Memories of Blood and Sorrow
Part 2: Mock Battle
"So, they want to check out how I'll do in a mock battle?" Rinya asked.
Verossa steered the car through the gate and waved at the soldier who stood on guard. "Well, that's what the Brigadier-General told me." He smiled as he heard Rinya sigh. "Yes, Baskir has a very unique character."
"Ah! Sorry, Sir... I didn't meant to..." Rinya replied, blushing slightly.
"Don't worry about it, Lieutenant." Verossa stopped in the open space of the training grounds. "Here we are!" he said cheerfully.
Rinya left the car and let her gaze wander over the comb-shaped plates that were set into the ground. "A training space... Which environment do you think we will be fighting in, Sir?"
Verossa was now leaning with one of his elbows on the roof of the car. "I think a city was proposed. You may be in a disadvantage."
"So, he will have more cover..." Rinya said thoughtfully. But then, she gave Verossa a determined smile. "But, so will I. Don't worry, Sir. I can do this!"
Verossa chuckled. "Good to see that you are in high spirits. Ah! It looks like everyone is here now."
Another car was stopping right beside them. The driver left the car, and Rinya was slightly surprised to see that it was Elric. He nodded to both of them and continued to the rear of the vehicle to open one of the side doors and saluted as Brigadier-General Baskir alighted from the car.
"Investigator, Lieutenant!" Baskir said as he advanced towards them, Elric following closely behind. "What a pleasure to see you again." His smile seemed fake somehow as he shook Verossa's hand and returned Rinya's salute.
"The pleasure is all ours," Verossa answered for Rinya and himself, smiling like a fox. "Your Operative is ready, I see?"
"Of course he is!" Baskir said while patting Elric on one shoulder. Elric didn't move a muscle. "But, enough of the pleasantries. I'm sure we both have important matters to attend to. So, let's get started. Where is the technician!?"
"I'm here, sir! Sorry for the delay!" a young man in an overall of the maintenance staff said as he ran towards them. Rinya could now see that some spectators had gathered at the sidelines. She even spotted a medic team checking their equipment.
"Whatever!" Baskir's voice drew Rinya's attention back to the Brigadier-General. "Just bring this thing up, will you!?"
"Yes, Sir! Of course, Sir!" the technician said, quickly hammering his fingers on the holographic displays that hung mid-air in front of him. Rinya saw that Baskir didn't lose even one quarter of his 'charm' since she saw him this morning.
The air above the comb-shaped plates shimmered and, out of nothing, a landscape of a ruined city took shape. Urban Combat Grid Nr. 23, or whatever it was called.
Verossa cleared his throat and looked at Rinya first, then at Elric. "This mock battle will be executed in full Barrier Jacket. To provide equal opportunities, Operative Thorn's limiter will be released by one, to match Lieutenant Shuri's rank. Even if this is called a battle, please don't be reckless and have fun, understood?" he closed the announcement with a smile.
"Yes, Sir!" Rinya and Elric said simultaneously.
As they headed into the simulated battleground, Rinya watched Elric from the corner of her eyes. She was a little disappointed. She had hoped to talk with her new partner a little bit before the mock battle, but Elric seemed disinterested.
"Well... I'm in your care." Rinya tried to start a little conversation. Elric only looked at her and nodded. "Hm..." was the only sound he made.
Please... Give me a break! This will make working together harder than I thought, was the only thing that came into Rinya's mind and she sighed in defeat. But, he wasn't that distant when she met him for the
first time in Baskir's office.
No... wait... that wasn't the first time... she remembered.
Both of them stopped in the middle of a ruined central plaza and a holographic window popped up before them, showing a smiling Verossa Acous. "Okay... now that the both of you are here, we will get a little more into the details. The mock battle will have no time limit and it ends as soon as one of you is 'shot down'." The picture switched to a map of the environment, where two of the buildings were marked in different colours and had nametags on them. The red one was named 'Thorn', the green one 'Shuri'. "As you can see, these are your starting points." Verossa continued. "The battle will begin as soon you are in position. So, please get into your Jackets and head to your starting points, now."
Rinya took a deep breath. "Ok..." she said. "Are you ready, Windlanze?"
[Jawohl!] the device answered. [Anfang!]
It felt like she was surrounded by wind made out of green energy. Her clothing transmuted into green particles that dispersed in the wind like dust: first her uniform, then her underwear. The wristwatch that contained Windlanze was floating beside her, glowing in a bright green light and changing shape until it resembled the weapon that was used by the Belkan knights in Rinya's homeworld long ago. Rinya's body was then covered by the green particles again, which were now shaping around her a skin-tight, green-white bodysuit. A second breeze of particles formed her armour parts as Rinya reached towards Windlanze's shaft-like hilt. As soon her hand grasped her device, the energy around her dispersed.
Now, in her Barrier Jacket and with her device activated, she was ready for battle.
Elric was still staring at the map and the dot that was his starting position. Beside him, the energy that was surrounding Lieutenant Shuri stopped. She was now in full combat-gear and started to make some stretching movements. After she finished, she faced Elric, her eyes shining in excitement. "Yosh! Rinya Shuri A'Kalash, heading out!" With a gust of wind, she lifted herself into the sky and raced towards her starting point.
Elric shook his head slightly. From what he saw, she was a friendly and energetic person. It really was a shame. He raised his arms a little and looked at his hands, remembering what Baskir had told him. That he should 'go all out' and 'show that AAS girl what the Special Forces are made off'. He clenched his hands into fists. He didn't like it one bit, but Special Forces was the only place he had left, so he would do it. He closed his eyes. "Carnage..."
[Activation!] Elric fell into darkness as black and red fires consumed his uniform and the bandage that was wound around his right forearm and half of his hand. Blackness was oozing out from the veins that covered his forearm, forming and hardening like the carapace of an insect until it took the shape of the Cursed Device. In its centre, the dark metal slid open like the lids of an eye, revealing the red core. The fire that burned painlessly along Elric's body began to form the clothing, coat, and armour of his Barrier Jacket. As he opened his eyes, they flashed in a crimson light for one short moment. Then, the fire and darkness was gone.
Elric rolled with his shoulders and levitated himself a little into the air. "Elric Thorn, heading out," he said quietly.
===================
Rinya dived downwards as red bolts of energy smashed into the building she was flying past. She turned in mid-air, bursting through a broken window into the building itself only to leave it on the other side. She floated towards the side of the building and peeked around the corner.
Elric Thorn was hovering in the air with his magic circle glowing beneath him, the arm pointed at the building. A ball of pure magical energy was forming at the tip of his finger.
"Oh, crap!" Rinya darted to the side, away from the building. Not a moment too soon, as a red beam cut through the building, leveling it and raining debris into the air. Rinya dived out of the cloud of smoke and dust towards Elric, who corrected his aim and fired two globes of energy that Rinya could only dodge barely. Seeing what was coming next, Elric stretched apart his fingers and brought up a shield in front of him. Rinya reached him and smashed the heavy blade of Windlanze against his shield. Both were struggling against each other's momentum, but only for a moment. Rinya suddenly broke the contact and rushed away, starting to fly in a circle.
[Twilight Bullet -- Full Auto Fire] Carnage announced, and Elric sprayed a volley of bolts into Rinya's flight-path. But, the aerial mage gained more speed, leaving the trail of shots behind her.
"Windlanze!" she shouted. [Explosion!] the device answered and ejected two empty cartridges out of its hilt. [Sturmangriff!]
Suddenly, Rinya was a green flash that darted in Elric's direction. All he could do was to activate his shield and bring up his device between himself and Rinya as she reached him. The attack smashed into Elric like a gigantic hammer, and Windlanze broke through his defence. Elric hissed in pain as the lance-like device cut his arm. He was flung backwards and smashed through the wall of a building. Rinya floated above and struck out with her device.
"Wind Reaper." [Windschnitter!] the device ejected another cartridge, and Rinya slashed at the building Elric smashed into only moments before. The air rippled as a blade made of compressed air was fired into the building, smashing through the wall and destroying two floors at the same time.
Rinya searched the dust-cloud for suspicious movements. "Did I get him?" she asked herself as nothing was moving. Then, there was a sharp pain as something hit her in the back. There was a red flash of light and the sound of an explosion, causing her to tumble downwards.
What the...? she thought as she managed to break her fall. She looked upwards, and saw Elric floating above her.
How did he get there?
Elric rushed towards her, his device in Melee Mode. Rinya blocked the assault with her blade, but Elric followed through with a flurry of blows. He was too close to use Windlanze other than for defence. Rinya thought quickly, then pressed Carnage's claws to the side and swung forward, kicking Elric away from her. She boosted upwards now, trying to bring more distance between herself and Elric. Suddenly, something black was in front of her. She couldn't see if it was a black cloud or a rip in the sky itself, but before she could react, her adversary dived out of the blackness.
Teleport spell!? Elric slammed into her, flinging his arms around her and taking her into a grapple. Rinya tried to free herself, but Elric was stronger than she was, his arms against her body.
"Let me go!" she screamed and tried to smack her forehead into his face as both were tumbling towards the ground. Elric didn't even react to it. "I said...!" Rinya managed to free one of her arms. "LET ME GO!" She smashed her fist on Elric's cheek.
And again. And again. And again. And then, they reached the ground.
===================
Elric made a groaning sound as he pushed himself into a sitting position. He blinked and shook his head to get rid of the numbness. He was sitting on something. He looked down. It was Shuri, why was she...? The battle! Adrenaline rushed through his body again and made him wide awake. Elric brought Carnage quickly into position, pointing the tip of its claws at her throat. Rinya still had her eyes closed; in fact, she didn't move at all. Is this a trick?
Someone applauded. "Thank you, Operative Thorn. Lieutenant Shuri was 'shot down'."
Elric looked at the person who had spoken. Verossa Acous lowered his hands as he finished his small applause. A few steps behind him stood Brigadier-General Iskan Baskir, looking quite pleased. Verossa cleared his throat, bringing Elric's attention back to him.
"I'm sure you have your reasons, but would you please get off Ms. Shuri, so that the Med-Team may take care of her?"
[Device Mode.] Elric quickly stood up. Only now he realised that his whole body was aching. "Yes, Sir." Pain stung his cheek as he spoke. Unconsciously, he touched the side of his face that was hurting, and he could taste blood. "Sorry, Sir."
A medic shoved Elric out of the way so that a stretcher could reach Rinya. A short time later, Rinya was carried away, while the medic that shoved Elric checked him through. After the medic was satisfied that Elric only had minor injures, he advised him to put ice on the wounded side of his face and followed the others.
"She seems to be only unconscious. But, we will keep her in hospital, just to be sure," another medic was reporting Verossa.
Verossa nodded in relief. "Thank you, Sergeant. Please inform me when she wakes up."
"Of course, Sir," the medic answered and left.
Elric winced as someone patted his shoulder hard. "Well done, my boy!" Baskir laughed. "You showed them not to mess with the Special Forces. We will drink to this victory!" He turned to Verossa. "How about it, Investigator? Want to join us?"
"I fear I have other duties to attend to, Brigadier-General," Verossa declined politely.
"What a shame. I'm really curious if you can hold your liqueur." Baskir laughed again. "Now come, Elric, I know a good bar!"
"Yes, sir..." Elric sounded unhappy.
===================
With a small splash, the stone disappeared into the water. Elric let out a sigh and picked up another small stone. His head felt funny. He had a little too much alcohol, so he decided to walk back to the dorm. His path crossed a riverbank, and he simply sat down on the grass. The fresh air of the night was good and he was able to soak a handkerchief in the water, which he used to cool his cheek.
As the second stone followed the first, he let the mock battle pass in review, which led to a feeling of guilt as he thought about how he knocked Lieutenant Shuri out. She probably hated him by now, and somehow, he didn't liked that thought.
"Well... What a great way to start a partnership," he said aloud to himself.
"Thorn-kun?" a voice said behind him.
"Huh?" Elric looked over his shoulder to identify the speaker. Maybe it was because she wasn't wearing her uniform and didn't use his military rank, or it was simply the alcohol in his blood, but he needed a few seconds to realise that the girl was Lieutenant-Colonel Yagami carrying a small shopping bag.
"Ma'am!" Elric jumped on his feet, and instantly regretted it as he felt dizzy. "Ah, shi-" he swallowed the last word and rubbed his temple.
"Are you alright?" Hayate asked as she left the path and came down the grassy slope to the riverside.
"Yes, Lieutenant-Colonel," he saluted, but it was a little sloppy due to pain and alcohol.
"No need to be so formal, I'm not on duty at the moment," Hayate said as she stopped in front of him. Then, her eyes widened as she saw the dark bruise on his face. "What happened to you?"
"I think I'm a little drunk, Lieu-... Yagami-san." He misunderstood her. "But, I'm not on duty, too, so I think it's alright."
Hayate shook her head. "I can see that, but that's not what I meant." She sounded a little concerned. "I mean your face."
"Oh that... I had a mock battle today, Ma'am, but, I'm fine."
She gave him a strange look. "Yes, I remember, Verossa told me about it. You won, right?"
Elric let out a grim laughter. "Yeah... if you can call 'sending your adversary to hospital' a win."
"In hospital? Was she hurt that bad?"
"They said she was only unconscious, but they weren't sure." He shook his head and continued with a melancholic voice. "I totally messed up..."
"Accidents can happen in a mock battle, Thorn-kun," Hayate tried to cheer him up.
"But, it was not an accident!" Elric said with an sulky voice. "I grabbed her and smashed her into the ground. It was not the nicest thing to do, but I did it! Now, there is nothing I can do about it."
"You could apologise." Elric stared at Hayate after she spoke those words. She turned a little and looked up into the night sky. "You see, people often make mistakes and end up hurting each other, even if they don't want to." She looked back at Elric. "You said yourself that you 'messed up', so you could tell her that you didn't want to hurt her."
Elric avoided her gaze. "I don't think it is that simple."
"Maybe you need a little courage, but it is simple." She gave him a warm smile. "So simple that people forget about it."
"And what if she didn't care about my apology?"
"Then, at least she knows that you didn't want to hurt her. Isn't that better than letting her think you wanted to?"
Elric fell silent again. "I think you're right," he agreed after a moment.
"Good!" Hayate said happily. "So, you are going to visit her in the hospital tomorrow? I think you should bring her some flowers when you do."
"Huh?"
"That's only common sense, right?" Hayate now seemed a little caught up in her thoughts. "I remember that the first time I met Nanoha-chan and Fate-chan was in the hospital, and now we are best friends!"
"Err... Lieu- Yagami-san?"
"Don't worry, you'll be fine, Thorn-kun." She focused her attention back on Elric. "Well, If you need help, I can come with you."
"No, thank you, that won't be necessary," Elric said with a determined look, but only with the purpose to end the direction in which the conversation was taking. "I will go alone."
Hayate nodded. "I see. I hope she will accept your apology."
Elric was relieved, but then he remembered something. "Yagami-san?"
"Yes?" Hayate asked, slightly surprised.
Elric felt the blood rushing into his face. "Did Inspector Acous say something?"
Hayate gave him a puzzled look. "About what?"
"About something I said."
Now, Hayate smiled again. "Ah! You mean that I shouldn't feel sorry for letting you stay on stand-by? Yes, he did. Thank you, Thorn-kun."
"That's all?" Elric asked, now more embarrassed than before.
"What do you mean 'That's all?'?"
"Nothing! It was nothing... My mistake." Elric took a deep breath and smiled in relief. "Sorry for asking something weird."
"Don't worry about it," Hayate returned the smile, but suddenly her expression changed into panic. "Oh no! I nearly forgot!"
"What?" Elric asked, startled.
"Vivio-chan got some great marks in school and Fate-chan and I had the idea of baking her a cake and surprise her tomorrow morning. But, we were out of ingredients and I went to get some." She showed him the shopping bag. "I'm sorry, I have to go! Good night, Thorn-kun!"
"Oh, good night, Yagami-san." Elric watched as Hayate ran up the slope and disappeared.
Well, at least his head was much clearer now. Elric took a deep breath and stretched. "Flowers, huh?" Elric said to himself as he started to make his way up the slope.