything she had done so far would amount to a measurable nothing. Should she stay or should she go? Ayame wrestled with her dwindling consciousness as the sinking grew.

Ayame became aware of something outside of this non-existence that slipped through the cracks of the void. A new feeling of rhythmic shaking interrupted the emptiness. The shaking began to couple with a muffled thump as Ayame's awareness of her surroundings grew.

Finally, the blast of a cannon brought back the existence of the forest. A new figure stood over Ayame. She was unable to understand who this person, if it was a person, was. There was something like an invisible aura to whoever or whatever this was. Without even being able to see clearly, Ayame felt safe in their presence.

Details began to slowly return to Ayame's perception. The interloper had a rig much like Ayame's, with a smaller cannon. Its shots came much faster than Ayame could ever hope to manage. The wearer wore dark olive overalls. Her blonde hair fluttered every time her cannon went off, making it seem as though it was waving in a breeze. She stared into the abyss with piercing blue eyes, watching whatever was out there.

Ayame felt herself for anything hurt or broken. A small amount of red blood full of glittering metal flakes smeared on her hand when she wiped her face, but that was the extent of her harm. Her shield was warped, and an ugly gouge was taken out of the upper left edge. Aside from the fading numbness and sluggishness, everything else seemed fine.

Next to her, Ayame heard the girl saying something. She turned to see her mouth moving but could hear no actual words, only the rhythm of speech. The girl had changed, her hair now almost black. This was still the same person, yet her amber eyes radiated worry in a manner of a caring friend. A small necklace caught the light of a distant shot, blinding Ayame once again.

When Ayame regained her sight, her protector had changed yet again. This new form was shorter and was dressed in foreign military fatigues. She was once again focused on the distant enemy, taking slow, precise shots.

Ayame pulled herself up into a kneeling position and tried to make out who or what was out there. Deciding she needed light, Ayame searched her jacket pockets and came up with a flare. She struck the flare on her shield and tossed it into the night. A burst of red flame illuminated their surroundings in a haunting light. The eerie glow revealed several dark forms lingering on edge of the light, apparently blinded by the unexpected brightness.

One form seemed to appear from nothing but the black of the night itself and ran toward them. This was most definitely a person. They carried no rig and ran past the flare in Ayame's direction. As this person was illuminated by the flame, Ayame could see her face. She had a wicked grin and ugly bruises in multiple places.

Until now, Ayame's hunters had caused her no fear. She had faced this whole existence without being worried for herself. This girl, however, caused an immense feeling of terror and dread. Ayame locked up, unable to respond. She couldn't even raise her shield, let alone bring her weapons to bear. Her dread began to increase, morphing into pure terror. Whoever this was had every intention of ending Ayame in whatever way she liked.

There was almost no time for Ayame to think or act. Outside of seeming like death itself, there was very little she could bring to mind about this girl. The closer the horrifying girl got, the more Ayame resigned herself to her fate. She considered allowing herself to slip back into the void, to fall back into the coma where she would vanish, and everything would fade to black. Surely letting herself go would be preferable to whatever was running her down.

It was at this point Ayame once again became aware of the girl next to her. She had changed yet again, this time to someone who exuded confidence, but more importantly, protection. She stood up from the kneeling position the last form had taken. As the girl did so, Ayame saw a polished blade glitter in her right hand.

Turning her attention back to her attacker, Ayame saw her smile disappear into a wide-eyed look of terror. The attacker tried to stop running, but the shapeshifting girl was on her in moments. Frizzy red hair streamed behind her, looking like fire in the monochrome light of the flare. She jumped on Ayame's attacker, and the two disappeared into shadows.

Time seemed to stop. Ayame felt she could think again, as though she was able to take as much time to breathe as she wanted. There was no longer an urgency. It was up to her to decide when the next step would come. Doing so suddenly became a viable option as the numbness of the void had vanished. Ayame's full range of senses returned, and they were sharper than before.

There was no need to rush things. Ayame took her time in scanning the half-lit clearing before her. The dark forms of her hunters were clearer and more visible now. They were in no rush either, standing and staring her down, daring her to fight. Ayame thoroughly searched the shadows and noted where every visible opponent was. She found one in particular she felt needed her attention.

Okay. Time to go.

Ayame stood up in a similar way her protector had and stepped into the light of the flare. There would be no turning back once she made another move.

She bolted toward the dark form she had selected. Her run became a skating motion, and she began gliding over the ground as her speed increased to something none of her hunters could outrun.

Ayame kept her attention solidly on her target's face. The flare cast a bright light on the girl, allowing Ayame to see what she looked like in detail. She had blonde hair that hung past her shoulders. Her jacket was worn open the same way Ayame's was, but the jacket itself was different. She appeared to be surprised, although not terrified. There was almost some form of satisfaction, perhaps even admiration to her expression.

Ayame closed in and prepared to finally land a hit. She raised her arm, aimed, and braced for the recoil. Her cannon flashed with a brilliant, blinding light as the scene faded to white.

The white light of Ayame's dorm lamps flooded her vision.

"What the hell was that…"

Ayame continued mumbling to herself as she rolled over and sat up. Her dreams were always very active, and strange ones that were totally "out there" weren't unusual in the slightest. This one, though, felt like a drug-fueled thunder run through her subconscious.

She laid back down on her side. Her eyes naturally fell to the bedside table. An orange pill bottle sat there amongst the other random items. Ayame used her free hand to reach over and pick it up.

"They said your side effects might include a more active imagination, but I didn't know they meant you would start giving me casual drug trips."

Ayame tossed the small bottle across the room to her desk. It bounced off the lip of the desk and clattered to the floor. Ayame sighed. "Whatever, I'll get you later…"

Footsteps near the door almost gave Ayame a heart attack. Hiromi entered her field of vision and set the pill bottle on the desk. Ayame wasn't sure if she was still dreaming or not.

"When did you get in here?! How did you get in here?!"

Hiromi sat down on Ayame's chair. "You gave me a key months ago, remember?"

"Oh… yeah…" Ayame was still mostly asleep.

Hiromi eyed Ayame's computer. "Have you not had enough Tankery for one day?"

"Remind me what I was doing?"

"Looking through stuff about Dominion from years ago. You've got something about exhibition matches, a tab on the 41st National Sensha-Do Tournament... a couple of others."

"Well there's your problem," Ayame said. "Guess that solves one part of the equation."

"You were dreaming about Tankery again, weren't you?"

"Yeah, I guess," Ayame answered with a shrug. Being a living tank-girl certainly was not Tankery, but she wasn't exactly sure how to explain what the dream was.

Hiromi leaned over a little. "Was I in it?"

Oh, come on, what is that supposed to mean? Is she hoping that I say she was?

"Uh… yeah, you were there."

Mid-sentence Hiromi had somehow moved herself to sit on Ayame's bed without her noticing. "Aww…" she said as she hugged Ayame. Hiromi quickly let go. "Wait, was it a bad dream? Are you okay?"

Before Ayame had thought about the answer, she realized she was already talking. "No, it wasn't anything like that. Just a dream with tanks and stuff."

Wait, I enjoyed it? I did, didn't I? Okay, okay, whatever, it wasn't bad, just change the topic.

"Why exactly are you here again?" Ayame asked, hoping for something other than thinking about insanity.

Hiromi gestured in a way that made it seem as though the answer was obvious. "Our glorious vice president Eliza-bitch always shows up after a match to do whatever it is she does, so I didn't want you to be alone again. We both know what happened last time there was no one there with you.

Ayame nodded. She rubbed at her arm, remembering what it felt like to be alone and facing what seemed like hell on earth. The memory made scars burn like fresh wounds.

"Hey, don't worry about her, okay? If she comes around, I'll hold her down so you can beat her up again," Hiromi said with a wink.

"No… I don't like hurting people. Pain hurts." Ayame felt her mind start to go places she'd rather not remember.

Hiromi once again managed to get herself into a new position without Ayame noticing. Suddenly she was back in the chair, her feet kicked up on the desk.

"Uhm… Hiromi? What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Making sure you're safe. I'm not leaving."

It was way too late at night to care about most things, but it was never too late for Ayame to care about her friend. Having someone with her did keep Ayame from getting nervous and she preferred it be Hiromi if anyone. She moved herself to the far side of the bed.

"Get in the damn bed, Hiromi," she said before rolling to face the other way.

"You ah… you sure? I don't want anyone thinking-"

"It wouldn't be the first time you were in someone else's dorm overnight."

"Oh, shut up…"

Ayame felt Hiromi playfully shove her as she lay down in the extra space.

Normally Ayame was always a little on edge, but having Hiromi there kept her mind in one piece. Her thoughts meandered from the comfort of Hiromi's warmth behind her to what her school might have been like in the past, and who might have been in her place. Ayame wondered what she would be able to do that they didn't. She let her mind drift back to the relaxing idea of having a friend next to her and how nice it felt not to be alone.

The room faded to a haze, and Ayame was asleep in moments.

AN:
Hey all! I know it's been a real long time since I've updated, and for that, I apologize. Life, low motivation, and perpetually changing ideas on how to write the story all have been a factor in taking so long. But I'm back, and have at least two more chapters already partly written to be ready in the not-so-distant future. From here I now have a much better idea of exactly where I want the story and characters to go, so writing should be much easier the way it was when I started.

This chapter was something of an odd one, and I hope it wasn't too strange as to be difficult to understand or offputting. I intended the opening to establish that Ayame had fallen asleep and the second section was a dream before it got too surreal, as well as being a little bit more subtle than straight-up saying Ayame was dreaming herself as a tankgirl until after the dream itself. Hopefully that was effective and I also hope you enjoyed seeing some more focus on what have been secondary main characters for a while. If you have any thoughts on this or in general, feel free to leave them in a review. Each and every one is thoroughly appreciated.

Thank you to Minuteman24 and Mechanicalmechanic for helping to edit and polish this chapter, it's a hundred times better with your help. A mega-shoutout to the several people who have left reviews and kind words even while the story was dormant as well as everyone who still read a seemingly inactive story. Finally, an extra-special thanks to M for the awesome Dominion logo that is now the cover art.

That's all I have for now. Happy holidays and see y'all in early 2023!