"Colonel, we located the entrance. I drew the estimated map of the underground, but there is one significant issue. My ability works in two dimensions, I have no way to grasp the depth of the corridors or their overlapping. From combining our data with old maps we figured out it's based on the 'Funnel Cave', which they artificially extended to merge with unknown deeper systems. It's hard for me to approximate the total length of the tunnels without the full chart, but from the looks of it, we might maximally reach the third chamber before getting caught." Shin offered the notes to his superior annoyed with his ability's limitation. It was never a problem before, so the sudden inability made the man feel frustrated.
"Thank you, Captain. This poses a serious threat to our convoy, but your unit would be way too exposed if you simply ventured inside. I've asked other commanders to join us, we have to debate over the safest resolution." Lena, who managed to get a good night's sleep for the first time, as they were waiting on the intel, felt refreshed and ready to function at her best. The initial proposition of sending a recon inside was immediately cast aside, after witnessing the base's narrow but long structure. She had no intention of throwing aside her troops just to satisfy the curiosity, so they had to invent a safe swift solution.
"Yo, Lil Reaper! Missed me yet?" Shiden greeted him with her usual laid-back style, not minding the rigid protocols.
"Hi there, young man. Heard you hanged around past few days when we were working our asses off." Brent Bernholdt, commander of the Nordlicht Squadron also had joined.
"Am I the last one?" Rito Oriya from the Claymore Squadron was the youngest on the call, but Lena did not want to exclude any person in charge of the units.
"Now, since everyone's here, let's elaborate on the plan. We suspect a production plant inside, that ideally should be exterminated, but the outline of the area renders pinpointing the precise location impossible. There is no way of knowing the number of dormant units, so head-on battle should be avoided at all costs. We have to rapidly carry out this mission, prioritizing immobilizing Legion forces inside caves." The Colonel was in her element, thinking clearly for the first time in days. Like a fish in the water, she analyzed all the possible solutions given by others, until one of them caught her attention.
"Can't we just blow them up, nice and simple?" Cyclops was advocating for using sheer force if possible, without the half measures. It sounded too good to be true, but there was a seed of notion in it .
"We don't have to destroy the whole base, getting rid of supporting structures could make it collapse on itself." Undertaker, as always, was eager to be the one to carry out the dangerous mission.
"But how would we know what is crucial? None of us have any experience with this sort of place." Rito pointed out the obvious vulnerability.
"I might have an idea, but it would be rather hazardous, so I'd like to keep it as a backup plan. If my approximate calculations are right, planting remotely detonated explosives in the assumed end of the third chamber should be enough to make the whole place crumble. Unless it's located 700 meters below the ground level, there is a high chance an explosion combined with wet, unstable soil, will cause the whole complex to collapse. The water currently in a swamp above might pour in, flooding any remaining units. There is no way they would've enough energy left to dig out in those conditions." Lena analyzed every aspect of this plan, seeing the unique opportunity temporary wetlands had created. She still hesitated within her, as if the soldiers were prematurely exposed, the mission would probably turn lethal in no time.
"I think I can do this, Colonel. I know the risk, but objectively, it'll be hard to find a better solution in such a short time. This way, we minimize the gamble of an open attack."Shin volunteered, surprising no one. At this point, it felt natural for him to take on the hardest missions, without looking back. It was the thing he did best, walking a tightrope above the abyss, not caring about if he made it back.
"It would be a suicide mission, hardly worth the sacrifice."Bernholdt refuted quickly, disapproving of Reaper's often close-to-death encounters.
"Why it always has to be you, huh? The thing is, I've got hands-on experience with those beauties, no one can blast them like I do. You may call me Bombshell if you wish." Cyclops started kidding around, finding new puns to flare up her boasting. She and Lena knew, however, that the expertise she had bragged about wasn't unfounded. Shiden's unexpected sophistication with bombs made the main bridge's demolition possible, despite the scarce resources.
"Can we try once again to discuss other ideas?" Colonel tried her best to encourage others to share suggestions, but the conversation hit a dead end.
"Massive bombardment from a distance would be preferable, but let's be honest, we don't have the equipment and resources. The Republic won't be a much of help anyway, so dealing with it while the conditions are favorable is the sensible thing to do." Reaper brought back the previous plan, insisting on carrying it out.
"It pains me to do so, but I'm starting to see the Undertaker is right. We were not prepared for this type of combat, and we had to work with what we got. A small unit specializing in direct fighting would be preferable." Commander of the Nordlicht Squadron sighed, admitting he couldn't see an alternative.
"Does Spearhead Squadron plan to take on the impossible by themselves once again?" Rito asked in disbelief, considering their last mission's profile.
"No, it would be inefficient. If the final conclusion is that direct planting of the bombs is inevitable, we have to send a small group of people proficient in closed space combat and moving on steeper surfaces. Remember, we do not know the three-dimensional structure of the area." Lena wasn't pleased, but she was backed into a corner. Powerlessness stroked once again, revealing that despite all her efforts, in the end, she was unable to protect her loved ones. If the mission continued, she had to order her friends to go into the lethal danger for the people they despised.
"If I may, Colonel, besides myself, I'd recommend Laughing Fox for this. He is versed in using the grappling wires to move vertically, making him the perfect candidate." Reaper knew best the strengths and weaknesses of his comrades, and Theo was the only one suitable to go caving. Others were experts in ballistics, which were to be avoided in the unstable structure, forcing the split.
"I agree, to minimize the chance of detection, a three-person team will be dispatched. Undertaker, Laughing Fox, Cyclops, you are tasked with planting the remotely detonated bombs. Do it in the furthest possible area, but when at high risk of being noticed, leave it anywhere and evacuate immediately. We have to hope it'll be enough to stall them for a few days. During this time, Wehrwolf and Melusine are taking over the command in their respective units. Both Squadrons will remain close in case an open battle emerges. Any questions?" With a heavy heart, Colonel ordered the objectively most reasonable solution.
"No, ma'am!" All the other call participants answered at various paces.
When the main connection concluded, Lena opened a second chat with all the selected troops. She explained the decisions to Theo, the only person absent from the commanders' conference, which he took with complete serenity.
"No worries Major, proud to be assessed as remarkably skilled."He laughed but was glad inside. He feared Shin would have to do it alone or with someone unaware of his foolhardy tendencies. That way, he could somehow help if the situation got murky again.
"The longer we stall the risk of them seeing us is higher, so unfortunately the departure will be immediate. I'll oversee this operation as your Handler, but unquestioning obedience is required, no stunts or heroic sacrifices, understand?" She demanded firmly.
"As always, Your Majesty." Shiden replied without objections.
"Sure."Theo rolled his eyes, knowing who this plead was directed to.
"I'll try my best." Shin responded, knowing the most he could promise was to strive.
June 5th Republic Year 368 (Stellar Year 2149)
81 days until the Legion's Large-Scale Offensive
Annette never thought about herself as a Leader. Researching was her passion, continuing the weight of the legacy left by her father, and sticking her nose outside the lab was not on her agenda. Even less so commanding the illegal operation of smuggling and planting of the explosives with the shunned Eighty-Six, but here she had been. Since Lena's incarceration, she had worked day and night with Charlotte Lombardy and other assistants, but to no avail. The trial was scheduled at the end of June, and for all they knew, it could be already too late. With the charges containing a mix of truth and lies, disproving them proved tricky and treacherous. While the timid Charlotte took over most of the tasks done by Lena in the headquarters, Annette was left stranded with figuring out how to traffic the explosives undetected. The lack of the item in question was so far the most favorable for Lena, so if she were to be caught, her friend would inevitably be sentenced. Or worse, married to the person who had framed her to avoid being stuck in jail. She shuddered at the possibility, vowing to do anything to prevent it.
"M-miss Annette, I've received t-the reply. We got the authorization." Charlotte's stutter improved in the last few months, thanks to her self-esteem bolstering. Constant tasks covert under the Republic's eyes made her have more faith in her abilities, as the seemingly impossible plan moved forward. The hardest blow was their leader's imprisonment, but Lena made it clear, that continuing the mission was to be made a priority.
"Great. Honestly, I doubted they'd agree. It was a wise choice to send the request by the unbound researcher, that way it doesn't appear to have any connection to Lena." Their plan was simple, coax one of the older, lazy professors to organize the research trip, with a tempting offer to do the whole examination without his attendance. The bribery was letting him take all the credit on this possibly great scientific paper, without having to even lift a finger. There were many such people in the Republic, preying on the younger assistants to steal their hard work. The opportunity of having a ready academic paper given for a small favor of choosing the test subjects was like a plump chicken serving itself on the plate, only if they hadn't been eating the synthetic food.
"'Long-time e-effects of constant use of Para-RAID, non-human multi-year utilization s-summary', huh? Disgustingly R-republican in style, no wonder they have agreed. Higher-ups fret, that the H-handlers could face some long-term impairments, so they h-have to use the 'lab rats' while t-they still can. I've h-heard that the excessive usage they had forced the P-procesors into, could s-simulate prolonged effects if they ever d-decide to leverage it after the war." Charlotte grimly summarized their supervisors' point of view.
"Yeah, they realized, now is the last opportunity to collect such data from the 'specimens', after all, human experiments are strongly prohibited. With the end of the war in sight, they want to exploit the remaining Eighty-Six to the core." The scientist felt ashamed she thought likewise not long ago. The slow change under her friend's influence made her reevaluate nihilistic beliefs and their seeming immutability. If they were to die anyway, they might at least go out with a bang…
"S-so, how do we finally proceed? There will be no s-second chances…" The young Handler was determined to put everything at stake in this attempt, as the clock was ticking.
"Walter's uncle runs a workshop contracted with our laboratory. In the mission's overview, there was a request to perform an equipment inspection, to ensure the delivery of the highest quality data. I'll redirect everything there, under the guise of it being the closest location to our departure spot. The sparky materials had never left this sector, having been stored secretly in one of the abandoned garages there. Walter and Belgrade will enter the workshop during the night, as they'll sleep above it visiting 'coincidentally' Walter's uncle, and put the explosives inside the big devices. The military will collect it the next day as scheduled, if they have any sense in them, they'll treat the boxes with caution. If not, there will be a big boom. As we leave the devices with the Brísingamen Squadron for a week, they'll have to unscrew them and carefully remove the bombs." Annette explained step by step.
"W-won't they immediately know something's wrong? If you want to fit the bombs you have to remove all the machines' insides, and after retrieving it, there is no way nobody notices the difference. Never mind the lack of actual data…" She pointed out.
"They'll be putting some rocks inside so those morons won't realize something's not right. After we recover the equipment Walter will again put the insides inside. It won't matter if it's messy, we can pin it on the careless handling by the soldiers or some turbulence. The uncle should fix it so there will be no trace of this swap." Henrietta van Penrose felt this whole plan, invented entirely by her, was her unanticipated Magnum Opus. Lena was the one usually doing the scheming, but with her on constant surveillance in jail, the duty landed on her shoulders. Countless nights had been spent to analyze every variable and possibility, and this was the final result.
"That doesn't explain what to do about the missing data…." Lombardy did her best to find every potential vulnerability needing patching.
"Easy, do what all the scientists do nowadays. We'll make it up completely and then stall the publishing of the data as strenuously as possible." Annette smirked disdainfully.
In the two weeks, the "Most Genius Plan Possible" had unfolded more or less with how they'd predicted. There were some hiccups on the way, such as delays and near explosions, but after their painstaking effort, they were finally past the smuggling stage.
"Damn, Smartypants, I honesty thought we were fucked, but you somehow pulled it off!" Shiden and Annette's relationship was peculiar, as they had nearly opposite personalities and lifestyles. Nonetheless, countless meetings organized by Lena somehow brought them closer, although not in a way any of them would call "friendship". They were aligned in their care for Lena and worried about her choices, making them often stand on the united front. After her arrest, the middle link was suddenly gone, but instead of breaking the partnership, it made them work harder.
"You bet I did. Nobody raided you since then?" Her attachment to Eighty-Six wasn't deep like Lena's, but working with them broke many of her walls. Closing her eyes and turning her back again was no longer simple, with impending doom ironically transforming her nihilism into a last-ditch effort in the either-way hopeless world.
"Nah, they did it three times after the Queen's capture, but after finding nothing they gave up. No white pig has the balls to come here again, those dumbasses." The Brísingamen Squadron endured many violent searches in the aftermath of Lena's capture, but the Republic's futile efforts to find any illegal weapons made them ditch the effort. The plan was to kill this squad soon anyway, so why bother wasting more resources on the filth?
"Good, but we can't take the risk. While you depart for the next Legion attack do a quick stop before the bridge, dump the load, and proceed to the battle as usual. Remember, the new Handler is not on our side, so don't mention anything during the call. The rest is up to you, the truth is, it's way fewer explosives than we had accounted for, but there is no way to get more. You'll have to figure out how to distribute them to maximize the damage." Shiden had way more experience with weaponry, but this was her first attempt using those kinds of bombs. The trick was, that it had to be done flawlessly no matter the odds.
"Aye, no need to be so preachy. I was born with a gun in hand, the bombs will be child's play. Loosen up and focus on saving our Bloody Reina, we'll crush the job here." She sounded confident, but they both knew it was putting on a brave face. None of them knew if they could really pull it off, without their brilliant leader's input.
"Yeah, I'm working on it. She did herself no favors, sending you so many presents on the sly. It genuinely looks super suspicious.." Annette complained, cursing Lena's good nature. It was no wonder they framed her so easily since she broke the principles many times.
"We told her it ain't needed, but she kept sending us gifts. The water boiler is cool as fuck tho."Many of the packages contained little things making daily life more comfortable. Lena tried her best to improve the conditions where her Processors were living, even if it wasn't directly contributing to the goal. She regretted not doing it more for her previous Squadron, pampering the current one excessively. It was partially out of guilt, but Lena had a hard time admitting it to herself.
"Well, good luck Cyclops. Hope I won't hear about any rouge bridge explosions anytime soon. Meanwhile, I'll go polish my shining armor and get ready for a Princess rescue."