Flower of Oarai

by DomWeasel

What if Erika had been involved in the accident and had gone with Miho to Oarai? An AU where Oarai benefits from Nishizumi and Itsumi experience.

18. Fall Gelb

There were no observers from other schools today. Erika found that odd considering St Gloriana had watched all their other matches with apparent great interest but it seemed they hadn't felt the need to travel to Maginot's home port to witness this unexpected and ill-advised exhibition match. Perhaps that was why they hadn't come. They wouldn't have been able to hide their concern, or scorn. Even behind that veneer of British indifference they all adopted.

Capitaine Éclair sent her apologies but she was not feeling well and so she sent her lieutenant Fondue to perform the pre-match rituals. It seemed an inauspicious start for Maginot Girls' College but Erika wasn't convinced.

"You think she's faking it?" Miho asked.

"It's a great way to make us over-confident. Make us think we're facing a side lead by someone who can't think straight."

"I've heard she does get lots of stomach aches though."

"Even better. A plausible lie."

Miho giggled. "You're a very suspicious person, Eririn."

"And you're very trusting, so I have to be the paranoid, suspicious one." Erika declared and heard another giggle from behind her. "I heard that Jumpsuit Junior."

Tsuchiya giggled again and it wasn't like Nakajima's mocking laugh. There was an innocence to it that meant Erika felt rather mean if she threatened her the same way she did Nakajima. That was interesting considering she had no problem frightening the Bunnies.

Her new driver was finishing up with her gunner; rigging their light tank with a couple of speakers. It had been Yukari's idea to outfit the Macaron Company with speakers as part of an unorthodox strategy that Erika would have dismissed out of her old sense of professionalism had this not been an exhibition match. As it was, she thought Yukari's otherwise mad scheme was inspired, but she wasn't going to tell Yukari that. No need to feed the beast.

Their nine tanks looked perfectly presentable, if mismatched. Before they departed, the nine Maginot vehicles had looked quite formidable. Or at least their B1 bis, two SOMUA S35s and three R35s. The trio of Renault FT-17s looked very old-fashioned, to the point where they made their grandchild, Oarai's Type 89b look cutting edge by comparison. She wasn't sure why but whenever Erika looked at a Renault FT, she felt it was missing a funnel for a steam engine.

"Choo choo." She said absently, earning herself two bemused looks from her crew.

They had planned intently for facing Maginot. They didn't know if they would adopt their traditional defensive tactics or their new cavalry tactics that had failed to overcome Anzio so they would scout them out and then adopt whichever plan suited the situation. They had a clear advantage in firepower whatever the case while Maginot enjoyed superior armour for the majority of their tanks. The important thing was to ensure their tanks fought their equals. The 38(t)s would have to get within five hundred metres to fight R35s and could only penetrate the S35s in the flanks at that range; they would have to be point-blank to assail them from the front. The FT-17s meanwhile, Wolf team could take them out alone if they wished.

It took some time for them to reach their respective starting points as the French tanks were not quick and so Maginot lumbered into position while Oarai waited on their own French beast. Mallard team would not deign to show interest in facing a tank just like their own, but they were nonetheless intrigued. The similar design of French tank turrets also piqued everyone's curiosity which Erika put down to Oarai's insanely diverse line up. They only had two tanks of the same nationality, the Type 89 and Type 3, which showed a familiar pedigree while other schools tended to use one, maybe two different nationalities. At Kuromorimine, the evolution of the Panzer was evident from the Panzer I to the Tiger B. There was no need to worry about friendly fire despite the similarity of French turrets though; their paint schemes were very different.

The T-50 made a noise that Erika could only describe as a coughing fit and she glared at the back of Tsuchiya's head. The girl responded by making cooing noises whereupon it seemed just to spite Erika; the engine recovered. The engine had been suspiciously well-behaved for quite some time and so she was sure it was plotting a breakdown at the most inconvenient juncture. If it did, there was no power that could stop Erika from giving it the beating it deserved.

"Everyone. Everyone." As always it amused Erika how much more confident Miho was addressing the team over the radio than in person. "I know many of you don't know why we're here fighting Maginot when we'll be facing Pravda in a week's time, but that's the reason." Erika and Yukari exchanged looks. "We're going to have a tough time against Pravda, whatever the outcome, so I want you all to enjoy this exhibition match. This isn't about winning or losing, it's just showing what we can do and experiencing taking on a different school with different tanks and tactics to those we've faced before. I want you all to enjoy yourselves, like we did facing St Gloriana."

Erika wondered if enjoyment was in any way appropriate to describe the bunnies experience during that match. Or the Student Council. The only ones to really enjoy themselves in that contest had been Hippo team who had taken out a Matilda and learned some valuable lessons. And of course Yukari. Eliminating Rosehip's Crusader had earned her the mark of being the gunner to score Oarai's first kill in decades. Not that she had ever remarked on this. Erika was not going to be forgetting that crushing embrace from behind however.

"Relax, Fluffy."

"I am relaxed."

"Then put your shoulders down."

Her gunner realised she was hunched and let her shoulders drop. A great shuddering sigh escaped her as she realised how tense she had actually been. "It's like Nishizumi-dono said; this is only for fun! I don't know why I'm tense."

"Anticipating the real thing." They had to be careful what they said in front of Tsuchiya.

"T-34s and SOMUAs are nothing alike. Except the SOMUA commander has to be the loader and the gunner and the T-34 commander has to be the loader for the gunner."

"Just like I'm your loader." Even though if they could recruit others, she could have been free to command while Yukari enjoyed a dedicated loader for her gun. She looked around their cramped vehicle. "Russian engineering." She anticipated Yukari's next words and mouthed them with her.

"Soviet engineering! And the T-50 has lots of innovations even with its poor ergonomics. It had a three-man turret before other Soviet tanks!"

"I know. Funny isn't it? The Germans think to make a big turret so they can have a loader for their gunner and their commander can focus on commanding instead of loading. The Soviets think to build sloped armour to deflect shells and increase their armour strength. They had to learn from each other."

"So the Germans build the Panther and the Soviets build the T-34/85!" Yukari beamed and got that blissful look whenever she was discussing tanks.

"I wouldn't mind driving a Panther again." Erika mused.

"You got to drive a Panther?"

"A few times. Usually for target practice."

"What's that like?" Tsuchiya asked.

"Almost fifty tons. When you drive one of those, you feel like nothing could stop you. You can plough through buildings and only scratch the paintwork."

"And our Porsche Tiger is sixty tons!"

"I'm sure you'll have great fun deciding who gets to drive." Erika said, remembering the contest over which of them would join the Student Council. They would all want to drive the Porsche Tiger. If they ever got it built. "Maybe we should put you all in a boxing ring. Last girl standing gets the honour."

"We have our own way of doing things." Tsuchiya giggled.

"I'm sure you do. Wrenches at dawn or something."

Tsuchiya giggled some more and Erika thought of the direct system deciding tank roles at Kuromorimine. No question of letting them decide among themselves. You did what you were told. Ironically, it was that system that had seen her declare Yukari would be her gunner while she was the driver. Nakajima had then muscled her way into the position of driver while volunteering the rest of her clique as loaders. Erika was struck suddenly by the thought that if they did restore the Porsche Tiger, it would just be her and Yukari again. While gaining the power of an 8.8cm was definitely something they needed, it would be a shame to weaken the T-50. Finicky as its engine was, it was still the strongest of Oarai's lighter tanks. Not that a light tank would be much use against the might of Pravda and Kuromorimine. Maybe against Kuromorimine's Jagdpanzers and Jagdpanthers. Maybe they could make a run against them similar to the one they had pulled off against Saunders. With the poor turret traversal of Kuromorimine's heavy tanks, they could certainly lunge in, strike and be away before they could be targeted.

The moment she had dreaded came. The signal flare announcing the start of the match, followed by Miho's command to advance. The command wasn't the problem. It was Miho's choice of name for their battle plan. "Commence Operation Le Bilboquet!"

Usually their tanks immediately rolled out but this time there was a noticeable pause as presumably everyone looked at each other and shrugged as they failed to translate the meaning. Even Mako in the command tank.

"I thought the Hobbit was called Bilbo Baggins?" Tsuchiya asked.

"Different hobbit." Erika had her face in her hands. Did Maho get a cold chill every time Miho named an operation? It was never Typhoon or Dragon; it was Tippy-Toes or Jack in the Box.

"So are we following the same plan?" Yukari asked, knowing what they had prepared but not having heard of Miho's name for it.

"We're still the string."

"Oh, okay!" Yukari said brightly, and then frowned as she wondered if that was apt to describe their role. She wasn't sure. Erika wasn't going to correct her because her confused expression was entirely too amusing.

Operation Cup and Ball was very simple. Miho's command were the cup. The enemy were the ball. In order to introduce the two together was the string; Erika's force. Luring the enemy under your team's big guns was hardly an original tactic but it worked. It was unlikely that Maginot would allow themselves to be baited in such a fashion, not after losing to Anzio the same way but they didn't intend to lure the entire Maginot force. They also knew that Maginot would be wary of Oarai's more powerful guns. They would not set themselves up in a way that would give Oarai the range advantage.

"How's the hand?" Yukari asked.

"All my threats today will have to be empty." Erika admitted, flexing her fingers. "I may have to be less dramatic." She said and Tsuchiya giggled. "Something to say, Jumpsuit Junior?"

"I'm trying to imagine you not being dramatic. And as I jumped on you to stop you attacking a tank with a wrench before I ever spoke to you…" Even though she had her back to them, Erika could see her grin.

"I can't smack you." Erika warned her. "But I can order Yukari to."

"Ten thousand Yen or no deal." Yukari replied.

"Traitor." Erika said and her gunner beamed at her.

They had to find the enemy first so the Bifteck Company found a good commanding position and then hunkered down while the Macarin Company carried on. They weren't concerned about splitting their force because Miho's command had such advantages in firepower that they could hold their own even outnumbered. Erika's platoon could rely on their speed.

"I can never get used to this." Erika remarked. "At Kuromorimine, we only ever used one tank for scouting and everyone else moved as a single unit."

"That doesn't sound smart." Tsuchiya replied. "Moving as a single… Blob."

"That blob has more firepower and armour than any of the other schools." Erika pointed out. "And once the blob finds the enemy, all of them or a small division, they wipe them out."

"Sounds cocky."

"Kuromorimine has the power to be cocky." Yukari pointed out.

"Like Pravda?" The driver inquired.

"When Pravda breaks out its own heavy tanks and destroyers; yes." Erika considered the long history of clashes between German and Soviet heavy vehicles in the Kuromorimine-Pravda rivalry. Kuromorimine had always enjoyed an edge, as Sensha-do tanks didn't have the flaws of actual late-war German tanks that had impacted their performance in combat. They arrived at the Sensha-do arena in perfect condition and a match rarely lasted long enough for their flaws to be an issue, although breakdowns did happen and components did fail. "I don't think Pravda will come after us with their biggest guns."

"Just their scary T-34s." Tsuchiya mused.

"They have 45mm of armour which is better than most of our tanks anyway but the armour is angled so it's actually 90mm. Almost as strong as a Tiger."

"But that's only with a direct hit!" Yukari stepped in. "At a different angle, it's less than 90mm!"

"But you can only achieve that angle if you're firing down onto the tank and firing downhill is difficult." Erika remonstrated. "I've seen it with Panthers and King Tigers. And in this thing. That's what makes this such a powerful light tank. Not our gun or the thickness of our armour but that it's angled. Our armour stronger than its thickness and some hits we can just deflect. Those French guns out there aren't powerful enough to take us out at anything less than a hundred metres."

"Comforting." It was impossible to tell if Tsuchiya was being genuine or sarcastic. Fighting at such close range could get intense and most preferred long range. That wasn't possible in their light tank which was suited for close range brawling. Quite a bit of their planning involved pummelling the weaker Maginot tanks at close range.

"Why did Maginot want this match?" Yukari asked. "I can't figure it out."

"We're new, I guess." Erika hadn't been able to fathom it out herself. "And the Capitaine's apparently trying to prove herself."

"Do the schools with French tanks all have…" Tsuchiya searched for a polite term. "Issues?"

"Yes." Erika said flatly. "When BC Freedom was two different schools, their teams had issues between them too. They seem to really like to emulate the French habit of fighting amongst themselves."

"But then." Yukari said excitedly. "A girl comes along who unites them all and they become a fearsome force!"

"A Napoleon amongst the feuding marshals…" Erika mused. "And then they graduate and it all falls apart again."

"We don't know if Éclair's one of them yet though. But she let Anzio trick her so maybe not." It was as close as Yukari would get to being mean.

They reached the top of a wooded hill and paused to scan the horizon. Yukari used her binoculars while Erika viewed her unit. If Oarai had historically used German and Japanese tanks, it was a combination of Axis tanks and therefore not so strange; even if the two had never fought together historically. Her Soviet tank meanwhile had fought the Germans and its cousins had fought the Japanese too. But the Czechoslovakian tanks in German service had never met the Japanese. One Soviet, two German and one Japanese. The Type 89 was pretty much just an improved Renault FT but her other tanks and Miho's would be confusing to the other side. It was easy to formulate tactics against a specific type of tank and to a single nationality's forces, but when the enemy was comprised of a whole variety of tanks from different time periods and nations with radically different firepower and armour; it was confusing. There was a lot more to remember.

"There!" Yukari pointed and Momo, Nakajima and Noriko followed her direction with their own binoculars. Maginot hadn't divided their own forces into light and heavy because their SOMUAs were faster than the R35s which had lighter armour, at least on their turrets. Those French tanks were confusing machines with their odd mix of hull and turret armour and firepower. They were advancing straight on in an inverted wedge with the B1 bis as the anchor and SOMUAs tipping the prongs.

Erika reported in to Miho who confirmed the continuation of their plan. It was a mad plan. An Oarai-Miho plan with a hearty dash of Yukari.

"Is she treating you okay?" Nakajima called to Tsuchiya who blinked ostentatiously in a pattern in reply. "That bad, huh? You're a horrible person, Blondie!"

Erika shook her head. They called her dramatic but they had worked out an elaborate joke beforehand, suggesting Tsuchiya was blinking in Morse Code that Erika was a mean commander. It made sense. They were a well organised group. If they did get the Porsche Tiger together and working; they would be a powerful asset.

But Nakajima had still annoyed her so she got her revenge by yelling into her mic. "ACHTUNG!" Momo, high-strung as she was, dropped her binoculars as the cry filled her ears. "Prepare to move out!"

Noriko saluted her un-ironically. Nakajima's salute was full metal which made Tsuchiya giggle.

"You realise she's safe in her tank while you're stuck in this one with me?" Erika asked sweetly.

Tsuchiya meekly vanished back down her hatch and then the T-50 advanced with the distinct squeal of Soviet tracks. Distinct to her and Yukari's ears anyway. To others, tanks sounded like tanks but to them; every tank had its own sound. She realised she sounded like the Automotive Club with their assertion that every vehicle had its 'song'. She had the very alarming thought that she missed Nakajima. If that was the case then it was an intense sign of madness and it was a relief to give them the command to do something even crazier.

There were so many compositions they could have used for this scheme. It could have been the iconic 'Ride of the Valkyries' by Wagner or the powerful 'Mars; the Bringer or War' by Holst. But it was Yukari's plan and she wanted everything to be 'fun'. So it was that her Soviet light tank crashed across the landscape blasting ABBA's 'Waterloo'.

Whatever shreds of Kuromorimine dignity she had had left had definitely been torn away and her grinning crew members made it clear it wasn't coming back. The worst part was that the song wasn't even three minutes long and they were playing it on a loop. While Tsuchiya and Yukari's enthusiasm for it didn't dim, Erika felt like chewing through her own face. It was bad enough enduring ABBA at the bar where it was a perennial favourite but she had tried to keep her work and Sensha-do lives separate. Now they were combined and the only salvation she could imagine was the thunder of guns.

"It's very appropriate." Yukari said for the umpteenth time.

"I KNOW!" Erika screamed over the song. If Maginot were aware of the song's meaning, and many people weren't, they would realise they were being mocked. That wasn't the entire point but it was an effective bonus. It was always good to strike at enemy morale. There was already a touch of cultural and historical posturing in this match, given that Miho was commanding a Panzer IV, Hippo team had their StuG and the Oarai Student Council and Tanuki team were in Czechoslovakian tanks that had served in German service. There was a distinct France versus Germany feeling, despite Oarai's diverse line up. Doubtless, the French themed school would have played it up to fire up their crews.

"Do you think they've heard us?" Yukari asked.

"If they haven't, I'm going to kill you for inflicting this on me!" Erika declared as the song started up again.

"I like it." Tsuchiya declared.

"That's because you have no taste!" Erika raised her aching fist to the back of her driver's head. "If I ever hear this song again after today…"

"That won't happen." Tsuchiya replied. "You couldn't escape if you wanted to."

Yukari giggled and Erika stuck out of the cupola. The song was louder but at least she didn't have to deal with her Flying Monkeys. Instead there were frogs. Confused frogs.

"Noriko! Now!"

[][][][][][]

Maginot had broken off their FT-17s and a SOMUA to investigate the music, leaving the remaining SOMUA with the R35s and B1 bis. It was not a vulnerable formation but it was slow and their attention was entirely on the Swedish pop music blasting out from over the hills.

So the last thing they expected was a Japanese Type 89 flanked by a pair Czechoslovakian 38(t)s to come streaking in from the opposite direction. The warning the music came from a lone tank came too late.

Noriko was flattered to have been put in command. She knew that it had left Momo seething and Erika had spelt it out that she trusted the commander of the Ducks over all the Turtles. For her part, she had tried to argue that she should have been distraction but Erika had insisted on doing it herself. Her Soviet tank could deal with being outnumbered by whatever force came to investigate the distraction and even fight back.

Survivability seemed like an odd argument, considering she was asking Oarai's most thinly armoured tanks to attack Maginot's main force.

But they may have been lightly armoured but they were fast. So fast they were on the Maginot tanks in seconds and their three small guns cracked. They all had the same target; the remaining SOMUA. Sasaki aimed for the treads while the 38(t)s went for the left flank of the hull. The team of mechanics scored a direct hit, as did Sasaki, meanwhile Momo somehow managed to hit the B1's turret instead.

They dashed through the gaps in Maginot's formation, moving as fast as their engines would allow and she looked back to see the SOMUA smoking and flying the little white flag from its turret. The other Maginot tanks were manoeuvring and she ducked back down into the turret as they fired after them. They fired angry and at small rapidly fleeing targets.

[][][][][][]

"It worked then!" Saori beamed.

"Great." Mako's deadpan tone sounded far from celebration but Saori knew better.

"I'm sure Erika will be pleased." Hana smiled to herself, knowing how Erika would feel. She waited for Miho to correct her.

"She won't have liked playing ABBA like that." Miho had to use a great deal of effort not to laugh at the thought of Erika snarling in her tank as the cheery song played. Even though she had gotten better at dealing with Oarai's laidback and eccentric attitude to Sensha-do, this would still be hard for her to deal with. It showed just how much she respected Yukari that she would go along with such an unorthodox strategy. "But she will have liked they pulled it off without any hiccoughs."

"Was all that worth it for just one tank?" Mako asked.

"It's always worth it." Miho replied and heard more gunfire. She clutched her mic. "Erika, report."

"Angry toads think they can take on a wolf." Erika replied casually. "Now playing Track Two."

"Track Two?" Saori asked.

[][][][][][]

After playing the sickeningly saccharine Waterloo, the only way to cleanse themselves was with something that was completely the opposite. The classical Night on a Bare Mountain by Mussorgky was only appropriate; given it was a Russian piece of music and they were in a Soviet vehicle. It was also a distinctly terrifying composition whose inclusion in Disney's Fantasia with the demon Chernabog had led to generations of children experiencing nightmares.

It seemed an odd choice given they were in a light tank and being pursued by three other light tanks and a cavalry tank, making them the monsters to be feared but that was because they didn't have what Erika did.

An insane driver who cheered as she made their light tank drift around a cluster of trees and shoot away as if nothing had happened. With her driving it was tempting to turn around and take the four Maginot vehicles on solo but that wouldn't have been fair. Not fair to the rest of the Macaron Company.

The music was as much a taunt to Maginot as it was a means for the others to pinpoint their location. Unfortunately, the Maginot girls figured that out and broke off their chase to regroup. Disappointed, Erika turned off the music and with only the engine, it suddenly seemed silent.

"Should we go after them?" Tsuchiya was raring to go. It seemed after her time spent as a loader, she was keen to extract every last thrill from being a driver today.

"No… If it was just the Renaults I'd say yes." They would have been helpless against them. "But four against one are long odds and if they hit our tracks, we lose our advantage. We take the win."

"But we only got one tank!"

"A good tank. And now it's eight against nine and we're holding an even bigger advantage than before." It was time to report to Miho. "Captain, they didn't take the bait. The enemy is regrouping, probably in grid D3. We're to their west and the rest of the platoon should be joining us soon." She pictured Miho consulting her map and seeing that they were almost at a right angle to each other, with Maginot as the base.

"Hold your position while we advance." Miho replied. "Regroup first, and then get eyes on our opponents again."

"Understood." She said. "Noriko, did you get that?"

"Understood!" The response was a happy yip. "We think we're heading straight to you. That was where the music was coming from."

"Play something."

There was a pause and then a song she couldn't identify sounded loud and not far away. Coming straight for them.

"You're on the right bearing. Turn it off now." It would confuse Maginot who now would be associating music with attempts to lure them. "I can't believe this is in the rules." She said to her crew.

"Music is an integral part of warfare!" Yukari gushed readily. "It stirs the spirit of your own side and demoralises the enemy! A piece of music can mean all the difference between victory and defeat!"

"If we play ABBA again, it'll mean I'm having a stroke." Erika replied and both of them giggled. "They banned Gangnam Style at the bar but I still have to listen to accursed Dancing Queen night after night…"

"Could be worse." Tsuchiya said.

"How could it be worse?" Erika demanded.

"They can't play any Disney songs. Imagine having to hear Hakuna Matata all the time."

"That actually… Is worse." Erika considered and then smirked. "Though I would love to see Momo performing 'Part of Your World'."

"She wouldn't." Tsuchiya grinned. "Here's the others."

The unit reformed and without permission Tsuchiya jumped ship to go and congratulate her friends on their kill. Erika face-palmed for a moment before Noriko provided a welcome distraction as Shinobu parked the Type 89 right alongside them.

"I can't believe that worked!"

"Bait and switch." Erika replied. Maginot had scouted the source of the noise, expecting it to be a trap and not realising until it was too late who the trap was really for. "They'll have something to talk about at the end of the day."

"Look at us!" She waved at their collection of small tanks. "We charged into them, took one of them out and got away and they didn't even come close to hitting us!"

"They won't fall for it again."

"Who cares? We got them!" Noriko was clutching her turret, jumping on the spot and not for the first time Erika was struck by her resemblance to an extremely fierce and energetic rodent. It was a good thing her tank was as weak as it was. In a different machine, it would have been very hard to hold her back. If she had commanded the T-50, she wouldn't have hesitated to take on the FT-17s and the other SOMUA. Or like the British heavy cavalry at Waterloo; the entire French army.

"Go scout." It seemed the best use of Noriko and the other Ducks energy. Noriko didn't have to give a command; Shinobu had heard Erika speak and the Type 89 jerked forward.

"They seem happy." Yukari popped up beside her in the tight space of the cupola.

"Indeed." Erika replied and then blew at the fluff that was now in her face. Yukari was oblivious.

"What now?"

"That depends on Maginot, doesn't it?" They had different plans for what Maginot did next.

There was a relaxing lull where she attempted to exorcise ABBA from her brain but the earworm was firmly planted and reluctant to leave. Even Tsuchiya and Yukari singing the Tipperary song didn't help, although she was treated to Anzu joining in with the chorus which completely exasperated Momo. Yuzu meanwhile was beaming the whole time. Kuromorimine would sing but that was a strictly formal and solemn event that definitely didn't feature mechanics using spanners to jam along.

"Macaron Company." Saori always used the same tone when relaying orders. "What's your status?" She wanted to sound like a slick professional but she always came across as a bossy prefect. Sodoko in other words.

"You've reached the Oarai show-choir. To book performances; press 1. For signed autographs; press 2. For all other inquiries; press 3."

Saori's professionalism cracked… "Whuh…?"

"We're ready and waiting for Ahiru team to report in." Erika considered what she had just said. Her own professionalism was waning it seemed. "It's all quiet." She declared, glaring at the fluffy heads of Tsuchiya and Yukari as they once again sung about Molly and Mike Maloney.

"We're advancing to your position." Saori sounded huffy now rather than professional. "We'll be there soon." Erika guessed Saori thought she was making fun of her, having no clue what was going on at this end. It was hard for her to believe herself.

"Okami!" Noriko almost shrieked with her eagerness. "We can see them!"

"… And?"

"They're digging in. All eight tanks! Just like Anzio!"

"Where? What's the terrain?"

"They're in the woods on a hill."

Which meant they couldn't be bombarded like Anzio. Depending what Noriko meant by hill, it would also be harder for their long guns to score a kill. They would have to attack up the slope which added a challenge while aiming although it was balanced out by the added difficulty Maginot would face firing downhill. Maginot's plan was most likely simply to force Oarai to close the range and fight at a distance where their firepower advantages would be nullified. It was a risky gamble as the poor ergonomics of French tanks didn't favour a close range brawl where every second counted.

"What would you do to attack a hill?" She asked Yukari who turned and seemed at least momentarily surprised to be almost nose to nose with her. Momentarily. She turned back to think about it so that Erika raised a hand to push the cloud of hair out of her face before she was once again nose to nose with her gunner.

"I'd put the Panzer IV and StuG on another hill to keep them pinned down and then use the B1 to spearhead an attack."

"That would put our weaker tanks at a disadvantage." The 38(t)s and Type 89 weren't made for assaults.

"Do we have a choice?"

"We always have a choice." At least, you had to believe that. A good commander did their best to leave their opponents with few or ideally no choices. Éclair wanted to force them to attack her and in circumstances that would give her the advantage. She wondered how Miho would approach the problem; the Nishizumi way or the Oarai way.

"I think they're hoping we split up to attack them from two directions so they can attack one pincer with everything they have and escape."

"That would be the easiest way." Meaning how Maginot hoped to win. She tried to imagine herself in Éclair's shoes and what it would be like facing an opponent that used pop music as a distraction and impudently threw paper-armoured tanks against Cavalry and Infantry tanks with 40mm of armour. Perhaps she would think they were reckless and believe they would make a bold assault on her position.

Duck team kept watch and finally her company enjoyed a little quiet time that was naturally short-lived. The others showed up in a less than impressive fashion.

"Is it supposed to be doing that?" Tsuchiya asked.

Erika stood out of the turret for a better look and naturally Yukari squeezed out beside her and together they watched the odd sight of the Type 3 driving backward along the landscape with its turret spinning erratically as it took sudden sharp turns that spun it around. They watched it stop abruptly, hold still, and then lurch on backwards once more.

Erika pinched her mic. "Miho…"

Miho knew what she was going to ask. "They say their transmission isn't working properly."

"That seems like an understatement." Erika could understand they were stuck in reverse but not why they kept stopping and making the sharp turns.

"I think the throttle's stuck open." Yukari suggested. "They can't stop, when they hit the brakes it'll make a scary noise and that's why they keep moving." She giggled suddenly. "I know!" She popped back down.

For a moment she watched the Japanese medium tank's odd movements and then yet more music blasted out of her tank. 'Autumn Dream Waltz'. It fitted the odd circling motions of their new tank a little too well and it would be confusing the hell out of Maginot who would be watching the odd dance of the Type 3 and now with the music playing, would be wondering if it was genuine tactic of some kind that Oarai was playing. As if there was any reason why a tank would be performing pirouettes in a valley.

Yukari sprung up beside her again. "Fits doesn't it?"

"Very well." Unlike the two of them in the hatch. She had thought it before and she would likely think it many more times; Yukari had no idea of the concept of personal space. In many ways, it was surprising there weren't more jokes, rumours and innuendos about the two of them. She longed for the roomy German tanks of Kuromorimine. She also wondered why she didn't remind Yukari that she could use either of the T-50's turret hatches rather than squeeze into the cupola with her.

They sent the Tanuki after the Anteater and the other six Oarai tanks formed a wedge to join Duck team. Hopefully they would all be together again soon; she trusted the Automotive Club to fix the Type 3's issues quickly enough. If they could be fixed in the field anyway. It vexed her that that the Student Council would be able to point to this as a good reason for having this match in the first place. The Type 3 performing a waltz against Pravda would have eliminated one of their best assets and given the Pravda girls something to laugh at. Now perhaps they could eliminate the medium tank's transmission troubles.

As if it read her mind, the T-50's engine began to cough and they fell out of formation as Tsuchiya tried to quietly coax it back into good health. It disagreed and promptly died.

"We were doing so well too!" Yukari pouted as they dismounted and the gearhead opened up the engine housing.

"It works for us. Maginot won't know why three of our tanks have disappeared so they'll think we've split up." The pincer strategy Yukari had suggested earlier. "They probably don't know two of us are broken down and the other is working as a recovery vehicle."

"So they'll think we're trying to play them rather than just having a lot of bad luck all at once?"

"It's not bad luck." Erika told her. "It's this damn Russian piece of-"

Tsuchiya cut her off. "Less of the negative waves, Moriarty."

On the one hand, she was pleased to hear the reference. On the other, she didn't like being the designated 'buzzkill' of the crew. Even so, she scowled at the driver while Yukari giggled. She was even more pleased with the reference. She needed to have a tank movie marathon at some point; she could then hit Yukari with enough references to make her squee until her nose bled. No one could say she didn't take care of her crew's happiness then.

"What's wrong with it?" She demanded of the engine.

"It's just a bit too hot, that's all."

"Too hot?" She had to make a conscious effort not to raise her hands as claws. "We weren't even doing anything!"

"It just needs some extra love."

"How is she any different to Nakajima?" She demanded of Yukari. "It's like she's been briefed about how to wind me up!"

"You've been having the same complaint since we pulled our tank out of a hedge." Yukari pointed out.

"Because it's never worked properly since we pulled it out of that hedge!"

"It's worked plenty of times!" Yukari rushed to the T-50's defence. "It's only let us down a few times."

"That's what concerns me. It broke on us during the Saunders match and we had to get desperate. It probably didn't stop working on us when we faced Anzio because it never stopped raining."

"Exactly! We're going to face Pravda in the snow; it'll be nice and cool!" Yukari beamed at her and simply giggled when Erika raised her hands to strangle her. There was looking on the bright side and there was relentless optimism.

"I'm going to talk to Miho." She declared and left them to it. She wasn't even sure what to ask Miho at this point. Miho was probably as exasperated as she was with the Type 3 and now the T-50.

Not so much as it turned out. "It's no problem, Eririn. The wait may unsettle Maginot."

"Maybe." Erika couldn't agree. "What are they doing?"

"Waiting. Watching."

"What are you doing?"

"The same. Perhaps they think we're planning a flank attack. We won't though; they'll just attack the weaker force."

She was pleased. "That's what we were thinking. What is the plan then?"

"Hopefully we all regroup, and then we decide the best way to assault their position."

"You don't think they'll try to go mobile again?"

"They've already lost one tank. And they know we're faster than them and we can outrange them. If I was in their shoes, I'd try for a close-quarters brawl."

"We're better suited for that too."

"We have a stronger side." Miho said it with surprise. Considering their mismatched and underwhelming designs, it was odd to say they were the stronger team. The two 38(t)s and Type 89 were balanced by the Renault FT-17s. The T-50 had comparable armour to the R35s and Somuas with similar armament while the M3 had stronger armour and a better gun. The Panzer IV and Type 3 had weak flank armour but more powerful weapons. The StuG had much greater firepower than their B1 bis.

Tanuki team requested their assistance and so they re-joined the Captain and the rest of the Oarai force while she had her face buried in her palms. She couldn't imagine a more ignominious arrival than towing one of their tanks. The 38(t) and T-50 dragging the Type 3 along looked ludicrous, especially with the Type 3's long gun making theirs look small and puny.

They had fixed the Type 3 in the sense that it would no longer roam the countryside in reverse and at will. It wouldn't move at all now. It was disabled but the mechanical issues didn't count as an elimination because it didn't affect the tank's fighting ability. They could drag it into position and it could serve as a static emplacement. Kuromorimine had experience of this when the steering gear broke on their heavy tanks. But hauling a King Tiger into place had a kind of dignity to it. There was none to be found doing the same with a Type 3.

The hill that Maginot had chosen wasn't high but it was flat. They weren't dug in at the edge but further back, out of view from the slope and visible from the other hill they put the Type 3 on. The StuG or Panzer IV might been able to makes kills at that range, but it would have taken gunners with a lot more experience than they had. They would have to attack Maginot directly with the Type 3 watching for any move they made.

"I don't like this." Erika declared.

"We could wait them out." Miho replied and she could almost hear her smile. Miho knew she was too impatient for that.

"It's Maginot. They're more patient than we are." It sounded better than 'I'd get bored and kill everyone if I was made to wait.' It was also true. Maginot had spent years following a defensive doctrine and waiting for the enemy to come to them was second nature to them. Meanwhile what Oarai would have to do now was second nature to her and Miho as Kuromorimine students. In the words of the Red Baron, 'Find the enemy and shoot him down. Anything else is nonsense.'

Arikui team relayed Maginot's dispositions so they could match tanks as closely as they could. The 38(t)s and Type 89 were best suited for the FT-17s and then it became harder to fit them together. Maginot's B1 bis required the StuG. The remaining SOMUA and R35s would be dangerous at close range. They would all be equals up close. During the first exchange anyway; after that the advantage would swing to the tanks with dedicated loaders.

They formed up according to what they would face with Anteater team keeping watch to ensure Maginot didn't redeploy to match their alignment. It struck Erika that this was often how Sensha-do matches played out and regardless of the teams, it was always tense and frantic. In actual war, they would call an air or artillery strike on the defensive position. They had no option but to attack with their tanks and fight at ranges where armour was inconsequential. It was often a choice tactic when facing Kuromorimine or Pravda's heavy tanks. A long range duel would favour the heavy tanks with their big guns and heavy armour so taking their chances at close range was better than being picked off. It still favoured the heavy tanks though.

Anteater team told each and every individual tank where the closest enemy vehicle would be when they reached the top and then they hoped for the best. Oarai began to advance slowly up the hill and Erika found it grating. She realised that at Oarai she had always enjoyed considerable freedom in her light tank. She had rarely been tied to the other tanks and she had gotten used to the speed of the T-50. When the engine wasn't playing up, they had a nimble machine. It was nothing like being tied to Kuromorimine's panzerkeils. Yukari felt the same way, bouncing with anticipation in what passed for her seat in their Soviet machine.

"Should we play more music?" She asked.

"Not this time." It would simply announce where they were. At this point there was no music that could affect Maginot's morale; they would already be as tense as they could be waiting for the Oarai machines to crest. There was a brief moment when a tank reached the top of a steep incline where its belly was exposed but it was only a moment. The Type 3 was watching for them, ensuring that none of them were headed directly for a Maginot machine but it was still a risk. "Get ready."

They had considered using smoke to mask the moment when they reached the summit but that would make little difference. They would still be vulnerable. If this had been more than an exhibition match they would have done it for even the slight advantage.

"What is it they say?" Yukari asked softly. "'For what we are about to receive.'"

Tsuchiya didn't hold her nerve and suddenly made them leap forward so that Erika felt her heart rise up into her mouth before the tank struck the ground. Yukari let them settle and then fired at their designated target; one of the R35s. Maginot had managed to dig deep enough to produce a decent spoil to hide the hull but Yukari was an excellent gunner with an encyclopaedic knowledge of all tanks. The R35 had a relatively narrow turret that made a hard target except to the left of the cannon which presented a surface of just twenty-eight degrees. A small target but one that Yukari managed to strike and the firing of the 45mm told Tsuchiya to make them move and as the nimble Soviet machine lurched forward, a shell cracked off their left cheek.

Their kill was a small piece of the wider drama but Erika couldn't afford to let her curiosity distract her from the immediate threat. They had been on the far right and had hit the leftmost of Maginot's tanks. Even though Maginot's machines were just as strong in the flanks as in their front, it was still her first instinct to flank them. Tsuchiya's too. She loaded for Yukari as fast as she could.

"Halt!" Yukari commanded and Tsuchiya skilfully stopped them without letting the tank slide and the tracks slip. Yukari had already found her next target, turning the turret as they drove to make up for the slow traverse rate and she adjusted her aim and fired. Erika loaded a fresh shell as Tsuchiya drove on. If they had another crewman to act as a loader, leaving her free to command, they would have had a highly efficient machine. Given how cramped it was with just the two of them in the turret, Erika half-appreciated having to double as the loader rather than having two girls jostling her thighs. "Halt!" Yukari commanded again and they took another shot.

[][][][][][]

Maginot had decided not to dig in their B1 bis so that it might use both its guns. As such the 47mm turret cannon and casemate 75mm howitzer greeted the StuG almost simultaneously. The howitzer shot was misjudged against the sleek tank destroyer and passed overhead. The 47mm however struck a serious blow, striking the 7.5cm cannon moments before Saemonza fired. The StuG's own shell proceeded to shatter the gun.

Hana's 7.5cm cannon blasted the remaining SOMUA out of the contest and Miho commanded her to aim for the B1 bis next. The B1 bis was doing the same to them, the turret turning toward them and then the heavy French tank rang twice as it was hit by its Oarai brother. Hana couldn't see if it was eliminated so she made sure.

The contest between the FT-17s, the 38(t)s and the Type 89 was short and brutal. Duck and Turtle teams were eliminated the moment they reached the top of the hill. The Tanuki was not hit and knocked out its immediate opponent before accelerating. It cleared the distance before the Great War tanks could reload and they blasted a second at such close range that Nakajima could have leaned out of the turret and touched the French tank. It put the surviving FT-17 on the other side of its knocked out triplet and that served as a perfect shield. The Maginot gunner hesitated to fire and embarrass themselves by striking their friends, even if they were already knocked out. They were quite helpless as the Tanuki took a third shot and brought their kill total to three FT-17s and a SOMUA. The three girls inside the Czechoslovakian tank might well have combusted with their pride and joy in their accomplishment.

Rabbit team had a similar reaction in their M3. They had achieved kills in their training sessions but they hadn't succeeded in any of their matches. Facing Saunders they had been shot in the back. Against Anzio they had fired against distant enemies they could barely see in the downpour and then contributed to a mass bombardment before then vainly attempting to eliminate the Anzio flag tank as it attempted to eliminate theirs. Now they finally had a kill. They couldn't name the French tank they had taken out with their twin guns but they could still say they had eliminated a Maginot tank that had hit them first.

[][][][][][]

Miho met with Éclair to exchange congratulations and commiserations. Erika also had a meeting of her own to conduct, one which had seen her bodily drag Nakajima away from her celebrating clique to the StuG. She already knew the answer but she had to ask the question anyway. "Can you fix that?" She pointed at the 7.5cm cannon that was splayed open.

The answer was simple. "No." And Nakajima looked frightened for having to say it. To say the obvious which was that the cannon was destroyed.

Her right hand was still sore but her left hand was fine. Strong enough for her to pin Anzu to her tank by the throat and to shrug off Momo, Yukari and Yuzu who tried to intervene. "You wanted this match. You tell me you can get this replaced before we face Pravda!"

Anzu could only gurgle in response, turning a bright crimson red.

"Erika…" Yukari didn't try to pull her arm away; she just placed both her hands on it.

Erika was well acquainted with shame now and the tears that had sprung into the diminutive president's brown eyes as she throttled her consumed her with it. She released her and the little red-haired girl collapsed, clutching her neck. Momo and Yuzu immediately fell down with her. Erika turned away and Yukari clung to her and whispered a whole bunch of platitudes that meant very little after she had just strangled a girl off her feet. She shook her off.

The headache she had been suffering almost perpetually since she had spoken to Yuzu in her apartment came back with a vengeance and it brought with it Captain Éclair's stomach ache. She wanted to throw up. They would face Pravda in a matter of days and one of their best assets was almost certainly out of commission; one of only two guns they possessed that was guaranteed to penetrate the sloped armour of T-34s as well as posing a real danger to IS-2 heavy tanks.

Miho had an uncanny resemblance to Maho after taking in the wrecked StuG's armament, an incapacitated Anzu and Erika dry-heaving behind the T-50. That implacable expression looked odd on Miho though it was notable that Miho wore it while assuming her defensive posture of clutching her fists to her chest.

"Are you okay?" She asked and then clarified. "Are you going to be sick?"

"No." She didn't even know why she was heaving. Unless it was because Oarai's already limited chances against Pravda had just gotten far worse and any real hope of winning had effectively evaporated, making all their efforts completely meaningless, and it was all because of one shot. One shot in the worst place. And she had attacked another girl. Not in a horseplay fashion either, she had actually assaulted her.

"We might be able to replace it in time." Miho continued to wear her Maho face, even as she clutched her fists tighter to her chest.

Erika laughed bitterly. "We source the funds for a new cannon, buy it and get it delivered, all in less than a week?"

Miho swallowed. "Then we'll figure out a new strategy."

"We didn't even have a strategy before! Without the StuG, our best gun is the Panzer IV and they'll have a dozen just like it and others even better!"

"We beat Saunders." Miho said. "They had us outnumbered and outgunned too."

Despite everything she still reached out a hand to claw at Miho. "How can you still be optimistic? How?! The StuG is fucked! The Type 3 will break down again! My tank will break down! That leaves you with two light tanks, a medium tank that's worse than those light tanks and two giant targets that can only pierce a T-34 at close range. Are you going to do everything by yourself, Miho?" She clasped her left hand tightly around Miho's. "Is that it? Are you going to save Oarai with one Panzer IV, Nishizumi?"

"If I have to." Miho declared steely and then put her hand over Erika's and spoke softly. "But it would be easier if you help me."

"No. Not this time. I'm done."

[][][][][][]

It was easy to call in sick at work. Easy to skip school. It was not so easy to avoid someone who could knock on the wall and call through it after being ignored knocking on the door. Miho was persistent. Yukari even more so. But she ignored both of them and there was only so long they could bang on the door before the other residents complained and told them to knock it off.

Koume

I work at a karaoke bar. I play the part of the MC. I sing for the customers, to inspire them to take a turn, and then I compliment or mock their performances. Mostly I mock, and they love it. Turns out if you put a mic in my hand, my mean quips are entertaining and not so mean. They pay me to sing and to mock. I like singing. I always have. That must be shocking to you. Singing is such a frivolous thing at Kuromorimine. When we sang there, it wasn't for fun or to inspire ourselves; it was just conducting a ceremony. I always scared I might start singing to myself there and everyone would never let me forget it. I would have been the 'Singing Driver' and the commanders would have been ordering me to sing so they could laugh at me for it. I like my job. I even like that the rest of the Oarai Sensha-do team know about it. They even became regulars, just to hear me sing. But I'm me so much that when they say nice things about my singing, I get so embarrassed I want to punch them in the face.

I got angry the other day and hit a table. I didn't break anything but my hand's still sore. Typing this makes my hand ache. That's how hard I hit the table because of how angry I was. And I didn't stop being angry. Our school President organised an exhibition match against Maginot, days before we face Pravda and one of our best vehicles was damaged and we can't fix it in time. Without it, we're pretty much toothless against those Pravda medium and heavy tanks. And I was so mad at the President I strangled her. Not like a funny Simpsons strangle. I mean I choked that girl so she couldn't breathe.

I've always been an angry person. Passionate would be a nice way to put it but really, I'm just angry. So angry I'm committing crimes now. I guess the only reason I'm not in serious trouble for it is because the school President feels it was her fault.

Not that that in any way justifies what I did.

I've been hiding in my room for a few days. Because I'm ashamed. I've a lot to be ashamed about. I was a horrible person to Miho when she was Vice-Captain at Kuromorimine. So many of us were. Right up until she started drowning saving you, all I cared about was winning a sports tournament and how she had cost us that by abandoning her tank. Miho saved your life and I was angry at her. It took me seeing you retching water on the shore and Miho being swept away to realise what was important. And that's why I'm so angry all the time. No one will yell at me, especially here, so I have to.

You're going to face Pravda in the finals now.

Erika

She wrote it out and then fought the urge to delete it all. She sent it before she could change her mind. And dreaded the response.

[][][][][][]

Miho and Yukari's knocking came with a lot of talking but this knock was a relentless machinegun of tapping that came with no speech. She ignored it as she had the others but when it didn't stop for a full twenty minutes, her curiosity overrode her ability to tune it out. She knew it wasn't Miho and even with her penchant for sneaking about, she didn't think Yukari would be loose after ten o'clock at night. She pointedly jerked the door open.

"Thanks, my hand was getting numb." Anzu said huskily.

She was the last person Erika had expected to see and that astonishment allowed the smaller girl to push past her into the apartment before she could recover. Anzu looked around and that movement, or lack of it, twigged to Erika what was off about her appearance. Her typical twintails were gone and her red hair hung loose instead. As she turned back to face her, she momentarily flicked her hair off her neck so Erika could see the bruises and then tossed it forward to act like a scarf.

"They said you were hiding away. I told them to give it a couple of days, give you your space, and it's been four so here I am. Momo didn't want to come because she thought you might finish what you started. A lot of people have said they wanted to kill me but you're the first to ever actually try!"

"I'm not in the mood for jokes."

"I'm not joking." Anzu beamed. "I really thought you were going to kill me!" Her typical jokey manner was lost in her rasping voice. "I probably deserve it too, if I hadn't signed off on that match, Kaba team wouldn't have taken that hit and we wouldn't have lost one of our best tanks! And the Type 3 doesn't look like it'll be fixed in time for the next match either, so we're doubly fucked!"

The curse came unexpectedly from the small girl and the cheery manner in which she declared it, even in her husky voice, was jarring. "Are you drunk?"

"Noooo!" Anzu waved her hand. "I am hungry though. I've eaten nothing but soup and ice cream for days."

"Are you trying to make me feel guilty?"

"A bit. Yes." Anzu waved her hand again. "But what does it matter now? Our chances were already pretty slim and now they're practically non-existent! The dream is dead." She sat down and gazed at Erika with an odd little smirk.

"You sure you're not drunk?"

"I've never drank. Drunk? Drinked?" She giggled. "I know you're the expert though."

"I did my best to drink myself to death. In a classy German wine way anyway… Is that why you're here? Do they think I've locked myself away with a lot of bottles?"

"I'm here because a lot of people are scared. The girls who saw what happened, they realised the difference between you being play-angry and actually angry. I only realised it when you told us to get out. I didn't know how scary someone speaking quietly could be until then, and then you broke your hand on my desk!" Anzu stopped to clear her throat. "It's funny when you're shouting and you're threatening to beat your tank with a wrench. It's not so funny when you're crushing someone's windpipe."

The nonchalance and disconnection in the way Anzu described the injury that had been inflicted on her made Erika shudder and then peer into her eyes. She said she wasn't drunk and her pupils were normal so she wasn't on any calming drugs and that only left disassociation. That was not a better option than drugs or alcohol.

"The others have figured out that the semi-finals mean more than just a revival team making a spectacular comeback. You, me, Momo, Yuzu, Nishizumi, Akiyama; we're all too invested in it for that. They don't know why and they want to know why."

"We did say we would tell them."

"How do we tell them now? How can they believe in an impossible goal when their leaders think it's impossible too? Enough for them to try and kill each other?"

"I WASN'T-" Erika caught herself. "I wasn't trying to kill you! I was just angry and I wasn't thinking!"

"It felt like you were trying to kill me." Anzu said simply. "And it looked like you were trying to kill me. Even if I earned it, I still only started talking again yesterday."

"Do you want me to say sorry?"

"Oh, what's the point in that?" Anzu waved her whole arm dismissively. "I think you shutting yourself away in here is a better apology than any silly words."

"That's why you think…"

"Sure!" Anzu chirped. "Twenty percent upset that the cause is lost. Eighty percent that you nearly killed me for it."

"Will you please stop saying that?"

"Nah, every time you wince I feel better. Sometimes two wrongs do make a right." She declared.

"You're insane."

"A bit. We've all been insane for a while now." Anzu mused and then pointed at her. "You know what pushed me over the edge though? What really did it for me? Momo and Yuzu sourced us a new gun for the StuG using our… Contacts. Just what we need and within our budget! But, and this is best part, you'll love this, it can't be delivered until eight hours after the match has started!" Anzu grinned. "Isn't that amazing? They were so proud of how quickly they could get it to us and we had to tell them that it still wasn't fast enough." She giggled quite madly. "Unless you know how to slow down time?"

"…No…"

"Shame." Anzu patted her knees. "We could really have used that superpower." She reached into her pocket and came out empty-handed. "So we'll just have to figure something else out."

"Something else."

"We still have eight functional tanks. While you've been brumating, the gearheads fixed the Type 3. So now we just need to figure out how to win with the tanks we have."

Erika stared at her and Anzu stared back with a gentle but somewhat bemused smile. She had said the Type 3 was still broken and now she had said it had been mended. She either didn't know what she was saying. Or she did. "I think I actually am going to kill you now."

"Maybe the chances of us beating Pravda are thousands to one. But there's still the one chance."

"Do you really believe that?"

Anzu shrugged with her odd little smile. "I know we'd both prefer to go out fighting. Though it's not Pravda I want to kick in the face." Her smile became more than a little feral. "What is the penalty for attacking a government employee?"

"With or without your tank?"

"It's something to consider." Anzu reached for her pocket again but she had no sweet potatoes on her because she couldn't eat them. "But tell me you and Nishizumi can come up with some kind of viable plan to beat Pravda."

"How many times do I have to tell you? We had two tanks guaranteed to kill T-34s at range. Now we don't. And the tanks we have left would have to be right on top of them to kill them. I know what you're thinking; we beat Saunders despite them having bigger, better tanks. But the T-34s Pravda will bring outclass M4s. Saunders could have brought their top-class Shermans but their Captain likes the M4. Katyusha will bring 85s at us. Not because she'll think we're a threat but because Pravda always brings 85s."

"You're a very negative person, Itsumi."

"We've had this conversation before."

"And you seemed to take beating the odds as a personal challenge."

"Well that's my problem, isn't it?" Erika replied. "I always need a cause to throw myself into it. I was fanatic about proving Kuromorimine's superiority and then I became fanatic about fighting for this school. And then when circumstances I can't control make it all fall apart, I fall apart too."

"You really have given up then."

"Sometimes you have to know when to give up."

"Nishizumi hasn't. Your bestie hasn't."

"Well they're both sickeningly optimistic." Erika replied dryly.

"How about this then? We're going to face Pravda with or without you, and if we lose, how long do you think you'll spend asking yourself whether you could have made a difference? Or rather, how long will your ego beat you up about how you could have made all the difference?"

"You're a manipulative little bitch, aren't you?"

"Yeah!" Anzu croaked happily. "It's the only way to get things done around here. Guilt greases the wheels far better than encouragement."

"I hope you're not dating anyone."

Anzu grinned. "Don't have the time, but that will be fun."

"I'll say a few prayers for their soul."

"'Their'?" Anzu asked pointedly. "Not sure which way I swing?"

"I wouldn't dream of making assumptions. Not when we've all been in same-sex education this long. And when we spend as much time as we do in our cramped tanks together."

"I hear yours is cosy."

"I'm sure you have."

"You love it." Anzu declared. "You act like you hate your little tank but you love it. You love that it's as temperamental as you and you love that it's snug because even though you act like you want to keep people at a distance, the only time you seem to really be enjoying yourself is when those people show how comfortable they are with you. Even now after this." Anzu stroked her neck. "They still want to give you a cuddle and tell you it'll all be okay."

"Manipulative. Little. Bitch."

"You still haven't said you're coming back so I'll keep pressing your buttons until you give me an answer... Or you finish me off."

"I'm curious; how many death threats have you received?" Erika asked.

"I'm President of an entire school-ship. An entire school of girls going through puberty and a town full of people with their own problems. Every decision I make upsets a dozen people enough to say 'I'm going to kill her' and one of them to come to my office and tell me they wish I was dead." Anzu grinned. "Being a politician is so much fun!"

"You're insane."

"So you keep saying. How are you any different?"

"Do you know what I've thought ever since I came to this school? That you're all crazy. That at best you're all eccentric and at worst; you're all mad. Miho thinks it's Kuromorimine that's crazy, all taking themselves overly seriously while you're all just having fun… We went from one extreme to the other I think."

"I think Oarai is pretty normal and boring. But, our Sensha-do team is a haven for the odd and the weird. I think that's true for a lot of the teams though. Besides your old school, everyone else seems to be a little bit funny about Sensha-do."

"Not Pravda. Not St Gloriana. Maybe their leaders have a few… Idiosyncrasies. But their teams aren't built of every nutter the school has to offer."

"Pravda really bothers you, don't they?"

"You think?"

"I didn't mean your face."

"Last year Pravda got a new leader. Someone determined to stop Pravda from being second-best in the high school Sensha-do league. We heard stories about their new training regimen and it was insane what they were doing to win. They've got that same determination to win this year. And Kuromorimine, they're determined to reclaim the title. You've got a good cause, but so do they. And they've got bigger guns, better armour and more."

"You're a realist, I believe you said." Anzu shrugged. "You don't believe in crazy causes, even if you want a cause to believe in."

"I don't know what I want. I haven't for a long time."

"Well, while you're figuring that out… Maybe consider continuing to help us?"

Erika considered the little red-haired girl. She was impudence made flesh. Even after being strangled, it had barely made a dent in her self-confidence. She was either that sure of herself, or simply delusional. And as Anzu sat there beaming at her, she had no idea which. Of course, she was no judge of sanity.

"Do you have anything better to do?"

"You are desperate."

"When have we ever not been desperate?" Anzu asked pointedly. "When we were trying to entice recruits with cafeteria vouchers, when we were sending people into the woods to look for tanks we prayed were out there or when you charged your tank into Saunders Shermans to buy us enough time to win?"

"Stop trying to win me over."

"Then just give in." Anzu said cheerfully. "And think about maybe repeating what you did to Saunders Shermans to Pravda's T-34s."

"I'm thinking I have two choices. I either go back and go out kicking and screaming; or I finish what I started, kill you and flee to Europe."

"Yuzu already knows that if she doesn't see me tomorrow, she's to start a manhunt for you and initiate a month of mourning for me. Her first duty as President in fact."

"You would have made a great Kuromorimine student. We could armour a platoon with your ego."

"Thank you!"

Whether she was serious or trolling was impossible to tell. "Have you thought about what you're going to say to the others? We all said we would tell them the truth after Maginot. Is that still the plan, or are you afraid they'll lynch when they realise the Maginot match you agreed to ruined our odds of beating Pravda and saving the school?"

"Do you want me to say sorry?" Anzu inquired deliberately.

"No." Erika replied just as deliberately. "Your ego won't let you forget it."

They stared at each other for quite a long time until they heard movement next door.

"Miho going to bed. Her futon's clunky." Erika explained.

"She's worried about you."

"She's Miho. She's always worried about other people. It's her most annoying and endearing quality."

"True." Anzu said and she seemed surprised by her own sincerity. It embarrassed her.

"What are you going to say then?"

"I never wanted to tell them the truth. Everyone else does."

"If you're about to suggest it would be better coming from someone else, I actually will kill you."

"No, this is my job. My school. My declaration. I just don't have much experience dropping bombshells like this."

"Who does?"

"I enjoy these talks, Itsumi. Yuzu's an optimist. Momo's… Unstable. Miho's a bit of both. You always cut straight through the crap and get to the point. I like that."

"I thought politicians were supposed to be against that."

"Exactly." Anzu nodded. "Everyone else sugar-coats this stuff. I can't do that when I tell them the truth about all this though. Do you think they'll lynch me when they realise what the damage to the Hippo does to our chances?"

"No. But only because they'll realise why I did what I did and decide you've suffered enough." Erika said and then had a thought. "Probably. I don't know how they feel about their StuG being crippled."

"Not good." Anzu admitted. "If they were boys, I'd say they feel castrated. I'm not sure what the equivalent is for us."

"I know but… You don't want to know." Erika advised. "Tomorrow then. Time to pick up the pieces and see what we can do with them."

[][][][][][]

Erika had wondered many times how it would look when the truth came out. Her most melodramatic thoughts had involved rioting and anarchy. The thoughts that were simply dramatic turned out to be accurate; there were a lot of tears, especially from the younger members, and the stoics all set their jaws and glared at the Student Council. Hippo and Mallard teams in particular had ferocious scowls.

Erika found herself looking at Mako. A lifetime ago Saori had enlisted her by grimly pointing out that the only way she could possibly not be held back a year by all her tardies was by joining the Sensha-do team which would nullify them as a perk. Now she realised that deal hadn't been kosher. If they didn't win the championship so the school survived, the Student Council couldn't make good on that promise. And she would have to repeat her second year at another school. Of all the people who harboured hostile thoughts toward the three members of the Student Council; the feline driver of Anglerfish team seemed to be the one most likely to actually attack.

The worst part was Anzu admitting just how desperate their actions had been. "See, I thought there'd be some awesome tanks leftover because we had such a good team in the past, but apparently all the good ones were sold when the school ran out of money."

Everyone could hear the hurt in Yukari's voice. "So that means all our tanks are…"

"Yep, the unwanted leftovers. The ones they couldn't sell because no one wanted them second-hand." Anzu looked at the two 38(t)s. The two light tanks were cheap and plentiful in the world of Sensha-do. There was no reason to buy them used when they could be bought for next to nothing. "Or because they were completely broken." She looked at the Type 3, the collection of parts that made up the Porsche Tiger and finally the T-50.

Caesar then asked the only question that could be asked. "How'd you expect us to win against those odds?"

It wasn't Anzu but rather Momo who answered this question. Quietly. "We couldn't think of anything else to keep our old, unremarkable school afloat."

"We might have bitten off more than we can chew." Anzu admitted and the admission seemed to make both her shoulders and twintails slump. "But we wanted to keep hoping instead of spending our last year crying after school."

Something struck Erika that had never occurred to her before. The three of them were Third Years. If Oarai Girls was closed after they graduated, it made no difference to their prospects. They could move on; free and clear. Instead they had concocted this inane scheme to try and save a school which would be no concern for theirs soon enough. That was how much they cared about it.

"We're sorry for not telling you sooner." Yuzu concluded.

There was a pause and then although she knew it was her imagination, it seemed to Erika that there was a wet crackle as every eye turned to look at her. She was standing close to Anzu and had been from the start, implying a reconciliation before the meeting had begun. Now though they understood what had prompted the altercation to begin with. There seemed to be another crackle as they turned their eyes on the StuG and the previous hostility to grow. They had had days to ask themselves why she had been so mad about the damage to the StuG and now they had the answers.

"I'm sorry." Erika declared and it was not what they expected to hear from her. The very last thing in fact. "After everything you've been through so far. Everything we've done together… You all deserve to know that you'll be treated the way you should be and not be at the mercy of some crazy bitch and her temper tantrums. I'm sorry." She reached out and put her hand on Anzu's shoulder. Understandably, the girl flinched. "I'm sorry."

Miho stared at her. They all stared at her. Contrition was not something they had expected to ever hear from her and only Yukari had experienced it before. It was enough of a shock to cool their tempers over realising what the Maginot match had cost them. All of them. Anzu did not look around but she rested her head momentarily on Erika's hand.

Yukari raised her hand. "I knew." She confessed. "Itsumi-dono told me about a week ago."

Shinobu raised her hand too. "I overheard."

And Miho made three. "Erika-san told me. About a week ago."

They all did the maths to deduce that the catalyst for the revelations was the Maginot match. While that wasn't strictly accurate, the Student Council still hung their heads contritely. Erika also noted the ones who looked at her hand and reassessed how she had hurt it. It hadn't been a tantrum merely about how it might affect their tournament chances.

"We're not done yet." Miho declared into the silence. "We haven't lost before we've even started." She took a step and Erika had to fight hard not to jump out of her skin as Miho took hold of her arm with both her hands. "I know the odds seem long but they weren't in our favour when we faced Saunders in the first round. Most of you had less than fifty hours in your tanks then!" Miho smiled and didn't let go of Erika's arm. "And we beat Saunders, even though they had more tanks than us. Even though their tanks were better than ours. Even though they were tapping our communications! All the odds were against us and we still overcame them because we didn't give up. We kept going.

I like doing Sensha-do at this school. I didn't think I would ever want to ever again after what happened to me, Koume and Erika. But here, with all of you, these have been the happiest months of my life." She squeezed Erika's arm until her fingers tingled numbly. "And that's worth fighting for. I don't know what matters most to all of you, but I think you all love our school as much as I do."

Miho finally let go of her arm. It was impossible to tell if she had spoken from the heart or thought about what she would say for this and rehearsed beforehand. Just as it was hard to tell how much of what she had said had been intended for them, and how much had been meant for her.

The Captain's words however seemed to get through to all of them. The same could not be said for herself.

"Why are you feeling so pessimistic, Eririn?" Miho asked her later. Hippo team had spent the session getting to grips with the Tanuki which although they had trained with before; they as a team had never operated it together. Erwin had commanded it before at least. She was the most familiar with the light tank. But Erika was even more familiar with it and while they had never expected much of the Turtle when they had faced Saunders, Momo's gunnery being unable to hit the broad side of Australia, seeing the two 38(t)s together didn't inspire any kind of confidence in her. She was fond of the little Czechoslovakian light tank but they were hilariously outclassed by pretty much all medium tanks. In no way were they an adequate stand in for a StuG F.

"Maybe I'm tired of life being a relentless unending struggle that never gives us a break." Erika replied.

Miho frowned, and then nodded. "We do seem to face a lot of trials."

"'Seem to'? We may as well have a spirit guide on this journey."

"That could be useful."

"Why are you so optimistic?"

"Eight versus fifteen aren't good odds even if had the StuG instead of a 38(t). We were always going to be outnumbered and outgunned." Miho shrugged. "It was never going to be about strength."

"I know that! But even if all we need to do is eliminate one tank, they could leave two to defend it while the rest of come looking for ours."

"So we don't let them find us first." Miho beamed. "Pravda won't have any light tanks of their own. We can stay ahead of them."

"With a B1 bis?"

"We know their Captain loves the KV-2. They'll be tied to that."

"You've really thought this through haven't you?"

"It's T-34s instead of Shermans. We've been here before and we won. I just didn't know how important it was for us to win."

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

"Now they all know why you were so mad about Saunders tapping our communications." Miho mused. "But I think maybe it was better they didn't know the truth then. As I said, they had so little experience in their tanks. The pressure would have been too much."

"You think so?"

"I do."

"Do you think they'll believe that?"

"I don't think anyone will hold a grudge against the Student Council. We've more important things to worry about now."

Erika smiled to herself. "If we were still at Kuromorimine, I'd call you hopelessly naïve. But I think here you may be right."

"People aren't as awful as you think they are."

"Just our mothers."

Miho was startled momentarily and then shrugged.

"You're still going to defend her? Really? Even now?"

"Maybe when she knows what we're doing-"

"By then you'll be living in a box."

Miho shrugged again. "We'll figure things out."

"Okay, that's too optimistic for me."

"Maybe then we focus our optimism on facing Pravda and we deal with our families another time. Our mothers. …Our sisters…"

Erika raised a finger and gently wagged it and Miho smiled winsomely. Sometimes she forgot how much of her life Miho did know about.

[][][][][][]

The survival of the school may have relied on a Sensha-do tournament but that didn't mean their futures weren't also reliant on their time in the classroom. At least, that was how Erika thought. Yukari tried to turn every class into a discussion of Sensha-do tactics, focusing on the ways in which two 38(t)s, a Type 89 and T-50 could overcome the armour of T-34s. For the Type 89, it was impossible. The 38(t)s could do it if they were right under the noses of the Soviet machines. The T-50 had to be within one hundred metres. Which meant it was what she had been saying about their weaker tanks from the beginning; don't think about defeating them, think about harassing and crippling them. There were only so many times a tank could be repaired in the field.

She listened to Yukari talking about the penetrative ability of an M3 Lee for what must have been the thousandth time and thanked every god and spirit she knew when she heard the school's PA system sound out and then Momo's voice telling every member of the Sensha-do team to report to the hangar. It wasn't her normal imperious tone either. In fact, she sounded scared. They had heard her at her most authoritative and her most hysterical. Scared was something new. As the teacher was just as exhausted listening to Yukari's tank babble, they had no trouble getting away.

They found the others gathered at the gates to the depot which was decidedly odd. When they pushed through to the front, they found the Student Council staring at the hangar. They were all seemingly lost for words which was the cherry on the odd cake. Erika followed where they were staring and thought she could see something lying at the base of the centre doors to the hangar. What it was though… The Student Council knew but weren't responding to speech while the others hadn't gone beyond them. They were all waiting.

"What's going on?" Miho arrived and found the gathering alarming.

Yuzu pointed and Miho squinted but like Erika couldn't see what it was that was being indicated. They both started at a whoop beside them and turned to see Yukari had produced her binoculars from her pack.

"Oh for fuck's sake…" Erika's patience snapped as she took in the ludicrous sight of a pack of girls squinting at a distant sight within walking distance in a place they frequented almost every day. "Come on!"

She led them in a wedge with Miho and Yukari immediately behind her. She was glad to lead because that way she didn't have to see how ridiculous they all looked advancing cautiously on their own building in their own school. That feeling of frustration evaporated as they got closer and the object became distinct.

It was a 7.5cm Kampfwagenkanone 40. It wasn't like the one they had found for the Panzer IV that had been repurposed as a washing line; this one was brand new. Factory fresh. There was a red bow tied just beneath the muzzle brake.

Erika could appreciate the Student Council being afflicted with mutism.

Yukari was the first to recover the power of speech, pointing at the red bow. "There's a card." She said dumbly.

Erika stooped and picked it up. It was small, no bigger than a bank card and it contained a single sentence that made her frown and then get a chill.

"What does it say?" Anzu spoke quietly.

Erika whispered the words. "Iz Rossii lyubovyu."

From Russia with love.

(Word Count: 14,300)

Author's Notes;

If you're reading this Hauptmann, you're a sad, strange little man and you need to stop stalking me.

I took a hiatus after the last chapter. I spent July writing a fic of season 2 of the TV Walking Dead where Sophia lives. It features an original character who is implied to have died in the original timeline during the attack on the Atlanta camp. Bas as I named him on a whim is not a badass. He's a seventeen year old former street-rat thief from Savannah who's very much aware none of the skills he has are appropriate for surviving a zombie apocalypse in rural Georgia. He goes after Sophia when she's chased off the highway and they eventually re-join the others. It changes some events at the farm while others stay the same. I enjoyed writing it. 47,305 words of it, plus 6,831 written after the winter; when they find the prison. I may post that as well, after I polish it up. I've had some serious sleep issues these past few months and I've produced a lot of malapropisms while writing. I needed to get that idea out of my system; it's been floating around since I tried re-watching the series during the winter. I can't stand Negan though so I can't proceed further. Ruined the comics and the TV show for me.

When I came back to this at the end of July, everything was meant to be straightforward. Instead I got hit with shift after shift of cover all through August. I was meant to finish this over a week ago but then it turned out I was meant to be covering some evening shifts last Monday, meaning I finished work and then eight hours later I had to go start again. That's exhausting.

I had no plan when I began writing this chapter. I didn't know if this would be a short or an extended match. Everything that happened came to me on its own. Even though it seems to be very heavily foreshadowed that a tank would get crippled in the match, I never actually intended to. But then when I was writing, the StuG took the hit. Just as I never planned for Erika to strangle Anzu. I think some people may like that; a comeuppance for all her canon manipulations and seeming laziness toward her own scheme. It fit Erika's wrathful personality I felt and also her character development to be deeply ashamed afterward. Anzu is hard to pin down as a character and I enjoy writing her that way. So she is guilty her actions led to the damage to the StuG F, she is terrified of Erika for what she did to her and she's also strong enough to get over it and press on with her objective. Whilst still being more than a little nuts.

I actually wrote the ending shortly after writing the damage to the StuG. It was an idea that came to me before I went to sleep and I jotted it down as a possibility. I've been thinking about the Pravda match for months and addressing the Katyusha problem for quite some time. Do I characterise her as in the show, or in Saga of Pravda? Or both. Both certainly appeals as I can enjoy the best of both worlds. What comes after this ending, I've about three different versions of events and I'm still not sure which I'll go with.