Chapter 21

An explosion threw Miho to the ground. She didn't even know they were coming, she didn't hear them nor see them, so how? As important as the question is she would have to worry about that later because she saw the boys of Virginia on foot, running into their camp, armed with rope and such other restraining items. It was Duck team first. The four girls were practicing their tosses when the explosion happened and now four of Commander Davis's guys were holding them down on the ground tying them up. Leopon Team was next, being swarmed and restrained like Duck team, then Anteater team, Mallard team, Rabbit team and Turtle team. Miho saw Erwin and Ceaser trying to get into the Stug III but one of Virginia's M6 heavies took a shot into the tanks rear and disabled it, risking the safety of those who were on foot and nearby the tank.

Miho saw another M6 aim and shoot her own Panzer 4. Thankfully no one was inside or around but seeing someone disrespect her vehicle like that made her feel angry, and it only worsened when she felt someone shove her in the back. One of Davis's boys shoved her to the ground and quickly tied her hands together. In her vision she saw Yukari getting the same treatment with Hana and Saori off to the side with hands raised in surrender. Eventually even those two were tied up. After the chaos died down Miho was brought into the center of the camp with the rest of her team and piled together with the S.T. Gloriana girls, who were also tied up, and standing before them was Commander Davis Brown himself.

"Where is she?" Davis wasted no time in wanting to know where Darjeeling was hiding. She wasn't among the tied up nor was she in the last of the girls being brought to the pile of now captured prisoners. "Where is she!?"

Miho shook her head and mentally sighed, Davis was going to far with this, but it didn't seem to register in his own mind.

"I've had it up to here with you girls and your shit. Give Darjeeling to me so she can answer for what she did." Davis spewed. One could hear the heat of his rising hatred flowing from his mouth and everyone knew he wouldn't do anything but something evil to Darjeeling if she was found. "I'm going to count to three before I start picking girls at random, preferably from the youngest, and start hurting them before you give me who I actually want!"

"She's not here!" Noriko called out, causing everyone to look at her. "She's gotten all paranoid because of your hatred so she left."

Noriko didn't get to explain any further because Davis and walked up to her and shot his foot into her gut causing her to gasp for air before vomiting onto the floor.

"One!" Davis said and no one moved or spoke.

"Two!" Again no one moved or spoke.

"Three!" Davis said before grabbing the arm of Aya from Rabbit team and pulled her to the front of everyone. Their was mass protest at Davis's actions, Aya was on the verge of crying and Miho could see the desperation In the girls eyes as she looked towards her with a desperate nonverbal cry for help.

"Wait!" Miho yelled at the top of her lungs. Everyone stopped. Silence and quiet. Davis turned to look at her and halted, his breath catching in hit throat for a minute as he looked at her. Her eyes, they looked horrifying. "Davis, if you so much as lay one harmful finger on my friends I will hurt you."

Miho's voice was uncharacteristically low, and she spoke so slowly to emphasize her point on the matter at hand. Her tone was one of a hardened first and last warning and the way she said it made the hearts of everyone present, friends and enemies alike, beat faster out of pure unadulterated fear. Miho was never one to talk like this, in fact she hated it, but her friends were everything to her and she would not let anything like this happen to them. Ever.

"I want Darjeeling. Simple as that. You give her to me, and you get this one back." Davis said putting on a brave face but just like everyone else he was terrified.

"And I said, if you lay one harmful finger on my friends I will hurt you." Miho said, her eyes almost darkening to emphases her point again.

"You aren't in control her girl. I am! And I have given you my demands!" Davis said. Miho's gaze was unflinching, and Davis couldn't stop blinking in a way to try to regain control of himself. He moved his gaze among the other girls present and saw them all both looking at Miho or him. All except one. This one girl had long blonde hair, dirtied due to the past months of fighting, but she didn't stop looking at someone else. Davis followed her gaze, and it landed on Tim. Tim was the one who was shot, why else would she look at him except-? Davis smiled and pointed at the blonde girl. "Grab her! She's the Churchill gunner!"

Assam felt her eyes widen as two Virginia boys moved through the sea of tied up girls and grabbed her and brought her towards Davis. Davis in turn let Aya go and she crawled her way back to her friends who, if they weren't tied up, would have hugged her warmly.

Assam was brought up and placed in front of Davis, on her knees and before everyone. Davis knelt before her, grinning and with a newly reinvigorated look in his eyes, Miho forgotten, and vengeance on him mind.

"You like shooting people?" He asked. Assam shook her head. "You like to shoot people out of their tanks in this game? I bet you do, because you did that to my friend."

Davis looked at Tim, who had a confused and scared look on his face. He had healed completely since then, but Davis wanted more. He wanted to show them just how much pain Tim had been in. Davis stood up and pointed at her.

"Hold her arm onto the ground." Davis said as he picked up a fist-sized rock.

"Commander I don't think-." One of the boys got no further as Davis reared and punched him in the face.

"Now!" He yelled. There was no ceremony or boastful accusations. Davis's boy untied and placed Assam's hand on the ground and Davis immediately slammed the rock onto her hand breaking it. Assam screamed loudly and grabbed at her wrist with her other hand, falling to lay on the ground. "Do you hear me Darjeeling! I will smash everyone single one of S.T. Gloriana's girls hands until you come out and face me!"

Miho had lost her look earlier from witnessing Assam get hurt like that. She didn't know what to do and no one was trying to figure something out. She did look to see the reaction of the Virginia boys and all of them, apart from Davis, had either looked away, closed their eyes, or squinted and shook when the event happened. The closest one to her, she knew it was Vice Commander Donovan Green, met her gaze and his eyes said all she needed to know. 'I'm so sorry' those eyes said. None of the Virginia boys wanted this.

"Bring up the orange haired one!" Davis said pointed towards Pekoe. The girl tried to shrink away and one of Davis's boys again tried to protest but, same as the first boy before, he received a punch to the face. Another boy grabbed Pekoe and brought her forward and the girls started protesting again. Crying out for this to stop, but Davis wouldn't hear any of it. His mind was focused on one thing. Darjeeling.

Miho blinked. What was he doing here? Miho looked confused as she saw, who she remembered to be the boy Rukuriri ran away with, coming up behind Davis. Rukuriri had mentioned the Virginia boy she met and talked with, and the only reason Miho figured this was the young man was because Rukuriri was walking besides him. They looked totally nonchalant as Andrew walked forward, a 2x4 in his hand, and stepped right up to Davis back before he raised his hand and smacked the wood piece into the back of Davis's head. The 2x4 broke and Davis lurched forward grasping at the back of his head before falling to a knee and then onto his face, unconscious.

No one spoke, breathed or made any sound as they just looked a Davis, unconscious on the ground. Andrew tossed the broken wood plank aside and motioned towards the tied-up girls.

"Untie them you idiots." Andrew said. Donovan repeated the order, and all the Virginia boys quickly untied the girls and moved out of the way as a large number of boys and girls came into the camp weaving their way through and checking on everyone.

Miho noticed someone, a girl from B.C. Freedom, was checking on Assam and some girls from Chi-Ha Tan were checking on the others as well. The boys that were with them were a surprise. She had heard all about Homedale but didn't think it was of this scale.

"Ms. Nishizumi!" Miho heard Nishi call out as she came up to her.

"Nishi!?" Miho said. "How'd you get here?"

"Commander Moose of Washington organized all of us in Homedale to come out and stop the fighting. There are people on the island who are sabotaging everything and are trying to make all us students hate each other." Nishi said her tone more serious then Miho ever heard her.

"What do you mean sabotaging?" Miho asked. Nishi smiled and shook her head.

"I'll let Moose explain later, he has a better understanding then I do." Nishi said. Miho was about to speak again when she noticed Saori, Hana, and Yukari coming up to her. Saori tapped her on the shoulder and pointed to the side, when Miho looked there she was. Mako. The girl had spotted them to and her eyes were likely to be watering as she had brought her arm up to wipe her eyes.

"Mako!" Miho yelled as she and the other three ran, teary-eyed, towards their friend. Mako, in all the time they'd known her, ran faster and harder then they had ever seen, and the five rammed into each other and collapsed into one gigantic hug.

"Yukari! Hana! Saori! Miho!" Mako said each of their names ensuring it was them she was holding onto. Each girl tightened their hug on her as to confirm it was them. Mako smiled and pushed through a sob to say. "I'm back."

Miho was openly crying now, as were the rest of the girls. They were all together again.

"I'm so glad you're alright Mako." Hana said.

"It wasn't the same without you Mako." Saori said.

"W-what took you s-so long Mako." Yukari said through her sobs.

Miho, who had a firm grip of her friend tightened it more but gently and said more in a private whisper for just the five of them.

"Welcome back Mako."

Moose, Miho, Ogin, and Rukuriri stood in front of a standing storage cabinet. Miho had brought them here because this was where Davis's target was hiding. Darjeeling had hidden herself away inside and was actually only a few meters away from where they all had been tied up at.

"She' in here?" Rukuriri asked. Miho only nodded her head. Moose sighed and knocked on the door. Nothing happened. He looked to Rukuriri and nodded for her to say something. "Ms. Darjeeling? Its Rukuriri. I brought help and Mr. Davis isn't a threat anymore. It's safe to come out."

Nothing. Rukuriri grasped the door handle and pulled it open and there, seated on the floor of the cabinet, was Commander Darjeeling. Her hair disheveled, unkept, and dirty. Her uniform torn, unkept and filthy. And herself ragged, broken and covered in a particularly familiar smell that sent all fours noses up. It seems, in light of Davis's yelling and threats, Darjeeling had wet herself. The young woman held her self and lightly rocked back and forth and she was sucking on one of her thumbs. The sight of the once dignified and elegant Commander of S.T. Gloriana was now a depressing sight.

"Oh man." Moose sighed looking away.

"Commander?" Rukuriri said not believing this was her commander.

"How long has she been like this Captain Nishizumi?" Ogin asked.

"About two days after you left Ogin." Miho said sighing.

"She needs to get out of this city." Moose said turning back to them. "Commander Miho if its possible could you get her to Homedale? Its more open there and she could have some room to breathe, and I want to talk to all the commanders if possible."

"I'll get her there. Is this about the saboteurs Nishi told me about?" Miho asked and Moose responded.

"Yes. Were putting this war game to and end. And I'll need all the help I can get."