What am I going to do with my life?
---==============---
It was a question she asked herself often. By a mixture of her own irresponsibility and fate's meddling hand, she'd severed most ties with past high school friends. She hardly contacted her family much, either. Life was coming at her faster than she could possibly prepare towards, and it felt now as if every conscious minute was a minute that was no doubt being wasted.
I'm 24. Is 25 gonna be like this too? Sheesh... this sucks, y'know. Gotta do something about that Eri...
Her own mind seemed to scold her laziness. A look away from the ceiling and to the clock— 7 AM. Another restless night... another crude awakening, with little more than three hours of sleep. The television— those bulky archaeotech pieces of shit would be worth a fortune in those less civilized countries, no doubt— droned on with news. The world wasn't a pretty place. Imperial atrocities across Alvimia in jungle and city alike, neverending proxy wars in nighted Barechistani mountain peaks coated with dust, the multi-front eternal bush-wars of Kir, Ruiter blood dripping by the minute— and of course, the neverending cycle of death and misery that was Euphemie's rotten corpse, a fetid blight on Tsion.
---==============---
It's why I'm getting into this deal in the first place...
"Mm..." Erina quietly pondered her decision to apply for that job in the first place. She was quick enough, and had enough of a name for herself on those obscure, esoteric online mil-circles, that she'd managed to at least land a spot on the unit. JSOF. Cool name— 'Jimmy's Soldiers of Fortune'. It wasn't some run of the mill PMC shit, nor was it a job offer to play RWDS in Alvimia. Big corps always played dirty. Erina lived in a world where airliners could have death-squads capping ethnoterrorists in Turmenista on the daily. Anything to keep business interests safe. Like junkies craving another fix, these vast businesses, so high on the scent of the Escudo (only an archaic man would think of the word 'dollar' now), feened for profit, and so fervent were they that anything that threatened their precise reports, margins and revenues was to be met with violent force.
Jimmy's Soldiers of Fortune was supposed to be none of that. It was a return to basics: bored billionaire, battlecruiser, private military stuff. Interesting — maybe she'd make money off that.
..Interview's tomorrow morning... She thought to herself, her silent musings a dreamy lull.
That's what we went over yesterday. Umm... you're a dipshit???
A dilating of the eyes — a quickening of the heart. She'd completely forgotten it was today. At least she'd showered a few hours ago— not because she had intended to be presentable, but because her sleep schedule was so thoroughly fucked that 3 AM seemed a decent time for the morning routine— and a coffee, of course. The mug sat not far from her bed, most of it gone. She was a night person, and coffee was the centerpiece of her virtue. Occasionally she'd force herself to be a daytime type— be it for outings to the gun range, anime conventions, reenactment events, shopping or anything else remotely demanding interaction with normal people. Sleeping peacefully beside the mug was Xiquí, her cogborg. In any other nation it'd be an atrocity, an affront to nature— but to her, it was her pet. The thing was a hasty mixture of cat, dog and machine, pieced together and marketed to the public as easy-to-manage pets. Naturally it elicited quite the chimpancé from animal rights activists, but god damn did the things sell well. It had the affection and cuteness of a cat, the loyalty and warmth of a dog, and most importantly... it didn't piss and shit everywhere. She didn't have to bother feeding it either— a wall outlet was enough to keep the thing 'alive' and well. It didn't actually need sleep, given its brain was hooked up and wired in every way imaginable... but it did help make it a little more 'alive' somewhat. But her atrocity of a pet didn't matter right now. What mattered was the fact she would probably be face to face with one of the richest men in Angecalia.
A billionaire... coming to my house. Holy fuck! Holy shit... ME, of all people! I'd take a knee and suck his dick if it means a few thousand Escudos! What if—
Get AHOLD of yourself, you dumb bitch!
Stop being a whore...
Little too late for that, me-from-eight-years-ago.
"Fuck! Fuckfuckfuckfuck..." Quickly getting up, she would see to getting dressed— and a fair touch of makeup as she hastily worked against the clock to prepare for her due visitor. Compulsively checking her visage in the mirror, Erina pondered whether or not she looked presentable.
Presentable enough... maybe? Not su—
The loud buzz of her doorbell was enough to jolt Xiquí awake with a morbid mixture of a canine whimper and a feline growl as it scurried away to hide behind the TV.
Do you know how statistically improbable this is? What if this is a scam? What if you die? Lot of things you're not thinkin' about here y'know— the murder of Maristela Gonçalves on 9/1/437 at 9:58 AM comes to mind. Killed at her doorstep, killer never caught.
Erina naturally had a very... specific memory when it came to certain things. Military stuff, especially, but she had other fascinations— true crime being no exception. All of these odd hobbies betrayed her appearance, but she couldn't help it much. She was a designer baby, the byproduct of gene-editing— a barcode beneath her left eye marked her as such. Naturally such people had an edge in things, to which they were marked and barred from competitions accordingly. In a way, there was a bit of social stigma about her kind— but in another way, the beauty of her own form was a pleasant thing...
Another buzz. "COMING!" She called, giving another brief glance to her figure in the mirror before hurrying over to the door. Opposite her as she swung it open, a fairly young man, perhaps only a few years her junior. “I've come a long way to handle this 'interview' of sorts, you know... I'm no mediocre person when it comes to my filtering process. A wise Vir poet once said “If you want it done right, do it yourself”— and I couldn’t agree less. But standing here, discussing these things... you could let me in.”
"Oh— yeah come right on in! I... don't really have anything prepared, sorry." Jimmy's suggestion was a command to Erina, as she nodded and gestured him in. Closing the door behind them, Erina would find it difficult to compose herself in Jimmy’s presence.
“No worries. I wouldn’t come all the way out here without some fine dining first. Andrade’s a pretty place... can’t say the same about Torch. Too many people, not enough space, too many problems... it’s just not good for the soul. It’s why I’ve been investing in Angecalia more as of late.” Still, despite what Jimmy said, he didn’t hesitate to grab a half-eaten sandwich off the kitchen counter as Erina led him on to the living room, the billionaire quickly finishing the meal in question my the time they'd reached the darkened living room.
Ugh... he's gonna fucking think I'm a loser NEET..
You are.
We are...
"Sorry, everything's a mess— I'm not used to having people over for social occasions..." Erina meekly noted, her mind running wild as she sat down by her mattress, the glow of the television on her face as she avoided eye contact with the man who’d come to sit beside her.
“Cigar?” He offered.
"I.. don't smoke, sorry." Her reply was enough for him to simply light it himself, exhaling a puff before he got to the point.
“To each their own. Anyway— I don’t need to explain to you the offer, since you already know. I’m planning to fight the Imps on my own terms. We live in a... crazy world, Erina. You think they’re fighting in Alvimia because it’s “the right thing,” Erina? Of course not. Lithium, iron, diamonds and gold... Alvimia’s a goddamn jackpot and the Empire has the slave labor to harness those resources to the fullest. Now I don’t think I need to give you a crash course on how this shit throws a goddamn wrench into the economy. Point is, our businesses don’t want what the Empire wants, and they don’t like the idea of being unable to do what they did in Alvimia before those goddamn LARPer commies showed up.”
"You don't seem to be involved in all that, I figure..." Erina thought aloud.
“Oh no, I just develop software. Runs in the blood. My grandmother resolved a computer bug that would’ve bathed the world in darkness back in the early 400s. Dana Matthews. You recognize the name.. surely? Maybe? Whatever. Thing is, instead of running the show at Xandle I’m stuck doing my own thing. Sadly. Maybe not so sadly...? I dunno. I have so much money it doesn’t really matter. Thing is, I’ve been bored. You know what happens when my types get bored...”
They do kinky things! Maybe he's gonna do something to me~.. heheh—
SHUT THE FUCK UPPPP
Erina tried to keep her composure as she pondered her now-employer's words. "You bought and refurbished a nuclear battlecruiser... because you were bored?"
“Of course! Right on the money. But also because I want to prove a point... and fight the Imps on my own terms. I’m not gonna sit back and just throw guns to you Angies while I rot away in irrelevance, consigned to my penthouse..” It was rather ironic a man with more money than Erina could even fathom... could even use such a word to describe himself. “You see... I have a dream. You could even call it a vision... soldiers of every corner of Tsion, fighting for a better tomorrow. I’m not doing this for the money, I’m not just doing it for the fame... I’m doing this to change the world. The Alvimian people need someone to look up to— and they’ve kneeled for foreigners long enough. Let’s give them a dream: soldiers of no nation. Jimmy’s Soldiers of Fortune.”
"Jimmy's... soldiers of fortune.." Erina echoed. She wasn't sure whether she liked the name or not.
“I can't change it. I just got done copyrighting it. Besides— it abbreviates nicely. JSOF. Sounds fucking badass. Like something out of a video game.” With another puff of smoke, Jimmy dramatically looked on at the Andrade skyline, visible through her apartment's rather unimpressive balcony.
"Y—yeah... I agree. So, what do I do?" Erina questioned.
“I did some digging when I read your application. I mean, I already heard about you— you already post often on ONIRICSPACE. So I did some digging...not just because you were hot. You did pretty good for a conscript, as the records seem to say... and you’ve got charisma. You might think you’re this or that, but I see a leader in you. You’re gonna head the eight-person unit. Alpha Squad... I’ve got a meeting due with your second-in-command to-be. You’ll like him, I’m sure.”
Me? In charge?
"Epic— I mean, thank you, sir. I owe you.."
You know how this goes, Erina. Take off your shirt—
NO!
Erina's mind was running wild as she sat there, perhaps a bit too tense for the occasion. "What should I be bringing?"
“You’re a gun enthusiast, that much I know. Take your faves. If you can’t somehow, I’ll provide. I’ll also be providing most of your basic equipment— rifle cleaning kits and the like. Rest is up to you. I’ll give you a call when it’s time. Be there or my lawyers will devour you.” Jimmy explained, reminding her the job in question was a responsibility.
"Oh— um, right! I'm ready whenever!" replied Erina, more than a little enthusiastic— and nervous.
“Now, I got meetings to tend to... but know I’ll be counting on you. This might be your big break, after all...” Getting up, Jimmy would give her a thumbs up as he began for the exit once again.
Shame. You could've gotten yourself a sugar da—
SHUT THE FUCK UP
"Right, thanks! I.. really mean it." Getting up, Erina would follow him to the door, apprehensive as she watched him nonchalantly take his leave.
“By the way: if the press tries to bother you, don’t answer. They’ve been on my case ever since I bought this damn battlecruiser... anyway, take care!”
The door closed before Erina quicker than she could reciprocate the goodbye. Locking the door, she sighed. Just what am I about to get into?
She'd willingly joined an eccentric man's quest to wage war against the Empire, and at this point she wasn't sure whether she'd gone mad or was about to make her big debut. Hopefully the latter...
S1E14
OH, JUNGLELAND!
The occupied Alvimian state of Guairá has been spared most of the grade-A chimpancé that was the present Alvimian Uprising... while sparse groupings of Alvimian resistance fighters do exist in the state, they are sparse, disconnected... and Angecalian ANI help can only bring them so far. Our mission here is to help free the Alvimian people, and nothing less.
So, about that 'Gold Requiem Plan' you found out about... yeah. The Imps are noided after the plantation op, so they're in a rush to move their gold out of the AO... in bulk. Their encryption ain't fooling our ANI buddies, though: we've narrowed the route of the gold shipment. They intend to haul it out of Xavantes, over to their Central Base Camp where it'll then be sent straight to Porto-P... or Hyperion. Either way, you gotta make sure that convoy doesn't reach its destination. How you pull that off... that's up to you, cowboys.
Oh, Jungleland! Act 4
Room 121-124
Battlecruiser Nero
South Atlantic OceanRegentoric Waters
April 27, A.C. 479
5:40 AM Aurum Standard Time
Damn you Nephon…
Selim wasn’t really sure on a definite number in terms of the hours he had for sleep..if he even had a single hour to begin with. Sleeping and waking up had become something like a blur for him as he woke up unceremoniously, slowly coming to terms of what exactly had happened between him and his coworker.
He remembered hearing the words from his fraternity back in AMI-Y, the same words from some long-since-dead and anonymous Sinican poet: “Enjoy the aftermath, but the best is yet to come.” He now understood what those words meant and why there was such humor behind it. In the moment, “it” was great. Afterwards, it was even better. But now, it sucked.
Woke up before the alarm again.. He rubbed his eyes, kind of staying there for a few moments as he felt his coworker stirring beside him. Erina would mutter a few incomprehensibilities in her native Angecalian, rolling back over as she would come to tightly cling beside Selim's warmth... before quickly jolting upright to attention. Naturally, her figure was an admirable one, especially to Selim's own tastes.
"..holy fuck...guess I wasn't dreaming.." She joked, giving Selim a light nudge. "Gotta give you credit though... once you start you really don't stop.."
“You know what they say,” Selim began, pausing for dramatic effect as he slid himself out of bed. “Don’t stop ‘til you get enough, am I right?”
At that moment, the alarm beside his bed began chirping, but was cut off with a swift chop by Selim’s hand. “We’re early. We should, uh, get ourselves cleaned up. Never know what the boss has planned for us today—could be going through another one of those mires again, or worse.”
"He did mention something today," replied Erina, naturally moving to cover herself with her blanket.
“No need.” Selim muttered. “After all, I’ve already seen your, uh..everything. Heh heh.”
"..right," Erina managed a laugh to herself, letting the blanket fall aside. "Well! I guess I've got a shower to get to... mainly because SOMEONE ..." She trailed off, chuckling as she got up. "I'll spare you that one. Well, uh, I won't be long. Seeya in a bit!"
With that, she'd disappeared into the bathroom, bulky metal door closing shut behind her as she presumedly tended to her morning routine. This, of course, left Selim to his thoughts as the distant whoosh of the shower became white noise in the otherwise eerily silent room.
Very cool.. Selim thought to himself, beginning his own routine—and that started with accountability. This meant keeping track of his things, including ammo, equipment...and that other thing, currently locked up in a padlocked mini-safe in the corner of the cabin. Either by a stroke of luck or by a lack of her own curiosity, Erina hadn’t gone through his things yet, leaving that redacted object in the safe...well..safe. Hopefully, it would stay that way.
Selim’s own morning routine consisted of a few stretches and some morning PT, but given that they were on an enclosed ship, running around wasn’t the best of things, especially given the unpredictable nature of the seas, so push ups and sit ups would have to do.
After a while, once he and Erina had swapped places in the shower, it was already reaching the time for their usual morning briefing by the boss. Double-checking to make sure all of his things were in order after his routine, he stepped off and began walking towards the bridge, his coworker in tow.
"Well! Back to business as usual... here I was hoping we'd get at least another day's rest!" Erina, per usual, carried a cheery, lighthearted spirit about her as they continued through the corridors of the vessel. This time, she'd gone for something of a change of pace — a black ABSOLUTION[1] tee instead of a plain white shirt under her tiger-stripe jacket, which gave perhaps some implication that she had a rather refined taste in arthouse film... or she didn't know what it even was — that'd be unfortunate.
"Starin' at my tits again? Or just the shirt..?" Erina joked.
“No..” Selim shook his head. “Well. Maybe. But the shirt’s interesting. ABSOLUTION, huh? You into those kind of films?”
This turned Erina's glare into a wide smile. "Y—you're into them too? I loved ABSOLUTION! Kawamura's a cinematic genius when it comes to directing... I didn't really think you'd notice. Guess that's another thing we have in common! Careful, I'm gonna bother you about movies all the time... Besides! I figured a black shirt would be a nice change of pace... and a bit more pleasing to the viewers! Y'know what I mean?"
“Yeeeaaah.” Selim nodded, still coming to terms with what he had just caused. “Yup, I totally get it! I personally liked that one part when—”
They turned the corner towards the bridge, Selim immediately stopping once he spotted someone new fraternizing with Jimmy and a thankfully fully-clothed Hera, while the other members of Alpha squad that had the will to wake up so early stood by awkwardly, namely Kang. The Bích Cốc looked all the more uncomfortable as he ogled the newcomer, whom wore some avant-garde patch on an armband around her right arm.
---==============---
The unfortunate reality of entering the room at such a specific angle caused Selim to walk practically right into her, his eyes instinctively settling upon her chest area. She seemed to take note, snapping her fingers to draw his attention. “Eyes up here, mummy, and keep your hormones in check.”
Maybe don’t block the way you fucking bimb- “Sorry.” Selim apologized, stepping out of the way of the other members of Alpha squad that entered behind him: Chow, followed by Leo, and finally Marina and Gilmar.
"Oh! Uh— hi! I don't think I've seen you before..?" Erina would be much more extroverted in taking note of the new arrival, offering a hesitant smile.
“Yeah, uh, no shit, you haven’t.” Jimmy said as politely as he could. “Everyone, give your undivided attention to Miss Trish Bakshi of Clancy Petrochemicals—more specifically, their, uh, large security wing, and our first official sponsor.
Unfolding her arms, the woman began without delay. “As you all are aware, we’ve been quite literally watching your performance and progress, whether you know it or not. The mission yesterday was a prime example of something we haven’t seen in our sector—that is, a nonlethal and stealthy take on what would normally be an explosive, loud, and action-packed mission. It got our investors thinking, which got me thinking, which made me take this trip out of my busy schedule to Regentor and to your ship to extend my congratulations.”
She paused, as if for dramatic effect, but Leo took the silence to step forward. “Okay.. and?”
“..And this also means I’m extending our sponsorship to you...which I was going to get to before I was rudely interrupted,” Trish continued. “I can retract the sponsorship at any point in time, and I have the grace of the C-E-O to do so. Anyways. Your sponsorship includes on-demand fire support from a corporate squadron of ASF-471 Zephyrs stationed in one of our private airstrips in Regentor, which may or may not cost you, depending on the opinion of the squadron manager. I’ve already taken the liberty to pay for the flight of an official combat instructor to assist in training, should you require it, along with going about my way to promote your...company. It’ll vary from advertisements on the latest and greatest social media site, to entire billboards in TC and Yevosh, if you want to go that far…”
“What do you mean by going that far?” Selim asked, curiously.
“..I’ll need a few pictures from some people willing to volunteer to have their faces seen by millions worldwide,” Trish said. Jimmy almost immediately raised his hand up. “...Not you, Jimmy. I was moreso thinking the Dangrek..maybe an Alvimian for extra publicity on the Alvimian’s plight. Oh, and them two.”
“I don’t appreciate being called “them two,” or you calling people by their nationality. We have names.” Selim folded his arms. “But, whatever you say.”
Trish rolled her eyes. “..Right. Any of you have any questions about the sponsorship?”
"Pictures? You mean like a photoshoot, ma'am? N-normal photoshoots, right?" Erina questioned, mildly curious at Trish's PR offer.
“I can neither confirm nor deny these pictures will be ‘normal,’ Miss.” Trish smirked.
"Surely you will have no issue with that, Monteiro?" Chow jokingly asked. "Anything for a little extra money.. hm?"
"I—I'll think about it..." Erina muttered, mildly embarrassed at the corporate arrival's suggestions.
“Alright, thanks for your insightful addition to the briefing.” Jimmy unexpectedly chimed in, much to Trish’s chagrin. “As with Hera, Miss Trish will be here for a while to answer any questions about Clancy’s sponsorships and its perks, if you wish to know more about all that.”
“Or, until I find a ride out of this shithole.” Trish muttered.
“Anyways, if you thought yesterday’s mission was easy…uh....you’re probably right.” Jimmy clasped his hands together. “Ladies and gentlemen, today, you’re going to be stopping a convoy.”
“We’re going to be doing whatnow?” Leo asked aloud.
“Stopping a convoy. I didn’t stutter, retard.” Jimmy waved for the group to surround his Portamapa, flicking a switch to the TACMAP function. “As y’all found out yesterday from the, uh, intel, y’all recovered, there’s some so-called ‘Golden Experience’ plan the Imps are up to. The Plantation op apparently made some people get spooked—which was the intention—so they’re in a move to get all that gold out of the AO..and given the potential presence of AA, and the fact that there’s literally nowhere to fucking land,” Jimmy traced his fingers around the tricky terrain, noting the presence of contour lines indicating all the many hills and mountains in the area. “They’re pushin’ their gold out the old-fashioned way: convoys, and trains. Our buddies in the ANI were doing God’s work in decrypting their comms, and they’ve found that there’s gonna be a gold shipment moving out in the AO very soon.”
He flicked a few more switches, the map changing to a satellite view that Jimmy had already spent quite a bit of time drawing on with the PORTAMAPA’s useful drawing features. “So, they plan on hauling some gold out of Xavantes, here,” He placed his finger on the location for emphasis. “And they’re gonna take it all the way over here, to their Central Base Camp. From there, it’s only a matter of where it’ll be going to: Porto-P, or Hyperion.”
Pausing for dramatic effect, he set his hands down beside the PORTAMAPA, his face partially lit up by the cold-toned LCD screen, as if the shadows in the room didn’t add to the dramatic effect. “Our mission is to ensure that this convoy does not reach its destination. How you do it...what you choose to do with the people in the convoy, well, that’s up to you. I cannot afford the luxury of Forton Recovery Devices that the Sharks use, let alone big ass planes, so we can’t do much about haulin’ their vehicles off. Any questions?”
"Can we keep some of the gold?" Marina questioned.
Erina's question, on the other hand, would be much more sympathetic to her employer. "...what if we bring the gold back to you, Boss?"
“Weeeelll, about that,” Jimmy’s face was like that of a child who had some good news. “I’m hearin’ that someone called MAAT wants to sponsor us, but they wanna see those trucks get to them intact, payload included. So, that’s that: Apparently MAAT’s here in Alvimia, too, servin’ as some trainers to the Rebels and all. That’s how they put it. If we get those trucks back to rebel-controlled territory, their spooks will handle the transport back to the Nero."
“Are you sure they’re not just actin’ as a front for the mummy government?” Monika challenged.
“Akhmanar’s had no interest in this region for decades.” Jimmy explained. “MAAT’s one of those companies that are big enough to act independent of the government, so they don’t exactly have to follow what they say. Right, Selim?”
All Selim could do was nod. “They’re also assholes. At least, their trainers are.”
"I don't see the issue, s'long as we get our fair share y'know..." Erina offered a shrug. "So! Gold heist, stick up some trucks, classic cangaceiro shit, just like in the old movies... right?"
“Aaaanyways, about that, also.. bringing the gold back and all..” Jimmy gave a small addendum, his tone sounding like he had forgotten something major. “Er… did I mention the fact that the convoy’s bein’...uh… escorted by a motorized escort unit…?”
“You WHAT?!” Kang screeched, suddenly flinging a flurry of insults towards Jimmy in his native tongue. “You mean we going up against tanks and shit?!”
"Motorized... you mean like jeeps or whatever?" Gilmar questioned.
"..or are you talking the real deal, like IFVs and stuff?" Erina added, evidently much more versed in the matter.
“Would you get mad if I said the latter?” Jimmy smiled.
“Atum fucking help us..” Selim grumbled. “The only thing I have that’s remotely capable of doing anything is my NiBR-99..even then, I’m not sure what I can do against a full-fledged APC.”
"Only motorized stuff I can imagine the Imps really fielding out here is either Alvie stuff or Euphie stuff... Euphie stuff like the Cerberus, for one.." Trailing off, Erina pondered the thought. "Guess we're LARPing Claytonists! Too bad we've got no EFPs on hand — apparently those were real effective against 'em back in the day!"
“I could try and cook some up myself,” Leo offered. “Maybe get some copper and a few explo-”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, you do that.” Jimmy said, apparently pressed on time. “You know, an old man once told me, ‘the answer to many of life’s problems is to use a gun. If that don’t work, use more gun.’ Since I’m doubting the capabilities of Selim’s AMR and Leo’s jury-rigged EFPs..” He paused for dramatic effect, stepping towards something covered up by a camouflage woobie that had apparently spontaneously appeared in the corner of the room. “I present to you..”
He yanked the woobie off, revealing an open crate of weapons that was full of SLAT-464 launchers. Almost as if they were children ogling toys, Selim saw everyone’s eyes light up in the room. Jimmy held his hands open, as if he were presenting something truly epic. “SLAT-464 launchers. Anti-fortification, anti-personnel, anti-tank, anti whatever the fuck you want it to be. It’s like a deadly all-in-one, if you want.”
"Mm.." Chow flamboyantly stroked his chin, pondering the weapon. "I suppose it fits me."
“I would prefer ambush by mine or EFP, but this seem okay,” Kang reluctantly picked one up without any regard for everyone else’s safety, testing the sights.
"D—don't play around—" Gilmar, not being the most enlightened, was quick to scare.
“What, I’m not playing.” Kang turned to Gilmar, perhaps intentionally pointing the barrel of the launcher towards Gilmar, where the typical white arrow designated as ”POINT TOWARDS ENEMY” was visible, very conveniently painted on the side.
"It's not loaded, relax." Erina assured. "So these are... real? Torch City exports?" She questioned, eyes lit with childlike awe at the sight of their new weapons.
“Yup. I, uh, pulled a few… strings.” Jimmy smirked, his face turning red.
“I did.” Hera corrected him.
“Yeah, anyways, feel free to take one if you want, but do note they may be a little heavy if you’re carrying a lot,” Jimmy said. “You’re gonna need these to take out those APCs, hell, I’d use one against a chopper if I was lucky. I don’t anticipate we’re gonna be getting any air contacts anyways.”
"Imp don't fly!" Erina agreed. "Unless they're SADAFOR... uh..."
“I thought that was the branch full of dykes and, uh… “females”, Boss.” Leo made very visible air quotes.
“Let’s hope to GOD those assholes don’t show up.” Jimmy muttered. “Anyways! With that out of the way, y’all have about 30 minutes to get off my ship and on the helipad with whatever you’re bringing. If there’s no other questions...I’ll be here, monitoring y’all’s progress, etc. Bye!”
"..you gonna stream this one, too?" Gilmar questioned.
“I can neither confirm nor deny that answer, Gilmar. We’re always looking for sponsors, though..”
"I—I'm sure we've all got plenty of fans!" Erina chimed in, trying to lighten the mood.
“Yeah, maybe you.” Leo added, perhaps as some added snark, as the squad generally began to disperse towards their own devices, Kang and Chow electing themselves to both take AT. Once again, this left Selim and Erina together again, perhaps by coincidence, a stroke of fate, or a combination of both.
“So...we’re blowing up APCs now,” Selim muttered, keeping mostly quiet until they were back in their cabin, where he promptly began gearing up, grabbing the NiBR-99 and folding it into its portable carrying position. “I was told this killed many Zaratians and Mercs, now it’s being used to liberate some people...but what the hell am I going to do against an armored vehicle like that with this? A helicopter, maybe…”
His voice strayed away. “Maybe it’s just me being tilted, that’s all. He kind of did say we were going up against IFVs and the like rather late in advance.”
"In a situation like this, a firefight will be inevitable. Still, I wanna make sure we don't just up and kill everybody... some of them deserve another chance." Erina shrugged. "Guess I'll figure things out later. I still think a gun like that'll do just fine against the Imps.. but, well, it's just kinda scary for me. I mean, one 20-mil round hits and it's over, y'know? But I probably shouldn't think like that... anyways! Let's do our best today, no matter what!" She gave Selim a light nudge as she got into proper kit, humming another upbeat tune to herself as she tended to her rifle, before slinging it over her shoulder and giving her coworker a thumbs up.
He responded with another thumbs up, slinging his own rifle along his shoulder as he carried along the AMR in one hand. “Now, we’ve got some thinking to do..how are we going to deal with the trucks? We can already take out the IFVs but..you know..”
"Well, do you think they'd surrender if their entire escort gets wiped out? Just a thought.. I mean, I wanna bring the trucks back. It'd get us a lot of sponsors! Just imagine it — a GOLD HEIST! It'll be so cool... Jimmy can cut and edit all the footage.. or whatever he does.. and find someone to broadcast it somewhere epic, like I dunno... Torch City! It'll be like an action movie. Except it's real! ...I'm fantasizing, aren't I? But— cool idea, right? We should totally try to bring the gold back." Per usual, Erina carried about her unparalleled enthusiasm towards the mission at hand.
“Perhaps..” Selim wondered. “That doesn’t sound too uncanny, y’know? Maybe they might get spooked if their convoy gets wiped out by “rebels.” Maybe..”
"To televise an EPIC humiliation of Imp forces someplace like Torch.." Erina continued. "It would totally make people see the Imps as nothing more than action movie villains. I mean, people are already getting a little iffy about that so-called saint or whatever that keeps LARPing about being a god or whatever. Euphemians confuse me. Don't they confuse you? I mean... why does being the descendant of some president make you above someone like, y'know... us? We're gonna BREAK that superiority complex of theirs! RAAHHHH!!!~" Erina's rant devolved into her punching the wall as she got herself motivated for the mission ahead, only stopping as her knuckles became red.
“I mean...y’know.. They make fun of us for worshipping the Sun and people with animal heads. It’s all a matter of interpretation.” Selim began, a bit disturbed by her aggression and enthusiasm. “Come to think of it—fuck ‘em. I’d take any of The Nine over some false prophet that thinks they’re god. You’re right. They do confuse me.”
"That 'God' of theirs didn't stop those Presidential kids from getting skinned alive by blackops. All you gotta do to break their worldview is, well... literally kill the thing they're blindly worshipping. I'm not xenophobic or anything, but it's kiiinda true.. that fake 'saint' doesn't have any superpowers that'll stop a bullet. If she dies, she dies... and where's her god then? That's why I hate all this arrogant talk. I'm not a very religious person, y'know... I mean, maybe there's something out there watching over me... but who am I to care?" With a nonchalant shrug, Erina briefly stopped, only to apply a touch of extra makeup. "..never really thought about it much though."
“I should take you on a trip to Yevosh,” Selim began teasingly. “Make you a bit more spiritual. Hehehe.”
"..hmm?" She smirked. "Like a date or something? Maybe." Finishing, Erina had seemingly put on a bit more eyeliner than usual... if not slightly reminiscent of a sensual Nephonite temple-seductress.
“You’re trying to tempt me with your Nephonite ways.” Selim teased again. “But, yeah...maybe. Maybe do a road trip, get ourselves a place somewhere, go see the temples and pyramids...as everyone does.”
"Of course!" Erina grinned, enthusiastic as usual. "So, ready to tackle this gold heist?"
There was no doubt in Selim's mind that it was time to get shit done, confirmed by a nod as he strapped on his helmet. “Let’s do this.”
Oh, Jungleland! Act 5
HU-64 Touro 'Frogfoot'
Guairá Jungle
Guairá StateSouth Atlantic Empire
April 27, A.C. 479
9:00 AM Aurum Standard Time
Music
The jungles below were like a giant green ocean as the helicopter flew above, gradually dropping in altitude as it flew low to the treeline, just like before. Selim sat silently, essentially meditating to himself as the helicopter maneuvered itself between vast valleys and past tall trees.
"Is it true your special forces like screwing in the jungle, Angecalians?" Marina questioned, eyes set on the vast expanse of the rainforest below.
"..I wouldn't believe what they say on the boards," Erina replied.
"Well—" Gilmar would be interrupted as Marina posed another question.
"You like screwing in the jungle?" She asked Erina, perhaps more directly.
"...not with these cameras rolling," Erina meekly replied, looking back to the vast expanse of the jungle below.
This warranted a light chuckle from Chow as the rotorblades droned on. "You imply you would do so if given privacy..."
“Privacy out of picture. I do what I must without shame!” Kang said shamelessly.
"..nothing of the sort happened between Kang and the HVT, right Chow?" Erina would glance over to the Fuxian, raising an eyebrow in suspicion.
"You would be correct." He nodded, glancing to Kang with suspicion. "There was no way he and Hera could escape my sight."
“Sometimes, I can’t help myself.” Kang murmured, staring out of the chopper. “Just like mummy and Erina, no? I bet you are like rabbit. Am I wrong?”
Selim made no response, but Erina’s facial expression likely said a thousand words. An awkward silence would follow as the rest of the unit seemed to process Kang's implication. "What, you think they're screwing?" Marina questioned aloud — which only left Erina more flustered as she looked on at the jungle horizon.
"A mummy and an Angecalian...?" Gilmar chimed in, only adding to her chagrin.
"He sure likes staring at her... rear," Chow noted.
“I do too. Shameless.” Kang muttered.
"C—can you all stop talking about my ass... at least?" Erina muttered.
“Okay. Nice boobies.” Kang replied, grinning.
Still, Selim made no response, still practically meditating as he left himself wander around in his thoughts, trying to formulate a plan for the mission ahead. His planning was rudely interrupted when the radio in the helicopter suddenly switched to some disturbing rock song with equally disturbing lyrics. Selim whipped his head around as Leo of all people began jamming out, rocking his head along to the lyrics. “ONE, SOMETHING’S GOT TO GIVE, TWO, SOMETHING’S GOT TO GIVE, THREE, SOMETHING’S GOT TO GIVE NOOOOOOOW!!!”
Selim, and pretty much everyone else in the helicopter sans the pilot and copilot, plugged their ears as the song played on, Leo practically screeching the lyrics as they dropped in altitude towards their LZ. “LET THE RUITERS HIT THE FLOOR, LET THE RUITERS HIT THE FLOOR, LET THE RUITERS HIT THE FLOOOOOOOOR!”
"...what is this SHIT?!" Marina swore, hands practically clasped over her ears. Monika echoed her gripe, practically growling as she glowered at the other Mlawan. “Leo, turn this shit off NOW!”
Leo seemed to be adamant on finishing the most famous part of the song. “LET THE RUITERS HIT THE FLOOR, LET THE RUITERS HIT THE FLOOR, LET THE RUITERS HIT THE FLOOOOOR!”
"..such talentless drivel.." Chow muttered.
"..this isn't music.." Erina shook her head — it seemed most— no, the entire squad didn't take much of a liking to Leo's tastes.
"Can someone—" Gilmar's words would be answered by the song on the radio being changed — by Erina.
"We're going to kick ass — far better for the occasion dont'cha think? Better than stuff that makes me want to hurt myself." Erina announced, standing by the boombox. The rack of datacassettes arrayed by it had songs pertaining to most members of the unit... and one could only assume this was one of Erina's own favorites.
“At least I can hear the music!” Kang joked, much to Leo’s chagrin.
The rhythm of the rotors, paired with the music as they approached, seemed enough for Erina to toy with an air guitar. "MIIINHA GAROOOTA ... DE VERSON!" She hadn't really shown her music tastes much before, not much... until now. Naturally, enthusiasm like her own was contagious inside the helicopter's confines as she headbanged to the beat, singing the lyrics... presumedly by memory.
---==============---
“Yeah, okay, that’s cool and all, but what about—”
“Cut it, Leo.” Selim ordered, continuing his meditation as it became apparent they were getting ready to reach their LZ.
"Arriving at LZ!" Echoes announced, giving a thumbs-up from the cockpit. The expanse of the Iuquá River soon complemented the sight of their descent, as they approached a clearing separated from the vast river by a half-mile or so of dense jungle thicket. They were at the edge of rebel-controlled territory, and thus any nearby villages were either contested or controlled by amenable forces... which would mean a peaceful walk on to the highway, where they'd then anticipate the Imperial convoy.
Slowly the trees around the clearing would become taller from their perspective, as the helicopter soon descended below the treeline, making contact with the field below with a light thud — knocking Erina off her balance and sending her bumping into Selim. "LIIINDA GAR— Oh! Sorry!" A nervous smile, a light blush— a brief meeting of hands. Nephon always toyed with fate that way, it seemed...
“What if we held hands in the helicopter…” Selim began, referring to a popular internet joke. “N-nevermind.”
"O—oh.." Composing herself and pulling away from Selim in embarrassment, she would give a brief speech to the unit. "Um— right, rightrightright... The mission, guys! Don't forget, those cameras are always rolling... so do your best! A lotta people are counting on us... and we're always counting on the extra sponsors!" With a gleeful smile and a thumbs up to the rest of the unit, Erina flung the doors open and hopped out first, landing softly upon the grass below.
"Always ready to kill some Imps," Getting up, Marina would get into a piece of gear that was, per usual, quite interesting — an AGL-470 automatic grenade launcher, one of the more... interesting weapons to come out of TC. It'd probably help with the whole... enemy convoy thing.
---==============---
As the rest of the unit would quickly dismount, the helicopter soon lifting off... they would find themselves atop a particularly picturesque hill, with a clear view of the Iuquá River just to the north. Across from it, they could all see something Jimmy hadn't marked on their physical maps. It appeared to be an industrial facility of some sort, situated riverside... perhaps it was just a local factory, now filled with 'gene-helots' toiling to whatever ends it functioned towards. The presence of substations beside it seemed to imply some purpose towards power generation, at least.
“That always been there?” Leo asked.
“You big retarded. We never been here.” Kang pointed towards the direction of the new landmark with a knife-hand. “Still interesting though. Hand me the map so I can mark it.”
“Which one?” Leo joked, toying with Kang’s rather Luddite mentality.
“The one that’s not a computer, fool!” Kang snapped, unfolding the bulky map of the area and pinpointing their location with ease. “Um.” He paused, Selim stepping beside the map to try and make sense of the mess of topographic lines, eastings and westings, and a whole lot of forest. “Can’t read the map, Kang?”
“No.. can’t find what that thing is.” Kang replied.
"Hmm.." Erina looked on at the facility across the river — so distant from them, yet it did merit some degree of curiosity. "Power plant... factory, maybe? You know, the Alvies had nuclear fuel factories around the country back in the 380s—working towards the nuclear program, y'know? Unfortunately they got B-T-F-O by the Euphies. Maybe this is one of them...? Or maybe..."
"It's a fucking shame my country never finished up that nuclear program," Marina chimed in, the mention of Alvimia's past defeat visibly irritating her. "We could've just fucking glassed Hyperion and those stupid gringos and been done with it. God forgive me for even speaking this gringo language."
"Well, I can't say for sure what it is. It's got a substation beside it — either it's making power or needs a lotta power... I'm no sperg but that's just my big-brain thinking here." Erina hypothesized, stroking her chin.
"Are you certain you're not?" Chow muttered, garnering a scowl from Selim. “Let’s not make remarks about each others like that, ok? Regardless, whatever it is, we can find out what it is later.” Selim said, politely moving a hand towards Kang’s map in an attempt to make him fold up the bulky paper map. “We’ve got a mission we need to do, and we’re gonna have to figure out a plan B or C in case blowing up those IFVs goes awry.”
"Either way... I'll mark it for future note. Maybe the Boss will find it interesting. Let's get a move on. Oh, right— keep those weapons at the ready!" Erina ordered, keeping her optimism up as she turned her attention to the south.
“Like this?” Kang jokingly pointed the AT Launcher in Gilmar’s face again.
"Come on,— DUDE!" Gilmar was quick to duck, evidently not much a fan of the thought of... well, getting himself blown up.
"Money awaits— provided we put our teamwork to use, of course! Let's move..." Naturally, Erina would take the lead just a bit ahead of Selim, moving ahead with Fireteam A as Fireteam B soon followed. Being just a bit behind her, naturally... wasn't the worst thing. There was a nice view, to put it lightly, especially for those tuning in live…
“Hey, Gilmar, if you’re feeling extra lucky, stay prone on the ground when some of those APCs get blown up sky high.” Leo began, rather out of the blue, as they continued their little ruck march through the Alvimian jungle. “I hear it feels fucking great!”
"Whatever floats your boat, man..." Gilmar replied.
“Hey, retards! Tactical march again—SO SHUT THE FUCK UP!” Kang hissed, suddenly holding a fist up with his hand—a sign for the formation to halt, before calling up the only other militarily-experienced man in the group with a whistle and whisper. Selim promptly jogged up from the rear and came to a knee beside Kang, suddenly whipping his head around to his squad leader. “Erina, word of advice: When we’re like this, have everyone else pull security. Don’t just make ‘em stand around like idiots.”
"Good call," She agreed. "I'll keep it in mind."
He looked over Kang’s shoulder, to where the Bích Cốc commando was currently pointing to with his knife-hand. “Um. What are those?”
Looking to where Kang was pointing revealed the existence of a giant mound that Selim almost called “one big pile of shit,” before he figured out that the mound was moving and writhing with little tiny black things, no bigger than a 7.62mm bullet. Instantly, upon seeing this, Monika fell back, shrieking for a moment.
"You two never seen ants?" Marina questioned somewhere behind them. Naturally, the Alvimian didn't have much of a reaction to the local wildlife...
“Of course I’ve seen ants. Even we have ‘em,” Selim muttered. “Those are...ah.. Dinoponera, right? Their workers are about...3cm long or even longer, some of the largest in the world. Don’t let ‘em bite you, by the way.”
"Their sting hurts like a bitch," Marina agreed. "Can last for a day or more... if you're stupid enough to piss 'em off."
“And hundreds of ‘em on you at once..” Leo’s voice trailed off.
"Let's... go around them, then." Erina was quick to speak up, naturally a little bit averse to the things. Selim, on the other hand, couldn’t keep his mind off the ants for a bit, even as they gingerly made their way around the giant mound. All those thousands or even millions of ants, all dutifully at work for a single task..it was something he could respect off of something so humble as just a bunch of ants. “Y’know, they’re pretty cool, I’d say. All working to protect one queen that all nurtured for them once. One very dedicated and very busy queen.” He scoffed. “Bet the life of a male ant sucks, though.”
"In a way, we're not too different from 'em..." Gilmar noted.
"I think the same when I think of Datong..." Chow mused, evaluating their surroundings — he seemed to keep alert, even as the unit had briefly slowed to ponder the ants.
"Torch, Datong... hopefully Andrade doesn't become like that. Traffic's already a pain in the ass.." Erina thought to herself, walking not far ahead of Selim as she kept her rifle at the ready. He looked over his shoulder to her, scoffing as he thought of a joke. “Y’know, it must suck being a male ant...everyone in there is a female, y’know.”
"Hm?" Erina snickered. "Heheh... maybe this unit isn't too different from a buncha ants."
"...if the rumors are true, I think the unit has more in common with rabbits," Chow joked, chuckling to himself. "But who, I wonder?..."
“I think unit is a bunch of parrots.” Kang said, motioning with his hand a sort of “mouth” that kept yapping on about something. “Talk too much. Talk talk talk.”
“Speaking of which..” Selim pointed to something up ahead with a free hand, approaching the site with his weapon at the ready. All around, it appeared as if it was just an otherwise placid background...save for one irregularity: a large object was in the middle of an apparently artificially-made clearing, and it was rusted, old, and huge. Upon closer inspection, it seemed to be little more than a pre-calamity wreckage of a strategic bomber, the livery practically chipped away. It’s national origin, however, was very clear: The flag of a Euphemie that once existed long ago was still on the tail, although the chipped red war paint on the wreckage, combined with the rust, gave it a sort of battle-scarred and bloodied appearance.
Nests of some exotic species of bird dangled from the wings of the large bomber, which, itself, was practically untouched, save for some graffiti spelling out something related to the end times in butchered Euphemian...as if they it already come nearly half a millennium ago.
"An SB-1979..." Erina's interest was much more set on the wrecked aircraft before them. "Wonder if it's still..." She trailed off, as if to study the aircraft — a visible sigh of relief on her part soon followed. "Reactor must've broken away with the rest of the fuselage. Probably sitting somewhere, if it hasn't been cleaned up already by now..." She thought to herself.
“You’re tellin’ me it was nuclear powered?” Leo asked, putting a hand on his chin. “Oh, yeah, I remember somethin’ about a Tangaliroan nuke-powered plane...maybe even a mummy one, too. Although I’d have to consult the experts,” His voice trailed off towards Selim’s direction as the Akhmanari continued clearing the area with methodical scans.
"Things could practically fly forever. Naturally some tried to escape the chaos of the Calamity... others in the middle of their bombing runs." Erina noted, looking up to the debris. "If only I could've been there to see it in its glory.. wow! Anyway, uh—"
“Yeah, we are stalling.” Kang muttered, checking his watch. “We haven’t even broken three miles, and objective was four mile from LZ.” Waving with his free hand, he stepped off, trudging ahead of the formation. “Keep going!”
Vrystaat Reinersland
People's Republic of Sinica | 华夏人民共和国
Trinity AESGR
Republic of Turmenista
