Bloodstained Rose

Chapter 23

Yulia had successfully managed to evade detection by moving deeper in the woods. With the added signal jamming technology afforded by Delta’s Gravitron Reactor, there should have been decisive victory in Nojiri. The casualties were starting to pile up on both sides, with the G.E.I. already having the tides pushed against them. Rei’s struggle against her was just enough to keep her away from the battle. The absence of her on the front lines gave the Liberation troops too much of an advantage. Still traveling on the outskirts, she eventually had located Delta floating above the forest.

“I need to board.” Yulia said to him using the Aether.

Delta started to lower to the ground, releasing the top hatch. With the possibility of victory being attained, she was going to need to use Delta to help make a comeback. Her vision had returned, but the battle against Rei had already taken its toll. Before she could board the machine, Rei had made her entrance once more. The young warrior stared towards her with her sword raised.

“We’re not done yet.” Rei said before rushing forwards.

Her battle robe and hair had started to shift to black as she locked in for another attack. In a flash, she had managed to close in and deliver one final horizontal strike. Yulia countered by shoving her staff forward to deflect the blade, forcing the two objects to smash into one another. Once the two collided, the staff in Yulia’s hands started to give way. Rei followed through, trying to exert as much momentum as possible to deal damage. The jet-black edge from her weapon had finally slashed directly through Yulia’s weapon, leaving her wide open to a follow-up step kick.

She thrusted her foot directly against Yulia’s chest, finally pushing her back towards Delta. As Yulia tumbled backwards, she clawed out towards the ground. The dirt scattered as her body continued to rip through the forest floor. Before rolling under Delta, she managed to finally catch herself and land on her knee. Rei kept on the assault. She tried once more to get in before feeling the gravity of the area start to push against her. Delta had focused the engine on her, but due to the distance, he was unable to hit her directly.

The invisible force instead launched Rei over into the trees behind her. Yulia instantly leapt upwards and sailed through the air towards the opening on top of the machine to board. Once she landed in the seat, the two made the necessary pairing to continue. The reactor inside of Delta started to hum once more, causing the ground immediately under it to collapse under its own weight. From here, the two made a turn for the town to tip the scales of victory.

The second and final gunship had finally dropped from the after receiving a concentrated barrage from several rifles below. Once it had struck the ground, a ball of fire rose from the hull before being drowned out by plume of smoke. Nomad and the others had managed to get a hold of a few rifles from the other fallen troops and launch their own counter offensive. After a hellish battle, they had taken control of northern front and set up a stronghold.

The library near the center managed to stand throughout the offensive and now had acted like a crow’s nest for the team. Its walls provided refuge for them to try and plan out the next stage. The sounds of gunfire in the distance only seemed to fade—becoming a stark contrast to the chaos that had consumed the town prior.

“Anybody wounded?” Judai called out after lowering himself to cover.

“Doesn’t look like it,” Nomad returned after glancing over to the troops. He looked over to Megumi to see her lift her thumb to him before looking back down to Tetsu and the rest. “You guys ok?”

“We’re fine,” Rowan shouted back. “What are we supposed to do now?”

“We should definitely hold this position for now,” Judai spoke up. “The battle looks like it’s calming down, somebody is bound to come back here soon.”

“Rei’s still out there.” Tetsu said, cutting the two off.

Upon hearing the name, Nomad started to remember the shelters again. He looked back over to Tetsu, trying to recall the name.

“Did you say Rei?” he asked.

“Do you know her?” Tetsu replied as his face lit up. The name caused Judai to tilt his head towards them.

“It’s a name I haven’t heard in a while,” Nomad said. “I didn’t think I’d be meeting so many familiar faces today.”

“Back in Kashmir, Mizumi’s kid.” Judai spoke. Nomad perked up and looked over to him, letting out a quick laugh.

“You really were one of the kids, we know each other.”

“Yeah, I was skeptical at first,” Judai began to lower his head, still recalling the old days. “I couldn’t be sure.”

“Then tell me, Shirow is still alive, is he?”

“Yeah, he’s still out there. If we make it back, I’m sure he’d be happy to see you.”

Nomad’s face had lit up with joy. Knowing that his brother was still out there fighting had given him even more incentive to continue forward with Liberation. The life ahead would be a struggle, but he knew it wouldn’t be much different than Kashmir. Being able to see Mizumi and Shirow once more would help fill the emptiness continuing to tear away at him.

“This has been a bizarre reunion.” Megumi said.

Judai had turned his attention to her and asked, “You’re General Kawaguchi’s kid, right?”

“Yeah,” she muttered, looking somber. “That’s my situation.”

“Who would’ve seen that coming?” Nomad cut in.

He looked over to her, giving her a quick tap with his elbow and a smile. Megumi’s face started to turn red, causing her to reach her turn away. Judai started to scan the streets outside, quickly taking notice of the UAZ. The vehicle had still been beat up from the recent fighting but remained functional enough to drive. It started to make its way from the north and towards the library.

“That’s the major!” Judai shouted to them.

The rest of the team lit up with a mix of surprise and fear. While Judai started to make his way down the steps of the second floor, Tetsu took a moment to catch his breath. Watching his father get killed by one of Paxton’s hired guns continued to scratch away at him. He held his tongue and stayed calm as Judai had started to flag down the UAZ. Moments later, Paxton had entered the library with his clothes still covered in dust from the aftermath of the battle. The distant sound of gunfire started to erupt once more before being drowned out by a faint humming sound. Nomad looked over to him to see his determined eyes and recognized the glare as somebody who had weathered the storm of battle—one not ready to yield. Paxton started to approach him, ignoring Judai’s initial reports.

“Nomad, was it?” Paxton asked.

“Yeah, that’s right.” Nomad replied.

“There’s something really big about to come and I need you to get me to the Mobile Carrier.”

“What do you got planned?”

“That thing has a rail gun onboard and we’re going to need it to take out the enemy weapon.”

“Delta.” Megumi chirped.

The faint humming sound started to become much more focused now, alarming the crew. Paxton stepped over towards the front door of the library and looked over towards the forest to see the black metallic sphere starting to emerge from the trees.

“There’s another RPG around here we can shoot at it,” Paxton declared with his usual drawl. Nomad and Megumi started to approach him with their weapons, causing him to snap back at them. “I’m not sure if that will work, but we need you to activate the onboard weapons of the Mobile Carrier if we want to have any hopes of stopping this. Can you do it?”

“You really want us to go back out there?” Nomad asked.

“We need you back out there, so grab your shit.”

“Let me go too,” Megumi spoke up. “I’m the one who can override the automated defenses and allow us to aim that rail gun.”

“Alright then, you two come with me,” Paxton said before waving them towards the UAZ. As he started to walk towards it to mount up, he turned back to Judai and the other and concluded, “You guys keep the big guy busy.”

Without wasting any more time, he and the other two had loaded up in the UAZ and started to speed off. Tetsu had decided to exit the library once they had gotten a glimpse of Delta. The black spherical monstrosity had already begun to enter the edge of the town. The otherworldly creation had brought Tetsu distress as he watched the buildings below it starting to crumble.

Delta continued into the town. The Gravitron continued to act like a giant invisible press, crushing any person or thing in range. The ground forces had been forced into retreat. At this point, the gravity had become so disrupted that their weapons had lacked the speed to even hit Delta. It started to sail towards the library and past the market, leaving more destruction in its wake.

Tetsu could not bear to watch any longer. While he and the others had made their retreat southward to possibly regroup, he finally stopped and looked back towards it. Tomo and the others had to have been somewhere safe by now, but there were still other troops on the ground trying to offer resistance. If he did not stand with them now, there would be nothing left his family to return to. With that, he turned back towards Delta and charged in. Once Rowan had noticed him moving in, she immediate began to pursue him.

“Hey, wait up!” she shouted to him.

Judai stopped in place and looked back at the two as they rushed towards the machine. While clutching his rifle, he looked over to Kismet completely flabbergasted by the situation.

“You know, I wasn’t expecting to kick the bucket today.” Judai said before turning away to join them.

If they didn’t stop Delta and the G.E.I. here, they would just have to fight again with lesser numbers later—an unacceptable outcome to say the least. There would be no getting away from Nippon or going back to the Deck Hall if they lost here. Kismet stared on at the three while they continued forward, shaking her head. She had wondered if it was bravery, or insanity that gave them the push to move on.

I can handle crazy, she thought to herself. This isn’t any team; this is my team.

She chased after the three to try and do battle. The closer the team got to Delta, the sound of humming became much more intense. They managed to keep enough of a distance to not get pinned by the reactor, but still had been at a loss of how to keep it from moving forward. Within minutes, the enemy weapon was already able to take out several blocks, only continuing its path of destruction.

Inside of Delta, Yulia continued to float around in the cockpit as the forces of gravity remained disrupted. She had gotten close to Tetsu and the others to finally attack. Before taking notice of Tetsu and his crew, Delta had been struck by another volley of rounds. Scattered throughout the building ahead, she could detect Liberation troops posted. The spread of the rifles would have made a quick sweep impossible, so she took a moment to calculate the next plan of action.

“Delta, prepare to reverse the polarity; let’s clear the town.” Yulia said.

“Affirmative, reversing polarity.” Delta echoed back.

There was another reaction from the inside. Yulia’s body jerked in the air as the gravity started to fluctuate. Beneath the machine and towards the ground, the flattened structures started to pull themselves upward. Delta had started to act like a black hole, sucking in the debris from the devastated town.

Several-hundred yards away, Tetsu and Rowan had been stopped in place after feeling the power of the Gravitron Reactor starting to grab hold of them.

“We gotta go back.” Rowan said to him before grabbing onto his hand.

The two watched as the buildings ahead started to rattle. Debris close by started to lift from the ground and towards the machine.

“Run, run.” Tetsu repeated, gasping at the sight.

Just as they turned back to make a break for cover, Judai and Kismet had finally caught up only to have to circle back.

“Yeah, fuck that.” Judai shouted once he noticed the danger.

The four continued on as fast and as far as possible, but the Gravitron Reactor had started to amplify its range. While in the sprint, Tetsu noticed up ahead that the ground had started to incline. On the other side of the incline was a drop that led down into the valley. They all in unison dived over the edge of the hill in a desperate attempt to escape. However, they had acted just a moment too late as the gravity around them started to destabilize. During their freefall, an invisible force had consumed them and pulled them back into the ridge, finally pinning them against the dirt.

Tetsu tried as hard as possible to pull himself away, only managing to lift himself up no more than a foot before being pulled back in. All four had been completely locked in place as gravity continued to pull them into the side of the ravine. Before they could lose consciousness, the hold started to cease. The continuous fire from the other troops managed to draw it away, finally releasing the team from their pin. All at once, they were sent tumbling back down into the ravine, frantically clawing towards the dirt to try to stop the descent. After a long roll to the ground, the crew was left in a daze as they tumbled into the grass below. Tetsu’s head continued to spin. He barely managed to get to his feet before feeling a hand grab onto his yoroi.

“Come on, let’s go.” Rowan said to him as she wrapped her arms around him.

Tetsu found standing much more difficult as the wounds from the previous day lingered on. Blood started to stream down his mouth, his vision continued to blur. The battle had since pushed him past his limits.

“What are we going to do?” he asked her while struggling to lift his head.

“We gotta keep moving before it attacks again.” Rowan replied.

“I second that!” Judai shouted as he came around to the other side to help prop Tetsu up.

Kismet followed behind as close as she could. Once again, they had found themselves even further away from the gravity weaponry and in the clear. It was unclear whether Paxton and the others had made it in one piece to the Mobile Carrier, but they had to find some way to keep Delta from continuing his rampage. The sound of houses and other buildings being torn apart had been something akin to a tornado. Debris continued being pulled into Delta’s body, eventually covering the machine like a cocoon. Judai and Rowan continued to drag Tetsu away from the town. The humming of the Gravitron Reactor continued in the distance, only adding more distress.

“Alright guys, we need a plan.” Rowan said as she looked over to the crew.

“The major said something about a rocket. Can we still try that?” Kismet asked.

“It’s worth a shot, but I don’t know if our weapons can even hurt it.” Judai replied.

They stared back to the town, watching Delta continue his rampage. Tetsu leaned forward, mustering what little strength he had to try and speak.

“We have to try something.” Tetsu declared.

“Well,” Judai raised his hands and dropped them rapidly before continuing, “are we going to try and bounce a rocket off this thing or what?”

Rowan and Kismet both shook their head in agreement. They both had realized the futility of the situation but were not going to give in.

“So, what’s the plan?” Tetsu asked, groaning as he spoke.

“We find a rocket launcher,” Judai said bluntly before pointing to Delta, “and we shoot the thing.”

Mezrich had not been able to move an inch after getting his legs pressed in by the Gravitron Reactor. The receiver had since gone silent after the battle had picked up. It was a miracle that the emergency call had even managed to work with Delta so close. After the last half hour or so by himself, he could no longer hear the gunshots. As he started to phase in and out of consciousness, the sound of the UAZ’s engine slowly began to fill the room. Moments later, he could hear Paxton’s familiar drawl barking orders towards the others, causing him to perk up.

“Major, I’m in here!” He finally screamed, trying to hold back a few tears.

Once Paxton had entered the side hatch, Mezrich had finally felt relief seeing him in the flesh.

“Well, shit, you’re fucked up.” Paxton said to him, observing the damage.

Mezrich’s legs had no feeling left and had appeared mushy, almost gelatinous now. While Paxton leaned down to try and apply first aid, Nomad and Megumi were quick to rush past him and towards the control panel of the Mobile Carrier.

“Alright, this thing is going to need to warm up a minute,” Megumi said to him while furiously starting to flip the switches across the panel. “Engage the fuel line, wait two seconds, and then hit ignition or you’re going to overpower the engine.”

“I thought you never got to drive one of these?” Nomad returned after pushing the lever to his left.

“Never said I did.”

“Oh, well you must be excited.”

“Very.” Megumi finally spoke while applying pressure to the throttle with her foot.

The inside of the Mobile Carrier rumbled as its several engines started to ignite. The treads on the side of the vehicle began to move, slowly pushing the massive vehicle forwards. There was a loud screech coming from them after being stuck in place for weeks. While they started to move in for a shot, Paxton had taken a knee over by Mezrich to try his best to treat his shock.

“Damn son, you took a beatin’,” Paxton finally spoke with a smirk. Now was not the time for humor, but in his head, he always had to find time—morale always came first. He stood up and walked back over to the control panel to give Megumi a nudge. “Which one of these turns on the rail gun?”

Megumi reached over towards the panel again, causing the controls continued to blink wildly with every keystroke. After a few moments, there was a loud hiss from inside the walls. The inside of the Mobile Carrier began to grind as the railgun on the outside had come to life. In the center of the controls, a small plastic mechanical control stick started to rise. The display ahead started to fill with static, slowly phasing together to create a small HUD for the weapon. It had been complete with its own crosshair, coordinates, and other values to help ensure the weapon’s accuracy.

“We should be at the proper height to give you the option to shoot at Delta within the minute.” Megumi said confidently.

She felt her heart to beat wildly. It was time to finally go outside the line and try and undo all the chaos she had helped orchestrate. Seeing Delta being used in a combat situation was something that remained outside of the realm of possibility. The lie that the G.E.I. had crafted for her since her use had since been shattered, and it was time to put an end to it.

“See if you can patch me in, I wanna send them a message.” Paxton ordered as brushed his finger across his moustache.

Nomad extended his hand to Megumi, finally asking, “Are you ready?”

She stared towards his hand nervously, blushing before reaching out to him. The two locked hands, finally feeling a new connection after the last few days together. It was time to enter a new life on the other side.

“Let’s send this thing to hell.” Megumi declared, cracking a smile as Delta started to come into view.