Chapter 24
Meanwhile, on the Zuikaku…
"Oh, come on! Where are these bitches coming from!?" John moaned, wiping out a legion of enemies with his MG-42.
We've concentrated our forces at campus, but there were so many of the enemy that even the mass technological advantage of the Countryhumans were dulled. Fortunately, we're fighting in the much less populated area (a bunch of unfinished building projects; why is there so many of these here?), so civilian casualties are at zero. Right now, we're having some sickening street combat in one of the half-paved roads, and it was not funny at all.
A hail of bullets sparked off the trash can I was hiding behind. Cursing, I pulled out a Stieglhandgranate 24, pulled the fuse, and hurled it hard at the source of the fire. As soon as the explosion went off, I emerged and fired on a man with an AK-74, and the man fell back with several bloody holes in him. I ducked back down just as an MR28 sniper rifle sent a high caliber round whizzing over my head.
"Gott verdammt! Alberich, haul your ass out of that area QUICK!"
Yeah, that was Klaus.
"Was zum Teufel?"
"Enemy armored vehicles closing in on you! Visuals show around 4 BATT UMG Armored Military Vehicles! Approximately 70 accompanying enemy infantries! You can't lay them all off!"
"Negative! We're being pinned down by enemy MG and RPG fire, cannot scramble without sustaining damage!"
"Schiesse! Keep the enemies occupied, I'll get some backup your way! Hold the line!"
"Jawohl!" I hung up and turned to look at my team. Johann was holed up in the remnants of a rusty van & using it as a fire point; Henry (Lucas) was perched on a balcony and sniping enemies; Vladmir (Hank) was returning fire on an enemy formation behind a burning enemy Cougar jeep along with a Russian Countryhuman, a Soviet Countryhuman & 2 Ukrainian Countryhumans. Andrew, Mason, Jacob, Jake & Fidel are all taking cover behind a stack of sandbags & crates. Mason's M2 Browning was all set, but given the constant enemy fire, he can't really do much with it.
However, another sound slowly emerged from the hail of gunfire. It sounded like malfunctioning engines, combined with the roar of flame.
I looked up, and was greeted by a very perplexing sight:
A whole bunch of old twin-propeller planes were plummeting from the sky, all of the engines ablaze. The fuselage panels were ripping off, and the planes were trailing smoke everywhere. But the really shocking thing were the symbols on most of the planes: they were the unmistakable logos of the SCP Foundation's Mobile Task Forces. I recognized Hammer Down, Red Right Hand, Nine-Tailed Fox, Mole Rats, Red Herrings, Deep Feeders, and, to my utter stun, Samsara. The foremost plane had no such emblems, so I wasn't sure.
The bellowing crash took my focus back to reality. The planes had slammed into the ground, right over our enemies, so we were a bit in luck. But then I remembered just how powerful these troopers are, and I don't feel so lucky anymore.
I turned around and looked at my comrades, who were all frozen in surprise.
"What are you all waiting for!?" I yelled, "Get yourselves moving, Gott verdammt! And Henry! Tell all the SCPs and Slenderman's proxies to get their asses here QUICK!"
And I hefted my MP-41 (though just in case, I readied my Blitzkrieg Mk III TAR on my back; I wasn't that anxious to make the MTF guys feel threatened, but I'm taking no chances with my own ass either)
I ran up to the plane in the front and punched on the fuselage once.
"Raus aus dem Flugzeug, JETZT!"
…
The captain of Nu-7 'Hammer Down' woke up groggily to some weird noises.
He last remembered finishing a day's drill with his men and going off for bed, but as he looked around, his eyes took in a scene that had him jumping up in alarm.
He was in a plane which he did not recognize & had no memory of boarding, with his fellow men lying all around, snoring. The plane looked very old, like a World War II relic or something, but at least it seemed stable enough-
BOOM! BOOM-BOOM-BOOM! BOOM-BOOM!
The plane lurched violently as sudden explosions rung outside the fuselage. Some parts of the plane went flying away, and the man realized in horror that the explosions had been AA weaponry. He heard something explode outside and ran to look through a window (it was cracking and dirty, so he didn't see the other SCP-marked planes). What he saw gave him a major 'uh-oh'.
The plane's engines had not only died completely but were trailing orange-red flames, and worse, the things were falling apart in midair.
A few voices slurred behind him.
"Hey … agh … cap? Did I drink too much again …? Wait … where am …?"
The captain wheeled around and grabbed the recently-awaken man by his collar, effectively jarring the sleep out.
"EVERYBODY GET YOUR ASSES UP!" That jerked everyone awake, "I DON'T KNOW WHICH SON OF A BITCH CRAMMED US UP IN THIS WORLD WAR THINGY, BUT RIGHT NOW WE'VE AN IMMINENT CRASH LANDING TO COPE WITH! YOU TWO OVER THERE! GET TO THE COCKPIT AND TRY TO STABILIZE THIS BIRD, EVERYONE ELSE BRACE FOR IMPACT!"
Needless to say, the MTF soldiers immediately started action; but right at that moment, the plane lurched and nosed down violently and began a deathly plummet to the earth.
"HOLY SHIT! YOU TWO BUTTHEADS IN THE COCKPIT! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!?"
"I don't know, captain! This thing's controls aren't responding at all!"
"Crash is unavoidable! Brace for impact!"
"Three! Two! One! NOW!"
The plane slammed into the Earth, shaking the cabin like a leaf on the wind. Steel and alloy shattered, crunched and snapped, and everyone inside was thrown around everywhere. Luckily for them, it only took 5 seconds for the plane's wreck to cease moving.
The captain took a shaky breath.
"Okay, now we …"
CLANG!
The sound of something banging on the plane made everyone jump in alarm. Then, a teenage yet powerful voice cut through the air:
"Raus aus dem Flugzeug, JETZT!"
In a split second, everyone had their assault rifles, light machine guns, sniper rifles, shotguns, grenade launchers and whatever they've got aimed at the door where the sound came from.
5 seconds of tense silence before-
"Ich werfe eine Granate, wenn du immer noch nicht rauskommst! Raus aus dem Flugzeug, sofort!"
(I'm going to throw a grenade if you still don't come out! Out of the plane, immediately!)
"Who-who's out there!?" The captain yelled, pointing his own HK416 at the door, "Identify yourself!"
"Ich bin Alberich Müller, Soldat von Oarai! Identifiziert euch jetzt!"
(I am Alberich Muller, soldier of Oarai! Now identify yourselves!)
The soldiers looked at each other. One thought crossed everyone's mind.
What is going on?
…
Masachika Kuze was having the worst day possible.
His last memory was going home alone in a dark alleyway. After that, all he remembered was fuzzy colors and the mess right now.
A few moments ago, he had to wake up to the sound of explosions … and to find himself in a plane, which he had no idea how he got on, that's nosing down uncontrollably, falling apart and rather on fire, with very much everyone he knew lying on the floor in heaps, snoring. And for some reason, he also had to wake up with a HKM16 assault rifle, an H SFP9 semi-auto pistol, full military uniform, a bulletproof jacket, and weirdest of all an actual katana. Like, what in the world?
One thing Masachika knew the moment he looked out of a hole was that they were not anywhere they know. Beneath them was a big stretch of concrete building frameworks that seemed to have been abandoned if not for the visible constant fire exchange going on down there. And then there were his friends and classmates and all.
Alya (Alisa) was leaning on a part of the plane's framework, clutching an AK-12 and a Makarov pistol with a Soviet-era saber fastened on her new belt; the situation was very much the same for her sister Maria (or Masha), except she had a minimalist axe; Yuki Suou, his supposed childhood friend & actual younger sister, was lying on the iron floor, holding an MSBS assault rifle, a Type 26 revolver (WHY THAT ONE?) and a kodachi sword; Touya Kenzaki, (the Student Council President), Chisaki Sarashina (Student Council vice-president, Touya's girlfriend), Hikaru Kiyomiya (one of his 2 closest friends) & Takeshi Maruyama (the other friends of his) were sitting in parallel on the side, each holding weapons too.
BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!
An abrupt, loud warning jerked Masachika back to reality and jarred everyone else out of their slumber.
"Ah-ahh?" Yuki muttered, looking around, "where am I … hold on …"
Her eyes visibly widened as she looked down at her very-newly-acquired weapons. Then she looked up at her brother.
"Why do I have guns?!"
"Don't ask me, I just woke up … oh, god no!"
"ПРЕДУПРЕЖДЕНИЕ! ПРЕДУПРЕЖДЕНИЕ! АВАРИЙНАЯ ПОСАДКА НЕИЗБЕЖНА! ВЕСЬ ЭКИПАЖ ПРИГОТОВЬТЕСЬ К УДАРУ!"
(WARNING! WARNING! CRASH LANDING UNAVOIDABLE! ALL CREW BRACE FOR IMPACT!)
The plane's alarm pierced everyone's thoughts like a bullet.
"Что происходит?" Alya muttered.
"Excuse me, Alya-san? Did you say something?"
"I said …"
She never got to finish, because precisely at that moment, the plane drove itself into the ground with a violent shudder. Masachika was surprised the plane didn't fall apart.
The wreck skittered for some 6 meters before stopping. But before anyone can even catch a breath –
DADADADADADADA!
The utter cacophony of a firing machine gun nearly deafened everyone. And just moments after it died down, something slammed against the fuselage's only door, startling everyone a lot.
"Те, кто находится внутри самолета, слушайте! Мы окружили вас и превосходим вас по вооружению, поэтому, если вы цените свою жизнь, выходите и немедленно сдайтесь! Длительное молчание или вражда будут встречены боевым огнем!" A teenage voice yelled outside.
(Those inside the plane, listen! We have surrounded you and outgun you, so if you value your life, come out and surrender immediately! Prolonged silence or hostility will be met with live fire!)
Silence.
"Okay, what did they say?" Kenzaki asked, cautiously, "Was that Russian?"
"He's saying that they've got us cornered and we had better surrender." Maria said, quietly.
"What? Why?!" Chisaki demanded, "We haven't even done anything .."
"I really don't think 'crashing out of the sky in a propeller plane right into a warzone' is equal to 'hadn't done anything', Sarashina-san."
However, luck took an absolutely ROTTEN turn there.
BANG!
"Ahh!"
Everyone wheeled around to see Alya, who was at the back of the plane, lying on the floor and clutching a bleeding hole in her leg, wincing in pain. Her own Makarov was lying on the ground, smoke drifting out of the barrel.
To say Masachika was thunderstruck would be an understatement. However, before he could do anything –
"Дальность выстрела! Я услышал там выстрел!"
(Gunshot! I heard a gunshot in there!)
"Дерьмо! Пролом! Взломайте дверь СЕЙЧАС!"
(Shit! Breach! Breach the door NOW!)
'Not good' was all that flashed across Masachika's mind before the door burst open. 5 people rushed in through the door and took up positions at the front with military-class efficiency. When the dust cleared, there was a very … confusing, if not so life-threatening, sight greeting the Japanese teens' eyes.
At the center of the 5 was a teenager in a uniform & helmet that completely fitted the images of WWII Germans out of the history textbooks, holding a gun that looked a bit like a German version of an AK-47. But the most eye-catching was the other four: they looked mostly like semi-adults, but their heads were spheres bearing patterns of national flags. There was 1 Russian, 2 Ukrainians and 1 Soviet Russian (hold up, a Soviet?), all clad in military loadout and aiming AK series assault rifles. Their faces showed a class of unspoken ferocity that basically spelled 'don't mess with me or you'll be VERY sorry'.
The others cowered in fear, but to their surprise, Masachika didn't back down. He didn't care himself: Alya was hurt. SHOT. And he needed to get medical attention, even if it meant getting shot at himself. A side glance showed that Maria was not backing down either. Natural, Alya is her little sister after all.
Suppressing waves of shivering, Masachika took a little step forward. Immediately, all of the strangers' guns turned on him. He held up his hands, took a deep breath, and spoke:
"Пожалуйста, господа. Мы не враждебны. Нам нужна помощь."
(Please, sirs. We're not hostiles. We need help.)
A tense silence followed. Then, to everyone's surprise, the normal-looking teenager lowered his rifle and gestured at the other 4 to comply. They looked reluctant, but still followed suit.
The boy looked Masachika in the eyes, and slowly spoke:
"Объясните, что вы имели в виду."
(Explain what you mean by that.)
"Мы нуждаемся в медицинской помощи." (We need medical assistance.) Masachika gestured at Alya, "Ее пистолет случайно выстрелил, и она ранена. У нас нет возможности лечить рану. Нам потребуется немедленная медицинская помощь."
(Her gun went off by accident and she's hurt. We do not have the ability to address the wound. We'll need immediate medical aid.)
The soldier frowned as he looked at Alya.
"Как она пострадала?" (How did she get hurt?)
"Случайная осечка." (Accidental misfire.)
The teenager nodded and motioned at one of the strange soldiers, who sighed and walked up. Then, to everyone's shock, he grabbed Alya by the neck and lifted her with one hand and walked off.
"Woah." Yuki muttered, "he's strong."
"Of course he is."
Everyone looked at the teenager in surprise.
"You speak English?"
He huffed indignantly, "What, is it so rare?". Then realization dawned on him: "Oh, wait, I haven't introduced myself properly yet. I'm Vladmir Alekseyev, but if you want to you can call me Hank, my nickname. I'm a soldier and a student at Oarai, and my current occupation is radio communicator on Alberich's tank. And….."
He never got to finish that one, because right on cue, a burst of automatic fire kicked up where they were standing, sparking off the plane's metal with a series of pinging.
"Shit. They're back!" Vladmir lifted his gun. "You people, grab your guns and start shooting, this is a mass emergency out there!"
And he dashed out of the wreckage.
Masachika looked at his friends, then at his gun.
What in the world?
…
"Oh, this is just TERRIFIC." I grumbled as I ducked another stream of machine gun fire.
I had barely enough time to inform the (very disorientated and displeased) Mobile Task Forces about the situation before the enemies Klaus had warned me of arrived. Right now, me and 2 Red Right Hand troopers are being pinned down behind one of the plane wrecks as an armored jeep sent machine gun rounds flying over our heads.
"Heh, at least terrorists are easier to deal with than 096." One man remarked. I snickered.
"Funny you should mention 096, I just talked with him."
"WHAT!?" Both men shrieked.
"How come you're not dead?" One asked incredulously.
"He isn't all monstrosities. He had a much more sane, much more human side to him. We put him in that state. I think he is -woah!"
An anti-material round burst through our cover & nearly struck my shoulder.
"Alright, somebody has to screw up those jeeps." I muttered.
And by sheer luck, that's what I got. For at that moment, a harsh, clear yell rung across the field:
"进入战斗状态！死守这条战线！上！！"
(Chinese, 'Enter battle positions! Hold this line! Go!')
I looked behind and saw some 8 SdKfz APCs driven by and carrying Countryhumans, and they were rapidly disembarking and coming to our aid, which is doubtlessly good. But … they didn't look the way I expected them to.
Their faces were cobalt blue instead of red, and they had a giant white sun in the center of their faces. They used old-fashioned WWII German equipment: I can see a lot of 98k rifles here and a handful of MP series submachines, along with several MG-08 and MG-34 machine guns. Each of these Countryhumans had standard-issue pistols, German Stahlhelm helmets and an old-fashioned Chinese uniform.
"What in the world?!" An MTF member asked, "Countryhumans? And they're Kuomintang?"
"少废话！现在不是补历史课的时候！" A Kuomintang Countryhuman, who had just ran up to our cover with an MP-38/40, snapped back, "通通给我恶狠狠的打！把这些家伙赶下我们的学园舰！"
(Quit the chatter! This is not the time for history class! Fire like hell, all of you! Drive these people off our academy ship!)
I shrugged, put back my MP-41 and drew the Blitzkrieg Mk III TAR.
Time to try you out, fellow.
I slid back the deadbolt, laid down on the ground and carefully aimed for the autocannon operator on top of the nearest UMG.
"Say goodbye, bitch."
And I pulled the trigger.
The assault rifle kicked back against my shoulder as it fired off seven 7.92 mm caseless rounds, and the gunner at the top went down. Then I quickly swapped to my Panzerschreck III Tactical Handgun, aimed, and fired 5 10mm tungsten-core AP rounds right, one at the driver's seat, two at the wheels, and two for the fuel tanks.
It worked magnificently. As soon as the driver dropped dead, the wheels on our side deflated and the fuel tanks exploded into flames that licked the side and back interior of the vehicle. A burning enemy soldier, screaming, pulled himself out of the UMG's rear compartment and ran around like crazy before going down. I gave a feral grin at the sight.
"Wow, good one, kid." An MTF soldier remarked, watching the flames.
"Thanks." I turned, "John! Open up with that new MG of yours!"
"Verstanden!" Then John slung back his MG-42 and pulled out his brand-new Sturmfeuer II LMG. He extended the bipod on the ground, cocked the weapon, and blasted away. Those he was facing were shredded by hailstorms of 7.92mm belted rounds before they could yelp, and they fell to the floor like bloody ribbons. However, the UMG seemed to be quite resistant, with the rounds doing nothing more than spiderweb the glass and flatten the tires.
But Johann was nowhere done. As soon as he could, he pulled out his Schwerer Reichspistole, pulled the trigger, and 3 .45 ACP rounds went spinning towards the UMG. One started another fire; another hit an enemy infantry aiming a Stinger I missile launcher, and the explosion took out all the accompanying infantries; the third hit the barrel of the autocannon on the automated turret, and the whole thing went silent.
That's the cue. I jumped out of my cover, and evading the countless bursts of infantry fire, jumped behind the vehicle I took down. I yanked at one of the armor-plated doors, and the deformation caused by the previous exploding fuel made it break off its hinges, the already-cracked bulletproof glass breaking as it hit the dirt. I pulled myself into the compartment, stumbled past a slowly burning chair & kicked down a rack of HKM16 rifles, which fell into the blaze that's devouring the rear transport sector. My hands fumbled and found the handles, and I hauled myself up in the vehicle's turret, careful to keep myself still hidden in the smoke and blaze. I took the handles of the automated cannon, slowly aimed at the engines of the third vehicle (which happened to be pinning down a Kuomintang Countryhuman MG group with infantry fire and its turret) and squeezed the trigger.
The M26 Lightweight Infantry Autocannon roared into action as it kicked off 25-mm shells at the enemy. An unaware enemy soldier in front of the car got hit first, his blood spattering the vehicle's side as he fell. Then the shells began punching holes in the engine compartment's side. Flames erupted for a few moments before the UMG went up in a ball of flames.
I wiped some sweat and was rather satisfied, but just then, I saw, to my shock, that the engines of the vehicle I'm in had begun to catch fire. I immediately tried to scramble out, but just as I attempted to shift-
KABOOM!
The bullet-riddled vehicle exploded violently at the nose, the front tearing apart as the flames ripped through. I was thrown out of the turret and slid the length of the car's roof before being thrown painfully onto the ground. Swearing as I got up, I locked the rifle's grenade launcher and fired at the enemy, taking down a good number of them.
"Now somebody has to cover the long range."
Fortunately, someone is on it already.
…
Henry "Lucas" Roberts peered down from the balcony he is on.
He had to take cover earlier when those enemy vehicles rolled in, especially when they turned their guns on him. Fortunately, you can count on Alberich.
Now, all he had to do is pick some enemies to snipe. And he had one: an enemy squad captain directing the defense of a barricade.
His hands slowly reached behind him and drew out his Albion's Guardian sniper rifle. Then, he reached up to the scope and pushed a button, and a small screen built into the side of the scope popped open, lighting up in shades of green as it observed the battlefield. As the built-in computer synchronized, Henry reached into his ammo bags and extracted a magazine, and peered in. A yellow-tipped High Velocity .338 Laupa Magnum round stared back at him, its copper alloy casing reflecting a cold light.
Grinning, the boy hooked the magazine up to the gun just as synchronization finished. He peered down the scope and took the enemy officer's head into the sights. Electronics beeped and whirred as the electronic systems locked onto the target, calculating the distance, the wind patterns, possible movements and all that a good sniper needs. Eventually, with a final beep, a cross emerged over the head of the enemy man in the scope with arrows pointing towards the center, and Henry knew it is time.
"This one is retribution." He muttered, and then pulled the trigger.
Pakow!
The bullet spiraled as it emerged from the muzzle and sped down in a faint glint. Right on cue, the officer's skull burst in a spray of red, and his lifeless body fell sideways onto the concrete.
Smiling, Henry pulled the breech back as it made a pleasant pinging sound, ejecting the smoldering bullet casing in a swift motion, and went back to the fight.
Next, assault rifleman in that last car.
Pakow!
The man's FAD flew out of his hand as the powerful round knocked him right off the vehicle's rear compartment.
Ping!
Next, the driver of that blasted vehicle.
Pakow!
Blood sprayed the bulletproof-glass windshield (or maybe not so bulletproof) as the driver's shattered head fell against the seat.
Ping!
Next, a machine gunner pinning down ally infantry.
Pakow!
The LSAT's barrel bounced up to the sky & fell silent as the man keeled down and didn't get back up again.
Ping!
Finally, to take down that jeep itself.
Henry unlatched the current magazine and set it aside, then fumbled through his bags until his fingers closed around what he was looking for: an armor-piercing magazine. He pulled it out, stared at the red tips of the bullets for a second, then loaded it onto the gun and looked back down the scope. After aiming carefully at a gap in the UMG's exhaust grilles, he pulled the trigger.
Pakow!
BOOM!
The vehicle went up in a spectacular explosion as the round detonated the engines and the remaining fuel. All the nearby enemies were caught completely unaware and were rapidly devoured by the roaring flames, screaming and flailing in vain.
Henry grinned.
An eye for an eye, isn't it, bastards?